Portrait and biographical record of western Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present.., Part 73

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman publishing company
Number of Pages: 1064

USA > Oregon > Portrait and biographical record of western Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present.. > Part 73

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Public spirit is one of Mr. Long's distinguish- ing characteristics. He is a believer in superior educational advantages, in clean municipal gov- ernment and in public enterprises for the im- provement and amusement of the town. He has never been willing to accept political office, al- though he is a stanch supporter of the Repub- lican party. Through his marriage with Alice Cheney, a native of Iowa, seven children were born, of whom two died in infancy. The living

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are : Alice May, the wife of Edward L. Ohman, of Bandon; Rosa J., of Port Orford; Amelia, the wife of Benton Hoyt, of Bandon ; John M., of Bandon, and Charles, of Port Orford. .

One of Mr. Long's recreations is hunting, and each year finds him in readiness for this diversion. During his residence in Coos and Curry counties he has killed over one hundred and fifty elk and many bears have fallen before his rifle. Each season finds him on the lakes hunting ducks and other feathered game. He is also a lover of fishing and supplies many tables with the deli- cacies of the seasons.

DANIEL A. APPLEGATE. Throughout western Oregon the name of Applegate is hon- ored and respected, being closely associated with the pioneer development of the state, and every- where synonymous with thrift, enterprise and prosperity. A resident of Ashland, Jackson county, Daniel A. Applegate, the special subject of this sketch, holds an honored position in the municipality, being now, in 1903, president of the city council, and the acting mayor. Dis- tinguished both for his own substantial life rec- ord, and for the honored pioneer ancestry from which he is descended, he occupies an assured position in the community, and is numbered among its valued and trustworthy citizens. A son of the late Daniel W. Applegate, he was born in Yoncalla, Douglas county, Ore., Janu- ary 28, 1868, of good old Revolutionary stock, his great-grandfather, Daniel Applegate, having served as a boy fifer in the Revolutionary war, being with General Washington at Valley Forge, and at the siege of Yorktown.

Jesse Applegate, the grandfather of Daniel A., was born in 1811, in Kentucky, and was there reared and cducated. Removing to St. Louis, Mo., he followed the profession of civil engineer for several years. In 1843, as captain of a com- pany, he crossed the plains to Oregon, settling in Polk county at first. In 1850 he located at Yoncalla, taking up a donation claim near Bos- well Springs, where he improved a homestead and carried on a large business for those times in stock-raising and dealing. He was the pio- neer civil engineer of the state, being the very first surveyor to locate here, and surveyed the road from Wallace to Fort Hall, which is now known as the Applegate cut-off. He was very prominent in the early settlement of the state, and was a member of the first constitutional con- vention of Oregon.

Born in Polk county, Ore., Daniel W. Apple- gate removed with his parents to Douglas coun- ty, and for many years was engaged in agricul- tural pursuits in Yoncalla. During the Civil war he served as second lieutenant of his company

in the First Oregon Volunteer Infantry. Re- turning at the close of the conflict to Yoncalla, he continued farming for several years, and was subsequently employed in the railway service, first as mail clerk, and then as express messenger. On resigning this position he resumed farming, and was also engaged in mining until his sud- den death, in 1896, at the age of fifty-two years. His death was probably due to heart failure, he having dropped dead while mining at Central Point. He married Virginia Estes, who was horn in Iowa, and came, in 1853, to Oregon with her father, the late Elijah Estes, who took up a donation claim in Comstock, Douglas county, and there spent his remaining years. She sur- vived her husband, and now resides in Drain, Douglas county. Of their union seven children were born, namely: Daniel A., the subject of this brief biography; Mrs. Minnie Barker, of Yoncalla ; Roy, a former postmaster of Drain, where he is now carrying on a substantial bank- ing and drug business; Ralph, of Drain; Mrs. May Scott, living near Roseburg; Alonzo, en- gaged in mercantile pursuits at Gold Hill, this county ; and Cynthia, living at Drain.

After completing the course of study in the public schools of Yoncalla, Daniel A. Applegate entered the Central Oregon normal school, at Drain, and was there graduated, in 1888, with the degree of B. S. Entering then the employ of the Wells Fargo Express Company, as porter, he was stationed at Portland two years. Being then made express messenger, he was employed on different routes running from Portland, hold- ing the position until 1899, when he was ap- pointed agent at Ashland, an office that he has filled most satisfactorily ever since.

