History of Oregon, Vol. III, Part 47

Author: Carey, Charles Henry
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Chicago, Portland, The Pioneer historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 766

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HARRY RALSTON McCARVER.

Harry Ralston McCarver, who was long well known in railway circles, passed away in Portland, December 14, 1918. He was one of the native sons of Oregon, his birth having occurred on the 29th of March, 1868, in Oregon City, his parents being Thomas Jennings and Mary (Goodlive) McCarver, the former a native of Virginia, while the latter was born in Ohio. They came to Oregon to establish their home in 1855, the father having previously made a trip to this state.

Harry McCarver spent his early life in Oregon City and acquired his preliminary education there, while later he studied at Portland and also at St. Joseph, Missouri. When his education was completed he returned to the northwest and for a time was engaged in the grocery business in Portland. Later, however, he turned his attention to railroad work and was connected with the transcontinental freight department. For ten years he was in the employ of the Northern Pacific Railroad and afterward became inspector for the transcontinental freight bureau, in which position he con- tinued to the time of his death.

In 1892 Mr. McCarver was united in marriage to Miss Nora Marrs, a daughter of James and Mary (Howell) Marrs, who were natives of Arkansas and pioneers of Oregon. Her father made two trips to this state before taking up his permanent abode here. He settled near Oregon City and followed farming throughout his entire life. To Mr. and Mrs. McCarver was born a daughter, Leila Virginia, who is living with her mother and is employed in the office of the Spokane, Portland & Seattle Rail- road Company.

In his political views Mr. McCarver was a democrat, giving unfaltering allegiance to the party yet never seeking nor desiring office. His religious faith was that of the Episcopal church and his entire life was guided by its teachings, making him a man of high honor, worthy of all respect.

DR. ELMER THOMPSON HELMS.

Of the many adopted sons of Oregon who have achieved preeminence in profes- sional lines Dr. Elmer Thompson Helms, a well known chiropractor of Hillsboro, is one of the most notable and progressive. A native of Missouri he was born in 1878, the son of Simon and Mary (Cassity) Helms. His father, a pioneer among Ohio farm- ers, married into a family who had tilled the soil of Kentucky for generations and true to his ancestry, upon completing his education in the public schools of Missouri, the son turned first to farming. He was ambitious and energetic, however, and not content to confine his interests to agricultural pursuits entirely. From being a clerk Vol. III-24

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in a local store and later a traveling salesman, he became in six months the district superintendent of an insurance company with headquarters at Moberly, Missouri. In 1913, while traveling through Oregon, he became so impressed with the climatic con- ditions and business possibilities of the state that he resigned his position and took up his residence here. At this time the bill which has since been enacted into a law legalizing the practice of chiropractic, was then before the legislature. The young man entered Pacific College, registering for the full course for which twenty-four hun- dred hours were requisite for a diploma. He graduated in 1915 and began his practice in Portland, whence after a few months he removed to Hillsboro. His offices here, equipped with the most modern devices known to the profession, as for instance the oxygen generator used with such eminent success in tubercular and bronchial cases, as well as all the modern electrical equipment, attest the efficiency and progressiveness of Dr. Helms.

In 1901 Dr. Helms married Mary J. Hawkins, whose father, J. M. Hawkins, was one of Missouri's notable veterans of the Civil war. Their daughter, Ruth Esther, is a student in the Hillsboro high school and is already an accomplished violinist. Mrs. Helms is one of Hillsboro's most popular hostesses and is active in club circles. That Dr. Helms' social eminence parallels his professional success is apparent from the fact of his triple fraternal affiliations with the Masons, the Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias of which he is an active member.

NELSON EMRY.

Nelson Emry, manager for the branch of the Bridal Veil Lumber Company at Hood River, was born in Missouri in 1883, a son of M. L. and Kate L. (McCreary) Emry. The father was descended from a long line of Ohio pioneers, while the mother belonged to a still older family of Maryland. The parents removed to Oregon in 1897 and after four years' residence in the Willamette valley located at Hood River in 190I.

