Portrait and biographical record of Portland and vicinity, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 66

Author:
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 946

USA > Oregon > Multnomah County > Portland > Portrait and biographical record of Portland and vicinity, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present > Part 66

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The union of Mr. and Mrs. Rieman has been blessed by the birth of twin daughters, Susan M. and Sophie H., born in 1879. They are both graduates of the high school of this city and Miss Susan has also completed a course in the con-

le. Rauser

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mercial college. Both have been well instructed in music and in every way are fitted to shine in the best society of the city. In politics Mr. Rie- man is a Republican and well informed upon the principles and movements of the party, but he has never been an aspirant for political honors. He is a liberal contributor to every worthy enter- prise toward the promotion of general welfare, and also supports church work. Faternally he is a member of Good Samaritan Lodge No. 2, I. O. O. F., which he joined in 1870, and has now passed all the chairs. Since 1897 he has been treasurer of the local lodge and is also a member of the Grand Lodge. His wife and daughters are identified with the auxiliary Rebekah lodge and are enthusiastic members, having passed all the chairs, the mother being in Acme Lodge and the daughters in Utopia Lodge.

CLINTON BONSER. The passing of Clin- ton Bonser from the scene of his agricultural and general activity in Multnomah county, February 27, 1902, is of so recent date, that his successes and personal characteristics are still vividly re- called by his many friends and associates. Mr. Bonser was a Kentuckian by birth, and when a mere lad was taken by his parents to a farm in Ohio, where he lived until twenty-three years of age. His youth was uneventful, the greater part being spent in hard farm work, and a small part in attendance at the district schools.

It is not surprising that the opportunity to come west appeared an enchanting possibility to the overworked farmer lad, and that he gladly im- proved the chance to drive a pair of oxen across the plains for another man. On Sauvie's Island, in the Columbia river, lived his paternal uncle, John Bonser, who had crossed the plains in '47. Thither went the young man, and for some time made his home with his relative. From 1855 until 1856 he served in the Oregon Volunteer Infantry, participating in hostilities until the close of the Yakima war. In the latter part of 1856 he was united in marriage with Mary A. McQuinn, who was born April 12, 1840, and who crossed the plains with her parents in 1844, set- tling in Washington county, Ore. After his mar- riage Mr. Bonser started up his little farming establishment on Sauvie's Island, upon land which he had taken up some time previously, and lived there until purchasing the farm upon which his wife now lives, located on the edge of Multnomah and Columbia counties, and here Mrs. Bonser and her son, John A., carry on the farm and dairy. No wilder region could be im- agined than this same timbered land, upon which no improvement had as yet been made, and where the settlers lived for a time among the crudest and most inconvenient conditions. Where now

ply all manner of water craft, busy with the im- mense business of mills and farms, was then a very silent river, down which Mr. Bonser used to go with a row boat, bringing back with him from Portland such products as were required in the housekeeping among the protecting timber- lands. In the early days he cut about two thou- sand cords of wood from his land, which he sold to the steamers plying the river. Mr. Bonser made many improvements on his land, and man- aged to save considerable property and to leave to those dependent on him a well-conditioned and valuable estate, as well as the memory of a kindly, affectionate and thoroughly humane nature.

A Democrat in political affiliation. Mr. Bonser took an active interest in the political undertak- ings in his neighborhood and county, and filled some local positions of trust and responsibility. He was above all else the friend and promoter of education, and although his own youth had been somewhat destitute of educational chances, that fact made him all the more solicitous for the welfare of others. Of the nine children born to himself and wife the following are living: Alex- ander, of Portland ; Robert C., of Portland ; Eva I., a teacher ; Viola A., of Portland ; and John A., living at home and managing the home farm. Since the death of her husband, Mrs. Bonser has continued to live on the property improved by him, which consists of two hundred and fourteen acres. General farming and dairying are main- tained, and about twenty cows are milked daily.

F. P. LARSON. Arriving in this country with practically nothing. F. P. Larson has now to show for his industry one hundred acres of about the finest land in Clackamas county, all of which represents a vast amount of labor dat- ing as far back as his coming here in 1867. He was born in Sweden, eighteen miles south of Stockholm, January 6, 1839, his father, Larsh Peterson, being also a native of the same coun- try. The elder man was a ship carpenter by trade, an occupation followed during his entire active life, or up to the time of his death at the age of sixty-eight. His wife, formerly a Bred- kiser, was born in Sweden, and became the mother of three sons and four daughters, all of whom are living, F. P. being the oldest child in the family.

