USA > Oregon > History of Oregon, Vol. II > Part 73
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McMORRIS MARSHALL DOW, M. D.
Dr. McMorris Marshall Dow, engaged successfully in the practice of medicine and surgery at Medford, was born in Lemars, Iowa, in June, 1882, and is a son of Herman F. and Mary E. (McMorris) Dow. The ancestral line on both sides can be traced back to Revolutionary war days and Chief Justice Marshall of the United States supreme court, the first incumbent in that position, is numbered among his forebears. His grandfather in the maternal line was Judge T. A. McMorris of the supreme court of Colorado. The Doctor's father was a prominent merchant of Iowa for a number of years and at various points in the country the family has taken active part in promot- ing progress and development.
Dr. Dow received his training at the graded schools of Sioux City, Iowa, in the Michigan Military Academy, in the Sioux Medical College and in the San Francisco College of Physicians and Surgeons, from which he received his professional degree in 1905. He first entered upon active practice in Texas, remaining there for a year,
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after which he removed to Los Angeles, California, where he continued to follow his profession until 1910. He then accepted a call to the Andrew Wade Morton Hospital at San Francisco and remained as house surgeon of that famous institution until 1912, when he removed to Medford and established the Dow Hospital, which he con- ducts in addition to his extensive office practice. During the eight years in which he has made his home in Medford he has won a most enviable reputation as a surgeon of ability and has built up an excellent practice. He at all times keeps in touch with the trend of modern professional thought and progress, especially in the field of surgery, to which he bends his energies and attention.
In January, 1920, Dr. Dow was married to Miss Fernn R. Beebe, a native of Jack- son county, Oregon, and a descendant of Daniel Webster. They have one child, Mc- Morris Marshall (II).
While his professional duties have been onerous and extensive, Dr. Dow has by no means neglected his social and civic obligations. He is a thirty-second degree Mason and member of the Mystic Shrine and he is also connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. To all public affairs of value he gives his enthusiastic support and yet is never neglectful of any professional duty and in order to advance his efficiency has taken postgraduate courses in New York and Chicago and attends clinics at Rochester, Minnesota, with the Mayo Brothers. The worth of his work is widely acknowledged and his friends esteem him no less for his social qualities and splendid personal attributes than for his pro- fessional skill.
WILLIAM TORBERT MUIR.
The life activities of William Torbert Muir closely connected him with the history of the bar of Oregon and Portland named him among her valued and honored citizens until he was called to his final rest on the 4th of November, 1911. A native of Missouri, he was born in Boonville on the 4th of November, 1863, his father being William Doug- las Muir, who was a native of Virginia and became a law student, after which he was admitted to the bar and engaged in the active practice of his profession, first in St. Louis and afterward in Boonville, Missouri, his death occurring in the latter place in 1872, when he was forty-eight years of age. His wife, Mrs. Sarah A. Muir, was a native of Kentucky and died in Boonville in 1876 at the age of forty-four years. The ancestral history indicates that the family is of Scotch descent and was founded in America by Francis Muir, who on crossing the Atlantic from the land of hills and heather settled in Virginia and afterward became an officer of the American army in the Revolutionary war. He was the father of Douglas Muir, who became a planter of Virginia, whence he removed to Missouri, casting in his lot with the early pioneers of that state. Douglas Muir was the father of William Douglas Muir and thus the line of descent is brought down to William Torbert Muir. The grandfather in the maternal line was Caleb Jones, who followed merchandising in Missouri and who was of Welsh lineage, his father having come from Wales to the United States when this country was still in possession of England. He settled in Baltimore, Maryland, and aided in the early development of that city.
