Portrait and biographical record of the Willamette valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 117

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Chicago, The Chapman Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1622

USA > Oregon > Portrait and biographical record of the Willamette valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present > Part 117

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JOSEPH MAYER. A successful young blacksmith of Lebanon. Linn county, Ore., is Joseph Mayer, whose birth occurred in Sauk City, Sauk county, Wis., June 2, 1861, his pa- rents being Jolin and Katherine (Lycum) Mayer. The father was born in Prussia, and came to the United States in 1847, locating at once in Sauk City, Wis., where he followed his trade of black- smithing. After a thirty-years residence in that part of the Union he came to Oregon, and bought seventy acres of land five miles east of Lebanon, Linn county, and there he died in 1882, at the age of sixty years. Through constant ap-

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plication and industry he had met with success in his efforts to gain a livelihood, making a com- petency for his family before he was called upon to surrender life. He was a member of the Evangelical Church, and was always active in its work. Mrs. Mayer was born in Luxemburg, Germany, and when about ten years of age she crossed the ocean with her parents, and with them made her home near Sauk City, at which place she was married. Her death occurred in Lebanon, Ore., in 1893. She was the mother of five sons and daughters, of whom Joseph Mayer was the fourth.

Joseph Mayer received his education in the common schools of Sauk City, and there made his home with his parents until he was sixteen years old, when he accompanied them to Ore- gon in 1876. Having learned the trade of a black- smith he engaged in 1883 at that work, investing his earnings in a shop in Lebanon, in which he has since pursued his vocation. He now requires the help of another man in the shop, where he does general blacksmith work and horseshoe- ing. An evidence of Mr. Mayer's prosperity is found in the handsome little cottage which he has built in his adopted city, and where he now makes his home.

The marriage of Mr. Mayer occurred near Lebanon, and united him with Ida Willard, a native of Idaho, and who now shares his pleas- ant home. The one child born of the union is Maysel, a daughter. In fraternity circles Mr. Mayer is exceedingly prominent, being active in the Ancient Order of United Workmen ; Knights of the Maccabees; Modern Woodmen of Amer- ica ; Knights of Pythias and Fraternal Order of Reindeer. He adheres to the principles of the Republican party, taking an active interest in movements toward a betterment of municipal affairs, and lending his best efforts in this direc- tion. At the behest of his party he has served as city marshal for one year.

CHARLES LEVI BLAKESLEE. The de- scendant of New England stock by both paternal and maternal ancestry, Charles Levi Blakeslee has brought with him into the west the thrift and steadiness which characterize the people of that section of country. He was born in Battle Creek, Mich., in 1848, the son of Lafay- ette and the grandson of Levi Blakeslee. The grandfather was born in Connecticut, near Hart- ford, and early settled in New York, where his son was born in New Berlin of that state. Later he took up his residence in Michigan, and en- gaged in farming, his New England birth com- bining with his Scotch-Irish blood in his quiet. steady pursuit of a competency. Upon attain- ing manhood Lafayette Blakeslee also engaged in farming in Michigan, where he remained

throughout his entire life, dying there at the age of seventy-eight years, in 1902. He married Sarah Mills, who was born in Cooperstown, N. Y., also a descendant of an old New England family, and of the union six children were born, five of whom are now living. Mrs. Blakeslee still survives her husband and makes her home near Battle Creek, Mich.

The eldest of this family of children was Charles Levi Blakeslee, and upon his father's farm he grew to manhood, engaging in the duties that fell to his lot in his position. It was his fortune to receive a good education, as, after his days of attendance in the common schools was over, he attended the Kalamazoo College. At the age of twenty-one years he removed to the state of Kansas, where he bought land on the Delaware reservation and proceeded to put im- provements upon it, and intelligently cultivate it. After just having made a start which en- couraged him to persevere in his efforts, there came the year of the great disaster caused by the grasshoppers, and he was left again at the be- ginning of his career. Until 1875 he remained in Kansas and upon this farm, but feeling that the disadvantages were far greater than the wealth the land might in time bring, he left in this last-named year, and for the ensuing two years was engaged in farming near Bedford, Iowa. In 1882 he came to Oregon, and settling in Roseburg, continued in the same occupation for five years, 1887 being the date of his settle- ment in Corvallis. Upon locating here Mr. Blakeslee furnished himself with a modern equipment for house-moving, and since that year he has found his business lucrative. In 1897 he also became interested in fruit drying, building a dryer, which has added much to his income, it having a capacity of two hundred bushels per day.