While a resident of Drain, Mr. Applegate mar- ried Ella Cellers, a native of Missouri, and they have two children, namely : Mildred and Gladys. In politics Mr. Applegate is actively identified with the Republican party, and takes a prominent part in municipal affairs. In December, 1902, he was elected to the city council from the Second ward, and on assuming the duties of his office, in January, 1903, was elected president of the council, and is now acting mayor of the city.

JUDGE DELOS WOODRUFF. An asso- ciation of more than half a century with vari- ous parts and occupations of the far west has made of Judge Delos Woodruff one of its stanchest advocates and most sincere appre- ciators. Not that his coming here in 1852 was any indication of far-sightedness, or of enthusiasm engendered by impelling accounts of gold or practically exhaustless timber lands. He came as a soldier in response to command, obeyed as a soldier should, and after an hon-

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orable discharge looked around him for the opportunity which he had been taught comes into the life of every human being, whether he sees it or not. How well he has succeeded in grasping his chance is best indicated by the splendid country property which has been his home since 1878, and which might well be the envy of those less resourceful mortals who look rather for large endings than small begin- nings. The Woodruff farm is eleven miles north of Gold Beach on Euchre creek, and is six hundred acres in extent. Few improve- ments had as yet been made when the present owner took possession, yet today it bears the stamp of progressiveness and scientific man- agement, and is one of the chief centers for raising cattle and sheep, and for a model dairy business in Curry county. Twenty-seven cows contribute toward the maintenance of the dairy, and general produce meets a ready sale. in the local markets. The Woodruff home is roomy and comfortable, well furnished and hospitable, and during the course of a year many friends find entertainment beneath its roof.

Judge Woodruff was born in East Aurora, Erie county, N. Y., September 30, 1834, and lived on the paternal farm until his eighteenth year. He was one of the hundreds of youths in the country to start upon their active careers as soldiers in the army, and in absence of active warfare he enlisted in Company A, Fourth United States Infantry, in what was known as Grant's regiment. The regiment soon after- ward embarked on the United States storeship Fredonia, captured from the British in the war of 1812, and started on the long journey around the Horn, being two hundred and ten days on the water. From San Francisco they were transferred to steamer Columbia, and from there to Fort Vancouver, after a short time being sent to The' Dalles. From The Dalles the company went to Fort Stellacoom on Puget Sound, and remained there until Sep- tember, 1856. Mr. Woodruff was then dis- charged for disability, and forthwith went to Astoria, where he became interested in mining in California. Until the fall of 1863 he mined with fair success in Siskiyou and Trinity counties, Cal., and Nevada City, Cal., and then located in San Francisco, where he became a member of the police force. During the eleven years on the force he was given special war- rants, and about all of his time was spent on the Chinese cases in the city. He became familiar with the Chinese quarter, its denizens and their modes of life, as well as the tricki- ness so graphically portrayed in the famous poem by Bret Harte.

In 1874 Mr. Woodruff came to Curry county,

and down the Rogue river to Gold Beach, bringing with him a $1,000 stock of merchan- dise, with which he started a general store. From December, 1874, until April, 1878, he met with a liberal patronage from the settlers, and then sold out his business to R. D. Hume. In the meantime he had become popular and prominent, and was known as a stanch up- holder of Republican principles. Mr. Wood- ruff is also a member of the Grand Army, and receives a pension of $10 per month. He was elected judge of Curry county in 1875, and served four years, and he was also justice of the peace three terms. In the meantime he has settled upon his present farm, and since the expiration of his term as judge has con- tented himself with casting his vote on the side of intelligent and conscientious govern- ment. In 1870 Judge Woodruff married Eliza Willard, and, in the absence of children of his own, adopted three children into his fam- ily. Judge Woodruff has a marked and im- pressive personality, is remarkably well in- formed on current events, and has contributed not a little to the stable and substantial up- building of his neighborhood.

CAPT. HIRAM S. EVANS. In these times of commercialism the artist who turns his talent into practical channels shows a wisdom far in excess of those who cater rather to the luxury than the necessity of mankind. Since advertising has come to be the great lubricant which keeps in running order the wheels of almost all lines of business, the most excep- tional literary and artistic ability has been enlisted in its service, thus affording talent a field for enormous distribution, and almost certain gratifying financial returns. Sign painting, one of the oldest and largest depart- ments of advertising, has become an art, and in this Capt. Hiram S. Evans excels, having few superiors in his line in the country. Cap- tain Evans is also known as one of the fore- most military men of southern Oregon, and has gained his rank through valuable service in the Oregon National Guard. His life as a sign painter, general decorator, owner and manager of an art supply store, and military disciplinarian, is a broad and public-spirited one, and causes him to rank among the fore- most citizens of Ashland.

