USA > Oregon > History of Oregon, Vol. II > Part 49
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In 1914 Mr. Rae was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Maxwell. He belonged to the Masonic fraternity and was a life member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. In the former organization he attained high rank and became a representative of Al Kader Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He also belonged to the Hoo Hoos, the leading organization of lumbermen. His political allegiance was given to the repub-
GEORGE G. RAE
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lican party and his religious faith was that of the Presbyterian church, in which he passed away February 12, 1918. He never regretted his determination to seek a home and fortune in the United States, for he here found the business opportunities which led him steadily upward until he gained a most substantial position among the leading business men and lumber dealers of the northwest. His efforts featured in the utilization of the natural resources of this section of the country and in the up- building of the state, and the proof of his individual business powers and capability was seen in the prosperity which ultimately crowned his efforts.
OSCAR HAYTER.
Oscar Hayter, a representative of the Oregon bar, practicing his profession at Dallas, has spent his entire life in this state. He was born December 3, 1873, on a farm near Dallas, and is a son of Thomas J. Hayter, an honored pioneer of Oregon and a representative of an old southern family. The father was born February 8, 1830, in Franklin, Howard county, Missouri, and there attended school to the age of nineteen years, when he joined an expedition bound for California. He was first employed as a teamster for a large concern, transporting hay from the Sacramento meadows to the various mining camps. In August, 1849, he engaged in mining on his own account, but in the fall of 1850 sailed from San Francisco for Oregon, arriving in Portland at a time when it was but a small settlement with a few dwellings. He at once made his way to Polk county, where he took up a donation claim, but disposed of this in 1852 and returned to Missouri with the intention of bringing his aged parents to Oregon. But they were too frail to attempt the long journey and in 1854 he returned to this state, taking up his residence on a ranch three miles west of Dallas, where he engaged in stock raising. In the fall of 1855 he volunteered for service in the Yakima Indian war and in the following year disposed of his stock ranch, locating on a small tract of agricultural land three miles east of Dallas, on which he resided for more than a quarter of a century, adding many improvements to his farm. In 1884 he took up his abode in the town and there spent his remaining years, passing away on the 30th of October, 1918, at the age of eighty-eight years. He occupied a position of prominence in his community and in 1876 was chosen to represent his district in the state legislature, where he rendered most valuable service. He was a man of liberal culture, gained through judicious reading, and was largely instrumental in advancing the educational standards of the state, contributing substantially to the support of La Creole Academy and serving as a director of his local school district. In 1856 he wedded Miss Mary I. Embree, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Carey D. Embree, and they became the parents of six children, namely: Eugene, who is vice president of the Dallas National Bank; Mark, a prominent dentist of Dallas; J. C., who is here engaged in merchandising; Oscar, the subject of this review; and Alice and Frank, both of whom are deceased.
The son, Oscar Hayter, attended the district schools of Polk county to the age of ten years and then became a pupil in the public schools of Dallas, subsequently pursuing a course in La Creole Academy at Dallas. Following his graduation from that institution he took up the study of law and while thus engaged also acted as compiler of abstracts for the Clackamas Abstract & Trust Company. On the 9th of October, 1895, he was admitted to the bar and at once engaged in the practice of his profession, forming a partnership with Judge J. J. Daly of Dallas, an association which was maintained until 1900, since which time Mr. Hayter has practiced alone. Mr. Hayter also has important business interests, being a stockholder and director of the Dallas National Bank and the Fuller Pharmacy, and has made investments in farm property, having fourteen acres devoted to the raising of cherries.
On the 20th of July, 1904, Mr. Hayter was united in marriage to Miss Bertha L. Fuller, daughter of Hon. W. V. and Eliza (Stewart) Fuller, residents of Dallas, where her father is prominent in timber investments and horticultural circles. Mr. and Mrs. Hayter became the parents of four children, of whom one died in infancy. Those living are Elizabeth, Robert and Phillp.
