A history of Montana, Volume III, Part 145

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

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WILLIAM JENNINGS TIGHE. Among the prominent young attorneys of Great Falls eminently deserving of mention in a historical and biographical work on the state of Montana, William Jennings Tighe ranks fore- most. He was born at Independence, Iowa, on July 6, 1878, and is the son of Frank and Elizabeth (Eagan) Tighe. The father was a native of Ohio who came to Iowa while a young man and there settled on a farm, attaining an unusual degree of prosperity during his life- time. He died at his home in that state in 1882 at the age of forty-two years. The mother was also a native of Ohio, and she moved with her family to Iowa when a young girl. She died in 1889.

William Jennings Tighe was an attendant at the public schools of Independence, and after completing the course of study afforded by them, took a collegiate course in the Upper Iowa University, and was graduated therefrom in 1903. After leaving college he became su- perintendent of schools for Iowa and later filled a sim- ilar position for the state of North Dakota, during which time he represented the states of Iowa and North Dakota in oratorical debates. He retained these positions for a period of five years, and in 1908 came to Great Falls, Montana, there entering the legal profession, for which he had prepared himself in the previous years, and having taken his law course in the University of North Dakota, graduating therefrom in 1909. He took as a partner one Mr. Gullickson, since which time they have enjoyed a high degree of success and have built up a wide and lucrative practice.

Mr. Tighe was one of seven children born to his parents, he being the sixth in order of birth. The en- tire family of seven are living, brief mention of them being given here. Frank is a member of the legislature of Wyoming. Ira is a farmer in Iowa. Barth is farm- ing in South Dakota. Mrs. Margaret (Tighe) Delaney, of Iowa. Mrs. Mary (Tighe) McIntyre, also of Iowa, and Miss Teresa Tighe, a teacher in the public schools of Seattle, Washington.

Mr. Țighe is a Republican in his political convictions, and was the only Republican from Cascade county elected to the legislature. He is deputy county at- torney, having taken his office the first Monday in Jan- uary, 1912. He is a member of the Catholic church. He is connected in a fraternal way with the Knights of Columbus and is grand knight of the Great Falls Council, and district deputy for the state of Montana. He is also a member of the Order of Eagles, in which he is an officer, and is a member of the Phi Delta Phi, his Iowa college fraternity. He is a member of the Bar Association of Great Falls, and is one of the more prominent and popular members of his profession in Cascade county.

ERWIN E. KEMP. A young man of ability, integrity and college education, Erwin E. Kemp, the efficient and accomodating postmaster at Ryegate, Montana, is one of the many men who have found opportunity in the commonwealth of Montana and who each year grow firmer in their faith in a great future for this state. He

came to Ryegate in 1908 to open the station there for the New Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railroad and continued as agent there until March, 1912, when he resigned to give his whole attention to his ranching in- terests near Ryegate and to his duties as postmaster of that place, of which office he is the first incumbent.

Mr. Kemp was born at Tipton, Iowa, September 23, 1875, and lived there until about twenty-four years of age. His earlier education was acquired in the district schools of Cedar county, lowa, and in the graded schools at Tipton, and his college education was ob- tained in Valparaiso University, Valparaiso, Indiana. where he spent three years. He was about twenty years of age when he took up the study of telegraphy, though he had earned his first money when a lad of twelve years, and had continued to be employed in various ways until he entered the railroad service. His first position as telegrapher was at Morning Sun, Iowa, where he be- came night operator, and following that he became joint agent in Floyd county, Iowa, for the Rock Island and the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroads, continu- ing in this position four years. He was then succes- sively stationed at Buchanan, Iowa, one year and at Plato, Iowa, one year and then in 1908 came to Montana and entered the service of the New Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railroad as station agent, which posi- tion he continued to fill until his resignation in March, 1912.

He was married at Tipton, Iowa, on July 25, 1901, to Maud, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Darius M. Culver, of that place. A daughter, Waiva M., has been born to this union and is now attending school. Both Mr. and Mrs. Kemp are members of the Christian denomina- tion and the latter is a member of the Ladies' Aid Society of that church in Ryegate. Mr. Kemp is a mem- ber of the Knights of Pythias, and of the Ryegate Com- mercial Club, and served as the first president of the latter organization. He is also president of the Ryegate school board. The Republican party receives his polit- ical preference, and he is actively interested in its work. As is usual with college men, he enjoys athletics and all kindred diversions, and in every respect is a worthy representative of the alert and energetic Ameri- can citizen of the day.

