USA > Washington > Walla Walla County > An illustrated history of Walla Walla County, state of Washington > Part 43
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71
On the 29th of August. 1853, at Mount Carmel, Illinois, Mr. Boyer was united in mar- riage to Miss Sarah E. Baker, a sister of Dr.
D. S. Baker, with whom he was subsequently so long and intimately associated in business in Walla Walla. In 1859 Mr. Boyer returned. with his family, to the Pacific coast, making the journey by the isthmus route. He again established himself in the mercantile business at Sonora, where he remained until 1862, when he entered into a copartnership with Dr. D. S. Baker in the mercantile branch of his busi- ness in Walla Walla. Concerning this enter- prise we quote from a sketch of the life of Mr. Boyer published in Gilbert's history of the county : "At the time Mr. Boyer first took charge of the store, and for years after, the miners were in the habit of depositing their gold dust with the firm for safe keeping. They would come with little and big sacks of it with the owner's name attached, leave their moun- tain accumulations for days, and sometimes months, without a scratch of a pen or witness in the world, except Mr. Boyer, to prove that they had ever left anything on deposit. No receipts were given or asked for, and although this practice was continued for years, and the deposits often reached from thirty to forty thousand dollars at a time, no trouble, misun- derstandings or loss ever occurred."
In 1870 the firm decided to close out the mercantile business and establish a bank. The Daker & Boyer bank became one of the most solid financial institutions of this section of the Union and so continued until it was merged into the Baker-Boyer National bank, whose prestige is to-day unexcelled. Upon the or- ganization of the national bank Mr. Boyer be- came its president, retaining this incumbency until his death and guiding its course with that rare executive ability and far-sighted policy which had conserved the upbuilding and relia- bility of the original institution. Of the bank-
298
HISTORY OF WALLA WALLA COUNTY.
ing houses with which he was so conspicuously identified specific mention is made on other pages of this work.
From a memorial brochure published at the time of his death we make several extracts touching the character and career of our hon- ored subject : "He served Walla Walla county with great acceptability for six terms (twelve years) as treasurer. Always concerned with matters pertaining to the public good. Mr. Boyer was of necessity .interested in educa- tion. Ile early became a devoted friend of Whitman College, and gave generously of his means and time to its support. He was for thirty years a member of the board of trustees of the seminary and college. During that time he was treasurer of the institution, which po- sition he held until a few months before his death, when he was chosen president of the board of trustees. For years he was a vigorous supporter and mainstay of St. Paul's school. Mr. Boyer was for many years a leading sup- porter, vestryman and warden of the Episcopal church. It was a pleasing sight during the last few years to see him, with his snowy hair, in the church choir, seemingly as full of life and vigor as the younger members. In fact, until the last year, his vitality was proverbial, and he bid fair to outlive many younger men than he. One of the most warm-hearted, charitable and sympathetic of men, Mr. Boyer was ever ready to assist the needy and to ex- tend a hand to the unfortunate." The death of Mr. Boyer was mourned by the entire com- munity in which he had lived for so many years and in which he had ever been a power for good. The funeral was attended by "all sorts and conditions of men." each of whom felt that he had suffered almost a personal bereavement. The services were conducted by the rector of St. Paul's church, of which the deceased had
been so loyal a supporter, and a special me- morial service was held at the church on the Sunday following his death. In his address the rector spoke feelingly of the honored dead, of whom he said: "Mr. Boyer was a man of remarkable modesty and would not have de- sired a eulogy. He needs none other than the memory of his noble and generous life." Resolutions of respect and regret were passed by the vestry of St. Paul's church, by the ex- ecutive committee of the board of trustees of Whitman College, by the directors of the First National bank and by Blue Mountain Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, of which he was a charter member and a zealous adherent. His was the faith that makes faithful. and he passed to his reward in the fullness of years and well earned honors. As long as there re- mains memory to those who knew the man or of him, so long will he be recalled as a noble example of true manhood and as one whose entire life was consecrated to lofty ends.
Mr. Boyer was survived by his wife and seven children. The surviving children are as follows : Charles S., a resident of New York city ; Franklin D., of Dawson City; Arthur A., of East Orange, New Jersey; Eugene H., of Walla Walla; John E .. of Seattle: Mrs. Annie I. Norton, of Bennington. Vermont ; and Miss Imogen, of Walla Walla.
