An illustrated history of Skagit and Snohomish Counties; their people, their commerce and their resources, with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington, Part 115

Author: Inter-state Publishing Company (Chicago, Ill.)
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1172

USA > Washington > Skagit County > An illustrated history of Skagit and Snohomish Counties; their people, their commerce and their resources, with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington > Part 115
USA > Washington > Snohomish County > An illustrated history of Skagit and Snohomish Counties; their people, their commerce and their resources, with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington > Part 115

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MELVILLE CURTIS

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY

ASTOR, LENOX TILDEN SOUNDSTIONS

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BIOGRAPHICAL

the best blood of the Green Mountain boys. His i of God and whose voice is the law of the universe. mother, Mrs. Rebecca (Wilde) Joiner, was a nat- ive of New York, but her family line extended back to the sturdy Scotch and Irish races.

Born on the farm Judge Joiner spent there the years of his early youth, attending the local school in term time, doing general farm work and withal building up the constitutional vigor and sturdy character which have enabled so many men from the farm to lead their seemingly more favored city brethren in the race. When he left the par- ental roof he did so for the purpose of acquiring a better education. He attended the high school until fitted to enter the teaching profession ; then obtained a certificate and began spending his win- ters as master of the school room. By the time he reached his majority he had fully decided that the law was the profession for him, so commenced reading in the office of William Roe. Later he studied under the direction of J. W. Hoag in his native town, where he received most of his pre- liminary training for admission to the bar. Upon gaining the right to practice, he formed a partner- ship with A. C. Brink, at Wolcott, which partner- ship he afterward caused to be dissolved that he might join forces with Col. Anson S. Wood, one of the foremost lawyers of central New York, a man of extended experience and noted for his mas- tery of the principles of law. That Judge Joiner was thought worthy of becoming the partner of such a man is evidence of the success he was achieving in the profession of his choice.

Our subject's career in Skagit county began in 1890, when he located in Anacortes. He formed a partnership with W. V. Wells there which lasted for the ensuing five years, during a part of which time Judge Joiner served as prosecuting attorney, having been elected to that office on the Republi- can ticket. His public duties compelled him to spend much of his time at the county seat, so at length, in 1895, he determined to establish his residence there. In 1897 he became the partner of Hon. Henry McBride, who later became gover- nor of the state, and he continued his business con- nections with him until 1900, when he returned to Anacortes. In the fall of that year he was elected on the Republican ticket to the office of superior judge of Skagit and San Juan counties, a fact which proves conclusively that his career in private practice and as a public official had been such as to win him the confidence of the people in his own and adjoining communities. Ilis majority at the polls was a handsome one. In 1904 the electors of Skagit and San Juan counties gave a further token of their confidence in Judge Joiner and their appreciation of his worth by re-electing him to the superior judgeship, and he is discharging the du- ties of that office at present, administering the law in such a way as to conserve, just as far as possi- ble, substantial justice, whose seat is in the bosom

While realizing the truth of the maxim that "the law is a jealous mistress" and devoting him- self to its mastery to the exclusion of most other things, Judge Joiner has always taken time to per- form well his duties as a citizen and to help along whatever seems likely to promote the general weal. An active Republican he has in the past been one of the leaders in the councils of that party, and twice he has represented it with credit as a mein- ber of the state central committee. Active also in the work of the one fraternity to which he be- longs, he is now a past grand in the home lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

In April, 1893, Judge Joiner married Miss Josie M. Curtis, of Anacortes, daughter of the late Dr. A. B. and Mrs. Elmina (Carpenter) Cur- tis, and they are parents of one child, Anna E., born February 17, 1895. The family are members of the Presbyterian church.