WELLINGTON H. MEIGS is a representative of a fam- ily which has won distinction in various fields, and has given soldiers and statesmen to the country since 1638, when its first American branch was established at Guilford Courthouse, Connecticut. Wellington H. Meigs was born on March II, 1871, at Fort Gibson, Indian Territory. Not long afterwards, his parents moved to Siloam Springs in northwestern Arkansas, and here Wellington grew up and received his elementary and secondary education. For his legal training, Mr. Meigs attended the State University of Missouri at Columbia, and finished in 1895. He then returned to Siloam Springs, and for a time practiced there and in Indian Territory. He did not remain here long, but went to Sioux City, Iowa, where he opened an office for him- self. From here, he went to Chicago, to accept a posi- tion in the contract department of a large concern of that city, and in 1908, left Chicago for Montana. Here Mr. Meigs took an office in the Conrad Bank building, and began his work as an attorney. In the short space of four years, his energy and ability have secured him a lucrative and a growing practice.

James Madison Meigs, the father, was born in Dan- ville, Kentucky, in 1843. He lived but thirty-three years, as he had lost his health in the Civil war. Four times, during his term of service, he was out on fur- lough on account of his health, and when mustered out, a sergeant major. He remained until the close of the war, and was with General Banks in a number of en- gagements, including the Red River campaign, in which every officer was killed. When he returned from the

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war, he went into the drug business, and was so en- gaged at the time of his death. His wife was Nannie E. Chilton, born in Mercer county, Kentucky, in 1844, and now residing in Montana with her son, Wellington Meigs. Her other son, R. V. Meigs, is a Baptist min- ister, and is now pastor at Urbana, Illinois. The only daughter, Grace Meigs Ruegnitz, her husband being Dr. Louis H. Ruegnitz, of Denver, Colo. Richard Holt Meigs, the grandfather of Wellington Meigs, was one of the pioneers of Kentucky. He was a merchant by occupation and owned a store before the war, which made him a wealthy man. The sturdy stock to which he belonged had endowed him with a magnificent physique, and to the end of his life he was an active and hale worker. He died at Siloam Springs in 1898, at the age of eighty-four, while on a visit to one of his sons there. Mrs. Meigs' family, the Chiltons, were early colonists in Kentucky.

Mr. Wellington Meigs is unmarried, and his home is with his mother. He is a man who is somewhat re- tiring in disposition, and who is devoted to his home. He is very fond of reading, and has a discriminating taste in literature. He is a blue lodge Mason, and senior warden of his lodge. Politically, he is a Repub- lican. He was elected county attorney on the Republican ticket Nov. 5, 1912, and will take office first Monday in January, 1913. Although rather fond of a quiet life, he is not one who is inactive or who enters into under- takings half-heartedly, as those who know his profes- sional record can testify .. In the brief period of his resi- dence in the city, he has not only gained a footing in the legal profession, but has made many friends among the acknowledged leaders of the community.

EDWIN J. GREER. Born in Pontiac, Michigan, on June 14, 1874, Edwin J. Greer prepared for college in the pub- lic schools of his native city. He then entered the Col- umbian University at Washington and graduated from the literary department in 1900. With this broad aca- demic foundation, Mr. Greer began his professional studies at the University of Illinois, some years later, and in 1908, the degree of Doctor of Medicine was conferred upon him by this institution. The same year as that of his graduation, Dr. Greer came to Montana, and remained in Butte for a half year, but in 1909 he opened his office in Great Falls and has now built up a large practice, and made a reputation for himself in medical circles. Dr. Greer is considered one of the best informed physicians in this section of the state, and he is regarded as an authority in cases demanding expert opinion. He makes it a rule to keep in touch with all the recent advances in methods of the treatment of disease, and with the wonderful work in the domain of surgery.

