A history of Montana, Volume III, Part 121

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883-
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 970

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In February, 1903, he came to Butte, and here he has resided ever since. During the first five years of his residence in this city he was in the employ of the Palmer Tailoring Company, and he then purchased the business of this company, and it has been continu- ously under his sole control and management from the time when he made the purchase. The establishment is located at 50 East Granite street, and is universally acknowledged to be one of the best and most progres- sive, up-to-date and satisfactory in this part of the country. Mr. Terczewski is its whole inspiration and

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directing force, and the excellence of its work, the breadth and height of its reputation and its wide- spread popularity are all due to his skill as a crafts- man and his fine business ability.

Mr. Terczewski takes a very active interest in pub- lic affairs, local and general. He trains and votes with the Republican party, and is one of its most faithful and effective workers in all its campaigns. Socially he is a member of the Polish National Alliance, and the organization of American Patriots, and fraternally. he belongs to the Fraternal Order of Moose. His religious connection is with St. Patrick's Catholic church, of which he is a devout and consistent mem- ber, and in whose welfare he is always warmly inter- ested.

On August 14, 1888, Mr. Terczewski was united in marriage with Miss Mary Jasinski, born in Poland. The marriage took place in Chicago and has resulted in one child, Frank Terczewski, who was born in that city on October 4, 1894. The father owns the fine fam- ily residence at 530-532 West Mercury street, and has other property in the city, as well as a very flourish- ing business. He was a poor boy and started in life for himself with nothing in the way of money capital, and all his success is the result of his own ability.

AUGUSTUS H. GRAY. The citizens of Indiana have made their voices heard in political matters both in their own state and to the west and the east of it, and Montana is indebted to the state for some of her best legal lights, and ablest public officials, among whom is A. H. Gray. Clark county was the place of his birth, and 1872, the year, July the month. His father, John A. Gray, was born in Louisville, Ken- tucky, and reared in Cincinnati. In those days the "back to the farm" movement had not begun, but Mr. Gray was ahead of his time, and realized the advan- tages of the agricultural occupation. Accordingly. he emigrated to Indiana and settled upon a farm in Clark county, which he worked profitably until his death in 1908, at the age of eighty-three. He was known throughout Clark county, not only as a successful farmer, but as a citizen who was a friend of progress, and all that makes for advancement of the general wel- fare. His wife was also born in Louisville in 1846. She is still living in Indiana where the most of her married life was spent and where her nine children were born.

Augustus Gray was the fourth child in point of age, and his early life was the usual one of the busy farm- er's son. He early decided upon the profession he would follow in life, and set about preparing for it. He graduated from the Southern Indiana Normal College first, and then spent some time in teaching, after the time-honored custom of those who plan to enter the legal profession. While teaching, Mr. Gray devoted his leisure to the reading of law, and in 1900, he went to the State University of Indiana and en- rolled in the law school. While in college, he displayed unusual ability in debate, and was a member of the Indiana University debating team, when Indiana tried conclusions with the debaters of the neighboring states. In 1902, he received his diploma and came west to begin his practice. For six months, he was in Oregon, but on January 1, 1903, he came to Great Falls, and put out his shingle here. He was success- ful from the very first and each year has seen him further advanced in the ranks of the men who give prestige to the profession in Montana.

A Republican in political convictions, he early be- came a factor in the local organization, in which his abilities as an orator, as well as his skill as a leader made him a valuable exponent. For four years he was a member of the state legislature, serving in the tenth and eleventh assemblies. When this service was finished, he was elected assistant county attorney of Cascade county, filling this office during the year 1908-

09 with characteristic efficiency. In May, 1911, he was elected city attorney, and in this office, has vigor- ously upheld the ordinances of the city, and pursued the violators of her laws determinedly. His work as city solicitor has commended him to the entire body of public-spirited citizens, who desire an efficient ad- ministration of municipal business. In 1910 Judge William Hunt appointed him as United States referee in bankruptcy for northern Montana-which appoint- ment was renewed by United States Judge Borquin in 1912.

Mr. Gray is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and a trustee of the same. He belongs to the Modern Brotherhood of America, and to the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is a past grand master.

Mrs. Augustus Gray, formerly Ida Wacasack, is the daughter of Frank and Emily Wacasack, of Great Falls. They were among the early comers to this section, and are among the best known families of Great Falls. Mrs. Gray was born in Milwaukee, Wis- consin and was married at Great Falls on September 12, 1907. Two children comprise the family of Mr and Mrs. Gray : a daughter, Geraldine Ida Gray, borr. July 5, 1909, and a son, Carl Augustus Gray, born in June, 1911, both in the city of Great Falls. Mr. Gray is one of the popular citizens of this district, socially, as well as politically and Mrs. Gray shares in the social prominence of her husband, not only as the mistress of his home, but for her own many qualities which fit her for her place in society.

