Portrait and biographical record of the Willamette valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 130

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 130

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The first Mrs. Hall was formerly Amanda S. Ellison, who was born in Virginia, and died in Yamhill county in 1879, leaving four sons : Will- iam L., on the home farm; O. E., in Washington ; Elmer C., engaged in mining near Gratz Pass; and Ellis, also engaged in mining near Sumpter. For a second wife Mr. Hall married in Novem- ber, 1885, Frances M. Rowland, who was born in Tennessee, as was also her father, R. P. Row- land. Mr. Rowland came to Oregon in 1885, lo- cated for a time on the Lewis river, and is now conducting a dairy farm near Mount Tabor. Of this second union there has been born one daugh- ter. Ethel, living with her parents. In political affiliation Mr. Hall is a Democrat, although he is decidedly averse to the silver platform.

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PUNDERSON AVERY is a capitalist and very successful man who is uniformly spoken of in terms of praise, commendation and good will. He is an extensive and successful manu- facturer of flour and is the leader in this re- gard in the state. He is now serving as presi- dent of the city council of Corvallis, and Ben- ton county has profited by his efforts in her behalf along many lines. It is, therefore, well that he should be mentioned among the repre- sentative citizens of the Willamette valley and it is with pleasure that we present to our read- ers this record of his career.

Mr. Avery is a native of Stark county, Ill., born in 1843, and is a son of J. C. Avery, who was the founder of Corvallis and is represented elsewhere in this work. In the year 1847 Mrs. Avery came to the northwest to join the father, who had crossed the plains in 1843. She was accompanied by her three children, Charles, Punderson and Florence, and they were met in eastern Oregon by the husband and father, who conducted them by way of the Barlow route over the Cascade Mountains to the old town of Marysville, now Corvallis. Mr. Avery had secured a donation claim of six hundred and forty acres and upon this the city of Cor- vallis was established.

On the old family homestead Punderson Avery of this review was reared and in early life became connected with merchandising. He pursued his preliminary education in the dis- trict schools and afterward became a student in the Baptist College at McMinnville. Later he spent eight years in his father's store and in 1872 he removed to Lake county, Ore., where he was engaged in the cattle business, having a large range on which he herded his cattle and also put up hay and feed for the market. His father, together with John F. Miller and B. F. Dougthet, was selected by the state to choose a site for the Agricultural Col- lege, and made choice of the meadow lands of Lake county. They gained considerable knowledge of the state while endeavoring to make a location and Punderson Avery, hearing favorable reports of the Lake county land, con- cluded that he would remove to that district and engage in the cattle business. According- ly, he located there in 1872 and purchased one thousand acres of the college land which he fenced and improved. For fifteen years he remained there, being extensively engaged in the cattle business, and success attended his efforts. At the time of the Modoc war he and other residents of that locality built Fort Che- waucan which they occupied for four months during the Indian troubles. In 1887 he dis- posed of his business interests in Lake county and returned to Corvallis. In 1889 he began

the milling business here, forming the present company in connection with Mr. Smith and Mr. Rickard. They built the Benton county mills and five years later incorporated the busi- ness under the name of the Benton County Flouring Mills Company, of which Mr. Avery has since been the president. The mill was erected in 1889 and has since been operated by steam power. The plant has a capacity of two hundred and twenty barrels daily and manu- factures flour which is unexcelled in the state. In fact, the firm received the highest award at the Oregon state fair in 1902 and again in 1903 on the Benton and Snowfall brands. Other premiums have been awarded to the firm which not only manufacture wheat flour, but also place upon the market graham flour and cereals. The business was begun with a capacity of one hundred barrels, but in order to meet the increased demand of the trade the capacity was increased to two hundred and twenty barrels per day in 1899. The Wagner roller system is used and the plant is equipped with all modern facilities, the mill being one of the best in the northwest. It is a four-story structure and the power is supplied by a seventy-five-horse-power engine. The product is shipped to California, South America and the American possessions in the Pacific and to the Orient. In addition to his milling prop- erty Mr. Avery owns two fine farms in Benton county devoted to the raising of grain and stock. One of these farms comprises four hundred acres and is situated a mile and a half south of Corvallis, while the other com- prises three hundred and twenty acres and is about twelve miles south of the city. Mr. Av- ery and his brother laid out two additions to Corvallis, most of which has since been sold and improved by the erection of good build- ings.

