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A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
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THE FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY
IN THE EARLY DAYS OF
MINNEAPOLIS
AUGSBURG COLLEGE AND SEMINARY
LIBRARY . MINNEAPOLIS 4, MINN.
A HALF CENTURY
OF MINNEAPOLIS
Edited by
HORACE B. HUDSON
With Numerous Views
and ...
Show more
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
•\Y
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„; •
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THE FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY
IN THE EARLY DAYS OF
MINNEAPOLIS
AUGSBURG COLLEGE AND SEMINARY
LIBRARY . MINNEAPOLIS 4, MINN.
A HALF CENTURY
OF MINNEAPOLIS
Edited by
HORACE B. HUDSON
With Numerous Views
and Portraits
.'M'
-
•
MINNEAPOLIS
THE HUDSON PUBLISHING COMPANY
1908
\ . .,
*
1
* .„ • ". ,
Copyright 1908
by Horace B. Hudson
Gjmijpanj?
r
^ ,
11*f
MS"
PREFACE
"
I
N THE rise of Minneapolis is found one of the most remarkable instances of city
building in this country. In less than the ordinary span of life Minneapolis has
advanced from an obscure position as a frontier village to a conspicuous place
among American cities—a city of about three hundred thousand people, with well
established social and commercial institutions and worthily noted for its progressive atti
tude in many lines of human endeavor. To tell the story of Minneapolis in concise
form, making its salient features available for ready reference, has been the purpose in
the preparation of this book.
The general plan of the book has been that of grouping events of common interest
rather than the chronological listing of happenings without regard to their relations and
significance. With this design in mind the first seven chapters and the last are devoted
to sketching several not definitely limited periods in the city's history, while Chapters
VIII to XXVIII, inclusive, take up separate phases of the life and activities of the city,
each account being in a measure complete in itself. In this method of treating the
history of Minneapolis, much in the way of anecdote and reminiscence of the pioneers
—which would find a place in a more extended work—has been, of necessity, omitted.
Many side lights, however, are thrown upon the story of the city in the biographical
sketches of men who have had a part in its building. These brief sketches will give an
insight into the character of the people of Minneapolis which, possibly, could be ob
tained in no other way, and will give to outsiders an explanation of many things which
may seem to them incredible.
Among the sources of information regarding the early history of Minneapolis, Col.
John H. Stevens' "Personal Recollections of Minnesota and its People" has been
found valuable as have the collections and other records and files of the Minnesota
Historical Society's library which have been most courteously placed at the disposal of
the writer by Mr. Warren Upham, secretary of the society, who has also contributed
the chapter on "Early Explorers."
Many suggestions and much information have
been received from pioneers and the older people of the community and especially from
Mr. George A. Brackett who has preserved many valuable records. Acknowledge
ment is here made for all these evidences of kindly interest. It is impracticable to
publish a work of this character on other than a subscription plan and the writer appreci
ates the cordial cooperation of the men of Minneapolis which has made the publication
possible.
H. B. H.
Minneapolis, October, 1908,
'f.
CONTENTS
' I.
II.
' III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
THE FOUNDATIONS OF MINNEAPOLIS
THE EARLY EXPLORERS
14
FROM SAVAGERY TO CIVILIZATION
19
THE PERIOD OF EARLY SETTLEMENT
THE FORMATIVE PERIOD
COURTS AND LAWYERS
DENTISTRY
XX.
4 XXI.
.
.
.
.
38
.
90
113
ART, ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING
XIV.
XIX.
.
69
MEDICINE
- XVIII.
.
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
XIII.
XVII.
.
59
MUSIC AND THEATERS
' XVI.
.
AN ERA OF BROADER DEVELOPMENT
X.
XV.
25
50
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
XTI.
.
THE FIRST COMMERCIAL ADVANCE
IX.
XI.
9
.
.
.
...
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
124
.
.
.
.
134
.
.
.
.
181
213
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
THE GROWTH OF BANKING
.
.
.
.
.
217
.
236
REAL ESTATE AND INSURANCE
259
THE LUMBER INDUSTRY
296
FLOUR MILLING
327
GRAIN TRADE AND CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
353
VARIED PRODUCTIVE INDUSTRIES
385
T XXII.
WHOLESALE TRADE
.
* XXIII.
RETAIL BUSINESS
< XXIV.
TRANSPORTATION
»• XXV.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND OFFICIALS
.
...
.
426
448
.
.
.
.
462
.
.
478
* XXVI.
PUBLIC UTILITIES
518
» XXVII.
SUNDRY ORGANIZATIONS AND ACTIVITIES
527
XXVIII.
HOMES AND SUBURBS OF MINNEAPOLIS
* XXIX.
THE CITY'S RECENT PROGRESSINDEX
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
. . . . . . . . 544
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
551
363
*
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
NOTE—This list includes only views and maps. Portraits are indexed alphabetically in general index.
Page
Page
The Falls of St. Anthony in the Eirly Days
of Minneapolis
.
.
.
.
Frontispiece
The Falls of St. Anthony in a Natural State 10
The Falls of St. Anthony at the Present
Time
11
Map Showing the Travels of Groseilliers
and Radisson
.
15
Hennepin and Accault at the Falls of St.
Anthony
.
16
Carver's Sketch of the Falls of St. Anthony 20
An Early Idea of Northwestern Geography
(Map)
21
Old Fort Snelling
23
The Treaty of Traverse Des Sioux
.
.
24
The First Map of Minneapolis
.
.
.
25
The Government Mills of 1820-3 . . .
28
Colonel Stevens' House . . . . .
32
Bridge Square, Minneapolis., in 1851
.
.
35
St. Anthony in 1851
37
The First Suspension Bridge
;
39
The Business Center in 1857 . . . .
41
Falls of St. Anthony in 1859 . . . .
42
West Side Mills in 1859
44
The Second Suspension Bridge . . .
53
Minneapolis About 1868 . .
.
.
.
54
The Minneapolis Milling District About
1868
55
The Stone Arch Bridge . . . . .
61
First Baptist Church and Public Library .
62
The Campus of the University of Minnesota
About 1890
63
The West Hotel
64
Loring Park—The First Large Central Park 66
The Metropolitan Life Building . . .
67
Two Churches of 1860 . :
....
70
Old Gethsemane Church
. ....
71
First Baptist Church of 1868
.
.
.
.
'72
The Church of the Redeemer
.
.
.
.
75
Westminster Presbyterian Church
.
.
76
Young Men's Christian Association Building
.
77
Young Women's Christian Association Building
.
. ,
.
.
.
. .
.
.
77
Pillsbury House
.
77
The Old Washington School . . . .
91
Typical Minneapolis School Building of
Today
.
.
92
The First University Building . . .
93
The "Old Main" at the University
.
.
93
Entrance to University of Minnesota Campus 96
Library Building at the University
.
.
97
General View of the University Farm Buildings
97
Folwell Hall, University of Minnesota
.
98
Pence Opera House
. .
.
.
.
.
114
The Academy of Music
.
.
.
.
.
115
The Grand Opera House
.
.
.
,
.
116
The Handicraft Guild Building .
.
.
125
Fireplace in the Handicraft Guild .
.
.
125
In Mr. T. B. Walker's Art Gallery
.
.
127
Court House and City Hall
.
.
.
.
136
Law Building, University of Minnesota
.
139
Minnesota College Hospital
.
.
.
.
182
Millard Hall
.
.
. .
. .
. .
• 183
St. Barnabas Hospital .<
184
The Minneapolis City Hospital
.
. .185
The Tribune Building
218
The Journal Building
.
.
.
.
.
.
220
The Northwestern Miller Building
.
.
222
R. J. Mendenhall's Bank
.
. ....
, .
238
Old First National Bank
.
.
.X .
.
238
Old Security Bank .
. .
.
.
... .
239
First Building of the Northwestern National
Bank
.
.
.
239
The Northwestern National Bank Building 241
The First National Bank Building
.
.
243
First Real Estate Office in Minneapolis
.
261
Home Office of the Northwestern National
Life Insurance Company . . . . 265
Saw Mills of Early Days . . . . . 297
The Old West Side Mills . . . . . 297
The East Side Mills as They Appeared About
1880
.
.
299
The Lumber Exchange
.
.
.
.
.
300
A Modern Minneapolis Saw Mill .
. .
301
The Old East Side Flour Mills
.
.
,
328
The First Washburn Mill
. .
.
.
.
329
After the Great Explosion of 1878 .
.
.
330
General View of the Flour Milling District of
Today
.
.
334
First Chamber of Commerce Building^ .
354
Present Chamber of Commerce Building . . 356
Modern Type of Steel Tank Elevator
.
359
Type of Brick Elevator . . . . . 360
Modern Tile Tank Elevator . . . . 361
Early Manufacturing Establishments .
.
386
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Patre
General View of the Minneapolis Threshing
Machine Company's Plant
.
.
.
View of the Minneapolis Steel and Machinery
Company's Works
The Kilgore-Peteler Company's Manufacturing Plant
Modern Type of Wholesale Building in Minneapolis .
A Model Farm Implements Warehouse
.
A Modern Minneapolis Jobbing Building .
The Largest Jobbing Building West of Chicago
One of the New Wholesale Warehouse
Types
Retail District on Washington Avenue in
1869
George W. Hale & Co.'s Store, About 1880
The Old Market House
.
.
.
.
.
Upper Nicollet Avenue in the Retail District
The First Department Store in Minneapolis
Dog Train—One of the Earliest Means of
Transportation
Red River Carts
Steamer "Minneapolis" at the Minneapolis
Landing
The "William Crooks"—First Locomotive
388
390
391
428
429
431
432
433
449
450
450
451
452
463
464
465
Page
On the Minnetonka Electric Line .
.
.
Express Boat on Minnetonka .
.
.
.
Train on the Old Motor Line . . . .
Minneapolis General Electric Company Building
The Minneapolis Exposition Building
.
At One of the "King" Fairs . . . .
Opening of the First Minneapolis Exposition
View at Minnesota State Fair . . . .
The Masonic Temple
Entrance to Lakewood Cemetery .
.
.
An Old Time Minneapolis Home .
.
.
View in Late Autumn on Park Avenue
.
A Modern Minneapolis Residence .
.
.
A Residence Street—Groveland Terrace
.
A Type of Recent Residence Architecture .
Lake Minnetonka
The Shore at Ferndale, Lake Minnetonka .
One of Minnetonka's Charming Residences
Minikahda Club House—Lake Calhoun
.
The Old Round Tower at Fort Snelling—
1861-1908
. . . . . . . .
Minnesota Soldiers' Home
.
. . .
The Security Bank Building . . . .
The Minneapolis Auditorium .
. .
.
The Lower Dam and Rapid Transit Com-
Running into Minneapolis . . . .
The Villard Paiade of 1883 . . . .
467
468
pany's Power House
.
.
Plymouth Congregational Church
ChiCa ?a°tioIf l w a " k e e
469
St. Mark's Episcopal Church
&
St'
F a t ''
PaSSenger
.
.
P r °P° s «>
The Old City Hall
Volunteer Firemen of
481
483
Campus
'
'
P>»sbury Library Building . . . . .
486
488
490
519
519
519
The Minneapolis Gateway—Old City Hall in
Foreground .
.
The Armory
Proposed Plan for the Development of Minneapolis' Civic Center .
. ...
The Catholic Pro-Cathedral . . . .
....
Minnehaha Falls
.
.
..
The Mississippi River Gorge . .
The Minneapolis Postoffice Building
The First Horse Car
Type of First Electric Car . .
Standard Electric Car, 1908 . .
..
..
.
.
..
..
521
528
528
529
531
532
533
544
545
546
546
547
547
548
548
549
549
550
552
553
.
5S4
. • 555
Steel Arch"Bridge Over the Mississippi' River 479
1870
Pla"s
.
.
519
520
520
556
Enlarged University
557
558
558
559
560
/
A Half Century of Minneapolis
CHAPTER I
THE FOUNDATIONS OF MINNEAPOLIS
M
INNEAPOLIS WAS
literally, AS well
as figuratively, founded upon a rock.
A vast ledge of limestone resting
on a stratum of sandstone and extending
under the bed of the Mississippi river was
the geological cause of the Falls of St. An
thony ; and the falls with their potentialities
of water power and resultant industries led
to the settlement and development of Min
neapolis. While, thus, the rocks which
dammed the Father of Waters became the
figurative basis of the city they also fur
nished the actual physical foundation, for
many of the structures about the falls rest
directly upon this same limestone ledge;
and rock, quarried from its numerous outcroppings, has entered into the substructure
of practically every business and residence
building in the city.
Although the practical part which the
ledge of Trenton limestone played in the
determination of the site of Minneapolis
and its earlier development, has been to
some extent lost sight of, the figure of
speech suggested has become more and
more appropriate as the solid foundations
of the city's many sided life have become
more and more apparent. And these foun
dations rest not alone on the great water
power. The strategical location of Minne
apolis as a commercial city was admirable.
The site at the Falls of St. Anthony was
peculiarly adapted to the building up of a
receiving and distributing market—the mak
ing of Minneapolis what it has since become
—"the market city of the Northwest."
When the city was founded the possibili
ties of the northwest were quite unappreci
ated but it was obvious to the clear visioned
men of the time that some day the prairies
would be peopled and that a market for
their agricultural products and for the sup
ply of their needs for manufactured articles,
must arise. None of these pioneers foresaw
the nearness of the dimly understood com
mercial situation or the wonderful modifica
tions in its development which would be
wrought by the progress of invention and
the change in social conditions. But they
saw the fundamental advantages of the site
and builded fearlessly and with faith in the
outcome.
THE LUMBER INDUSTRY.
Next to the water power, one of the
primary elements in the city's earlier suc
cess was its proximity to the pine forests
of Northern Minnesota. Half a century ago
the finest body of white pine on the con
tinent was growing along the Mississippi
river and its tributaries above Minneapolis,
ready to be cut into logs and floated along
the greatest natural logging stream in the
country to the cheap power at the Falls of
St. Anthony. The conditions were ripe for
the production of lumber at a low cost—
while at the west and southwest lay the
treeless prairies, already being invaded by
the settler, and ofifering a market for all
that the Minneapolis saw mills could pro
duce. Here then was a great industry al
most ready made which furnished profitable
employment while more permanent lines of
commercial endeavor were being developed.
HEAD OF NAVIGATION.
It has been an axiom in commercial ge
ography that the head of navigation on a
river of considerable proportions is the
natural site of a large city. Minneapolis
occupied this position on the greatest of
10
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
THE FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY IN A NATURAL STATE.
Reproduced from the original water color made by Capt. S. Eastman probably about 1841, and now In the
possession of the Minneapolis Public Library. It is the oldest sketch made
by an artist and is regarded as reasonably accurate.
American rivers. It is true that for some
time navigation to the very doors of the
city was uncertain, that for many years it
has been interrupted altogether, and that
the development of railroads has apparently
reduced the proportional importance of riv
er transportation; but the principle has re
mained undisturbed and the sentimental ef
fect (by no means to be disregarded) has
been operative in all these years, and now
in 1908 a new realization of the importance
of water transportation and the near com
pletion of river improvements suggests that
this factor in the favorable location of the
city will once more be extremely active in
its development.
western end of Lake Superior, Minneapolis
has enjoyed the advantages of cheap trans
portation to the Atlantic seaboard, to an
equal extent with other cities situated on
the lakes. That is, goods can be laid down
in Minneapolis at practically the same cost
as in Chicago, Milwaukee and other points
some hundreds of miles further from the
consuming districts than this city. In the
same way flour and other agricultural prod
ucts may be sent to the eastern and foreign
markets under relatively advantageous
conditions. This fact has been of immense
significance and practical result in the com
mercial strategy of the northwest.
WATER TRANSPORTATION.
Many other interesting and important
conditions have entered into the solid foun
dation building of the city. For instance,
the immediate physical conformation of the
surface about the Falls of St. Anthony was
decidedly well adapted to city building. A
shallow basin surrounded by low hills gave
But while water transportation by river
has been to some extent a dormant influ
ence, water transportation through the sys
tem of the Great Lakes has been a most
potent factor in Minneapolis commercial
growth. Located within 150 miles of the
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS-
T H E FOUNDATIONS O F MINNEAPOLIS
v';
" A
•'
;
>
•
V
i'
Vs.'
4:<
11
"1
THE FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY AT THE PRESENT TIME.
This picturc gives but a partial view of the development of the water power and the mills and industries
centered about the falls. It is also impossible in a view of the falls to give any
adequate suggestion of
the presence of a city of
300,000 inhabitants.
ample room for wide streets, commercial
and manufacturing sites and charming resi
dence districts beyond. The surface was
sufficiently rolling to provide natural drain
age btit not so rough as to make improve
ments expensive. A subsoil of sand and
gravel was an element making both for
health and convenience in all matters of
city improvements both public and private.