William T. Muir was reared in his native city, where he attended public school until at the age of thirteen years he left his home and went to Kansas City, where he took up telegraphy which he mastered. In 1883 he came to the northwest, Port- land being his destination. Here he matriculated in the University of Oregon as a law student and was graduated in 1887 with the LL. B. degree. His law studies were largely pursued at night, while the hours of the day were devoted to business activities that enabled him to provide for his own support while preparing for the bar. He was admitted to practice in October, 1887, and at once established an office in Portland where he remained to the time of his demise. He always continued in the general practice of law, becoming an able and an eminent representative of the profession by reason of his thorough preparation of every case and his ability to relate the points in litigation to the long established principles of jurisprudence. A contemporary writer said of him: "His handling of his case was always full, comprehensive and accurate; his analysis of the facts clear and exhaustive; and the careful regard which he evinced for the interests of his clients brought him a large business and made him very success- ful in its conduct." For two years, from 1891 until 1893, Mr. Muir filled the office of
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city attorney of Portland and in 1905 he was chosen to represent his district in the lower house of the general assembly, giving thoughtful and earnest consideration to every question which came up during his connection with the state legislature. He voted with the democratic party from the time he attained his majority until 1896, when, unable to accept the free silver principles advocated by William J. Bryan, he joined the ranks of the republican party. He was twice elected to the legislature to represent his district.
Mr. Muir was married in Portland, January 12, 1898, to Miss Jane Whalley, a daughter of John W. Whalley, and they became the parents of three children: Mary, born December 13, 1898; William Whalley, who was born April 28, 1900; and Jane, March 4, 1906. The son was a member of the Students' Army Training Corps in Cali- fornia.
Mr. Muir was widely and favorably known in the club circles of Portland, belong- ing to the Multnomah Club, the Arlington Club and the Waverly Golf Club. He at- tained high rank in Masonry, having become a member of the Consistory in the Scottish Rite. He was identified with the Multnomah Bar Association, the Oregon State Bar Association and the American Bar Association and at all times he enjoyed the fullest respect and confidence of his colleagues and contemporaries in the profession of law. All who were his associates bore testimony to the strength and worth of his character, to his devotion to high professional standards and to his close adherence to all those principles which mark the highest type of American manhood and chivalry.
THURSTON E. DANIELS.
Along various avenues Thurston E. Daniels of Medford has directed his efforts and the results achieved have been highly satisfactory, not only from the standpoint of the attainment of success but also when judged as factors in public progress. Mr. Daniels was born in Vancouver, Washington, in March, 1881, and is a son of Thurston and Mollie (Miller) Daniels. The father was for many years one of the best known news- paper men on the coast, publisher of the Vancouver Register. He also served as lieu- tenant governor of Washington and held various other positions of honor and trust. He was a son of William B. Daniels, who was territorial governor of Idaho under President Lincoln. The Daniels family comes from New York and originally from New England colonial stock and the name has been carried with honor and distinction across the continent to the far-off Pacific coast, each generation upholding the family honor with the same steadfast integrity and loyalty and progressiveness in citizenship. The Miller family was also early represented in the Empire state. It was in 1850 that the grandparents of Mr. Daniels came to the northwest, having walked most of the distance across the plains.
Thurston E. Daniels was educated in the schools of his native town and in Mount Angel College of Oregon, from which he was graduated in 1900. The same year he received an appointment to the United States quartermaster's department and served with credit for two years. He then became a reporter on the Morning Oregonian at Portland and devoted two years to that work, after which he was badly injured in a railroad accident of an Elks' excursion train, this terminating his reportorial service. He went to California and during his stay in the vicinity of Santa Ana he estab- lished a clothing store in the nearby town of Orange and conducted the business for three years, after which he disposed of his store and returned to Oregon. Coming to Medford, he again entered the clothing business, to which he turned his attention. from 1907 until 1917. After disposing of his store he gave largely of his time to war work, having charge of all the Red Cross drives and other war activities. In January, 1919, he accepted the position of district representative of the New York Life Insur- ance Company and is still serving in that connection, having made for himself a creditable place among the insurance men of the northwest.
