USA > Oregon > History of Oregon, Vol. III > Part 81
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W. B. Warren, vice president of Warren Brothers Company said of Mr. Chipman: "His loyalty and undivided interest in his work endeared him to his associates and to officials with whom he came in contact. He was a man of unquestioned integrity and ability in his particular line of work."
Judge Henry Hewitt of Albany, Oregon, writes of Mr. Chipman: "For more than a quarter of a century he was a familiar figure in the state of Oregon and took a leading part in many of its most important developments. He was an upbuilder of wide and intelligent vision. What he undertook moved on to completion under the guidance of a sane judgment. In spirit he was a companion and a true and sympa- thizing friend. In politics he maintained an independent course, always loyal to the best interests of his adopted state, ready to pursue any plan or project which in his judgment would redound to the best interests of the public."
Mr. Chipman was married March 26, 1890, to Miss Mellie Mar Elgin, a daughter of James H. and Josephine (Humphreys) Elgin, who were pioneer residents of Oregon, crossing the plains in 1852 and establishing their home in Salem. Four years to a day prior to Mr. Chipman's death, which occurred at Albany, Oregon, on the 16th of August, 1920, at the age of sixty-two, he faced the great sorrow of his life. Elgin Everett Chipman, the only child born to Mr. and Mrs. Chipman, a young man of seventeen and of exceptional promise, was drowned while swimming in the river.
Mr. Chipman was a member of the Congregational church and was affiliated with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, a member of Brotherhood of Locomotive Firemen and Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, and of Master Car Builder's and Master Mechanic's Association. It is not too much to say that Mr. Chipman was one of the builders of Oregon and that from his active and honorable career the youth of our time can learn many important lessons. In his death the state of Oregon suffers the great loss of a true friend, an acknowledged builder and worthy citizen.
ALBERT ARCHIBALD TRAUGOTT.
One of the live-wire business men of Central Oregon is Albert Archibald Traugott, manager of the Inland Empire Realty Company at Burns. He was born in New York state in 1884, a son of Henry E. and Fannie (Ottinger) Traugott.
In the acquirement of an education Albert Archibald Traugott attended the grade and high schools of New York city and in due time entered Cooper Institute, where he took a course in mechanical engineering. Upon the completion of that course he put his training into practical application for two years and then went to Chicago, where for a period covering twelve years he was associated with the brokerage office of his uncles-Ottinger & Company. In 1912 he came west and was secretary to the manager of the Warren Construction Company. Subsequently he determined to enter business on his own account and, moving to Burns, he established the Farmers & Producers Exchange, which business he operated with great success until 1917. In that year he purchased the Inland Empire Realty Company and now deals in irrigated lands and city property and conducts a large farm loan business. Mr. Traugott has placed loans to the amount of three hundred thousand dollars in Harney county in the past three years. He represents the investment department of the Union Central Life Insurance Company, California Joint Stock Bank, Pacific Building & Loan Asso- ciation, Western Building & Loan Association of Salt Lake and other large investors. He has made a specialty of colonizing and has been very successful along that line. Mr. Traugott belongs to that class of men who recognize that the present and not the future holds their opportunity, and with appreciation of the advantages which have come to him he has proven his worth and business capacity by utilizing these along legitimate lines leading to success.
In 1910 Mr. Traugott was united in marriage to Miss Julia Lee Hall, a native of Ohio, and a descendant of the Lee family of Virginia. Three children have been Vol. II-41
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born to their union: Ottinger Hall, a student in the schools of San Jose, California; Duane A., a student in the Burns schools; and Gene L., an infant. The family are members of the Presbyterian church. Mrs. Traugott is a musician and teaches a class in the Sunday school. The fraternal affiliations of Mr. Traugott are with the Moose and though he is a stanch supporter of the republican party he has never sought nor desired political position, preferring to devote his entire attention to furthering his business interests. During the World war he was chairman of the Red Cross shipping bureau and gave generously of his time and money in assisting his government. Mr. Traugott is thoroughly versed in land values and his business is of an extensive and important nature. In business life his course has been marked by continuous advance- ment and each forward step has brought him a broader outlook and wider oppor- tunities. His interests are thoroughly identified with those of his section of the state, and at all times he is ready to lend his aid and cooperation to any movement calculated to benefit this region or advance its wonderful development.