RIENZI EUGENE WHITNEY was among the small group of men who first tried the experi- ment of diking Skagit county land against the encroachment of salt water, thus teaching the world the value for agricultural purposes of the rich lowlands along the shores of Puget sound. These leaders demonstrated the accuracy of their idea on the. Swinomish flats, and the demonstra- tion has resulted in the reclamation of thousands of acres of the richest soil in the world. Skagit county, and the Puget sound country in general, owes much to R. E. Whitney for teaching the val- ue of tide land flats for the purpose of agriculture. Mr. Whitney was born in Abington, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, June 5, 1840. At an carly age he was left an orphan and went to live with an uncle, Alvinza Gardner, a rugged and extra- ordinary character. an active abolitionist, a ten- perance and moral reformer and a man of pro- nounced convictions. Contact with such a charac- ter undoubtedly did much to mold the bent of the mind of the youth ; at any rate, Mr. Whitney in after years exhibited many of the traits of charac- ter possessed by his uncle and foster father. The boy obtained his education when not doing chores at home; working on Saturdays and observing the Sabbath. He managed to pass a few terms at an academy. but a college education was denied him. A characteristic of his carly youth was an carnest and absorbing desire for knowledge, and to that end young Whitney employed toward an educa- tion many moments which remain barren in the lives of most American youths of the present day. While in attendance upon school young Whitney was an ardent scholar and was invariably at the head of his classes. During his school days he was converted and embraced the Baptist faith, re- maining to the end of his long and active carcer

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a staunch adherent and exponent of the principles of that denominational belief. Endurance, activity and courage Mr. Whitney inherited from his par- ents, but at one time in his childhood he was phy- sically frail and delicate. Once he was given up to die and even a shroud for his interment was provided. Upon his recovery he commenced a systematic course of physical training, muscular development and lung exercise which counteract- ed the effect of disease. Dieting, work on the farm and outdoor occupation gave him the strength and endurance which were so valuable in later years. During the Civil War Mr. Whitney twice enlisted in the service of the Union, once in the emergency service to repel the rebel invasion of his native state, and again in the signal service. Much of his duty in the latter corps was per- formed at Newbern, North Carolina, where he held a position of great trust and danger during the closing days of the struggle.

While the nephew was away from home dur- ing the war, his uncle died, and the young man took up the management of the farm, marrying Miss R. Augusta Wall. He continued to farm the property for some years, but, tiring of the climate and the poor quality of the soil as com- pared with other sections of the country, he went to Barton County, Missouri, and engaged success- fully in farming for several years. During this period he became acquainted with a lawyer named Avery, who was to change the entire course of Mr. Whitney's life and direct him to his later operations in the development of Skagit county. With Mr. Avery he formed a plan to enter into partnership in the banking business at Olympia, Washington. Mr. Avery preceded Mr. Whitney. The latter journeyed via San Francisco and on the way up from that city by boat was bereaved by the loss of his only daughter, who died of small- pox. Another blow fell upon Mr. Whitney on his arrival at Olympia. This was news that owing to the failure of the Northern Pacific railway to com- plete its line to the capital city it was not deemed wise to embark in the banking venture at that point. Just at this juncture Mr. Whitney heard of the tide lands of the Swinomish and visited this country. In May of 1872 he took up a claim on Indian slough near the site of the present village of Padilla, and with his wife commenced life in a shack erected on the undiked marsh land. Two cousins, E. A. Sisson and A. G. Tillinghast joined them in December of that year. A few small bits of tide land had been diked at this time, but it remained for Mr. Whitney and his cousins to in- augurate diking on a large scale. They proposed to enclose five hundred acres of tide lands in dike at a time when the project was but experiment and practical experience was unobtainable. The Puget sound country knows the result of that experiment on five hundred acres of Swinomish flat tide lands. It

has been said that those three men were "the mud- sills of the foundation for the builders of this won- derful country," for their failures pointed out mis- takes to those who came after, and their successes were patterns for the later reclamation work.

In 1874 Mr. Whitney was elected to the terri- torial legislature and served in that body most ac- ceptably to his constituents, earning a reputation for hard work, fearlessness and incorruptibility in support of, or antagonism to, proposed measures. Two years later, Mrs. Whitney's health becoming undermined by consumption, Mr. Whitney took her and their two children to the Atlantic coast and consulted medical aid in the chief centers of the East, also visiting the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia. On the advice of physicians Mr. Whitney removed his family to California and settled in Colton, building the first house in that town. Here Mrs. Whitney and her youngest child died and were buried. He very soon returned to Puget sound and bought out his partner-cousins, a little later diking two hundred and fifty acres in addition to the original holdings of the partner- ship on Indian slough and connecting the two prop- erties by private roadway and drawbridge three hundred feet in length. In 1888 Mr

