History of Dane County, Wisconsin, Part 156

Author: Butterfield, Consul Willshire, 1824-1899; Western Historical Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Chicago : Western Historical Company
Number of Pages: 1304

USA > Wisconsin > Dane County > History of Dane County, Wisconsin > Part 156

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JUNE.

Thou art here sunny June with a beautiful blush -- With the buzz of the bee and the song of the thrush ; Thou art here with the diamonds of dew on thy brow, And with winds whispering soft, like a maiden's vow. 1

Lo! the heath and the hilltops are glad in thy ray, And robed in thy smile the green valleys lay ;

While the fields spreading out 'neath the heaven's blue dome,

Give a promise of plenty for days yet to come.

It is greeting indeed when the winter is past And the rain-drops of spring on earth's bosom are cast; To walk mid the flowers, thy sun doth illume And to breathe thy sweet breath, mild genial June.

How glad are the insects ! How merry the rills- The herds in the valleys, and the flocks on the hills ; How softly the songs mingle, If distant, or near, The songs of thy singers, gentle queen of the year. * *

* *

May thy annual visit to our storm-beaten ball Bring peace, song and roses ; bring gladness to all : Make the sad bosom happy ; make the faint spirit strong, And bless weeping mortals as years roll along.

And then, when the cycle of our days is complete ; When time with eternity shall solemnly meet ; May the sunshine of bliss to our spirits be given- A bright June in the skies-the summer of Heaven.

REV. PATRICK F. PETTIT, Pastor of St. Raphael's Church; born in 1832, in the Province of Leinster, County Westmeath, Ireland; came to the United States in 1847; in 1851, he- entered the college " St. Mary's of the Lake," at Chicago, Ill., where he remained until nearly the end of 1856, and then immediately entered upon a theological course at St. Francis Seminary, Milwaukee; he was ordained priest on the 16th of December, 1859, in St. John's Cathedral, Milwaukee, by Archbishop Henni. He has had charge of the following missions : Cascade and three surrounding out-missions; from 1860 to the fall of 1862 ; then at St. Joseph's. Waukesha, until the spring of 1865; then in Portage, Columbia Co .; until the fall of 1867; then in Kenosha, until January, 1870; then to Watertown, until

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the winter of 1872 ; afterward, in Bay View, until August, 1875, when he was appointed to the pastorate of St. Raphael's Church, at Madison, Wis. ; this is a large church, numbering 456 families. At begin- ning of Father Pettit's pastorate, the society was $1,500 in debt, as result of building and making other improvements; this debt, by the prosperity and liberality of the congregation, is nearly extinguished ; the stone church and parsonage are on Main street ; 367 pupils attend the parochial school.