HENRY A. CROWELL .- To the man whose life history it is now our task to briefly outline belongs a share of the honor we in- stinctively bestow upon men who rise superior to an inauspicious early environment and achieve success in the face of great disadvant- ages.
Our subject was born March 27, 1837, at
299
HISTORY OF WALLA WALLA COUNTY.
Blooming Grove, Franklin county, Indiana. His father died while he was very young and naturally he early had to assume such respon- sibilities and duties as he was able, in this man- ner acquiring in boyhood habits of industry and self-reliance of inestimable value. When four years of age he was taken by his mother to Knox county, Illinois, where he remained until 1865. After acquiring a log-cabin education he turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, continuing in the same as long as he remained in the state. When about twenty-eight years of age he removed to Boone county, Iowa, and opened a grocery store, conducting that busi- ness in conjunction with a farming industry near by. Subsequently closing the grocery establishment he went into the grist mill busi- ness, and being in connection with his duties about the mill, much of his time in the engine room, he in due time became a skilled engin- eer. Eventually the engine was placed in his charge.
In the performance of his duties in this connection he met with a very serious acci- dent, falling from a tank which he was en- gaged in cleaning, striking on the fly wheel of the engine and breaking his leg and several ribs. He was unconscious for several hours and confined to his bed for about sixty days, but ultimately recovered almost entirely and resumed the discharge of his duties as engineer.
In 1874 Mr. Crowell came to Walla Walla, via San Francisco, Portland and the old Baker road. For a short time after his arrival he worked for wages on a farm, but his abilities as an engineer were soon discovered and a po- sition was given him as engineer in the old Dovel Sash and Door, Molding and Furniture factory. After continuing in this for some time his services were called into requisition as a molding-maker for the same firm, and he
continued in their service until they went out of business.
Mr. Crowell then worked for varying periods of time for other mills, also ran en- gines for threshermen during the harvest sea- sons until 1896, when he entered the service of Whitehouse & Crimmins, of whose engine he had charge for about a year, afterwards withdrawing to accept an appointment as pound master, tendered him by the city council, and this office he still retains, discharging his duties with faithfulness and fairness.
In fraternal affiliations our subject is identi- fied with the time-honored Masonic fraternity, his immediate connection being with Blue Mountain Lodge, No. 13. While he was a resident of Knox county, Illinois, Mr. Crowell's marriage to Miss Jane Stevens was duly sol- emnized, but they were not permitted to live long together, she passing away on July 4, 1865. On August 24, 1867, our subject was again married, in Knox county, Illinois, the lady being Miss Mary A. Thurmen, a native of Kentucky. They have two living children : Ella, now Mrs. O. T. Cornwell, of Walla Walla ; and Sibley .A., a bookkeeper for Sam- uel Loney, of this city. They also became the parents of two other children now deceased. Mr. Crowell is the owner of a very pleasant and comfortable home on the corner of Rose and Tukanon streets.
CLARK N. McLEAN, auditor of Walla Walla county, was born in College Springs, Iowa, November 11, 1862. IIe was reared on a farm in the vicinity of his native town and received an unusually good education, gradu- ating from the scientific course of Amity Col- lege. After receiving his degree he engaged
300
HISTORY OF WALLA WALLA COUNTY.
in the mercantile business with his brother, James L., at College Springs, carrying a course in the Gem City Business College, at Quincy, Illinois, at the same time.
In 1887 he retired from his business to be- come a bookkeeper in Kilpatrick Koch's whole- sale dry goods company in Omaha, which po- sition he retained until, in 1889, he came to Walla Walla. Shortly after his arrival here he opened an abstract office in company with Mr. S. E. Dean, and this establishment has been maintained ever since, being now known as the Dean-McLean Abstract Company.
lle has long been one of the representa- tive men of this city, and has always taken a prominent part in local politics. From 1895 to 1897 he was deputy county auditor, and from that date until 1899 he served as city clerk. In the fall of 1898 hie was elected on the Re- publican ticket to the office of county auditor, a position which he still retains, being re- elected in 1900.
In fraternal affiliations Mr. McLean is identified with the F. & A. M. and the B. P. O. E. Ile was married in White Cloud, Kan- sas. June 8. 1887. to Miss Annie Pugsley, a native of that town and state. They have two children. Rachael and Gilbert.
