Memoirs of Milwaukee County : from the earliest historical times down to the present, including a genealogical and biographical record of representative families in Milwaukee County, Volume II, Part 81

Author: Watrous, Jerome Anthony, 1840- ed
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Madison : Western Historical Association
Number of Pages: 1072

USA > Wisconsin > Milwaukee County > Memoirs of Milwaukee County : from the earliest historical times down to the present, including a genealogical and biographical record of representative families in Milwaukee County, Volume II > Part 81

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George J. Nichols, deceased, late of Milwaukee, Wis., where he was a popular and well-known railway engineer, was born at Dummer, Coos county, N. H., on Aug. 28, 1846, the son of Jona- than and Fanny ( Hager) Nichols, both of whom were also natives

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of New Hampshire. Jonathan was a railroad employe in the service of the Grand Trunk up to the time of his death. He reared a large family of ten children, of whom George J. was the ninth child. The parents lived their whole lives and are now buried in the Granite State. Our subject attended the public schools of his native village, and when only nineteen years of age he came west to Janesville, Wis., where he entered the service of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway Company. He was a remarka- bly industrious, sober, and efficient employe, and was soon given charge of an engine. He removed to Milwaukee in 1880, con- tinued with the road as a railway engineer, and was deemed one of its most trusted and careful employes. He finally met his death in his hazardous calling in a wreck at Kaukauna, Wis., Aug. 17, 1900. He had been with the road nearly forty years and his death was sincerely deplored, the road losing a valuable and highly trained employe, and the family mourning the unfor- tunate taking off of a kind and indulgent father and husband. Mr. Nichols was allied politically with the Republican party, but was contented to do his duty as a private citizen, and never sought or held a public office. His church affiliations were with the Westminister Presbyterian church, of Milwaukee, of which he was an attendant. Mr. Nichols was a popular member of the Knights of Pythias fraternal organization and also belonged to the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers. The esteem in which he was held by his brother engineers is attested by the fact that the lodge at Fond du Lac, Wis., is named in his honor. He was married on Aug. 28, 1867, to Miss Helen Glover, of Horicon, Wis., a daughter of Benjamin and Mary (Taggart) Glover, prominent residents of that section of the state. Mrs. Nichols' parents were both natives of the Empire State, her father being a native of Byron, N. Y., and her mother having been born in the village of Bennington, N. Y. They came west to Wisconsin during the pioneer days of the territory, in 1843, and settled at Horicon. Here Mr. Glover made entry on a quarter-section of government land, to which he subsequently added another quarter-section by purchase. He became one of the most prosperous farmers in that locality and died there on April 19, 1872, at the advanced age of eighty- three years; his wife had previously died on Aug. 8, 1862, at the age of fifty-nine. Mr. and Mrs. Nichols were the parents of six children, the eldest of whom, Edna, is the widow of Frederick T. Dawe, deceased, specific mention of whom follows; Minnie, now deceased; George A., deceased; Guy G., who has followed his father's profession and is a railway engineer with the Chicago and Northwestern Railway Company ; Grace, who lives at home with the mother at 558 Farwell avenue, and Fannie, who is a graduate nurse of the Lakeside Hospital and lives in Milwaukee. Frederick T. Dawe, deceased, late member of the firm of Dawe Brothers Printing Company, 116 Michigan street, Milwaukee, who married Edna Nichols, was born in this city on Aug. 25, 1873. He was the second oldest of the four children of Robert Dawe, an English-

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man who was one of the early pioneers of Milwaukee, and who served the city for many years as engineer at the waterworks station. Both parents have been dead for many years. Fred- erick T. received his education in the public schools of Milwau- kee. and then learned the printer's trade. The Dawe Brothers Printing Company was one of the reliable printing and engraving firms of the city and did an extensive and profitable business. The firm is still in operation under the name of the Hammersmith Engraving Company, located in the McGeogh building on Mich- gan street. Mr. Dawe went west in the year of 1902 in the effort to recuperate his failing health, but again returned to Milwaukee, where his death took place on April 2, 1907. He was identified with the Republican party politically, but was never an aspirant for public office. He was a sincere and earnest Christian, and a devoted member of the Westminister Presbyterian church, of which Rev. Everett A. Cutler is the pastor. He took an active interest in all the beneficent labors of his church, and was long known as one of its most zealous workers. He was a deacon in the Westminster church, taught one of its Sunday school classes, and was the first superintendent of the branch organization known as the Westminster Mission. Mr. Dawe was essentially a home- loving man, devoted to his wife and children, and was a member of none of the fraternal societies, clubs, or professional associa- tions, with the exception of the Typographical Union of Milwau- kee, of which he was an influential member. Mr. Dawe was united in marriage on Nov. 1, 1900, to Miss Edna, daughter of George J. and Helen (Glover) Nichols, of Milwaukee. Two sons, Oliver and Willard, were the fruit of this union, both of whom are living with their widowed mother in the home at 558 Farwell aventie.

