A history of Montana, Volume II, Part 100

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883-
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1002

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Upon finding that he could not be a soldier he went to Burlington, Vermont, and there accepted a clerk- ship in a grocery store. He remained here for five years, saving his money and learning the business. His business ability early asserted itself, and at the age of twenty, he resigned from his clerkship, and opened a small grocery store of his own. Within four years he was doing the largest business of this kind in town, and was one of the wealthiest and most important citizens. At the age of thirty he was made alderman of the Fourth ward, which was normally a Democratic ward. He served a two-year term, and this was his introduction to the field in which he was later to play so prominent a part. He was a member of the fa- mous old Ethan Allen Engine Company of Burlington, and is yet an honorary member of the company. The freedom and 'the future which he saw in the great territories of the West had for some time appealed to him strongly, and at last, just after the close of his term as alderman, the old pioneer instinct fully awake, he set out for those unknown lands. The trip was made before the railroad had reached Butte, and it was by no means an easy place to reach. He arrived here on the Ist of June, 1881, and rough as the camp looked he saw its possibilities with half a glance.

He opened up a furniture store, and from the first modest beginning it grew in time into a large and prosperous business. Six years ago he retired from the mercantile life and went into the mining business, both as mine owner and as broker. In this business he is still engaged, and is known all over the state as one of the most successful brokers and authorita- tive men on mining questions. He has won and lost several fortunes since coming to Montana, but which- ever way the tide turns his equanimity is never disturbed. He now hopes to make another fortune before his active life is ended. He is not the type of man who cares for money as money: it is the making of it that interests him, the playing of the game. He is one of the most active stockbrokers on the Butte Stock Ex- change and during moments of excitement, he is one of the men who is watched most closely, for whichever way he moves, many are certain to follow. He is owner of several mining properties of great value, and is secretary and treasurer of the Butte Cable Copper & Gold Mining Company. He is also vice- president and director in the North Pacific Placer Mining Company. In both of these concerns he is a heavy stockholder.

In politics Mr. Chauvin has always been a steadfast Republican, and since 1888 he has taken a prominent part in the many stirring campaigns for which Mon- tana has become famous. He was a personal friend of the late Colonel Sanders, and was his guest in his Washington home a number of times. He was a warm and loyal friend of the late Senator Carter, and

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upon his death a letter which he wrote to the editor of the Inter Mountain, was one of the truest tributes paid to the politician, who, as Mr. Chauvin said, "one had but to go to Washington to learn how great a man he was among the big men of the nation." He also spoke of him as "a genial acquaintance, a warm friend, never so great as to overlook these little things that make life worth living and made him the big man he was." It would be very easy to turn the tables and apply these words to their author, for they are certainly true of him. He served as a delegate to many state, county and city conventions, and was a dominant force that helped to shape the destinies of the Republican party in the state of Montana. He is of too retiring a disposition to have ever thrust him- self forward, but he has been nominated for several county offices, and was one of the leading candidates" for mayor of Butte in 1892. He was defeated in the convention by only eight votes, which was a more bitter disappointment to his followers than to the candidate himself.

Mr. . Chauvin is a popular member of the social world of Butte. He has been an active member of the Silver Bow Lodge of Elks, No. 240, since the first years of its organization. He was one of the founders of the Canadian Institute, and for twenty years has been an active member of this, one of the oldest social clubs in Butte. He is one of the most noted sports- men in the West, and it would be hard to find his equal with a rod. The Inter Mountain published quite a lengthy article a short time ago, calling attention to Mr. Chauvin's prowess in this sport. The following extracts are quoted : "Mr. Chauvin, besides being a broker, is certainly an angler, and enjoys the sport ; to wade across fields of green grass, green trees, hear the whippoorwill and meadow lark sing is better than medicine, and he can't understand how millionaires basking and roasting in the East don't come out and enjoy the finest climate in the world. He has fished with one pole bought in 1885, and caught enough fish to load a car in streams within a hundred miles of Butte. He seldom speaks of his catches, but he can usually be found with more fish on the same stream than anybody. In five trips recently to Red Rock river he has brought home an average of forty pounds of dressed trout, grayling and whitefish, and takes pleas- ure in distributing the same to his friends."