HORACE PRESTON BELKNAP, M. D.
Fortunate is the man who has back of him an ancestry honorable and distinguished and happy is he whose lines of life are cast in harmony therewith. Dr. Horace Preston Belknap is a member of one of Oregon's most distinguished pioneer families, hoth his paternal and maternal ancestors having played an important part in the development of this state. The progenitors of the Belknap family in this country were three brothers, Abraham, Samuel and Ebenezer, who located in America in 1635 and settled in Massa- chusetts. Abraham Belknap was the founder of the Oregon branch of the family. The great-great-great-great-great-grandfather of Dr. Belknap was Samuel and the great-great- great-great-grandfather was Ebenezer. In the records of the American Academy it is stated that the family of Ebenezer was the longest-lived American family known. The father, mother and twelve children all lived to be nearly or over one hundred years of age, one of the daughters living to the age of one hundred and six. Both the great- great-great-grandfather and the great-great-grandfather were named Samuel, the latter of whom served in the Revolutionary war and passed away while in camp at Bunker Hill, fever causing his demise. His son, Jonas, was also a soldier in the Revolution and although receiving many wounds survived that historic conflict. Jesse Belknap, the grandfather, was born in New York and came to Oregon in 1846, locating at Star Point, now Monroe, Benton county. Harley Belknap, the father of Dr. Belknap, was horn in Ohio and at an early day came with his father to Oregon. When reaching manhood he settled in what was then Wasco county but is now Crook county, and hecame one of the prominent and representative citizens of the community. The descendants of the other two progenitors of the Belknap family in this country are living honorable lives in all sections of the United States, holding the same high place in the several states in which they reside as does the Oregon branch of the family. Dr. Belknap's mother was before her marriage, Miss Thirza Inmon and she is descended from old pre-Revolutionary southern aristocracy, her immediate ancestors having been pioneers of Kentucky. Mrs. Belknap, because of her attainments, is one of the best known club women in Oregon and is foremost in club affairs.
In the acquirement of an education Dr. Belknap attended the grade schools of Benton county, the Willamette Academy, and then deciding upon a professional career he enrolled in the medical department of Ann Arbor University and after attending a course at Bellevue Hospital in 1886, received his M. D. degree. In that same year he came to Crook county, where his father was then engaged in cattle raising, and as the Doctor naïvely put it: "I came home to see the folks on my way to California, where I intended setting up in practice but there was considerable sickness in Crook county ahout that time and my services were needed and since then I have been so husy I have not had time to go further south." Dr. Belknap has built up an extensive and important practice in and around Prineville and is recognized as one of the leading medical practitioners in the state. Not only has he won prominence in professional life but he has frequently been called to public office and was one of the most capable mayors Prineville has ever had. He was likewise a member of the state legislature in the years from 1907 to 1911 and was county treasurer and superintendent of schools. Dr. Belknap is regarded by his friends as a steady, substantial citizen, who has served
DR. AND MRS. HORACE P. BELKNAP
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Crook county and Prineville to the best of his ability in every position to which he has been called.
In March, 1888, occurred the marriage of Dr. Belknap and Miss Wilda Ketchum, and to their union four sons have been born: Horace P., Wilford H., Leland V. and Hobart D., all of whom have followed in their father's footsteps and specialized in medicine. The elder son is a practicing surgeon of Nampa, Idaho, and he served in the World war as a first lieutenant in the medical corps; Wilford H., who first took up the study of law and later that of medicine, is now serving in the Good Samaritan Hospital in Portland and like his brother is a veteran of the World war; Leland V. is a practicing physician in Portland; Hobart D. was active in the World war, having served for eighteen months in France, returning to this country with the rank of first sergeant. He was taking a pre-medical course in the University of Oregon at the time of his enlistment and while in France took a course in anatomy. He is now enrolled as student in the medical department of the University of Oregon. In every war in which America has been a participant, members of the Belknap family have figured prominently since 1635. Mrs. Belknap is a woman of charming and magnetic personality and is a prominent figure in the club and social circles of Prineville and vicinity.