HON. S. U. PINNEY was born in Rockdale, Crawford Co., Penn., March 3, 1833 ; his father, Justin C. Pinney, was a native of Becket, Berkshire Co., Mass., and removed from there to Crawford Co., Penn, in 1815 ; his mother's maiden name was Polly Ann Miller, a native of Crawford Co., Penn., and of German descent; his father, with his family, came to Wisconsin in 1846, and settled in what is now the town of Windsor, Dane Co., but which was then a part of the town of Madison ; the country was then new and sparsely settled, and the subject of this sketch, having received a good common- school education, found it necessary to give his attention to other subjects than books for a considerable time; he had, however, the advantages which some private instruction could give, and such self-instruc- tion as only leisure moments could afford ; he was, however, principally occupied in improving and culti- vating his father's farm ; he was pretty well supplied with books, and a great reader, and had a very excel- lent memory, so that whatever he gained, even in the most general or imperfect manner, he was able to retain and utilize ; he taught a district school three winters; when about 17 years of age, having acquired a predilection for the legal profession, he began the study of the first text-books, and kept it up, as well as his occupation on the farm and in teaching school would permit, until April, 1853, when he entered the law office of Vilas & Remington, in Madison, as a student ; from that time to the present, he has devoted his time and attention almost exclusively to the law; in February, 1854, he was admitted to practice in both the Circuit and Supreme Courts of the State, and afterward in the Federal Courts, and in May, 1854, he entered upon the active duties of his profession in the city of Madison, where he has been so engaged ever since. He has ever been, and still is a Democrat, and has avoided rather than sought political preferment. He began his career in life single-handed and alone, with no capital but his own industry and such qualifica- tions in point of learning as he had acquired for his engaging in the profession of his choice, and hence le very early learned to depend on himself; self-reliance has been the source of his success; in 1858, he was City Attorney for the city of Madison ; in 1865, he was a member of the City Council; and, in 1869, an unsuccessful candidate for Attorney General of the State on the Democratic ticket; in April, 1874, he was elected Mayor of the city of Madison, and, in November of that year, was elected a member of the Legislative Assembly from the Madison District; and in April, 1875, was re-elected Mayor of Madison, without opposition ; in 1865, he prepared and attended to the publication of the sixteenth volume of Wisconsin Reports ; in 1870, he was appointed special reporter by the Supreme Court, to report and publish the decisions of the Territorial Supreme Court and the first Supreme Court of the State, extend- ing over a period from 1836 to June, 1853, and which are embraced in three volumes known as Pin- ney's "Wisconsin Reports." Mr. Pinney became junior member of the law firm of Vilas, Roys & Pinney, and in which Judge Levi B. Vilas and Samuel H. Roys were his associates. In June, 1856, Judge Vilas retired from practice, and, in April, 1857, Mr. Roys was elected County Judge, and died August 18, 1857. In February, 1858, Mr. P. became a partner with J. C. Gregory, under the firm name of Gregory & Pinney, and, in October, 1858, Chauncey Abbott became a partner with them under the firm name of Abbott, Gregory & Pinney. In 1863, Mr. Abbott withdrew, and Mr. Pinney and Mr. Gregory remained partners until July, 1879, and he afterward became a member of the law firm of Pinney & Sanborn. Mr. Pinney has quick perceptions, a subtle power of discrimination, a sound, practical judgment and a won- derful memory ; in the discussions of legal principles in the presence of the Court, he is lucid in his statements, logical in his arguments, and forcible in his conclusions; he speaks without appar- ent effort, in plain, simple language, without ornament to divert the mind from the subject-matter, and without obscurity to conceal it; it has been his good fortune to be employed in many important cases, . involving large amounts of money and property ; he ranks among the most eminently able and successful lawyers of the West. On March 3, 1856, he was married, at Colesburg, Iowa, to Miss Mary M. Mulliken, a native of Farmersville, Cattaraugus Co., N. Y.

WILLIAM G. PITMAN, manager of the " New York Store," Nos. 194 and 196 Main street, Madison ; was born in Massachusetts in 1834; was educated in the public schools of his native State ; began his mercantile career at the age of 15, as shop-boy, for $1.50 per week; came to Madison in 1854, and continued his dry-goods experience; in 1859, he engaged with S. Klauber & Co., and remained with that firm and its successors until they retired from business, in 1879; they sold to parties who secured Mr. Pitman as their business manager. He was married, in March, 1864, to Miss

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Eugenie S. Bemis, of Madison ; they have three daughters-Bertha S., Jennie M. and Annie M. He owns residence No. 15 Gorham street. His family attend the Episcopal Church. He enlisted in 1861; was Sergeant of a company in the 1st W. V. I. (three months) ; in 1862, he raised a company for the 23d W. V. I., and went into service as Adjutant of the regiment ; was afterward Captain of Co. I, the one raised by himself; in December, 1863, he resigned and resumed his former occupation ; he par- ticipated in the battles preceding the siege of Vicksburg, and was in that memorable siege ; entered Vicks- burg. patriotically happy, on the 4th day of July, 1863. Since February, 1879, when the present com- pany purchased the establishment, Mr. Pitman has been the local head of the concern ; they occupy four floors of a store 33x120, and employ eleven salesmen ; their stock is the largest in the city, and they have a liberal patronage, both city and country.