Mr. Chauvin has traveled widely, in the United States and Canada, and such travel has broadened his mind, and given him an understanding of many conditions of men. He is a true lover of the best in art and literature, and his mind has had the best of training, through contact with some of the keenest thinkers of the day. He had a wide acquaintance over the whole country, and since casting his first vote for General Grant, he has known personally many of the men who have influenced the public affairs of our nation. Mr. Chauvin is a member of the Roman Catholic church, but is a man of broad views and tolerant attitude in mat- ters of religion.

The marriage of Joseph Chauvin to Caroline Ger- main, took place in Burlington, Vermont, in 1870. The mother and father of Mrs. Chauvin were old pioneers of Burlington, and lived there until they died at a ripe old age. Mr. and Mrs. Chauvin have one son, Charles Frederic Chauvin, who was born in Burlington, Vermont, in 1874. He was married in Boston, to Miss Derby, a daughter of Mr. Derby, who was the founder and proprietor of the famous Derby Desk Company of Boston. Charles F. Chauvin entered the employ of this company at the time of his marriage, and he has since continued in the office furniture business, at present being connected with a prominent office and bank furnishing house in New York City. He has two children, Doris Chauvin and Joseph Edward Chauvin. Mr. Joseph Chauvin also adopted his oldest

sister's child at the death of the mother, Carrie Anna Chauvin. The child in question was only fourteen days old at her mother's death, and she came to the West with her adopted parents in 1881. She has lived in the West ever since, having married W. L. Fant. of Butte, in 1891. They had one child, Beulah L. Fant, who is now the ward of Mr. Chauvin, for her father died in 1904. Mrs. Fant has since married W. M. Jermain, a prominent contractor, who resides at Missoula.

FREDERICK PAUL AUERBACH, president of the Central Meat Company, is one of the more prominent and pro- gressive business men of Great Falls. He is one who has made his own position in the business world by the persistent application of the many traits of sturdy Ger- man character which are his by right of birth, and adds one to the already long list of German emigrants who have made good in all walks of life in America.

Born in Saxony, Germany, Mr. Auerbach is the son of Frederick Paul Auerbach, Sr., a native German, who was a textile worker or weaver by trade, and who served in the German army throughout the Franco- Prussian war. The rough campaign life unseated his health in a deplorable degree, and after his return from the war he lingered through several months of illness and died in 1873, at the early age of forty-five years. His wife was Dorothy Anna (Wiese) Auerbach, born in Saxony in 1829. She is still living in her native land. Their son, Frederick Paul, Jr., was born April 18, 1865, and as a boy attended the public schools of his home town. When he reached the age of fourteen, his par- ents, in common with others of their class, apprenticed their son to the meat business, but he only remained in the shop for one year, and when he was fifteen immi- grated to America, alone, and dependent entirely upon his own resources. On reaching these shores, he pro- ceeded at once to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but the city did not appeal to him and he had a desire to see more of the country, particularly the westerly portion of it. In 1881 he came to Montana, stopping first in Missoula, where he found work in a meat shop. He remained in that city for five years, employed in various capacities, and while there took out his first citizen's papers. Al- ways a saving and industrious youth, the young man. after about six years in America, decided to visit his home once more, and he accordingly made the trip home and paid a pleasant visit to his mother and other members of his family. In a short time he returned once more to Montana, this time locating in Anaconda, and he again secured employment in a meat shop, where he remained for three years. In 1889 Mr. Auerbach went to Butte where he was employed for a number of years, coming from there to Great Falls, where he launched out in business for himself. He sold out in a short time, returning to Butte, but his better judgment soon brought him to Great Falls once more, and there, together with Mr. Frank P. Johnson, in 1894 he estab- lished the business since that time known as the Cen- tral Meat Company. The industry has grown apace, and has with the passing years developed into one of the leading establishments of its kind in the city, or indeed. in northern Montana. They conduct a wholesale and retail business, and the shop is in every way one of the most modern and complete known to the trade.