OSCAR C.AIN, prosecuting attorney of Walla Walla county, is a native of Ringgold county, Iowa, born May 25. 1868. When he was nine years old the family moved to Iola, Kansas, and here he grew to manhood and re- ceived his education. Upon attaining the age of twenty-two he entered the law office of Henry AA. Ewing, under whose direction he studied law for two years. He successfully passed the examination for admission to the
bar of that state, then came to Oregon, where for a few months at first he engaged in school teaching. In 1893 he removed to Dayton, Washington, and opened an office for the prac- tice of his profession, the firm being Hamm & Cain. The next year, however, he came to Walla Walla and in 1895 began the practice of law here. The firm to which he belongs at present is known as Pedigo & Cain. He was elected in 1898 to the office of prosecut- ing attorney of the county, and he has been discharging the duties of that office with faith- fulness, courage and ability ever since. For many years he has been an active worker and a leading spirit in all local affairs and conven- tions, and he holds rank among the representa- tive men of the county. He affiliates with the Knights of Pythias and the Eagles.
JOHN H. DANIELS, Walla Walla, is a native of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, born July 3. 1836. When about eleven years of age he accompanied his parents around Cape Horn to California. In 1859 he came to Walla Walla and engaged in mining in various places trib- utary to that city and in Idaho. He was one of the earliest immigrants into the Florence region, having walked there from Oro Fino at a very early date, braving the severities of a very rigorous winter. Ile followed the various mining excitements until about 1870, then opened a soda business at Walla Walla, the first of its kind in the country. In 1889 he sold out and made another trip into the Flor- ence and Warrens mining regions, returning in 1890. He then opened his present business.
Mr. Daniels is a typical pioneer. possessed of the courage and resourcefulness which char- acterizes that class of men. He is also very pro-
301
HISTORY OF WALLA WALLA COUNTY.
gressive and public spirited, always taking an active part in the promotion of every under- taking for the public benefit, and donating lib- erally of his means to all public institutions. In social affiliations he is a member of the A. O. U. W. He was married in Walla Walla, in 1876, to Mrs. M. Seitel, ncc Gholson, a na- tive of Iowa. Mrs. Daniels was born in 1845, and came to this county in 1860, crossing the plains with her father, Mr. Granville Gholson, who settled at Frenchtown, below Walla W'alla, but some years later moved to a large farm at Hudson. After remaining there several years Mr. Gholson moved to Ritz Creek, Washington, where he died in April, 1870. Mrs. Daniels is quite an old resident of Walla Walla, having lived there constantly since 1861. Like Mr. Daniels, she has a large circle of friends.
LE F. A. SHAW .- It is beyond perad- venture that practically all of the older com- monwealths of the Union have representation in the composite makeup of the population of the great state of Washington, and among those whom the historical old Bay state has granted to the city of Walla Walla is the gentleman whose name introduces this paragraph and who is one of our representative citizens, being a pioneer of 1877. Mr. Shaw was born at Fall River, Massachusetts, on the 7th of February, 1842, coming of staunch old New England stock. At the age of fourteen he accompanied his parents on their removal to St. Paul, Min- nesota, where they remained four years, at the expiration of which period they returned to Fall River. Our subject received his educa- tional discipline in the public schools, and upon assuming the personal responsibilities of life determined to seek his fortunes in the west.
Accordingly in the winter of 1864-5 he set sail for California, making the voyage by the isthmus route and arriving in San Francisco in the month of March, 1865. He continued his residence in the California metropolis for a period of four years, devoting his attention primarily to work at his trade, that of sign painter. In the fall of 1869 he removed to Portland, Oregon, where he was for a time engaged in the insurance business and where he also held a clerkship in the United States cus- tom house for a term of five years.
The summer of 1877 marks the date of Mr. Shaw's arrival in the city of Walla Walla, which has ever since been his home and the scene of his successful endeavors. He had resigned his position in Portland for the pur- pose of accepting the office of deputy collector of internal revenue for the eastern district of Washington, which was as yet a territory. This office he held for the term of four years, with headquarters in Walla Walla, and in the meantime he had determined to make the city his permanent home. He had established him- self in the fire-insurance business here, and in this line of enterprise he has conducted a very successful agency, representing a number of the most reliable companies and controlling a representative patronage as an underwriter.