The fraternal affiliations of Dr. Belknap are with the Masons and Odd Fellows, and he is past master of the former order. His religious faith is that of the Christian church and in line with his profession he holds membership in the Tri-County Medical Society, the Oregon State Medical Society and the American Medical Association. Dr. Belknap keeps in close touch with his work and believes in studying each individual case. Those who know him recognize his sterling worth as physician and citizen, and Prineville is indeed fortunate in having him for a resident.
HARVEY HAMILTON DEARMOND.
Harvey Hamilton DeArmond has gained a widespread reputation as a lawyer, and specializing on irrigation represents some of the largest interests in Oregon. He has been active in the legal circles of Bend since 1913 and the zeal with which he has devoted his energies to his profession, the careful regard evinced for the interests of his clients and an assiduous and unrelaxing attention to all the details of his cases, have brought him a large business and made him very successful in its conduct.
Harvey Hamilton DeArmond was born near Albany, Oregon, in 1884, a son of E. C. and Nancy C. (Love) DeArmond. The DeArmonds were of French extraction and the first members of that family to come to America were three brothers who located in Tennessee prior to the Revolution. Their descendants scattered through- out the south and west as the country developed and took prominent parts in the governmental affairs of their various communities. Congressman DeArmond of Mis- souri, who took such an active part in democratic councils, was a member of the same branch of the family as the subject of this review. E. C. DeArmond came to Oregon in 1880 from Tennessee and after residing near Albany for some time removed to Grant's Pass. There he engaged in farming and lumbering and became one of the representative citizens of his community. He passed away in 1914. Mr. and Mrs. DeArmond were married in Tennessee, her family removing to this state about the same time as did Mr. DeArmond. Her father was likewise a successful agriculturist.
In the acquirement of his early education Harvey Hamilton DeArmond attended the common country schools near Grants Pass and in due time enrolled in the South- ern Oregon Normal School at Ashland. While studying there he decided upon the legal profession as his life work and as a result entered the Oregon Law School, from which he was graduated LL. B. in 1910. In acquiring his education circum- stances compelled him to do janitor work and odd jobs in a store to help pay his way. Soon afterward he took up the practice of his profession in Medford but after two years came to Deschutes county and opened an office in Bend, now the county seat. It was not long before his ability became widely recognized and his popularity was evidenced by his appointment as first district attorney when the county was created in 1916. At the expiration of that term he was elected to succeed himself but within a month resigned again to resume his private practice. He has since that time refused further political office, although he takes a live interest in political affairs. Mr. DeArmond has made a special study of irrigation laws and he has become an expert along the lines of irrigation litigation. His recent victory over the Central Oregon
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Irrigation Company, whereby the Central Oregon Irrigation Company's system was turned over to the settlers, was the end of years of litigation and was a sweeping victory for Mr. DeArmond. As a prominent member of the legal fraternity he is iden- tified with the Central Oregon Bar Association and the State Bar Association.
In 1911 occurred the marriage of Mr. DeArmond and Miss Mabel Emily Collins of Gold Hill, Oregon. Two children have been born to their union: Robert William and Betty Jean. Mrs. DeArmond is active in the club and social circles of Bend and her magnetic personality has won for her many friends. She is also a great home woman and was a great help to Mr. DeArmond in his earlier struggles for success.
Since age conferred upon Mr. DeArmond the right of franchise he has been a stanch supporter of the republican party, having firm belief in the principles of that party as factors in good government. He is a prominent member of the Elks, Moose and Knights of Pythias and has filled all of the chairs in the two latter organizations. He is likewise a member of the Woodmen of the World. As a man who has ever the interests of Bend at heart he belongs to the Chamber of Commerce, of which he was at one time manager, and to the Bend Commercial Club. He is a member of the State Chamber of Commerce and vice president of the Oregon Irrigation Congress. Mr. DeArmond is tireless in his devotion to furthering the irrigation interests of the town, county, and state. He has argued many cases and lost few and no one knows better the necessity for thorough preparation and no one more industriously prepares his cases than he. Few lawyers have won a more representative place at the bar of the state than Mr. DeArmond, both for legal ability of high order and for the indi- viduality of a character which impresses itself upon a community.