Mr. Auerbach has, despite the heavy demands upon his time by his business, been able to devote a considerable attention to civic affairs, and has been a member of the board of aldermen of Great Falls for twelve years. For six years he was president of the council, and in both capacities has been instrumental in bringing about many improvements and benefits in a municipal way. He is a Democrat in his political convictions, and with his fam- ily, is a member of the Lutheran church. He is a mem- ber of the Knights of Pythias, the Sons of Hermann, the Fraternal Order of Eagles and the Woodmen of the

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World. Mr. Auerbach is a man of action, and is espe- cially fond of outdoor life. He has acquired a consider- able amount of real estate in Great Falls and other points throughout the state, and is regarded as a man of some wealth.

In November, 1890, Mr. Auerbach was united in mar- riage with Miss Theresa Matt of Anaconda. Six chil- dren have been born to them, named as follows: Dora, born in August, 1892, assistant in offices of her father; Paul, born in 1894, in business with the father; Francis, born in 1896, also in the office of the Central Meat Com- pany; Theresa, born in 1899; Pauline, born in 1901 and Helen born in 1904, all are attending school in Great Falls.

J. C. ORRICK. The sheriff of Yellowstone county, J. C. Orrick, needs no introduction to the people of the Yellowstone valley. That he is well and favorably known is evidenced by the office with which they have honored him, and which he now holds and fills so acceptably. He was born September 15, 1872, at Ste- vens Point, Wisconsin, and is a son of Dr. John H. and Hattie (Nichols) Orrick, the former a native of Baltimore, Maryland, and the latter of Lowell, Massa- chusetts. Dr. Orrick was educated in the old Balti- more Medical College, and became one of the pioneer physicians and surgeons of Wisconsin, his field of practice being the town of Stevens Point. He served with distinction as a surgeon of a Wisconsin regiment during the War of the Rebellion, and on his return therefrom built up a large and lucrative practice, but his career was cut short by early death in 1876. He was a member of the Masonic fraternity. His widow survives him, making her home in Chicago, and their three children are all living: Carrie, who is married and living in Chicago: Nellie, the wife of Robert E. Gruwell, of Billings; and J. C.

J. C. Orrick was only four years of age when his father died, and when he was nine years of age he accompanied his mother to the home of his grand- father, Josiah Nichols, a pioneer of California and Idaho, who was then living at Junction, Custer county, Montana. His education was secured in the public schools of Miles City, Montana, and until 1894 he was employed on various ranches, at that time going into business for himself as a raiser of and dealer in horses and cattle. He was first appointed deputy county assessor in 1900, a position in which he served ably for one term, when he was made deputy sheriff under Sheriff W. P. Adams, and later acted in the same capacity under Sheriff James T. Webb. The latter was murdered in 1907, and in 1908 Mr. Orrick was chosen for the office, and the capable manner in which he handled the affairs and duties that devolved upon him caused the voters to return him to that position in 1910 and was the candidate of his party again in 1912. He has been one of the best and most popular sheriffs Yellowstone county has ever had, and the highest compliment that can be paid him is the general opinion among all who know him that he is a man who does his duty as he sees it, and that he is upright, fearless and absolutely sincere. Politically he is a Republican, and his fraternal affiliation is with Billings Lodge No. 394, B. P. O. E.

On January 25, 1897, Sheriff Orrick was married to Miss Cora Wear, who was born at Elko, Nevada, daughter of Robert G. and Louisa (McCutcheon) Wear, the former of whom died at the age of seventy-three years, in 1906, while the latter passed away when Mrs. Orrick was a mere child. Mrs. Orrick's parents were both natives of Missouri, in which state they were married. During the early seventies they removed to Nevada, where Mr. Wear engaged in stock-raising, giving the greater part of his attention to horses. Dur- ing the gold excitement they came overland to Mon- tana by ox-team, settling at Virginia City in 1865,

later returned to Nevada and in 1885 located near Miles City, Mr. Wear being engaged in raising horses and cattle until the time of his death. A Democrat in his political views, he served as county commissioner of Custer county for some time and in various township offices. Mr. and Mrs. Orrick have had two children : Jack and Cecille.

JAMES KING is another of those valuable citizens for whose contributions to our development we are indebted to our good neighbor, Canada. Eastern Ontario is the place of his birth and also that of his parents, Michael and Mary Young King, who still reside there. There were two girls and eight boys in the family and James is the second in point of age. Michael Young is a farmer, but his son did not follow that occupation after he grew up, although he earned his first money at the age of sixteen by mowing buckwheat for fifty cents a day.