THOMAS D. PLUMB, publisher of law blanks; office in State Journal Block ; residence, No. 16 Gorham street ; was born in Stockbridge, Mass., February, 1821 ; learned the trade of printer in his native State; removed to Oberlin, Ohio, in May, 1841, and in May, 1842, came to Wisconsin, and for five years was journeyman printer ; in the fall of 1846, he commenced the publication of the Ameri- can Freeman in Prairieville (now Waukesha). Was married, July 7, 1847, to Miss Louisa, daughter of Deacon Ezra Mendell, of Waukesha; in 1850, he was proprietor of the Lockport Telegraph, Lockport, Ill. ; afterward spent four years in Milwaukee as journeman printer ; in 1857, he located in Madison, where he has since resided. His leading business for twenty-five years has been publishing law blanks. Owns 20 acres in Madison Township, which is devoted to vegetable gardening and fruit-growing; he is a well-known horticulturist. Is a Republican, but has never held official position. Member of Madison Lodge, No. 5. A., F. A. M. Has five sons and one daughter-Mrs. L. B. Fuller, now a prominent teacher of music, in Madison. His family affiliate with the M. E. Church. Mr. Plumb was an earnest anti-slavery man when it cost something to advocate the liberty party ; he has seen the triumph of its principles, and rejoices in the fact that the despised principles he then advocated have become national- the guiding spirit of the American Government.

W. W. POLLARD, house and sign painter, Madison Wis .; he came to Milwaukee, Wis., in the spring of 1854, and was in business there for about six months, then removed to Madison, Wis., in the spring of 1856. . Mr. P. was born in Ithaca, N. Y., Aug. 8, 1836 ; he began the business in which he is now engaged, in 1856, in the city of Madison ; he employs from ten to twenty-five men; he has painted the asylum and colleges; re-painted them when needed; has painted three wings of the capitol building, and, in fact, has done work on nearly all the State buildings, and on the churches and all other public buildings of importance ; he is now serving his second term as Alderman of the Second Ward. In politics he is Republican. July 6, 1865, Mr. P. was married to Miss Eliza Ferguson; they have four children-Eliza E., Abbie J., Richard N. and Flora A .; family belong to the Baptist Church. Mr. P. is a Mason, and member of the Temple of Honor.

RICHARD PORSCH, editor; was born in Gerdanen, Prussia, Aug. 31, 1834 ; was educated at common schools and gymnasium ; emigrated to America in 1856, and has been a resident of Wisconsin since 1859. Is editor and publisher of the Wisconsin Botschafter, established in 1869.

REV. JOHN B. PRADT, A. M., Assistant State Superintendent of Public Instruction ; was born June 26, 1816, in Winchester, N. H .; his father was a skillful physician and surgeon; his mother had been noted as a school teacher ; he commenced the study of Latin at the age of 7 years, and had a private classical education ; worked eighteen months in a printing office, at Bellows Falls, Vt. ; read law two years, commencing at the age of 17, with Judge Horace Baxter, of Bellows Falls, and then studied theology three years, under Drs. Chase and Hopkins, late Bishops, of New Hampshire and Vermont ; during these professional studies, he taught four terms of public and one of a private school; he was ordained Deacon in the Protestant Episcopal Church, by Bishop Hopkins, in 1838, at Burlington, Vt., and Presbyter by the same, at Woodstock, in 1840; he was settled, from 1838 to 1841, as Rector of Christ Church, Guilford, Vt. He was married, in December, 1841, to Miss Elvira P. Eells, daughter of Col. George B. Eells, of Guilford, Vt .; from 1842 to 1846, he served as missionary in Potter, Mckean and Lycoming Counties, Penn., teaching, also, five terms in the Potter County Academy, at Coudersport, and one term of private school, at Jersey Shore; he was then four years more in his first parish, at Guilford, Vt., teaching, also, two terms of school; he labored as clergyman two years at Westfield, Chautauqua Co., N. Y., and two more in Manchester, Vt .; returned by request to Pennsylvania, in 1854, and resumed missionary labor, and was appointed County Superintendent of Schools in Potter Co .; his educational work attracting atten- tion, he was elected Principal of the First Normal School in Pennsylvania, located at Millersville, near Lancaster, but having determined to "go West," he declined the position, and came to Wisconsin, and in