Mr. Blakeslee was united in marriage in Kan- sas with Miss Zeporah Burge, a native of St. Joseph, Mo., and the daughter of James Burge, who settled in Douglas county, Ore., in 1879, and whose death occurred in Roseburg. Mrs. Blakeslee is the mother of seven children, named in order of birth as follows: Sarah, now Mrs. James V. Brown, of Sellwood, Ore .; Adella, now Mrs. Frank Porter, of Portland; Clara, now Mrs. C. R. Franklin, of Anacortes, Wash .; Lafayette, Ethel, Ernest and Birdie. Mrs. Blakeslee is a member of the United Evangelical Church. In his political associations Mr. Blakes- lee affiliates with the Socialists.

JAMES MONROE CAMERON. As his name indicates, Mr. Cameron is a descendant of a Scottish family who, though not forgetful of the land of their nativity, have still imbibed the spirit of patriotism which characterizes the citi-

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zens of this country, an outward expression of the feeling being typified by the cognomen which this representative bears. The great grand- father of Mr. Cameron first settled in Bucks county, Pa., upon his emigration from Scotland, later removing to Ohio, where his family was reared. The grandfather, William, was born in this last-named state and in the course of his life proved the sincerity of his patriotism by serving in the war of 1812. He was a carpenter by trade, and spent his entire life in this state engaged in the pursuit of this employment, lo- cated principally in Hamilton county. He mar- ried Miss Mary Robinson, a native of Phila- delphia, Pa., whose father participated in the hardships and glories of the Revolutionary war. Of this marriage was born Daniel Cameron, father of James Monroe Cameron.

Daniel Cameron was born in 1811, and was early instructed in the trade of his father, mak- ing this and farming his occupation. His first move from the paternal roof was into Clinton county, Iowa, where he settled at Dewitt, later following farming in the same state. Dis- satisfied with his prospects in the latter state, he decided to try his fortunes in the west, locat- ing in Chico, Cal., in 1870, where he remained for one year engaged in agricultural lines, at the close of which time he came to Oregon, spending eighteen months in Jackson county. His home was eventually in Clark county, Wash., where he was employed in a saw-mill in addition to the farming which he continued in whatever loca- tion he found himself. His death occurred in his Washington home. His wife was in maiden- hood Jane Abger, born in White House, N. J., in 1827, a daughter of Isaac Abger, who was of German parentage, the last days of the father being spent in Ohio, where he had removed from his New Jersey home. Mrs. Cameron survived her husband until March 9, 1903, when she passed away, in Corvallis, Benton county, Ore. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Cameron are as follows: William, who was a soldier in the Eighth Iowa Infantry and served through the Civil war, and is now engaged in the cattle business in Little Medicine, Wyo .; Mary, now Mrs. Samuel Gaudy, living in Iowa; Daniel, a confectioner, in Portland; James Monroe, of this review; Annie, who died in Corvallis; E. G., engaged in the harness business in Union. Ore .; Ambrose S., employed by his brother, James Monroe Cameron; Ellsworth, a confec- tioner, in Portland; and Nellie, who makes her home with her brother, Ambrose S.

James Monroe Cameron was born March 17, 1858, in his home in the Mississippi valley, and though only twelve years old at the time of his father's removal to California, he sought and found employment on a ranch in the vicinity of

their home, where he worked for $1.00 per day, giving his first earnings to assist in the support of the family. Up to the time of his father's death he continued to work on the surrounding ranches, but was then called back home, and being the eldest of the family at home he took entire charge of the farm, conducting it with great energy and success until affairs were in such a condition that he could leave and begin work for himself. In 1877 he came to Oregon, locating in Dayton, where he continued at his old occupation of farming for one year, at the end of that time becoming interested in the har- ness manufacturing in the employ of his brother, at Hillsboro, and later working for his brother's successor. In 1880 he came to Corvallis and was employed by Mr. Hemphill, a harnessmaker of this city, continuing with him for one year, after which he engaged with Mr. Briggs, and when he bought him out, twelve years later, em- ployer and employe parted with the remarkable record of having never having had an unpleas- ant experience in all their association. Since his purchase of the property Mr. Cameron has enlarged the business in every possible way, carrying a general line of harness of all de- scriptions, which he manufactures, having the largest establishment of its kind west of the city of Portland. He uses in his business Land's leather manufacturing machine.

The marriage of Mr. Cameron occurred in Salem and united him with Miss Melissa Graves, a native of that city. Seven were born of the union and are as follows : Thomas, Winnie, Clinton, Jennie, Mildred, Eva Linton and Don- ald. Mr. Cameron is fraternally connected with the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Woodmen of the World. As a Republican he was nominated by acclamation for sheriff in 1900, and of all the men who had run for this office in the past sixteen years he received the largest ballot, being defeated by only sixty votes. In religion Mr. Cameron is a member of the Chris- tian Church, in which he officiates as elder and trustee. In addition to the property which Mr. Cameron owns in the west he, with other mem- bers of his family, is heir to a large and valuable tract of land located near Philadelphia, Pa., the original place of settlement of the first Cameron who came to the United States.

