History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II, Part 73

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 73
USA > Washington > Kittitas County > History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II > Part 73
USA > Washington > Yakima County > History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II > Part 73

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tures of the city, including the high school building, the Young Men's Christian Association building, the Masonic Temple, the state fair buildings and numerous fine residences, business blocks and warehouses. He has been engaged in contract- ing in Yakima since he took up his residence here, and his work has been highly satisfactory, adding much to the beauty of Yakima, while at all times in his building operations he closely studies utility and convenience as well as beauty. He was the builder of the clubhouse of the Country Club, also of the Christian church and many other attractive structures of Yakima.

In 1895 Mr. Corbett was united in marriage to Miss Emily Alexander, of New York city, and they now have two children: Alexander H., who is a student in the state university, making a specialty of structural engineering; and Margaret, who is also in school.

Mr. Corbett belongs to Yakima Lodge, No. 24, F. & A. M., of which he is a past master. He also has membership in Yakima Chapter, No. 21, R. A. M .; Yakima Commandery, K. T .; and Afifi Temple of the Mystic Shrine at Tacoma. His mem- bership relations extend to the Elks, to the Knights of Pythias, the Modern Wood- men, the Commercial Club and the Country Club and he is a member of the Epis- copal church. His political endorsement is given to the republican party, and while never a politician in the sense of office seeking, he served as president of the school board of Yakima in 1917. His course has ever measured up to high standards of American manhood and chivalry. Industry and reliability have been made the foun- dation of his business success, while enterprise and progress have characterized him in every public relation and duty.

JOHN DANKERS.

At the age of seventeen years John Dankers came to America and in this coun- try he has found the opportunities which he sought, now being one of the success- ful and prosperous ranchmen of the Cowiche district of Yakima county. A native of Germany, he was born in 1858 and in that country he spent his boyhood days, there acquiring his education. Many reports having come to him in regard to the chances presented to a young man in the land of the free, he decided upon emigration and at the age of seventeen crossed the ocean. He made his way directly to the interior and located in Red Wing, Minnesota, where for several years he was connected with farming. Conditions there did not fully suit him and he once more took up his westward course and in 1884 came to Yakima county, taking up a homestead near Prosser. He is therefore numbered among the early pioneers of this section, hav- ing witnessed all the changes that have transformed a wild section of land into a prosperous agricultural district. He watched the railroad come in and in fact assisted in building the road. After taking up his homestead he rented land on the Ahtanum, to the cultivation of which he devoted several years, and later bought sixty acres there. At a subsequent period, however, he traded this tract for eighty acres on the Cowiche and as his means increased and his income steadily grew because of his untiring labor, he acquired more land until he had three hundred and twenty acres. He has since sold three-quarters of this, retaining but eighty acres, to the cultiva- tion of which he still gives his time and attention. He has erected a handsome residence and put up substantial buildings for stock and grain, thus making his one of the valuable properties in his neighborhood. He has always followed progres- sive methods and as the years have brought him golden harvests his prosperity has increased and he is now numbered among the substantial residents of Cowiche. There seems to be an eternal justice which rewards hard labor and the success which Mr. Dankers has won has been attained in that honorable way, so that today there is none who can begrudge him the comfortable competence which he has accumulated.

In 1880 Mr. Dankers was united in marriage to Anna Tamke, a native of Ger- many, and they have become the parents of five children: Henry and John, well-to- do ranchers; Katie, who married Joseph Worrell, also a rancher; Emma, the wife of James Cunningham, who is now serving his country in the United States army; and Annie.

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Mr. Dankers has ever taken a laudable interest in the progress of his section of the state and has readily given his aid to worthy public movements. By his work along agricultural lines he has contributed toward general prosperity and has helped to plant the seeds of civilization here. In politics he is independent, supporting the man whom he deems best qualified to fill the office to which he aspires. Along religious lines both he and his wife are devoted members of the Lutheran church, in which faith they were reared and to which they ever remained loyal.

HADLEY H. DRAKE.