Broad valleys and easy gradients invited the
entry of railroads. All the materials were
at hand for the building of mills and homes,
warehouses and railroads. An agreeable
climate and a most productive soil invited
settlement of both city and country.
AGRICULTURAL CONDITIONS.
Of the characteristics of the agricultural
conditions in the northwest a word must be
said in passing. It is now a well established
principle that any vegetable growth reaches
its highest development at or near the most
northerly limit at which it may be produced
at all. This was not understood when Min
neapolis was founded. It was, on the con
trary, generally believed that the agricul
tural possibilities of the northwest were
very limited both as to variety and quality.
The half century has disproved this theory,
and in this refutation has been one of the
most potent factors in Minneapolis growth.
The instance of wheat alone is sufficient as
an illustration. The first wheat for Minne
apolis mills was brought from the south.
Wheat growing in the northwest progressed
slowly. Southern winter wheat was not
adapted to northern conditions; the hard
spring wheat produced here was regarded
as inferior for flour making purposes. In
this matter there has been a complete revo
lution of belief. Hard northwestern spring
wheat is now well understood to contain
the most valuable food elements and with
improved methods of grinding makes the
best flour in the world. Other grains have
passed through somewhat similar transi-
12
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
tions in esteem; and in the matter of
grasses and forage crops it has been dem
onstrated that those grown in the north
have greater nutritive value than those
produced further south and that animals
fed on these products make better progress
in Minnesota than when eating the same
varieties of feed raised in more southerly
regions. And so from a region popularly
supposed half a century ago to be a halffrozen and nearly uninhabitable section of
the country there now issue forth each year
food supplies for many millions of people
—products which to a large extent find
their primary market at Minneapolis.
AN OPPORTUNE HISTORICAL MOMENT.
Still another stone in the foundation of
Minneapolis may be said to be that of op
portuneness. In no other half century of
history could such a city as Minneapolis
have been built. The city is the product
of the age of the greatest inventions known
to the world. At the time when the first
rude buildings were being erected about the
Falls of St. Anthony, the railroad—perhaps
the greatest force in modern civilization—
was in a state of crudity. The telegraph
was but a dream while the telephone, elec
tric light and all the other modern electrical
inventions were unthought of. Even the
application of steam power was in its in
fancy. The wonderful inventions of ma
chinery—from the sewing machine through
all the list of domestic and factory appli
ances and out again on to the farms to the
modern harvester and thresher—all these
were yet to be contributed to the comfort
and progress of the race. Practically all of
the inventions of machinery, implements
and processes which now are so much a
part of every day life as to be accepted as
necessities without a moment's considera
tion, had not then been conceived of even
in the brains of the brightest men. Since
1850 these things which we regard as com
mon necessities have been poured out to
the world in a never ceasing stream and
Minneapolis was founded just in time to
receive the forward impulse which the in
ventive half of the nineteenth century was
to bring to the world. And the young city
was in a position to receive the full benefit
of the movement. Its settlers were the
most enterprising members of the com
munities which they had left. The new
town had 110 traditions to set aside, no
customs of long standing to overthrow.
Things which were new and good were ac
cepted immediately. The spirit of the peo
ple was that of adaptability; it was their
habit to instantly avail themselves of any
thing which might be a stepping stone in
progress and there was almost no element
among the pioneers which represented the
prejudice and unwillingness to change al
ways found in older and more conservative
communities. So as the city grew it was
found in the front in the adaptation of the
inventions of the time and frequently—as in
the improvements in flour milling processes
—itself led the world in splendid inventive
achievement.
It is possible that Minneapolis, if it had
been founded twenty-five years earlier,
would have lost the full effect of the wave
of progress which so dominated its actual
settlement and earlier decades of history.
Other towns along the Mississippi river,
established some time before Mineapolis, seemed to miss the spirit of the day
and for many years lagged behind the pro
cession of progress. For some reason they
had become "set in their ways" and were
unable to adapt themselves to new ideas.
If therefore Minneapolis came into being at
a particularly auspicious moment in the
country's history, the city may have to
thank a procrastinating government for de
laying its birth. As will be told in a later
chapter, the actual settlement of the site of
Minneapolis was much delayed by the fail
ure of the government to push treaties with
the Indians and to open for settlement an
unnecessarily large military reservation.
CHARACTER OF THE PIONEERS.
It has been claimed by some of the older
residents of Minnesota that the state bene
fited greatly through the fact that its early
settlement took place coincidently with the
period of the gold excitement in California.
It was argued that the wilder and less sta
ble elements of western emigration at that
THE FOUNDATIONS OF MINNEAPOLIS
time naturally gravitated to the coast while
Minnesota attracted the more hardheaded
and far-seeing - . Further they argued, that
the lawless element went where the loose
government of the mining camps offered
opportunities for license while Minnesota
attracted the law-abiding. There is un
doubtedly much to uphold this theory. At
all events the early history of Minnesota
and especially of Minneapolis is peculiarly
free from accounts of law breaking and
crime. For some years after Minneapolis
was founded there was no prison of any
kind in the village and the erection of a
"lock-up" was regarded as almost an un
necessary expenditure of public funds. The
13
city was indeed fortunate in being settled
by men of high character who gave a tone
to the life of the settlement which was in
valuable as time went on in attracting the
right kind of people and became another
solid stone in its foundation.
These, briefly, are a few of the elements
of strength which entered into the founda
tion of Minneapolis. There have been
many other influences on the development
of the city's life and physical growth but
in those which have been mentioned are
found the most conspicuous reasons for the
wonderful progress from wilderness to
metropolis in less than the span of a human
life.
CHAPTER II
THE EARLY EXPLORERS
By Warren Upham, Secretary of the Minnesota
Historical Society
B
EFORE the first white men came to
make their homes within the area of
Minneapolis, it had an interesting
history during nearly two hundred years of
the early explorations and fur trade.
How long this region had been previously
occupied by the aboriginal • Indian tribes,
living by their hunting and fishing, their
rude agriculture, and the native products of
berries and wild rice, cannot be exactly as
certained; but they had been here many
centuries, apparently ever since the final
melting of the continental ice-sheet, at the
end of the Glacial period. Fragments of
artificially chipped quartz, and occasional
finished quartz implements, have been found
by Prof. N. H. Winchell, Miss Frances E.
Babbitt, Hon T. V. Brower, ana other col
lectors, in the Late Glacial sand and gravel
of the Mississippi valley plain at Little
Falls, about a hundred miles north of Min
neapolis, which are regarded as proof that
men, probably ancestors of the Indians of
today, were living there while the ice-sheet
was melting away from the upper Mississ
ippi basin and northern Minnesota. From
the rate of recession of the Falls of St. An
thony and the length of the Mississippi
river gorge between the mouth of the Min
nesota river and the present position of
these falls, Professor Winchell thirty years
ago computed that about 7,000 or 8,000
years have been required for the erosion of
this gorge, eight miles long, which time,
thus approximately determined, measures
also the Postglacial period here, since the
border of the ice-sheet was melted back past
the site of this city. So long, therefore, the
red men have probably lived here. Their
only historic memorials, however, are the
thousands of earth mounds, mostly used for
burial, which are found near lakes and
rivers through all this region, excepting
north of the Great Lakes. The oldest of
these mounds may have been made not long
after the Ice age; but others were made
doubtless during all the long time until the
white men came, for Catlin noted that a
burial mound was built near the Red Pipe
stone Quarry in southwestern Minnesota
about two years before his visit there in
1836.'
The first white man who came to the
mouth of Lake Superior and advanced be
yond Lake Michigan into central Wiscon
sin, was Jean Nicolet, in the autumn and
winter of 1634-35, coming by the canoe
route from the French settlements on the
River St. Lawrence.
FIRST WHITE MEN IN MINNESOTA.
Only twenty years later Groseilliers and
Radisson, coming also by canoes from Que
bec and Montreal, appear to have been the
first explorers to cross the area of Wis
consin and reach that of Minnesota. The
narratives of their far western expeditions,
written by Radisson, who called them "voy
ages," came into the possession of the Bod
leian Library, at Oxford University, but
remained practically unknown to historians
during more than two hundred years, until
in 1885 they were published by the Prince
Society of Boston. By that publication
these two French fur traders were made
known to the world as the first Europeans
to reach the upper Mississippi river and to
traverse parts of this state, probably cross
ing the area of this city.
In their first western expedition, leaving
the lower St. Lawrence in August, 1654,
Groseilliers and Radisson spent the next
THE EARLY EXPLORERS
iifel.
ROUTES OF GHOSIUUERS AND RADISSOU, 1655-S6MD J6S9
MAP
SHOWING
i
15
1
held 011 Prairie Island. With difficulty'
Groseilliers and Radisson persuaded tjiem
to undertake a large expedition to Montreal
and Quebec, braving the expected attacks
of the Iroquois. They left Prairie Island
late in June, or about the first of July, and
reached Lower Canada late in August,
bringing furs of great value.
THE
TRAVELS OF
RADISSON.
so.
GROSEILLIERS
AND
From the Minnesota Historical Society Collections.
winter among the Indian tribes in the region
of Mackinac and Green Bay. The narra
tion relates, if I understand it rightly, that
in the early spring of 1655, accompanied by
about a hundred and fifty Indians, they
traveled with snowshoes across southern
Wisconsin to the Mississippi river near the
site of Prairie du Chien, spent three weeks
in building boats, and ascended the Missis
sippi river to Prairie Island, between Red
Wing and Hastings, arriving there about
the first of May. Groseilliers stayed on the
island through the summer and autumn,
superintending the Indians in raising and
storing corn; but Radisson went with a
hunting party of the Indians, journeying
southward to the Illinois river, and spent
four months in going "from river to river."
About the middle of June in 1656, a coun
cil of more than eight hundred Indians was
Three years afterward, in August, 1659,
Groseilliers and Radisson, with a company
of Ojibways and other Indians, started on
their second western expedition, in which
they probably passed by the future sit^s of
Minneapolis and St. Paul. They spent
twenty-two days in canoe travel, by the Ot
tawa and Mattawa rivers and Lake Nipissing, to Georgian bay; stopped a few days
for rest at the Sault Ste. Marie; and coasted
along the south shore of Lake Superior to
Chequamegon bay, arriving there probably
near the end of September. Thence th^y
marched four days southward through the
woods to a lake about eight leagues in cir
cuit, probably Lac Court Oreille, in north
ern Wisconsin, where a council of the Hurons, Menominees, and other Indians, was
held, with bestowal of gifts. After the first
snowfall, late in October or nearly in No
vember, the Indians separated to provide
food by hunting.
.;
Early in January, 1660, the Hurons, and
Groseilliers and Radisson, came together at
an appointed rendezvous, a small lake, prob
ably Knife Lake or some other in its vicini
ty, in Kanabec county, Minnesota. A ter
rible famine ensued, caused by deep snow
fall and consequent difficulty of hunting and
killing game.
After the famine, twenty-four Sioux came
to bring presents for Groseilliers and Radis
son, and eight days were occupied with
feasting. The Hurons, and delegations
from eighteen tribes or bands of the Sioux,
then met at a prairie or clearing chosen near
the former rendezvous, apparently in the
neighborhood of Knife Lake. Ceremonial
feasting, athletic trials of strength and skill,
singing, dancing, and bestowal of gifts, oc
cupied the next three weeks; and a large
party of Crees, being specially invited,
joined in the later part of this great celebra-
16
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
tion of alliance with the French. This took
place in the second half of March and be
ginning of April.
ON THE SITE OF MINNEAPOLIS.
During April and May, Groseilliers and
Radisson visited the Prairie Sioux, probably
on the Minnesota river, traveling thither
probably afoot by way of the Rum river,
twenty-six days in coming down from Lake
Superior. They brought, as in 1656, a very
valuable freight of furs. The governor of
Canada, Argenson, reprimanded them for
going 011 this expedition without his au
thority, and imposed very heavy fines, so
that Groseilliers went to France to plead
for redress, but in vain.
The later history of these adventurous
HENNEPIN AND ACCAULT AT THE FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY.
COPYRIGHT 1906 BY UOUGLAS VOLK
From the painting by Douglas Voik in the Minnesota State Capitol. (By permission.)
and down the Mississippi, but passing south
to the Minnesota, by way of the series of
lakes in the west part of Minneapolis, and
returning, with a company of Ojibway trad
ers in canoes, by the Minnesota, Mississippi,
and St. Croix rivers. They reached Chequamegon bay in the later part of May.
Soon after the first of June, they crossed
the west end of Lake Superior, apparently
about twenty or twenty-five miles east of
Duluth, visiting the Crees near the site of
Two Harbors.
With a great escort, three hundred or
more of the Indians in sixty canoes, Groseil
liers and Radisson arrived at Montreal on
the 19th of August, 1660, having spent
brothers-in-law includes their renunciation
of allegiance to France, the transfer of their
service to English merchants, and leader
ship in the grand enterprise of opening and
establishing the Hudson Bay Company's
fur trade.
In the summer of 1673, eighteen years
after Groseilliers' corn-raising on Prairie
Island, the devoted missionary, Marquette,
and his companion, Joliet, who was in com
mand of the party, with five other French-'
men, in birch bark canoes, voyaged down
the Wisconsin river to its mouth, and
thence down the Mississippi to the vicinity
of the mouth of the Arkansas river. During
more than two centuries they were regarded
THE EARLY EXPLORERS
17
as the first, excepting De Soto, to explore
the Mississippi. They returned along the
placid Illinois river, and across the short
portage to Lake Michigan near the site of
Chicago; and Marquette wrote in the high
est praise of the beauty of that region.
About a week later, Hennepin was over
taken, before reaching the Wisconsin river,
by some of the Isanti warriors, who them
selves went forward to the mouth of the
Wisconsin in hope to meet the French and
seize their goods, but found no one there.
HENNEPIN'S TRAVELS.
DU LUTTI WITH HENNEPIN AT THE FALLS.
The two most noteworthy explorers con
nected with the history of Minneapolis were
Hennepin and Nicolet, separated from each
other by a hundred and fifty-six years.
La Salle, who in 1682 voyaged from the
Illinois river down the Mississippi to its
mouth, had two years earlier sent a party
of three Frenchmen to explore the upper
course of this river. The party consisted of
Accault, the leader; Auguelle, who was a
native of Picardy; and Louis Hennepin, a
Franciscan missionary, who became the his
torian of the expedition. Starting from La
Salle's Fort Crfvecoeur the 28th day of Feb
ruary, 1680, and taking in their canoe about
a thousand pounds of goods for presents
among the tribes that they would meet, they
paddled down the Illinois river to its mouth
and thence up the Mississippi.
When Hennepin and his companions had
spent nearly a month in the upward journey,
they were met by a war party of Dakota or
Sioux Indians in thirty-three canoes, who
made the Frenchmen captives, and, turning
back, brought them up the river to the
vicinity of the present city of St. Paul.
There leaving the river, they went by land
northward to the villages of this Isanti tribe
in the region of Mille Lacs, where they ar
rived early in May and were kept in cap
tivity until the beginning of July.
Afterward they hunted buffalo and start
ed again up the Mississippi, when, late in
July, they met Du Luth and several French
soldiers, who had come from Lake Superior
by the canoe route of the Brule and St.
Croix rivers. They all then came back to
the Isanti villages at Mille Lacs, where Du
Luth the previous year had met these sav
ages in council and endeavored to inform
them of the benefits they must receive in
trading with the French. Du Luth sharply
reprimanded the savages for their captivity
of Hennepin and his companions, and in
the autumn, on the pretense of bringing
goods to establish' a trading post, Du Luth,
Hennepin, and other Frenchmen, were al
lowed to depart, voyaging from Mille Lacs
down the Rum river' (called the St. Francis
by Hennepin) t and the Mississippi to the
Wisconsin river, and thence up that stream
and over portages to Green bay. - For this
journey, which passed St. Anthony Falls
and the site of Minneapolis, the chief of the
Isanti tribe traced the route on a paper and
marked its portages, this being probably the
earliest mapping of any part of Minnesota.
THE FALLS NAMED.
Permission was then given to Hennepin
and the Pickard to return in a canoe down
the Mississippi to the mouth of the Wiscon
sin river, where they hoped to find a rein
forcement of Frenchmen, with ammunition
and other goods, which La Salle had prom
ised to send. Meanwhile Accault was left
in captivity. On this return voyage, Hen
nepin and his comrade, Auguelle, passed the
Falls of St. Anthony, to which Hennepin
gave this name in honor of his patron saint.
LATER EXPLORERS.
