Portrait and biographical record of the Willamette valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 149

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 149

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Mr. Woodcock was born in Schoharie county, N. Y., July 20, 1824, and passed away in the early morning of March 22, 1884, his life record therefore covering almost sixty years. He was a son of William and Catherine Woodcock. His ancestors, as far back as is known, were from Holland, whence they went to England and from the latter country three brothers of the name crossed the Atlantic to the Empire state. From one of these the subject of this review was de- scended. On his mother's side the first ances- tors, as far as is now known, were Peter Cooper, Martin Cooper, Catherine Hamm and Regina

Krum, all of whom were born in the town of Westerwald, Prussia. Coming to America they settled in Livingstone Manor in Dutchess county, N. Y., in 1761. From the marriage of Peter Cooper and Catherine Hamm there sprung two children, one of whom was given the name of Peter and was born July 6, 1775. By the mar- riage of Martin Cooper and Regina Krum there were seven children, one of whom was named Regina Cooper. In 1796 Peter C. Cooper, the son of Peter Cooper, and Regina, the daughter of Martin Cooper, were married and unto them were born nine children, including Catherine, who on August 12, 1821, gave her hand in mar- riage to William Woodcock. Mr. and Mrs. Woodcock, accompanied by six of their children, including Martin, who was then fourteen years of age, left New York in 1838 and settled in what was then the wilderness of Woodland in Wisconsin, about eight miles from where now stands the city of Milwaukee. There the father, with the assistance of his sons, Horace and Mar- tin, hewed out a farm in the midst of the hereto- fore unbroken forests, earning the means with which to pay for the homestead by cutting cord wood. From that time on Martin Woodcock assisted in the work of the home farm and was there reared to manhood. He lived under the parental roof until twenty-four years of age and .on August 28. 1848, he was united in mar- riage to Amanda J. White. They became the parents of one son and two daughters. The son, M. S. Woodcock, is now president of the First National Bank and is ex-mayor of Corvallis. One daughter, Mrs. Eva L. Stannus, born February 7, 1855, resides in Idaho. The other daughter. Carrie L., was born July 2, 1865. When gold was discovered in California the news of the find spread like wildfire throughout the country. It reached the ears of Mr. Woodcock and others in Wisconsin and, being attracted by the many advantages then offered on the far-off Pacific coast, Mr. Woodcock resolved to seek his fortune in the west, and, with his wife and son, accom- panied by his older brother, Horace, with the latter's wife, and a younger brother, W. C. Wood- cock, and his sister, Rena A. Dayton and her husband, H. C. Dayton, started for Oregon on February 24, '1853. It was mid-winter, and in wagons drawn by oxen they loaded all that they possessed and turned their faces toward the setting sun in search of the land of promise- the then but little known Oregon. After a long and tiresome journey across the plains they arrived at their destination on September 24. and after looking over various parts of the Will- amette valley for land subject to location under the donation act Mr. Woodcock and his brother, W. C., settled upon adjoining farms about four- teen miles west of Eugene City in Lane county.

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This land was wild and unimproved, but with characteristic energy Mr. Woodcock began its development and there lived for about four years, during which time he built a new home and made good improvements upon his property. During the succeeding two years he was engaged in learning the wagonmaker's trade of a neigh- bor, Jacob H. Wellsher and in the fall of 1859 Martin Woodcock and his brother Horace joined Mr. Wellsher in forming a partnership for the purpose of engaging in the manufacture of wagons and carriages. They all removed to Monroe, Benton county, where they continued in that business until the winter of 1863, during which time they built up a large trade. Their wagons found favor with the public because of their neatness, durability, light draft and the evident care with which they were constructed. They thus had many purchasers, some of whom came from long distances.