In Sweden F. P. Larson received a fair educa- tion, and worked hard during his youth as a farm hand. He came to the United States in 1866, and in Jersey City found employment in the brick yards, a year later, however, removing to Oregon City. For eight months he worked for a fisherman in Stafford, after which he took up a claim of one hundred acres, which he has

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improved from the bush, built a residence and barns thereon, and is engaged in general farm- ing, a little stock-raising, and a general fruit business. In his orchard he raises also berries of various kinds, including strawberries, and his chief marketable commodities are grain and potatoes. While thus improving his agricultural opportunities he has not been unmindful of the interests of those around him, but has evinced a desire to promote general prosperity and good government. Ordinarily a Democrat, he is yet sufficiently independent in his views to vote for the man rather than the organization hie repre- sents. Although not particularly favored him- self from an educational standpoint, he appre- ciates the advantages of education. and as a trustee, and for four years a clerk of the board, he has materially advanced the chances of the youth of his neighborhood. He is a member of the Grange, and one of its chief promoters in his locality.

In Oregon City Mr. Larson was married to Sarah J. Benson, a native of Oregon, and whose father, John Benson, was born in the east, crossed the plains at an early day, and died on his farm in the southern part of Oregon. Six children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Lar- son, five of whom are living: Charles, Oscar. Edna, Clarence, and Leo. Adell, the third oldest, is deceased.

JACOB R. MILLER, deceased, formerly pro- prietor of the Hotel Cornelius, in the village of that name, was one of the enterprising men of his locality, and enjoyed an enviable reputation as citizen and business man. Mr. Miller's pro- genitors lived and prospered for several centu- ries in Germany, in which country he himself was born in Baden, July 25, 1837. As was, and is still customary in the Fatherland, he started out to carve his own future at the age of fourteen, his choice lying with the toilers of the sea rather than with those of the land. The sailing vessel which brought him to America was forty-three days en route, and finally landed in New York harbor after the usual number of experiences with storm and calm.

In his adopted country Mr. Miller found em- ployment on a farm, his return for services ren- dered being board and clothes, and at the end of his four years, $50 in money. With this roll he betook himself to St. Louis, Mo., where he worked in a bakery shop, but soon after proceeded to the vicinity of Springfield, Ill., where he lived until the year of his marriage, which was 1859. Thereafter he removed to Jacksonville, the same state, and while living there the war broke out and there was need of the services of all able bodied men.

As a private Mr. Miller enlisted in Company I, Fiftieth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and par- ticipated in many of the important battles of the strife, including Shiloh, Franklin, Nashville, Chattanooga, and others, and after his discharge he re-enlisted, in 1865, in Company I, One Hun- dred and Fiftieth Illinois Infantry. The com- pany was finally divided, and he went with an independent section under General Johnson, to Dalton, Atlanta, West Point, Jackson and Grif- fitli, the latter of which was held by the inde- pendent company until January 10, 1866. Dur- ing the service Mr. Miller suffered many of the deprivations and vicissitudes of warfare, and among his other troubles had a long siege of typhoid fever. He was discharged from the service as first musician, and thereafter returned to his home in Lincoln, Ill. In the spring of 1866 he removed to Johnson county, Neb., where he homesteaded a claim of one hundred and sixty aeres. upon which he lived and prospered for twenty-five years. In Walla Walla, Wash., Mr. Miller investigated the prospects for a permanent residence, but after a few months returned to this state, and in December, 1887, took up his per- manent residence in Cornelius. For many years he was engaged in a livery business, and in 1893 bought the St. Joseph Hotel, now the Cornelius, which he afterward managed with gratifying results.

Twice married, Mr. Miller married first, Mary E. Brewster, who bore him eight children, seven of whom are living : Lizzie Ella, Jeannette ( de- ceased), Emma, Stella. James, Walter and Alvin. The present Mrs. Miller was formerly Anna Agger, of Portland, and she is the mother of one child, Inez. Mr. Miller was variously inter- ested in social and fraternal organizations in his adopted state, including the Knights of Pythias. Lodge No. 37, of Cornelius; and the Forest Grove Grand Army of the Republic. A Republi- can in politics, he was a school director for six years, and was the first president of the town council. His death occurred in Cornelius, Feb- ruary 12, 1903.