Dr. Greer is an only child and unmarried, so that he has not many family ties. He has, however, many friends, both among the members of his profession in the city and in social circles. He is a member of the Episcopal church, being of English descent. As a de- scendant of the British, and a resident of Montana, he is an ardent sportsman who finds both hunting and fishing delightful ways of spending leisure time. Dr. Greer is a Republican, but like most physicians finds no time to devote to practical politics. Fraternally he is a blue lodge Mason, and this with the medical associa- tions with which he is connected, completes the list of his membership in societies and secret orders.

Both of Dr. Greer's parents are still living in Mich- igan, the state in which both were born. Robert Greer was born in 1850, and now, at the age of sixty-two, has retired from business. He was engaged in the handling of real estate. His wife, Emmaline Campbell Greer is four years his junior. Both are well known in the district where they reside, as Mr. Greer has long been one of the leading citizens of the place. His father, the grandfather of Dr. Greer, came to America from

England, and first settled in Canada, later removing to Michigan. Dr. Greer's maternal grandfather was also of English birth and came directly to the United States, when he was a young man. One of his sons, A. J. Campbell, came to Montana in the 'gos and settled at Livingston. Later, he removed to Butte, and became active in the political history of Montana during that time.

Dr. Greer has become known not only in Great Falls, but throughout this section of the state. His natural talent for the work he has chosen and the energy with which he throws himself into his calling, added to his thorough and scientific training, are constantly enlarg- ing his practice and adding to his well-deserved reputa- tion.

FRED J. CUMMINGS. For the past year or more Fred J. Cummings has been in charge of the Sand Coulee Commission Company at Sand Coulee, and in the time of his residence here he has come to be regarded as one of the admirable business men of the city. He has in that short space of time made a large number of friends, and his success in a business way has been unusual. It is his present intention to leave Sand Coulee in the near future for Montana, where he owns a valuable tract of land, and where he expects to make his home, and his departure from the town in which he has come to be so well regarded will be deeply re- gretted by all.

Fred J. Cummings is the son of C. L. and Annie (Sullivan) Cummings. The father was a native of the state of Vermont, and he went to North Dakota when he was twenty-eight years of age. He has al- ways been classed with the Dakota pioneers, and in that state he was well and favorably known as a con- tractor and builder. He accumulated a considerable fortune and lately retired from active business, when he removed to Great Falls, where he has since made his home. The mother was born in Canada, hut re- moved to Canada with her parents at an early age. She also is living in Great Falls, whither the family removed in 1908. Ten children were born of this union. They are: James H. Cummings, night yard- master in the employ of the Great Northern Rail- road at Great Falls; Edward James, a merchant, lo- cated at Lethbridge, Canada; Hiram, a railroad con- ductor in the employ of the Great Northern, located at White Fish, Montana; Harold, a printer in Leth- bridge, Canada; Kathryn, attending school in Great Falls; Clifford, an employe of the Great Northern at Great Falls: Mark, also in the employ of the Great Northern; Timothy and Howard both attend school in Great Falls; Fred J., of Sand Coulee, Montana.

Fred J. Cummings was born at Grand Forks, North Dakota, May 23, 1884. He attended the schools of that city and while still in his 'teens enlisted in the United States navy as a marine. He was assigned to the battleship Charleston, and almost during the entire period of his enlistment did duty at the American legation at Pekin, China. While in the service he was promoted from the ranks to sergeant. On Janit- ary 20, IQI1, his term of enlistment having expired. he was discharged at Birmingham, Washington. and he came direct to Sand Coulee to take charge of the Sand Coulee Commission. owned and controlled by Edward Gerber. now retired. Mr. Cummings attrib- utes his splendid business success in a great measure to the excellent training he received in the navy, in which he learned habits of industry, punctuality and method, all of which, combined with his natural in- tegrity and executive ability have conspired to win to him a high degree of success.

Mr. Cummings is a member of the Sand Conlee Social Club and is somewhat of a sportsman, being especially fond of hunting and fishing. All outdoor life appeals irresistibly to him, and he is enthusiastic

Hedone Freund.

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in his regard for the west, in which he has spent so much of his life. He is a Republican, and a member of the Catholic church.