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1856, settled in Sheboygan ; labored three years as clergyman at Sheboygan and Plymouth, and then took charge, one year, of the Sheboygan High School ; he was then appointed editor of the Wisconsin Journal of Education, which he conducted five years, removing to Madison, for that purpose, in 1860, and was that year elected Pesident of the Wisconsin State Teachers' Association. Spent two years organizing and conducting a parish at Glendale, a suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio; then returned to Madison, and on the 1st of January, 1868, he was appointed Assistant State Superintendent, by State Superintendent A. J. Craig, and has remained in the same place the last thirteen years; serving, also, for ten years past, as co-editor of the Wisconsin Journal of Education, which is the official organ of the State Superintendent. During his eighteen years' residence in Madison, he has extended missionary labors to Prairie du Chien, to Mazomanie, and other points in Dane Co. ; has rendered service at various times for Grace Church, Madison, especially when without a pastor, and has officiated for about eight years as chaplain at the hospital for the insane, near Madison. Of his nine children, but three survive-George H., who is now in New Mexico, in the capacity of Government Surveyor and Civil Engineer ; Bertha, a landscape painter, with studio in New York City, and Mary E., a medical student. Mr. Pradt has for many years mingled ministerial, educa- tional and editorial work; as a writer and sermonizer, he is terse, logical and instructive, rather than brilliant or rhetorical. Some account of his literary work is given in the chapter of this volume devoted to literature, art and oratory. For many years past he has largely conducted the official correspondence of the Department of Public Instruction at the capitol, involving the explanation and administration of the school laws, and has prepared the cases submitted for decision on appeal ; in this line of work he has acquired notable proficiency and legal acumen. His cast of mind is adapted to the interpretation of law, and had he pursued the legal profession, for which in youth he made some preparation, he might have attained judicial eminence. Socially, he is retiring, perhaps more fond of books than society, but, when called out, is a good converser. He has never taken part in politics, and does not much esteem the machinery of political parties.

CHARLES PRESSENTIN, general manager of Hooley's Opera House, Madison Wis .; was born in Sternberg, Mecklenberg, Germany, July 31, 1855 ; was educated in his native country ; graduate of the Gymnasium of Schwerin ; came, with his parents, to America in November, 1872; during the first winter and spring, he worked on his uncle's farm, at Verona Corners, Dane Co., Wis .; in the summer of 1873, he came to Wisconsin and learned the printer's trade at the Wisconin Botschafter. For two years, he was assistant foreman in the Zeitung office, and, after that paper was discontinued, he was for a short time clerk in the clothing store of F. Kurz; since September, 1876, he has held his present position with Senator George B. Burrows as book-keeper and general manager of the opera house. He is a son of the jeweler Charles Pressentin, also a resident of Madison.

MRS. ANN PRICE, proprietor Mansion House ; was born in Wales in 1806. Married in 1827, to Robert Price. They came to the United States in 1830 ; has five children, all married ; has been in Madison for forty years. Mr. Price died in 1854; he was a tailor by trade, and after working a num- ber of years, started a restaurant and billiard-hall, and afterward opened the Mansion House, which is still kept by Mrs. Price and her daughter, Mrs. Logwood ; have five rooms for guests, and keep a temperance house. Family are Congregationalists.

ANDREW PROUDFIT was born in Argyle, Washington Co., N. Y., on the 3d of August, A. D. 1820; is the son of James and Maria A. I. Proudfit; his father was a merchant in Troy, and afterward in Washington Co., N. Y .; Andrew attended the common school at Argyle, until he attained the age of 14 years, when he became a clerk in a store at Argyle, and thereafter depended entirely upon his own exertions for a living ; he came to Wisconsin in June, 1842, and settled in Milwaukee Co., then, now Waukesha Co., and took up a farm in Brookfield; he brought his mother and a sister and brother, younger, with him ; he cleared a heavy timber farm, and worked on it himself for two years, and then put a laborer in his place, and took a position as book-keeper and salesman for Shepard & Bonnell, in Milwaukee, for two years; he then, in 1846, went to Delafield, Waukesha Co., and built a flouring-mill and run it, in connection with a country store, for nine years ; in 1855, he became a resident of Madison, and has lived there ever since. He was Chairman of the Board of Supervisors for two terms in Dela- field; he was Commissioner of the Fox & Wisconsin Rivers improvement for two terms; he represented Madison in the State Senate in 1858 and 1859; was Mayor of the city of Madison for two terms (1869 and 1870) ; he built the south wing of the State Prison in 1854 ; also the north wing of the State Cap- ital in 1864; also built the two wings of the Wisconsin State Hospital for the Insane in 1866 and 1867. He is Vice President of the First National Bank, and has held the position since 1871 ; also one of the Directors of the Madison Gas Company. Mr. Proudfit was married in September, 1846, to

