The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Part 157

Author: Gaston, Joseph, 1833-
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago, The S.J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1072

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tor from Baker and Malheur counties. A peculiar coincidence was that on the latter occasion he carried Malheur county by 113 votes, being by the same majority which he secured when elected representative. He considers the number thirteen "lucky," as in 1912 he received a plurality in the same county of two hundrd and thirteen votes over all other candidates for delegates to the national democratic convention. Before the close of his term of office as state sen- ator in 1898, he became democratic candi- date for governor of the state, and although Oregon had a very large republican major- ity the nominee of that party only defeated him by a small plurality.

Judge King has always been identified with the progressive political movements in his state, and so far as its practical effect is concerned is the father in this country of the Initiative and Referendum, for he was the first to introduce in any substantial form into any legislative body in the United States this system of law making, which he did by presenting in the Oregon senate a consti- tutional amendment to that effect (See Or. Sen. Jr. 1895, p. 155; 1897, p. 154). It had previously been discussed and urged only in its "obligatory form," which meant the abol- ishing of all legislative bodies and the sub- stitution of direct vote on all legislative mat- ters, but the form presented by him was the "optional" form now in use in Oregon and other states. The proposed amendments failed to pass, but one of similar import was subsequently adopted and is now part of the fundamental law of Oregon. Since that time many other states have adopted "the Oregon system."

At the session of 1897 Judge King, then senator, also introduced and procured the adoption by the senate of a forcible resolu- tion calling upon congress to recognize the independence of Cuba and if necessary, to intervene in behalf of the Cuban cause (See Sen. Jr. 1897, p. 31) ; and the following year congress in effect pursued the course rec- ommended in this memorial.

After the campaign of 1898 Judge King devoted himself exclusively to the practice of his profession and rapidly extended his reputation as a lawyer of prominence throughout the states of Oregon, Idaho and Washington, and on February 23, 1907, he was appointed a commissioner of the su- preme court of Oregon. Two years later he became an associate justice of that court, his term of office ending January 1, 1911. He was nominated by his party for elec- tion to the office and was indorsed by the State Bar Association and the members of the profession at large, but the preponder- ance of the republican vote elected the can- didate of that party. Upon his retirement from the supreme bench Judge King opened a law office with his old-time partner, Mr. Saxton of Baker, at 1517-1523 Yeon Build- ing, Portland, Oregon.

While on the supreme bench Judge King wrote many important decisions. His opin- ions as a whole are regarded by all as mod- els of clear statement and sound reasoning.

Willchung

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His opinion in the case of Hough v. Porter, 51 Or., 318, which passed upon many new and weighty questions of water rights, is considered by far the most comprehensive opinion ever written upon the subject. It covers one hundred and forty-six pages of the official Oregon reports and determined more than eighty legal points; it is in fact a book on water rights, and is now used as a text on that subject at the Ann Arbor (Michigan) law school. Other of his opin- ions of note are the cases of Straw v. Har- ris, 54 Or., 424, and McMinnville v. How- enstein, 56 Or., 451, involving constitu- tional questions arising under the initiative system of law making. These are the first, and regarded as the leading cases bearing upon the questions there involved.

A case, however, of national importance is Kiernan v. Portland, 54 Or., 466, in which Judge King wrote the opinion upholding the constitutionality of the Initiative and Ref- erendum, which was later sustained by the United States Supreme Court (223 U. S., 151).

He was a delegate to the democratic na- tional convention at Baltimore in 1912, there elected national committeeman for Oregon, and then selected by Governor Woodrow Wil- son, the presidential candidate, as one of the fourteen members of the executive com- mittee to conduct his campaign for the presi- dency. Pursuant thereto his headquarters were established at Chicago, where he had charge as chairman of the division for Pa- cific and intermountain states and of the special bureau for the supplying of litera- ture to all the states in the western juris- diction of the national committee.

Judge King is a thirty-second degree Ma- son, an Elk, a Knight of Pythias, a member of the Royal Arcanum and of the Woodmen of the World, and is an attendant of the Unitarian church. He was married December 6, 1892, to Lizzie Myrtle, daughter of John M. and Margaret (Marshall) King (of no relation), of Danville, Indiana; and has one son, Eldon P., and one daughter, Myrtle Marion.