THOMAS NELSON MARLOWE. Prominent among the successful and most highly esteemed members of the Montana bar is Thomas Nelson Marlowe, of Missoula, who has acquired a well defined knowledge of law. its technicalities and its application, and now holds high rank among the foremost attorneys of this section of the state, his talents and ability being widely recog- nized. He was born, August 24, 1880, in Carroll county, Missouri, where his parents, John T. and Sarah A. (Roselle) Marlowe, settled in 1852. His father was a Kentuckian by birth, while his mother was a native of Maryland, and are now residents of Mis- soula, Montana.

Growing to manhood in . Missouri, Thomas Nelson Marlowe obtained the rudiments of his education in- the public schools of Carroll county, being graduated from the high school in 1899. A year later, in the fall of 1900, he entered the law department of the Uni- versity of Missouri, where he was graduated in 1902, with a good record for scholarship. Going then to New Haven, Connecticut, he was graduated from the law school of Yale University with the class of 1903. A short time later, Mr. Marlowe began the practice of his chosen profession in Missoula, and has since built up an extensive patronage, his talents and ability easily placing him among the leading lawyers of Missoula county.

A stanch adherent of the Democratic party, Mr. Marlowe has taken a prominent part in public affairs. being especially active and efficient in campaign work, and in 1907 and 1908 serving as county attorney. He is identified with various beneficial and fraternal organ- izations, including the Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and Masons.

Mr. Marlowe married, at Hamilton, Montana, June 12, 1907, Nellie B. McMurray, who was born in Pal- myra, Missouri, and they are the parents of two chil- dren, Thomas Nelson, Jr., and Elinor.

THOMAS W. ROBINSON. It is a matter of gratifica- tion to the biographist and student of human nature to make a study of the career of a man who, in the face of almost insurmountable obstacles, has plodded persistently on and eventually, through his determina-

Ray Sayers.

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tion and energy, made of success not an accident but a logical result. Thomas W. Robinson, who main- tains his home at Conrad, Montana, is strictly a self- made man and as such a perusal of his career offers both lesson and incentive. He has been eminently successful as an attorney of recognized ability, has resided in Conrad since 1907, and has ever manifested a deep and sincere interest in all matters affecting the good of the general welfare.

Thomas W. Robinson was born in Taylor county. Kentucky, May 12, 1868, and he is a son of John Milton and Lucy (Williams) Robinson, both of whom were born and reared in Kentucky, where their marriage was likewise solemnized. The paternal grandfather of the subject of this review was a native of Virginia, whence he removed to Kentucky in the pioneer days. John Milton Robinson was a planter and slave owner in the old Bluegrass state in the ante-bellum days. He passed to eternal rest, at the comparatively early age of forty-two years. Mrs. Robinson died at Conrad, Montana, in 1911, at the age of sixty-one years. The Robinson family consisted of six children-five sons and one daughter-and of the number five are living, in 1912, the subject of this review having been the first horn.

To the public schools of Campbellsville, Kentucky, Thomas W. Robinson is indebted for his preliminary educational training and later he attended school in Bowling Green and Parkville, Missouri. For four years he was a student in Park College at Parkville, Missouri, and in 1903 he came to Montana, locating in the city of Great Falls, where he entered the law office of E. H. Hildreth, under whose able preceptorship he studied law, being admitted to the bar of the state of Montana in 1905. He initiated the active practice of his profession in Great Falls and in the fall of 1907 came to Conrad, where he has since resided and where he controls an extensive and lucrative law practice. He is attorney for a number of prominent business concerns here and has figured in many important liti- gations in the state and federal courts. In politics he is an unswerving Republican and he takes an active part in the local councils of that organization.

In 1898, at the time of the inception of the Spanish- American war, Mr. Robinson enlisted for service as a private in Troop B, Second Missouri Cavalry. He went to the front with his regiment, participated in a couple of engagements and received his honorable discharge September 8, 1898, on account of disability. Mr. Rob- inson had one dollar in his possession when he left home, at the age of nineteen years. He worked his way through school and managed to obtain a good legal education as the result of his own unaided efforts. In addition to his professional work at Conrad he is now farming an estate of one hundred and sixty acres, eligibly located two and a half miles west of Conrad.