Hadley H. Drake, who is devoting his time and energies to orcharding, his home being at Fruitvale, was born in Aroostook county, Maine, January 20, 1882, a son of Norman S. and May (Morrison) Drake, who on the 1st of April, 1906, came to Yakima county and have since resided upon ranches in this section of the state. In the year of his arrival the father purchased ranch property in Selah but is now living retired, deriving a substantial income from property interests, which include three houses in Yakima.

Hadley H. Drake acquired a public school education in the Pine Tree state and after the removal of the family to the west, which occurred when he was a young man of twenty-four years, he worked for his father in the Yakima valley for three years. In 1909 he and his brother George purchased one hundred and sixty acres of land on the reservation, which they later traded, and from time to time they have acquired land until they now have one hundred and sixty acres in a ranch on the Puget Sound, where the brother resides and to the cultivation and development of which he is giving his attention. In 1915 Hadley H. Drake purchased four acres of land in Fruitvale and has since added two and a half acres to that tract. He now has his six and a half acres in orchards, raising apples, pears, peaches, cherries, prunes and other fruits. These he is successfully cultivating and his orchards are in ex- cellent bearing condition, so that he annually makes large shipments.

On the 18th of February, 1905, Mr. Drake was married to Miss Rosa Lermond, a native of Maine and a daughter of Wilson and Rosetta (Williams) Lermond. The children of this marriage are Francis Edmond, Helen Madolin and Hilda Rosalie. Mr. Drake and his family are members of the Methodist church. His political al- legiance is given to the republican party and his wife is a member of the Grange. They are well known and highly esteemed in this section of the state, his fellow- citizens regarding Mr. Drake as one of the enterprising and progressive young busi- ness men, whose identification with the horticultural interests of the Yakima valley constitutes an important element in the development of its orchards.

RICHARD R. DASHER, D. D. S.

The success which follows earnest effort in the practice of dentistry, based upon broad scientific attainment and conscientious service, has come to Dr. Richard R. Dasher, who not only figures prominently in professional circles but is also identified with commercial and agricultural interests in his section of the state. He was born in Burlington, Iowa, in 1873, a son of John and Helen (Sprenger) Dasher, who in the year 1888 became residents of Tacoma, Washington, where the father continued in business as a locomotive engineer. They removed to the Pacific coast from Minnesota, where they had established their home in 1879, there residing for a number of years.

Dr. Dasher was but six years of age when the family went from Iowa to Minne- sota and was a youth of fifteen when he arrived in Washington. He supplemented a public school education by a course in a business college at Burlington, Iowa, in 1892. He remained a resident of Tacoma until 1897 and in that year went to Daw- son, Alaska, where he was identified with mining until 1900. He then returned to Tacoma and established the Star Diamond Candy Company, carrying on the busi-

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ness until 1902, when he sold in order to prepare for a professional career. He then entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons of San Francisco and was graduated from the dental department with the class of 1905. Opening an office in that city, he remained there until the earthquake, after which he removed to Sumner, Washington, where he practiced for four years. In 1911 he opened an office in Top- penish, where he has since remained, and during the intervening priod a very sub- stantial practice has been accorded him, indicating the confidence reposed in his professional ability by the public. He is also the owner of a half interest in the Frederickson-Dasher Drug Company, proprietors of one of the leading drug stores of the city, and in addition he owns a fine ranch of eighty acres pleasantly situated fourteen miles west of Toppenish. While successful in the management of these interests, he regards the practice of dentistry as his real life work and he is a member of the State Dental Society, thus keeping in close touch with the advanced thought of the profession.

On the 19th of June, 1908, Dr. Dasher was married to Miss Jean Lockhart, who was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, a daughter of James and Agnes Lockhart, who became residents of Sumner, Washington, in 1888. Dr. and Mrs. Dasher have two children, John and Agnes, aged respectively six and two years.

The Doctor belongs to the Commercial Club, which indicates his deep interest in the city's welfare and upbuilding. He is also identified with the Yakima lodge of Elks and in Masonry has attained high rank, belonging to Toppenish Lodge, No. 178. A. F. & A. M .; Yakima Chapter, No. 21, R. A. M .; Yakima Commandery, No. 13. K. T .; and to Afifi Temple of the Mystic Shrine of Tacoma. He is loyal to the teachings and purposes of the craft and at all times his life measures up to high standards of American manhood and chivalry.