Mr. King's education was received in the institu- tions of Canada, and it is therefore superfluous to say that his training has been thorough, for anyone familiar with the schools in our neighboring country is obliged to acknowledge that in educational matters, as well as in some other departments of national life, we might well pattern after our Canadian cousins. Mr. King graduated from the high school after finishing the pub- lic school, and then completed the teachers' training course, supplementing this vocational instruction by study in the Collegiate Institute. Three years were spent in teaching in the Canadian schools, and during vacation time he went to the Ontario Business College in Bellville, Ontario, from which he graduated. All this preparation was finished by the time Mr. King was twenty-one, and in May, 1882, he arrived in Butte, two months before his twenty-first birthday, which occurred on July 26.

When Mr. King first came to the city he obtained his first position as an accountant in a mercantile estab- lishment. Next he was associated with the Bell Min- ing & Smelting Company, and when he left their em- ploy it was to undertake the contract of supplying the Viola Mining & Smelting Company of Idaho with char- coal. Mr. King spent two years at this, but during that time he did not give up his legal residence in Montana. When he came back to Butte his first venture was a brick yard, and he also went into some mining projects, at which he worked for three years. He sold out his holdings in these in 1800, and went into the dairy busi- ness. He conducted this industry until he bought the Goldberg Building in 1896. Since that date Mr. King has been occupied in managing this property, which is one of the modern buildings of the city. A European hotel occupies the entire structure above the street floor and comprises the most modern as well as the leading business of its kind in the city.

On June 9, 1896. Mr. King was married to Miss Anna F. Schulze, daughter of August and Wilhelmina Schulze. The marriage was solemnized in Butte, but at the nresent time Mrs. King's parents live in Spokane. Both Mr. King and his wife are members of the Catholic church and take an active part in its work. Mr. King is one of the Knights of Columbus and one of the most popular members of that fraternity.

Political matters have claimed much of his time and attention. He is a firm believer in the principles of the Democratic party, and he has been a man of influence in the local organization. When Mr. Kenyon was mayor of Butte. Mr. King served under S. W. Graves as assistant city clerk. His party sent him to Helena as a member of the Eleventh legislative assembly and in that session he earned the gratitude of all friends of good government by introducing the Anti-Pool Room Bill. of which he is the author.

During his college days Mr. King took a prominent part in athletics, and was known as a football and a

Jones King

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baseball player, besides being excellent at La Crosse. He retains his fondness for all these games and he has never lost his college habit of reading. He has col- lected a library which is for use and not for furniture only, as the friends who frequent the home of Mr. and Mrs. King at 1039 Alluminum avenue can testify.

JOHN H. DUFFY. Holding high rank in his profes- sion, and with a record of achievement to which he can justly point with satisfaction, John H. Duffy may with perfect propriety be called one of the leading attorneys of the city of Anaconda. He is a Californian by birth, and in all his life has shown himself thoroughly imbued with the western spirit of activity and progress.

Mr. Duffy was born in Sacramento, California, on March 4, 1859. The foundation of his education was laid in the public schools of his native city and he finished this with a course in a business college from which he was graduated when he was seventeen years old. He did not take up the profession of the law until 1876, when he began the study of Blackstone, and on August 13, 1882, he was admitted to practice by the supreme court of Montana territory. He immediately swung his shingle to the breeze, and success was not long in coming to him. He practiced at Butte, Mon- tana, until 1895, when he removed to Anaconda. His ability was promptly recognized in this city, both pro- fessionally and personally. He became active in public affairs, made speeches for the Democratic party through the western part of the state and was elected county attorney, in which office he held the confidence of the people for two terms. Returning to private life he rapidly built up a practice, and now holds a position . preeminent in county and state. One of his dominant ideas is that the judiciary should be entirely divorced from politics.

Mr. Duffy's wife was formerly Miss Martha Welch, of New York. She came west in childhood and was raised in Montana. Shortly after her mother's death her father located in Michigan, where he was a suc- cessful farmer. Two children have been born to the household of Mr. and Mrs. John Duff; Katherine Emilia and Floy Marie Duffy.

