History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II, Part 43

Author: Lyman, William Denison, 1852-1920
Publication date: 1919
Publisher: [Chicago] S.J. Clarke
Number of Pages: 1138

USA > Washington > Benton County > History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II > Part 43
USA > Washington > Kittitas County > History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II > Part 43
USA > Washington > Yakima County > History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II > Part 43

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The military record of Captain Brown covers service in two wars. He was a private of Company I, Fiftieth Iowa Volunteer Infantry, from April until Decem- ber, 1898, during the Spanish-American war. He was commissioned first lieutenant of Field Artillery in the National Army at the Presidio training camp in San Fran- cisco, California, on the 27th of November, 1917, and was at once ordered into for- eign service. He remained in military service for eighteen months, or from August 25, 1917, until February 24, 1919, when he was honorably discharged at Camp Lewis, Washington, and returned to his home with a most creditable military record, hav- ing been on active duty on foreign soil for a year. He is a graduate of the Saumur Artillery School, and he served on seven fronts, one with French and six with

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Americans, being with the Seventh Field Artillery, First Artillery Brigade, First Division, and acting as battery commander throughout the entire time. He was commissioned captain of Field Artillery in the United States Army, August 17, 1918. The principal engagements in which he participated were the battle of Cantigny; the battle of Soissons in the allied offensive beginning July 18, 1918; the St. Mihiel drive; and the battle of the Argonne, including the march on the Sedan, covering forty-three days, until the armistice was signed. He was cited by general orders, First Division, for distinguished conduct during the battle of the Argonne, and thus he has written another most interesting chapter to the history of those citizens of Kittitas county who have seen active military service.

On the 21st of December, 1910, at Ellensburg, Kittitas county, Washington, Cap- tain Brown was united in marriage to Miss Anna Katherina Rollinger, a daughter of Nicholas and Lena Rollinger, who were pioneer settlers of Kittitas county, where they took up their abode in 1882. Mr. and Mrs. Brown have a daughter, Mary Evangela, who was born October 30, 1911.

The religious faith of Captain Brown is that of the Roman Catholic church. He belongs to the Phi Delta Theta, a college fraternity which he joined in June, 1902. In 1903 he became a member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and was given a life membership by Ellensburg Lodge, No. 1102 on his return from France, February 4, 1919. In 1909 he joined the Sons of the American Revolution and in 1912 he became a fourth degree Knight of Columbus. He had always been a re- publican until 1912, when he affiliated with the progressive party, giving to it his support again in 1914. He was republican state committeeman from Kittitas county in 1916 and 1917, having returned to the republican party after the 1914 election. He made a speaking tour in eastern Washington in 1916 for the state and national republican tickets and is a most firm believer in the principles of the republican party. In various ways he is exercising considerable influence over public thought and action in his adopted state and the worth of his work along many lines is widely acknowledged.

HIRAM M. JOHNSON, M. D.

Dr. Hiram M. Johnson, actively and successfuly engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery in Toppenish, was born in Washington, Indiana, on the 29th of October, 1873, a son of James M. and Nancy (Allen) Johnson. The former was a son of Hiram and Elibzabeth (Martin) Johnson, natives of Breckenridge county, Kentucky, whence they removed to Daviess county, Indiana, in pioneer times. It was in that county that the birth of James M. Johnson occurred and after attaining man's estate he took up the occupation of farming as a life work. In his native county he wedded Nancy Allen, who was also born there, and in 1907 they came to the northwest, settling at Burley, Idaho, where they took up government land which Mr. Johnson continued to develop and improve until his death. His widow and son, Charles A. Johnson, still occupy the old homestead there and the son is a prominent attorney of Idaho.