Frank A. Cady, deceased, a prominent lawyer and member of the legislature from Wood county, Wis., whose widow now resides at No. 176 Eighteenth street, Milwaukee, was born in the town of Newport, Columbia county, Wis., Dec. 31, 1858. His parents, Charles A. and Helen (Blood) Cady, were both natives of the Empire State, and are now living at Kilbourn City, Wis. Our subject was their only child. Charles A. was a prosperous and influential farmer of Adams and Columbia counties, and settled in Wisconsin at an early day. While a resident of Dell Prairie, Adams county, he represented his district in the lower house of the state legislature for three terms, in 1873, 1874, and 1879. Frank A. was educated in the public schools at Kilbourn, and later attended the law school of the University of Wisconsin, graduating therein with the class of 1883. He entered the practice of his profession the same year at Marshfield, Wis., and remained there in the enjoyment of a large and lucrative practice for nearly twenty years. He was subsequently located for nearly two years at Grand Rapids, the county seat of Wood county. Mr. Cady was made an honorary member of Company A, Second Wiscon- sin infantry, in grateful recognition of the unselfish services ren-

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dered by him to the organization during the Spanish-American war. After the regiment had departed for the South several of its members became very ill, and Mr. Cady went down and spent several weeks with the boys at Chattanooga and Charleston, spend- ing a considerable sum of his own money, and extending to them all the aid and comfort in his power. He did this from purely patriotic and altruistic motives, and with no thought of any advan- tage to himself. He was an ardent Republican in politics and prominent in the councils of his party in his section of the state. He was twice elected as a member of the assembly to represent his district, from Marslifield. Wood county, Wisconsin, the first time in 1901 and the second time in 1903. He was still serving his second term in the legislature at the time of his death. He had gone to Hot Springs, Ark., for the benefit of his health, and died there on March 30, 1904. His remains now rest in the cemetery at Kilbourn, Wis. He was a remarkably well-informed and wide- ly-read man, and took a lively interest in public affairs. He was an excellent conversationalist, a pleasant and affable companion, and had a host of warm friends and admirers. He was a member of the following fraternal orders: The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks: the Ancient Order of United Workmen : the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows; the Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons : and the Knights of Pythias. He was united in marriage on June 18, 1901, to Miss Anna L., daughter of Charles and .Sarah (McNamara) Cavanaugh, of Forest, Ontario Province, Canada. The widow now makes her home in Milwaukee. Their only son, Emil C., resides with his mother, is a graduate of St. John's Military Academy, Delafield, Wis., and is now a student in the University of Wisconsin. Mrs. Cady's father was born in the seaport town of Wicklow, Ireland, and emigrated to the United States when he was only fourteen years of age. He first settled in New York state, where he met and married his wife, a native of that state. After a residence in Canada extending over a num- ber of years, he returned to the United State and is now living the life of a retired farmer at Hudson, Wis. Mr. and Mrs. Cavanaugh are the parents of eight children.

Edwin Walter Enos, formerly a prominent business man of Milwaukee, was born in this city on April 20, 1840, the son of Solomon Calkins and Sylvia Enos, the former a native of Rutland, Jefferson county, N. Y., and the latter a native of the same state. The father was born on April 1, 1817, and was the youngest and last survivor of a family of seven children. When he was but four years of age his parents removed from Rutland to Champion, in the same county, and subsequently to Ox Bow, thence after two or three years to Watertown. At the age of eleven years he entered the printing department of the Democratic-Standard, the pro- prietors of which were T. A. and A. L. Smith, and in the three years in which he remained he thoroughly mastered the trade. He then went to Sacket Harbor, and for a year and a half was em- ployed on the Courier, until it ceased publication. Impaired