In 1905 Mr. Daniels was married to Miss Lillian Monahan, a daughter of Frank Monahan, one of the best known railroad men of California and founder of the town of Needles in that state. Both Mr. and Mrs. Daniels are members of the Catholic church and both are prominent in church affairs and in the social life of the city, enjoying the goodwill and high regard of a host of friends. Mr. Daniels was one of the organizers of the Elks' lodge of Medford and its first exalted ruler. He served on the building committee which erected the present magnificent Elks building and took
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a prominent part in its construction. He also served as district deputy grand exalted ruler of the order in Oregon for two terms and he is likewise a past grand knight of the Knights of Columbus. He is likewise active in civic matters and is now effi- ciently serving on the board of directors of the Chamber of Commerce, doing effective work through that organization for the city's upbuilding, the extension of its trade relations and the advancement and support of its civic standards.
JUDGE WILLIAM SEELYE CROWELL.
Judge William Seelye Crowell, who is well known as "the grand old man of Med- ford," has done more to build up the community than any other resident now living here. Opportunity has ever been to him a call to action and his labors have been most resultant factors in promoting progress and improvement. Judge Crowell has now passed the seventy-eighth milestone on life's journey, for he was born in the state of Ohio in 1843, his parents being Samuel and A. Maria (Seelye) Crowell. The first ancestors of the family in the new world came in 1630 and genealogical records say that the name was really Cromwell, but the fame of their great ancestor, Oliver Cromwell, not being to their liking, they changed the orthography of the name, adopting the present form. However that may be, the descendants of the Crowells in America have made for themselves a most honorable name and place. No call to arms in this country, beginning with the Revolutionary war, has failed to find one or more of the family engaged in the military service of the country. The Seelyes are of Scotch descent and have been represented in the new world since early colonial days. The founder of the American branch of the Seelye family was pressed into the British navy but escaped from his ship with a comrade and determined to remain with the colonists. In this adventure his comrade was overtaken by a shark while the lads were swimming for shore and thus lost his life. Mr. Seelye, however, was more fortunate and reached haven safely.
As the east became more thickly settled the grandfather of Judge Crowell removed to Ohio, becoming one of the pioneer residents there. In that state his son, Samuel Crowell, was born and became the father of Judge Crowell.
The last named was educated in the common schools of his native state and for two years was a teacher in the district schools. He was but eighteen years of age when the Civil war broke out and he at once joined the Union army, serving his country until 1865-first in the Army of the Cumberland and afterward with General Rosecrans in the south. At twenty years of age he had risen to a captaincy. At the battle of Perryville, Kentucky, he lost nearly half of his company in less than an hour. At the battle of Milton, Tennesee, he was in command of a company of Ohio troops and was afterward cited for honorable mention for his participation in both of these engage- ments. Returning to Ohio after the war, he clerked in a mercantile establishment and during that service read law at night and in leisure hours, being admitted to the bar in 1867 and licensed to practice in the United States courts in 1868. He entered upon active practice in Coshocton, Ohio, in 1870. In 1872 he was elected district attor- ney and still later he served as state senator. In 1885 President Cleveland appointed him American consul to China, and he occupied that responsible position through the Cleveland administration and for one year and a half of the Harrison administra- tion. Resigning his post, he reached San Francisco and after making a tour of the coast decided to make his future home in the Rogue river valley of Oregon. For a period of six months he lived in Ashland and later purchased a ranch In the valley but soon resumed the practice of law in Medford, where he has since continuously resided. In 1896 he was elected county judge, which is the only public office he has ever consented to hold save his ministerial appointment to the Orient.
Judge Crowell is really the father of the banking business in Medford. In 1903 he assisted in organizing the Medford State Bank, now the Medford National Bank, but his most conspicuous work of this character was the organization, in 1905, of the first National Bank of Medford, of which he became the first president. The bank was capitalized for twenty-five thousand dollars and in less than six years he had built up the bank until its resources amounted to over a quarter of a million dol- lars. Originally a small cabin was occupied and the steady development of the busi- ness is manifest today not only in the figures indicative of its patronage but also in the handsome bank building, which is unsurpassed in southern Oregon. In 1911 Judge
JUDGE WILLIAM S. CROWELL
Vol. 11-37
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Crowell retired from the banking business and actively resumed law practice, though he is still a stockholder in the Medford National Bank. Few men of his years retain active connection with professional and business affairs, but old age need not neces- sarily suggest idleness nor want of occupation. In fact there is an old age which grows stronger and brighter mentally and morally as the years pass on and gives out of its rich stores of wisdom and experience for the benefit of others, and such is the record of Judge Crowell.
