Portrait and biographical record of the Willamette valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present, Part 177

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 177

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The marriage of Mr. Monteith occurred near Oskaloosa, lowa, June 29, 1854, and united him with Christine Maria Dunbar, a native of Provi- (lence, Ind, She was the daughter of Col. But-

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ler Dunbar, who was born in Connecticut, and as a young man settled in Indiana, becoming a use- ful pioneer of the state. He later removed to Iowa, locating in Mahaska county, from which section he joined the troops which served in the Black Hawk war, holding the commission of colonel. He married Sarah A. Heaton, who was born in Pennsylvania and died in Iowa. She was the mother of eight children, seven of whom are now living, Mrs. Monteith being the only one located in Oregon. She was the fourth of the children, and was reared in Iowa, where she re- ceived her education in the common schools. Af- ter her marriage she came to Oregon via the isthmus, from New York city, taking the steamer George L. Law, to Panama, and from there to San Francisco on the steamer John L. Stevens. In December, 1854, she arrived in her new home, which was then an embryo town, and she has since watched a city spring up in the wilderness. She now has four children living, of whom Arch- ibald is located in Portland, engaged in insurance work; Charlotte A. is the wife of J. V. Pipe, of Albany ; Thomas resides in Portland ; and Christine A. is the wife of W. H. Keading, of Oskaloosa, Iowa. One child, Montrose D., died in Albany at the age of twenty-four years. Mrs. Monteith is identified with the auxiliaries of the orders to which her husband belonged, being a member of the Rebekahs, and a charter member of the Eastern Star. She is a member of the First Presbyterian Church.

ABNER R. HALL. Adjoining Lebanon is a little property of five acres under a high state of cultivation, where various marketable products are raised in the season, and where the owner, Abner R. Hall, spends a peaceful and congenial life. Mr. Hall has some stock, and to facilitate his general farming rents forty-eight acres of land, a large part of which is heavily timbered.

Mr. Hall's wife was formerly Theresa Whited, a native of Des Moines, Iowa, who came to Ore- gon with her parents in 1874. Of the children born to Mr. and Mrs. Hall, Estella, Elva and Alice, the three youngest, are living at home; Hattie, the oldest daughter, is now Mrs. Michael Kelly, of Jefferson, Ore., and Walter is engaged in ranching in eastern Oregon.

Near Milan, Sullivan county, Mo., Thomas Hall, the father, owned and managed a farm for many years, and here was born his son, Abner R., April 27, 1859. Thomas Hall was born in Kentucky, and after attaining his majority moved to Missouri, where he ran a grist-mill in con- nection with farming, having learned the mill- wright's trade in his youth. In 1860 he took his family to Kansas, and afterward lived in both Nebraska and Illinois. From the latter

state he crossed the plains to Oregon with ox- teams during 1875-6. Abner R. Hall was then sixteen years of age, and the second of the six children born to his mother, Hattie (Inman) Hall, a native of New England, and now living in Jackson county, Ore., aged sixty-eight years. On the way across the plains Mr. Hall halted his oxen at Boise City, Idaho, and added to his de- pleted finances by burning charcoal. The next year he came to Oregon, locating on a claim near Brownsville, where he engaged in stock- raising for several years. The last years of his life were saddened by sickness, but he was a fairly successful man, and bore an honored name in the community. His son Abner lived with him on the home farm until 1887, and then farmed independently near Lebanon, taking up his residence adjoining the town, in 1894. He is a capable farmer and progressive man, devoted to his family, his friends and his adopted state. In politics he is a Republican.

WILL E. CHANDLER has been a factor in the business life of Lebanon since his arrival there in 1894. The Chandler family is doubly identified with the growth of the town, and the name has become synonymous with fair dealing and progressive methods. Mrs. Chandler who, before her marriage in Lebanon was Clara Read, has a well stocked dry-goods, grocery and gen- eral furnishings store, which is not wanting in generous patronage from both the town and sur- rounding country. With true appreciation of the needs of her sex, she makes a specialty of acces- sories of the toilet.