At some time about five to ten years after
these journeys of Hennepin and Du Luth
past this city area, Le Sueur, and probably
Charleville with him, made a canoe trip far
up the Mississippi river, apparently to
Sandy Lake. They learned from the In
dians at the limit of their journey that the
sources of this great river were still far dis
tant, consisting of many small streams and
lakes.
Later the Mississippi here was a frequent
route of fur traders, and explorers came oc
casionally to or past the Falls of St. An
thony. Prof. N. PI. Winchell, the state ge
ologist, in his report on this county, dis
cusses in much detail the testimony of these
18
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
explorers concerning the recession of the
falls, citing, after Hennepin, the description
given by Carver in November, 1766, Pike,
coming to the upper Mississippi and return
ing in 1805 and 1806, Long in 1817, School
craft in 1820, Keating and Beltrami in 1823,
Boutwell and Schoolcraft again in 1832,
Featherstonhaugh in 1835, a n d Nicolet in
T 836-
NICOLET'S GREAT WORK.
Last and greatest of these, in his service
of geographic exploration, was Nicolet,
who is forever to be held in remembrance
and association with Hennepin, in the
names of the two finest business avenues of
JEAN N. NICOLET.
Reproduced from a photograph of an ivory painting
presented to the Minnesota Historical Society by
. Maj. Taliaferro in 1867.
(1836)
this city. His final map of the region that
now comprises Minnesota and the eastern
parts of North and South Dakota, pub
lished in 1843, shortly after his death, is a
marvel of accuracy, although prepared at
that early time when the area of our state
had no village, excepting Grand Portage,
the settlement of the fur trading companies
on the north shore of Lake Superior, and
excepting also the village of the Ojibways
at the narrows of Red Lake and a few
groups of Dakota tepees on the Minnesota
and Mississippi rivers.
Joseph Nicolas Nicolet was born July 24,
1786, at Cluses, in Savoy; completed his
studies in Paris, where, in 1817, he became
an officer of the astronomical observatory;
in 1819 he became a citizen of France, and
in 1825, or earlier, received the Cross of
the Legion of Honor. He was financially
ruined by results of the Revolution of 1830,
and came to the United States in 1832, to
travel in unsettled parts of the South and
West. Here his talent for geographic work
was soon recognized and brought to the
knowledge of the United States War De
partment and Bureau of Topographical En
gineers. Under their aid and direction, he
made extensive exploring trips in the North
west, including a canoe journey from Fort
Snelling up the Mississippi, and by portages
beyond Leech Lake, to Itasca Lake, thence
returning down the whole course of the
Mississippi to the fort, in 1836, and a trip
up the Minnesota river and past Lake
Shetek to the Red Pipestone Ouarry in 1838.
He died in Washington, D. C., September
11, 1843.
In the United States government reports
and maps of his work, his name appears
varyingly as I. N. or J. N. Nicolet; and it
is given as Jean N. by Gen. Sibley, Dr.
Neill, Prof. N. H. Winchell, and other
writers of Minnesota history. Researches
by Horace V. Winchell, however, in 1893
(published in the American Geologist for
February, 1894) show that his name was
Joseph Nicolas, as before noted.
On July 26th to the 29th, 1836, Nicolet
and his exploring party and Ojibway es
cort were in camp at the Falls of St. An
thony, which he also doubtless examined at
many later times during his visits at Fort
Snelling. In March, 1839, he made exact
surveys of the falls and their vicinity, be
lieving that the rate of recession of the falls
would become a question of much interest.
As was noted at the beginning of this chap
ter, it is indeed found so by geologists, who
therefrom, and from the similar recession
of Niagara Falls, have computed approxi
mately the duration of the present geologic
period, since the end of the Ice age.
CHAPTER!III
FROM SAVAGERY TO CIVILIZATION
D
URING the two centuries from the
discovery of the Falls of St. An
thony to the organization of the
state of Minnesota, the lands adjacent to
the falls passed through many claims of
ownership and governmental jurisdiction.
Not counting the original Indian occupants,
the ground on which Minneapolis stands
has belonged to four great nations and has
been a part of nine state or territorial divi
sions. France originally claimed the entire
Mississippi valley and supported its claim
by exploration and partial settlement. The
overwhelming preponderance of French
names (or corruptions of French names) in
the earlier nomenclature of the region tes
tifies to the diligence of the French explor
ers. The defeat of France in Canada and
the British occupation in 1760 brought the
country east of the Mississippi river under
English control and that west of the river
was ceded by France to Spain in 1763.
With the success of the United States in
the Revolution, the British territory became
the property of the new nation while twenty
years later the Louisiana Purchase brought
the western banks of the Mississippi under
; the same government. As Minneapolis lies
|upon both sides of the river it occupies
[ ground that has been the property at differ
ent times of Spain, France, Great Britian
and the United States.
At the close of the Revolution the eastern
bank of the Mississippi in the northwest
was claimed by Virginia but the land was
soon relinquished to the United States and
shortly afterwards the Northwest Territory
was formed from the United States posses
sions west of the Alleghanies and north
of the Ohio river. Subsequent divisions
brought the eastern bank of the Mississippi
river at St. Anthony Falls under the juris
diction of Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and
Wisconsin territories. In a similar process
of political division the west bank of the
Falls followed the territorial fortunes of
Louisiana, Missouri, Michigan, Wisconsin
and Iowa. Had ever a city better claims
for cosmopolitan origin?
THE DAYS OF THE TRADERS.
Through all this period, however, the
changes had more geographical than gov
ernmental significance. There was, in fact,
no one to govern except the Indians who
remained in undisturbed possession of their
lands until the beginning of the last cen
tury. Practically no attempts at the exer-s
cise of governmental authority were made
until the creation of the territory of Minne-|
sota in 1849.
the earlier days govern-!
ment, so far as the aboriginal inhabitants
were concerned, was represented by the fur
JONATHAN CARVER.
From an old portrait,
20
CAKVEli S SKETCH OF THE FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY.
Reproduced from the original plate in Carver's Travels published in Dublin in 1779.
engraving of the falls.
traders and the principal interest of the
white men wais in the quantity of furs which
might be brought out of the region at the
least expenditure of property and human
life—the latter frequently the least in con
sideration. In the absence of civil authori
ty the fur companies and their representa
tives exercised a sort of pseudo-governmental control which was, on the whole, prob
ably much better than nothing at all. The
power obtained by the fur traders, however,
was the cause of much difficulty later, the
rival claims of British and American com
panies being for a time a matter of as much
moment, proportionally, as questions of fish
eries and sealing rights in later days.
CARVER'S TRAVELS.
It was the hope of securing valuable trade
which led to the first English explorations
of this region. Soon after the French ces
sion Jonathan Carver of Massachusetts
traveled through the upper Mississippi val
ley and in 1766 visited the Falls of St. An
thony. His sketch of the falls was the first
made and the first to be engraved; facts
This
is the
earliest
which give it interest notwithstanding its
crudity and manifest inaccuracy. In 1783
the famed Northwest Compam* was or
ganized and for many years was in almost
absolute possession of the trade of the
region west of Lake Michigan, though con
stantly contesting its ground at the north
with the British traders, who, taking advan
tage of the uncertainty as to the boundaries
and the remoteness of authority, continu
ally invaded American territory.
In these days of accurate geographical
knowledge it is quite difficult to realize the
crudity of northwestern chorography in the
early days of the republic. At the close of
the Revolution there were very indefinite
ideas as to the boundaries of the regions
which the United States had acquired and
as late as 1795, as will be seen by the accom
panying map published in Philadelphia, the
conception of the arrangement of the phys
ical features of the northwest was extreme
ly vague.
Although the Great Lakes had been fre
quented by the French for more than a cen
tury, the English and the American Colo-
FROM SAVAGERY TO CIVILIZATION
nials had profited little in geographical
knowledge by the explorations. The distorted outlines of the lakes in this map sug;"est not only an absence of any recent ex-
21
a more westerly source. The coal mine
shown near the mouth of the St. Peters (or
Minnesota) was probably inserted in the
map on the authority of some trader or voy-
c
Be i
s»A»TKwt» *•»' VJ. f
3 " C- X t c
\u
OUPoae^oj
jmseon~2i-
^V7W.7£imiT0RY
L,*.. W.
tkeXjuck.
Tkil-ul*
AN EARLY IDEA OF
NORTHWESTERN GEOGRAPHY.
Prom Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of America, by permission of the publishers, Houghton Mifflin & Co.,
originally published in Scott's Gazetteer, 1795.
plorations or surveys but also failure to
make use of the data which must have been
in the hands of the Frenchmen. As to
the vicinity of Minneapolis it will be no
ticed that the falls are indicated at the
junction of two streams—one the "Lake
river," flowing from Red Lake, while the
Mississippi proper is shown to come from
ageur who wished to embellish his story
of adventure with a color of practical dis
covery of mineral wealth.
MILITARY OCCUPATION.
.
Interest in the Upper Mississippi became
pronounced immediately upon the comple
tion of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 and
22
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
in 1805 Capt. Zebulon M. Pike of the United
States army headed the first American mili
tary expedition which reached the Falls of
St. Anthony. Pike negotiated a treaty with
the Sioux by which the United States ac
quired a military reservation between the
Mississippi and Minnesota rivers including
the sites of Fort Snelling and Minneapolis.
The exact extent of the reservation seems
to have been quite indefinite and the boun
daries were never accurately defined until
after the Indian lands east of the Mississ
ippi had been ceded in 1837. This led to
misunderstandings and contentions and was
the cause of much bitter feeling in later
years. Had the government followed up
Pike's treaty with exact surveys much
trouble would have been avoided. The
finally established line of the reservation,
as far as it affected Minneapolis, was that
of the western boundary which crossed from
the Minnesota to the Mississippi river west
of Lakes Harriet, Calhoun and Lake of the
Isles arid reached the river at a point near
Bassett's creek. This brought within the
reservation- all of what is now the central
business and' v residenee section of the city.
Pike also visited many of the poaching fur
ZEBULON MONTGOMERY PIKE.
From Winsor's Narrative and Critical History of America by
permission of the publishers, Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
• MRS. CHARLOTTE O. VAN CLEVE.
Identffied with Minneapolis from 1819 when she was brought to
Fort Snelling, an infant, by her parents Lieut, and
Mrs. Nathan Clark.
traders and expelled them or secured prom
ises of allegiance. Difficulties among the
traders continued, however, for many years.
Not long after Pike's expedition the sec
ond war with Great Britain broke out and
the attention of government and the military
department was diverted from the north
west and it was not until 1817 that an offi
cial representative of the United States
visited the Falls. In this year Major
Stephen H. Long of the Engineer Corps
ascended the river and on his return gave a
very complete description of the locality
about the Falls of St. Anthony and of the
Falls themselves, Avhjch he referred to as
"a majestic cataract."
In 1819 the government determined to es
tablish a military post on the reservation
secured by Capt. Pike and during the sum
mer of that year an expedition arrived at
the mouth of the Minnesota river.' Next
year Fort Snelling was commenced. This
was an event of much moment to the future
FROM SAVAGERY TO CIVILIZATION
Minneapolis. Fort Snelling was within
eight miles of St. Anthony Falls and no one
who reached the post on military or civic
errand failed to visit the falls. In this way
the fame of the locality and its possibilities
as the site of a future city became widely
known; while on the other hand, the pres
ence of a garrison insured a certain degree
of safety to intending settlers.
Occupation by the white men was de
ferred, however, on account of the con
tinued possession of the lands by the In-
23
being a part of the Fort Snelling military
reservation. It thus came about that Min
neapolis, though standing on the most ad
vantageous site for a city in the whole re
gion, was retarded in development until
practically the whole state of Minnesota
had been opened to the immigrant.
WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN.
Just what might have been the result
of different action on the part of the gov
ernment it is now impossible to determine
OLD FORT SNELLING.
From a Daguerreotype made in early days and believed to be the earliest photographic view in existence.
dians. It was not until 1837 that Gov.
Dodge's treaty opened the way for settle
ment east of the Mississippi; while the
country west of the river was not secured
until 1851 when the famous treaties of Tra
verse Des Sioux and Mendota obtained for
the settler all of what is now southern and
central Minnesota.
The way for the settlement of a great
state had now been opened by successive
treaties but the site of the larger part of
Minneapolis—on the western bank of the
Mississippi—still remained unavailable, it
but it is obvious that a change in the
chronological order of the land openings
would have made a vast difference in later
urban development in this locality. The es
tablishment of the Fort Snelling military
reservation at an early date prevented set
tlement on the west bank of the Mississippi
at the Falls of St. Anthony and Indian
rights delayed settlement on the east bank
until 1837 and on the west bank outside the
military reservation until 1851. This order
of events led to the settlement of St. Paul,
on the east side of the river, in 1838, where-
24
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
THE TREATY OF TRAVERSE DES SIOUX.
Reproduced from the painting by Frank B. Mayer (owned by the Minnesota Historical Society) from his original
,
sketches made during the councils and treaty in 3851.
as the logical location for the new town was
at Mendota on the west bank where Gen.
H. H. Sibley had built his trading house
some years earlier. But Mendota was shut
off by lack of a treaty until 1851 by which
time St. Paul had made such progress that
competition was out of the question. But,
had the upper part of the military reserva
tion been opened for settlement in 1821
when Fort Snelling was founded neither
Mendota nor St. Paul would have been
thought of. Settlement would have been
made naturally between the Fort and the
Falls and by the time the Indian treaties
were made in 1837 and 1851 the site of the
only city in the vicinity would have been
irrevocably determined. Had the reserva
tion been opened as thus suggested the early
Minneapolis would have stretched along the
west river bank from Minnehaha to the
Falls of St. Anthony with scant occupation
of the "east side." And if a settlement had
been made later at the site of St. Paul it
would, in all probability, never have at
tained much importance. There would have
been a great administrative and commercial
economy through the concentration of in
terests in one city rather than a dissipation
of energy and expenditure between two
places but opinions will probably differ as
to the desirability of such concentration as
opposed to the advantages of competition
and rivalry.
CHAPTER IV
THE PERIOD OF EARLY SETTLEMENT
T
HE exact date of a city's birth is not
always easily determined. There is
often a choice between the date of
the erection of the first temporary dwelling
or camp and the first permanent settlement.
And these dates are frequently confused by
changes and extensions of boundaries which
in later days bring within the city limits
places or buildings not originally considered.
Minneapolis enjoys a full measure of uncer
tainty surrounding its birthday.
• It has been customary to fix the date of
the beginning of this city at the time of the
erection of Col. John H. Stevens' dwelling
in 1849; but the old government mill of 1820
was undoubtedly the first structure built
by white men within the present limits of
Minneapolis. This mill was built by the
soldiers stationed at Fort Snelling to supply
lumber for the post and was in no sense a
settlement. It stood upon a government
military reservation, and no one had the
right to settle in the vicinity. A dwelling
was erected, however, in connection with
the mill for the use of the soldiers detailed
to the care of the place and here a soldier
lived with his wife during some of the early
years. Near the mill was the. farm where
grain was raised and cattle pastured for the
use of the post.
with the most complete consecration to
their difficult work. Obtaining the permis
sion of the commandant at Fort Snelling
they built their log house on the high bluff
overlooking Lake Calhoun from the east
on a spot afterwards occupied for years by
a summer hotel, and now the site of a
beautiful home. The eligibility of the site
in the eyes of the Ponds was in the fact
that it adjoined an Indian village which
occupied the ground lying between Lakes
Calhoun and Harriet. At about the time
of its erection one of the brothers drew a
rough chart of the region about the falls
and fort which is probably the earliest map
THE PONDS AT LAKE CALHOUN.
The second building to be erected on
ground now within the limits of Minneapolis
was the rude log hut of the Pond brothers
at Lake Calhoun. Samuel W. Pond and
I Gideon H. Pond arrived at Fort Snelling in
[ the spring of 1834 with the purpose of
engaging in missionary work among the
Indians. They were young men, reared
in a Connecticut home and with no experi
ence in the hardships of frontier life, but
rm<zSe
*
THE FIRST MAP OP MINNEAPOLIS.
Sketch of the vicinity of the Falls of St. Anthony and Fort
Snelling, drawn by Rev. S. W. Pond in 1834. Reproduced by
permission from "Two Volunteer Missionaries Among
the Dakotas," by S. W. Pond, Jr.
26
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
on November 22, 1838. With the removal
of the Indians from the reservation in 1840
the mission buildings became useless and
they were torn down and the lumber used
in the construction of new buildings on
the Minnesota river.
EARLY SQUATTER CLAIMS.
As yet no permanent settlement had been
made. The land upon the west bank of the
Mississippi still remained a part of the Fort
Snelling military reservation and until 1837
that on the east side was unceded by the
Indians. In 1836 Major Plympton, an of
ficer stationed at Fort Snelling, made a
claim on the east side of the falls and put
up a log cabin, but as the lands were not
open for settlement the claim had no value.