Mr. Duffy's father was born in Ireland, and came to the United States when a youth of eighteen, settling in California. He was prominent in the transfer and teaming business at Sacramento, where he died in 1893. Mr. Duffy's mother was Katherine Smith, born in Ireland. She is now living with her son and is enjoying good health though eighty-seven years of age. Mr. Duffy had five brothers and sisters.

The owner of a handsome home in Anaconda and in the enjoyment of the best of health, John H. Duffy, is one of the leading citizens of Anaconda, and. in spite of his age is a deep student of the law and of history. His life has been a successful one and he holds high place in the regard of his fellow citizens.

JAMES HENRY LYNCH. One of the representative citizens of Butte, Montana, and a man who has been prominently identified with the building up and develop- ment of that city, has been for nearly one-third of a century variously connected with her business interests, and as a public official has rendered valuable service in every capacity that he has been chosen to fill. Mr. Lynch was born at Galena, Illinois, on the 11th of April, 1853, in which section of that state the family were pioneers. His father. John Lynch. was a native of County Fermanaglı, Ireland; was born in 1814. and was a young man of twenty years. when he came to America with his father. Terry Lynch, settling at Galena. Illinois, prior to the Black Hawk war.

In Galena, Jolin Lynch became intimately acquainted with and a warm personal friend of U. S. Grant, after- ward the successful general of the Union army and still later president of the United States. In Galena, also,

he was married to Miss Mary Manley, and there a number of their children were born.

In Galena the father worked in the mines until 1869, when he moved his family to Vermilion, South Dakota, where he was one of the pioneer settlers of the country. There he became the owner of a large ranch and engaged extensively in raising live stock for the markets. He and his sons took up an aggregate of 3,000 acres of government land, and this estate, which is now very valuable, is still in the possession of the family. The father died in 1881 and the mother in 1884, universally and highly respected in all parts of Clay county, South Dakota, the place of their last residence in this country, and in every other locality in which they were known.

James H. Lynch was the second born in a family of ten sons, being educated in Galena, Illinois, and gradu- . ated from its high school in 1869. He accompanied his parents to South Dakota in that year, and, for some time after his arrival in the state, taught in its public schools. He began his business career at Ver- milion in that state as a salesman of agricultural imple- ments and a purchaser and shipper of grain and kin- dred commodities for the firm of Thompson & Lewis, with whom he remained from 1874 to 1876. In Decem- ber, 1876, he moved to the Black Hills, at that time a part of the Sioux Indian reservation and under military rule. Mr. Lynch was one of a party of 300 who made this peaceful invasion of the Indian lands, and the journey was made from Yankton by way of Fort Pierre. He associated himself with Messrs. Dudley, Caldwell & Company, who erected the first saw mill operated in the Black Hills region, and of this he had charge for two years. After that he was under sheriff of Lawrence county, South Dakota, for two years and deputy county assessor for an equal length of time.

In February, 1882, Mr. Lynch came to Montana and located in Butte, where lie became manager of the extensive lumber business of Messrs. Parron, Wall & Company, of which he was in charge until the fall of 1883. At that time he moved over to Anaconda, which was then a city of tents. There he represented the Montana Lumber and Produce company, and also united with Giles Brownell in establishing the first livery stable in the city. In addition, he formed a partnership with C. W. Mather, under the firm name of Lynch & Mather, and together they opened and conducted the Homestake Hotel, an extensive hostelry with accommodations for five hundred guests. In the winter of 1883-4 he dis- posed of all his interests in Anaconda except his real estate, and went to Eagle City in the Coeur d' Alene region, which was then attracting the attention and thrilling the heart of the whole world through the rich deposits of gold found in it. He found life there one continual succession of hardships, with the necessaries of existence held at fabulous prices and difficult to attain even for them. On one occasion he was obliged to pay one dollar for the privilege of sleeping in a pit covered with snow, and other requisites were in proportion. But he had gone to the wild region for business and he determined to brave its dangers and endure its privations for a time at least. He became interested in and manager for the Eldorado Mining company, and continued to look after its business for a number of months, trying as the situation was.

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A history of Montana, Volume II, Part 100

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883- Publication date: 1913 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1002

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883-
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1002