Mr. Hayter has also attained prominence in Masonic circles. He was raised to the sublime degree of Master Mason in Jennings Lodge, No. 9, A. F. & A. M., of Dallas, March 13, 1896; was exalted to the august degree of Royal Arch Mason in Ainsworth Chapter, No. 17, R. A. M., of Dallas, May 27, 1897, and received the degree of Royal and Select Master in Hodson Council, No. 1, R. & S. M., of McMinnville,
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October 28, 1897. In the Scottish Rite Consistory the fourth to the thirteenth degrees inclusive were conferred upon him January 10, 1899; the fourteenth degree, February 7, 1899, by Oregon Lodge of Perfection, No. 1; the fifteenth to eighteenth degrees inclu- sive were conferred upon him December 19, 1899, by Ainsworth Chapter, No. 1, of the Rose Croix; the nineteenth to twenty-ninth degrees inclusive, January 19, 1900; the thirtieth degree was conferred upon him January 20, 1900, by Multnomah Preceptory, No. 1, Knights of Kadosh; the thirty-first and thirty-second degrees, January 20, 1900, by Oregon Consistory, No. 1, of Portland; and the thirty-third degree, honorary, January 17, 1920. He also received the degree of Christian Knighthood in De Molay Commandery, No. 5, K. T., of Salem, Oregon, November 4, 1909; and is a member of Al Kader Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., having crossed the sands of the desert on the 20th of January, 1900. He served as worshipful master of Jennings Lodge from 1898 to 1899 and from 1905 to 1906 and in the chapter he served as excellent high priest for six years, from 1904 until 1910. He was appointed grand master of the second veil in the Grand Chapter of Oregon, June 12, 1905, and by regular advance- ment was elected grand high priest June 10, 1912.
In his political views Mr. Hayter is a democrat, active in support of the principles and candidates of the party. Since 1913 he has been a member of the state board of legal examiners and in 1918-19 he served as president of the Oregon Bar Association. He has been a member of the American Bar Association since 1908.
JOHN PETTIS FINLEY.
John Pettis Finley, engaged in the undertaking business in Portland, was born in Missouri, December 30, 1844, and in his youthful days attended school in one of the old-time log cabins, while spending his boyhood in the home of his father, James Washington Finley, who was also a native of Missouri, born October 13, 1813. In 1852 James W. Finley crossed the plains and took up eighty acres of land in the Santa Clara valley, California, three miles west of San Jose. There he engaged in farming until his death, which occurred May 2, 1865. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Margaret Campbell, was born in Kentucky, February 1, 1820, and died in California, October 1, 1852, just after the arrival of the family there, her death being occasioned by mountain fever. Mr. and Mrs. Finley were married in 1838, and were the parents of seven children, five sons and two daughters, of which number William A., the eldest, and James, the youngest, have passed away. The others are: Newton G., who was born in Missouri, and now resides near San Jose, California; Sarah Elizabeth, who was born in Missouri, and is now the wife of Rev. Joseph Emery; John Pettis; Hugh McNary, who was born in Missouri, and resides at Corvallis, Oregon; and Annie, who was born in Missouri, and is the widow of Dr. Embry, who lived at Dallas, Oregon. The eldest of the family, William A. Finley, was made president of the Methodist College in Corvallis, Oregon, in 1866, and served in that capacity for many years. The family comes of Scotch ancestry, on the paternal side, the maternal side being Scotch-Irish. The American founders of the family came to America and settled in Missouri. Pettis county, Missouri, was named after one of Mr. Finley's ancestors.
John Pettis Finley was a lad of but seven years when brought to the Pacific coast and he remained in California until 1887, there following contracting and building for a time. In 1874 he took up the business of manufacturing lumber in the Santa Clara valley and in 1879 extended the scope of his business by the establishment of a casket factory, which was the first industry of the' kind on the coast. In 1887 he removed to Portland and opened a branch house of the casket company, under the name of the Oregon Casket Company, conducting the business until December 1, 1892, when he retired from the wholesale manufacturing department and concentrated his efforts and attention upon the undertaking business. His present establishment, at Fifth and Montgomery streets, in Portland, is the finest on the Pacific coast and the most complete establishment any- where in the country. He designed the building himself and it therefore embraces everything desirable in such an establishment. The building is one hundred feet square and there is a garage thirty-five feet by one hundred. Mr. Finley employs the most scien- tific methods in the care of the dead and his patronage is very extensive. For six years, or from 1902 until 1908, he served as coroner of Multnomah county.