A similar claim was made in the following
year by Sergeant Carpenter. But during
1837 the Dodge treaty was made, by which
the Chippewa lands between the Mississippi
and St. Croix rivers were ceded, and squat
ter claims at once gave promise of being
effective. The news of the treaty did not
REV. S. W. POND.
of the district now comprised in Minne
apolis. About five years later the cabin at
Calhoun was pulled down to furnish log:;
for an Indian defense against expected
enemies. In 1908 a tablet commemorating
the Ponds and their work was erected in
the vicinity of the original site of the cabin.
STEVENS AT LAKE HARRIET.
In 1835, one year-after the Ponds' arrival,
the Rev. J. D. Stevens came to Minnesota
as a missionary to the Indians and selected
a location on the northwestern shore of
Lake Harriet where two buildings were
erected. These structures—a mission house
and a school—stood but a short distance
from the site of the present amusement
pavilion. The school was the first building
in Minnesota erected for educational pur
poses. At the old mission house occurred
the first wedding within the present limits
of Minneapolis—that of the Rev. S. W.
Pond to Miss Cordelia Eggleston, a sisterin-law of the Rev. Mr. Stevens. This was
REV. GIDEON H. POND.
THE PERIOD OF EARLY SETTLEMENT
reach Fort Snelling until June 18, 1838;
and then occurred the first "land rush" in
Minnesota. The contestants were few but
the outcome was momentous for Minne
apolis. Franklin Steele, then sutler at Fort
Snelling, outstripped his competitors and
making a night march to the falls had a rude
cabin erected and a claim staked out when
the other would-be town site promoters
arrived on the ground.
FRANKLIN STEELE'S INFLUENCE.
It was extremely fortunate for the coming
city that this particular claim fell into the
hands of such a man as Mr. Steele. Of
much more than ordinary ability, of good
family, and with social and business con
nections among the prominent people of
his native state of Pennsylvania, Mr. Steele
came west, at the suggestion of President
Jackson, with the purpose of building up
his fortunes in what he believed to be a
part of the country offering great oppor
tunities. His appointment as sutler came
from President Van Buren. In those days
this position was regarded as one offering
excellent opportunities for young men in
the new country where army posts were
established; and a sutler, if a man of merit,
was .on a social equality with the officers
with whom he was associated. Mr. Steele,
in accepting the position, had a definite
purpose. And this he accomplished through
the claim at the Falls of St. Anthony and
his subsequent remarkable business achieve
ments in the development of the water
power and manufactures, and in commercial
enterprises and real estate investment. Col.
John H. Stevens says of him: "At the
commencement of my acquaintance with
Mr. Steele (1849) he w a s the foremost busi
ness man in this part of the northwest.
His numerous enterprises were distributed
from the head of Lake Superior to the Iowa
line and from the Mississippi to the Mis
souri. Gentlemanly and generous, every
member of the community was his friend."
It was a man of this type who had much
to do with the destinies of Minneapolis.
For the next decade Mr. Steele could
make little progress with his claim at the
Falls; for the government, although owning
27
the land, delayed in opening it for legal
entry. Through this period Mr. Steele's
title was only that of a squatter, maintained
by actual occupation and defense against
claim jumpers. For years he hired a sub
stitute to "hold down" his claim and in
several instances the owner was obliged to
buy off trespassers who had slipped in and
taken possession during the absence of the
rightful occupant. But Mr. Steele was the
kind of man to maintain his position. The
year 1847 found him still in possession, and
at last he paid the government fees and
obtained undisputed title.
PIERRE BOTTINEAU.
Meanwhile there had been many other
claims made and lost in the vicinity. Car
penter's claim of 1837 seems to have been
recognized by later comers for he sold it
in 1838 and it passed through various hands
until it was purchased by Pierre Bottineau
in 1846. This claim lay immediately north
of Mr. Steele's, but like all the early claims,
was quite indefinite as to boundaries. Bot
tineau, though living in Minneapolis but a
comparatively short time, was one of the
most interesting characters connected with
the early history of the city, and was very
widely known throughout the northwest.
Born in 1817 at a trading post on the Da
kota prairies of a French father and Indian
mother, he grew up a hunter and plains
man by inheritance and training. At a very
early age he became a guide and until the
railroads penetrated the northwest con
ducted many of the prominent parties of
explorers and prospectors. After his mar
riage in 1836 he spent more time in the
settlements for a while and in 1845 came
to the Falls, living in the village until 1854
when he moved to a farm in Hennepin
county. A man of sterling character, ener
getic, and of rare ability as a plainsman,
he made and held many friends, and during
the early days was one of the prominent
men of the community. In fact, when the
east bank of the Mississippi was finally
opened for legal entry of land, he, with Mr.
Steele, held the entire river frontage in the
vicinity of the Falls. Claims had also been
made by Joseph Rondo, Petit John, and
28
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
:•• j
'
jtaLz*
m
'
~ ';3S*
THE GOVERNMENT MILLS OF 1820-3.
Reproduced from the painting by James Fairman in the Minnesota Historical Society Galleries.
others and there 'was more or less trading
in the uncertain titles of these squatters,
but the transfers were questionable as to
legality, the considerations small, and the
effects upon the development of the future
village inconsequential. The Petit John
claim covered the present site of the Uni
versity of Minnesota. At one time it was
owned by Bottineau but later came into the
hands of Calvin A. Tuttle, one of the early
pioneers. Immediately below this was a
claim made by Pascal and Sauverre St.
Martin, two brothers of Canadian French
birth. Their land included a part of the
present University campus and extended
down the river rather indefinitely. This
land afterwards became the property of Wil
liam A. Cheever and Judge B. B. Meeker.
PIONEERS OF '47 AND '48.
Previous to 1847 all the claims about the
Falls of St. Anthony were occupied only
by half-breeds or Canadian French. Even
Franklin Steele continued to live at Fort
Snelling and employed the woodsmen or
voyageurs to hold his claim. Several au
thorities credit Charles Wilson with being
the first American settler, but Wilson seems
to have made his home at Fort Snelling.
He was employed as a teamster by Franklin
Steele and does not appear to have made
any claim of land. In June of 1847 William
A. Cheever arrived from Boston and pur
chased the claim already mentioned. He
was soon followed by others—Calvin A.
Tuttle, Sumner W. Farnham, Caleb D.
Dorr, Luther Patch and his son Edward,
John Rollins, Charles W. Stimpson, Daniel
Stanchfield, John McDonald, Samuel Ferrald, Robert W. Cummings, J. M. Marshall,
Wm. R. Marshall (who afterwards became
governor) and R. P. Russell. The last men
tioned had been a trader at Fort Snelling
for several years, and he became the first
merchant of Minneapolis through the open
ing of a small stock of goods at the Falls
in 1848. This store was in one of the rooms
of the house occupied by Luther Patch and
his family, and Mr. Russell shortly after
wards married Miss Marian Patch, their
wedding being the first to be celebrated on
the east side of the river.
MANUFACTURING BEGINS.
As soon as he secured title to his lands
Mr. Steele set about improving the water
•
.
-.;r
30
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
power. He sent to Maine for Ard. God
frey to build a dam and sawmill, but with
characteristic energy, commenced opera
tions before the millwright's arrival. The
lower end of Nicollet Island was denuded
of a grove of elms and maples, and timber
was hewed out by hand to construct the
dam and mill frame. Other timber was
brought down the river in the spring, and
early in the year 1848 the first merchant
sawmill at the Falls of St. Anthony was put
in operation. This was the signal for a
rapid growth of the village. The settlers
of the previous year had been obliged to
build log houses or haul their lumber over
land from the St. Croix river. The govern
ment sawmill on the west side had supplied
a little lumber, but its capacity was very
limited. During this year of 1848 such men
as Bradley B. Meeker, Anson Northrup,
John W. North, S. W. Farnham, Washing
ton Getchell and Dr. John H. Murphy, all
later prominent in the young city, arrived
at the Falls. Surveys were commenced and
PIERRE BOTTINEAU.
plans for a city discussed among the prom
inent settlers. Investigations of the pine
lands north and northwest were made; the
agricultural possibilities of the country were
looked into and the probabilities of the
opening of the region west of the Missis
sippi river sifted.
Upon such opening
depended the future of the village at the
Falls. The lands upon the east side of the
river were not regarded as of as much agri
cultural value as those on the west; and
on the east there were already the settle
ments at St. Paul and Stillwater—rival mar
kets for the coming settlers. It was to the
west that a tributary farming country must
be developed.
COL. STEVENS ARRIVES.
The earlier settlers cast longing eyes at
the immediate bank of the Mississippi on
the west—still a prohibited country, it will
be remembered, on account of the arbitrary
maintenance of the military reservation by
the government. This west shore was the j.
most natural site for the city. Beyond it
lay the beautiful country, stretching away
towards the west—the now famous "park
region" of Minnesota—fertile, well watered
and offering subsistence for hundreds of
thousands. The first successful attempt to
obtain a foothold on the west side was made
by the Hon. Robert Smith of Alton, 111.,
who through political influence obtained
permission to occupy the old government
mill and the house connected with it. Mr.
Smith secured possession in May, 1849, but
never lived on the property in person. Some
time later he sent a representative who acted
as miller; and by further exercise of influ
ence he was enabled after a few years to
secure a claim of land. In the meantime
there had arrived at the Falls of St. Anthony
a young man of twenty-nine, coming of
sturdy New England ancestry, trained in
the school of self-reliance in the new West,
and seasoned in the Mexican war—a born
pioneer and promoter. This was John H.
Stevens, known to the older people of Min
neapolis as "Colonel Stevens." He was of
the type of men who spend their lives in
the promotion of the interests of the many—
the builders who build for the love of build-
THE PERIOD OF EARLY SETTLEMENT
ing, not for the hope of gain. Like many
others since, Col. Stevens came to the north
west in search of health. It was his pur
pose to take up land and become a farmer.
He reached St. Paul on April 24th, 1849,
and came to the Falls of St. Anthony three
days later, on his way up the Mississippi
river to select lands. His party proceeded
some distance up the river, but finding no
lands to their liking returned to St. Paul,
and some of the members went back to their
eastern homes. But Col. Stevens remained
and entered the employment of Franklin
Steele in his business establishment at Fort
Snelling. Within a month a plan for mak
ing a claim on the west side at the Falls
was arranged, and during that summer the
consent of the Secretary of War was ob
tained and Col. Stevens formally occupied
the land lying immediately north of the
Smith claim on the west shore. During
the succeeding fall he commenced the erec
tion of his house and completed and occu
pied it on August 6th, 1850.
THE STEVENS HOUSE.
This first permanent dwelling in Minne
apolis proper was a story-and-a-half frame
structure with a wing of one story—a sim
ple and unpretentious farm house, built as
a home for a young married couple, and
without a thought of the varied purposes
for which it would be used, or that it would
be preserved in a public park in after years,
as a relic of the early days of a great city.
When it was built its owner had no title to
the land on which it stood. He simply had
permission from the Secretary of War to
occupy the land on condition that he main
tained a free ferry across the Mississippi
river for government troops and supplies.
There was, of course, the understanding
that if the lands west of the river were ever
thrown open for settlement, Col. Stevens'
claim would be recognized; but for six
years he had not a line of writing supporting
any claim of ownership.
But Franklin Steele, Col. Stevens and
other leading men in the settlement were in
touch with influential men at Washington,
and it soon became evident that it would
be the policy of congress to reduce the
size of the military reservation; while a
31
treaty with the Indians for the cession of
their whole country west of the Mississippi
river in Minnesota was almost certain of
immediate consummation.
Pressure was
brought to bear from every direction to
accomplish these two measures. And, while
these negotiations were going on Col. Stev
ens set about furnishing an object lesson
which should help the cause by enlisting
the assistance and approval of every visitor.
I11 the summer of 1850 he "grubbed" and
broke up about forty acres of land on the
west river bank immediately above his
house, and the next summer raised crops
of wheat, oats and corn which would have
done credit, he said, to central Illinois.
Every one visiting the falls crossed to the
west side to secure the view and was con
fronted, immediately upon mounting the
river bank, by fields of waving grain. These
fields, Col. Stevens claimed, settled the
destination of many an immigrant. They
demonstrated the possibilities of western
Minnesota and removed all doubts as to the
fertility and productiveness of the region.
Col. Stevens' farm was the first on the west
bank of the Mississippi north of the Iowa
line. He introduced the first herd of cows
west of the Falls, excepting those held for
the use of the troops. During the following
year William W. Wales demonstrated in
his own garden that all kinds of vegetables
could be successfully raised in this climate.
These things seem trivial at this day, but
in the early fifties—when the northwest was
still regarded as almost uninhabitable—they
were of the utmost importance. It was nec
essary to demonstrate by actual production
that the crops of the middle states could be
grown in Minnesota; otherwise the pros
pective settler could not be convinced.
PIONEER LIFE AT THE FALLS.
Col. Stevens and Miss Frances H. Miller I
were married at Rockford, Illinois, on May/
10, 1850, and as-soon as their house was!
completed, moved to the west side of the
Falls, where they lived at first entirely with
out neighbors, except those across the swiftrunning river. It is difficult to imagine the
conditions under which this young married
couple went to housekeeping on the site of
Minneapolis less than sixty years ago. Their
32
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
house stood on the river bank on the site
of the Union passenger station, and q'uite
near the water. It was on a shelf or ter
race about twenty feet above the water,
but considerably below the general level of
the ground farther back from the river, so
that when approaching the house from the
COLONEL STEVENS' HOUSE.
Erected in 1S49-50; the first
on the west side of the river.
(From a drawing by A. Pournier in Stevens' Personal
Recollections.)
west only its roof and upper portions were
visible. And this was the only dwelling
inhabited by white people between the Falls
of St. Anthony and the Rocky Mountains.
Of Indians there was no lack. The illus
tration, showing a group of Indian tepees,
with Col. Stevens' house in the background,
was reproduced from what was undoubtedly
the earliest photograph taken on the site of
Minneapolis and shows, much more graph
ically than words can describe, the abso
lutely primitive conditions under which the
first family west of the Falls lived. The
Indians' camp was about on the spot now
known as Bridge Square—the common foot
of Nicollet and Hennepin avenues. From
this point westward extended the almost
unbroken wilderness. In his "Recollec
tions" Col. Stevens says of the Indians:
The different tribes of Indians were never so
numerous in the neighborhood as in 1850. A
constant stream of Winnebagoes were coming
and going. The different bands of Sioux re
mained in camp several months on the high-lands
just above the falls. They did not interfere with
my stock, but made sad havoc with my garden.
As a general rule the Indians respected the pri
vate property of the whites residing outside of
their own lands, but would occasionally confiscate
the property of the missionaries.
There can be
no question but that the cussedness of these sav
ages was frequently annoying to the missionaries.
Of a particular visitation from the red
men, Col. Stevens writes:
The two lake bands of Indians, so called be
cause they formerly lived on the shores of lakes
Calhoun and Harriet, but then residing at Oak
Grove (now Bloomington), encamped on the
high land above the Falls for several weeks in
July and August. They had considerable money
left that they had received at the Traverse des
Sioux treaty held a few weeks previous. They
had brought their own canoes down the Min
nesota river, and then up the Mississippi to the
foot of the rapids, at which point they constantly
crossed the river to the St. Anthony side for the
purpose of trading.
The Indians during their
encampment were constantly on the alert, fearing
an attack from the Chippewas, but they were so
fond of trading, and the money they had left
burned in their pockets to such an extent, that
they were willing to risk their scalps at that
time for the pleasure they experienced in ex
changing their money for goods. They had
previously given me the name of Mi-ni-sni—cold
water—and were always friendly, supplying my
family, at the proper season of the year, with
game in abundance, but expecting, and always
receiving pay therefor. To the credit of the
traders in St. Anthony, there was never a drop
of strong drink sold to the Indians, and as a
consequence there was never any of them in
toxicated.
Col. Stevens' recollections of the early
months at the first home in Minneapolis
are of special interest; the following are
extracts:
The only way we could reach the house from
St. Anthony was by taking a small boat, with two
sets of oars, above Nicollet Island. The volume
of water was so great, and the current so strong,
we were fortunate if the landing was made any
considerable distance above the rapids. Captain
John Tapper, with his sinewy arms, required a
strong assistant, with a capacious pan for bailing
purposes, to make a sure crossing above the
cataract.
Pioneer housekeeping was not new to
me, for I had long kept bachelor's hall in the
lead-mines, but it was a novelty to my wife, who
had been accustomed to the refining influences
and conveniences of a well regulated New York
household. Sometimes for weeks we would not
see a white person: our only visitors were In
dians.—•—Mosquitoes surrounded the house in such
swarm's that smoke would not banish them.