Dr. Johnson of this review after pursuing a course at the State Normal School of Indiana devoted three years to the profession of teaching but regarded this merely as the initial step to other professional activity. It was his desire to become a member of the medical profession and with that end in view he entered the Indi- ana Medical College, in which he pursued a full course and was graduated with the class of 1903. He afterward spent a year in the City Hospital of Indianapolis and in December, 1904, he removed to Custer, Washington, where he resided until December, 1906, when he came to Toppenish. Four other physicians had located here but had been unsuccessful in an effort to establish a paying practice. Dr. Johnson therefore became the only physician and at the time of his arrival there was not a brick building in the city. He had been here for only a brief period, however, when the public recognized his superior worth and ability along professional lines and from the beginning his practice has steadily grown. He built the first hospital in Toppenish in 1908 but it was not a success. That did not deter him, however, from

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putting forth effective and successful effort in other directions. He was one of the organizers of the Toppenish Commercial Club and hecame its first president. He realized how necessary is cooperation in the civic development of a community and thus became an earnest worker in behalf of the organization. In 1909 he built a fine garage, which was the second of the kind, and later disposed of that property. In 1915 he erected the Johnson block, having his residence on the second floor. It was also in 1915 that he built the Lois Theater, which is fifty by one hundred and forty feet and has a seating capacity of eight hundred. He then bought two small theaters and developed a theatrical business according to modern, up-to-date ideas. In 1918 he built the Lyric Theater, which seats six hundred. He has also erected several cottages in the town and he owns several hundred acres of fin land in this part of the state. Throughout the entire period he has also conducted his profes- sional interests and has been railway surgeon of Toppenish for the past eight years. He was the first surgeon to practice in the city and the first permanent physician and through the intervening years he has been accorded a practice of large and substantial proportions.

On the 2d of November. 1904, Dr. Johnson was married to Miss Bessie M. Rocke- feller, a native of Laurel, Indiana, and they have two children, Allen D. and Alice M. Dr. Johnson belongs to Toppenish Lodge, No. 178, A. F. & A. M., of which he became a charter member. He is a loyal adherent of the teachings of the craft and exemplifies in his life its beneficent purposes. Along strictly professional lines he is connected with the County and State Medical Societies and at all times he keeps in touch with the most advanced thought of the profession. In politics he is in- dependent. He served as mayor of Toppenish for two terms-1911 and 1912-and has for a few terms been health officer of the city. As mayor he was instrumental in putting in the paving and planting shade trees in Toppenish and promoted many other projects and interests which have been of great benefit and value. Without invidious distinction Dr. Johnson may be termed one of the foremost residents of the city, his labors having been for many years a contributing force to its upbuild- ing and progress.

JOSEPH F. SCHREINER.

Joseph F. Schreiner, prominently identified with ranching interests in the Yakima valley, was born in Scott county, Minnesota, December 16, 1871, a son of Stephen and Gertrude (Ley) Schreiner, both of whom were natives of Germany, but came to the United States in childhood and were married in Minnesota. In 1887 Stephen Schreiner made his way westward to Yakima county and purchased one hundred and twenty acres of land two miles southwest of the Yakima depot and in the following spring he was joined by his family. He engaged in farming for fifteen .years. The land which came into his possession was entirely wild and undeveloped but with characteristic energy he began to convert it into a produc- tive farm. He succeeded in having the land irrigated and continued the work of improvement, making notable changes thereon. He engaged in raising hay, grain and hops and in 1894 planted sixteen acres to hops. In 1904 he disposed of that property and retired to Yakima, spending his remaining days in well earned rest. He passed away in 1910, having for two years survived his wife, whose death oc- curred in 1908.

Joseph F. Schreiner acquired a public school education in Minnesota and at St. John's University and was thus well qualified for life's practical and responsible duties. He engaged in ranching with his father until twenty-one years of age, when he started out in the business world independently, being employed as a clerk in the store of Ditter Brothers for several years. Later he rented his father's place, which he continued to cultivate for four years, and in 1902 he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land four miles southwest of Yakima. Since then he has given his attention and energies to the work of improving his ranch but has sold forty acres of it. He has purchased, however, eighty acres on the edge of the Yakima Indian Reservation and he planted six acres to apples and pears, while the-

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remainder of his ranch is devoted to the raising of alfalfa. He likewise has a half interest in another tract of one hundred and sixty acres on the reservation, and in addition to general farming and fruit raising he conducts a large dairy, for which purpose he keeps many Holstein cows.