Mr. Shaw has maintained a lively interest in affairs of a public and political nature, hav- ing ever given a stanch and unwavering al- legiance to the principles and policies of the Republican party, in the local ranks of which he has been an active worker. In 1881 he was elected city clerk, in which capacity he served consecutively for six years. He was the incumbent as coroner of the county for a term of two years, early in the 'Sos, and for the term of 1895-6 hield the responsible and exact- ing office of county clerk and clerk of the su-
302
HISTORY OF WALLA WALLA COUNTY.
perior court. In 1899 he was elected to the Emma E. Kellogg, who presides with gracious office of city treasurer, of which office he is dignity over the attractive home, which is a center of refined hospitality. Mr. Shaw has two daughters,-Pearl F. and Ruby E. the incumbent at the time of this writing, hav- ing entered upon his second term.
In fraternal associations Mr. Shaw holds marked prestige, having manifested a lively interest in the work of the various social or- ganizations with which he is identified. He has been a member of the Masonic order for three decades, having advanced in the same to the thirty-second degree of the Scottish rite. His connection with the Independent Or- der of Odd Fellows dates from 1866, and in this fraternity he has attained positions of ut- most distinction. He was grand secretary of the grand lodge of the state for the long term of twelve years,-from 1884 until 1896. He was also for a long period the grand scribe of the grand encampment of the order, and has on several .occasions been a representative to the sovereign grand lodge. Other fraternal organizations with which Mr. Shaw is identi- fied are the Improved Order of Red Men, of which he became a member in 1867; the Knights of Pythias, the Benevolent and Pro- tective Order of Elks, the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Fraternal Order of Eagles. He is a past officer in most of these organizations, being past great sachem of the Red Men, and representative to the great coun- ci! of the United States. His genial personal- ity and unflagging interest has given him an unmistakable popularity in each of these fra- ternities, and he is held in the highest esteem in both business and social circles in the city.
Turning, in conclusion, to the domestic chapter in the life of Mr. Shaw, we record that in 1870, at Portland, Oregon, he was united in marriage to Miss Florence . \. Myers, who died in 1874. In 1878 he consummated a second marriage, being then united to Mrs.
CHIARLES OTTMAR ROEDEL, cab- inet-maker at 209 E. Alder street, a pioneer of 1882, was born in Bavaria December 26, 1856. He resided in his fatherland continuously un- til about twenty-six years of age, receiving a common and high-school education, also learn- ing the trade of a cabinet-maker. In 1880 he emigrated to the United States. Locating at Louisville, Kentucky, he followed his trade there for a year, but he afterwards went to Denver, Colorado, and embarked in the fur- niture business. He sold out nine months later. and began an extensive tour in the search for a location, visiting Las Vegas, New Mexico, El Paso, Texas, Santa Fe, New Mexico, Tuc- son, Arizona, Fort Yuma and Los Angeles, California, and other points. In 1882 he ended his journeyings in Walla Walla, where for the ensuing three years he worked as a journey -. man.
Mr. Roedel next tried the dairy business in Colville, Washington, for six months, then worked in a chair factory at Dayton for a year, then worked about seven months in San Fran- cisco, finally returning to Walla Walla, where his home has since been. He lias followed cabinet-making constantly, and has the skill which we would naturally expect to find in one who has devoted the assiduous efforts of many years to the pursuit of one calling. He is doing business at present in company with Mr. Keller, he being the senior partner of the firm. Fraternally Mr. Roedel is identified with the Knights of Pythias, the Royal Highlanders
303
HISTORY OF WALLA WALLA COUNTY.
and the German Maennerchor. In religious persuasion he is a Lutheran. He was married in Spokane, on November 4, 1890, to Miss Christina Leupold, a native of Bavaria, and they have five children, Elfrieda, Rosclinda, Ottmar, Carl and Louis. Mr. Roedel is the owner of some valuable city property, and of a fine farm of one hundred and sixty acres, which he took as a homestead.
CHARLES E. BURROWS, who retains the responsible position of secretary and man- ager of the Walla Walla Gas & Electric Com- pany, whose offices are at II South Third street, is a citizen contributed to Walla Walla by the old Empire state, since the place of his nativity was the city of Troy, New York, where he was born on the 12th of January, 1828. He continued to reside in the state of his birth until he had attained the age of twen- ty-four years, receiving his elementary educa- tion in the public schools, after which he pur- sued a thorough academic course, laying aside his studies at the age of seventeen. He was thereafter engaged for some time in the mer- cantile business, after which he was employed as deputy in the commissary department of the Panama Railroad.