Whitney purchased and placed under dike what is known as Whitney's island, a tract of land about seven hundred acres in extent. The large sloughs required expensive dams and the

operation was one of great risk, but the work was accomplished by Mr. Whitney, and in 1889 he had one thousand acres in

grass and grain. When the railroad was built Mr. Whitney sold his old ranch, but retained the new. About this time he removed his family to their present Fidalgo island place anl turned much of his attention to his heavy investments in Ana- cortes real estate. In 1879 Mr. Whitney married Miss Kate Bradley, who still survives. Her father was V. L. Bradley. The family was the second white family at Stanwood, Snohomish flats, going there in 1870. Mr. Bradley died there in 1871. Mrs. Whitney was born in Missouri in 1855 and was seven years old when her father came to Wash- ington territory, settling on Whidby island, and living there eight years. Mr. Whitney met death in an accident in August of 1891. Of Mr. Whitney, his character and services to the public, the La Conner Mail of August 6, 1891, speaks as follows:

"One of the saddest events the Mail has been called upon to record is the accident by which R. E. Whitney, one of the oldest settlers on the Swin- omish flats, was called to his eternal reward. On Wednesday he was in town. He returned to his home in Anacortes after attending to some busi- ness in La Conner, planning new enterprises, etc. Friday morning, some of his family desiring to visit Bayview, he started with them. When but a short distance from the house, he was thrown

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BIOGRAPHICAL

violently from the vehicle to the ground, receiving fatal injuries, which before midnight carried him to that bourne whence no traveler returns. The remains were interred Sunday in the Anacortes cemetery, an immense concourse being present. Members of the Anacortes city council attended in a body, he being an honored member. He leaves a wife and seven children, three being dead. He was a kind and indulgent husband and father, and always anxious for all around him to enjoy with him every musical, social and literary treat that could be provided. He was never idle or at rest unless asleep, and spent few hours in sleep; was always fearless to speak or do what he thought right, and was positive in his convictions. Every- thing he undertook was on so large a scale that it commanded public notice and was of public bene- fit. His payroll was always large and many hun- dreds of men have worked for him, some of whom, now wealthy, got their first start in this county from wages earned of him. ' He had re- cently been giving his energy, mind and heart to the upbuilding of a great city at Anacortes, in whose future he had unbounded faith. He will be sorely missed int business circles, public life, the home, the Sunday school and social life generally."

JACOB W. LOWMAN, the popular police justice and justice of the peace of Anacortes, is a native of West Virginia, born in Franklin, May 14, 1837, the son of David Lowman. The father, a blacksmith by trade, and German by descent, was born in Rockingham County, Virginia, in 1808. He died in Indiana in 1888. Catherine (Gum) Lowman, the maternal ancestor, was born in the same state the same year, and died August 16, 1888. After completing his education in the schools of Virginia and Indiana, Jacob W. Lowman en- tered his father's shop in the latter state, became thoroughly familiar with all the details of the bus- iness, and with his father operated a farm for a number of years. He enlisted in the Twentieth Indiana Infantry when the war broke out, but was taken ill the following day, and was unable to go with his company. When he recovered from this sickness, he again engaged in farming, this time operating a place for himself. He opened a mercantile house in Buckcreek, Indiana, in 18644, and remained in this business till 1821, when he went on the road as a commercial traveller.

He moved to Chicago where he witnessed the terrible fire which destroyed that city. After- wards he went to Canton, Illinois, where he re- mained five years, then to Boone, Iowa, his home until 1882, when he returned to Indiana and pur- chased his father-in-law's old home farm. In 1885 he retired from the road and for seven ycars de- voted his entire attention to farming. He sold his place in 1892, came to Anacortes, started a hoop

factory and sold out in six months. During the financial depression of the 'nineties he engaged in various pursuits, dealing in real estate to some extent. He was elected by the Republican party to the office of justice of the peace in 1894 and has succeeded himself at each election since. He has held this positon of trust, during his lifetime, for twenty-seven years, a most unusual record. Other honors, unsought, have come to him. He has been a member of the city council three years, was chosen mayor of Anacortes in 1897, was made city treasurer in 1898, and three times has been chosen his own successor to that office. He always has discharged his manifold duties with fidelity, and has contributed in many ways to the pros- perity of the community.