About the time of his removal to Monroe, Martin Woodcock also entered into partnership with his brother, W. C. Woodcock, for the pur- pose of conducting a general mercantile business at that place. They established their store and conducted it with success until the winter of 1869. In the spring of 1874 Mr. Woodcock, with his wife and daughter, removed to east Portland and in the succeeding fall he purchased a part of the William Herron farm near Salem, whereon he resided for some time. He built another home there and devoted his energies to the supervision of his farming interests until the spring of 1882, when he sold that property. During the following summer, accompanied by his wife and youngest daughter, he visited the old home in Wisconsin where his aged mother was still living on the land he had helped to clear for her and his father in his early boyhood days. She was then seventy-eight years of age. Return- ing to Oregon, Mr. Woodcock then removed in April, 1883, to the farm about a mile east of Salem, which continued to be his place of abode until his demise. There he once more commenced to build a home for his old age in which he hoped to rest from hard work and care, but after an illness of a few weeks he died surrounded by his loved ones and many friends. He passed away at the age of fifty-nine years, eight months and two days. In February, 1884, he had been summoned to serve on the county jury. The weather at that time was very cold and there was a deep snow. During the first week of his jury services Mr. Woodcock contracted a severe cold, but instead of asking to be excused by the court he continued to act on the jury and at the end of the two weeks his cold had developed into a severe attack of pneumonia, which resulted in his death. Thus closed the life of another hon- ored pioneer, whose best years were closely iden-

tified with the growth and prosperity of his beloved Oregon. His life was characteristic of untiring energy and unswerving integrity. He was often heard to say that his whole aim in life was to do to others as he would wish others to do unto him, and this motto was not lightly regarded by him, but had a broad significance which made it enter into every detail of his daily life, and to be his rule and guide in all trans- actions with his fellow-men. When he neared the end and the shadows of death were falling across his path, almost his last words were that he could look back over every act of his life with satisfac- tion. This was because he had never taken ad- vantage of the necessities of his fellow-men, but had lived honorably with them and therefore he was not afraid to die. One who knew him paid the following tribute to his memory : " His scru- pulous exactness in performing all he promised and his straight-forward course in whatever path duty called, regardless of all else, had gained him the respect of all who came in contact with him and the esteem and warmest affection of those who knew him best. Many will mourn him as a friend gone and his memory will be cherished long after his form is returned to dust from whence it came. May his fidelity to his favorite motto exemplified in his whole life give it new and nobler meaning to his friends who survive him."

AUGUST HODES is a very successful gro- cery merchant of Corvallis and therefore a lead- ing representative of commercial interests in the city. He is one of the worthy citizens that Germany has furnished to the new world, his birth having occurred in Herstelle, Westphalia. His paternal grandfather, Cornelius Hodes, was also a native of that country and was engaged in the canal-boat business. Becoming a member of the German army, he served in one of the wars in that country. His religious faith was that of the Catholic Church. Henry Hodes, the father of our subject, was also born and reared in Westphalia and became a mason and builder, while later he was superintendent of large stone quarries at Herstelle. There he died in the year 1880, and his community mourned the loss of one of its representative business men. He married Miss Julia Hodes, who was born in Westphalia, but although of the same name belonged to a different family. She died in 1863 when our subject was nine years of age, and the father was afterward again married. By the first union there were four children, three of whom are still living, namely: Amelia, now Mrs. Zier- olf. of Corvallis; August ; and Mrs. Mina Wus- terfeldt, of Corvallis. Of the second marriage

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there are four living children, one of whom, Carl, is a resident of Albany, Ore.

The birth of August Hodes occurred on March 27, 1853, and in his parents' home the days of his youth were passed, while in the common schools he pursued his education. From boy- hood he followed canal boating until seventeen years of age and then in 1871, thinking that he might have better opportunities in the new world, he came to America, sailing from Bremen to New York. He then made his way across the country to San Francisco, Cal., and thence trav- eled to Portland, Ore. In May, 1871, he arrived in Corvallis, where he has since made his home with exception of a short time passed in Eugene, where he was employed in a hotel and afterward by a dentist, being thus engaged until December, 1872, when he returned to Corvallis. He then entered the service of Henry Warrior, a mer- chant of Corvallis, with whom he remained until May, 1881, when, with the capital he had acquired through his own efforts, he engaged in the grocery business as the senior member of the firm of A. Hodes & Company. In 1888 he pur- chased his partner's interest and has since con- tinued alone in the business. He has a fine store on Main street in the center of the city in which he carries a full line of staple and fancy groceries. The store is characterized by neat- ness and cleanliness and is most attractive in its appearance, so that it has a liberal patronage.