Mr. Chandler, who started a tinning and plumbing enterprise when he first located in Leb- anon, and who has since derived a substantial income from this source, has of late transferred his business partially to others, in order to de- vote the greater part of his time to buying and shipping country produce. He is one of the suc- cessful younger business men of the town. He was born in Franklin county, Ill., January 18, 1866. His father, Samuel L. Chandler, a native of Kentucky, removed at an early day to Frank- lin county, where he owned and managed a farm, and later ran an agricultural implement business in Carbondale, Jackson county. At the present time he is sixty years of age, and is liv- ing retired at the home of his son, Audv L., in Champaign, Ill. His wife, Mary (Tate) Chand !- ler, was born in Franklin county. and died in Illinois, after rearing four sons and two daugh- ters, of whom Will E. is the third. He received a practical education in the public schools, and gained a fair knowledge of business in his father's implement store. When twenty-two years of age he came to Portland, and for several years

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lived at Salem and other towns in the Willamette valley, finally locating in Lebanon in 1894.

A Republican in political preference, Mr. Chandler has been prominently before the public of Linn county for several years, and served as deputy sheriff of the county under James A. Mc- Ferrin. He has been a member of the city council one term, and has held other local offices. Fra- ternally he is connected with the Modern Wood- men of America, the Knights of the Maccabees, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the . Independent Order of Foresters. In all of these orders he is active, and he takes a keen interest in other social organizations. A shrewd and capable buyer, Mr. Chandler is also a con- siderate and conscientious one, and the farmers who dispose of their products to him are in- variably sure of treatment consistent with sound and reliable business ethics.

EDWIN N. STARR. As a successful farmer Edwin N. Starr is giving his energies and talents toward a cultivation of the broad lands of the state of Oregon, now occupying a part of the old Reeves donation claim, a link between the days of pioneer hardships and the present affluence. Mr. Starr is a native son of the west, his father having been one of the many men who came into the wilderness and by earnestness of purpose laid the foundation for the commonwealth which has arisen on the western slope.

The father, George M. Starr, was born in Lo- gan county, Ohio, February 18, 1812, and at a very early date removed with his parents to Illinois. There the father died at seventy years of age, and the mother when George M. was but twelve years old. the two being of Irish and English descent. On completing his education in the public schools of Olney, Ill., Mr. Starr learned the tinner's trade from his father, and followed the same for forty years, at that time deciding to remove to the west. In 1852 he started with the customary ox-team for the jour- ney across the plains, the only trouble experienced with the Indians being a hand-to-hand encounter with three of them, in which Mr. Starr came off victor. He was traveling in Captain Bentley's train, which, after six months, arrived safely in Oregon, when he left the company and came directly to Benton county and located near Bell- fountain, where he remained for one winter. In the spring of 1853 he went to California and fol- lowed mining and prospecting for a year, and on again going north he settled in Monroe and en- gaged in the general merchandise business in partnership with a man named Bellknap, the firm name being Starr & Bellknap. This was the first establishment of the kind in the town and it was continued for several years, when Mr. Starr

removed to Idaho after about six years' residence in Monroe. In the course of a few years he re- turned to the vicinity of Monroe and spent the remainder of his life in and near the town. He lived to the age of seventy-five years. In Feb- ruary, 1854, he married Elizabeth Dimmick, who was born in Illinois in 1838, and crossed the plains with her parents in 1852, a fuller record of whose life is to be found in the sketch of her father, Joseph Dimmick, which appears on an- other page of this work. Besides Edwin N. Starr they had the following children: Georgi- ana, the wife of I. Bray, of Lane county ; Sarah, the wife of O. V. Hurt, of Corvallis; Oscar and Clarence, both located in Corvallis ; Bert, of Port- land; and Samuel, of Seattle, Wash. Mr. Starr was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and had been since boyhood. As a citizen of the community he had served in several minor offices, among them being that of justice of the peace. When quite young he served as a bugler under General Price in the Mexican war, being in the three principal battles of this war. Since the death of her husband, Mrs. Starr has made her home with her children, now living with Edwin N. Starr, of this review.

Edwin N. Starr was born in Monroe, Ore., July 1, 1856, and was there reared to young man- hood. He attended the district schools and re- mained at home until he was eighteen years old, when he started out to make his own way in the world. He followed his early training and worked as a farm hand for some time, his first venture on his own responsibility being on a claim which he had taken up in Lincoln county. He remained there for eight years, at the close of that period coming to the place which he now occupies, previously mentioned as a part of the Reeves donation claim. Through energy and perserverance Mr. Starr has made many improve- ments, in fact, all of those which now make the farm most valuable. He has excellent buildings of all kinds, good commodious barns and out- buildings, and a comfortable dwelling. Out of two hundred and sixty acres he is now cultivat- ing one hundred and thirty, following the meth- ods of his father in carrying on general farming and stock-raising, making a specialty of Short- horn cattle.