We
usually received our letters and papers once a
week.
Fortunately I had a pretty good library,
and Mrs. Stevens had a piano and other musical
': /.v.V; * -•,:: i--:
34
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
instruments, which had a tendency to banish
from the little house most of the lonesomeness
naturally incident to pioneer life so far from
neighbors.
OTHER EARLY SETTLERS.
Next in order after Col. Stevens' claim
came that of Charles Moseau, who obtained
permission from the military authorities in
the winter of 1849, and took up his resi
dence on the southeast shore of Lake Cal
houn. Soon afterwards, the Rev. E. G. Gear,
chaplain at Fort Snelling, made a claim on
the east shore of Lake Calhoun. John P.
Miller, in August, 1851, secured the second
claim near the falls—160 acres immediately
adjoining Col. Stevens' location. On this
claim he built a good house and farm build- 1
ings, although he had no title other than a
permit from the war department. Dr. Hezekiah Fletcher, John Jackins, Isaac Brown,
Warren Bristol, Allen Harmon, and Dr. A.
E. Ames made claims during 1851, and were
soon followed by Edward Murphy, Anson
Northrup, Charles Hoag, Martin Layman,
John G. Lennon, Benj. B. Parker, Sweet
W. Case, Edgar Folsom, Hiram Van Nest,
Robert Blaisdell and others, all of whom
secured permits from the military authori
ties. Prominent claim holders just outside
the military reservation were Joel B. Bassett, Emanuel Case, Charles W. Christmas,
Waterman Stinson, William Byrnes, Ste
phen and Rufus Pratt, all of whom took up
land in what is now North Minneapolis.
During 1851, 1852 and 1853, many claims
were occupied, although still without title
or immediate prospect of title. It was even
necessary to guess at boundaries (in the
absence of all surveys by government) but
Mr. Christmas, who was a surveyor, ran
lines as he believed the government sur
veyors would make them. These informal
boundaries proved to be substantially cor
rect when the final surveys were made in
1854.
During three or four , years, the utmost
confusion prevailed. Besides those who
obtained permits from the army officials
were other settlers who had no shadow of
authority, and the claim shanties of these
"squatters" were frequently destroyed by
the officers and their builders ejected from
the reservation. The administration of this
authority was radical and was claimed to
be tyrannical and charges of bribery were
frequently made. Although there was prob
ably much less corruption of officials than
was charged, it seems indubitable that the
•
-h; •
GOVERNOR WILLIAM R. MARSHALL.
administration of the army officers was far
from just, and that influences of some sort
or other were active in securing opportuni
ties for favored settlers. So unsettled was
the situation that the claimholders finally
organized an association with Dr. A. E.
Ames, as president and Charles Hoag as
secretary, and an executive committee com
posed of the leading men of the settlement.
Weekly meetings were held in Col. Stevens'
house. The association was frankly com
mitted to frontier justice; there was no
law, and it w r as proposed to assert the
rights of bona fide settlers and claimants on
the basis of justice and equity as voted by
the majority. So thorough was the organi
zation, and so completely was it respected,
35
THE PERIOD OF EARLY SETTLEMENT
Ei
THE SWEET COLLECTION
BRIDGE SQUARE, MINNEAPOLIS, IN 1851.
Colonel Stevens' house is in the background, partly concealed by the bluff. The Indian tepees stood about where
Bridge Square is now located.
that only one instance of severe measures
is recorded. One claim jumper received a
well-merited flogging, and promptly disap
peared from the region. However, there
were a number of cases of disputed claims
which were settled by compromise before
possession could be secured.
At the close of the year 1852 there were
only a dozen houses on the land included
in the original town site on the west side
and there was as yet no appearance of a vil
lage. The buildings were all farm houses
or claim shanties and of necessity were
located on the land claimed by the inhab
itants; and were thus scattered over a wide
area. This state of affairs continued for a
while longer, for Congress passed a law
reducing the Snelling reservation but made
no provision for a survey and entry of the
land. And it was not until the spring of
1855 that the claimants were enabled to pay
their land fees and secure the long expected
titles to their property.
PROGRESS OF ST. ANTHONY.
Meanwhile the village on the east bank of
the Mississippi river was growing rapidly
although it was conceded even then that
the west bank must be the location of the
greater part of the future city. As has been
noted, the opening of the saw mill in 1848
started a miniature boom in building. Dur
ing that year the population reached about
three hundred. Wm, R. Marshall, whose
arrival has been referred to, surveyed the
town site, a post-office was established, the
first school was opened (in a log cabin) and
religious services were "commenced by the
Rev. E. D. Neill, a Presbyterian clergyman
who had located in St. Paul. Mr. Neill exer-
36
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
cised a most salutary influence upon the
young settlement. He was a man of educa
tion and refinement and at the same time
quite able to turn his hand or mind to any
of the needs of the frontier community—
teaching school, lecturing, taking part in
politics and serving the community in any
capacity where his abilities were needed.
Col. Stevens records the following arrivals
at St. Anthony in 1849:
John W. North, Dr. John H. Murphy, Reuben
Bean, Judge Bradley B. Meeker, Dr. Ira Kingsley, Elijah Moulton, Charles Kingsley, James
McMullen, Joseph M. Marshall, John Jackins, Wil
liam P. Day, Silas and Isaac Lane, Francis Huot,
L. Bostwick, Owen McCarty, Moses W. Getchell,
Isaac Gilpatrick, J. G. Spe-nce, Lewis Stone, Rufus
Farnham, senior, Rufus Farnham, junior, Albert
Dorr, William Worthington, Elmer Tyler, L. N.
Parker, William Richardson, Eli F. Lewis,
Charles A. Brown, A. J. Foster, Charles T.
Stearns, Stephen Pratt, William W. Getchell,
Isaac Ives Lewis, J. Q. A. Nickerson, Ira Bur
roughs, Samuel Fernald, William HB. Welch, F.
X. Creapeau, N. Beauteau, John Bean, and Amos
Bean.
Gradually the young community took on
the appearance of an eastern village. From
log cabins the style changed to the white
painted cottages of New England, where
most of the settlers began life. One by one
stores and shops were opened until the ordi
nary needs of the villagers were supplied
by local business enterprise. In 1851 the
first newspaper made its appearance—the
St. Anthony Express, published by Elmer
Tyler and edited by Isaac Atwater, a young
lawyer who had reached Minneapolis in the
previous year and who was destined to be
come a justice of the supreme court, and a
prominent citizen of Minneapolis for nearly
sixty years. Churches of several denomi
nations were organized previous to 1853.
The state university, provided for by the
first territorial legislature, was organized—
on paper—and a board of regents was
appointed.
The arrivals in 1851 included A. H. Young,
afterwards for many years a judge of the
district court, George A. Camp, prominent
in the lumber business, John T. Blaisdell,
Hiram Van Nest, William W. Wales, who
had a large part in the affairs of the young
city and lived to see it become a metropolis,
Joel B. Bassett, a pioneer lumberman and
long a well known citizen, Leonard Day and
his sons, identified with lumbering for two
generations, Dr. A. E. Ames, Emanuel Case,
Sweet W. Case, Samuel Thatcher, Win. G.
Moffett, David A. Secombe and many others.
To enumerate all the arrivals is beyond the
scope of this work.
LAYING O'UT MINNEAPOLIS.
Many of the settlers recorded as coming
to St. Anthony only made it a stopping
place until they could secure a foothold on
the west side of the river. Col. Stevens was
the first, and most of these mentioned in the
preceding paragraph moved to the west side
as soon as they could make claims. Some
spent part of their time in St. Anthony and
part on their potential farms. There was no
opportunity for business on the west side
while trade was brisk on the east shore.
The situation made Col. Steven's uneasy and
he was constantly importuned for permis
sion to build upon his farm. At last in the
spring of 1854 he employed Chas. W. Christ
mas to survey a town site of over 100 acres.
This survey covered the larger part of the
present business center of Minneapolis of
today and determined the general direction
of the streets and their width. Col. Stevens
had been familiar with New Orleans and
patterned the new Minneapolis after the
English portion of that city as it was in the
early days.
NAMING THE CITY.
Immediately after the survey Col. Stevens
began his liberal policy of giving away lots
to people who would build and within a few
months there was a village of parts centered
about the present Bridge Square—then
known as Bridge Street. The transfers of
real estate were verbal. Col. Stevens had
no title and could give none. Afterwards,
when his preemption was completed he gave
deeds to each lot owner. But though the
people of the young city had no right to the
ground on which they were building they
had by this time secured a name. From the
first there had been much discussion of this
interesting matter. For a time All Saints
seemed to be in favor, while Col. Stevens
at first preferred Hennepin. Winona was
THE PERIOD OF EARLY SETTLEMENT
considered as were Lowell, Albion, Adasville and other more or less suitable titles.
When the Fort Snelling reservation was
reduced in 1852 Hennepin County was or
ganized with a county seat on the west side
of the falls—but there was no name for the
county seat. The county commissioners
selected the name Albion and it was so re
corded but there was a great protest from
the people and a few weeks later Charles
37
providing for the incorporation of the town
of Minneapolis and it was more than two
years afterwards, on July 20, 1858, that a
town government was organized under the
name.
It thus remains a matter of individual
choice or opinion whether Minneapolis had
its birth with the erection of the old mill of
1820, the cabin of the Pond's in 1834, the
Stevens house of 1849, the choice of a name
by the inhabitants in 1852, the act providing
. ....
ST. ANTHONY IN 1851.
Hoag invented and proposed the name
"Minnehapolis"—a combination of Greek
and Sioux. This name met with instant
favor and—with the letter "h" eliminated—
was formally adopted by the citizens of the
village at a meeting held in Col. Stevens'
house in December, 1852. But though thus
adopted the name was not sanctioned by
government until some time later. It was
in 1856 that the legislature passed an act
for incorporation in 1856 or the actual or
ganization of government in 1858. But it
is certain that the spirit of Minneapolis, as
it has been known in later years, began to
be manifest about the middle of the decade
of 1850-60 when the settlers obtained actual
title to their lands and when improvements
of a permanent character began to be made.
Then did the town first assert itself and give
definite promise of its great future.
CHAPTER V .
THE FORMATIVE PERIOD
W
ITHIN the decade of 1855-65 the
villages at the Falls of St. An
thony received into their popula
tion many of the men who were a few years
later to make the name of Minneapolis fam
ous through their commercial achievements.
The foundations of many of the older banks
and business houses were laid; definite plans
for future commercial enterprises and trans
portation routes were made. Of course,
plans were crude and incomplete; but, on
the whole, the men of this period had a very
fair conception of the main lines along which
Minneapolis was to develop in later years.
It was during this decade that John S. Pillsbury came to Minneapolis and started a
business which lives until the present time;
that William D. Washburn commenced the
improvement of the water power on a scale
and with a comprehension which laid the
foundations for a great milling industry;
that that enthusiastic pioneer, Colonel Stev
ens, gave away lots now worth millions, for
the good of the town; that such men as H.
T. Welles; C. H. Pettit, R. J. Mendenhall,
Anthony Kelly, Eugene M. Wilson, George
A. Brackett, Daniel R. Barber, Richard and
S. H. Chute, John B. Gilfillan, S. C. Gale,
C. B. Heffelfinger, T. A. Harrison, Hugh G.
Harrison, E. S. Jones, William S. King,
William Lochren, Charles M. Loring, Dorilus Morrison, W. W. McNair, J. K. and
H. G. Sidle, R. J. Baldwin, E. B. Ames,
Paris Gibson, L. M. Stewart, William P.
Ankeny, Asa B. Barton, D. M. Clough, W.
H. Lauderdale, James W. Lawrence, F. R.
E. Cornell, Col. Cyrus Aldrich, Woodbury
Fiske, Cyrus Beede, George E. Huey, Dr.
P. L. Hatch, S. C. Robinson, O. C. Merriman, J. E. Bell, the Rev. D. B. Knickerbacker, C. E. Vanderburgh, Thomas Hale
Williams, J. C. Reno, S. P. Snyder, W. W.
Eastman, Fred L. Smith, the Rev. J. F.
Chaffee and others later to become promi
nent in the affairs of the city, cast in their
lots with the frontier village and gave their
best efforts to building up the place. Those
were days when public spirit was rife; when
everybody in Minneapolis worked for Min
neapolis.
It is said of this time that "the families
who came here, from 1854 to i860', and laid
the foundations of the Minneapolis to be,
were in character and culture the choicest
product of the east. No new settlement
ever showed a larger proportion of college
men and cultivated women. Indeed, it may
be doubted whether the official and intellec
tual status of Minneapolis has ever since
averaged as high as during those six earliest
years."
BRIDGING THE MISSISSIPPI.
One of the first ways in which the spirit of
Minneapolis was manifested was in the con
struction of a bridge across the Mississippi
river. The Father of Waters had not, up
to this time, been bridged at any point from
its source to its mouth. Franklin Steele,
Col. Stevens, Judge Atwater and others
formed a company for the construction of a
suspension bridge and in good time the
bridge was completed and opened—January
23, 1855—when the event was celebrated
with a parade and banquet at the new St.
Charles hotel. This was not only the first
bridge to span the Mississippi but one of the
first long suspension bridges to be con
structed in the country.
AS THE CITY APPEARED IN '56.
A recent historical sketch by the Rev.
Charles L. Morgan has this picture of the
village of Minneapolis in 1856:
Paying our toll to the genial Capt. Tapper, we
crossed the then brand-new suspension bridge,
T H E FORMATIVE PERIOD
and passing at its western end the home of Col.
Stevens, the very first house built in the village,
we climbed what was then a veritable hill past
a few one-story buildings into the space long
known as Bridge Square.
Bridge Square was then a rolling prairie, ex
tending between what were later Nicollet and
Hennepin Avenues, and dotted with oak trees.
At Second Street there was a depression which,
39
4.
Brothers, but the whole tract from the bridge to
Third St. in the center of which the Nicollet
House now stands was then an unbroken pasture
where a herd of cows and one or two savage
bulls held undisturbed possession.
The village at this time had three centers, so
to speak, which were each struggling for su
premacy; the earliest was in "lower town" where
was the Land Office and Post Office, the second
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THE FIRST SUSPENSION BRIDGE.
Prom a Daguerreotype made soon after the erection of the bridge.
usually filled with water, served in spring for
the navigation of rafts and in winter for a skat
ing pond. Thence there was a gentle up grade to
Third St., where began a heavy growth of woods
extending over the ridge whose meandering
wagon track became later known as Fourth St.
Upon Bridge Square there was already one twostory brick building with "Law Office" conspic
uous on its upper story and an irregular row of
one and two-story stores extending part way be
tween First and Second Streets,—or what be
came Second street in later years,—for at this
time no street was more than a wagon track or
path and all the names were long since changed.
At a point between Second and Third streets on
the south side stood the livery stable of the Goff
in the vicinity of Washington St. and Second
Ave. South; and the third and more rapidly
growing 011 account of the bridge, in Bridge
Square.
Just behind the cellar on Fourth St. where
my father's house was soon to rise, we found
the. still smoking embers of an Indian camp of
the night before.
FOUNDATIONS OF SCHOOL SYSTEM.
The public school system of Minneapolis
had its real beginning at a meeting held on
November 28, 1855, when John H. Stevens,
F. R. E. Cornell and J. N. Barber were
elected school trustees and the legislature
40
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
was petitioned for power to leavy a tax to
raise funds for the erection of a building.
This led to the purchase of the site now
partly occupied by the court house and city
hall and the erection of the first "union
school" which was succeeded, after a fire in
1864, by the Washington School, remem
bered by many men and women of Minne
apolis as the building in which they received
their first schooling. At about the same
time the promotion of the state university
was taken up in earnest and plans were
made for the erection of permanent build
ings. On May 16, 1859, the first meeting
for the formation of a library association
was held. From this grew the Minneapolis
Athenaeum and the present public library.
Coincident with these efforts for educational
advancement there was a vigorous growth
of the religious life of the community. Many
churches were organized and church build
ings were erected with much zeal and
boundless liberality. Newspapers were es
tablished but as yet the older papers at St.
Paul, having the advantage of location at
the political center of the state and in an
older community, overshadowed the jour
nals published at the Falls of St. Anthony.
COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY.
Immediately upon the perfection of the
title to the town site Minneapolis experi
enced its first real estate "boom" accom
panied by a period of business activity
which almost swept the promoters of the
village off their feet. Immigration into
Minnesota was just beginning to assume
great proportions; the lands ceded by the
Sioux in 1851 were now open to settlement
and the people would occupy them, for the
belief that Minnesota was a frozen and
uninhabitable region was passing away. It
was evident to the new comers that Minne
apolis was to be a commercial center for the
new country and they made haste to invest in
building lots. The first real estate office was
opened by Snyder & McFarlane in a small
frame building on Bridge Square near the
end of the suspension bridge. C. H. Pettit
established a bank and land agency; R. J.