MACK C. ADAMS is engaged in general agricultural pursuits eight miles west of Eu- gene on the Lorane road, where he has re- sided for more than eleven years. He was born in Pennsylvania in 1864 and is a son of John and Margaret Adams, who were like- wise natives of Pennsylvania. The family of Mr. and Mrs. John Adams numbered eight, as follows: Sarah, who is deceased; Lydia, who is living with her father in Lane county; Charles, a resident of Seattle, Wash- ington; Ella, the wife of Frank Percella, of Lane county; Mack C., our subject; Marion, who is deceased; Jennie, the wife of John Penny, of Indiana; and Albert, who is teach- ing school in the vicinity of Milwaukee, Wis- consin.

Mack C. Adams was reared at home and educated in the common schools. At the age of twenty-five he was married and leaving the parental roof he started out to make his own way in the world. He first engaged in log-

ging but later he rented some land which he cultivated in connection with his other work, continuing to follow these two occupations during the succeeding eleven years. In 1900 he came to Lane county, settling at Eugene, and six months later he purchased two hun- dred and seventy-four acres of land for his father, who came out the next fall and placed one hundred acres of this tract under cultivation. They have ever since been asso- ciated in the operation of this ranch, their principal crops being wheat and oats, while they make a specialty of breeding and raising percheron horses, and are meeting with very good success in their business.

In 1889, Mr. Adams was united in mar- riage to Miss Cora Etta Fellows, a native of Wisconsin and a daughter of Victor and Alyda (Mosher) Fellows, the father a na- tive of New York and the mother of Wiscon- sin. Eleven children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Adams: George, who was born in 1891, assisting his father on the ranch; Frank, born in 1892, also at home; Harold, whose birth occurred in 1894; Roy, who was born in 1896; Bruiton, born in 1897; Gladys, born in 1898; Ione, who was born in 1899; James, born in 1900; Earl, whose birth oc- curred in 1903; Teddie, whose natal day was in 1905; and Jessie, who was born in 1909.

Ever since granted the right of franchise Mr. Adams has voted the republican ticket, but he has never held any public office. He is energetically applying himself to the oper- ation of his ranch, and his efforts in this di- rection are rewarded with success.

LEE BARKER. leading

citizen of Drain, Oregon, actively interested in its political, commercial and social expansion, who at the same time succeeds in promoting his own large poultry and dairy interests, is Lee Barker, who has been a resident of Douglas county all his life and who is repre- sentative of the best qualities of western American citizenship. He was born in Douglas county, January 24, 1868, and is a son of Absalom Y. and Emaline (Duncan) Barker, the former a native of Illinois and the latter of Indiana. The father removed from his native state to Missouri with his parents when he was a child and remained there until 1859. In that year he crossed the plains on horseback, driving a herd of cattle, to Oregon. The mother of our subject came- to this state with her father, John Riley Duncan, making the journey some time previous to 1859. Her grandfather was among the earliest settlers on Clover creek, Douglas county. Absalom Barker upon his arrival in Oregon took up a homestead claim eleven miles northeast of Roseburg on Oak creek and lived upon this property until 1907. He was successful as an agriculturist and brought his land to a high state of devel- opment before his retirement. He later moved to the city of Roseburg, where his wife died in October, 1910, and where he has since resided, making his home with his chil- dren. At the time he abandoned agriculture he was the owner of six or seven hundred acres of land. all improved and developed

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along modern lines, and was one of the repre- sentative farmers in his district.

Lee Barker was reared at home and ac- quired his education in the Roseburg city schools. He then took a post-graduate course and at twenty years of age had fitted him- self for teaching. He was successful in this line of occupation for four years but later abandoned it in order to take up farming. He rented land near Roseburg and after sev- eral years was able to buy three hundred and forty acres of land in the vicinity of Drain, where he cultivated the soil along the most approved lines for fifteen years, follow- ing general farming and specializing in the dairy and poultry business. In the fall of 1909 he gave up the operation of his farm and removed to Drain in order to concentrate his attention upon his rapidly developing business interests. He is now the owner of the largest poultry and dairy business in the city.