The marriage of Mr. Starr occurred March 23, 1879, and united him with Anna Reeves. who was born on the place where she now makes her home, the daughter of a pioneer, Thomas D Reeves, a sketch of whose life appears elsewhere in this work. Mr. and Mrs. Starr have three children, named in order of birth as follows: Claude I., Grace E. and Tracy, all of whom arc still at home with their parents. Politically Mr. Starr is a Democrat and has served in the inter- est of this party in the capacity of road super-

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visor. Fraternally he is a member of the Wood- men of the World. With a good record of ener- getic, persevering labor for his past years, Mr. Starr has made for himself a place in the com- munity, bearing his part in all efforts to im- prove the conditions of his native state, and winning thereby the esteem of his fellow-citi- zens.

BURTIS W. JOHNSON, who is now serving a second term as postmaster of Corvallis, having filled the position continuously since January, 1898, was born in Ulysses, Potter county, Pa., August 30, 1866, a son of Hon. F. M. and Celia (Burtis) Johnson. The father was born in New York, of an old New England family. The pa- ternal grandfather was a shipbuilder and re- moved from Connecticut to the Empire state. Hon. F. M. Johnson became an attorney and practiced law for a number of years in Pennsyl- vania. Removing to the west he became a resi- dent of Michigan and served with the Third Michigan Cavalry in the Civil war. Later he went to Nebraska, settling in Tekamah, Burt county, where he practiced his profession, being widely recognized as a leading member of the bar of that locality. He also exerted a wide in- fluence in public affairs and twice represented his district in the general assembly, leaving the impress of his individuality upon the legislation enacted during that period. In 1876 he was chairman of the Republican state central com- mittee and continued an active factor in Nebras- ka politics until 1879, when he came to Oregon, locating in Corvallis. Here he practiced law until 1899, when he removed to Portland, where he is now engaged in the insurance business. He is a member of the Grand Army of the Re- public and a man of forceful individuality, whose labors have benefited every community with which he has been connected. His wife was born in Pennsylvania of one of the old families of that state and her death occurred in Nebras- ka. They were the parents of two children, the younger being May, now Mrs. Weigel, of Prineville.

Having completed his literary education by a high school course Burtis W. Johnson in 1884 entered the employ of the Oregon & Pacific Railroad Company, as a member of the survey- ing corps engaged in locating the road. He was afterward with the Oregon Railway & Navi- gation Company in the Walla Walla country, making the survey along the north bank of the Columbia river to Ainsworth. Subsequently Mr. Johnson entered his father's office, in charge of the insurance business, and in 1894 he en- tered the journalistic field, purchasing the Cor- vallis Gazette, of which he became the editor as

well as proprietor. It was the Republican or- gan of Benton county and he continued its pub- lication until 1898 when he sold it. In the mean- time he had enlarged the paper to an eight col- umn folio, weekly. When he purchased it, the paper was on the decline, but he built up a large circulation, established a good job department, and, at the cost of much hard labor, made the Gazette, one of the best journals published in this part of the state. In the meantime Mr. Johnson had done another important work for Oregon. In the fall of 1891 he had arranged a Benton county exhibit for the 'exposition in Portland, where it attracted much attention and was highly commended, so much so that C. H. Dodd, then president of the board of immigra- tion, urged Mr. Johnson to take the management and superintendence of the car "Oregon-on- Wheels," which toured the United States in order to make Oregon and her possibilities known throughout the country. For some time Mr. Johnson hesitated, but was finally prevailed upon to accept the position and the result was that a very successful trip was made and its ob- ject was attained. The car was filled with ex- hibits of Oregon's products of different varie- ties, including fruits, grains, minerals and woods. The trip covered fifteen thousand miles, Mr. Johnson starting in 1891 and returning in 1892. He traveled all over different railroads through the principal districts of the east and the trip was a pleasant one, at the same time proving of value to the state.