Mendenhall entered the banking business as
did Rufus J. Baldwin, the Sidles and others
of lesser prominence. Mercantile establish
ments multiplied by scores and speedily
found themselves doing a large business.
On the east side the Winslow House was
erected in 1857 and the Nicollet House was
opened in 1858—these hostelries giving the
Falls adequate facilities for the entertain
ment of visitors. Building contractors were
overburdened with work and the capacity
of the saw mills was taxed to supply the
lumber demanded for improvements; but,
though the actual growth of the village was
very rapid, the larger part of the business
was still the sale of lands and lots and the
supply of necessities to settlers passing
through to the farm lands beyond.
DEVELOPMENT OF WATER POWER.
Quite the most important work for Min
neapolis at this period was the practical
development of the water power afforded
by the Falls of St. Anthony. This potential'
resource qf the young city had lain prac
tically dormant since the first efforts of
Franklin Steele. There had been, it is true,
an increase in the lumber sawing capacity
and a beginning in flour milling in connec
tion with the east side water power; but
nothing had been done commensurate with
the possibilities of the volume of water or
the prospects afforded by the opening of the
richest farming land in the country directly
tributary to the new town. The develop
ment of the lumbering and flour milling in
dustries will be told more in detail in the
chapters devoted to those subjects but it is
proper to emphasize at- this point the im
portance to Minneapolis of the work done
during the later fifties. William D. Wash
burn came to Minneapolis in 1856 and in
1857 w a s appointed secretary and agent of
the Minneapolis Mill Company, a reorgan
ization of an earlier company formed by
Robert Smith who acquired the water power
rights on the west side about the time Col.
Stevens secured his claim. Gen. Washburn
was a young man who had come out to
Minneapolis from Maine to practice law.
Finding better opportunities for his exec
utive talents in the constructive work of the
Mill Company he threw himself into the
labor of building a dam and canal and,
THE FORMATIVE PERIOD.
41
FROM THE SWEET COLLECTION
THE BUSINESS CENTER IN 1857.
View looking north from about Second avenue south and Fourth street.
amid the most discouraging circumstances,
pushed the enterprise to completion. His
policy of offering liberal terms to persons
who would construct flour and lumber mills
tended to centralize the industry on the
west side of the river and,gave the young
city of Minneapolis a decided advantage
over its neighbor, while the future of manu
facturing as a whole at the Falls of St.
Anthony was made more secure and its
development hastened. This work for the
city was done so long ago that few remain
who were witnesses of it and few of the
present generation are aware of the fact
that Gen. Washburn, still an active citizen
of Minneapolis, was the foremost factor in
the beginnings of the milling industry at
the Falls. It was the first of a series of
great constructive enterprises which Gen.
Washburn has undertaken which have been
in the aggregate of incalculable benefit to
Minneapolis.
THE PANIC OF 1857-8.
The work of constructing the dam and
canal had not been more than well com
menced before the financial panic of 1857
began to make itself felt in Minneapolis.
This not only made this particular enter
prise much more difficult but brought to all
the business activities of the young city
their first great discouragement. In com
mon with the rest of the state, and, indeed,
with many parts of the country, Minneapolis
had overdone the work of promotion. The
rush of population to the northwest and the
rapid increase in values had turned people's
heads. There was speculation of the wildest
kind, and projects most chimerical were
backed by the popular voice. It wanted
only the general panic to cause the bursting
of the bubble. Minneapolis suffered with
the rest, although, perhaps, not as badly
hurt as some other communities. For a
time the situation seemed almost hopeless.
Banks and business houses failed in num
bers, many people were utterly ruined, and
hundreds left the city to try their fortunes
elsewhere. However, not all the banks or
business men were bankrupt; some weath
ered the storm in good order and with the
improvement of conditions a year or so
later, were able to do much for the develop
ment of the community. There was a vast
recuperative power in the town and in the
northwest in those days, as now. No dis
aster could be long continued in a district
so naturally rich and so earnest in its work
for development. All through the civil war,
which followed hard upon the panic times,
Minneapolis continued to grow, slowly, to
be sure, but steadily, and while sending
hundreds to the front, she contributed gen
erously of men and means for the suppres-
42
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
sion of the Indian outbreak of 1862, which
at first threatened to wipe out the entire
white population. For a time the uprising
injured Minneapolis, in common with the
whole northwest, through the check to im
migration which was the natural conse
quence ; but this effect was to some extent
counteracted by the concentration of gen
eral attention upon the war which was then
absorbing the whole energies of the nation.
And after the Indians had been put down
and punished and the history of the affair
could be viewed from a better perspective,
it became evident that the causes of the
rising were unusual and not likely to occur
again; while the Sioux had been so thor
oughly subdued and scattered that any fur
ther Indian trouble from any cause what
ever, was well nigh impossible within the
limits of Minnesota.
THE CITY'S WAR RECORD.
Out of an average population of about
7,000 during the war years Minneapolis and
St. Anthony sent to the Federal army about
1,400 volunteers. This is about the ordinary
ratio of adult males in any community and
the figures appear extravagant unless it is
remembered that the population of Minne
apolis in the early days contained an un
usual proportion of young men. It is true,
however, that in the young cities the prog
ress of commercial affairs was noticably re
tarded through the absence of so many of
the workers. Immediately upon the pres
ident's first call for troops public meetings
were held and, for the First Regiment of
Minnesota Volunteers, Co. D, Capt. Henry
R. Putnam, was raised in Minneapolis
and Co. E, Capt. George N. Morgan, in
St. Anthony. The story of the service of
the famous "First Minnesota," culminat
ing in its magnificent charge at Gettysburg,
—when at the cost of two hundred and fif
teen out of two hundred and sixty-two men
who started in the charge, the devoted band
probably saved the battle for the Union—
has been often told. Capt. Morgan became
a brigadier general and Capt. Putnam en
tered the regular infantry. Other well
known names are those of Major Henry D.
O'Brien, Capt. James Bryant and Lieut. Wil
liam Lochren. No companies for the second
FALLS OF ST. ANTHONY IN 1859.
View from about the center of the present flour milling district. The partially ruined building at the right is the
old government flour mill. The Winslow House may be seen in the distance across the river.
THE FORMATIVE PERIOD.
regiment were raised here but its colonel,
Horatio P. Van Cleve, afterwards a major
general, became a citizen of Minneapolis
when the regiment was formed and lived
here during the remainder of his life. Capt.
W. W. Woodbury of this regiment was a
Minneapolis pioneer and many young men
enlisted from here. In the Third Regiment
were numerous volunteers from Minneap
olis, including Dr. Levi Butler, the regi
mental surgeon, and Hans Mattson who
subsequently became its colonel. Minneap
olis also sent many volunteers to the Fourth
and Fifth regiments though raising no com
panies complete. For the Sixth Capt. O. C.
Merriman's Co. B and Capt. Joseph C. Whit
ney's Co. D were both raised here as were
Capt. George A. Camp's Co. A and Capt
Richard Strout's Co. B of the Ninth. The
city also contributed many other volunteers
to the Seventh, Eighth, Tenth and Eleventh
Infantry. Maj. George A. Camp was in the
Eighth, Capt. Francis Peteler raised Co. S
Second U. S. Sharpshooters. Another com
pany was raised by Capt. Wm. F. Russell,
and Capt. Eugene M. Wilson raised Co. A
of the First Regiment of Mounted Rangers
and Capt. George C. Whitcomb, Co. B of
Hatch's Independent Battalion of cavalry.
Maj. Christopher B. Heffelfinger of the First
Regiment of Heavy Artillery had been a
private in the First Infantry, rising by pro
motion to a captaincy before his v transfer
to the artillery. But to mention all the men
of Minneapolis who served bravely in the
war is manifestly impossible in a work of
this scope. Many of the volunteers enlisted
about the time of the Sioux outbreak of 1862
and saw their first service in the Indian
campaign and so did not reach the South
until nearly the end of the war. Upon the
close of the war the veterans were welcomed
warmly 011 their return to Minneapolis, the
women of the city (who had been notably
active in sending comforts to the soldiers at
the front) taking a prominent part in the
festivities incident to their return. In the
autumn of 1865 General Grant visited the
city and was given such a reception as might
have been expected from a place which had
contributed so generously to the rank and
file of his'armies.
43
IMPORTANT LEGISLATION.
• At about this time some very important
national and state legislation served to'
counteract the effects of the Indian troubles
as well as to exercise other very pronounced
influences on the future of Minneapolis. Up
to the war period the hindrances to the
rapid development of Minneapolis were the
lack of a sustaining agricultural population
and the impossibility, under existing condi
tions, of establishing such a producing com
munity in the region tributary to the city.
One difficulty was the presence of the In
dians who, while not regarded by the older
Minnesotans as constituting an actual men
ace to settlers, were still present in large
numbers and were viewed with more or less
suspicion by easterners who had not grown
familiar with the savages by actual contact.
The events following the massacre removed
the Indians from the consideration. At the
same time the new homestead law passed
by congress in 1862 began to have effect.
With the prospect of free government lands
in view settlers were willing to brave In
dian dangers both imaginary and real.
Next to the absence of producing popu
lation as a hindrance to development was
lack of transportation facilities. Railroads
had been planned in the later fifties but the
panic had wrecked the companies leaving
trails of unfinished grades and scandal in
all directions. But with the promise of bet
ter times railroad promotion was revived,
and, fostered by wiser laws, gave hope, even
during the height of the war, of an adequate
transportation system within a few years.
Besides roads fostered by state legislation
there was 110W hope of a transcontinental
line through the congressional charter of
the Northern Pacific railway.
At the same session of congress at which
the homestead law was passed the grant of
lands was made to the states for assistance
in the establishment of agricultural colleges.
This grant came to Minnesota at a time of
almost utter hopelessness as to the future
of the state university. •- Encumbered with
debt and with the public finances in a crit
ical condition there seemed no chance to
save the institution. At this juncture John
S. Pillsbury of Minneapolis was called to
44
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
what proved to be his life work—aside from
his business and political services. Ap
pointed a regent in 1863 he set to work
almost single handed to save the university
property and to make available the federal
grant—an achievement which is recounted
more at length in the sketch of his life which
of the war. In spite of all backsets the two
towns at the falls had grown steadily and
in 1865 had a combined population of about
8,000—an advance of 2,000 since i860. The
"Town of Minneapolis" (including the en
tire township) had 4,607 people and the
"City of St. Anthony" 3,499. The west side
WEST SIDE MILLS IN 1859.
From an old lithograph pronounced by pioneers to be accurate in location of buildings. The small building at the
top of the bank near the center of the picture is the office of W. D. Washburn, then
agent and manager for the Minneapolis Mill Company.
appears elsewhere. In this undertaking
Gov. Pillsbury was completely successful.
It is telling but a small part of the story to
say that he saved the university to Minne
sota and Minneapolis, saved the United
States grant which led to the building up
in connection with the University of the fore
most school of agriculture in the country—
accomplishments which have had a profound
effect directly and indirectly upon the his
tory of Minneapolis. The state legislation
in collection with this work was largely
formulated by Gov. Pillsbury.
MINNEAPOLIS I N 1865.
Minneapolis, therefore, had every reason
to be hopeful of the future in the last year
of the river was already leading the east.
In its physical aspects the dual village had
changed little for several years. The center
of business on the west side was still at
Bridge Square and 011 the east shore Main
street was the chief thoroughfare. There
was little business west of Washington
avenue. Most of the buildings were still
of frame and presented the heterogenous
appearance of the average small town where
hasty construction without much regard to
architectural appearance is the order of the
day. The most important building in the
town was the Central Block, just completed,
and occupied by A. T. Hale & Co., clothiers,
Laraway & Mills, grocers, and Wakefield &
THE FORMATIVE PERIOD
Plant, dry goods. At the corner of Nicollet
and Washington avenues was the new Har
rison "block" while the older half of the
Nicollet house was the chief building in
view looking westward. A dwelling house
occupied the site of Temple Court and the
principal residence sections were on north
Washington avenue and on the streets
and avenues southwest to Ninth or Tenth
streets. At the milling district there was a
small group of saw mills on either side of
the river and several small flour mills. The
Falls of St. Anthony still poured in un
broken flow over the original ledge of rocks,
scarcely changed in appearance since their
discovery, except for the constant recession
which a little later caused great anxiety and
led to the entire reconstruction of the river
bed. In September the Minnesota Central
Railroad was completed to Minneapolis and
gave the city its first rail connection with
the territory south. In the first two months
of operation this road carried from Minne
apolis 2,625,000 feet of lumber and 10,950
barrels of flour.
HORACE GREELEY'S OPINIONS IN '65.
At the Minnesota State Fair of 1865, held
in Minneapolis, the principal address was
by Horace Greeley, then at the height of his
fame as editor of the New York Tribune and
known the country over as a patron of agri
culture. Writing to the Tribune shortly
after his visit to Minneapolis, Mr. Greeley
spoke enthusiastically of the prospects of
the place. The following are extracts from
this letter:
St. Paul has some 13,000 inhabitants, while
this place, including St. Anthony Falls, across
the river, has some 8,000; and there seems to be
quite a jealous rivalry between them, which is
absurd.
The growth of railroads will soon ren
der the difference unimportant save to the landspeculators of one or the other locality, and Min
neapolis has advantage enough in her enormous
yet most facile water .power, which may be made
to give employment to a population of 100,000
souls. It has no superior but Niagara, and sur
passes that inasmuch as the pineries above and
the wheat lands all around are calculated to sup
ply it with profitable employment. And these
are but the rude beginnings. Already, beside a
paper-mill and other such, a woolen factory is in
full operation.
Another such is nearly ready, and
there is room and profitable business for a dozen
more; and for cotton factories also. Nowhere on
45
earth are the beneficent influences of our Pro
tective Tariff destined to be more signally, more
promptly realized than throughout the Great
West. And this city, as one consequence, ought
to quadruple its population within the next ten
years.
This prediction was substantially fulfilled;
for in 1875 ^e city had reached about 32,000
population, or four times that of the year
of Mr. Greeley's visit.
From the close of the Civil War to the
present time the history of Minneapolis di
vides itself quite naturally into three per
iods ; the first was of about fifteen years
during which the great industries of the city
made their initial forward strides; which
saw the construction of the framework of
the transportation system of the northwest;
which included the consolidation of Minne
apolis with St. Anthony; and which brought
the city through its second time of stress
and discouragement ready for the most re
markable chapter in its story. The second
period extended from about 1880 to 1894 or
'95 and was that in which the city made its
most rapid growth both in population, busi
ness and civic development. The first half
of this period was almost meteoric in its
brilliancy; the last half showed another ces
sation of progress culminating in the busi
ness depression of 1893 when Minneapolis,
in common with the entire country, paid
for mistakes made. Again there was a rest
time and then opened the last period ex
tending from the revival after 1894 to the
present and including the most solid growth
in every line of commercial, social and
municipal activity. The division points be
tween these periods were, of course, not
clearly defined, the transition ordinarily
covering several years.
WASHBURN, William D., is a native of
Maine but came to Minneapolis in 1857 and has
thus been identified with the city for fifty years.
During that time he has unquestionably exercised
a wider influence upon the affairs of the city than
any other man, has taken a most active part in
the commercial, social and political life of the
place, and has, in fact, been a powerful factor
in the wonderful progress and development of
the city of his choice* At the same time he has
been conspicuous in state and national affairs,
and has been peculiarly fortunate in supplement
ing services of particular value to the nation, by
giving to the northwest some of its most im-
46
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
portant public works. Gen. Washburn is descended from one of the oldest families in America—that of John Washburn who was secretary
of the Plymouth colony in England ai.d who,
sailing to the new world, afterwards married
Patience, the daughter of Francis Cook, one of
the Mayflower company. From these Puritan
ancestors, Israel Washburn, born in 1784, was
directly descended. His father served in the war
of the Revolution, as did the father of his wife,
Martha Benjamin, whom he married in 1812.
They made their home on a farm in Livermore,
Maine, and it was there that their sons were
born and reared—a group of men who constituted, perhaps, the most distinguished family contemporaneously in public life in the United States.
Of the eleven children there were seven sons all
of whom have achieved prominence in public life.
Israel Washburn, Jr., was elected to congress in
1850 when William, who was born in 1831, was
but nineteen years of age. The young men had
already become prominent in Maine state politics and Israel after serving five terms in congress
was elected war governor of his native state in
i860. Elihu B. Washburn served as congressman from Illinois from 1853 to 1869 when he was
appointed secretary of state by President Grant. :
During the Franco-Prussian war he was minister
plenipotentiary to France. Cadwallader C. Washburn was in congress both before and after the .
war, was a general in the union army and in 1871was elected governor of Wisconsin. Charles A.