Before leaving California Mr. Finley was married on the 20th of April, 1869, to Miss Nancy C. Rucker of Santa Clara county, California, belonging to one of the oldest and
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most highly respected families of that state, the Ruckers having traveled to California with the Finley family in 1852. To Mr. and Mrs. Finley have been born three children: Anna L., the wife of Frank A. Kenney, representative of the Waterman Pen Company on the Pacific coast. They were married September 7, 1920; Arthur L. Finley, born in 1873, married Ina Craig of Portland and they are the parents of two sons, John and Craig, ten and five years of age; Arthur L. is assisting his father in conducting the undertaking business; the youngest member of the family is W. L. Finley, who was born in 1876, and who is now a naturalist of national reputation. He married Irene Barnhart of Cali- fornia and they have two children, Phoebe Catherine and William.
In his fraternal relations Mr. Finley is well known. In 1872 he joined the Independ- ent Order of Odd Fellows and is a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Knights of Pythias, the Artisans, the Woodmen of the World and the Knights and Ladies of Security. He is likewise connected with the Elks and is serving for the fifteenth term as a trustee of that organization. His religious faith is indicated by his member- ship in the First Presbyterian church, a faith to which his parents were earnest adher- ents, and he is also active in politics as a supporter of the republican party. He has become widely known upon the coast, where he has practically spent his life. He has seen and assisted in the marvelous growth and development of the golden west, for sixty-eight years have passed since he was brought by his parents to the Pacific and through the intervening period he has lived continuously in California and Oregon.
ARTHUR J. RUPERT.
One of the large industrial enterprises of Oregon is that of the A. Rupert Company, Inc., general merchandise brokers of Portland, with extensive canneries located at various points in the state. The business stands as a monument to the spirit of energy and determination and the keen intelligence and powers of organization of its founder and owner, Arthur J. Rupert, whose name is written high on the roll of the honored dead who were among the builders and promoters of the great northwest. He was a man of marked enterprise and his close application wrought for success along the chosen line of his business activity. He never lowered his standards and he gave to his patrons dollar for dollar. His business methods were characterized by the progressive spirit of the age and his integrity was at all times above question.
Mr. Rupert was a native of Canada. He was born in Ontario on the 12th of July, 1875, and was a son of Thomas and Josephine (Green) Rupert, also natives' of Canada. The father has followed merchandising during the greater part of his life and has also served as postmaster at Springbrook, Canada, where he still resides. The mother also survives and they are highly esteemed residents of their community.
Their son, Arthur J. Rupert, was reared and educated at Springbrook, Canada, and there resided to the age of seventeen years, when he crossed the border into the United States, making his way to Chicago, where he became identified with the grocery busi- ness, later acting as city salesman for a large wholesale grocery firm there. He was thus occupied until about 1904, when he decided to seek the opportunities the west offered to a young man of enterprise and ability, and going to Aberdeen, Washington, he there opened a grocery store, which he conducted so successfully that he was at length able to establish a wholesale grocery business, of which he remained manager for eight years. On the expiration of that period he came to Oregon and at Portland organized the A. Rupert Company, Inc., general merchandise brokers. He was most successful in the management of his business interests, and extending his activities, he gradually acquired large canneries in the state, becoming the owner of factories at McMinnville, Springbrook, Newberg, Roseburg, Lebanon, Falls City and Gresham, also acquiring a plant at Puyallup, Washington, which he continued to operate until the time of his death. He was a man with highly developed powers of organization, capable of manag- ing and controlling large interests, and he well deserves classification with Oregon's captains of industry. The successful management of a large enterprise demands a thorough understanding of the principles of merchandising, executive ability of a high order and a keen insight into business conditions, and these qualities he possessed in an unusual degree.