On the 17th of February, 1898, Mr. Schreiner was united in marriage to Miss Louise La Bissonire, a daughter of George La Bissonire, an early settler of Yakima county. Mr. and Mrs. Schreiner have six children: LeRoy, Marie, Stella, Catherine, James and Lucille, all at home. The parents and their family are members of St. Paul's Catholic church and Mr. Schreiner is identified with the Knights of Colum- bus. He belongs to the Broadway Grange, of which he has been master. In poli- tics he has maintained an independent course. In 1910, however, he was a candidate for county assessor on the democratic ticket.

His son James is engaged in the raising of fine Jersey hogs, upon which he has taken various prizes, winning the second price at the state fair in 1916. For almost a third of a century Joseph F. Schreiner has lived in Yakima county and throughout this entire period has carefully directed his energies along the lines of general farm- ing, fruit raising and dairying. Whatever he has undertaken he has carried forward to success, for in his vocabulary there is no such word as fail.

JOHN A. DAVIS.

John A. Davis, a wholesale fruit dealer, president of the Sunset Fruit & Produce Company of Wapato, which he assisted in organizing in 1917, was born in St. Joseph, Missouri, on the 4th of March, 1865, a son of Asa and Martha (Alcorn) Davis. The father was born in Illinois, December 14, 1839, and the mother was a native of Ken- tucky and a daughter of John Alcorn, one of the pioneer settlers of Missouri. Mr. Davis followed the occupation of farming in Illinois until 1859, when he removed to Missouri. He was a son of Abraham Davis, who built the first grist mill in Hardin county, Illinois, and was one of the pioneer settlers of that section. After devoting considerable time to agricultural pursuits in Missouri, Asa Davis came to the north- west, settling at Seattle on the 25th of July, 1875. He there remained for a week, after which he took up a homestead in Snohomish county, at which time there were only twelve white women living along the Snohomish river. With characteristic energy he began the development of his land and converted it into a rich and pro- ductive farm, upon which he continued to reside until his demise. His first wife passed away in Missouri, after which Mr. Davis married again, and his second wife died in Washington.

John A. Davis, having acquired a public school education and further augmented his knowledge by study at home, successfully passed the examination of the eighth grade after but nine months spent in school, showing how thoroughly he had mas- tered the lessons which he pursued in his own home. Later he took a course in. the Atchison Business College at Atchison, Kansas. He was reared to the occupation of farming, early becoming familiar with the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the crops. He farmed in Snohomish county, Washington, until 1897 and cleared forty acres of timber land, which he converted into a fine farm. In that year he entered the real estate business at Everett, Washington, and so continued until 1907. He was next engaged in the real estate business at Seattle until 1911, when he went to Yakima, where he did electrical contract work for two years. He next turned his attention to the wholesale fruit business in Yakima, in which he con- tinued until 1917, when he assisted in organizing the Sunset Fruit & Produce Com- pany, of which he has since been the president. Already this company has built up a business of extensive proportions, having handled one hundred and fifty car- loads of fruit in 1917, and in 1918 over two hundred carloads. They have a large and well equipped warehouse in Wapato and their trade is steadily growing.

On the 9th of October, 1889, Mr. Davis was united in marriage to Miss Knottley A. Riddle, a native of Missouri, their marriage being celebrated at Atchison, Kansas. They became the parents of the following named: Trece, the wife of R. C. Schreiber,

JOHN A. DAVIS

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of Wapato; John Earl, who died at the age of two and a half years; Gladys May, at home; Susan Joy, the wife of Jesse G. Sill, of Portland; and Fay Merle, at home.

Mr. Davis and his family are all consistent and loyal members of the Christian church. He belongs also to the Odd Fellows lodge No. 122, at Everett, Washington, and to the Brotherhood of American Yeoman. In politics he is a republican where national issues and questions are involved but at local elections votes for the men rather than party. His fellow townsmen, recognizing his ability, worth and public spirit, have called him to office and for two terms he served as a member of the state senate from Snohomish county, having been elected in 1896 and again in 1901. He gave careful and earnest consideration to all the vital questions which came up for settlement during that period and his course received general endorsement, as indicated in his reelection. He is a loyal advocate of any cause which he believes will benefit the community or advance the welfare of commonwealth and country.

WILLIAM H. NORMAN.