Washburn was minister to Paraguay; Samuel
B. Washburn was a distinguished officer in the
navy.
The boyhood of Gen... Washburn was passed
upon the farm home and at the schools of the
vicinity—the ordinary experiences of the farmer's boy of the period. He fitted for college at
Farmington Academy and in 1850 entered Bowdoin College, the alma mater of many distinguished Americans. He completed the four years
course and graduated with the bachelor's degree
and at once commenced th«e study of law. During this period he spent part of his time at Washington performing the duties of a clerk in the
house of representatives, where he obtained his ;
first acquaintance with the affairs of congress and with the public men of the time. Two of Mr.
Washburn's brothers had already made their
homes in the west and upon completing his law
studies he determined to follow their example.
It was not difficult to decide upon a location.
Livermore had already sent men to the Falls of
St. Anthony and his brothers Elihu and Cadwallader had acquired interests there and in Minnesota. He himself had great confidence in the
future of the west and especially of Minnesota
of which he had heard much. Upon his arrival
in Minneapolis, on May 1, 1857, he opened an
office for the practice of law but very shortly
afterwards accepted the position of secretary and
agent of the Minneapolis Mill Company—the
corporation controling the west side power at
the Falls of St. Anthony—and for some years
devoted himself to the management of the business. His selection for this post was peculiarly
fortunate. To the young man it gave immediate
employment at a time when law business was
scarce and unremunerative; and it brought him
into close relations'with the leading men of the
town and state and familiarized him with the
possibilities of manufacturing at the Falls which
became largely the basis of his future business
success. To the young Minneapolis it gave the
benefit, in the direction most needed, of the
exercise of a remarkable executive ability. For
the coming city needed most of all the development of the water power—then one of the largest
powers known to exist. To this work Mr. Washburn applied himself with the utmost energy and
despite many discouragements, including the financial depression of that year, he completed the
west side dam before the close of 1858. Pursuing
a policy of liberality towards manufacturing enterprises the young manager succeeded within a
few years in building up the heart of the flour
and lumber manufacturing district around this
west side power dam. This was the nucleus of
the greatest group of flour mills in the world—
the corner stone of Minneapolis' future prosperity. Few of the people of Minneapolis of the
present generation are aware of the debt the city
owes to General Washburn for this, his first
work in the city. President Lincoln appointed
Mr. Washburn Surveyor General of Public lands
in 1861 and it was while holding this office that
the title "General" became so associated with his
name that it has continued through all the various offices which he has held; and he is better
known today as "General Washburn" than as
"Senator Washburn." During his incumbency of
the office Gen. Washburn became familiar with
the wonderful timber resources of the state and
after retiring from the position formed the firm
of W. D. Washburn & Co., built a saw mill at
the Falls and later one at Anoka, and until 1889
carried on a very extensive lumber business. In
1873 he entered flour milling and speedily became
an important factor in the production of that
Minneapolis staple. His interests in flour manufacturing were through the original firm of W.
D. Washburn & Co. and Washburn, Crosby &
Co. Subsequently in 1884, the firm of W. D.
Washburn & Co. was merged in the Washburn
Mill Company and in 1889 the flour milling division of this business was consolidated with the
Pillsbury interests in the Pillsbury-Washburn
Flour Mills Company, forming the largest flour
milling corporation in the world. At this time
there were large accessions of English capital but
Mr. Washburn retained, as he still does, a large
interest and has been continuously one of the
board of American directors of the properties,
The Minneapolis Mill Company and the St. Anthony Falls Water Power Co. were also con-
&J.
43
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
solidated with the new corporation which after
wards completed the work of harnessing the
power of St. Anthony Falls by the construction
of a new dam and power a short distance below
the main falls.
But while Gen. Washburn has been a leader
in the development of the water power and the
two greatest manufacturing industries of the city,
this has been but a small part of the activities of
his life. With a genius for production he still
had time and thought for the whole range of dis
tribution, transportation, finance and the broad
questions of political economy and statesmanship.
During most of his life in Minneapolis he has
had considerable interests in the financial insti
tutions of the city, the wholesale business and in
real estate. But as a railroad builder he is best
known to the general public—aside, of course,
from his political life. His first important rail
road project was the outgrowth of the conviction,
developed during the early seventies, that a rail
road controlled by Minneapolis interests and
leading into the southern part of the state and to
northern Iowa, was essential to the control of
trade. The Minneapolis & St. Louis railroad was
the outcome of this situation. Gen. Washburn
was the president of the company for some years
and its promoter and executive during the build
ing period. His next project was even greater—
to build a Minneapolis railroad to a connection
with tidewater ports, but entirely independent of
the Minneapolis-Chicago lines, and the roads east
of Chicago dominated by Chicago interests. Gen.
Washburn retired from the presidency of the
Minneapolis & St. Louis and, early in the eighties,
commenced to agitate the greater project. The
project was accepted with favor, for the city
had felt very seriously the detrimental influences
of the Chicago domination of freight rates; but
at first the plan seemed impracticable. The idea
was to build to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and
there connect with the Canadian Pacific railway,
but this involved construction of 500 miles of
railroad through the unbroken forests of northern
Wisconsin and upper Michigan—through, a terri
tory which would supply practically no local
business. It appeared that for years it would be
necessary to depend for revenues almost wholly
on the Minneapolis flour trade. But in this as in
his other business projects, Gen. Washburn's con
ceptions of the situation proved sound, and with
indomitable energy he organized, financied and
built the railroad—now the well-known "Soo
Line." The line had hardly been opened to the
Soo before a western line was planned and pro
moted. This traversed Minnesota and North Da
kota to a junction with the Canadian Pacific in
the northwest and gave to Minneapolis another
route to the Pacific. The development of this
system was one of the most important commer
cial events in the life of Minneapolis. Mr. Wash
burn was president of the Soo Line during its
five years of construction and until his election
to the United States Senate.
Notwithstanding the enormous demands of
these great enterprises upon his time, strength
and energy, Gen. Washburn almost from his first
arrival in the state gave much time to the service
of the public. In 1858 he was chosen a member
of the first state legislature. I11 1866 he was
elected to the Minneapolis school board and as
sisted in the early development of the school sys
tem which has become the pride of the city.
Again in 1871 he was in the legislature and the
year 1873 found him, at the urgent request of his
friends, a candidate for the republican nomination
for governor of Minnesota. After the close of
the decisive vote in the convention it was claimed
by his friends that two ballots had not been
counted and these would have given him the
nomination; but Mr. Washburn refused to con-,
test the result. Six years of service in congress
commenced in 1878 and only concluded when the
Soo railway project claimed his entire attention.
But on the completion of the road in 1888 he
withdrew from the presidency and became a can
didate for the United States senate and served for
the following six years. In 1895 he was a candi
date for re-election upon the assurances of those
who afterwards opposed him, that there would
be no opposition to his candidacy. This unex
pected opposition took a form which it was im
possible to oppose successfully with honor and
Senator Washburn frankly admitted his defeat
and great disappointment. As in all similar cases,
however he quietly accepted the situation; he is
not the type of man to pose as a disgruntled
politician.
To his work in congress Gen. Washburn
brought a, thorough knowledge of his district,
his state and the entire northwest. And not
only a political knowledge, but a wide conception
of its commercial needs, its undeveloped re
sources and its possibilities. He had been promi
nent in the rise of the two great manufacturing
industries of the state and was familiar with all
their details and their requirements in the way of
supply of raw materials, transportation and ac
cess to markets. He was master of the agricul
tural conditions of the northwest. He had many
ideas for the advantage of Minnesota which he
set to work to develop as soon as he entered
congress. Only a few of his undertakings can be
mentioned. One of the most interesting was
that of impounding the flood waters of the Mis
sissippi river in reservoirs at the headwaters, to
be gradually released during low water periods,
thus maintaining an equal flow of water the year
round. So certain was Gen. Washburn of the
success of the plan and of its ultimate accom
plishment that he had already, ten years before,
personally entered the forty acres of land at
Pokegama which he considered the key to the
reservoir system.
His personal endeavors in
congress secured the first appropriations for this
THE FORMATIVE PERIOD
great river improvement which has been of incal
culable benefit to navigation on the Upper Missis
sippi and has facilitated the transportation of
logs from the pine forests to the mills and inci
dentally maintained an equal flow of water for
the use of power. He also started the legislation
which has improved the lower reaches of the
upper Mississippi and with the completion of
locks and dams now building, will open river
navigation from Minneapolis to the Gulf. Of
even more importance to Minneapolis and the
northwest, perhaps, was his work in securing the
first appropriation for the improvement of Hay
Lake channel in the Sault Ste. Marie river—-the
beginnings of the famous "twenty-foot" channel
project which has revolutionized the carrying
trade of the great lakes and wonderfully cheap
ened the cost of handling freight to and from the
northwest.
Such great undertakings did not, however,
engross his attention in congress to the ex
clusion of national questions. Gen. Washburn
took a very prominent part in the general affairs
of the country and though never an orator or
even a frequent speaker, was one of the clear-cut
debaters of congress whose speeches were always
regarded with attention and whose arguments
had much weight. His habit of independent
thought and action occasionally brought him into
opposition to his party but events have usually
demonstrated that it was the man and not the
party which was in the right. For instance, in
the consideration of the famous Lodge bill, gen
erally known as the "force bill," Senator Wash
burn stood alone on the republican side as an
opponent of the measure, as wrong in principle
and not calculated to accomplish the expected re
sults. Although freely criticised at the time,
Gen. Washburn's position is now that of the ma
jority of clear thinkers in the country. He was
in another case impelled to conflict with many
party leaders when he championed the "anti-op
tion" bill. For this measure Senator Washburn
made a speech which received world-wide atten
tion and it was this speech and his remarkable
fight for the law that carried it through the sen
ate. But perhaps the greatest speech of his life
was that on reciprocity delivered in the senate
in 1894 which stands, so fully did it cover the
whole ground, as the best authority extant on the
subject.
49
Since leaving the senate in 1895, Gen. Wash
burn, although frequently mentioned in connec
tion with the highest political honors, has not
sought office. In 1900 he was the choice of his
state delegation for vice-president. But he has
steadfastly devoted himself to his business inter
ests and has with characteristic energy built an
other railroad and exploited a tract of 115,000
acres of agricultural and coal bearing lands in
North Dakota.
Gen. Washburn has travelled extensively dur
ing his life and, with his long sojourns at Wash
ington, has been absent from Minneapolis for
long periods. But this has not prevented him
and his family from filling a large place in the
social life of the city. Within two years after
settling in Minneapolis he returned to Maine and
on April 19, 1859, was married to Miss Lizzie
Muzzy, daughter of the Hon. Franklin Muzzy of
Bangor. They have had six children, four sons
and two daughters. Gen. Washburn's beautiful
home, "Fair Oaks," has been for many years a
center of social life and the place of entertain
ment of many a distinguished guest. One of
the founders of the Church of the Redeemer—
one of the leading Universalist churches of the
country—Gen. Washburn has always been one of
its most prominent members and supporters. As
president of the board of trustees of the Wash
burn Memorial Orphan Asylum (founded by his
brother, C. C. Washburn) Gen. Washburn has
been prominent in the philanthropic and charit
able work of the city, by 110 means confining
himself to the duties and responsibilities of the
institution named. When municipal undertakings
were proposed he has always been ready to take a
hand, as in the Minneapolis-exposition project,
to which he was a large subscriber, and of which
he was for several years president, and in the
public library building movement, when he was
one of a small group to contribute $5,000 each to
the fund. The municipal campaign of 1906 found
him as alert and active as ever, presiding at a
great mass meeting on the eve of election and
speaking repeatedly during the evening for good
government and advanced municipal standards.
Although past the age when many men lay down
the cares of business life he still attends to his
affairs with regularity and bears himself with the
air of a man much his junior.
CHAPTER VI.
THE FIRST COMMERCIAL ADVANCE
A
S WAS shown in the preceding chap "B" mill then the largest west of Buffaloter, Minneapolis, after a period of considered at first an extravagant undertak
• depression and quiet, was ready, at ing, but soon superceded by much larger
the close of the Civil war, to take advantage mills. Gov. W T ashburn was a man of clear
to the utmost of the season of general pros ideas and during his continuance in Min
per.'iy which followed the cessation of hos neapolis milling set the pace for a group of
tilities. It was stated that the special needs great millers. And they came to promin
of Minneapolis were a tributary farming ence rapidly—Crocker, Barber, Dunwoody,
population and transportation to and from Crosby, the Pillsburys, the Christians, and
the east and into the outlying agricultural other men whose names went 'round the
regions. Both these needs were supplied world on Minneapolis flour barrels. The
in large measure within five years succeed story of milling is told in another chapter;
ing the war. The disbanding of the armies only its influence upon the development of
threw a great number of unemployed men Minneapolis can be mentioned here. And
into every community and while many were what this influence was and what it ac
immediately absorbed in the varied indus complished in the decade after the war,
tries which they had laid down in '6i, many the: present generation of Minneapolitans
turned to farming, charmed by the pros can scarcely realize. Previous to this time
pects of free government land. Possibly the future of the northwest had been some
many soldiers after four years of life in the what in doubt. Men who knew it well had
open shrunk from the confinement of office, unbounded confidence in its resources and
store or shop. At all events there was a future development but it remained to be
tremendous immigration into Minnesota— proved to the world that what had been
estimated at about 180,000 in the five years very generally regarded as almost a part
ending in 1870—and the waiting prairie of the frigid zone could produce crops of
farms were peopled and the golden wheat, • v r alue year in and year out; and that it could
for which the water power at the Falls of produce them in sufficient variety to make
St. Anthony had been looking, poured into it prosperous. It also remained to be dem
onstrated that the spring wheat of the north
the city.
west could compete with the other wheats
THE RISE OF FLOUR MILLING.
At the close of the last war year there of the world as a food; and, further, that
were eight small mills at the Falls of St. it could be ground into flour and transported
Anthony and they produced in 1866 172,000 to distant markets in competition with
barrels of flour. In the following year thir other flour, at a living profit. At the open
teen mills ground 220,000 barrels. At this ing of the period the almost unknown spring
point in the history of milling a new influ wheat flour was looked upon with distrust
ence entered. For ten years Gov. C. C. in many markets of this country, and was
Washburn of Wisconsin had owned an in quite unknown abroad.
To the clear minded men of the time
terest in the water power and he now saw
that the time was ripe to enter manufactur wheat seemed the hope of the northwest.
ing. His first venture was the Washburn They knew that good spring wheat could
THE FIRST COMMERCIAL ADVANCE
be grown here; but even the most advanced
of them could not believe that corn, other
coarse grains, fruits and stock raising would
ever be generally a part of the farm program
of the northwest. On wheat, therefore,
they must depend; and they set about prov
ing to the world that northwestern wheat
and flour were unequalled.
MILLING REVOLUTIONIZED.
To a group of Minneapolis millers be
longs much of the credit for the foundation
laying of the seventies which established
most solidly the great dual industry of the
northwest and of Minneapolis—-wheat rais
ing and flour milling. These men set about
improving in every way possible the pro
cesses of flour grinding. In 1870 every mill
in Minneapolis was equipped with old-fash
ioned mill stones and primitive purifying
processes. Five years later the roller mill
had come in; the middlings purifier had been
adopted, and other valuable improvements
and inventions brought into use. At the
same time the self-binding harvester had
cheapened the cost of production on the
farm, and the extension of railroads and the
opening of lake commerce had lowered the
cost of marketing. The Minneapolis mill
ers had revolutionized their business—and
incidentally the milling business of the
country; and this during a period of "hard
times." And in 1878 they went abroad and
found a foreign market for the first time in
the history of the Minneapolis flour indus
try. By that time they had proven con
clusively that Minneapolis spring wheat
flour was the equal if not the best of any
in the world.
Much stress is laid upon this development
of the flour industry because it became then,
and has ever since remained, the center of
the industrial life of the city and the north
west. Time is reducing its relative im ( portance; diversification of production in
city and on farm is bound to still further
lessen its position of leadership. But it will
remain true that it was the. development of
this dual industry in the seventies which
made Minneapolis. Had it fallen behind
and failed to make its point in the world,
the northwest and with it the city, would
have been much slower in its progress.
51
RAILROAD BUILDING.
Coincident with the development of the
flour milling business and in fact a necessary
part of that growth, was the building of the
early railroads of Minnesota. The Minne
sota Central, opened to Faribault in 1865,
was extended to Austin in 1867 and con
nected with the "Milwaukee" for Chicago.