On the 15th of July, 1895, Mr. Rupert was united in marriage to Miss Letha E. Cone, a daughter of Milan and Esther (Drake) Cone, natives of Ohio. The father was a farmer by occupation and his entire life was passed in his native state. He died in Vol. II-25
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1891 but the mother survives. To Mr. and Mrs. Rupert were born three children: Emily M., the wife of J. O. Cranford, who is managing the McMinnville plant of the Rupert Company; Milan A., who is attending Columbia University at New York city; and Alice D., at home.
In his political views Mr. Rupert was a republican and his interest in the business development and expansion of his city was indicated by his membership in the Chamber of Commerce of Portland. His social nature found expression in his membership in the Waverly Golf Club and the Multnomah Automobile Club and he was also identified with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and the Masons, in which he held high rank, belonging to the commandery and to Al Kader Temple of the Mystic Shrine at Portland. Mr. Rupert passed away at his home in Portland on the 22d of January, 1920, at the age of forty-four years, after a short illness, and his demise was deeply re- gretted, for his integrity in business affairs, his loyalty and patriotism in matters of citizenship, his fidelity in friendship and his devotion to home and family were charac- teristics which won for him the high and enduring regard of all with whom he was associated. He was a self-made man in the truest and best sense of the term, for his prosperity was entirely due to his own efforts. On arriving in Aberdeen, Washington, 1904, accompanied by his wife and three children, he had a cash capital of eight dollars, but he possessed a great asset in his exceptional business ability and spirit of determina- tion, and overcoming all obstacles and difficulties in his path, he at length reached the goal of success.
Mrs. Rupert survives her husband and is at present residing in McMinnville. She is the principal stockholder in the A. Rupert Company, Inc., and is an excellent business woman. She is a member of the Church of Christ, Scientist, and her many admirable qualities have won for her a large circle of warm friends in the locality where she has long resided.
DANIEL G. CLARK, M. D.
Dr. Daniel G. Clark, engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery at Harrisburg, is a native son of Oregon, his birth having occurred five miles southeast of Salem, in Marion county, December 15, 1873. He is a son of Daniel and Harriet (Schaeffer) Clark, the former a native of Ireland, while the latter was born in Iowa. When four years of age the father was brought by his parents to the United States, the family home being established in Missouri, where Daniel Clark was reared and educated. In 1843 he crossed the plains to Oregon by means of ox teams, rendering assistance to another traveler who was also making the long and arduous trip. His first winter in the state was spent in Washington county and he then removed to Marion county, taking up a donation claim five miles southeast of Salem, on which the reform school is now located, this being on the line of the Southern Pacific Railroad. He at once set about the work of developing and cultivating his land and his perseverance and determination were at length rewarded and he became the owner of a valuable property. He was a most progressive and enterprising agriculturist and his was the first plastered house in Marion county, all of the material used in its construction heing hauled from Portland. He was an energetic, farsighted and sagacious business man and was very successful in his farming operations, adding to his original holdings from time to time until he became the owner of eight hundred acres. He utilized the latest and most modern machinery and equipment in cultivating his land, erecting thereon splendid buildings, his barns being at that time the largest in the state, and everything about the place hore evidence of the enterprising spirit and progressive methods of the owner. He continued to cultivate his farm until his death, which occurred December 31, 1885, when he was sixty-five years of age. The mother survives and is residing at Brownsville, Oregon, at the age of seventy-five years. They had become the parents of ten children, but four of whom are living.
Daniel G. Clark, the youngest member of the family, pursued his early education in the district schools of Marion county, after which he attended Willamette University and then entered the Cooper Medical College of San Francisco, now Leland Stanford University, from which he was graduated in 1899 with the M. D. degree. Returning to Oregon, he opened an office in Stayton, Marion county, and there continued in practice for five years, after which he went to Silverton, Oregon, where he followed his profession for a period of six years. In 1910 he removed to Harrisburg, and has since
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resided here, being now accorded a large patronage. He has ever kept thoroughly informed concerning the latest researches and discoveries of the profession and employs the most scientific methods in the care of the sick.
