A history of Montana, Volume III, Part 8

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

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Miss Rosetta Mosimann was a daughter of Christo- pher Mosimann and his wife, nee Marie Bracher. They were of Swiss descent and followed the vocation of farming. Miss Mosimann became Mrs. Faulds on April 22, 1886, and soon after the marriage accompanied her husband to Montana.

Here Mr. Faulds had been engaged to teach at Thompson Falls. When he arrived at that place he found that a second contract had been made with a lady from New York to fill the same position. Mr. Faulds' natural gallantry and his reluctance to resorting to a lawsuit led him to temporarily seek other employment. The toll road from Thompson to Murray, Idaho, re- quired much transporting of goods. The purchase of a team of horses made it convenient for Mr. Faulds to be of much service in conveying goods to the mining camps. In 1887, he accepted a position as teacher of the Stevensville school, for the ensuing nine months. His energy and ability being of the overflowing sort · that constantly seeks new responsibility, Mr. Faulds also made himself valuable to the community by organ- izing debating teams among the young business men of the place and also by acting as librarian. The residents of Stevensville remember the enthusiasm of that win- ter's debates, in which Mr. Faulds was such an im- portant factor. In the summer of 1888 he took up a preemption on the west side of the river and during the succeeding year he proved up the same. In the follow- ing spring he became secretary, editor and manager of the North West Tribune. During the autumn of the same year he purchased the newspaper from the stock- holders, of which he has ever since been the proprietor, manager and editor, with the exception of one year when political duties made it desirable that he lease it to his son.

The Tribune has, in Mr. Faulds' hands, been an in- strument directed toward the public's greatest good. Politically it is independent, with clearly and strongly expressed standards of law and order in affairs both national and local. The value of his ideals to the com- munity has been recognized in the numerous offices he

has been asked to fill. For several terms he held the office of alderman, and for one term the highest munici- pal office, that of mayor. During his municipal career the city waterworks were installed-owned by the mu- nicipality-the electric lighting system put into opera- tion, and the wide cement sidewalks built. The elimina- tion of grafting and law-breaking received his most earnest attention, and it is a matter eliciting much gratification that Stevensville is now considered one of the cleanest towns in the state. So courageous has Editor Faulds been in the defense of the right and so determined in the exposition of what he believed, or knew to be wrong, that his career of newspaper activity has at times been fraught with difficulty. The five suits brought against him cost him a four years' struggle, but he was successful in his opposition of the "court-house ring," in which conflict he was ably supported by Colonel Sanders. The future of the North West Tribune is a bright one. in which its loyal sympathizers anticipate that it will continue to impartially exercise a worthy influence.

Mr. and Mrs. Faulds are the parents of one son and five daughters. The eldest of the second generation of this family is James Welcome, who was born at Thomp- son Falls in 1887. The five daughters, all of Stevens- ville, have been named respectively, Martha, Ruth, Russell, Kathryn and Elizabeth. James Welcome Faulds is his father's able editorial assistant and efficient reporter. In times of especial stress the daughters, and even Mrs. Faulds, also contribute aid to the activities of the publishing office.

Mr. Faulds' personal political tendencies are those of the Democratic party, and it is not surprising that his ardent support of Woodrow Wilson is shared by many of his friends who are not of his political faith. The editor's religion is the religion of a clean moral life, but he is not connected by membership with any church. He is a member of the order of the Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons, in which he has advanced to the rank of the Royal Arch, and also belongs to the Good Templars. With this last order he has been iden- tified for twenty-five years and has held many offices in the order, from sentinel in subordinate lodges to that of grand chief templar. In June, 1893, he represented the grand lodge of this order at Des Moines, Iowa; in 1906, he went to Seattle, and in 1908 to Washington, D. C., as a representative at the national grand lodge; and at the latter place, in 1908, he also attended the international sessions in an official capacity. Mr. Faulds' life is one which has thus far been productive of much good, thus fulfilling the ambition of which he was con- scious, when, a little lad and the eldest of twelve chil- dren, he studied his first books by the light of hickory splints in that home of early Wisconsin settlement.