William H. Norman is a prominent rancher and the president of the Outlook State Bank. He has resided in Yakima county since 1891 and upon his present ranch near Outlook since 1893. He was born November 19, 1857, in the farming region which lies just back of the picturesque sand dunes that skirt the lake in Allegan county, Michigan, a son of Robert and Mary (Hazelden) Norman, both of whom were natives of England, where they were reared and married. They came to the United States in 1852, settling in Michigan, where the father followed the occupation of farming and where both he and his wife passed away. Her death occurred in August, 1918, when she had reached the notable age of ninety-four years, but Mr. Norman died at the age of seventy-six.

William H. Norman acquired a public school education and at the age of seven- teen years began earning his own living, dividing his wages with his father until he attained his majority. He was the fifth in order of birth in a family of ten children, When twenty-five years of age he began renting a farm of one hundred and sixty acres and cultivated that place until the spring of 1891, when he left the shores of Lake Michigan to make his way to the northwest. Yakima was his destination and for two years he there resided. In 1893 he removed onto the ranch which he had purchased soon after his arrival in the county, situated a mile north of the present site of Outlook. He was among the first settlers in that part of the county, at which time the entire region was covered with sagebrush. Mr. Norman cleared his land and developed and improved his farm, built thereon a fine residence and large barns and is today the owner of sixty acres of rich, productive and valuable land. He raises hay, corn and potatoes and carries on general farming and also has a small dairy. He is recognized as one of the leading ranchers of this section of the state. He is also identified with banking interests, for he was one of the organizers of the Outlook State Bank. which was established in 1909, when he became the first vice president. He continued to serve in that capacity until 1911, when he was elected to the presidency and is now at the head of the institution.

Mr. Norman has been married twice. In 1883 he wedded Myrtis Gatchell, a native of Michigan and a daughter of William and Anna Gatchell. She passed away November 2, 1902, and on the 15th of June, 1904, Mr. Norman wedded Mrs. Anna (Witt) Elliott, a daughter of Leonard and Martha Jane (McCann) Witt, both of whom were natives of Illinois, where her father still resides, but her mother has passed away. Mrs. Norman was first the wife of John Franklin Elliott, who was called to his final rest March 6, 1902. By his first marriage Mr. Norman had three children: Lewis R., an electrician of Scattle who is married and has one son; Lloyd, who was born in November, 1896, and is now with the United States marines; and Lyla, living in Seattle. By her first marriage Mrs. Norman had a son, John Delphos, twenty years of age, who enlisted in the Field Artillery and received his honorable discharge in February, 1919. He is a graduate of the Outlook high school and has had one year in the State University, from which institution he intends to graduate. Mr. and Mrs. Norman have a little adopted daughter, Mildred Lucille, who was born

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April 7, 1917, and became a member of their household on the 26th of the same month, being legally adopted by them on the 22d of November, 1917. She is a beautiful little child upon whom they are bestowing all the attention and love of an own daughter.

Mr. Norman gives his political allegiance to the republican party, but his wife is a believer in democratic principles. He has served for two years on the school board and the cause of education finds in him a stalwart champion. He has also been president of the local telephone company and is recognized as one of the alert. energetic and progressive citizens of his community, doing everything in his power to uphold and develop its interests. His worth as a man and citizen is widely ac- knowledged and both he and his wife have a legion of friends in the community where they have so long lived.

LON BOYLE.

Lon Boyle, one of the leading attorneys of Prosser, has not only a large practice but has also participated in the public life of his district, having served in official positions. He was born in McGregor, Iowa, November 7, 1882, his parents being Lon and Isabel (Reid) Boyle, the former of whom devoted most of his business career to bridge construction but is now living retired.

Mr. Boyle of this review was reared and educated in McGregor, Iowa, and after due preparation entered the law department of the University of Wisconsin at Madi- son, from which he was graduated with the class of 1905. Removing the next year to Washington, he located in Prosser and here he has since practiced. He is a re- sourceful and forceful lawyer of considerable ability and is well versed in the intrica- cies of the law. He ably presents his canses before court and jury and without diffi- culty recites precedents. A great many important cases have been given into his care and as he has been successful in most of them his practice has increased as the years have passed. He has served as city attorney of Prosser and has held the office of prosecuting attorney for one term. He is a member of the Benton County and Washington State Bar Associations.