Nelson Emry was educated in the graded schools of this state and in the Behnke- Walker Business College of Portland. He became associated with his father in car- pentering and contracting and they built the first cider and vinegar mill in this section and operated it for several years. He is still associated with his father in the opera- tion of a sawmill under the name of the Mount Hood Milling Company at Parkdale and also as a member of the Oak Grove Milling Company. In 1910 he was made manager of the Hood River branch of the Bridal Veil Lumber Company and still holds that important position. He is a forceful and resourceful business man, energetic and enterprising, and his labors are being crowned with substantial success.

In January, 1910, Mr. Emry was married to Miss Ruth D. Wood of Monmouth, Oregon, a daughter of the Rev. W. A. Wood, a clergyman of the Christian church, who is a native of Missouri but has long been a resident of this state. Mr. and Mrs. Emry are the parents of two sturdy boys, Donald Wood and Robert. Mr. Emry is a Mason and also a Knight of Pythias, while in the Modern Woodmen of America he has occupied the office of banker for a number of years. He is accounted one of the most reliable and progressive business men of Hood River. Since starting out upon his independent career he has constantly broadened his activities and is now a prominent representative of the industrial and commercial interests of this section of the state. Obstacles and difficulties in his path seem to serve but as an impetus for renewed effort on his part and he never stops short of the successful accomplishment of his plans.

JOHN STORAN.

John Storan, who as a landscape gardener contributed much to the beauty and adornment of Portland, had many interesting experiences through the course of an active life, not the least of which was as an Indian fighter and by reason of valiant service in this connection he was offered a commission. He was born in Ireland, May 9, 1833, a son of John and Katherine (Quinn) Storan of Kilkenny, Ireland. When a young lad he came to the United States and spent a number of years in the east. In 1855 he went to St. Louis and while there enlisted as a member of Company F, First United States Dragoons, of which he was made corporal. He joined

JOHN STORAN

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the regiment at Fort Union, New Mexico, and served for five years, after which he was honorably discharged at Fort Brooks, California. On the 10th of September, 1862, he enlisted for active service in the Civil war for three years, or the duration of the war, at San Francisco, and was mustered in on the 21st of October as first sergeant of Company I, First Regiment of Washington Territory, under command of Captain Daniel O. Regan, while Justus Steinberger commanded the regiment as its colonel. Mr. Storan was offered a promotion to a lieutenancy at the close of the war on account of his valiant service on the Indian expedition into the Bruneau valley of Idaho, where his company killed about forty Indians and captured many others.

At Portland, Oregon, on the 18th of November, 1874, Mr. Storan was united in marriage to Mrs. Emily H. Miller nee Couper, who by her former marriage had a daughter, Alice Miller, now the deceased wife of Arthur Reckard. Mr. and Mrs. Reckard had two children, Marshall and Emily.

After his removal to Portland, when the days of Indian warfare and of pioneer experiences were over, Mr. Storan turned his attention to landscape gardening, doing work in connection with many of the finest homes of the city and to his efforts the beautiful appearance of the lawns in Portland is largely attributable. Politically Mr. Storan was a republican but never an office seeker. He belonged to the Indian War Veterans of the North Pacific Coast and was a member of George Wright Post, G. A. R., thus maintaining pleasant relations with his old army comrades. He was always as true and loyal to his country as when he followed the nation's starry banner as one of the defenders of the Union and at all times was keenly interested in the develop- ment and progress of the northwest, contributing to the result in many tangible ways.

BERT WILLIAM EMERSON.

Bert W. Emerson, the organizer of The Dalles Garage Company, which was incor- porated in 1917, and of which he is president and general manager, was born in The Dalles in 1882, a son of C. W. and Elizabeth (Russell) Emerson, who for years were residents of this part of Oregon. The parents came from California to Oregon in 1879, and for the first three or four years the father worked for the railroad company. On severing his connection with the railroad, he homesteaded a tract of land lying ten miles south of The Dalles, where he remained for several years and where he reared his family. After spending an industrious life on the farm, Mr. Emerson retired from active work and is now a resident of Seattle, Washington, where he is enjoying the fruits of his labor and energy. His wife's people-the Russells-were pioneers of Cali- fornia when that state was in its formative stage. In the early days, William Hearst, brother of Senator George Hearst, was the owner of a farm which he operated in Wasco county adjoining the Emerson holdings.