In the city of St. Louis, Missouri, in September, 1895, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Robinson to Miss Allie P. Thomas, who was born and reared in Missouri. Mr. and Mrs. Robinson are the parents of two children-Herbert C., born July 25, 1897, at Farm- ington, Missouri; and Lucille Mary, whose birth occurred in Great Falls, Montana, October 4, 1907. In their religious faith the Robinson family are devout Presbyterians.

ROY E. AYERS. On August 27, 1912, Roy E. Ayers was nominated on the Democratic ticket for judge of the tenth district, and his election to the office duly followed on November 5th, winning the place with largest majority accorded to any man on the ticket in his district. Thus at the early age of thirty years, we find the subject of this necessarily brief review assum- ing the duties of judge of his district, in which he has been prominent as a lawyer since he was admitted to the bar in 1903.

Born in Fergus county, on November 9, 1882, Mr.

Ayers is the son of George W. and Etta (Sullenger) Ayers. The father was born in Iowa, crossing the plains, by wagon, to Oregon in 1868, and came to Fer- gus county soon after his marriage, which took place in 1880. Both are still residents of this district, and Mr. Ayers has large interests in sheep and cattle. Seven children were born to George W. and Etta Ayers, of which number Roy is the eldest. Mabel died at Forest Grove, in 1898. The others are: Thomas, engaged in the stock business in Fergus county; Olla married Louis Griffith, a well-to-do rancher of the county; the other children, Robert, Russell, and Lucille, still are sheltered by the parental roof.

The early education of Roy Ayers was secured in the public schools of his native community, but he early left school and began to work on the round-up. In 1898, when he was sixteen years old, his employer, Tom Shaw, was elected sheriff, and the boy came on to Lewistown to fill the position of night jailor or turn- key. While filling that post he took advantage of an opportunity to attend school in the city, and he was graduated from the Lewistown high school in 1900. In that same autumn he went to Valparaiso, Indiana, there entering the law department of that university, supplementing his legal studies with a thorough course in oratory, and duly receiving his degree from the insti- tution. On the 7th of October, 1903, he was admitted to the bar in Montana, since which time he has been engaged in practice in Lewistown.

The Democratic party found in Mr. Ayers a power- ful ally, and after he had been praticing for thirteen months he was elected to an office never before held by one of that party-the office of county attorney. He was re-elected to succeed himself in a second term, sufficient commentary upon his service being included in the simple statement of the fact. He was chairman of the county central committee of his party, and has served on the state committee for one term. He has served as a member of the state board of education, and has ably discharged his duties in that connection.

In speaking of the official career of Roy E. Ayers thus far in life, a Fergus county publication, prior to the recent election, said of him in part: "In 1904 the voters of Fergus county elected him county attorney by a handsome majority, and as an evidence of his efficient service as a public official, they re-elected him in 1906 by a still larger majority. As county attorney he made an enviable record, not only the best that Fergus county ever had, but his record stands today unchallenged in the state of Montana. He performed his duty as he saw it, impartially and fearlessly, al- ways hewing to the line and letting the chips fall where they would. He was the first prosecuting officer in Montana to enforce the anti-gambling law, and his ef- forts in that respect were highly commendable.

"Mr. Ayers possesses an excellent legal mind, and has had abundance of experience, and this, together with his fairness, level-headedness, and absolute hon- esty in dealing with his fellowmen, makes him excellent judicial timber.

"It must be admitted that his aspiration to become judge of this district is a laudable one. To be judge of the district of his nativity and to be supported for that high office by the people who have known him from his cradle, is an ambition worthy of honest effort. And one of the best things that can be said in his favor is that so many people who have known him all his life are so ardently supporting him. They have tried him : he has made good. It is an American principle to advance such men, and it is conceded that the next judge of the tenth district will be Roy E. Ayers." How well this prediction was fulfilled has already been in- dicated in an opening paragraph.

On June 7, 1904, Mr. Ayers was married to Miss Ellen Simpson, of Lewistown. Her father, John Simp- son, is a pioneer of the state, and was an intimate friend of Colonel Sanders. Mr. Simpson was one of

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the first men to make a business of transporting freight in this state, and both he and his wife are well known to all the old residents of the city.

Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Ayers. Eleanor, the eldest, is attending school in Lew- istown, but Arthur and Roy D. are still too young to have commenced their formal school training. Mrs. Ayers is a member of the Methodist church and takes a prominent part in the work of the various depart- ments of the church. Mr. Ayers is very fond of hunt- ing, and admits that he forces his business to offer him an opportunity each fall for a hunt in the mountains. He is a good shot and always brings home an ample quantity of choice game.

In addition to his membership in the Judith Club, Mr. Ayers is a member of the Elks, the Odd Fellows, and the Woodmen of the World. In the lodge of the Elks he has filled all the chairs and is now Past Ex- alted Ruler, in addition to which he is a member of the grand lodge of the order.