In Corvallis Mr. Avery was united in mar- riage to Miss Elizabeth Mobley, who was born in Missouri and went with her parents to Cali- fornia in early life, coming thence to Benton county, Ore., in 1860. Her father, William Mobley was a farmer by occupation. Unto this marriage have been born five children : Chester, who is engaged in the cattle business in Lake county ; Clarence W., who is a gradu- ate of the Oregon Agricultural College and is now engaged in the stock business and is also manager of the Bingham Spring, near Pendle- ton ; Mattie, who is now the wife of Professor Fulton of Corvallis; Grover and Virgil, who are at home.

In 1870 Mr. Avery was elected county treas- urer of Benton county and served for one term. while for many years he has been a member of the city council of Corvallis and is now its

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president. He has always been a Democrat in politics and for many years was chairman of the county committee, and was also a member of the state committee. He belongs to the Oregon Pioneer Association and to the Cor- vallis Business Men's League and his wife is a member of the Presbyterian church. He stands today among the prominent business men of the Willamette valley. Keen and clear- headed, always busy, always careful and con- servative in financial matters, moving slowly but surely in every transaction, he has few superiors in the steady progress which invari- ably reaches the objective point.

DELAVAN S. SMITH. Born on the home- stead which he now owns and occupies, February 16, 1858, Delavan S. Smith is distinguished not only for his enterprise, ability and honesty of purpose, but as the worthy representative of one of the most honored pioneers of Linn county. He comes of excellent New England stock, the blood of many of the early families of that part of the Union flowing through his veins. Promi- nent among his more immediate ancestry are several families of distinction in the annals of Rhode Island and Massachusetts, among others that may be mentioned being those of Hopkins, Briggs, Harris and Wilkinson. Stephen Hop- kins, a signer of the Declaration of Independ- ence, was descended from the same immigrant ancestor. A direct descendant in the fifth gen- eration from John Smith, of Rhode Island, his lineage is as follows: John, Capt. Jonathan, Archibald, Delazon, Delavan S.

John Smith, a resident of Scituate, R. I., and a citizen of influence, reared seven children, six stalwart sons and one daughter, namely: Rich- ard, Joseph, Jonathan, Oziel, Thomas, Hope and Sarah. Richard served in the old French and Indian war. Joseph was one of those brave Green Mountain Boys that stormed the breast- work in the battle of Bennington, while his son, a lad of fifteen years, took part in that famous engagement. Jonathan and Thomas were sol- diers in the Revolution, the latter losing his life while in service.

Capt. Jonathan Smith was lieutenant of a com- pany that responded to the Lexington Alarm call, on April 19, 1775, and marched with his company as far as Cambridge. He subsequently served throughout the war, afterwards receiving a bounty for his services while in the army.

Archibald Smith settled in New Berlin, N. Y., where he was engaged during his active career as a mechanic. He married Miss Briggs, a woman of much culture and force of character. Her father, Joseph Briggs, was born in Massa- chusetts, but subsequently removed to Vermont.

He took an active part in the grand struggle for independence, being captain of a company, and took a prominent part in the battle of Bunker Hill, the battle of Bennington, witnessing Bur- goyne's surrender at Saratoga, and being in the midst of the conflict at Monmouth. Archibald Smith's wife died in early womanhood-in 1825 -leaving five young sons, one of whom subse- quently lost his life on the battlefield during the Mexican war.

Delazon Smith, the fourth son of his parents, was born in New Berlin, Chenango county, N. Y., October 5, 1816. Left motherless at the ten- der age of nine years, he secured such education as his limited opportunities afforded. In 1831, taking all of his worldly effects in a small pack- age under his arm, he joined an elder brother in the western part of his native state, and re- mained there two years, continuing his studies as best he might. Hearing that at the manual-labor college in Ohio he could pursue the higher branches of learning, and at the same time find employment to defray his expenses, he entered, in the spring of 1834, the Collegiate Institute, at Oberlin, and remained two years, withdrawing then, as he was not in sympathy with the anti- slavery movements of the school and the place. Going from there to Cleveland, he studied law, and was a frequent contributor to the leading newspapers of that day. In 1838, being urged to assist in establishing a paper in Rochester, N. Y., he accepted the invitation, and for two years thereafter edited the New York Watch- man. Prior to that time this embryo attorney had taken active part in state and national poli- tics, and during the stirring campaign of 1840 edited and published a paper called the Truc Jef- fersonian. He also did able work throughout New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, taking the stump for Van Buren and Johnson. He after- wards published the Western Herald a short time, but was not successful. Returning to Ohio. he established a paper devoted to the inter- ests of the Democratic party, naming it the West- ern Empire, which remained in existence several years. In 1844 Mr. Smith supported the Demo- cratic candidate for presidency, James K. Polk, and at the close of the campaign was appointed by President Taylor a special commissioner to Ecuador, S. A., being given full power to treat with that government. After staying a while at Quito, he found that on account of an internal quarrel he could not accomplish his mission, so returned home.