Bert W. Emerson was educated in the graded schools of The Dalles and at the Portland Business College. After his graduation, he assisted his father on the home farm and a little later he and his brother took up farming on their own account. He continued his agricultural operations for eleven years, during this period working hard and thereby laying the foundations of his financial success, and for the next three years he engaged in the grain business in The Dalles.

It was in 1917 that Mr. Emerson organized The Dalles Garage Company, which was incorporated in the same year, and he was elected president of the company, a posi- tion which he still holds, together with that of general manager. On the corner of Second and Union streets, the company erected a handsome concrete fire-proof garage, having a floor space of twenty-six thousand five hundred feet. It is divided into storage, accessories and repair departments, with salesroom and office for the clerical staff. The company holds agencies for several of the most popular and well known cars, and their sales of standard makes are gradually swelling with each year of business. The repair department is equipped with the latest appliances and employs only the most expert mechanics. The accessories department carries a complete line of parts and other auto requirements for all makes, including first-class tires. In every way this plant is a credit to Mr. Emerson's business acumen and is no less a credit to The Dalles, hav- ing very few equals of its kind along the Columbia River highway.

In April, 1903, Mr. Emerson was married to Miss Laura M. Remington, a daughter of William M. Remington, a farmer of Wasco county. The Remingtons, who were

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pioneers of Nebraska, settled in Oregon in 1894. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Emerson, namely: Ralph, who was accidentally killed in 1918, and a daughter, Elsie, who is now in the Anna Wright Seminary, Tacoma, Washington. Mr. Emerson has never cared for political office, preferring to devote his time and attention to his commercial pursuits. Fraternally he is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, in the affairs of which he evinces a warm interest.

CHESTER GRIFFIN MURPHY.

Chester Griffin Murphy, a member of the Portland bar, who is now giving con- siderable attention to official duties as secretary and treasurer of the Oregon-Washington- Idaho Airplane Company for the promotion of commercial aviation in the northwest, was born in Salem, Marion county, Oregon, February 3, 1876, and is a son of John Joseph and Elizabeth (Lister) Murphy, who in pioneer times became residents of Salem. The father, Judge J. J. Murphy, was long a well known figure at the Oregon bar and for sixteen years served as clerk of the supreme court of the state, filling the position to the time of his death, which occurred June 17, 1907. He was survived by his widow, who afterward went to live with her son, Chester G., in Portland.

In his native city Chester G. Murphy pursued his early education and afterward attended the Willamette University, which he entered in 1893, there pursuing a three years' academic course. He next matriculated in the Leland Stanford University of California, where he continued from 1896 until 1901, the Bachelor of Arts degree being conferred upon him at the completion of his classical course in 1900. He began his law studies there and then in 1901-02 attended the law school of Harvard and in 1903 received his LL. B. degree. He was a well known athlete in his college days, serving as captain of the Stanford football team in 1899, and through the four years of his college course he was a member of the Stanford baseball, football and track teams.

Having qualified for the bar Mr. Murphy was admitted to practice in 1902 and took up the duties of the profession on the 1st of January, 1903, in association with Judge William D. Fenton of Portland. The connection was maintained until October, 1906, from which time Mr. Murphy has practiced independently and from 1906 to 1914 held the office of referee in bankruptcy by appointment of the United States district court for the district of Oregon. He early recognized the fact that advancement at the bar must depend upon individual merit, industry and ability just as surely as in industrial or commercial lines, and he therefore made it his purpose thoroughly to prepare every case which he was to present before the court, so that he gained many favorable ver- dicts that established him as a leading and thoroughly reliable lawyer. He likewise became interested in realty in Portland and in Salem and he also acquired the owner- ship of a stock farm of one hundred and eighty acres at Woodburn and a hop yard of one hundred acres in West Salem. His investments at all times displayed keen business discernment and sound judgment. After some years he concentrated largely upon the development of his properties, being the builder at Salem of the commercial hotel of the city while in Portland he became associated with others in the building of the Trinity Place apartments, which set a new standard for the construction of apartments upon the Pacific coast. It is a characteristic of Mr. Murphy that he has never been content with the second best but has always striven to reach the ultimate objective in every attainment.