ROBERT IFF. Sanders county, Montana, figures as one of the most attractive, progressive and prosperous divisions of the state, justly claiming a high order of citizenship and a spirit of enterprise which is certain to conserve consecutive development and marked ad- vancement in the material upbuilding of this section. The county has been and is signally favored in the class of men who have contributed to its development along commercial and agricultural lines and in the latter con- nection the subject of this review demands recogni- tion as he has been actively engaged in farming opera- tions during the entire period of his residence in Mon- tana. He is the owner of a fine ranch of 160 acres, eligibly located 28 miles distant from Thompson Falls, and he is an enterprising agriculturist whose business methods demonstrate the power of activity and honesty in the business world. In the fall of 1910 Mr. Iff was elected treasurer of Sanders county and he is still incumbent of that important office, in 1912, acquitting himself with all of honor and distinction in discharging the duties connected therewith.

Robert Iff was born in Switzerland, January I, 1873, and he is a son of John and Rosa (Trachsel) Iff, both of whom were born and reared in Switzerland and the former of whom died in 1878. John Iff was a very learned man and was a professor in the Govern- ment Seminary in his native land. Mrs. Iff is still living, at the age of sixty-seven, and she resides at Berne, Switzerland.

The first in order of birth in a family of five chil- dren, Robert Iff was reared to maturity in Switzerland, where he received his preliminary educational train- ing in the public schools of Berne. He finished the equivalent of a high-school course and for two years was a student in the Government Seminary. At the age of eighteen years, in 1891, he immigrated to America, settling first in Canton, Ohio, where he re- mained for a period of one year, working on a farm. In 1892 he went to Chicago and there followed rail- roading for the ensuing ten years, at the expiration of which he came to Montana, reaching this state in 1903. He immediately took up a homestead in Sanders county, near Trout creek, and with the passage of time he has improved the same until it is now recognized as one of the most attractive estates in this section. Mr. Iff is particularly fond of cattle and he loves the dairying feature of his ranch.

A stalwart Republican in his political proclivities, Mr. Iff takes an active part in the local councils of that organization. He has been a member of the school board in Sanders county for some years past and from 1908 to 1911 he was justice of the peace. In 1910 he was further honored by his fellow men with election to the office of county treasurer, a position he is incumbent of, in 1912. He is a valued and appreciative member of the Thompson Falls Development League

and is ever on the alert to forward all measures and enterprises projected for the good of the community and state at large. In a fraternal way he is affiliated with the Modern Woodmen of America and in his religious faith he leans toward the Zwingli Reform church of Switzerland.

At Wilmot, Ohio, March 29, 1904, Mr. Iff was united in marriage to Miss Elsie R. Schwartz, a daughter of John Schwartz, of Wilmot. Mr. and Mrs. Iff are the parents of four children, whose names are here entered in respective order of birth: Hilton, Robert, Jr., George, and Eddie. Hilton Iff is attending school at Thompson Falls.

Mr. Iff is an extremely well-educated man and is fond of good theatricals, music, singing and reading. He is very enthusiastic about Montana and cannot say enough about its opportunities and advantages. He says: "I have been in Montana over ten years and have found health, happiness and prosperity; why should I not be enthusiastic over the state? This part is especially fine for hay, grain and fruit and always a first-class market for dairy products. It would take a whole lot to induce me to surrender my ranch and leave Montana."

CHRISTIAN H. RATCHYE. Identified with Montana and other sections of the northwest throughout most of his business career, Mr. Ratchye is one of the leading business men of Whitefish. When he came to America a youth of about eighteen, he had little money, and has relied on his own ability and industry to advance him to prosperity and influence. His has been a successful career.

Christian H. Ratchye is a native of Norway, born Sep- tember 22, 1871, a son of Frederick C. and Anna (John- son) Ratchye. His father, who died in Norway in 1889 aged fifty-four, was a farmer and seafaring man. The mother came to America after her husband's death and is now a resident of Union county, South Dakota.