Removing to the territory of Iowa in the spring of 1846, Delazon Smith settled on a farm, which he carried on a few years, also practicing his profession to some extent. He became promi- nently identified with the political issues of the time and place, supporting the Democratic prin-

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ciples and candidates with vigor and ability. In the campaign of 1848 he edited the Iowa Demo- crat, and stumped the state for Cass and Butler. The climate of Iowa proving unhealthful to him- self and family, he came to Oregon in the spring of 1852, being five months making the trip from the Missouri river to The Dalles. Losing all of his cattle while on the way, he came to Linn county almost penniless. With brave courage, he set about retrieving his fortunes. Taking up a donation claim of three hundred and twenty acres, lying about six miles southeast of Albany, he cleared and improved a good homestead. In the meantime he opened a law office in Albany, where he built up a substantial practice, becoming widely known. Being nominated in the spring of 1854 for the state legislature, he was elected on the Democratic ticket by a majority of two hundred votes. The following year he was re- elected as a representative to the legislature, this time his majority being doubled, and when the Assembly met he had the honor of being chosen speaker of the house. In 1856 he was again re- elected to the house of representatives, and in 1857 was made a delegate to the constitutional convention. In July, 1858, by a four-fifths vote of the legislature, he was chosen one of the first United States senators from Oregon, and in casting lots drew the short term. Soon after his return from Washington, where he had ren- dered efficient service in the national congress, he passed to the great life beyond, dying in Port- land November 18, 1860.

Delazon Smith was twice married. His first wife, whose maiden name was Eliza Voke, died in early life, leaving one child, Volney V., now deceased. He married for his second wife Mary Shepherd, by whom he had five children, four of whom have passed away, namely : Ianthe, who married P. C. Harper; Viola; Elizabeth; and Delazon D. The only survivor of the paren- tal family is Delavan S. Smith, the subject of this sketch. The mother died on the home farm in 1871. The father was a charter member and the first master of Corinthian Lodge, F. & A. M., of Albany.

Delavan S. Smith grew to manhood on the parental homestead. acquiring the rudiments of his education in the common schools, and at- tended Albany College for two years. At the age of twenty-one years he was made deputy sheriff under I. C. Dickey, and afterwards served in the same capacity under Sheriffs George Humphrey and J. K. Charlton. In 1886 he suc- ceeded Sheriff Charlton, and for two years was sheriff of Linn county. He was subsequently deputy sheriff under John Smallman and Matt Scott for a year, and again under C. C. Jackson for one term. In 1895 Mr. Smith returned to the old homestead, of which he owns two hundred

acres, and has since carried on general farming and stock-raising.

On December 14, 1881, Mr. Smith married Carrie M. Clark, daughter of J. S. Clark, and they have six children, namely: Ina M., Volena, Delazon, Merrill, Mary and Ianthe. Politically, Mr. Smith, following in the footsteps of his hon- ored father, is a stanch Democrat, and fraternally he is a Knight of Pythias. Both Mr. and Mrs. Smith are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

ISAAC M. SIMPSON. As a native-born citizen of Polk county, an extensive and pro- gressive agriculturist and stock-raiser, and as a worthy representative of one of the most widely and favorably known families of the Willamette Valley, Isaac M. Simpson is entitled to honorable mention in this biographical work. A son of the late I. M. Simpson, he was born April 23, 1857, at Simpson's Station, on the farm where he has since resided. His paternal grandfather, Malachi Simpson, was born of Scotch ancestry, in Georgia, and lived there until about 1815, when he removed with his family to Franklin county, Tenn., settling about three miles from Nashville, being a pioneer of that place.