On December 15, 1892, Mr. Barker was united in marriage to Miss Minnie Apple- gate, a daughter of Daniel W. and Virginia (Estes) Applegate, and a granddaughter of Jesse Applegate. To Mr. and Mrs. Barker have been born six children, five of whom are living: Ula B., the wife of E. T. Burdett, of Oregon; and Earl, Ivan, Darrel and Jesse, all of whom are still with their parents. In his political views Mr. Barker is democratic and is now a member of the school board and do- ing efficient work in that position. He has sought success in business fields and has won prosperity by methods of commercial honor and integrity. The city of Drain is the richer by his activities, not only in business resources but in the quality and standard of its citizenship.

JOHN J. LAMB came to Coos county in 1873 and since that time has been an import- ant factor in many phases of its development. He has been identified with agricultural pur- suits, clearing and cultivating two fine farms, and since taking up his residence in Coquille has become connected with so many of its most important and representative business enterprises that he is regarded as one of the individual forces in local progress and upbuilding. He was born in Lauderdale county, Alabama, December 10, 1843, a son of John and Ann (Houston) Lamb, the former a native of Alabama and the latter of North Carolina. The father was an im- portant planter in Lauderdale county and afterward followed the same line of occupa- tion in Arkansas, where he cultivated and improved two hundred acres of land, upon which he died in 1895, having survived his wife since 1871. In their family were six children: James H., a ranchman of Coquille; Mary, deceased; John J., of this review; David, of Lorado, Arkansas; Elizabeth, who died in infancy; and Robert M., who passed away at the age of twenty-six years.

John J. Lamb was educated in the district schools of Lauderdale county and spent his childhood upon his father's plantation in Alabama. When he was ten years of age his father removed to Arkansas, and there Mr.

Lamb remained until the outbreak of the Civil war, when he enlisted in the Confed- erate army, being at that time seventeen years old. He saw four years of active service and participated in many of the most important engagements. In the battle of Shiloh he was wounded three times and was in the thick of the conflict at Perryville, Ken- tucky, in which engagement he was also shot. He was present at the battle of Mur- freesboro and was wounded in the left leg so seriously that in 1882 the limb was am- putated.

After his discharge Mr. Lamb returned to his home in Arkansas and farmed in asso- ciation with his father until his marriage. He then purchased land of his own, which he sold after a few years and came to Oregon, locating in Coos county in April, 1873. Here he bought a ranch on Rink creek, near Coquille, which he sold after nine years in order to purchase land near Fish Trap creek. Of his first farm he cleared sixty acres and of his second one hundred acres, felling the heavy timber and digging out the stumps. In this way he did what was probably the hardest work of his life since in those times the farmers of the section often spent many years in wresting their land from the wilder- ness. He still owns the last farm which he purchased, a fine tract of land of one hundred and forty-two acres, but he leaves the active work of the fields to others. With the excep- tion of eight years during which he served as county clerk he maintained a continuous residence upon this ranch until he moved to Coquille, where he purchased a hardware store which he operated for six years. At the end of that time he sold out his interests to his son and retired from business life. He erected a beautiful and pleasant home near the center of town and in this he now re- sides. He is one of the representative citi- zens of Coquille and his organizing and con- structive skill have been factors in the up- building of the city. He aided in the or- ganization of what is now the First National Bank and was its president for three years. He was one of the founders of the Farmers & Merchants Bank of Coquille and is still a stockholder. In association with others he built the Boxton Hotel. He helped organize the Coquille Creamery and is identified with the management of various other important local enterprises.

On September 9, 1866, Mr. Lamb was united in marriage to Miss Mary Ann Lind- ley, a native of Tennessee and a daughter of John and Sylvia (Billington) Lindley, the former a native of North Carolina and the latter of Tennessee. Mrs. Lamb had one brother, Hugh Lawson Lindley, who has passed away. Her father is also deceased, having died in February, 1873, but her mother is still living and makes her home with the subject of this review. To Mr. and Mrs. Lamb were born seven children. Ada E. is the wife of Rev. W. B. Smith, pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, at Myrtle Point, Oregon, and they have four children. John B. died at the age of three years. Leona A. is the wife of J. M. Byers,

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of Chula Vista, California, and they have seven children. James A., a hardware mer- chant of Coquille, Oregon, is married and has one child. May Marvin is the wife of W. H. Lyons, a hardware merchant of Coquille, and they have two children. Elizabeth passed away at the age of seventeen months. Florence Irene, who completes the family, is the wife of W. F. Jones, of the firm of Tyrres & Jones at Coquille.