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Elizabeth Ford, a native of Cambridge, Washington Co., N. Y., and has had seven children ; one daughter and four sons are still living ; the daughter is now Mrs. George B. Hopkins, and lives in St. Louis ; Frank F., the eldest son, is living in St. Paul, and the other sons. Andrew E., Stanley and Austin, all live in Mad- ison. He and his family have always attended the Episcopal Church. He has always acted with the Democratic party.

COL. FRANK HOWELL PUTNEY, only son of Capt. Foskett and Clarissa Putney, of Waukesha ; was born at the Rockford House, Rockford, Ill , Oct. 13, 1841; his father was one of the pioneers of Wisconsin ; a man of decided character and honorable influence, active and prominent in affairs, and at all times possessing the confidence of his townsmen ; emigrated from Rushville, N. Y., to White Pigeon, Mich., in 1834, where he was commissioned a Captain by Gov. Stephen T. Mason, in 1836, and took part in the border troubles of that year; then moved to Milwaukee, Wis., in 1839, engaging in a mercantile business there, and at Rockford, Ill., which he carried on until 1845, when he retired to his farm at Prospect Hill, Waukesha Co., where, in the meantime, having been appointed Postmaster in 1846, he remained until 1850, at which time he removed to Waukesha, where he now resides in the full enjoy- ment of a hale and prosperous old age. His mother was an accomplished woman of most estimable char- acter, whose teachings and example early imbued her son with that love of right for right's sake, which has characterized his whole life. He was educated at the high school, Milwaukee, and Carroll College, Wau- kesha, afterward reading law and being admitted to practice at the bar of the courts of the State. In the war for the Union, he enlisted as a private in the 12th regiment of W. V. I., Sept. 12, 1861 : was 2d Ser- geant from Nov. 5, 1861, to July 1, 1862, then 1st Sergeant to Sept. 8, 1864; re-enlisted as a veteran, Jan. 5, 1864 ; was commissioned Lieutenant, Aug. 17, 1864 ; was Regimental Adjutant from Oct. 23, 1864, to April 12, 1865 ; was Assistant Adjutant General, 1st Brigade, 3d Division, 17th Army Corps, to May 22, 1865 ; was Inspector General of same brigade to July 18, 1865, and then Inspector General 3d Division, 17th Army Corps, to muster-out Aug. 10, 1865. During service he took an active part in the following battles of his command : Lamar, Hernando, Cold Water, Siege of Vicksburg, Jackson, Bolton Station, Canton, Kenesaw Mountain, Nickajack Creek, Chattahoochie River, Atlanta, Jonesboro, Lovejoy's Station, Savannah, Pocataligo, and Orangehurg, and he had the honor of serving in all the memorable campaigns of the Army of the Tennessee, including the Meridian expedition, the march to the sea, and the march through the Carolinas and Virginia to Washington. He has held various village, town and county offices ; was Private Secretary to Gov. Ludington, in 1876 and 1877 ; also Military Secretary and Aide- de-Camp to the Governor, with rank of Colonel, during the same years; was Assistant Secretary of State in 1878 and 1879, and was re-appointed Assistant Secretary in January, 1880, for two years, which office he now holds. His ancestors, on both sides, were lineal descendants of the first colonists of Massachusetts, as is shown by the following extracts from town, church and family records: John Putney, of Salem, Mass., married Nov. 18, 1662, to Judith, daughter of Henry Cooke, of same place. Joseph, of Salem, third son of preceding, born Aug. 25, 1673 ; married May 18, 1697, to Sarah McIntyre. Elisha, of Salem, eldest son of preceding, born at Reading, Mass., Nov. 21, 1713; married June 2, 1737, to Mar- garet Hamblen. Elisha, Jr., of Fenner, N. Y., eldest son of preceding, born at Salem (or Reading) May 23, 1738 ; married at Charlton, Mass., May 18, 1762, to Martha Foskett, of Charlton ; moved from Salem to Charlton in 1752, from Charlton to Goshen, Mass., in 1767, and from Goshen to Fenner, N. Y., about 1800. Aaron, of Middlesex, N. Y., third son of preceding, born at Goshen, May 24, 1771, and died at Middlesex, Sept. 28, 1845 ; married at Goshen, May 27, 1795, to Deborah, daughter of Joseph Maynard, of Framingham, Mass .; born at Framingham, Dec. 19, 1777, and died at Middlesex, July 7, 1819 ; moved from Goshen to Fenner about 1800, and from Fenner to Middlesex about 1813. Capt. Foskett Maynard, of Waukesha, Wis., second son of preceding, born at Fenner, May 11, 1805; married at Belvidere, Ill., Nov. 3, 1839, to Clarissa, daughter of Simeon Howell, of Southampton, L. I .; born at Franklin, N. Y. April 5, 1814, and died at Waukesha, March 12, 1855. Simeon Howell was descended in direct line, from Edward Howell of Southampton, who was made a freeman at Boston, March 14, 1639.