HILDORE C. EKLUND. Since the year 1814, when M. Niepce first produced permanent pictures by the chem- ical influence of light, at Chalais-sur-Mer, the art of photography has made rapid strides among the world's skilled vocations, and today the photographer occupies an established position in our commercial and indus- trial life. Photography nas entered many fields, but the one wherein lies the most importance, perhaps, is in the preserving of human likeness for future gen- erations. For this reason the family photographer is generally widely known in the various large cities and many young men have adopted the business, or art, and won a pleasing amount of success. Few, however, have in so short a time attained the reputation that has come to Hildore C. Eklund, proprietor of one of the largest studios in the Northwest, at Great Falls, and also having branches at Billings and Fort Benton, whose success is all the more remarkable in that but a few years ago he was possessed of only a meagre capital and no experience in his chosen line.

Mr. Eklund was born June 11, 1887, at Grove City, Minnesota, and is a son of Eric P. Eklund, a native of Sweden, who came to the United States during the early sixties and settled in St. Paul, later removing to Grove City, where he followed blacksmithing and wagon making. Since his retirement, some years ago, he has been a resident of Great Falls. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Julia Kruger, was born in Russia, of German parents, and is related to the famous Boer statesman, Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger (Paul). Hildore C. Eklund was educated in the public and high schools of his native city, and later attended a busi- ness college at Little Falls, which he left at the age of fifteen years to be apprenticed to the trade of carpen- ter. This he found not to his liking, and after he had followed it for a short time took up the study of pho- tography and served an apprenticeship of three years to the business at Little Falls. Three months after completing his term, being fully equipped to engage in business, he removed to Havre, Montana, and in the spring of 1908 opened a gallery with a younger brother. This proved to be a profitable venture, the business being conducted at Havre until 1911, at which time the brothers purchased the Cummings Gallery at Fort Benton, an establishment still owned by Mr. Ek- lund. Subsequently he became the owner of the photo- graphic gallery originally established by D. D. Morrison, in the Vaughn block, the first in Great Falls, in addition to which he conducts an extensive business in Bill- ings. Mr. Eklund has become recognized as one of the foremost photographers in the northwest. His artistic genius, the excellence of his work and the originality of his ideas have given him a large follow- ing throughout this part of the state, and his popular- ity has grown each year. He holds prestige among his confreres as vice president of the Photographers' As- sociation of the Pacific Northwest, reelected for 1912. In religions matters Mr. Eklund belongs to no particu- lar denomination, but strives to fashion his life accord- ing to the Golden Rule.

EDGAR G. MOORE. Having been identified with theatri- cal matters for nearly a quarter of a century, Edgar G. Moore, proprietor of the Orpheum Theater, one of the leading places of entertainment in Great Falls, is well qualified to cater to the public amusement. Start- ing out in life a poor boy, and in his youth experiencing numerous hardships, his early struggles served to make him self-reliant and to develop traits of character that have been of great value to him. Mr. Moore is a native of Hamilton, Illinois, where he was born July 31, 1863,

and belongs to an old and honored family. His pa- ternal great-grandfather, James Moore, was the founder of this branch of the family in America, settling first in Ohio, removing later to Indiana, and ultimately mak- ing his home in Illinois. His maternal ancestors came to America during colonial days, participated in the struggle for independence and the War of 1812, and were early settlers in Indiana. His older brother, Will- iam Moore, was for three years a soldier during the Civil war, being in the army of General Grant. James Hamilton Moore, the father of Edgar G., was a native of Indiana and spent his life in buying and selling live stock, his death occurring when he was sixty-three years of age. He married Hilda West, also a native of Indiana, who died at the age of sixty years, and they had a family of seven children, of whom Edgar G. is the youngest.

Edgar G. Moore secured his education in the public and high schools of Hamilton, graduating from the latter with the class of 1879. On completing his studies he spent several years at home, but at the age of eighteen years decided to make his own way in the world, and struck out for the west, settling first in Waterloo, Iowa, where for three years he clerked in a grocery. Owing to ill health, caused by the close confinement, he was obliged to give up his position, and subsequently secured employment as a traveling sales- man for the firm of Dyer Brothers, Minneapolis, deal- ers in musical instruments. During the three and one-half years that he was connected with this concern, Mr. Moore came into touch with numerous theatrical people, and it was but natural that he should enter the profession himself. Accordingly, he established what was known as the Moore Concert Company, an organ- ization of artists that met with great success and was a general favorite in twenty-nine states. Mr. Moore was the active head of this company for a period covering more than twenty years, but in 1908 decided to settle down and give up traveling. He had seen towns and cities in every part of the Union, and it may be termed a compliment to Great Falls that he selected this city as the field of his activities. That his faith in this city has been vindicated is shown by the large patronage maintained by his Orpheum Theater, than which there is no more popular playhouse in Great Falls. He believes in the ultimate greatness of the city, is an ardent "booster," and has invested a great deal of his capital in real estate here, his modern residence being situated at No. 1208 Fifth avenue, North. Mr. Moore has always kept his performances up to the high standard that characterized them from the start, and his theater has a reputation for respectability. He is a Republican in his political views, but has taken no active part in public affairs. He is a member of the Eagles, the Board of Commerce and the Traveling Men's Association, and attends the Congregational church.