On June 7, 1911. Mr. Boyle was united in marriage to Miss Madge Shelby, of Iowa, and they have two daughters, Alice and Barbara. The family occupy an en- viable position in the social life of Prosser and their cheerful, hospitable home is ever open to their many friends. Their personality fits into the intellectual life of their city and they delight in mingling with those gatherings which are held for the pur- pose of culture and improvement along various lines.

In his political views Mr. Boyle is a republican and he has taken an active part in the work of the organization although he is not a politician in the ordinarily ac- cepted sense of the word. Fraternally he is a Mason and stands high in the order, being a member of Euclid Lodge No. 125, F. & A. M., of which he is a past master, and Prosser Chapter, No. 83. R. A. M., of which he is a past high priest. The bene- ficent purposes underlying this organization he practices in his everyday life and is ever ready to extend a helping hand to a brother in distress.

BENJAMIN A. BANNISTER.

Benjamin A. Bannister, who has spent practically his entire life in the Yakima valley, has been successfully engaged in business as a druggist of Wapato since the fall of 1908, conducting the only establishment of the kind in the town. His birth occurred in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, in 1881, his parents being Frederick and Bessie (Forness) Bannister, who made their way westward to Washington in 1883 and took up their abode at Ellensburg, in Kittitas county, where the father devoted his time and energies to farming for many years. They both passed away there.

Benjamin A. Bannister, who was hut two years of age when brought to this state by his parents, acquired his education in the public schools of Ellensburg and Roslyn,

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Washington, the family home having been established at the latter place in 1889. In preparation for his chosen life work he took up the study of pharmacy under the direction of a physician and was subsequently employed as a drug clerk for a few years. In the fall of 1908 he came to Wapato, purchased the bankrupt stock of E. D. Ralyan and has here remained in business as a druggist throughout the inter- vening decade, conducting the only store of the kind in the town. His establishment, thirty by sixty-five feet, is most modern in its appointments and he carries a large stock of drugs and druggists' sundries to meet the demands of his many patrons.

On the 6th of July, 1904, Mr. Bannister was united in marriage to Miss Mar- guerite Hodgson, of Roslyn, Washington. He gives his political allegiance to the republican party and is an interested and active member of the Wapato Commercial Club. Fraternally he is identified with the Masons, belonging to Lodge No. 171 in Wapato, while he is likewise connected with the lodge of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks in Yakima and with Lodge No. 182 of the Knights of Pythias. As stated, he has been a resident of the Yakima valley throughout almost his entire life and has been an interested witness of its growth and development as the years have gone by, while his own efforts have contributed not only to his personal prosperity but to the upbuilding of the community as well.

MARY A. GRUPE.

Mary A. Grupe, a prominent factor in the educational field of Washington, con- neeted with the State Normal School at Ellensburg, was born in Peabody, Kansas, August 23, 1873, a daughter of William H. and Ada A. Grupe. In the acquirement of her education she attended the State Normal School at Oswego, New York, from which she received a life diploma. She afterward received the Ph. B. degree from the University of Chicago and did graduate work there. Later she became a gradu- ate student at Columbia University, New York. Early taking up the profession of teaching, she has become widely known in this connection throughout the west. She did primary work in Dayton, Washington, and afterward became a teacher of psy- chology in the State Normal School at Ellensburg. She was grammar grade super- visor in Tacoma, Washington, for a time and subsequently became connected with the State Normal School at Mankato, Minnesota, where she served as grammar grade supervisor and also instructor in psychology. In the State Normal School at Greeley, Colorado, she was again made grammar grade supervisor and instructor in educa- tion. Her major work is psychology, educational and clinical, and her marked abil- ity in the profession has brought her prominently to the front. She is continually studying progressive methods and her own initiative has enabled her to carry her work forward to a most advanced point.

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History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II, Part 43

Author: Lyman, William Denison, 1852-1920 Publication date: 1919 Publisher: [Chicago] S.J. Clarke Number of Pages: 1138

Author: Lyman, William Denison, 1852-1920
Publication date: 1919
Publisher: [Chicago] S.J. Clarke
Number of Pages: 1138