WILLIAM BOGUE. During a residence of thirty-seven years in the northwest, William Bogue has been actively and prominently identi- fied with agricultural and mercantile interests and is now engaged in the hardware business in Corvallis, while at the same time he has im- portant farming and stock-raising interests in Linn county. He was born near Indianola,

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Warren county, Iowa, April 3, 1853. His father, Amos Bogue, was a native of Ohio and removing westward settled in Illinois, where he was mar- ried to Miss Mary Hayworth, a native of that state, and a daughter of William Hayworth, who became one of the early settlers of that state and afterward removed to Iowa. His family were of the Society of Friends or Quakers. After his marriage Amos Bogue removed to a farm in Iowa and in 1866 crossed the plains, accompanied by his wife and their four sons and two daughters. Their destination was Ore- gon, and on May Io they crossed the Missouri river, making the journey with horse and mule- teams. After traveling for three months they reached the Willamette valley and on August 18, 1866, located in Polk county. The father be- gan the operation of a sawmill on the Little Luck- iamute, purchasing the mill which he conducted for two years. In 1869 he went to the Goose lake country, where he entered land and engaged in the raising and herding of cattle. He followed that business for three years and then went to Linn county, settling three miles east of Cor- vallis. He purchased a farm there, and made it his home throughout his remaining days, his death occurring in 1900, when he was seventy- three years of age. His wife had passed away in eastern Oregon in 1871. Both were Quakers in religious faith. In their family were four sons and two daughters that reached adult age, and three sons and a daughter are yet living. The family record is as follows: Job is a cattle- man on Crooked Creek in eastern Oregon. Will- jam is the second of the family; Mahala died in Multnomah county; Ami died in eastern Ore- gon ; George is engaged in the raising of cattle in southeastern Oregon; and Mrs. Luzetta White resides in Portland.

William Bogue spent the first thirteen years of his life in Iowa and when crossing the plains to Oregon with his parents he took his turn in standing guard all along the way. He con- tinued his education in Dallas, Ore., and after- ward went with his father to the Goose lake country. In 1872, however, he returned to Linn county and, with his father, purchased three hundred and six acres of land, which he im- proved and cultivated, making a specialty of raising wheat. He was thus engaged until 1890, and in the meantime he extended the boundaries of his farm by the purchase of additional land. He now has more than four hundred acres in Linn county. three miles east of Corvallis, and is engaged in the stock business, raising cattle and fine Cotswold sheep.

In 1890 Mr. Bogue removed to Corvallis, and, purchasing an interest in a hardware store, en- gaged in that business as a member of the firm of Simpson & Bogue. After a year, however,

he sold out and resumed farming, to which he gave his attention exclusively until 1899, when, with Mr. Huston, he became the owner of the store of which he had formerly been half-owner, and which was conducted under the firm name of Huston & Bogue. They improved the store, enlarged the stock and carried a large line of shelf and heavy hardware. Their storeroom was 25x100 feet, and their warehouse 50x50 feet. Accurate and reliable, their business methods required no disguise, but were always open to rigid investigation. The enterprise met with deserved success, and Mr. Bogue's mer- cantile as well as farming interests returned to him a desirable income. July 1, 1903, Mr. Bogue disposed of his interest in the business and is now devoting his entire attention to the management of his farming interests.

In Polk county, Ore., Mr. Bogue was mar- ried to Miss Mary A. Ellis, a daughter of John Ellis, of Dallas, and they now have a son, Floyd, who is attending the Oregon Agricultural Col- lege. Socially Mr. Bogue is connected with Barnum Lodge, No. 7, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is a past noble grand, and he also belongs to the encampment, while he and his wife are connected with the Rebekah degree. Mrs. Bogue belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church and is a most estimable lady. In politics Mr. Bogue is an unfaltering Repub- lican, and for one term he served as a member of the city council, giving his support to many measures for the benefit of Corvallis.

ENOCH CHAMBERLIN. Among the prom- inent farmers of Polk county, Ore., is to be named Enoch Chamberlin, who is located upon a farm taken up by his father in the spring of 1845, having altogether two hundred and eighty- four acres of land, eighty-four of which is util- ized in general farming, while the remainder is in pasture, upon which he raises cattle.