In Corvallis Mr. Johnson was united in mar- riage to Miss Lillian Hamilton, who was born in Minnesota and was educated in the Oregon Ag- ricultural College. They are members of the Presbyterian Church and Mr. Johnson holds membership relations with the Knights of Pyth- ias, being a past chancellor in the lodge and a member of the finance committee of the grand lodge. In politics he has always been a stalwart Republican, and in October, 1897, he was ap- pointed by President McKinley to the position of postmaster of Corvallis, although there were eight applicants for the position. In January, 1898, he entered upon the duties of the office, and on June 30, 1902, he was reappointed with- out opposition by President Roosevelt. He is one of the leading young men of Corvallis, his life typifying the progressive spirit which has been the dominating element in the upbuilding and rapid development of the northwest.

IRA F. M. BUTLER. In comparative good health there is living in the town of Monmouth a venerable and honored citizen aged nearly ninety-three years, whose personal characteris- tics, accomplishments, and whole-souled public

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spiritedness may well serve as an inspiration to the youth of today who is handicapped at the outset of his life by the absence of influence or material resources. Ira F. M. Butler is a pioneer of pioneers, not only because he is an early settler, but because of the extent of his services in connection with the upbuilding of Polk county. Long before the Revolutionary war his emigrating ancestor came from Eng- land, settling among the colonies in the midst of which was fermented the compelling spirit of independence. The paternal great-grandfather, Peter, was born in England. Coming to America he located in Barren county, Ky., in 1710, and died there in 1816, at the age of one hundred and six years. The paternal grand- father, John, was born in Virginia, removed with his father to Barren county, Ky., and died near Fairfield, Wayne county, Ill., at the age of seventy-five.

Peter Butler, the father of Ira F. M., was born in Pulaski county, Ky., March 9, 1789, and in his native state married Rachel Murphy, a native of east Tennessee, and whose father, John Murphy, was born in the same state, and passed his last years in Warren county, Ky. Mr. Butler in time located in Barren county, where was born, May 20, 1812, his son, Ira F. M., the first of a family of ten children, among whom were seven sons and three daughters. Contemporary with his son's birth, Mr. Butler shouldered his musket and served in the war of 1812 as major in General Wayne's regiment, thereafter continuing to farm in his native state until his removal to Illinois in 1829. In Warren county, Ill., he bought a farm, the interests of which he gladly entrusted to the care of others while he served in the Black Hawk war, in which momentous struggle he won the rank of major. He became prominent in political and general affairs in Illinois, served in both the leg- islature and state senate, and was the first sheriff of Warren county. In the meantime he listened enthusiastically to the glowing reports of re- turned travelers from the west, and in 1853 out- fitted with mule teams and wagons, and brought his family to Oregon. He was four months on the way, and, contrary to the experience of most of the early emigrants, had a pleasant and safe journey. Arriving in Polk county, he bought a donation claim of three hundred and twenty acres of land near Monmouth, where his death occurred in 1856.

In his youth Ira F. M. Butler had meager educational chances, and he early appreciated what he was missing in that direction. Accord- ingly, he set about studying by himself, during his leisure moments on the farm, and he was one of those who learn much from ohservation, and from contact with his fellow-men. He de-

veloped early aptitude for public service, for he was deputy sheriff under his father, and filled the position of sheriff of Warren county, Ill., in 1838. For seven years he was circuit clerk in Warren county under Stephen A. Douglas, in the meantime making his home in the town of Monmouth, Ill. With his father he planned the trip across the plains, and upon arriving at his destination in Oregon he settled on a claim of three hundred and twenty acres near his father on the Luckiamute. This property he sold in 1856, and bought land two miles south- west of Monmouth, consisting of six hundred and eighty acres. In 1856-7 he helped to lay out the town of Monmouth, and, upon being ap- pointed one of a committee of five to give the infant project a name, called it after the thriv- ing community in which he lived and labored in Illinois.

In his determination to be an upbuilding fac- tor of Monmouth, Mr. Butler has traversed many avenues of activity, in all of which he has been successful. As a stanch Democrat, he has repeated his Illinois political services, cred- itably and ably representing his community in the legislature during the sessions of 1856, 1858, and 1862, in 1858 serving as speaker of the house. From 1878 to 1882 he was judge of Polk county, and until within a few years has been justice of the peace since his arrival in the west. From time to time he has been inter- ested in surveying in the county, and was coun- ty surveyor for one term. For eighteen years he lived on the large farm which he still owns, and during that time engaged in general farm- ing and stock-raising, many improvements be- ing added to his enterprise as his harvests in- creased in size, and large financial gains re- warded his arduons labors. From the primi- tive log house of the early settler he moved into more commodious quarters, and finally, in 1873, took up his permanent residence in a pleasantly located home in Monmouth. Since 1882 he has lived in comparative retirement, having won the esteem and appreciation of a large circle of friends and associates. A member of the Chris- tian church, he was one of the founders of the Christian College at Monmouth, and for many years was president of its board of trustees, re- signing only when the institution was merged into the State Normal School. His financial ability and integrity found vent as one of the organizers of the Polk county bank at Mon- mouth, of which he was for years one of the largest stockholders. He is a member of Grange No. 258.