Mr. Lowman was married in Indiana in 1862, to Miss Nancy A. Shigley, daughter of Joseph and Mary ( Mahin) Shigley. Her father was a Virginian, born near Harper's Ferry in 1799, who came to Ohio at an early date, settling in 1855 in Indiana, where he died, having spent his entire life in agricultural pursuits. He was a Ger- man. Her mother was born in Kentucky in 1802, was married in Ohio, and died in Nebraska at the advanced age of ninety-one. Mrs. Lowman was born in Green County, Ohio, October 8, 1839. She received her education in the schools of her native state and in those of Indiana, fitted herself for teaching and entered that profession at the age of seventeen. For five years she was one of the most successful teachers of Indiana. Mr. and Mrs. Low- man have had three children as follows: William A., born in Indiana, the well-known proprietor of the White Cress Cannery at Anacortes; Effie L., born in Indiana, the wife of A. M. Dilling, a car- penter and contractor in Anacortes: James G., born in Indiana, now the popular superintendent of schools of Skagit county, residing at Fredonia. Mr. Lowman is a member of the Odd Fellows. His property holdings include one hundred and twenty acres of timber land, his house and two lots in town, and some real estate which he rents. He is an active, intelligent, elderly gentleman, whose long years of public life have given him a wide circle of admiring friends.

WILLIAM V. WELLS. In the professional circles of Anacortes no one occupies a more en- viable position than William V. Wells, Attorney at Law. For sixteen years he has been identified with the practice of the law in the courts of Skag- it county and elsewhere and during this period has been exceptionally successful in the various depart- ments of his profession. Mr. Wells is a native of the state of New York, the year of his birth being 1866, and Mannsville, Jefferson county, the place of his nativity. He is the son of John and Lozina (Lowry) Wells, natives also of the Empire state.

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The elder Wells was of English, Irish and Scotch extraction and was a successful contractor and builder in his native state till the time of his deatlı in 1892. The mother, Lozina Wells, was born in 1824 and is now living in the old New York home. William V. Wells spent the first twenty years of his life in New York state. There he received his early education in the common schools and in later years had the benefits of a higher course of study in the seminary at Lima. After finishing his stud- ies in the New York schools he decided to seek a field of endeavor in the West and in 1886 found his way to Helena, Montana, where for a year or more he was employed in the mines of that sec- tion. His natural inclination, however, was to- wards a professional career, and he soon tired of the life of the miner. From Helena he went to Jamestown, North Dakota, for the purpose of re- suming his studies and it was there he began prep- aration for the practice of the law. After three years of study in the Jamestown schools and in the law office of Jesse A. Frye, who was at that time a practitioner of Jamestown, North Dakota, and is at present United States district attorney for the state of Washington, he was admitted to the bar in 1889. In February, 1890, he came to Anacortes and formed a law partnership with Judge George A. Joiner, the arrangement contin- uing in effect until Mr. Joiner moved to Mount Vernon in 1895. In 1897 Mr. Wells temporarily abandoned the practice of his profession and went to Alaska where he again donned the garb of the miner, took up again the pick and pan and delved for riches in the hidden storehouses of nature. At the end of four years which were spent in the Bonanza creek mining region, and during which he was very successful in his operations, he again became a citizen of Anacortes. While on a visit to Anacortes from Dawson, Alaska, in 1899, a second partnership was formed with Judge Joiner, but was eventually dissolved when Mr. Joiner was elected to the bench. After disposing of his Alas- kan property in 1901, Mr. Wells again turned his attention exclusively to his profession, becoming a member of the law firm of Quinby & Wells, whose practice is each year becoming more extensive and Incrative. Although diligently occupied with the manifold cares and responsibilities attaching to his law practice, he finds time for active participation in the affairs of church and state, and to devote to public measures and outside private concerns. He has faith in the future of the city and invested ex- tensively in her real property. He is the owner of several brick blocks in Anacortes.

Mr. Wells was married in Anacortes January 3, 1894, his bride being Miss Daisy McLean, daughter of William and Anna B. (Linn) Mc- Lean, well-known residents of Anacortes. Mr. and Mrs. McLean are natives of Mercer County, Pennsylvania. After leaving Pennsylvania the

McLeans lived in turn in Kansas City, Missouri, and in Leadville, Colorado, coming to Anacortes in 1890. Mrs. Wells was born in Kansas City, Missouri, August 30, 1873. She was educated at Greenville, Pennsylvania, thereafter living with her parents until her marriage. For a time she was one of the most successful teachers in the Anacortes schools. She was possessed of rare strength and sweetness of character and her death with that of her twin boys on the tenth of May, 1897, was the cause of profound sorrow through- out the entire city.