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health made it advisable for him to find some out-of-door work, and he determined to become a sailor on the great lakes, follow- ing that work in the summer and his vocation in the winter months. The first vessel upon which he sailed was the Eliza, Cap- tain Potts commanding, from Belleville, Canada, and later he shipped on the United States, the America, the Lucinda, and the Pennsylvania. In the spring of 1837 he came up the lakes on the Pennsylvania, and landing at Milwaukee assisted in fitting out the Solomon Juneau, upon which he sailed the balance of the season. In the fall of that year he secured employment of Daniel H. Richards in the office of the Daily Advertiser, and in the summer of 1838 entered 160 acres of land under the homestead law in the town of Granville. Upon this property he erected a log cabin and lived there for a time in order to fulfill the law under which claims were made. In December, 1839, he went to Madison and was employed as foreman in the office of the Madison Express until after the adjournment of the legislature. Upon his return to Milwaukee he purchased a two-thirds interest in the Milwaukee Advertiser and continued to publish that paper until 1841. Again in that year his health failed and upon the advice of his physician he disposed of his city interests and removed to his farm in the town of Granville and engaged in agricultural pursuits. With the exception of a year and a half, when he served in the army, he fol- lowed this calling until 1886, and then removed to the city. In 1862 he was employed by the authorities in enrolling those subject to the draft for the army. Although he was forty-seven years of age Mr. Enos considered his country's call imperative, and despite the fact that his age exempted him from the draft he enlisted as a private in Company A of the Thirty-sixth Wisconsin infantry, on March 10, 1864, and was honorably discharged on July 26, 1865, after the cessation of hostilities. With his regiment he par- ticipated in the engagements on the Weldon railroad in Vir- ginia, from Aug. 19 to 22, 1864; Ream's Station, Aug. 25, 1864; Poplar Springs Church, Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, 1864; Hatcher's Run, Oct. 27 and 28, 1864; Fort Steadman, March 25, 1865;

and Petersburg, April 2, 1865. After peace had been de- clared he participated with the regiment in the grand review at Washington on May 24, 1865. He became a member of E. B. Wolcott Post, No. 1, Grand Army of the Republic, by transfer from Cutler Post, No. 55, of the Department of Wisconsin, and for many years was senior member of the first-named post. While a resident of the town of Granville he was justice of the peace from 1844 until the time of his enlistment, in 1864. His death occurred on July 23, 1904. Edward Walter Enos, the subject of this review, was educated in the public schools of Milwaukee and subsequently followed the vocation of a school teacher for some years. He then gave up his professional work and embarked in the bakery business at the corner of Second street and Grand avenue, owning his own establishment. Although politically affil- iated with the Republican party he was never an office seeker. He

THE NEW YORM PUBLIC LIBRARY

ASTOR, LENOX ILLEN FOUNDATIONS'

CARL VOGT PETERS

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attended the Grand Avenue Methodist Episcopal church while a resident of Milwaukee. Some years ago he removed to Cali- fornia and now makes that state his home. On May 23, 1866, Mr. Enos was united in marriage to Miss Tama E. Parish, a daughter of Daniel and Sarah (Hubbard) Parish, of Milwaukee. Their son, George L., resides in Milwaukee and is associated with the Robert A. Johnston Company. Mrs. Enos makes her home at 103 Twentieth street. Her father was a native of New York state, where he was born and reared on a farm. He came west to Wis- consin at a very early day, locating on a farm in Ozaukee county, and died there in the year 1845. Her mother, who was a native of Jefferson county, N. Y., came to Milwaukee with her husband. She continued to reside here with her brother from 1862 until her death on Jan. 4, 1897, at the hale old age of eighty-one years.

Carl Vogt Peters, deceased, one of the prominent insurance and business men of Milwaukee, was born in the grand duchy of Mecklenburg, Germany, on April 20, 1850, being one of a family of five brothers and sisters. His father was a professor in a German gymnasium. Our subject received an excellent education in the schools of his native land, served the prescribed time in the armies of the Fatherland, and was also one of the veternas of the Franco- Prussian war of 1870-71. After severing his connection with the army, Mr. Peters went to Australia and was there engaged in busi- ness pursuits for a number of years. He then returned to his native land, at which time his marriage took place, and a short time afterward he came to the United States. He first located in the city of Philadelphia, and moved to Milwaukee in the year 1894. He here held the responsible position of manager for the Germania Life Insurance Company, of New York. He was a keen, energetic, and successful business man, fair and honorable in all his dealings, and regarded as one of the best insurance men that ever came to Milwaukee. He was engaged in life insurance work most of the time for thirty years and met with success in this line, in South Africa, South America, Australia, Great Britain, con- tinental Europe, Canada, and the United States. He was of fine personal presence, genial and affable in manner, a fine conversa- tionalist, and possessed a host of warm friends. He died in the fifty-first year of his life, Sept. 21, 1900, and left surviving him his wife and five young daughters. Mr. Peters was most happily mar- ried on Jan. 13, 1889, to Miss Elizabeth Dittbender, daughter of August and Eliza (Kunow) Dittbender, a prominent family of Stettin, Germany. Their five charming daughters, Charlotte, Marguerite, Elsie, Clara, and Paula, make their home with their widowed mother at No. 272 Ogden avenue, Milwaukee. Mr. Peters was a member and an earnest and liberal supporter of the German Lutheran denomination. He was a popular clubman and belonged to both the Deutscher and the Calumet clubs.