In Corvallis Mr. Hodes was united in mar- riage to Miss Louise Bamberger, who was born in San Francisco, and is a daughter of Adam Bamberger, who came from Alsace, France, to the Pacific coast and was one of the early settlers of San Francisco. Later he engaged in the bak- ing business in Corvallis and he now resides in Portland. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Hodes were born four children: Clemens and Carl G., who are with their father in the store; and Frances and Earl, at home.

Mr. Hodes is now serving for the third year as a member of the city council, and is on the fire and water committee. For a number of years he was a member of the fire department, belong- ing to the Big Six Engine Company. Fratern- ally he is connected with the Knights of the Maccabees and politically is a Democrat. He is a very progressive and enterprising man, is liberal in matters of citizenship and endorses every movement for the welfare of Corvallis and gives to public measures for the general good his hearty co-operation.

MILTON S. WOODCOCK. A man's repu- tation is the property of the world. The laws of nature have forbidden isolation. Every human being submits to the controlling influence of

others, or as a master spirit wields a power either for good or evil on the masses of man- kind. There can be no impropriety in justly scanning the acts of any man as they affect his public and business relations. If he is honest and eminent in his chosen field of labor investi- gation will brighten his fame and point the path that others may follow with like success. From among the ranks of quiet, persevering yet promi- nent citizens-prominent on account of what he has done in commercial circles-there is no one more deserving of mention in a volume of this character than Milton S. Woodcock, who is ex- mayor of Corvallis and president of the First National Bank.

Hon. Milton S. Woodcock is a native of Wis- consin and has been a resident of Oregon since 1853. He was born in Wisconsin, near Green- field, eight miles from Milwaukee, May 9, 1849, and is a son of Martin Woodcock a native of New York. The paternal grandfather. William Woodcock, removed from New York to Wis- consin, settling near Milwaukee at a pioneer epoch in the development of that state. The father of Milton S. became a farmer by occupa- tion and in 1853 brought his family across the plains with ox-teams. In the same party traveled his older brother, Horace Woodcock and his family, his younger brother, William, who was then a single man, and his sister and brother-in- law, Mr. and Mrs. H. C. Dayton. Martin Wood- cock brought with him his wife and only son. the subject of this review, and settled fourteen miles west of Eugene on a donation claim, where he lived for four or five years. Removing then to Monroe, Benton county, he there engaged in merchandising with his younger brother, and was associated with his older brother in the manufacture of wagons. Subsequently he took up his abode in the vicinity of Salem, Marion county, where he resided until his death, which occurred when he was fifty-nine years of age. He married Amanda J. White, a native of the Empire state, who went with her parents to Wisconsin. She still survives, and is now living near Salem. In the family were three children, these being Milton S .; Mrs. Stannus, of Idaho; and Mrs. Savage, who is living near Salem.

Milton S. Woodcock, the eldest and the only son, was but a small lad when brought by his parents to the northwest. He is indebted to the public school system for the educational privi- leges he received in his youth. In his boyhood he was employed in his father's store, early becoming familiar with mercantile methods. In 1869 he began general merchandising on his own account in Monroe, conducting his business with a fair degree of success until 1874, when he sold his store there and sought a broader field of labor in Corvallis. In the meantime he had taken

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up the study of law under the direction of Col- onel Kelsay and after completing his preliminary reading he was admitted to the bar in Salem in 1875. Mr. Woodcock then began the practice of his chosen profession in Corvallis and has since been identified with the legal profession, although many other interests have also claimed his attention. He was for a time engaged in the general hardware and implement business as a member of the firm of Woodcock & Bald- win, this association being maintained for four- teen years. In 1887 he established a private bank under the name of the Benton County Bank, which was opened for business in June, 1887. In 1890 he organized the First National Bank with a capital stock of $150,000 which was incor- porated and from the beginning Mr. Woodcock has served as its president. After a time he dis- posed of his hardware business in order to devote his entire attention to his banking interests. Prosperity has come to him as the natural con- sequence of industry and close application, and his splendid success bears testimony to his mature judgment in business affairs. Whatever he has undertaken he has accomplished. He was not yet twenty years of age when he began mer- chandising on his own account, and he had a capital of less than $1,000, but he agreed to pay for the stock of goods which he purchased within a year. He worked hard, in fact, unremittingly. and through his business career, as at the outset he has fully met every obligation. Mr. Wood- cock is a self-made man and, in a country where merit must win, Mr. Woodcock has achieved success. Wealth may secure a start, but it cannot maintain one in a position where brains and executive ability are required, and Mr. Woodcock did not have wealth to aid him in the beginning of his business career. His reliance has been placed on the more substantial quali- ties of perseverance, untiring enterprise, resolute purpose and commendable zeal, and withal his actions have been guided by an honesty of pur- pose. He is a true type of western progress and enterprise, the leading spirit which has produced the phenomenal growth of Oregon. His energy, prudent business methods and sagacity have all combined to make him one of the foremost busi- ness men of the great north west.