CAPTAIN ROBERT DUNN.

Captain Robert Dunn was a valued and highly esteemed citizen of Parker Bot- tom. For many years he was closely associated with the development of the county and many tangible evidences of his devotion to the public good can be cited. A native of Scotland, he was born in Adrie on the 27th of November, 1837, and ac- quired his education in the land of hills and heather. He came to the United States in 1855, when a youth of eighteen years, and afterward entered the United States army, doing duty in Mexico and at Yuma, Arizona, on the Texas border. He be- came captain of Company H, of the Heavy Artillery, and at the time of the Civil war also served as a captain of infantry troops. He was on active duty throughout the entire period of hostilities between the north and the south and at the battle of Gettysburg was severely wounded in the right shouder and lost several fingers. He carried three bullets in his body throughout the remainder of his life.

In 1865, following the close of his military service as a defender of the Union cause, he was united in marriage to Annie M. Curry, a native of Pennsylvania and a daughter of James and Maria (Coffee) Curry, their marriage being celebrated in Kentucky. They afterward located in Carthage, Missouri, where they lived for ten years. In the fall of 1876 they arrived in the Yakima valley, making ,the trip by wagon across the plains and over the mountains to the northwest. They were among the first settlers in this section of the state and while en route they joined a train of Black Hill miners and on one occasion the party turned back on account of an Indian scare, but Captain Dunn continued on his way in safety, while those who turned back were massacred. On reaching his destination he secured a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres on the Parker bottoms and later he obtained a three hundred and twenty acre timber culture claim and also a desert claim four miles be- low. He also purchased large amounts of land during the period of his residence in this section of the state and he contributed in substantial measure to the develop- ment and upbuilding of the district. He was the promoter of the Konnewock ditch, the present site of the Sunnyside canal, the original, however, being a small ditch. He closely studied everything relative to the welfare and development of the region

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and his co-operation and aid were always given to plans and measures for the public good.

To Captain and Mrs. Dunn were born eight children. The eldest is Mrs. Daul A. McDonald, of the Yakima Valley, who has five children. Belle, the second of the family, is deceased. Anna is the wife of W. F. Morgan, of Nob Hill, and they have three children. Mrs. Charles McAllister resides in Wasco, Oregon, and has two children. Mrs. C. A. Peters is living in Yakima and has six children. Mrs. D. C. McKee is connected with ranching interests in the Yakima Valley and has two children. A. Duncan is the next in the family. George Robert, who was born March 22, 1881, is engaged in ranching with his brother, A. Duncan upon the home place. He attended Pullman College and on the 21st of October, 1915, was married to Olive E. Bettinger, a native of Seattle and a daughter of Mary and Peter Betting- er. They have two children, Paul C. and Elizabeth. George R. Dunn is a member of Yakima Lodge, No. 318, B. P. O. E., also of the Masonic fraternity, being identi- fied with the lodge at Wapato, while in Tacoma he has attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite and is also a member of Afifi Temple of the Mystic Shrine. His political allegiance is given to the republican party. He is now a suc- cessful young rancher, conducting the home farm in connection with his brother. He has followed in his father's footsteps in regard to Masonry.

Captain Dunn was a worthy exemplar of the craft and was one of the first masters of Yakima Lodge, No. 24, F. & A. M., at Yakima City. He also had membership in the Royal Arch Chapter and was connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He passed away May 21, 1908, and his death was the occasion of deep regret, for he was highly esteemed by all who knew him. He and his wife attended the Presbyterian church, and he gave his political allegiance to the republican party. In 1889 he was appointed postmaster of Yakima and filled that office for four years, or until 1893. He also represented his district in the state legislature for one term and in every connection proved himself a faithful and loyal citizen, interested in all that had to do with the progress and welfare of his section of the state or with the advancement of the commonwealth. His ideals of life were high and he carefully shaped his course in accordance therewith. The opportunities of the northwest made strong appeal to him and he put forth every effort to use these to the best possible advantage, so that his labors constituted an important element in the growth and development of the district in which he lived.