Mr. Moore was married at Waterloo, Iowa, January 21, 1884 to Miss Alma Farr, daughter of Foster Farr, of Newhampton, Iowa, where the family has been well known for many years. Two children have come to Mr. and Mrs. Moore: Harry, born at Newhampton. September 12, 1885, married November 2, 1909, at Helena, Montana, to Miss Waneta Short, a native of Montana ; and Hazel, born at Newhampton, Iowa, No- vember 2, 1887.

ENVALD R. STANGLAND. To the pioneers in any line of endeavor must be given due credit for the develop- ment of a community's industrial growth. The quali- ties of courage, perseverance, enterprise and energy are absolute necessities to those who would enter a new field, and to these must be added ability far beyond the ordinary in order that the innovations be carried to a successful conclusion. One of Montana's latest indus- tries is the manufacture of hats, and to Envald R. Stangland must be given the honor of accomplishing

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the establishment of such an enterprise in the pros- perous and progressive city of Great Falls. Mr. Stang- land, as his name suggests, is a native of Norway, and was born September 24, 1853, the oldest of the ten chil- dren of Enoch and Andrina (Anderson) Stangland, the latter of whom died in Norway at the age of forty- four years. The father came to America in 1881 and settled in Sheldahl, Polk county, Iowa, where for a number of years he was engaged in agricultural pur- suits, but since his retirement has lived at Norway, Iowa, his present home.

Envald R. Stangland attended the schools of his native country until he was seventeen years of age, at which time he secured a clerical position and was so employed until 1879, when he had accumulated enough money to pay his passage to the United States. He arrived in this country with a cash capital of seventy- three cents, and during the next eight months his earnings netted him but thirty-three dollars. The youth was ambitious and industrious, however, and lo- cating in Story county, Iowa, secured employment in a clerical capacity and by the year 1883 was ready to enter the general merchandise business at Aurelia, Cherokee county, Iowa. He invested his small cap- ital and in two years, finding that he had outgrown his field, removed to Marathon, Buena Vista county, in the same state, where he was engaged in the mer- cantile and stock-raising business `from 1885 until 1907, when lie disposed of all his holdings and started west. Arriving in Great Falls in the summer of 1908, he immediately established a cleaning and dyeing and hat manufacturing business, purchasing a one-half in- terest in the store of C. Z. Patton, at 405 First avenue, South, the first business of its kind in the northern part of the state. After six months, however, he sold out to Mr. Patton and moved to his present location, No. 315 First avenue, South, and since that time the business has grown to large proportions, being widely known throughout this part of Montana. At the present writ- ing Mr. Stangland is erecting a large, up-to-date plant, at 809 First avenue, North, with the latest improved machinery for cleaning and dyeing, the manufacture of hats, which will be a decided addition to Great Falls' enterprises. He is of the progressive type of business man, relying absolutely on his own judgment, and be- ing fearless in the execution of plans which his business shrewdness assures him will succeed. It is to this trait and to the absolute fairness that has characterized all his dealings that his success is due, as his present enviable position in the commercial world is the result of his own efforts. In political matters Mr. Stangland is a Republican, but at this time takes no interest other than a good citizen's in political matters, although while a resident of Marathon, Iowa, served twelve years, the entire period of his stay there, as a member of the council. He belongs to the Knights of Pythias and the Modern Woodmen of America, and holds membership also in the Merchants' Association. He owns a com- fortable modern home at No. 1209 Third avenue, north.

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A history of Montana, Volume III, Part 145

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