For fifty-three years Mr. Butler enjoyed an ideal married life with the wife whom he mar- ried in Illinois, November 5, 1835, and who was formerly Mary Ann Davidson, a native of Ken-

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tucky, and daughter of Elijah Davidson, born in North Carolina. November 5, 1885, Mr. and Mrs. Butler celebrated their golden wedding, and the love of friends and relatives found ex- pression in numerous gifts, and in the shower- ing of innumerable good wishes. Three years later, in June, 1888, the faithful wife and mother passed beyond the ken of those to whom she had been a comfort in life, and in the memory of all who knew her she is recalled as possess- ing many lovable and endearing traits of char- acter. Her father removed from North Caro- lina to Illinois, and from there came to Oregon in 1850, locating on a donation claim of six hundred and forty acres near Monmouth, where he attained to the age of four score years. Of the eight children born to Mr. and Mrs. Butler, Newton H. is deceased; Paradine is deceased ; Asa D. is a fruit grower in Napa, Cal .; Cyrus is deceased; as are also Mary E. and A. P. Two daughters, Margaret and Alice, live with their father. Thus is told the life story of an indus- trious and capable pioneer of this great com- monwealth, who is as great in the sterling quali- ties which bring success as is the state in oppor- tunities of soil and climate.

WILLIAM A. CRISELL. Three miles east of Butteville and five miles northwest of Aurora. on the Willamette river, is the two hundred and seventy-five acre farm of William A. Crisell, occupied by him since 1868, and one hundred and fifty acres of which are cleared. Fifty acres of this farm consiste of beaver-dam land, thrown up by those wonderful little members of the ani- mal world who have served as examples of in- dustry for centuries past. There is an old hop- yard of twenty acres, and a new hop-yard of forty acres, the latter planted in 1902, making in all sixty acres of hops to be garnered by

harvesters in the fall. Mr. Crisell is not only an excellent agriculturist, but he has a wide knowledge of mining, to which he has devoted many years of his life. He was born in St. Genevieve county, Mo., in February, 1833, and was reared on a farm, attending the public schools as opportunity offered. His father dying when the son was seventeen years of age, he determined to leave home and carve out his future in the west, two years later, in 1852, making preparation for the long journey. With three companions he purchased an outfit of five yoke of oxen, one wagon, and two saddle horses, all of which they finally succeeded in bringing over the plains. They were four months mak- ing the journey from Missouri to California, and once arrived, Mr. Crisell turned his atten- tion to mining and prospecting in Eldorado county for about ten years. Thereafter he spent

a number of years mining in Idaho, Washington and other mining centers, and eventually bought an interest in a four-yoke ox-team with which he engaged in freighting between The Dalles and the mining districts for three years.

In 1868 he came to Oregon and settled on his present farm. The following year, September 10, 1869, he was united in marriage with Nancy Bird, who was born in Clackamas county in 1849, a daughter of William and Harriett Bird. The union of Mr. Crisell and Nancy Bird has been blessed with three sons: Allen A., Millard N., and Robert. The sons are all farmers, and the two youngest are working with their father. Mr. Crisell is a Democrat in politics, and fra- ternally is associated with the Grange. He is upright and industrious, and richly deserves the success which has come to him. In all the un- dertakings of his community which are calcu- lated to elevate the moral and intellectual standard of the people he has exhibited a keen and unselfish interest. Those who have had the opportunity to gain a knowledge of his character freely accord him a position among the thor- oughly representative farmers of Marion county -a man whose earnest efforts toward the en- lightenment of those with whom he comes in contact in his daily life are highly appreciated. It is with genuine pleasure that the editors of this publication make a permanent record of the high esteem in which Mr. Crisell is held by his fellow-citizens; and in the years to come the three manly sons in his family unquestionably will review with great pride and satisfaction the history of his career, which has afforded them a source of inspiration in their efforts toward attaining an equally conspicuous position among the leading agriculturists of the Willamette valley.

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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 177

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