BENJAMIN L. MITCHELL.

Yakima has reason to be proud of her business district and the enterprise dis- played by those who represent her commercial and industrial interests. Among this number is Benjamin L. Mitchell, proprietor of a grocery and variety store. He is building up a business of gratifying and substantial proportions and what he has accomplished represents the fit utilization of his time and innate talents. He was born in Cairo, Georgia, August 20, 1878, a son of Nelson and Florence (Paramore) Mitchell, who were representatives of old southern families, both of English descent. The father took up the occupation of farming, which he followed in early manhood, and in later life he turned his attention to merchandising. His death occurred in Florida and his wife has also passed away.

In his youthful days Benjamin L. Mitchell became a public school pupil and when still but a boy started out in the business world, obtaining a clerkship in a mercantile establishment. Later he went to Florida, where he conducted a general merchandise store of his own, becoming one of the active business men of Wauchula, Florida, in 1901. There he remained for about a year, after which he went to Temple, Oklahoma, where he carried on mercantile pursuits for about five years. In May, 1907, he arrived in Yakima and purchased a fruit ranch which he conducted until 1912. He then again returned to commercial circles, opening a grocery and variety store on South Second street in Yakima. In January, 1917, he removed to No. 113

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East Yakima avenue, where he has a store twenty-five by one hundred and thirty feet. He employs three clerks and gives his personal attention to the business, which is steadily growing. His trade is now large and satisfactory and his patronage is continually increasing. His methods are thoroughly reliable and he has ever recognized the fact that satisfied customers are the best advertisement. He retained possession of his fruit ranch until 1916, when he sold that property.

In 1906 Mr. Mitchell was united in marriage to Miss Agnes L. Shepard, of Temple, Oklahoma, and they have one child, Neva L. Mr. Mitchell maintains an independent course in politics and has never been an office seeker, preferring to give his undivided attention to his business affairs. There are no spectacular phases in his life, his course, however, being marked by devotion to duty at all times and by determination and progressiveness in the conduct of his business interests.

GEORGE MONK.

George Monk, who is engaged in general farming and ranching near Outlook, was born in Woodford county, Illinois, December 20, 1871, a son of Frank and , Gretchel (Westeman) Monk, both of whom were natives of Germany but came to the United States in early life. The father followed farming in Illinois and won success through his ably directed efforts. In 1884 the family all came to Washington, making their way to Ritzville, where the father purchased teams and then went one hundred and twenty-five miles up to Douglas county, where he secured a home- stead. The family settled thereon and he began the development and improvement of his property, concentrating his efforts and attention upon his ranch work to the time of his death, which occurred July 27, 1893, when he was about sixty-two years of age, his birth having occurred in 1831. His widow also took up a homestead after the death of her husband. She was born in March, 1835, and still survives, making her home with her son George. They had a family of ten children, five of whom have passed away.

George Monk acquired a public school education and afterward took up ranch- ing on his mother's land. In 1904 the property was sold and he purchased forty acres two and a half miles northwest of Outlook. Later he bought twenty-five acres more and then sold the forty-acre tract. He now raises hay and fruit upon his place and conducts a small dairy. He is well known as one of the general farmers of the district and is recognized as a man of industry and perseverance whose well directed activities are bringing him success. In politics he maintains an independent course. His mother is a member of the Lutheran church and the family is one highly esteemed in the community.

JOHN M. PERRY.

With the development of the horticultural interests of the Yakima valley many enterprising men have embraced the opportunity of becoming successful fruit dealers in this section. Among those connected with the wholesale fruit trade in Yakima is John M. Perry, president and manager of the J. M. Perry Company, Incorporated, who, closely studying every phase of his business and applying himself most earn- cstly to its conduct and management, has built up a trade of extensive and gratifying proportions. The story of his life record is the story of earnest endeavor. He was born in Houlton, Maine, in 1861, a son of Charles and Margaret (Hanna) Perry, both of whom died in the Pine Tree state. They were natives, however, of Ireland and came to the new world in 1848. The father settled in the midst of the Maine for- est, where he cleared and developed a farm and there continud to make his home until his life's labors were ended in death.