GEORGE MILES, at present the postmaster and perhaps the leading merchant of Darby, Montana, was born in Richland county, Wisconsin, on the twenty-fourth day of July, 1860. During his tenth year, his parents moved from Wisconsin to Clay Center, Kansas, where he pur- chased a good farm and engaged in cultivating it ac- cording to the methods of the eastern farmer. Thus even in years of drought he drew a good living from the soil, while in a good wheat year he realized what it means to live in the wheat belt of the world. To-day this farm is very valuable. It was here that George Miles grew to manhood, attending the district schools in the winter and assisting his father with the cattle and crops in the summer. Perhaps the education that he received in the harvest fields and about the stock has been fully as valuable to him in his later life as his book learning. His majority found him still with his father, where he remained until his twenty-third year when he left Kansas for Montana with the intention of taking up a claim of his own. During the winters of 'eighty-four and 'eighty-five he worked in the lumber

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camps near Victor, Montana. Coming into town the ensuing spring he opened the first general store in that place. This he successfully managed until 1888, when he sold the business at a good profit that he might move to the more thriving town of Darby. To him then, as' now, the Bitter Root valley seemed the garden spot of Montana, and Darby the rising town of that valley. In this little city he was the first merchant. The extent of his trade and the esteem in which he is now held in the entire community are only just rewards for his foresight and initiative. In April of 1899, during the service of Postmaster General Charles Emory Smitlı, he was appointed postmaster of Darby, a position that lie could ably fill without severing his connection with his extensive retail business. Mr. Miles is a Republican politician with an extensive acquaintance. For several terms he has acted as justice of the peace in Darby. He is keen of wit and quick at repartee, always appreciat- ing a clever story and ready to tell a better one. This trait has added much to his popularity and made his little store, in the old days, the most attractive spot in Darby.

Just before coming to Montana, Mr. Miles had found his "heart's desire" in the person of Miss Hester F. Bones. The young lady was born in Illinois, her father being a prominent Illinois farmer. Mr. and Mrs. Miles were united in marriage on the seventeenth day of September, 1884. Of this union eight children have been born, of whom two have been called away. The daughters are May, Grace, Georgea and Sarah. May, the oldest of the girls, is married to Andrew Loftus of Hamilton, Montana. The second daughter is now Mrs. Howard Strawn, of Portland, Oregon. The two younger girls are still in Darby. Georgea is the wife of William Sherett, of that city, and Sarah, the baby of the family, is at home with her parents. The son, Dewey, is still attnding school in Darby.

George Miles is the son of Thomas Miles, originally from Ohio, and Sarah Wilcox Miles, from the Hoosier state. They purchased their Kansas farm in 1886, Mr. Miles cultivating it in person until his death in 1909. The mother still lives on the old homestead near Clay Center, Kansas. Her son, Frank Miles makes his home with her and manages the property while the youngest daughter, Ella, now Mrs. Alfonzo King, lives on a farm not far distant. Amanda, the oldest of the girls, also resides in Clay Center. She is the widow of John Hunter, a farmer in the neighborhood. The other chil- dren are Robert O. Miles, a farmer near Meridian, Kan- sas, and the subject of this sketch. One brother and one sister, Edson and Effie, passed away in their child- hood.

Aside from his business in Darby, which is increasing in extent each year, George Miles owns valuable real estate in and about Darby. He is the only member of the family who has, in the search for fortune left the Sunflower state, and while he possesses only the kind- liest memories of sunny Kansas, to him no state can equal Montana in the stores of native wealth and vast opportunities that she offers to her sons and daughters It is a pleasure to him that his own family are native children of her soil.

HON. WILLIAM BRAXTON GEORGE. A man to have accomplished so much in divergent fields and in so short a period of time as has the Hon. William Braxton George, of Billings, must possess unusual qualities and versatile talents. To be a successful man in but one line demands many natural and acquired gifts, and the ma- jority never reach this goal, while in Mr. George's case business prosperity, political leadership and profound public confidence have all been gained, and, more sig- nificant still, are maintained. He was born on a farm in Platte county, Misouri, June 1, 1865, and is a son of William Peyton and Frances Mary (Duncan) George.