On the 4th of June, 1912, in Portland, Mr. Murphy was united in marriage to Miss Angela Kinney, a daughter of Timothy Kinney, a well known Wyoming capitalist, and they have become parents of two daughters, Marion Margaret and Catherine Elizabeth. Mr. Murphy is a member of the Congregational church and is well known in the club circles of the city, being a life member of the Multnomah Club and a member of the University, Waverly Country and Portland Hunt Clubs. He is likewise connected with the Chamber of Commerce and cooperates heartily in the well defined activities of that organization for the benefit and upbuilding of the city. His political allegiance has always been given to the republican party and in 1920 he became state chairman of the Hoover Republican Club of Oregon, which supported the pre-campaign efforts to turn the nomination to Herbert Hoover, whose efforts in behalf of starving Europe have made him one of the best known Americans today. Throughout the war period Mr. Murphy was active on the bond and Red Cross drives and was one of the advisors of the exemption board at Portland. In July, 1918, he went overseas as a member of a

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College Unit, made up of college athletes, representing the Y. M. C. A. athletic and recrea- tion work, and was given charge of recreation and athletics, with headquarters at Aix- les-Bains, in the district of the Savoie in southeastern France, where five thousand soldiers were sent on leave each week. There Mr. Murphy continued for eight months and was overseas altogether for a year, thus rendering active aid to his country in the effort to maintain the high morale of the American army.

With his return home Mr. Murphy resumed the practice of law in Portland and his recognized ability places him with the foremost lawyers of the city. He has since organized the Oregon-Washington-Idaho Airplane Company for the promotion of commercial aviation in the northwest and of this company is the secretary and treas- urer. He has closely studied the question of aerial travel from the commercial stand- point and again in this, as in other fields, has taken a position of leadership.

HUBERT LUTHER HASBROUCK.

Hubert Luther Hasbrouck, a prominent optometrist and orchardist living at Hood River, is a descendant of Abraham Hasbrouck, or Broeacq, as the name was written in French. This Abraham Hasbrouck, with his brother John, or Jean, came to America in 1673, becoming the founder of the branch of the family in the new world. They were natives of Calais, France, and were of the Huguenot faith, which caused them to flee from religious persecution in their native land. Abraham Hasbrouck was one of a company of twelve who received a donation from Governor Andros, a plot of land purchased from the Indians, the major part of which was situated in Ulster county, New York. This grant was made to them in 1677 and they established the settlement of New Paltz, in which many of the descendants of Abraham Hasbrouck still reside. As early as 1689 he was a captain of foot at Ye Paltz, Ulster county. His son, Solo- mon Hasbrouck, was born in 1686 and had a large family of children, among whom was Petrus, who during the Revolutionary war was a lieutenant, serving in Colonel Hardenburgh's Regiment from 1775 to 1782, during which time he participated in much of the hard fighting. Among the sons of Petrus was Solomon Hasbrouck, who in turn left a son, Luther, who was born in 1826 at New Paltz, New York, where his great-great-grandfather Abraham had founded the family in the new world in 1673 and where the Huguenot Society has erected a tablet in his memory in the Huguenot Museum, which is the old Hasbrouck home, thus honoring the memory of the twelve men who had established the settlement.

Luther Hasbrouck at the age of twenty-one years went to California, making the trip in May, 1849, by sailing vessel around Cape Horn and arriving in July of the same year. He became one of the pioneer settlers in the land of gold and after pros- pecting in California for a little more than a year he made his way to Oregon, being the first man to pan gold in this state, securing the precious metal at Josephine in July, 1850. Later he turned his attention to merchandising, which he followed for twenty-seven years. In 1860 he returned east and was married to Miss Lucinda M. Ingalls of Batavia, New York, who was a descendant of the Lee family of Virginia. Luther and Lucinda Hasbrouck were the parents of Hubert Luther Hasbrouck, who was born in Lane county, Oregon, in 1865. In 1875 he went with his parents to Michigan, where the family decided to remain, and he therefore acquired his education in the public schools of North Leslie, that state. He initiated his business career by securing employment in connection with the lumber trade. He thus worked for three years and then went to Jackson, Michigan, where he became an apprentice at watch making, completing his apprenticeship with a course in the Parsons Horological College, from which he was graduated as an optometrist in 1889. After following his profession in Indiana and Illinois for three years he determined to return to his native state and in 1890 settled at Pendleton, Oregon, where he remained for sixteen years. In 1906 he located at Hood River, where he has since practiced and has won substantial success in his chosen field of labor. Like the great majority of the residents of the Hood River country he also purchased an orchard, which contains twenty-two acres and is situated three miles south of the city, on which he raises apples and pears, producing some of the fine fruit for which the Hood River valley is famed throughout the world.