Captain Evans was born in San Francisco, Cal., May 24, 1858, and is the son of Francis B. and Emma (Brady) Evans, the latter of whom was born in Greenwich. England, and at present makes her home with her son, Hiram. Francis B. Evans was born in County Limerick, Ireland, his father having settled

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there upon removal from his native country of Wales. Francis B. learned the millwright's. trade in his youth, and for many years he was an officer in the English navy, serving on a man-of-war in China and India. No more prized relic is owned by Captain Evans than an old English blunderbus which did service in those far-distant days. Mr. Evans finally touched at the shores of New Zealand, secured his discharge from the service, and married, soon after taking his wife to Australia, where he looked for, but failed to find, a fortune in the Bendigo mines. Later on he plied his trade as millwright and builder in the Sand- wich Islands, and in 1857 came to San Fran- cisco, where he made his way to the mines on the American river. During the Virginia City excitement he was shrewd enough to know that he could make more money in building mills to crush quartz than in digging the ore for others to crush, and accordingly he built many of the quartz mills which did such able work and aided in the acquiring of so many fortunes in Nevada. Afterward he en- gaged in merchandising and other occupations in Nevada and Washington, remaining many years in the great northwest, and finally re- turned to San Francisco, where his death oc- curred at the age of sixty-five. There were eight children in his family, seven of whom at- tained maturity. Francis, the oldest son, was accidentally killed in the Virginia City mines ; Ellen, the wife of Mr. Carpenter, died in Cali- fornia; Joseph lives in Montana, and is con- nected with the Northern Pacific Railroad; Charles is a mining and stock broker in New York city; Hiram S. is the fifth of the chil- dren ; Emma is the wife of Mr. McCumsey of Placerville, Cal .; Samuel was formerly a farmer in Washington, but in 1892 came to Ashland and has since been in partnership with his brother Hiram; and Annie is the wife of Mr. Mace, of Anaconda, Wash.

Captain Evans was seventeen years old when his family moved from Placerville to Silver City, Nev., and in the meantime he had acquired a common school education in the public schools of the former city. From boy- hood up he showed a natural aptitude for drawing and painting, and cultivated his talent during his leisure when working in the quartz mines of Nevada. For a year he clerked in his father's store in Carson City, and from there went to Walla Walla, Wash., where he taught painting and general art for several years. Later on, during the construction of the Northern Pacific Railroad, he became man- ager of the store of Sprague & Fairweather, and in 1881 managed the store of Abrams & Wheeler at Roseburg, remaining with the lat-

ter firm until they closed out their stock on the completion of the railroad to Ashland. Since then he has engaged in contract paint- ing and has decorated all of the churches, the opera house, normal school, the Hotel Oregon, and the Pioneer hall, besides many school- houses, public buildings, and private resi- dences. He possesses a remarkable knowledge of combinations and effects, invariably se- curing harmonious and practical results, and without exception, is the foremost decorator in southern Oregon, and one of the finest in the west. As a sign-painter he has few su- periors in the country. Mr. Evans owns his paint and general supply store on Main street, a well stocked enterprise, where anything in that line can be purchased. His ability is by no means confined to his adopted town, for he is often called to different points of the state, and many fine examples of his work may be seen throughout southern Oregon and north- crn California. He owns considerable town property besides his home, which is erected in the midst of a thrifty little orchard. Mr. Evans is vice president and a stockholder in the Oregon and California Lime Company, which owns a mountain of marble, and is mak- ing extensive developments.