The father, Aaron Chamberlin, was born in New York state, in 1810, and he married Cath- erine Viles, a native of New Jersey, born in 1806. After a short residence in Missouri Mr. Cham- berlin gathered together his worldly wealth, and with his wife and children, joined an emigrant train bound for the great northwest. The train was commanded by Captain Gilliam, and the trip was one which was never forgotten by those who experienced the trials and troubles of their nine-months' journey. At the beginning they were continually delayed by storms, and a large number grew discouraged and despaired of ever seeing the land which they were seeking. A Mr. Mudgett canvassed the party and found thirty who were willing to endure the hard- ships which they foresaw before the journey

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was ended, and, electing this man captain of the divided train, they continued upon their journey, arriving safely in Oregon in 1844, Captain Mud- gett having proven a worthy man for the posi- tion to which he was chosen. Though fairly well equipped at the beginning of the journey, Mr. Chamberlin had but one yoke of oxen upon his arrival at Salem, Ore. After the first winter, which was spent at Salem, he took up a donation claim in the spring of 1845, consisting of six hundred and forty acres, upon which he lived until October, 1867. In that year he took a trip to Mexico in the hope of recovering his health, and died in Sonora, in March, 1868. His wife survived him until 1883, her death occurring upon the home place. The entire width of the continent had been traversed by these two pio- neers, from the scene of their marriage, which occurred in the state of New York, to the then western state of Michigan, Iowa and Missouri, leaving St. Joseph, a city of the latter state, for the two thousand-mile journey which meant a separation from all that associations had made dear. Worthily they proved their citizenship in the western state, Mr. Chamberlin doing his part toward its upbuilding by the industrious tilling of the soil. Of the four sons and two daughters born to them Joseph is a stock-raiser, of Arizona; Catherine E. makes her home in Monmouth, Ore .; Sally Ann is the wife of J. L. Coombs, of Grass Valley, Cal .; and Enoch, of this review, is the youngest child; Andrew J. and Aaron are deceased.

Enoch Chamberlin was born near Suver, Polk county, Ore., October 10, 1851, and through his ancestry, English on the maternal side, and Ger- man on the paternal side. The grandfather, Enoch Chamberlin, was a near descendant of an emigrant from the latter country, his home be- ing in the state of New York, where as a farm- er, he lived and died, and thus Enoch Chamber- lin inherited the traits which distinguish natives of the two great European countries. He re- ceived his early education in the common schools of Polk county, and at sixteen years of age had completed the course. He then engaged in farm- ing, assisting his elder brother in conducting the home farm, his father having died the pre- ceding ycar. Nine years later he took entire charge of the farm, and continued the care of his mother, which he had begun at the age of twenty, taking her to Arizona, where they re- mained for nearly five years, and then returned to the old home farm in Polk county. This has been his home ever since, and he has continued the success which he has always enjoyed as a farmer. He now has two hundred and eighty- four acres.

Mr. Chamberlin married, February 15, 1885, Miss Ellen Christian, a native of Polk county,

and a daughter of Henry Christian, who came to Oregon via Cape Horn from his home in the Isle of Man. They are the parents of one child, Ross L., who makes his home with his father and mother. As a Democrat Mr. Chamberlin has served as road supervisor and school director for a number of years. Fraternally he affiliates with the Ancient Order of United Workmen of Independence, and with the Artisans of Wells, Benton county.

HARRY H. CRONISE, the agent for the Corvallis & Eastern Railroad, at Corvallis, has been continuously in the service of the company for a longer period than any other man, enter- ing the employ of the road when it was known as the Oregon-Pacific Railroad. He has arrived at a minute knowledge of its affairs through successive stages of promotion, and is now one of its most trusted and all around useful repre- sentatives.

The characteristics of the Teuton, so produc- tive of order and strength in any community, are possessed by Mr. Cronise in marked degree. From Germany, many years ago, came his pa- ternal grandfather, Henry, who settled in Fred- ericksburg, Md., where he engaged in a mercan- tile business. Later he removed his business to Tiffin, Ohio, where he became prominent in mercantile and agricultural affairs, amassing a fortune and becoming possessed of landed pos- sessions. His son, Henry, the father of H. H., was born in Fredericksburg, and with his father engaged in the merchandise business in Tiffin, where he married Louise Hosmer, a native of Seville, Ohio, and daughter of Henry Hosmer. Mr. Hosmer was born in Connecticut and settled in Medinah county, Ohio, where he farmed and owned many acres of land. He came of an old New England family, and was a soldier in the war of 1812. Mr. and Mrs. Cronise started housekeeping in Tiffin, and there was born their son, H. H., July 10, 1851. One year later the family fortunes were shifted to Peru, LaSalle county, Ill., where the elder Cronise engaged in a mercantile venture, but after about twelve years he returned to Tiffin, where his death occurred. His wife died in Seville, Ohio, leav- ing four children, of whom H. H. is the second : Estella, the oldest daughter, is the wife of S. R. Graves, of Seville, Ohio; Thomas is a photog- rapher, of Salem, Ore .; and Amma is the wife of Mr. Trover, a photographer, of Salem.