Captain John Coyne, deceased, late of the city of Milwaukee, was born in Ireland on May 25, 1830, the son of Thomas and Han- ora Coyne, natives of that country. His parents came to the

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United States with their family in 1836, going first to Vermont and later to Detroit, Mich .. and shortly afterward coming on to Milwaukee, where they arrived in the same year. Captain Coyne was one of a large family of twelve children, and received a good public school education in the schools of Milwaukee. When a young man he followed the sea for a space of about seven years, and sailed from London to both the East and West Indies. He then returned to Milwaukee and later became a captain on the Great Lakes. He was a sailor practically his whole life, only retiring a few years before his death, which took place at Milwaukee, on March 20, 1898. He was a man of rather reserved and retiring disposition, but among his intimates entered into conversation freely, and possessed a most interesting fund of anecdote and information, gathered from the experience of a more than com- monly varied life. His mind, too, was well stored with useful knowledge gleaned from extensive reading, as he was very fond of his books. In politics he adhered to the Democratic party, but was never an aspirant for public office. He was a faithful Catholic in his religious convictions, and an attendant on St. Patricks' church, corner of Washington and Second streets. He was united in marriage on Jan. 9, 1865, to Miss Hanna Mannix, a native of the state of Massachusetts, and of their four children-Katherine, Mary, Thomas, and William-the first-named alone survives, and she is a bookkeeper, making her home at the Coyne Flats on Four- teenth street, with her widowed mother.

Herman Thierbach, deceased, was born in Saxony, Germany, June 12, 1844. He was the son of Frederick and Caroline (Dable) Thierbach, both born in Germany. The father was a weaver and owned a large factory. He came to Milwaukee in 1846, on retiring from business, and died in 1847. In the family there were five chil- dren, viz: August, Amelia, Gustave, Marie, and Herman, the sub- ject of this sketch, he being the youngest. The whole family came to America together and settled in Milwaukee in 1846. Herman was educated at the German-English Academy. He first engaged as a barber in the Newhall House, later changing his place of busi- ness to Grand avenue and Second street. He continued in busi- ness until a year and a half before his death, which occurred on Oct. 10, 1903. On March 5, 1864, he married Miss Carrie, daughter of Henry and Julia (Albright) Miller, and to them were born two children : Ida Julia, wife of J. W. Myers, who is in the shoe busi- ness ; and Albert Henry, who is city cashier for the Blatz Brewing Company. Mr. Thierbach was a Democrat in politics and in relig- ion an Episcopalian. He was also a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He was a loving father, devoted to his family and happy in their midst. Mrs. Thierbach's parents were also born in Germany and came to the United States in 1846. The father was a confectioner by trade and conducted a large estab- lishment of this kind on East Water street until 1861. When the Civil war broke out he enlisted and was chosen captain of a com- pany of Wisconsin infantry. He served his adopted country with

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distinction until Jan. 31, 1863, when he succumbed to lung fever. He was a brave soldier, a worthy citizen, and a kind father. His devoted wife survived him as a widow for thirty-five years and died on Nov. 29, 1898.