Mr. Woodcock was married in Corvallis to Miss Emma J. Simpson, who was born in Phila- delphia, Pa., a daughter of the Rev. Anthony Simpson, a native of Manchester, England, and on crossing the Atlantic took up his abode in Philadelphia. He was educated for the Presby- terian ministry and became an active factor in the work of that denomination. At the time of the Civil war he served as a chaplain, being sent into Virginia by the Young Men's Christian Association. In 1865 he came to Oregon by

way of Panama, accompanied by his wife and four children. They sailed on the old boat Golden Rule, which was wrecked in the Car- ibbean sea in June, 1865. The ship went down but the passengers all escaped, and ten days later they were taken by a United States man-of-war to Aspinwall and on to Panama, where the Simp- son family took passage on the steamer America for San Francisco. At the latter place they boarded the vessel Brother Jonathan, for Port- land and safely reached their destination, but on its return trip that vessel was also wrecked. Rev. Simpson lived in Albany for some time, and afterward went to Olympia, Wash., acting as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church there for two years. In 1867 he removed to Corval- lis to accept the pastorate of the church here and later he removed to a farm in Benton county upon which he afterward continued agricultural pursuits for some time. He also continued his ministerial work, and while there it was through his efforts that the First Presbyterian Church at Independence was built, and he served as pastor of this congregation for many years. He later returned to Philadelphia, Pa., where he died soon afterward. He was a man of marked influence, most zealous in his labors for the church and his efforts were productive of great good among his fellow-men. In his social rela- tions he was a Mason. Mr. Simpson was united in marriage in early manhood to Miss Helen Crawford, who was born in County Antrim, Ire- land, and was of Scotch-Irish lineage. She died in Albany, Ore. In their family were four children, of whom three are living: John H .. who is a hardware merchant in Corvallis; Emma, the wife of M. S. Woodcock, of Corvallis; and George, of Seattle, Wash.

Unto Mr. and Mrs. Woodcock have been born three children : A. R., who is a graduate of the Oregon Agricultural College, is an ornithologist and stands at the head of that science in the state of Oregon: C. H. is connected with the First National Bank of Corvallis; and E. M. is the youngest of the family.

In his political views Mr. Woodcock is an earnest Republican and wields a wide influence in the councils of his party. In 1901 he was elected mayor of the city and his administration was one that gave entire satisfaction to the p:ib- lic because it was business-like, progressive and beneficial. A very prominent Mason, he was initiated into the order in Monroe Lodge No. 49, and is now connected with Corvallis Lodge

No. 14. He likewise belongs to Ferguson Chap- ter, R. A. M., of Corvallis, of which he is the past high priest and he holds membership in Ore- gon Council of Corvallis, of which he is a past officer and is the past grand master of the Grand Council of Oregon. He is also a member of the

Joshua Gewalton

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Order of High Priesthood and he and his wife are connected with the Eastern Star. Mr. Wood- cock was the organizer of the Eastern Star lodge in Corvallis and served as its first worthy patron, acting in that capacity for several years. He is also identified with the State Pioneer Associ- ation and the American Bankers' Association. He is a man of enterprise, positive character, indom- itable energy, strict integrity and liberal views, and has been fully identified with the growth and prosperity of the state of his adoption. He has persevered in the pursuit of a persistent pur- pose and gained a most satisfactory reward. He is a man of fine personal appearance, and his kindliness, sympathy and generosity beam forth in his eye and are substantially manifest in his actions. His life is exemplary in many respects and he has the esteem of his friends and the confidence of those who have had business rela- tions with him.