John M. Perry acquired a public school education, supplemented by study in the Bryant & Stratton Business College of Philadelphia. He has been identified with

JOHN M. PERRY

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the west since 1888, in which year he arrived in Spokane, Washington, where he resided for a decade, during which time he was engaged in the grain trade. In 1898 he came to Yakima and entered the fruit business and in 1900 built a warehouse, since which time he has been engaged in dealing in fruit as a wholesale merchant. He was the first to enter this line of business on a large scale and is today the oldest wholesale fruit dealer of the city. His first location was at Yakima avenue and the railroad and in 1911 he built a fine new plant, three hundred by one hundred and eighty feet, where he has a cold storage capacity for five hundred cars of fruit. This is the largest establishment of the kind in the Yakima valley. He operates his own ice plant and does an extensive business with the Pacific Fruit Express Com- pany and the Northern Pacific Railway Company, supplying them with over twelve thousand tons of ice in a season. His plant is operated by electric power and its equipment is most modern and complete in every particular. He handled over five hundred cars of fruit in 1917 under the "Perry" brand and his sales cover the United States and Canada. His packing plant is of the most modern type. He has a pack- ing room eighty by one hundred and twenty-five feet, which is kept at forty-five degrees Fahrenheit, where he makes a specialty of handling pears. After they are packed they are put in a room where the temperature is kept at thirty-two degrees and where they are held until loaded in iced cars before shipping. He handles more pears than any other packer of Yakima and he employs from fifteen to fifty people, according to the season. There is no man able to speak with greater authority upon horticultural interests, especially in connection with the wholesale fruit trade, than Mr. Perry, who has been in the business for a longer period than any other Yakima merchant in this field and whose well directed activities have kept him constantly to the front as a leader in his special line. He is also the president of the Yakima Valley Traffic & Credit Association, which controls ninety percent of the Yakima valley fruit tonnage, and is constantly studying every question which has to do with the development of the horticultural interests and the handling of the fruit products of the northwest.

In 1898 Mr. Perry was married to Miss Harriet Martin, a native of El Paso, Illinois. He is identified with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and is a life member of Yakima Lodge No. 318, and he is also a valued representative of the Yakima Commercial Club and of the Yakima Country Club. His political endorse- ment is given to the republican party and he does not lightly hold the obligations and duties of citizenship but is loyal at all times to the best interests of community, commonwealth and country.

JOHN J. SUVER.

John J. Suver, who for a long period was well known as a substantial and highly respected citizen of Kittitas county, was born on the 28th of July, 1852, and passed away on the 5th of August, 1907. He was a son of David and Catherine (Smith) Suver, more extended mention of whom is made on another page of this work in connection with the sketch of Charles W. Suver, brother of John J. Suver. He was twenty years of age when in 1872 he left Kansas and in 1873 he arrived in Seattle, Washington. There he remained until 1876, when he removed to the Kittitas valley, becoming one of the pioneer settlers. He was owner of one of the first livery stables in Ellensburg but withdrew from that business in 1885, in which year he took up government land, securing a preemption claim. Later he bought more land and became the owner of two hundred and eighty acres in all. As the years passed on he successfully developed and conducted his fields, making of his place a substantial property, from which he annually derived a gratifying income.

In 1882 Mr. Suver was married to Miss Josephine Becker, now a resident of Seattle, and they reared a large family. Harry, who now cultivates the old home farm, married Eileen Kelly and has one child. Katherine is the wife of W. A. Holton, a resident of Seattle. Leo has passed away. A second son of the name of Leo died at the age of twenty-three years. Clyde, who wedded Blanche Hicks, of Ellens- burg, operates the old home farm in company with his brother Harry and they also

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History of the Yakima Valley, Washington; comprising Yakima, Kittitas, and Benton Counties, Vol. II, Part 73

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