The father of Mr. George was born in Fauquier county, Virginia, February 1, 1835, and his present residence is at Camden Point, Missouri, while Mr. George's mother, a native of Platte county, passed away in 1909. They had a family of eight children, but four of whom are living, as follows: Ida, the wife of Thomas Bywater, of Camden Point, Missouri; William Braxton; Elizabeth, who also lives at Camden Point; and Clinton, a real estate man of San Antonio, Texas. William Peyton George was a young man when he first located in Missouri, and he there engaged in the general merchandise business. Some time after his marriage to the daughter of Judge Duncan he commenced farm- ing on a property that was cultivated by slave- labor, which had been given to the young couple by Judge Duncan and Mr. George's father, and Mr. George after the war helped support them for a number of years. He was engaged in farming and stock-raising until 1895, in which year he retired from active pursuits. He. has always taken an active interest in educational mat- ters and for many years served as a member of the school board while on his farm, and as a director of the State Female Orphans' School. He has been treasurer of the Christian church for the last quarter of a cen- tury. In politics an ardent Democrat, he was appointed to the position of postmaster at Camden Point, but de- clined to serve, having no desire for public preferment.

Like all of his father's children, William B. George received excellent educational advantages, attending the public schools, William Jewell College, Liberty, Mis- souri, the State University at Columbia, Missouri, and Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, New York. He then returned to Platte county, and for a year following was engaged in farming in the summer months and in teaching school during the winter term, and in the spring of 1886 located in Helena, Montana. There he subsequently became assistant secretary of the board of education, then became assistant post- master at Deer Lodge and was later railway postal clerk between Billings and Helena. He was next appointed railway postal clerk by President Cleveland, but after one year resigned that position to become assistant post- master at Billings, where in 1890 he engaged in the fruit, jewelry and confectionery business. During that same year he was elected city treasurer and succeeded himself four terms. In 1896 he received the election to. the office of county treasurer, in which he served capa- bly for one term, and in 1901 he became his party's choice for the office of mayor, and an administration that was marked by many municipal improvements fol- lowed. Among other movements organized by Mr. George was the securing of a site, the selling of bonds and the erection of a new city hall and fire station, which cost upwards of $32,000. He served as state chairman of the Anti-Trust party and as chairman of the Democratic state central committee in 1908, was a delegate to the national convention held in Denver, and was selected to notify William J. Bryan for the Mon- tana delegation. During the same year he was selected by Gov. Edwin L. Norris as one of his advisors, to: attend the conservation meeting held at the White .: House in Washington, D. C. In November, 1916, Mr. George was elected state senator by a majority of be- tween 400 and 500 votes, as Democratic candidate in a district that usually polls a Republican majority of 1,000. Through his efforts the eastern part of the state was redistricted, thus giving that section five representatives where it formerly had but one. During the United State senatorial election of I911 he received thirty votes, but as he was pledged to his friend, Thomas J. Walsh, he refused the nomination, and this resulted in a dead-lock, which was broken when Henry L. Meyers was agreed upon. Mr. George was chairman of the state fair committee, and while a member thereof. secured an extension of the street car line which had long been sought, and in addition to showing himself

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an aggressive member of the senate in other ways made a vigorous fight for a highway law and highway com- mission. He also introduced the Guarantee Banking Bill and the Public Service Utility Bill, and in every possible manner has worked to advance the interests of his state and his constituents in Yellowstone county.

Mr. George's business interests are mainly connected with real estate and insurance, and in these he has built up a large and profitable patronage. As an organizer and developer he is known throughout the city, and in one transaction alone, that of 1900, when he platted the addition to the west side of the city, he opened up a territory that is now occupied by the residences of some of Billings' leading men. In 1904 he was one of the organizers of the state fair, serving for six years as its president and as a member of the executive committee. In the irrigation and development of the Yellowstone valley he has accomplished as much as any one man in his section, and has about 1,500 acres under irrigation, in addition to 1,000 acres above the ditch, the latter be- ing put to wheat, of which he raises from twenty to twenty-hve bushels per acre. Mr. George is also the owner of one of the largest ranches of this locality, a tract of 7,000 acres located seven miles west of the city of Billings, and about 2,500 acres are under cultivation, of which 100 acres are in orchard. The beautiful home of the George family is within one and one-half miles of the city, and is equipped with all modern appliances and conveniences, being connected with the city elec- tric light and water companies. One of Mr. George's hobbies may be said to be good roads, and from time to time he has traveled extensively through the state, urging the importance of well-built thoroughfares. In 1910 he was the organizer of the first good roads con- gress in the state, and has since been chairman of the committee and active in the work of the organiza- tion. His other diversion, to which he gives a great deal of attention, is the raising of cows, sheep and blooded horses, principally the latter. He owns his own breeding stables, has some fine driving horses, and was the owner of two pacers: "Ruby Messenger," 2:1414, and "Billings G.," 2:18. He assisted in the or- ganization of the Young Men's Christian Association and the Polytechnic Institute, and in addition to his numerous other interests finds time to devote to fra- ternal work. He belongs to Ashlar Lodge, No. 29, A. F. & A. M .; Billings Chapter, No. 6, R. A. M .; Aldemar Commandery, No. 5, K. T., and Algeria Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., Helena, being a past master of his lodge and past eminent commander of the commandery. He also holds membership in Billings Lodge, No. 394, B. P. O. E., of which he is exalted ruler.