Charles F. Rauser, president and senior member of the whole- sale firm of Rauser, Leavens & Kissinger, is one of the successful and popular business men of the Cream City. He is a native of Milwaukee, and was born of German parents on April 24, 1863. His father came to America as a young man and located in Mil- waukee, where he lived, and was married. In 1861 the father en- tered the employ of Goll & Frank and was with them as shipping clerk for thirty-eight years. Mr. Rauser died in 1898, leaving four children, two boys and two girls, of whom the subject of this sketch is the third child. Charles F. Rauser was educated at St. Joseph's and St. Gall's parochial schools and began to work for the Goll & Frank Company when only fourteen years of age, as porter. He was ambitions, was faithful to his duty, a conscien- tious worker, and was rapidly advanced by the firm from one posi- tion of trust to another. He had started at the bottom and learned the business most thoroughly, and when twenty-three years old, having held nearly every position of honor in the company, he was sent to New York as the buyer for the firm. In 1902, after serving the Frank & Goll Company for nearly twenty-five years Mr. Rauser became the founder and senior member of the firm of Rauser, Leavens & Kissinger, wholesale underwear, hosiery and shirts. The members of the new firm had all been empolyes of the Goll & Frank Company, and their aggregate services amounted to fifty-four years. They are all experienced men in the line they represent and conduct one of the largest concerns in the Middle West. Their specialties are underwear, hosiery and shirts and the store at 352 Broadway has a rapidly increasing business. Owing to the increase in business they have leased a new store for a long term of years at 343-345 Broadway, which has a floor space of 30,000 square feet. When they started in 1902 they occupied a store of only 4,000 square feet of floor space. They are up-to-date and progressive, thoroughly understand the demands of the business, and are the leaders in their line in Milwaukec. On May 31, 1887, Mr. Rauser was united in marriage with Miss Marie Julia Tietz, the daughter of Frank and Catherine Tietz, of Milwatt- kee. Mr. Tietz was born in Austria and served in the army of the Emperor for twelve years as colonel before coming to the United States. He settled in Milwaukee in 1866 and was one of the pioneer tailors, which business he engaged in until his death in 1906. Mrs. Rauser's mother still makes her home with her daughter and son-in-law in Milwaukee. Three children have come to glad- den the home of Mr. Rauser: Charles F., Jr., who is in business with his father; Irwin F., a student of Marquette College: and Baby Marguerite. The family are devout members of the Gesti Roman Catholic church. Mr. Rauser is independent in politics, exercising his right of franchise by voting for the principle and

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the best man for the place, rather than be bound by party rule. He is a Knight of Columbus and a member of the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Association. Mr. Rauser has recently purchased a new house at 2828 State street.

Sidney Orren Neff, deceased, a prominent figure for many years in the marine circles of Milwaukee, was born at Oshkosh, Wis., on Oct. 2, 1863, a son of Samuel and Marcelia (Ellenwood) Neff. Samuel Neff was born in New Lisbon, N. Y., on March 31, 1842, and the mother in Peru, N. Y., on April 19, 1844. The father came west in 1855 and located in Oshkosh, where the family continued to reside until 1887, and then at Appleton about one year, when they moved to Milwaukee. The father was a vessel captain on the great lakes for many years, and the year that he brought his family to Milwaukee the firm of Samuel Neff & Sons, vessel owners, was inaugurated. The mother died on Dec. 15, 1899, and the father passed away on Feb. 21, 1904. He was a prominent Mason, having reached the thirty-second degree of that order, and he was also a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. At his death he left two sons, Sidney O., and Charles S. Sidney O. Neff obtained his primary 'educational advantages in the public schools of Oshkosh, and when he had completed the courses offered there he studied for a time at a busi- ness college in the same city. While he was still a youth he started life as a sailor on one of his father's vessels, and before he attained his majority was acting captain on one of the boats. Upon the reorganization of the business, following his father's death in 1904, he was made the manager of the company, the position which his father had filled. In 1905 he and his brother, Charles S., determined to divide their interests, each brother taking half of the equipment, and from that time until his death, which occurred on Dec. 17, 1907, Sidney O. Neff conducted a large and prosperous business under his own name. His capacity as a busi- ness man was recognized throughout the community, and for some years he was a director of the Merchants' and Manufac- turers' Bank. Politically Mr. Neff was a Republican, but while he was anxious to do all in his power for the welfare of the party, he was never a candidate for any office of public trust. In religious matters he was a staunch believer in the principles of the Congre- gational faith and an earnest worker in the church of that society. Fraternally he was also prominent, being a Mason of the thirty- second degree, a member of the Order of the Eastern Star, and a member and director of the Lumber Carrier's Association. On Dec. 30, 1891, Mr. Neff was united in marriage to Miss Lucy Jane Olcott, a daughter of John D. and Mary Ann (Armstrong) Olcott, of Oshkosh. Mr. Olcott was a native of Essex county and his wife of Genesee county, N. Y. He was a farmer by vocation, who came west about 1845 and located in Milwaukee for a year, but later went to Oshkosh to engage in agricultural pursuits. For a time he was the proprietor of the old American House at Milwau- kee, his father also having conducted a hotel at Oshkosh during

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Memoirs of Milwaukee County : from the earliest historical times down to the present, including a genealogical and biographical record of representative families in Milwaukee County, Volume II, Part 81

Author: Watrous, Jerome Anthony, 1840- ed Publication date: 1909 Publisher: Madison : Western Historical Association Number of Pages: 1072

Author: Watrous, Jerome Anthony, 1840- ed
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Madison : Western Historical Association
Number of Pages: 1072