On the 21st of June, 1903, Dr. Clark was united in marriage to Miss Roxana Thompson, who is also a native of this state, her birth having occurred at Waldo Hills, Marion county, June 15, 1878. She is a daughter of Alexander and Addie (Mc- Alpin) Thompson, natives of New Jersey, who became pioneers of this state. Coming to Oregon in the '50s, the father purchased land in Marion county, which he operated until his death in 1906. The mother survived him for three years, her demise occurring in 1909. Two children have been born to Dr. and Mrs. Clark: Mildred R., who was born January 1, 1907; and Lida L., who was born July 24, 1912, and died July 2, 1914.
In his political views Dr. Clark is independent, voting for the candidate whom he considers best qualified for office, regardless of party affiliation. He has taken a prominent part in the public affairs of his community, having served as city treasurer, and is now filling the office of city health officer. He is much interested in the cause of public education and is now school director. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Church of Christ, and he takes an active interest in its work, being one of its elders. Fraternally he is identified with the Masonic order and his professional connections are with the Oregon State and Central Willamette Medical Societies and the American Medical Association. He is classed with the leading physicians of his section of the state, for he has been a close and discriminating student of his profession and his knowledge and ability have constantly developed.
WILLIS B. MORSE, M. D.
Dr. Willis B. Morse, a successful physician and surgeon of Salem, has ever kept in touch with the trend of modern professional thought, research and investigation and his pronounced ability has won for him a foremost place in the ranks of the medical fraternity of his city and state. A native son of Oregon, he was born in McMinnville, Yamhill county, March 21, 1866, his parents being William B. and Nancy E. (McBride) Morse, who were natives of Boston, Massachusetts, and of Mis- souri, respectively.
The father took to the sea early in life, studying navigation and becoming master of a vessel at twenty-one years. He made voyages to many of the important ports of the world and his first trip to the coast of Oregon- and California was made in a sailing vessel. He later returned west by way of the Isthmus, coming to Oregon by way of California and settling in Yamhill county. He was later married there and established his home in McMinnville, to which place his wife had gone with her parents, making the trip across the plains in 1846.
After his marriage William B. Morse was variously engaged, at one time having a position at the Grand Ronde Indian Agency under General Phil Sheridan. In 1866 he was appointed first warden of the state penitentiary, under Governor Woods, and served for four years, during which time he established many reforms for the better- ment of the inmates of that institution. During the later years of his life he was con- nected with the railway mail service until the time of his death in 1883. He was closely connected with the early history of Masonry in Oregon, was well known to the fraternity throughout the northwest and counted among his closest personal friends the prominent men of the order. He was in these various ways identified with the early development and pioneer life of the state and became well known among the prominent men whose labors proved so essential a factor in promoting the growth and prosperity of the state. His widow still survives at the age of eighty-three years, making her home in Salem. She is the sister of Hon. Thomas A. McBride of the supreme bench of Oregon.
Dr. Morse was reared at home, acquiring his education in the public schools of St. Helens and in the high school of Portland, this state, and Wasco Academy at The Dalles. There his literary course was completed. He determined upon the practice of medicine as a life work and in the fall of 1887 entered the medical department of Willamette University at Portland, receiving his diploma upon his graduation from that institution in April, 1891. He was for a period identified with interests in Alaska, going to that district in 1899 and there spending six months in mining and
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prospecting. However, the practice of medicine has been his real life work and to this the greater part of his time and energies has been given.
He has spent altogether nine months in New York city and Chicago, following the work of the postgraduate schools and prominent teachers of these cities. He belongs to the medical societies of his county and state, the American Medical Association and the American College of Surgeons.
In 1899 Dr. Morse was married to Miss Ethel Cusick of Salem, a daughter of William A, Cusick, one of the pioneers of Marion county, who came across the plains from Illinois in the late '40s. In 1906 Dr. Morse was called upon to mourn the loss of his wife. During the period of the World war he served as chairman of the medical advisory board, to which all doubtful cases of the draft were referred.
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