On June 15, 1892, Mr. George was married to Miss Virginia Florence Sleeper, who was born in Camden, New Jersey, daughter of Nehemiah and Martha (Flem- ing) Sleeper, both of whom are deceased. Mrs. George was the fourth in order of birth of a large family of children, of whom six are living. Her father was a Quaker, a prosperous business man and a member of the city council of Burlington, New Jersey, was highly respected as a business man and citizen, and known as an influential Republican politician. His wife, who was an accomplished musician, was of Scotch-Irish descent. Mr. and Mrs. George have had a family of eleven chil- dren, of whom four died when quite young, while those who survive are: Raymond and William B., Jr., who are attending high school; Preston B., a student in the public schools; and Marie, Virginia Florence, Robert and Mabel.

The career of William B. George has been one of public usefulness, and is free from any stain or blemish. in all the relations of life he has been true 'to his country and to himself, to the duties that have devolved upon him and to the manifold responsibilities that must be assumed by those who attain such public prominence. In the prime of life, with his best years yet before: him,

it is safe to predict that still higher honors await him, and that he will do them full justice.

BURT G. SHOREY. One of the best known men of this section of Montana at the present time is Mr. Burt G. Shorey, of Billings, who has for a long period of years been identified in a large way with the devel- opment of various portions of Montana. The Shorey family is one of those rugged pioneers of New Eng- land who settled in Waldo county, Maine, in an early day, and it was left for the representatives of the present generation to push out into the great northwest, where life is freer and less cramped than in the older parts of the country. Mr. Shorey was born in Belfast, Maine, September 7, 1862, a member of a family of seven children, six of whom are still living. Three brothers, John, Waldo and Raime, are now residents of Montana, the first named living at White Sulphur Springs and the latter two at Forsyth. One brother, William, lives on the old homestead at Waldo, while the only sister, Jennie, who is the wife of John Mc- Grey, is a resident of Knox, Maine. The parents of this family, Wellington and Louise (Durham) Shorey, were both natives of Waldo county, Mr. Shorey having been born there in 1828 and his wife in 1839. He was a young man of twenty-two when he went out into the Maine wilderness and made a clearing for his home and also cleared and improved the land now contained in the family homestead, and he was engaged as a gen- eral farmer throughout his life. He was a man of considerable prominence in the community in which he resided and filled various minor offices, among them being that of member of the school board and of the board of selectmen for his township. Politically he was a Republican. His death occurred in 1900, while his wife survived him seven years and died in 1907.

When it came to establishing a home of his own, Mr. Burt G. Shorey also chose for his wife a daughter of Waldo county and a member of an old Maine family, and his marriage to Helen A. Simmons occurred Au- gust 11, 1889. Her parents were J. Allen and Addie (Ray) Simmons, and of their family of eleven children eight are now living, as are Mr. and Mrs. Simmons. Mr. Simmons cultivated a farm all his life and he, too, is a man who is active in public affairs of the com- munity and has held numerous township offices, Mr. and Mrs. Shorey have one daughter, Adelaide.