Mr. Burrows came to California in 1852 and was employed as bookkeeper in a jobbing house at Sacramento until 1859, when he en- gaged in the gas business in Yreka, in the same state, continuing to reside there until 1864. Having become thoroughly familiar with the manufacturing of gas, he extended his scope of operations in this line, building gas works in Santa Cruz county, California, Seattle, Washington, and Salem, Oregon.
Mr. Burrows' advent in Walla Walla dates
back to 1885, when he came hither and effected the purchase of the gas works and also gave the city one of its most valuable public im- provements by building the electric works, sup- plying both light and power. To this feature of the city's equipment due reference will be made in connection with the specific descrip- tion of its status.
In his religious adherency our subject is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and fraternally he is identified with the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he became a member in 1851 while residing in New York.
At Yreka, California, in the year 1861, Mr. Burrows was united in marriage to Miss Frances S. Wadsworth, who is a descendant of the historic Wadsworth of Charter Oak fame in New England. Our subject and his wife have four living children, namely: Mary E .; Ella F .; Charles E., who is a clerk in the gas office; and Albert J., who went to Manila as a member of Company I, and who is now holding a clerkship in the office of the gas company.
CHRISTOPHER ENNIS, president of the Walla Walla Dressed Meat Company, is a pioneer of 1870. Ireland is the land of his nativity, and he is about fifty-five years of age. When eighteen he emigrated to America, lo- cating in Pennsylvania, where he resided for about seven years. From that state he came direct to Walla Walla. He secured employment from Dooley & Kirkman in their meat mar- ket business, and remained with them for the ensuing five years, finally quitting their service to enter a like business for himself. When the present firin was formed he became identified with it, and in 1895 he was elected to the presi-
304
HISTORY OF WALLA WALLA COUNTY.
dency. Mr. Ennis is a man of unusual ex- ecutive and business ability, as is evinced by the success which has attended his efforts in the management of everything he has undertaken since coming to Walla Walla. He is now in very comfortable circumstances, being the owner of between four thousand and five thou- sand acres of land, as well as other valuable property.
Mr. Ennis' fraternal affiliations are with the .1. O. U. W. He was married in Walla Walla, in 1877, to Miss Annie McManamon, a native of Iowa, and their union has been blessed by the advent of ten children, namely : Frank, Mary, Thomas, Adelia. Matthew, Christopher. Katie. Alice and Margaret, living : and John, deceased.
HON. THOMAS HURLEY BRENTS. one of the most distinguished lawyers and legislators of the Pacific northwest, is a native of Florence, Pike county, Illinois, born De- cember 24, 1840. Ile came of sturdy pioneer stock, his parents having been among the first settlers of Sangamon county, Illinois, and hav- ing borne an important part in its early develop- ment and history. In 1852 the family crossed the plains with ox-teams to Clackamas county, Oregon, where for the second time in life they engaged in the arduous occupation of sub- duing the soil of an untamed wilderness. In 1865 Judge Brents' last surviving relative on the coast, his mother, died, and he was left to work out his destiny alone. He worked on a farm in summer, battling with the difficulties of a general educational course during the win- ter months and thus, in spite of many obstacles, laying the foundation for success and useful- ness in after life. He availed himself of the
advantages afforded by the common schools of his neighborhood, and by the Baptist College, at Oregon City, by Portland Academy and by McMinnville College. For a while during his student days at Oregon City he earned his board by packing flour for the noted Dr. John Mc- Laughlin, the celebrated Hudson's Bay Com- pany agent, who had a flour mill in that town.
In 1860 failing health compelled him to leave school, so he came to the Klickitat val- ley, Washington Territory. In the fall he went to the Yakima valley, where he herded cattle all winter, reading law by camp-fire at night. The next winter he came to Walla Walla valley with a herd of cattle, but in the spring of 1862 he made a trip through snow and over well nigh impassable roads to the Powder river mines. Coming for supplies to the site of the present Pendleton, Oregon, in June, he there cast his first ballot, voting for Addison C. Gibbs for governor, John R. Mc- Bride for congress and other Union-Republican candidates. He then went to the John Day mines, and with Napoleon F. Nelson established a pony express between Canyon City and The Dalles, and he rode fearlessly over this route for about a year, despite the fact that it was beset by hostile Indians and highwaymen.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.