Mr. Lamb gives his allegiance to the democratic party and is active and promi- nent in local public affairs. For eight years he held the office of county clerk, having been elected for the first time in July, 1884. He moved to Empire, which was then the county seat, and served in this capacity for four terms. For one term he acted as as- sessor and for two terms served on the city council. He was school director for a num- ber of years and in this capacity aided the cause of education. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and prominent in the affairs of the Masonic order and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He is living retired in Coquille as one of the fore- most citizens of his section. He has in- fluenced the welfare of this part of Coos county in an agricultural, business and political way, gaining success in the manage- ment of his various enterprises by steadily adhering to methods, which neither sought nor required disguise.

HAZEN D. JOHNSON is engaged in farm- ing, residing on his property, which is lo- cated four and one-half miles northeast of Florence, on the north fork of the Siuslaw river. He was born in Nebraska in 1878. His paternal grandfather was a native of Vermont and his maternal grandparent was one of the early pioneers of Michigan. He is a son of Maurice D. and Nellie M. (Hazen) Johnson, the former a native of Wisconsin and the latter of Michigan. To them nine children were born: Hazen D., of this review; Laura, the wife of Richard Coryell, of Maple- ton, Oregon, and the mother of two children; May, who married Charles Lewis, of Crow, Oregon, and has three children; Jay, who re- sides with his father at Florence; Floss, who became the wife of Claire Hinkson, of Flor- ence, and has one child, Clarice; Beryl, who is attending the high school at Florence; Eunice, also a pupil in the public schools of Florence; Fay, attending the public schools of Florence; and Ann, who died in infancy.

Hazen D. Johnson was reared at home and educated in the public schools of the district in which he lived. He started to take up life's activities at the age of twenty-one. During his early life he was engaged with his father in logging and upon attaining his majority he purchased a ranch of sixty acres, upon which he lived for seven years. He then sold this property and invested in sixty acres and for three years gave his attention to the improvement of this tract, which he eventually disposed of at a handsome profit and removed to Florence in May, 1911, where he engaged in draying and teaming for a time. In January, following, he purchased

fifty-two acres of land on the north fork of the Siuslaw river, where he has established his home and is now engaged in dairying, operating on a large scale.

Mr. Johnson was married to Miss Fannie May Layne, on the 6th of July, 1901, at Eugene, this state. Mrs. Johnson is a daugh- ter of George and Rachel (Mohler) Layne, the former a native of Iowa and the latter of Pennsylvania. After their marriage they settled in Osborne, Kansas, and in 1888 drove thence across the country to Eugene, Oregon. Mrs. Johnson, their eldest child, crossed the plains with her parents and two brothers, Harry and Charles in 1883. The former re- sides with his parents at Crow, Oregon, but the latter is now deceased, as is a sister, Minnie. The family left Osborne, Kansas, on the 1st of August, with a large mule team, and reached Eugene on the 1st of October. They endured many hardships and privations, often going without water and food when such were needed and at one time they had nothing but a little flour to feed their team, but the "old fellows," lov- ingly called Jack and Jim by the children, ate the meal provided, with evident relish and finally the end of the journey was reached in safety. They saw many Indians but they were peaceable and occasioned the travelers no trouble. Water was very scarce along the way and the family had to pay ex- horbitant prices to obtain it. At different times many coyotes were seen to follow the wagon. The constant companion of the chil- dren on the trip was old Shep, the faithful dog, who was well taken care of to the end of her days. On reaching Eugene in October, 1883, Mr. Layne engaged in the draying busi- ness, which he followed until the next May. He then sold his team and went to Kansas, intending to engage in farming, but on ar- riving there he became disgusted with the hot winds, with cyclones and other unpleas- ant features of the district, and again started for Oregon, this time by train. Once more reaching this state he decided to take up a homestead, so made his way to the Siuslaw river and located on a claim of one hundred and sixty acres. Only three other settlers had taken up their abode in the dis- trict then and there were many difficulties and privations to be borne incident to life on the frontier. Upon reaching the mountains the family found only a sled road and pack trail to a point within four miles of their homestead. Leaving their provisions there they built a road that they might continue on their way to their new home. The farm was near the old Mound postoffice, which has long since been discontinued, and for fifteen years Mr. Layne served as postmaster there. Upon his claim he reared his family, giving them the best educational advantages pos- sible. He obtained supplies but often found it necessary to carry such on his back for a distance of twenty miles. Soon, however, other settlers followed, among them Maurice Johnson, the father of Hazen D. Johnson, who took up a homestead near by. In time a school was organized and a log schoolhouse was built which is still standing. The chil-