CAPTAIN ARCHIBALD J. GEER.
Captain Archibald J. Geer was a valued citizen of Oregon who accomplished more to improve their river transportation than almost anyone connected with steam- boating on the Columbia. He became widely known in this connection and for many years was one of the distinguished representatives of navigation in Oregon. He represented one of the oldest and most prominent of the pioneer families. He was born in Clackamas county in September, 1859, the son of Fred W. and Mary Ann (Prentis) Geer, who came from Illinois in 1847, making the overland trip with ox teams through the northwest. They settled in Clackamas county on the Willamette river where Fred W. Geer and his father took up a donation claim upon which they spent their remaining days. They were thus closely associated with the agri- cultural developments of the region.
Captain Geer obtained his education in the schools at Butteville, Marion county, and early became imbued with the spirit of enterprise which has been the dominant factor in the upbuilding and development of the Pacific northwest. When his school days were over he took up steamboat work on the Willamette and Columbia rivers and was also engaged in a similar way on the Snake river. In 1898 he made the trip by steamboat to Yukon, Alaska, and to Dawson City, making three trips in all in three different seasons. In 1898 he broke the world's record in making a trip from St. Michaels to Dawson and return. He made two trips this same season, a feat that was never accomplished before nor has it been done since. He started on his career of steamboating as a deck hand but was soon promoted to the position of pilot and thus served for one year, after which he was given his papers as master and thus he commanded vessels sailing on the Columbia river for over thirty-five years. On one occasion he went over the Cascade Falls with one hundred and twenty- five passengers on the steamship Baily Gatzert. And in the fall of 1912 he brought the Norma through the canal. He also took a big dredge through the Cascade locks and at one time took twenty-five pontoons through. He knew every bend and turn of the river, every bar to avoid and where the deep waters flow. He did more to build up steamboating on the Columbia river and successfully accomplished more hazardous trips than any other man sailing the waters of that beautiful stream. He continued to engage in steamboating until the time when he became ill, which was only a brief period before his demise.
In February, 1878, Mr. Geer was married to Miss Emily E. Ives, a daughter of Henry and Harriett Eliza (Barrett) Ives who came from England in the fall of 1875 and settled in Waldo Hills, where the father engaged in business as a machinist,
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having early learned this trade. To Captain and Mrs. Geer were born the following: Frederick D., now deceased; Bertha, the wife of John Brown of Seattle; William, who has passed away; Mamie, who is in business college; and Archibald C., who, fol- lowing in his father's footsteps, is now captain on the Nowanda. The family circle was again broken by the hand of death when on the 19th of October, 1919, Captain Geer was called to his final rest, the news of his death bringing a sense of personal bereavement to the many who were proud to call him friend. He was a member of the Pilot's Association, belonged to the Loyal Order of Moose and gave his political allegiance to the republican party. His entire life was passed in Oregon and he felt a justifiable pride in the advancement and development of the state to which he contributed in no small measure through his improvement of navigation interests on the Columbia.
WALTER H. KLINE.
Walter H. Kline, one of the progressive and enterprising merchants of Corvallis, is the proprietor of Kline's Department Store, which was established by the family in 1864 and is numbered among the oldest and most substantial enterprises of that character in this section of the state. The known reliability and enterprising methods of the house have commended it to the support of the public and its business has steadily grown until its trade has now assumed large proportions.
Mr. Kline is a native of this state. He was born in the city where he now resides on the 12th of September, 1886, a son of Simon L. and Emma T. (Tobias) Kline, who are mentioned at length on another page of this work. He was reared in Corvallis, where he attended the public schools, and later became a student in a business college at San Francisco, pursuing a three years' course. After completing his education he acquired an interest in his father's mercantile business and in 1908 they erected the present fine store building, which is seventy-five by one hundred feet in dimensions and two stories in height with basement. Mr. Kline is thoroughly familiar with every detail of the business and under his capable management the trade has con- stantly grown, so that he has found it necessary to secure additional space, utilizing for this purpose a two-story structure fifty-five by one hundred feet which adjoins his main store building. He buys and sells wool, cascara bark and mohair and also operates several large warehouses, conducting his operations on a very extensive scale. In the conduct of the business he displays sound judgment, energy and enterprise and is maintaining the high standing enjoyed by the house for over a half century.