For fifty-seven years the Judge has been a consistent and loyal follower of Masonic teachings and he also has membership with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He was the first president of the board of trustees of the Christian Science church of Medford and is a member of the Grand Army of the Republic. He no longer goes into court but confines his practice to office work, acting in a purely advisory way, and such is his reputation throughout southern Oregon that he has more business than he wants. Many men have located in Medford since the founding of the city, but it is safe to say that none has done more for the town than this sterling citizen, progres- sive banker and capable lawyer, William Seelye Crowell.
CHARLES HALL.
Charles Hall, president of the First National Bank at Klamath Falls, although he has been a resident of that city but a short time is one of the best known men in Oregon. Born at Brookville, Pennsylvania, on the 5th of May, 1881, he is a son of William Henry and Elizabeth (Shields) Hall. He attended the grade and high schools in his native town and taught school until he was twenty-one years of age. His father was of English descent, his ancestors having come to this country four generations before the birth of our subject.
After putting his textbooks aside Charles Hall came west, locating in Oregon in 1901. He engaged in the drug business in Columbia county in connection with his brother and taught school at the same time. Some time later he took a literary course at the University of Michigan and in 1906 established a drug store at Hood River. He disposed of his interests in Columbia county and later sold out his drug interests at Hood River, purchasing an apple orchard and organizing the Oregon & Washington Telephone Company, of which he became president. As a result of his laudable am- bition Mr. Hall rapidly advanced to a position of prominence in the community, where be had come but a short time before as a mere boy. In 1914 he removed to Marsh- field, where he organized the Coos & Curry Telephone Company, of which he became president, an office he retains at the present time. During his residence in Marshfield he was largely interested in lumber and ship building and various other important commercial enterprises. In 1917 he organized the Bank of Southwestern Oregon, was president of that institution until December, 1920, when he resigned that office but is still a member of its board of directors. In December, 1920, Mr. Hall purchased a large interest in the First National Bank of Klamath Falls and at the meeting of the stockholders in January, 1921, was elected president, assuming active manage- ment of that institution in March, 1921. At that time he removed his family to Klamath where they now reside.
In 1906 Mr. Hall was married to Miss Ann English, a daughter of John A. English, and to them three children have been born: Keith E., Cynthia and Charles W. Mrs. Hall is an accomplished woman and possesses marked musical talent. As a solo violinist she is drafted for concerts and never fails to delight her audiences. While active in club and social affairs she naturally favors musical organizations.
In politics Mr. Hall is a republican and although not seeking political preferment was prevailed upon to accept the senatorship of the eighth senatorial district. When his removal to Klamath took him out of that district he tendered his resignation which was not accepted and his electors insisted upon his serving the term out. He has always been a believer and has taken an active interest in commercial organizations, having been president of the Chamber of Commerce in every community in which he has resided. He was one of the organizers of the Oregon State Chamber of Commerce, was elected its first president, has twice been reelected and is still serving in that capacity. Mr. Hall is an exemplary member of the Masonic Order, in which he has attained the thirty-second degree, and he is likewise a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. He is also iden- tified with the Elks, and holds membership in the State Fish and Game Commission
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and in the Oregon Land Settlement Commission. The dominant characteristics of Mr. Hall are pluck, energy and perseverance. At an early age he entered the business world on his own account and learned his lessons in the school of experience. He is a citizen ever loyal to the best interests of the community, and Klamath Falls may indeed be ac- counted fortunate in having him for a resident.
JAMES PAUL COOKE.
James Paul Cooke, representative of the brokerage interests of Portland, now en- gaged in business under the firm style of the Overbeck & Cooke Company, was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin, in 1874, and is a son of Constantine and Catherine (Cree- don) Cooke. The father was born at Corpus Christi, Texas, in 1842 and in his boyhood days went with his parents to Wisconsin, where he met and married Catherine Creedon, whose birth occurred in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1844. Mr. Cooke made farming his life occupation and continued a resident of Wisconsin until his death in 1876. His widow survives and is now a resident of Chicago, Illinois.