After completing his education in the public schools, H. H. Cronise attended the Hildeberg College at Tiffin, Ohio, until his senior year, and then quit to come to Oregon, in 1875. He was the first member of his family to venture so far away from home, but his subsequent en-

W. R. Scheurer.

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

thusiastic advocacy of the west inspired his brothers and sisters to do likewise. He located first in Josephine county, and the next spring went to Junction, Lane county, where he found employment on a farm. In 1877 he became as- sociated as brakeman with. the Oregon & Cali- fornia Railroad Company, and six months later became a clerk in Junction. Going to southern Oregon, he became bookkeeper for E. J. Jeffrey, builder of tunnels, and was thus employed for about one year. Arriving in Portland in 1882, he engaged in the mercantile business for a year, and in the fall of 1883 went east, visiting his friends and relatives in Ohio. In the summer of 1884 he was again in Oregon, and in October of the same year entered the employ of the old Oregon-Pacific Railroad, now the Corvallis & Eastern, which at that time had just been opened to business. From the position of clerk under William M. Hoag, general manager, in the gen- eral offices in Corvallis, he advanced to the posi- tion of agent in 1885, and has ever since been agent and purser. He was located at different times at Chitwood, Wren and Harris, as agent, and as purser was on the steamers William M. Hoag, N. S. Bentley, Three Sisters and Albany, plying between Corvallis and Portland for three years. From 1890 until 1893 he represented the company in Portland, and was then agent at Philomath for about two years. For the follow- ing year he was purser on a boat belonging to the company running between Portland and Corvallis, and in 1897 assumed his present posi- tion as agent at Corvallis.

Politically a Republican, Mr. Cronise has never taken an active interest in politics. He is socially popular, and is identified fraternally with Bar- num Lodge No. 7, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is ex-representative to the grand lodge, and past noble grand. He is also a mem- ber of the Artisans, and is connected with the Corvallis Improvement Company. The wife of Mr. Cronise was formerly Ludora, daughter of Valentine Kratz, extensively engaged in the mill- ing business in the west for many years. Mr. Kratz was at one time located at Junction, Lane county, and then at McMinnville, and is at -pres- ent living in Los Angeles, where he is engaged in horticultural pursuits. His industry and good business judgment have brought him a goodly share of this world's goods, including property at Mabelville and in Dunne, additions to Port- land. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Cronise, Harry Kratz and Mabel Estella.

WILLIAM RILEY SCHEURER. On the old donation claim near Butteville, Marion county, Ore., upon which his father located many years ago, W. R. Scheurer was born January

26, 1854, and he has since grown to manhood, and attained to a prominent place in the business world of his immediate native vicinity.

John Scheurer, the father of W. R. Scheurer, was born in the walled and historic town of Darmstadt, Germany, August 25, 1825, and in the quaint Hessian city, with its museums and churches, its splendid educational institutions and palaces of the princes, learned in his younger days the trade of wagon maker. In 1844 he came to America in a sailing vessel and located in Illinois. At the outbreak of the Mexican war he was carrying on quite a wagon-making industry. Nevertheless, with that patriotism which char- acterizes the German born in any country he chances to call home, he enlisted in the war, and after a meritorious service returned in the fall of 1848 to his trade in the Illinois town. Soon afterward, August 26, 1849, he married Elizabeth Yergen, who was born in Germany, June 6, 1833, and in 1852 brought his wife across the plains with four yoke of oxen and a wagon, six monthis being consumed in the long and ar- duous journey. They arrived in Oregon in Sep- tember of that year. After remaining in Port- land for three months Mr. Scheurer removed with his wife to Butteville, where he lived until 1870. His property consisted of two farms of three hundred acres each, which are at present in one farm. Five hundred acres are cleared and one hundred acres are still in brush. In 1870 Mr. Scheurer returned to Portland, where he resided until his death, which occurred June 7, 1887. His wife and five children are still living.

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Portrait and biographical record of the Willamette valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 117

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago Publication date: 1903 Publisher: Chicago, The Chapman Publishing Company Number of Pages: 1622

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago
Publication date: 1903
Publisher: Chicago, The Chapman Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1622