On the 12th of August, 1919, Mr. Kline was united in marriage to Miss Ada T. Sexton and they are well and favorably known in the city where they reside. In his political views Mr. Kline is a republican and he takes a deep interest in the welfare of his city, serving as a member of its council, while for two terms he was president of the Commercial Club, in which connection he aided largely in promoting the busi- ness interests of Corvallis. He stands high in Masonry, having attained the thirty- second degree in the Scottish Rite bodies, and he also is a member of Al Kader Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., of Portland. He is likewise identified with the Benevolent Protec- tive Order of Elks, the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, being a past noble grand in the last named. He organized the Moose lodge at Corvallis, securing a membership of over five hundred, and became its first dictator. For recreation Mr. Kline turns to hunting and he has the reputation of being the greatest coon hunter in the state, at one time keeping thirty hounds. He is widely and favorably known in this locality, where he has spent his life, being recognized as a representative business man and a public-spirited citizen, loyal to the best interests of the community.
HARRY GARDNER DAVIS, D. M. D.
Although a native of another state Dr. Harry Gardner Davis is classed among the representative citizens and professional men in Crook county, Oregon, where he has resided since 1907 when he located in Prineville and established his now extensive and lucrative dental practice. He was born in Reno, Nevada, in 1880, a son
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of Charles E. and Henrietta (Cross) Davis. The Davis family were Welsh and the great-grandfather came to America in an early day and located in Canada. There Charles E. Davis was born. The grandfather, E. S. Davis, gained prominence as a civil engineer and came to the United States in 1854, locating in California. From 1866 to 1882, he served as surveyor general of Nevada. The Cross family were early residents of New York and Grandfather Cross married Sally Webster, the daughter of Prof. Amos Webster, who was a second cousin of Noah Webster. Grandfather Cross came west in 1859 and was for many years one of the best known wholesale merchants in California.
Dr. Harry Gardner Davis received his education in Oakland, California, and after graduating from the grade and high schools there served a sort of apprentice- ship in a dental office in San Francisco for two years. At the termination of that time he then enrolled in the North Pacific Dental College at Portland and he was graduated from that institution in 1905, with the degree of D. M. D. For a time he practiced in Portland but in 1907 removed to Prineville where he has remained. Dr. Davis is an extremely busy and successful practitioner and constantly overburdened by demands for his services, hoth professionally and socially.
In 1907 occurred the marriage of Dr. Davis and Miss Bella Black, a daughter of Joseph Black, a member of a pioneer family of Iowa. Mrs. Davis is a woman of much culture and refinement and takes a prominent part in the social affairs of the community.
Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise Dr. Davis has been a stanch supporter of the republican party and the principles for which it stands. He is a member of the city council of Prineville and as a man interested in every movement for the furtherance of the general welfare, is a leader in the affairs of the Prine- ville Chamber of Commerce and in the State Chamber of Commerce. Fraternally he is identified with the Knights of Pythias and the Elks and he is one of the Crook County Irrigators, having the title of Duke of the Gold Crown. The high professional attainments and sterling characteristics of Dr. Davis have won for him the respect and confidence of his professional brethren and he is president of the Central Oregon Dental Society, and a member of the State Dental Society and the National Dental Association. During his college days he became a member of the Psi Omega fraternity and is one of the prominent alumni of that organization. Upon the outbreak of the World war Dr. Davis was one of the first to offer his services to his country and though he was not sent abroad as he wished to be, he gave efficient service as a mem- ber of the medical advisory hoard. The general opinion of Dr. Davis in the com- munity may be summed up in the following remarks made by a friend: "When anything goes on in this town and Doc Davis isn't in it you can figure it's a bloomer."
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