Mr. Hasbrouck was married in 1892 to Miss Lottie Lee Mack, a daughter of a well known vineyardist of California. They have three children: Mande Evelyn, who is

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the wife of H. B. Pritchett of Detroit; Hubert L., Jr., who, true to his Hasbrouck blood, volunteered for service in the World war and rendered valuable aid to his country in the Radio Corps aboard submarine chasers, while now he is associated with his father in fruit raising; and Evelyn, who has taken up the profession of teaching.

Mr. Hasbrouck is a well known Mason, becoming one of the charter members of Hood River commandery and is now one of its past eminent commanders. He is like- wise a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. Though a stalwart republican he has never sought public office but the voters of Hood River, seeking a candidate for county judge in 1920 who would in all respects be one hundred per cent American, persuaded him to accept the nomination. Throughout his life he has measured up to the highest standards of American manhood and citizenship and enjoys the unqualified regard of all who know him.

HENRY ZOPHAR THARP, M. D.

Dr. Henry Zophar Tharp, practicing physician of Astoria, is a native son of Oregon, born in Polk county in 1881. His parents were Joseph and Alice (Wood) Tharp. The father came to Oregon in 1845 from Illinois, where his people had lived for generations and he followed farming and cattle raising, becoming a highly successful and respected citizen of the community in which he resided.

Dr. Henry Zophar Tharp is indebted to the common schools of Polk county for his early education and in due time he entered the Oregon Agricultural College. Decid- ing on a professional career, Dr. Tharp entered the medical department of the Uni- versity of Oregon and graduated in 1914, after which he practiced at Toledo, Oregon, for a short time. He then removed to Rainier, where he accepted the position of physician and surgeon of the Hammond Lumber Company, one of the giant lumber companies of the coast and there remained until the outbreak of the World war, when he resigned his position and volunteered his services in the medical corps. He was commissioned first lieutenant and ordered to Fort Riley, Kansas, for duty, where he took a special course for medical officers. From Fort Riley he was ordered to Camp Lewis, Washington. He served until February, 1919, and received his discharge as captain in the Medical Reserve Corps, United States army. He then went to Astoria and he resumed his practice which he has continued, having an extensive and lucra- tive patronage. He has specialized in urology, being one of the few physicians of Astoria who have taken up a special line in the profession. Dr. Tharp is of an athletic turn and during his college days he was a member of the football, baseball, and basket- ball teams of his college. While attending the Oregon Agricultural College he was basket-ball coach and he was professor of physical training at the State Normal School at Monmouth, Oregon.

In 1913 Dr. Tharp was married to Miss Agnes J. Windover, a native of Wisconsin, and to them one child has been born, Cleo Jean.

Dr. Tharp is very popular, both in and out of his profession and in the club and fraternal circles of Astoria he takes an active part, being a member of the Masons, of the Chamber of Commerce and of the Kiwanis Club. In the line of his profession he holds membership in the Clatsop County Medical Society, the Oregon State Medical Society, and the American Medical Association.

JAMES LEWIS CONLEY.

James Lewis Conley, for thirteen years a member of the Portland bar, was born in Golconda, Illinois, on the 13th of March, 1880, his parents being Lewis C. and Melvina (Lightner) Conley. The father was born in Jackson, Ohio, in 1842 and the marriage of the parents was celebrated in Illinois. While a resident of that state Lewis C. Conley enlisted in the Twenty-ninth Illinois Regiment of Infantry and served with that command under Grant through the battles of Forts Henry and Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth and Vicksburg. He was with the regiment for about three years and three months, after which he entered the Sixth Illinois Cavalry, continuing therewith until the close of the war, his term of service covering four years and three months. He was

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History of Oregon, Vol. III, Part 47

Author: Carey, Charles Henry Publication date: 1922 Publisher: Chicago, Portland, The Pioneer historical publishing company Number of Pages: 766

Author: Carey, Charles Henry
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Chicago, Portland, The Pioneer historical publishing company
Number of Pages: 766