JUDGE JOSHUA J. WALTON. In the annals of Lane county no man occupies a more honorable and eminent position than Judge Joshua J. Walton, of Eugene. A man of undoubted integrity, superior ability and judgment, energetic and public-spirited, he has been an important factor in the upbuilding of the city in which he resides, uniformly ad- vocating and working for the supremacy of those plans and measures which shall be of perpetual benefit to the community. In the establishment of the University of Oregon at Eugene, he was one of the prime movers, working hard to secure the necessary funds for its location there, and giving with an un- stinting hand from his own private purse to- wards its erection. A son of Joshua J. Wal- ton, he was born April 6, 1838, in Rushville, Ind. Of English ancestry, he is descended from one of three brothers who emigrated from England to America in colonial days, and settled in New England. His paternal grandfather, Capt. Thomas Walton, a resident of Connecticut, sailed the seas as master of his vessel, and while on one of his voyages was lost at sea with all his crew.

A native of Wethersfield, Conn., J. J. Wal- ton, the elder, there grew to manhood, and learned the shoemaker's trade. Emigrating from New England to Indiana, he was there engaged in mercantile pursuits for a few vears. In 1839 he removed to Illinois, locat- ing near Springfield, and subsequently lived in St. Louis, Mo., and in Keosauqua, Iowa. In the spring of 1849 he again took up his march westward, coming with his family to Fremont, Cal., thence to Yreka, where he spent the winter. Locating in the Rogue river

valley in the spring, he took up a donation claim near Ashland, on Wagner creek, being one of the original pioneers of that vicinity. Erect- ing a small log house, he commenced the im- provement of a farm, in addition being engaged in packing and freighting from Scottsburg and the Willamette valley to Yreka, Cal. In 1853 he and his son, J. J., assisted in building the blockhouse at Fort Wagner, and were on guard there for nearly six months. On leaving the fort, he disposed of his ranch, and moved to Green valley, on the Umpqua river, where he carried on general farming and stock-raising for five years. Locating in Eugene City in 1858, he opened a general merchandise store which he managed several years. The following three years he and his son, J. J. Walton, were em- ployed in mining, being at the Salmon river mines the first year, at Boise mines, near Idaho City, the second year, and at the Oyhee mines the third year. Returning then to Eugene, he was employed as a clerk until his retirement from active pursuits. He attained a venerable age, dying in Eugene at the age of four score and four years, in 1896. He had the distinction of voting for the constitutions of three states, of Iowa in 1846, of California in 1850, and of Oregon in 1858.

J. J. Walton married Ann M. Shockley, of Rushville, Ind. She was born near Flemings- burg, Ky., the birthplace of her father, William Shockley, who removed from Kentucky to Rushville, and there spent his declining years. She survived her husband, dying at the age of eighty-three years in 1901. She was a mem- her of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Of their union nine children were born, namely : Mrs. Harriet E. Wilson, who died in Washing- ton; Joshua, the special subject of this sketch ; Mrs. Phebe Hughes, residing at Creswell, Ore; Mrs. Mary E. Coleman, of Coburg, Ore; C. Wesley, a resident of Spokane, Wash .; Amanda J., wife of St. John Skinner, of Wardner, Idaho; Ira D., of Springfield, Ore .; Henry E., who died at Salem Ore .; and Mrs. Iula Cole, of Spokane, Wash.

After living in Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and Iowa, Joshua J. Walton crossed the plains with his parents when a boy of eleven years, going with ox-teams to California in 1849, following the trail up the Platte river, and coming by way of Salt Lake, where the jaded cattle were ex- changed for fresh ones. Thence they proceeded down the Humboldt, across the desert to Truc- kee, and on to Fremont, Cal., being from April until October making the trip. In 1851 they moved to Yreka, in the spring of 1852 to the Rogue river valley, and in the fall of the fol- lowing year he came with the remainder of the family to Green valley, Ore., and subse-

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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 149

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