CHARLES LUCKE. A convincing exam- ple of the agricultural possibilities of Clackamas county is found in the finely developed farm of Charles Lucke, whose one hundred and eighteen acres presents as clear and thrifty an appearance as the most exacting could desire. Mr. Lucke has departed somewhat from general farming, is much interested in fruit growing, and has, among other varieties, three aeres under prunes. For the preservation of his fruit he has a private dryer, with a capacity of seventy-five bushels at one drying. The farm has all the improvements known to the world of scientific agriculture, and

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especially is its water system adequate to all needs. By the assistance of windmills water is piped to all parts of the farm, through the com- modious residence, to the yards and barns, and is of a superior quality. Progressiveness and appreciation of modern methods are the distin- guishing features of this delightful home and remunerative farming enterprise, and none but might profit by the thought and resourcefulness of the fortunate owner.

Mr. Lucke is a typical German-American, and was born in Prussia, June 8, 1855. His father, Louie, a native of the same northern province, was a sheep herder by occupation. The father came to America in 1867, settled first in Illinois, and later in Iowa, where he bought land, and from there he removed to Nebraska, where he lived with his son until his death. His wife, Charlotte, also born in Germany, and who ac- companied him to America, bore him seven sons and two daughters, the sons growing to matur- ity. Charles, the fifth oldest in the family, worked hard in his youth, and although but eleven when he came to America, had received some educational training in the common schools of Prussia. When quite young he rented land in Iowa and engaged in farming, and after liv- ing thereon for ten years sold out and came to Oregon in 1879. For two years he worked in the foundry of Smith Brothers in Portland, and was later with the Union Foundry Company. Soon after he bought eighty acres of land near Corvallis. Ore., and disposed of the same after seven years of comparatively successful manage- ment. He then came to Canby and bought his present farm, upon which his industry and fore- sight have wrought such marked change.

The family of Mr. Lucke consists of his wife, Ida (Druschell) Lucke, who was born in Penn- sylvania, and four children: Lora, Lillie, Wil- liam and Carl. The family are members of the Evangelical Church. Mr. Lucke is a Republican in politics, and is at present serving as school director. He was a candidate for road-super- visor in 1900, and for the county convention in 1902. Mr. Lucke is one of the foremost far- mers of Clackamas county, and enjoys the re- spect and good-will of all who know him.

GEN. R. A. HABERSHAM. Some centu- ries ago representatives of the family of de Hamberg Hame left their ancestral home in Hol- land and located in Yorkshire, England. Even- tually the somewhat complicated nomenclature was simplified to Habersham, and as such has been dignified by the meritorious lives of those bearing the name. The immigrating ancestor. James, arose to high prominence in the affairs of his adopted country, and was the first secre-

tary of the treasury of the United States under Washington, afterward succeeding himself in the Madison cabinet. Also he was a general under the banner of Washington during the Revolutionary war, and his son, Major John Habersham, led a strong party at the battle of Bunker Hill. The early members of the family were residents of the state of Georgia, and Richard Habersham, the grandfather of Gen. R. A., was born in Georgia, of which state he arosc to be chief executive.

Barnard Elliott Habersham, the father of the general, was born in Habersham county, Ga .. and was a minister in the Protestant Episcopal Church during his entire active life. When his son had been in Brazil for fourteen years he went there also, and upon his return to America filled the pulpit of the St. Mathews Church chapel until his death. On the maternal side General Habersham is of English and Scotch descent, his mother. Harriett ( Mathewes) Hab- ersham, having been born in South Carolina, a daughter of John Raven Mathewes, also born in South Carolina. Mrs. Habersham, who died in Oregon, was the mother of the following chil- dren : Robert Alexander : Eliza Ann, 'of Port- land; Richard Wylly, who died in Rio Janeiro, Brazil, and is buried in the Cemeterio do Caju ; and Frank Elliott, who died in Portland.