At the age of eighteen Christian H. came to America alone. His education had been obtained in the common schools of his native land and also in an academy, from which he graduated in 1889. He first located at Sioux City, Iowa, where he got employment as bookkeeper for James Sundy, an ice dealer, with whom he remained eighteen months. This experience gave him consider- able knowledge of business and prepared him for sub- sequent ventures. He next moved to Beadle county, South Dakota, where he homesteaded a claim, but after farming it awhile relinquished it. Seattle, Washington, was his next location in the northwest, and there he · entered the service of the Great Northern Express Com- pany, with which he was connected for eleven years, up to 1910. During this time he was messenger in the train service, and in 1903 his headquarters were moved to Kalispell. In 1905, when the division point was. moved from Kalispell to Whitefish, his residence was again moved to the latter place, which has since been his permanent home. In the fall of 1910, after leaving the express service, Mr. Ratchye established in White- fish a hand laundry on a small scale. This was the be- ginning of a business which he has developed to be one of the best of the kind in northwest Montana, known as the Whitefish Steam Laundry, the first and only estab- lishment in this line at Whitefish. His plant has com- plete modern equipment, and by reason of high-class work and service he has gained an extensive trade both in the immediate locality and in outside towns and counties.

Mr. Ratchye is a Republican and at times has taken an active part in politics. He is affiliated with the. Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen of the World. His place of business is at 128 Baker avenue, and he owns a comfortable home at 318 Kalispell avenue. Mr. Ratchye was married at Whitefish on November 5, 1905, to Miss Gay H. Colvin, daughter of John Colvin of

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Urbana, Illinois. Two children have been born to them -John Frederick on January 30, 1907; and Clarence Homer on January 19, 1912.

DAVID Ross. What is one man's loss is often only too truly another man's gain, and this is so in the case of David Ross of Kalispell, Montana, for on account of the ill health of his wife he removed from Illinois to Montana, and thus the Montana county to which he came, gained an enthusiastic and loyal citizen, and its citizens a warm friend. Mr. Ross is one of the most successful attorneys in the county. He is a man with wide experience, gifted with a naturally brilliant mind and the powers of clear and logical reasoning. He worked in the fields to earn money enough to take his law course, and this foreshadowed the propensity for hard work that was to remain with him in his later life. Some of his best work is done in his own study in the thorough preparation which he gives to all of his cases. He is interested in other things beside his profession, and is active in all the public affairs of the town, civic or social.

The great-great-great-grandfather of the present head of the family was Alexander Ross, who migrated from Ireland early in the eighteenth century and settled in what was known as the Chester Monthly Meeting (a Quaker Settlement) in Pennsylvania. In 1706 he mar- ried Catherine Chambers, of Chichester, Chester county, now known as Delaware county, Pennsylvania, and in 1713 he removed to Haverford in said Chester county, Pennsylvania. He lived there for two years and then returned to the Chester Meeting, and removed from thence to New Garden, said Chester county, Pennsyl- vania. "Jpon the division of this Meeting, in 1730, his residence was within the limits of what was called Not- tingham Monthly Meeting, Chester county (now Cecil county), Maryland, where he remained until 1732, when, he and a number of friends having obtained a grant of one hundred thousand acres of land from the governor and council of the state of Virginia, on the Opequon creek, in the Shenandoah valley, in what is now Freder- ick county, Virginia, Alexander Ross and his friends removed to this place and formed a settlement and es- tablished Hopewell Monthly Meeting. The children of Alexander Ross and his wife were: Mary, Lydia, John, George, Catherine and Albernia. John Ross, son of said Alexander Ross, was the direct ancestor of David Ross, said John Ross being married to Miss Lydia Hollingsworth on October 11, 1735. To them was born a son named David Ross, who married Miss Catherine Thomas on December 20, 1770. To this cou- ple was born a son named David Ross who, on Decem- ber 7, 1808, was married to Mary Janney at Fairfax, Lou- don county, Virginia. To this couple, on January 20, 1819, at Alexandria, Virginia, was born a son named John C. Ross, the father of the subject of this sketch. The house in which said John C. Ross was born is still standing in the city of Alexandria, Virginia, and is one of the substantial, old-time houses of said city. His edu- cation was received at the private school of Benjamin Hallowell, in Alexandria, Virginia. When about fifteen years of age, his father having died when he was quite young, he went to live with his aunt, the mother of Johns Hopkins, who founded the universities and hos- pital bearing his name, in Baltimore, Maryland, and entered the employment of Johns Hopkins, who was engaged in the mercantile business in Baltimore. In 1838 John C. Ross went to Cooper county, Missouri, where he taught school until the following fall of 1840, when he removed to Fulton county, Illinois. He was married at Table Grove, Illinois, on the 3d day of April, 1852, to Sarah A. Bartholomew, who was a native of this town. She was a daughter of John Bartholomew, who was the first postmaster of Table Grove, taking office in 1822. He was also one of the California forty-niners. Mrs. Ross was born on the 8th day of May, 1835, and died on the

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A history of Montana, Volume III, Part 121

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883- Publication date: 1913 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 970

Author: Sanders, Helen Fitzgerald, 1883-
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 970