Born on the Georgia homestead in 1812, I. M. Simpson was but a small child of three years when he accompanied his parents to Tennessee, where he grew to man's estate. Choosing the vocation of a farmer, he migrated to Arkansas in 1835, settling in Lawrence county, where he lived ten years. Leaving there early in 1845, he stopped a short time in Jackson county, Mo., then crossed the plains to Oregon, making the journey with wagons drawn by four yokes of oxen, coming by way of Meeks' cut-off, and be- ing six months on the way. At once locating in Polk county, he took up a donation claim of six hundred and forty acres at what is now Simpson's Station, in the fall of 1845, and at once began the improvement of a farm. During the gold excitement of 1849, he went to the Cal- ifornia mines, but soon returned on account of ill health. Resuming his agricultural labors, he resided on the farm which he cleared, until his death, July 11, 1887. He was a man of un- blemished character, deeply respected by all who knew him, and was a member of the Baptist Church. In his political affiliations he was a Democrat. At Lawrence county, Ark., in 1836, he married Martha Jackson, who was born No- vember 8, 1815, in Franklin county, Tenn. She was a daughter of Thomas Jackson, who emi- grated from Tennessee to Arkansas in 1835, at the time that Mr. Simpson went there with his parents. Four children were born of their union, namely : Amos C., deceased; Marshall W., of

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Elk City, Ore .; Eliza, wife of L. W. Loughary ; and Isaac M., the special subject of this brief sketch.

Receiving a practical education in the public schools of his district, Isaac M. Simpson as- sumed the management of the home farm when nineteen years old, and has since had sole charge of the estate. He has seven hundred acres of productive land, and is extensively and profit- ably engaged in general agriculture, including dairying, stock-raising, hop-growing, and the culture of fruit. He keeps Cotswold sheep, Dur- ham cows, and Angora goats, and has forty acres of land planted to hops, which do well in this climate, and yield excellent returns for the time and money expended in their culture.

Mr. Simpson married, in Lincoln county, Ore., Tabitha Morrison, who was born in Dallas coun- ty, Iowa, June 3, 1861. Her father, Barney Morrison, who comes of Irish ancestry, was born in Lincoln county, Tenn. Crossing the plains in 1862, he settled first in Yamhill county, Ore., removing from there to Polk county, and now resides in Lincoln county, this state. His wife, whose maiden name was Jemima Stone, is of German descent. Mr. and Mrs. Simpson have one child, Otto Simpson, who is a student at the Oregon Agricultural College, in Corvallis. A stanch Democrat in politics, Mr. Simpson served as county commissioner four years, being elected on the Democratic ticket in 1880. In 1890 he represented Polk and Lincoln counties in the state legislature, and is now a school director. He is a member of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, of Independence, and of Royal Arch Masons. He also belongs to Valley Lodge, In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows, of Independ- ence, and to the Woodmen of the World, of Airlie, in which he has served as council com- mander for two terms.

JOHN W. PROPST. For forty-two years John W. Propst has lived on his farm four and a half miles east of Albany, and during that time the once timbered property has undergone many changes, new buildings taking the place of their worn-out predecessors, and modern machinery making light tasks that were once arduous. But it is not only as an agriculturist and stock-raiser that Mr. Propst has contributed to the upbuild- ing of his neighborhood, for he has exerted a moral and educational influence as well, promot- ing to the extent of his power the schools of the district, and generously contributing to the advancement of the Christian Church, of which he is one of the substantial and honored mem- bers, and in which he has been an elder for twenty-five years. The Ancient Order of United Workmen has profited by his membership for

many years, and during the latter part of his life he has furthered the interests of the Repub- lican party.

The early life of Mr. Propst was uneventfully passed in Maynard county, Ill., on the farm where his birth occurred April 12, 1837. In 1852, when he was fifteen years of age, he took an active part in completing arrangements to cross the plains, his father desiring to settle in the west, where he hoped to make more money with less of the hard work to which he had been accustomed from his boyhood days. With ox-teams and prairie schooners, cattle and house- hold goods, the little party set out, arriving at their destination in Marion county at the end of the usual six months. Lucinda (Powell) Propst, the mother, died in eastern Oregon on Butter creek en route, and Anthony Propst, the father, died just after crossing the Cascade moun- tains at Foster. John W. Propst lived for a year on a farm near Parkersville, and after that went to the farm of his uncle, Noah Powell, in Yamhill county, making that his home until 1855. He then came to Linn county and lived with another uncle, John A. Powell, who had been ap- pointed his guardian after the death of his pa- rents, and remained there until he was twenty- four years of age. Still making his home with his uncle, he worked on surrounding farms until twenty-four years of age, when, having saved considerable money, he married Margaret J. Cole, November 1, 1860. For the following year he lived on a farm on the Santiam, and in the fall of 1861 came to his present farm, where he has lived ever since. To himself and wife have been born three children, of whom Quincy E. is living in Albany, married and has two children, Leona and Elmer. Frank W. died at the age of twenty- nine years in Albany; Leona died at the age of twenty-one years, at home. A practical farmer and an earnest, conscientious man, Mr. Propst does credit to this garden spot of Oregon, where he is so well known and so highly respected. He is a member of Harmony Grange. He served as school director and clerk for twenty-five years, and two years as constable. His farm of one hundred and 'ninety-seven and one-half acres has all been improved by his own efforts. In con- nection with his farming he has run threshing machines, reapers, headers, etc., among the farm- ers in his locality for the past thirty years.