General Habersham was born in Clarkesville, Habersham county, Ga., September 7, 1838, and was reared in Madison. Ga. After completing his training in the public schools he entered the Georgia Military Institute at Marietta, Ga., of which Col. A. V. Brumby, a graduate of West Point, was superintendent, and Major James W. Robinson commander. However, he left the military institution six months before gradua- tion, and spent a year in a machine shop in At- lanta, Ga. He thereafter assisted with the con- struction of the Girard & Mobile Railroad from Girard to Mobile, and then enlisted in the United States navy, being placed for training on the revenue cutter Harriet Lane. Subsequently he was sent by the government on the Paraguay expedition, his mission being to collect indem- nity from Dictator Lopez for the firing on two survey steamers, in which combat two sailors were killed. For this Mr. Habersham proceeded to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and while there met chief engineer Charles F. M. Garnet. connected with the Don Pedro Secondo Railroad, who offered him a position with him. As luck would have it the captain of the ship gave him his dis- charge, as Lopez promised to pay the indemnity. and he was therefore free to accept the proposi- tion of his engineer friend. For fourteen years he remained in Brazil, and during that time ac- quired a remarkable knowledge of surveying and engineering work, being principally en-

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gaged on railroad and river survey, and at times was both corporation and government surveyor and superintendent of construction. While in Brazil he successfully learned the Portuguese language, which is exceedingly difficult for for- eigners to acquire.

Accompanied by his father Mr. Habersham returned to the United States in 1872, and through W. Milnor Roberts secured a position as surveyor, in his capacity being sent to the coast in charge of the original survey of the Northern Pacific Railroad. Through his instru- mentality the jetty at Fort Stevens was con- structed, and he had charge of the building of the locks at Oregon City. For some time he was under Generals Mickler. Wilson and Gilles- pie, and Colonel Powell on river and harbor im- provements on the Willamette and Columbia rivers, and he located the light house on Cape Foulweather. For four years he was also city engineer of Portland, and during that time lo- cated the line for water supply of Portland from Bull Run river to the city park, superintending as well the laying of the pipe in the bed of the Willamette river up to the city park. Among his other achievements as an expert in his line may be mentioned his services in the United States engineering department in Oregon and Washington, in which position he was connected with river and harbor improvements until his appointment as surveyor general of Oregon by President Cleveland, his assumption of office taking place in November. He served four years and six months during Mckinley's first term, and up to July, 1901, when he retired from ser- vice. General Habersham is an exceptional pen- man and draughtsman, and no more capable surveyor-general has ever held that office in this state.

In Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, General Habersham was united in marriage, January 7, 1864, with Maria dos Reis, who was, born in the Province of Rio de Janeiro, a daughter of Dr. João Go- mes dos Reis, a physician who died in Brazil. The paternal grandfather. Reis, was an exten- sive coffee planter, and the paternal great-grand- father came from Portugal. The mother of Mrs. Habersham belonged to the Werneck fam- ily, of German descent, and which located in Brazil at an early day. Five children were born to General and Mrs. Habersham, of whom Rachel Emma lives in Portland; Francis Elliott is engaged in the fire insurance business in Port- land : John Pinckney is with the Equitable Life Insurance Company and is stationed at Seattle, Wash .; Richard Edgar died at the age of six- teen, and Mariquinba is the youngest. General Habersham is a gold Democrat in political af- filiation, and is fraternally associated with the Masons, having joined that organization in Rio,

as a member of the Regeneration Lodge, the Chapter and Consistory. He is now identified with the Portland Lodge No. 55, and the Port- land Consistory. He is a charter member of the Northwest Society of Civil Engineers and Areh- itects. With his family he is affiliated with St. Stephen's Episcopal Church of Portland. Gen- eral Habersham is a man of broad general cul- ture, remarkable aptitude for the work to which he has devoted his life, and he possesses a truly delightful and interesting personality.

CLAU'S REHSE, one of the extensive farm- ers and large land owners of Washington county, also one of the organizers, the first pres- ident, and later treasurer and director of the Farmington Creamery, was born in Schleswig- Holstein, Germany, April 5, 1853, and was reared to farming and practical hard work. In his native land he attended the public schools when the arduous home duties permitted, and at the age of seventeen, with all a growing boy's enthusiasm for things full of hope and possibil- ity, boarded a sailing vessel bound for America. Arriving in New York City he started at once for the west, and in Solano county, Cal., worked for a year on a farm. At this stage of his career he was joined by his two brothers, the three going into partnership in the purchase of three hundred and twenty acres of government land in Calusa (now Glenn ) county, Cal., where Claus lived for twenty-two years, during four- teen of which the brothers continued to be asso- ciated in business.