AUGUST RAMTHUN, proprietor of East Madison House and saloon, Madison, Wis .; came with his parents to Freistadt, Ozaukee Co., Wis., in the fall of 1839; for a good part of his life he has been engaged at work in hotels in Milwaukee and Chicago; for four years, however, he taught school in the town of Mequon. In 1865, Mr. Ramthun went to Madison, Wis., and worked at the Vilas House of that place until 1870, when he began business for himself; about eight years ago be built his present house, and has since that time been engaged in his present business. Mr. Ramthun was married, in Milwaukee, to Miss Margaret Goettelmann, on the 25th of May, 1862; she was born Dec. 25, 1844; they have had four children-Ida, born May 17, 1865 ; Mary, March 17, 1871 ; Ida and Emma, the two last, are dead. Mr. and Mrs. Ramthun belong to the Lutheran Church; Mr. Ramthun is a member of the Turners'

OREGON.

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Society; he has been Alderman of the Third Ward, and one of the Trustees of the Madison Relief As- aociation.

WILLIAM M. RASDALL, retired; was born April 1, 1819, in Bowling Green, Ky .; his father was a farmer, and he worked at home until the age of 17, then was for two years an overseer of a plantation, then three years in milling business; came to Madison in March, 1842, and opened a livery stable and ran a semi-weekly mail-stage to Portage; he and his brother Abel also engaged in lumber business in Northern Wisconsin. He was Under Sheriff from 1845 to 1849, under Peter W. Matts. In the spring of 1849, with a Madison company, he went to California overland, with ox teams, occupying six months and nine days from Madison to San Francisco; at Truckee's Lake, four miles east of the summit of the Sierra Nevadas, they camped on the fatal " Cannibal Camp," where seventy-nine of Gen. Fremont's men. atarved to death. After six years of mining experience, he returned to Madison, and has resided here ever since; before going to California, he built the Kentucky House, afterward called the City Hotel; this was destroyed by fire in the winter of 1864, and he then erected the stone hotel known several years as the Rasdall, now Capitol House; also built the stone block adjoining the hotel; owns residence No. 3 Fair- child street, and real estate elsewhere. He was married, Sept. 3, 1857, to Miss Anna E. Myers, a native of Lynchburg, Va .; they have three daughters- Nellie E., Minnie V. and Annie S. The family are Con- gregationalists. He has seen and experienced many changes since locating in Madison ; he makes a home for several summer tourists, and it is also the abiding place of a score of law-makers during the sessions of the Legislature.

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History of Dane County, Wisconsin, Part 156

Author: Butterfield, Consul Willshire, 1824-1899; Western Historical Co., Chicago, pub Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Chicago : Western Historical Company Number of Pages: 1304

Author: Butterfield, Consul Willshire, 1824-1899; Western Historical Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Chicago : Western Historical Company
Number of Pages: 1304