ISAAC MEEKER. As a farmer in the broad fields of Oregon, Isaac Meeker is giving the strength and intelligence of his manhood toward the growth and upbuilding of state citizenship, and especially in the county of his father's adop- tion. He was born in Rock Island county, Ill.,

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March 1, 1847, the son of John Meeker. The latter was a native of Butler county, Ohio, hav- ing been born there September 6, 1822, and was there married to Lydia Miller. In the fall of 1847 Mr. Meeker went to St. Joseph, Mo., with the intention of emigrating from that location to the west. In the spring of the next year he crossed the plains, his worldly wealth embodied in one wagon and an ox-team. After six months of journeying the party arrived in Oregon, and the first winter found them located in the San- tiam valley, Linn county.

Being driven from their first settlement in Linn county by high water, Mr. Meeker took his family farther west in the county, where he be- came the owner of a donation claim of six hun- dred and forty acres, situated three miles from the town of Jefferson. This consisted principal- ly of prairie land. After the erection of a log cabin they made this their home, remaining here until 1880, when he removed to a location upon the banks of the Willamette river, directly oppo- site the city of Albany. His death occurred in that place in 1883, his wife surviving him three years. Like the lives of many early settlers, Mr. Meeker's was full of varied experiences, one be- ing a prospecting trip to the gold mines of Cali- fornia in 1849, from which he returned on a sail- ing vessel which landed him at Astoria thirty days from the date of sailing from San Francisco. In 1855-6, during the Rogue River war, he hauled supplies to the soldiers in the southern part of Oregon. Of six children born to Mr. and Mrs. Meeker, Elizabeth is the wife of Samuel Smith, of Washington; Isaac is the subject of this review; William was drowned February 17, 1903; Mary is the wife of William Bowman ; Martha was the wife of H. Butcher, and died in 1864; and Edward, the youngest child, is located on a part of the old claim.

Practically the entire life of Isaac Meeker has been spent in Oregon, for he was but one year old when the trip was begun, and he remained at home until he was thirty-one years old. He was reared to the duties of a farmer. Upon begin- ning work for himself he followed his early train- ing, now being located upon one hundred and sixty-eight acres of his father's claim, and is en- gaged in general farming and stock-raising. He first married, January 20, 1878, Melvina Hale, who was born in Oregon, the daughter of Will- iam Hale. Three children were born of this union, the one now living being Clyde. Mrs. Mecker died January 15, 1898, and October 24, 1900, Mr. Meeker married Mrs. Mary Wilson, who was born in Marion county, Ore., the daugh- ter of Joseph J. Groshong. Politically, Mr. Meeker is a Democrat, and fraternally belongs to the Grange.

MART V. MILLER. To the very early and widely scattered settlers of Linn county the building of the first log school-house was quite an undertaking, and established the community as progressive and enterprising. Of hewed logs, and with slab benches and desks, it was innocent of glass at the openings called windows, nor was there a door to keep out the rain or snow. But the pupils gathered there when their home duties permitted. Among these original pupils was Mart V. Miller, who was ten years of age when he came to the state with his parents, and who plodded in all kinds of weather to the primitive school-house near Albany. The lessons there learned have proved of immense value to him in later life, and served as a nucleus for later study. Since 1850 he has lived on his present farm, two hundred and seventy-five acres in extent, and lo- cated five miles from Albany. He is engaged in general farming and stock-raising, and is suc- cessful and prosperous, enjoying to an unusual extent the confidence of his fellow-agriculturists.

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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 130

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