The youthful days of James P. Cooke were spent in his native city as a public school pupil to the age of fourteen years, when he began learning telegraphy and was employed along that line to the age of twenty-six. In 1900 he made his way across the continent to Portland and here turned his attention to the brokerage business, in which he has since been engaged, covering a period of two decades. He entered into part- nership relations under the firm style of the Overbeck & Cooke Company, and although Mr. Overbeck passed away in 1920, the firm name is still retained. Mr. Cooke is now president of the company, which has long enjoyed a large clientage. As a broker he is thoroughly familiar with financial paper and investments of various kinds and his clients have come to rely upon his judgment as thoroughly sound and recognize his business methods as most trustworthy.
On the 6th of April, 1904, in Portland, Oregon, Mr. Cooke was married to Miss Esther Mary McDermott, a daughter of the late Frank McDermott, who was recently inspector of Hulls. He was born in Ireland in 1842 and came to the United States in infancy with his parents, while in early manhood he became a resident of Oregon. To Mr. and Mrs. Cooke have been born the following named: Eileen Frances, Virginia Mary, Jane Frances de Chantal, Kevin George, James Paul and Mary Elizabeth. The religious faith of the family is that of the Catholic church and Mr. Cooke belongs to the Knights of Columbus. In politics he is a republican and during the World war he did active work in connection with the bond drives. His partner, Mr. Overbeck, was particularly prominent in that connection and Mr. Cooke looked after the business of the firm in order that his partner might give undivided attention to the work of the government. Mr. Cooke belongs to various prominent clubs and social organizations, having membership in the Arlington, Waverly, Multnomah, Portland Golf and Auto- mobile Clubs and also in the Chamber of Commerce. He has never had occasion to regret his determination to try his fortune in the west and throughout his career has displayed the spirit of unfaltering enterprise that has been the dominant element in the upbuilding of this section of the country.
MERVIN HAYS SMITH, M. D.
Prominent in the medical circles of Astoria and president of the Clatsop County Medical Society is Dr. Mervin Hays Smith, who was born in the state of Iowa in 1876, a son of George I. and Martha (Dougherty) Smith. His father engaged in the mercantile business and was for many years county supervisor. He likewise held other offices of trust and honor and was a highly respected citizen of the community in which he resided. George I. Smith was born in New York, the native state of his father and grandfather before him. The Smith family have been residents of America for generations and wherever they have resided they have become prominent and respected citizens.
Dr. Mervin Hays Smith received his education in his home town of Coon Rapids, Iowa, where he attended the grade and high schools and in due time entered the Creighton University of Omaha, Nebraska, from which institution he was graduated
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in 1902, with the degree of M. D. For a time after graduation he served in the St. Joseph's Hospital at Omaha and then took postgraduate courses in the Iowa State University and at Chicago, and New York. In 1906 he located at Rock Island, Illinois, where he built up an extensive and lucrative practice. He was in the midst of this practice when he answered his country's call for service in the World war, and clos- ing his offices he enlisted in the army. In August, 1917, he received the commission of first lieutenant in the Medical Reserve Corps and was assigned to duty at Vancouver (Wash.) Barracks where he served until August 19, 1919, when he was promoted to a captaincy in the regular army and ordered to the Benson Polytechnic Training De- tachment. While there he was recommended as major. In 1912 Dr. Smith had made his first visit to the coast, when with his brother-in-law, Charles H. Stockwell, now of Clatskanie, Oregon, he established the St. Helen's Bank, the first bank in Columbia county, further mention of which is made on another page of this work. This visit and his subsequent service at Vancouver Barracks resulted in his becoming attached to the climate and the people of Oregon, and he determined to make this state his future home. Consequently, upon his discharge from service he removed to Astoria and there has resided ever since. His practice is extensive and lucrative and the recognition of his ability in the profession was manifested in his election to the presidency of the Clatsop County Medical Society. He is likewise a prominent mem- ber of the Oregon State Medical Society and is a fellow of the American Medical Association.
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