Captain Evans' association with the Oregon National Guard began in 1898, when he en- listed in Company B, Third Regiment, O. N. G., as a private. May 6, 1899, he was com- missioned second lieutenant by Gov. T. T. Geer, and November 29, 1902, he was elected captain by the company, and commissioned by Governor Chamberlain as captain of Com- pany B, Fourth Regiment, Oregon National Guard, in November, 1902, serving until Feb- ruary, 1903. Upon the reorganization of the National Guard, July 29, 1903, he was com- missioned captain of Company B, First Sepa- rate Battalion, by Governor Chamberlain, which position he still holds. Captain Evans has been an active member of the fire depart- ment of this town for six years, and is now serving as assistant chief of the department. He is fraternally very prominent, being a mem- ber and past noble grand of Ashland Lodge No. 45, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and past grand representative to the Grand Lodge of Oregon. He is also a member of the Pilot Rock Encampment, and is at present district deputy chief patriarch; also a mem- ber of the Woodmen of the World. He is a Democrat in politics, and is a member of the Board of Trade, and served one term in the Ashland city council. On December 15, 1903, the captain was elected mayor of the city of Ashland, on the Citizens' ticket, receiving a majority of fifty-nine votes.

Orale. M. Perry

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

VALE N. PERRY. When about two years old, in 1842, Vale N. Perry was brought to Ore- gon and has since made the state his home, at- taining maturity in the midst of its splendid re- sources, and eventually participating in its agri- cultural and business upbuilding. He came to Coquille in 1858, and after many years of steam- boating on the river and ocean is at present fill- ing the less arduous position of janitor of the court house. His name will be associated with the annals of the great timber state for all time, not only because of the worthiness of his own life and character, but because his father, William T. Perry, was one of the stanchest and best known, as well as bravest and most capable, of the early forerunners of civilization in the north- west.

William T. Perry was born in Hartford, Conn., November 19, 1809, and during his long and active life was equally successful as carpenter and joiner, school teacher and farmer. His family has been associated with Connecticut for at least three generations, for his grandfather was presumably born there, and enlisted from there for the war of 1812, serving with his own cousin, Commodore Perry, in the historic naval battle of Lake Erie. His son, Norman D. Perry, the father of William T., a farmer by occupa- tion, was the founder of the family name in New York state, to which he moved when William was six years old. He lived to be eighty-six years of age; and his wife also died at an ad- vanced age. William T. Perry possessed great strength and vigor, and from the first of his school days showed an aptitude for learning, beginning to teach at a very early age. After learning the carpenter's and joiner's trade he worked thereat during the summer time, still con- tinuing to teach in the winter. In 1834 he went to Michigan and worked at his trade, and in 1836 assisted in the construction of the strap railroad between Coldwater and Ypsilanti, now known as the Michigan Central Railroad. In 1839 Mr. Perry married Anna Able, who was born in the old General Harrison house in South Bend, Ind., December 16, 1825, and with her he went to housekeeping in Michigan, remaining there until removing to Muscatine, Iowa, in 1840.

In Iowa Mr. Perry took up land and worked at his trade, and near Muscatine his son, Vale N., was born November 21, 1840. His farm was located in a thinly settled district, and the west was practically an unknown country, yet in some way William T. Perry learned of its many ad- vantages and once having heard he determined, with the courage of his fighting ancestors, to en- compass the distance between Iowa and Oregon. He started out with his little family and six horses, but when he got as far as the Green

river he traded his wagon for pack horses and came the rest of the distance on pack horses and mules. Arriving in Oregon City September 26, 1842, his worldly possessions con- sisted of fifty cents in currency, two pack mules and three horses and a few household belongings. The joy of the new arrivals may be imagined, for they had been on the road six months, and had known deprivations and hardships before which today the stoutest heart would quail. However, it is not known that the forty-five people in the train had any serious trouble with the Indians, and all were in fairly good health after their long journey. In the fall of 1843 Mr. Perry signaled his progressive spirit by erecting the first grist mill constructed in the state of Oregon, opposite Oregon City. Soon afterward he moved to a donation claim of six hundred and forty acres on the Clatsop plains, Clatsop county, and lived there until the fall of 1851. Removing then to another section adjoining what is now Roseburg, Douglas county, the Dave Bushey place, he erected the first grist mill in Roseburg, and the second in Douglas county.

In the fall of 1858 Mr. Perry came to Coos county and bought a claim on the Coquille river, where Norway is now located, and lived there until his death, at the age of seventy-two years. He was a prominent politician, and had much to do with framing the laws which now govern the state. In Douglas county he was a member of the first board of commissioners, and in Coos county he served four years as county assessor. A Democrat all his life, he did much to advance the interests of his party during its early forma- tion in the state, and in his political service he set an example of dignity and fearless regard for principle which made his name honored and re- spected. During the Rogue River Indian war he was appointed quartermaster at Roseburg, and later was appointed receiver of stock. Besides Vale N., the oldest in the family, the other chil- dren were Mary, the wife of J. Fred Schroeder, of Coquille; Emily, the wife of J. Henry Schroeder, of Arago; Dora C., the wife of August H. Schroeder. of Norway, Ore .; Kate L., the wife of B. Hodson, of Marshfield. Without doubt Mary Perry, born in Oregon in 1843, is the first white female child born in the state of Oregon.