Mr. Wells is a communicant of the Methodist church and to him belongs the honor of having been one of its founders in Anacortes, the organi- zation having been effected in 1890; he has al- ways taken an active part in the work of the church, and is at present serving as trustee and as superintendent of the Sunday school. Of the Odd Fellows he is a past grand. Mr. Wells is a man who "stands four-square to every wind that blows" and all who come in contact with him in business, the church or social life, are impressed with the genuine strength of his character, with the superior qualities of mind and heart that show forth in all his relations with others. His is the success that brings with it the confidence, respect and admiration of all classes.

CHARLES W. BEALE, the first white settler on Fidalgo island. a man whose life has been full of interesting events, was born in Mason County, Virginia, March 2 :. 1831. His father, John W. Beale, a veteran of the War of 1812, was a native of Shenandoah County, Virginia, but eventually moved to Missouri and spent the later years of his life there in the home of his son, dying at the age of ninety-seven. Anna MI .. ( Hereford) Beale, the mother, also a Virginian, was born in 1800, and died during the terrible cholera scourge of 1854. Unusual educational advantages were en- joyed by Charles W. Beale, who after studying at Point Pleasant, Virginia, took a commercial course at Covington, Kentucky. Having completed his college course, he accepted the position of book- keeper with the Covington, Kentucky, Mill Com- pany, remaining one year. The following two years he held a clerkship on an Ohio and Missis- sippi river steamboat, and he was employed later by the B. T. Coleman Company of Louisville, Ken- tucky, as bookkeeper. He returned for a brief visit to Covington in December, 1851, whence, on the 3d of April, 1852, he started for Sacramento, California, in company with a party from Cincin- nati. The trip was made by wagon, on horesback and on foot. Mr. Beale was stricken with moun- tain fever just as the party reached the head of the Ilumbolt river, but though unable to sit up. proceeded on the journey, enduring tortures that

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only those who have had a similar experience can understand. When the destination was reached, his hip bones were almost exposed, from the con- stant jolting of the wagon, while his limbs were paralyzed and his hearing temporarily destroyed by the large quantity of quinine he had taken to break up the fever. It was not till the following spring that he recovered sufficiently to walk alone, but with the indomitable courage so characteristic of the man, he began driving a freight team from Green Valley to Petaluma before he was able to stand to harness his team. Upon recovering fully from huis illness, he went to the placer mines of Sierra county, where he remained five years. He became poisoned by the foul, damp air of the mines, and was again taken sick, so eventually de- cided to go to Yreka, where he engaged in busi- ness. A few months later he sold out, and started on horseback for Salem, Oregon. There he met a friend with whom he had crossed the plains, and was induced by him to go to the Fraser river mining district in British Columbia, a region then believed to contain inexhaustible riches. Having journeyed by boat from Portland to Victoria, Brit- ish Columbia, they crossed to the mouth of the Fraser river, and ascended the river to Hope, in a small vessel and a canoe. There Mr. Beale took up a claim that did not measure up to his expecta- tions, so he bought a boat and ran the same be- tween Hope and Yale until the close of the sea- son. A few days before Christmas that year, he made a trip to the mouth of the Harrison river to obtain supplies from a vessel that was supposed to be in winter quarters there. He found that the vessel had gone, and after camping with Indians over night, he started down the river to Port Langley. The remainder of the winter he spent on the sound. While making the trip from Port Townsend to Whatcom in a flat boat. he was wrecked in a storm, and was obliged to walk to Colonel Eby's home, opposite Port Townsend. Af- ter cooking in a logging camp a few weeks, he started on a hunting trip with several others, ul- timately reaching Guemes island. Owing to dis- sension in the party, he and another man started homeward, but were caught in a storm and barely escaped with their lives. It was a never to be for- gotten experience. While his companion spent the night in prayer, Mr. Beale forced the fright- ened Indians at the point of his water soaked gun to paddle the canoe.

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An illustrated history of Skagit and Snohomish Counties; their people, their commerce and their resources, with an outline of the early history of the state of Washington, Part 115

Author: Inter-state Publishing Company (Chicago, Ill.) Publication date: 1906 Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate Publishing Company Number of Pages: 1172

Author: Inter-state Publishing Company (Chicago, Ill.)
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: [Chicago] Interstate Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1172