In 1892 Mr. Rehse sold out his large farm at Germantown, Cal., and bought the one hundred and twenty acres of land upon which he now lives, and to which he added at a later day, so that now he owns two hundred and thirty acres. He is responsible for the many fine improve- ments which greet the beholder on every side. and his energy, foresight and enterprise have brought about a system of farming which is un- equaled in this part of the county. One hun- (red and fifty acres are already under cultiva- tion. and Mr. Rehse is engaged in general farm- ing, goat and sheep raising, and dairying.

After being in America seven years, March 16. 1877. Mr. Rehse was united in marriage with Louisa Piper, daughter of Henry Piper, a native of Schleswig-Holstein, and a resident of Washington county since 1893. prior to which he resided eleven years in California. He is still liv- ing at the age of eighty-three years. Of this union there have been born seven children : Annie, Bertha, Amanda, Herman. Amelia. Ed- gar, and Verna. In political affiliation Mr. Rchse is a Republican, although he entertains very lib- eral political ideas. He has never found time to

L. F, Carstens

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accept offices within the gift of his fellow-towns- men, but he may be depended on to firmly sup- port such of his friends as are worthy of holding important positions of trust. In religion he was reared a Lutheran, a church to which his wife and children belong. Mr. Rehse has many friends in Washington county, and he is re- garded as an important element in the county's upbuilding.

LEWIS F. CARSTENS. An important fac- tor in the development of the lumbering resources of Washington county is Lewis F. Carstens, whose well equipped sawmill on Dairy creek, four and a half miles from Greenville, is one of the most active and well known enterprises in the county. Mr. Carstens has been a resident of this state since his ninth year, and came here with his parents from Lake county. Ind., where he was born December 15, 1861. The family set- tled on a farm near Hillsboro for a couple of years, and then removed to this valley, where they bought a farm and where Lewis F. was reared and educated in the public schools.

When twenty-one years of age Mr. Carstens left his home and farmed independently for a year, and then pre-empted forty acres of land upon which he lived for five years. He then purchased the steam sawmill in which he has since been interested, and in 1890 moved his family to the mill, living there until removing. in 1899, to the farm which had been purchased in 1896. Mr. Carstens has a wide knowledge of lumbering, and especially as it is conducted in Oregon, and through his agency vast areas of forest have been devastated and made to serve the latter day purposes of man. His early training on a farm stands him in good stead also in his adopted state, for his present property is well improved, and everything about it suggests good management, neatness, thrift and enterprise.

March 9. 1884, Mr. Carstens was united in marriage with Martha E. Benefiel, who was born near Greenville, a daughter of John W. and Lucy A. Benefiel, natives of Harford county, Md. Mrs. Lucy A. Benefiel was first married to An- drew J. Kams, and with him started across the plains from Illinois in the spring of 1853. travel- ing with ox teams and wagons. The journey however, was fraught with grief for the young wife, her husband dying of cholera near Fort Laramie, and one of their two children died on the Snake river. After burying her dead Mrs. Kams proceeded with the rest of the party to Marion county, Ore., where her sister and brother-in-law lived, and made her home with them until her marriage to Mr. Benefiel in 1854. The following year she moved with her husband to a donation claim of three hundred and twenty

acres in Yamhill county, where their life for a time was fraught with crudity and inconvenience, and was spent within the narrow confines of a log cabin. In 1865 they removed to Washing- ton county, and for ten years lived in the Purdin settlement, thereafter living for twelve years at Greenville. They came to this farm in 1875, and here Mr. Benefiel died in 1898, at the age of seventy-one years. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Benefiel: Thomas, a miner and prospector in Alaska; Wilson, a resident of Portland, and sexton of a cemetery there ; Chaney L., postmaster of Manning; Mrs. Lewis F. Carstens ; and Perry, who is a mail carrier of Buckston.

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Portrait and biographical record of Portland and vicinity, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 66

Author: Publication date: 1903 Publisher: Chicago, Chapman Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 946

Author:
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 946