Crude and lonely was the country in which Vale N. Perry advanced to consciousness of the meaning of life and responsibility. As a little fellow he performed such small tasks as bringing water and watching his father's stock, and as he developed strength he assisted with the clearing of the land. After his marriage, September 22, 1867, with Charlotte Jane Smith, a native of Illinois, he assumed the management of the home place, continuing the same until 1870. Fourteen

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PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

months after their marriage his wife died and August 21, 1870, he was united in marriage with Priscilla Dame, who was born in Champlain county, N. Y., October 15, 1845. Soon after his second marriage Mr. Perry moved to his father's place near Norway, and from there came to his prescut home in Coquille in 1883. June 26, 1902, Mrs. Perry died, after a short illness, and was buried in the little cemetery at Norway. She left four daughters, all of whom are married and have comfortable homes of their own. Myrtle M., the oldest, is the wife of George Tillottson, of Marshfield; Maud is the wife of S. B. Mor- rison, of Cape Mears, Ore .; Bertha is the wife of E. Wyant, of Bandon; and Grace is the wife of Daniel B. Kountz, of Marshfield.

Like his father, Mr. Perry has taken an active interest in local and state politics, and he served as deputy assessor under his father. He is par- ticularly prominent in fraternal circles, being made a Mason in Blanco Lodge No. 48 in 1870. A charter member of Chadwick Lodge No. 68, A. F. & A. M., he was later demitted to Myrtle Lodge No. 78, A. F. & A. M. as a charter mem- ber; and Arago Chapter No. 22 R. A. M. He was also a charter member of Bandon Lodge No. 133, I. O. O. F .; and Encampment No. 25 of Coquille. He has held all of the chairs in the Masonic and Odd Fellows' lodges, and has been a stanch supporter of fraternal organizations in general. He is a cautious and painstaking man, and has led an exemplary life, training his daughters in ways of womanliness and useful- ness, and giving them as good educations as his locality permitted.

LORENZO D. CARLE. The discovery of gold in Alaska caused a great influx of pros- pectors to that country ; some lost everything they started with, many died from hardships and privations and a comparatively small per cent of gold-seekers realized their fondest hopes and made fortunes. Among the latter class, however, is Lorenzo D. Carle, who made two successful trips to the Klondike, and is now a retired citizen of Roseburg, Ore. Mr. Carle is a native of Marshall county, Ind., and was born March 9, 1849. He is a son of Rev. J. M. and Mercy (Marsters) Carle, both of whom are now deceased.

Rev. J. M. Carle was a Virginian by birth and when grown to manhood, went to Indiana and became a minister of the Methodist Epis- copal Church. This was the beginning of his long and faithful service as a minister of the gospel, which covered a period of fourteen years. After laboring for a time in Indiana, he followed preaching the gospel in Iowa, and then in Illinois. After the war, he was

located for some time in Iron county, Mo., and in 1883 he was sent to Roseburg, Ore., in charge of a pastorate, and he was the chosen instrument for bringing many into member- ship of the M. E. Church. After his retire- ment from the ministry, he returned to Mis- souri, and it was there that his death took place, March 24, 1901, at the advanced age of eighty-three years and eleven months. His wife was born in Indiana, the daughter of Rev. Stephen Marsters, and a sister of Dr. S. S. Marsters. Her father was a noted divine of the Methodist faith and passed to his final rest in Illinois. Mrs. Carle died in Roseburg, Ore., January 21, 1897, at the age of seventy- nine years. Five children were born to this esteemed couple. They are as follows: Mrs. Louisa Wright, who died some years ago in Illinois ; Lovisa, wife of ex-Judge Phillips, a wealthy and influential citizen of Ironton, Mo .; Lorenzo D .; Mrs. Loudisa Mitchell, whose death took place in Roseburg; and Lusina, now Mrs. J. W. Huff, of Seattle, Wash.

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Portrait and biographical record of western Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present.., Part 73

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago, pub Publication date: 1904 Publisher: Chicago, Chapman publishing company Number of Pages: 1064

Author: Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman publishing company
Number of Pages: 1064