Like his father before him, Mr. Shorey early started out to carve his own fortune in the new and untried part of the world, and on March 15, 1880, when in his eighteenth year left home to go west. He journeyed as far as Ogden, Utah, by railway then finished the trip to White Sulphur Springs, Meagher county, Montana, traveling overland and consuming seventeen days in the entire journey from Maine. He immediately se- cured employment on the ranch of Cook & Hussey, but remained there only three months, then went to Judith Basin and took up a claim of one hundred and sixty acres of government land. For a year and a half he engaged in sheep raising on the place, then sold out and became superintendent of the big sheep ranch of Miss Carson, at Hoplay Hole. He remained as sup- erintendent of that ranch for two years, then worked for Charles Severance for a short time and in the spring of 1886 again took up independent operations as a sheep rancher, this time locating at Lake Basin, Yel- lowstone county. Mr. Shorey met with unremittant suc- cess in his various ventures, and devoted his earnings and profits from year to year in judicious investments, largely in land and sheep. When he finally retired from active conduct of his ranch it contained thirty- two thousand acres, and in 1908 he sold the property to L. Thomas.

Mr. Shorey had in the meantime erected a residence in Billings and made his home in this city from the

Mr. Na William Y. Mauldin

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year 1901. It was in 1907 that he was first elected to the presidency of the Billings State Bank, and he has held that position continuously ever since. He still retains extensive interests in ranch properties, how- ever, and also owns much valuable property of other descriptions. Among his holdings are a stock ranch of eight hundred and twenty acres in Carbon county ; another in Dawson county containing eleven hundred acres, and a half interest in an eighteen hundred acre ranch near Custer station, Yellowstone county. Hc also has a third interest in the International Coal Com- pany at Bear Creek, is a stockholder in the Babcock

office and theatre building here and also owns the Se- curity warehouse in Billings. The mere enumeration of these holdings is prima facie evidence of the finan- cial success Mr. Shorey has achieved and indicates also the substantial character of his business and per- sonal attributes. He is a potential influence in every enterprise of worth which is designed to advance the best interests of this city and state, his public spirit and generosity are well known and his honesty and in- tegrity unimpeachable. His prominence as a lodge man is evidence in his membership in such orders as Rathbone Lodge, No. 28, Knights of Pythias, and Bil- lings Lodge, No. 394, Benevolent and Protective Or- der of Elks. He has a wide acquaintance throughout this part of the state, and is held in the highest esteem by all who have the pleasure of his acquaintance.

JOSEPH COLLINS WEST. In considering the promi- nent men of Montana, those who are at the head of large and important business concerns, rule corpora- tions and control vast aggregations of capital, many will be found who have reached these positions of grave responsibility through their own efforts, and this is true of Joseph Collins West, one of the representative men of Billings, Montana. Mr. West was born in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, February 19, 1877. and is the only child of Samuel and Sarah (Hackett) West.

Both parents of Mr. West were born in Phila- delphia, where the father died in 1881, at the carly age of twenty-nine years. The mother survives and is a resident of Butte, Montana. Samuel West was a wholesale and retail merchant at Philadelphia, dealing in paints and oils.

Joseph Collins West was four years old when he was left fatherless. He completed his education in the university at Notre Dame. Indiana, where he was graduated in the class of 1896. Afterward was em- ployed for some years as a bookkeeper in various busi- ness houses, being so engaged after accompanying his mother to Butte, Montana, where, later, he became con- nected with the Centennial Brewing Company of that city, and learned the brewing business in every detail.

On August 30, 1900, Mr. West was married to Miss Florence F. Mueller, who was horn at Sherwood, Wyoming, and is a daughter of Henry and Margaret ( Frilling) Mueller. The father of Mrs. West was born at Cologne, Germany, came to America in early manhood and became one of the leading men of this section of Montana. He was engaged first in the lum- ber and planing mill business in Wisconsin and Chi- cago, Illinois, and came to Butte, Montana, in 1886. He was one of the owners of the Centennial Brewing Company of Butte and its president, owned also the Olympia brewery and later built the Billings brewery at Billings and at the time of his death was president of the Billings Brewery Company. He was prominent in the Democratic party and served one term as mayor of the city of Butte. In that city he was identified with Silver Bow Lodge, B. P. O. E. He married Margaret Frilling, who was born at Menasha, Wisconsin, and at present is a resident of Butte, Montana. Six children were born to them, three sons and three daughters,

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A history of Montana, Volume III, Part 8

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