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dren of both families attended there and it was during their schooldays that there sprung up the attachment which eventually resulted in the marriage of Hazen Johnson and Fannie Layne at Engene, Oregon, on the 16th of July. 1900. To them three chil- dren have been born: Beulah Christine, born June 3. 1902. who is attending school; Or- ville, who was born October 25, 1905, and is also attending school; and Lovell, born Sep- tember 10, 1910.

Mr. Johnson politically is an adherent of the socialist party. He has served as justice of the peace in Lane county and for three years was a member of the school board of the district in which he lives. Mrs. Johnson was also one of the school directors during one of the years that her husband served. She is a member of the Daughters of Re-

bekalı. Fraternally Mr. Johnson is con- nected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and is also a member of the Modern Woodmen of America. His home is located four and one-half miles northeast of Flor- ence on the north fork of the Siuslaw river. Mr. Johnson is one of the well known and successful agriculturists of this part of the state. His reputation throughout this county is that of a man of high ideals of business and social life. He has always been known as an enthusiastic and public-spirited citizen, identifying himself with every measure of a public character, having for its object the improvement of the people.

JAMES I. WILLIAMS is a well known and prominent representative of agricultural in- terests in Yamhill county. His home is about a mile north of the city of Yamhill and in addition to the cultivation of cereals best adapted to soil and climate he gives considerable attention to the cultivation of strawberries and other fruits. He is a native of Tennessee, born November 24, 1868, his parents being Osborn Z. and Sarah Frances (Lundy) Williams. The Williams family has long been represented in Tennessee. where the great-grandparents settled in pioneer times. The grandfather, the Rev. Josiah Williams, was reared in that state, as was his wife. He was a minister of the Christian church and it is said that he married more couples than any one minister of his time and that there was never a divorce among any of them, so far as is known. His life was one of marked usefulness in the moral progress of the communities in which he lived. He died at the age of sixty-eight years and was long survived by his wife, who reached the remarkable old age of ninety-four years. In their family were eight children: John, who is living in Jackson county, Tennessee; Mrs. Lucy Taylor, who lives at Hickory Valley, Tennessee; Harold. of Lebanon, Tennessee; Mrs. Caroline Golden, whose home is in White county, Tennessee; Osborn Z .; and Mary, Elizabeth and Hanna. all deceased.

The son Osborn Z. Williams became the father of James I. Williams. of this review. He was born in White county, Tennessee, December 17, 1829, and after arriving at years of maturity married Sarah Frances

Lundy, whose birth occurred in the same county, February 1, 1845. Her parents, Daniel and Elizabeth (Wisdom) Lundy, were also natives of White county, her mother having been born there, on the 9th of April, 1825. The latter was a representative of the Wisdom family and her father, the great- grandfather of James I. Williams, was a na- tive of England, as was the great-grand- father of Mr. Williams in the Lundy line. They came to America at the ages of fifteen and ten years respectively and were passen- gers on a sailing vessel which bore the name of the first ship that brought its cargo of Puritan ancestors to Plymoutlı, Massa- chusetts-the Mayflower. Bothı settled in Virginia and afterward became residents of Tennessee. The great-grandfather Lundy studied medicine under Dr. Franklin and afterward went to France, where he pur- sued a post-graduate course, remaining in that country for two years. Before his re- turn to America he wedded Mary Pickerel, of that country, and her sister also returned with them to Virginia when Dr. Lundy once more came to the new world. Dr. and Mrs. Lundy became the parents of Daniel Lundy, the grandfather of our subject, and had also the following children: Mrs. Martha Chris- tina Scott, of Tennessee, deceased; Mrs. Polly Bryant and Mrs. Elizabeth Brown, both of Texas; Mrs. Sarah Scroggin, living in Kentucky; Celia, deceased; and Mrs. Rhodie Howard, of Arkansas.

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The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Part 157

Author: Gaston, Joseph, 1833- Publication date: 1912 Publisher: Chicago, The S.J. Clarke publishing company Number of Pages: 1072

Author: Gaston, Joseph, 1833-
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago, The S.J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1072