The St. Paul & Pacific (now the Great
Northern) built w r est, reaching the Red
River valley in 1870 and about the same
time the Lake Superior & Mississippi
reached Duluth and gave the needed lake
connection. Other lines reached out down
the Minnesota valley and into southern Min
nesota and in 1872 the short line to Chicago,
via La Crosse, was completed. Seven years
saw the essential eastern connections made
and feeder lines for the city built into the
principal farming communities then exist
ing 1 .
OTHER COMMERCIAL PROGRESS.
Although the development of its trans
portation facilities and the means of absorb
ing the agricultural product of the outlying
country was the first and most important
work for Minneapolis, the town was by no
means idle in other directions. The lum
bering industry made enormous progress in
this period, the output reaching 118,000,000
feet in 1870 and 195,000,000 feet in 1880.
Other manufactures were not neglected
and the wholesaling of merchandise first
became a recognized factor in the com
mercial life of the city. Retailing was still
on a country town basis; the city had no
great retail marts until after 1880. In bank
ing the city made progress commensurate
with its other development and most of
the prominent financial institutions of today
were founded, or took form, in this period
of the city's history.
CIVIC AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS.
In matters pertaining to civic, social and
religious affairs this part of the city's story
is not as interesting as is its commercial
progress. In fact commercialism seems to
have dominated during this period more
than at any other time in the city's history.
The beginning of the period found Minne
apolis lapsed from a town government to a
simple township organization—quite suf-
52
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
ficient, perhaps, during the war time quiet, period there was good cause for lack of
but inadequate to the needs of the city of enterprise.
a few years later. This was speedily
OBSTACLES AND DISCOURAGEMENTS.
realized and Minneapolis was incorporated
For the period was one of curiously
as a city in 1867. St. Anthony, which had
been under a city government for a decade, blended progress and detention for Minne
still maintained something of a position of apolis. In 1869 came the threatened destruc
rivalry although the two places were prac tion of the water power through the under
tically one, except in name, and it was evi mining of the limestone ledge forming the
dent to all impartial observers that they Falls. Prompt action saved the situation,
must of necessity unite within a short time. but the millers did not feel perfectly secure
This necessity was reluctantly conceded in of the permanence of the power until the
1872 and the united city started on new completion of the government retaining
municipal life under a new charter granted work in 1878. The decade of the seventies
by the legislature. In 1874 the old city hall opened with much promise, but the panic
at the junction of Nicollet and Hennepin of 1873 seriously crippled many north
avenues and Second street was built. Pub western enterprises. Railroad building—the
lic improvements and municipal depart hope of the city and of the state—was set
ments remained in a very crude condition back, and most of the railroad corporations
for some time although earnestly promoted were forced into reorganization or down
by a few zealous and public spirited men. right bankruptcy. Business of all kinds
The first waterworks consisted of a small was affected. The tide of immigration was
pump and wooden mains. A good fire in part held back. And, as if financial dif
department was organized but remained ficulties were not enough, the years 1875
until 1879 a volunteer organization. The to 1878 brought to the northwest the sooriginal suspension bridge—the main traffic called "grasshopper plague," which for a
connection between the two sides of the time threatened to paralyze the agricultural
river was replaced in 1875. Parks had been interests of three states. In 1875 this pest
proposed from time to time but the most of locusts had reached such proportions as
promising plans had been voted down by to destroy the entire crops in some parts
a majority which seemed to be fearful of of the northwest; and no one knew where
public expenditure. For some time after it would stop. Five years of total or partial
the consolidation of the two cities the school destruction of crops reduced whole coun
systems remained separate with consequent ties to. penury and led many farmers to
lack of uniformity and co-operation. The abandon their lands; while immigration,
university was making slow progress, fos under such conditions, of course, almost
tered as best might be by Gov. Pillsbury
mpletely stopped.
and President Folwell, whose interest was
Just at the close of this plague, early in
constant, but for many years receiving 1878, a great disaster assailed the foodsmall support from the country districts of producing industry at the other end. This
the state. In religious matters the people was the flour mill explosion in Minneapolis,
at this time showed no lack of devotion but, attended with great loss of life and the
as in public affairs, there was not the prog destruction of millions in property. The
ress in organization and building which the five years had indeed been bad ones for the
rapid growth of the city would naturally great wheat and flour industry of the north
seem to have warranted. It should be west; and Minneapolis felt the effects in
remembered too that with the increase of Vf'ull pleasure.
population the older churches found them j ^ B u t , i f t h e b l o w h a d b e e n a s e v e r e o n e ,
selves charged with the duty of sustaining recovery from its effects was remarkably
many missions, which, at first great bur rapid. The leveled mill walls rose again,
dens, later became large self-supporting higher and stronger than before and the
churches. And in the later years of the opportunity was embraced to equip the
r
T H E FIRST COMMERCIAL ADVANCE
53
SWEET COLLECTIOH
THE SECOND SUSPENSION BRIDGE.
Erected in 1875 to replace the bridge of 1855.
It was torn down in 1889 when the present steel arch bridge was built.
mills with even later and better machinery
than that destroyed. The rebound from
all other causes of depression was equally
rapid; by the end of the decade of 1870-80
Minneapolis was physically and financially
recuperated and alive with the spirit which
1 was to manifest itself so wonderfully dur\ing the coming years.
PILLSBURY, John Sargent, for more than
two score of years one of the leading and most
valued of the citizens of Minneapolis, was born
at Sutton, Merrimac county, N. H., on July 29,
1828, and died at Minneapolis, October 18, 1901.
He was descended from Wm. Pillsbury who came
from England in 1640 and settled at Newburyport, Mass., where he received a grant of land.
One of Wm. Pillsbury's descendants went to
Sutton in 1790 and established the New Hamp
shire branch of the family. Mr. Pillsbury's father
was John Pillsbury, a manufacturer, and long
prominent in state and local affairs. His mother
was Susan Wadleigh Pillsbury, who, like her
husband, traced her ancestry back to early Puri
tan stock. The son of these parents had so spe
cial advantages. He grew up amid the ordinary
conditions of a New England town in the early
part of the last century. His education was lim
ited to the village school which was not of the
best. While still a boy he commenced to learn
the printers trade but preferred merchandising
and left the case to become a clerk in the general
store of his older brother, George A. Pillsbury,
who afterwards became prominent in Minneap
olis. A somewhat .varied experience in mercan
tile life brought the young man at the age of
twenty-five to a belief that he was not only fitted
for a mercantile career but that he would find
better opportunities in the west. Accordingly in
1853 he traveled for some months and deter
mined, after a visit to St. Anthony, to make the
place his home. He engaged in the hardware
business and was from the first successful. He
was just becoming well established, however,
when he experienced a catastrophe which would
have broken most men. Scarcely two years after
commencing business at St. Anthony, and in the
midst of the financial panic of 1857, he lost about
thirty-eight thousand dollars by fire. This not
only wiped out all his accumulations, but left him
under a heavy indebtedness. In the critical finan
cial condition of the country, it would have
seemed impossible to avoid hopeless bankruptcy;
but Mr. Pillsbury had already so well established
his credit that he was enabled to secure an ex
tension from his creditors and at once resumed
business. For five years Mr. Pillsbury had not
p
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56
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
a single new suit of clothes—but in five years
every debt was paid. Business success was cer
tain to such a man. Building on this foundation
he developed a commercial structure which had
a prominent part in the industrial activities of
the city and state for four decades. His retail
hardware business was merged into a wholesale
business which still exists as the largest in the
northwest;., he became one of the first millers
and later a member of the greatest flour manufac
turing concern in the world; he dealt extensively
in pine lands and was one of the largest manu
facturers of lumber; he had a part in many of
Jjjie-financial institutions established in Minneap
olis during- his- active business life. But success
ful as was Gov. Pillsbury's business career it is
overshadowed, in an estimate of his life, by the
other great work which he took up even before
he had established himself on a firm commercial
footing. Possibly on account of his own lack of
early educational privileges, Mr. Pillsbury
watched with keen interest the affairs of the
University of Minnesota—an institution which
was not more than a name at the time of his ar
rival in the territory. Endowed by a congres
sional land grant, the university existed on paper
until 1856, when a building was commenced. Illadvised plans, followed by the financial crash of
1857, so involved the institution that the early
sixties found it apparently hopelessly in debt,
with an unfinished building and no prospect of
ever establishing a faculty or offering education
to the* youth of Minnesota. It seemed that the
building and campus would be lost on a mortgage
of nearly $100,000 and that the land grant would
be diverted from its purpose.
In 1863 Mr. Pillsbury was appointed a regent,
of the university and shortly afterwards became
state senator, and through his exertions a new
law was passed placing the affairs of the institu
tion in. the hands of three regents, with full
powers to adjust its obligations on such terms
as they might deem best, and as if they were
their own. Such unlimited authority has seldom
been, given a public board. But the situation was
critical, and called for unusual measures. Every
one predicted failure. But with iron will and a
persistency which knew no defeat, Mr. Pillsbury
entered on a campaign of adjustment of the
claims. He sold lands, and with the cash com
promised claims at such figures as might be ar
ranged. The difficulties of such a task at such
a time cannot be realized in these days. The
lands offered were inaccessible; the creditors
were widely scattered, and of many minds as to
the value of their securities. The vexations and
disappointments were almost unnumbered. Mr.
Pillsbury rode thousands of miles through a new
country, hunting up lands or showing them to
creditors or buyers. He traveled to the East; he
wrote letters innumerable. He brought into play
all the resources of a skillful man of business.
Notwithstanding the difficulties of the under
taking, in four years he was able to report that
the debt of the university had been cleared away,
leaving intact thirty-two thousand acres out of
the grant of forty-six thousand, and with the
campus and building free of incumbrance. Gov.
Pillsbury afterward made great successes in busi
ness, and proved himself a clever and adept finan
cier; but, considering the circumstances, nothing
which he did in later years equaled this financier
ing of the affairs of the bankrupt University of
Minnesota. And it is no discredit to his asso
ciates to attribute the success to him; it was well
known at the time that his energy, his enthusi
asm, his business sagacity, were the moving
forces of the work.
Following his achievement in relieving the uni
versity of its financial burden, the institution was
reorganized, a faculty was engaged, and the real
work commenced. Governor Pillsbury remained
a regent, and watched over every step of its
progress during the remainder of his life. With
out a liberal education himself, he had a very
keen appreciation of the needs of an institution
of higher learning. And here it should be said
that, through reading and association, Governor
Pillsbury finally became a man of education and
high cultivation. Largely through his sagacity,
the university has been fortunate in its presidents
and faculty. Early in its career, the question of
co-education came up. Mr. Pillsbury threw his
influence to the side of equal educational advan
tages to young men and young women. From
the beginning, Governor Pillsbury was the finan
cial guide of the institution. In the legislature
he was able to accomplish much in influencing
appropriations, and he was also the means of con
solidating the land grant made directly to the
university and that for the aid of agricultural
education and experiment work.
Meanwhile,
there was often a scarcity of dollars for current
expenses and other needs. But by this time Mr.
Pillsbury was becoming a man of means; and
these means were often at the disposal of the
institution. When the experimental farm was
needed in connection with the university and
funds were lacking Mr. Pillsbury advanced the
$8,500 needed. The land was afterwards sold for
$150,000 and the proceeds used in buying the
present university farm. In 1889 Gov. Pillsbury
quietly handed the regents $150,000 to build a
much needed science hall—perhaps the largest
gift ever made to a state institution of learning.
However, munificent as was the gift of Pills
bury Hall, it sank into insignificance beside the
gift of his own time and strength, which Gov.
Pillsbury spent so freely during the thirty-eight
years of his service as regent. A very conserva
tive estimate made by his friends, is that he de
voted one-fourth of his time to the affairs of the
institution. This would mean ten years of actual
time taken from business and other pursuits. His
life long services to the University were recog-
,' . . .
.
58
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
nized in 1900 through the erection on the campus
of a statue of life size.
In his earlier career, Mr. Pillsbury, in addi
tion to his work for the university, was in al
most constant political service. Within a year
after reaching St. Anthony, he began a six years'
term in the city council. From local service he
went to the state senate, in which body he sat
almost continuously for thirteen years. So con
spicuous were his services and his fitness for re
sponsibility that in 1875 he was nominated and
elected governor, without any of the usual accom
paniments of candidacy and canvass. This was
the beginning of six years in the gubernatorial
chair, for he was accorded three terms and might
have had a fourth had he not positively refused to
serve again. It has never fallen to the lot of a
governor of Minnesota to be obliged to consider
and handle so many diverse questions as arose
during the incumbency of Governor Pillsbury.
When he assumed office the so-called "grasshop
per plague" was becoming a serious matter. It
was characteristic of Governor Pillsbury that he
went personally to the scene, investigated the ex
tent of the calamity and the condition of the suf
fering people and from his own means furnished
relief in many cases. Returning to the state capi
tal, he had facts of his own, which he laid before
the legislature with such force as to secure prac
tical legislation looking to the aid of the people
and the destruction of the pests.
During his term as governor, Mr. Pillsbury
recommended and secured the passage of some of
the best laws on the statutes of Minnesota.
Among these were acts providing for a public ex
aminer, a state high school board, and for estab
lishing biennial sessions of the legislature. He
had an unusual number of appointments to make
•—in the supreme and district courts, and to other
important offices; he was obliged to face the
destruction of the state capitol by fire, as well as
a similar loss of the principal insane hospital of
the state; he was called upon to organize relief
for the town of New Ulm, which was destroyed
by a tornado near the close of his term.
But the great work of his official life was his
labor of removing from the name of Minnesota
the stain of repudiation. Ill-advised legislation
in the late fifties had led to the issue of over two
million dollars' worth of bonds for the encour
agement of railroad-building in the state. The
panic of 1857 prevented the completion of the
railroads contemplated, and, exasperated by the
situation, the people of the state voted to refuse
payment of the obligations. For twenty years the
reproach of repudiation had rested upon the state.
In his first message, Governor Pillsbury urged
the payment of these bonds; and though met with
indifference and violent opposition from political
leaders, he continued to demand that the honor
of the state be preserved. After overcoming the
most tremendous obstacles in legislation and
legal entanglement, Governor Pillsbury had the
satisfaction, just before his term ended, of seeing
the bonds matter adjusted and the word "repudia
tion" removed from association with the state
which he had served so long. The extent of Gov
ernor Pillsbury's charity and benefactions will
never be known. I11 the greater portion of cases,
the fact of assistance rendered was known only
to the giver and the recipient. To only a few,
even, is it "known that a large number of young
men have been helped through the University of
Minnesota by the financial assistance of Gover
nor Pillsbury. Among his conspicuous gifts in
Minneapolis were an endowment of $100,000 for
the Home for Aged Women and Children, and
the erection, at a cost of $25,000, of a home for
.young women working for small salaries, which
was named for his wife, the Mahala Fisk Pills*
toi^iIo_me.
At the time of his death he had well
under way a plan for a beautiful library building
to cost $75,000, which was to be a gift to the city
of Minneapolis, and especially intended for the
use of the people of the "East Side." This build
ing was completed and turned over to the city by
Governor Pillsbury's heirs, and is known as
' "Pillsbury Library."
Governor Pillsbury was married on November
3, 1856, to Miss Mahala Fisk, daughter of Captain
John Fisk who came from England in 1837 and
settled at Windon, Mass. Their children were
four: Addie who became the wife of Charles M.
Webster, and Susan M. who was the wife of
Fred B. Snyder, Sarah Belle, the wife of Edward
C. Gale, and Alfred Fisk Pillsbury. Both Mrs.
Webster and Mrs. Snyder died some years ago.
Alfred F. Pillsbury has succeeded to many of the
business interests and responsibilities of his
father, is president of the Minneapolis Union Elell
vator Company, of the St. Anthony Falls Water
Power Company and is a director in the Pillsjmry-Washburn Flour Mills Company.
CHAPTER VII.
AN ERA OF BROADER DEVELOPMENT
F
OUNDATION laying for the time
of Minneapolis' most rapid develop
ment had been going on for years
previous to 1880. Even disasters had been
disguised blessings, for with recovery from
each had come the feeling of security based
on better methods and confidence that noth
ing which might happen could permanently
injure the progress of the city. And amid ail
the discouragements of the middle seventies
there had been continual growth in popu
lation—a growth which was followed in the
last two years of the decade by a rush of
people which brought the total number of
inhabitants up to 46,887 in 1880. This was
a gain of 28,808 during the decade or more
than 150 per cent, advance. In the same
period the state had gained 341,000 people
and settlers were following the railroads
beyond the borders of Minnesota out over
the Dakota plains and opening farms which
should also pour their products into the
Minneapolis market.
Railroad construc
tion had taken a new life with the late
years of the seventies. Villard succeeded
Cooke as the moving spirit of the Northern
Pacific, and Hill secured control of the St.
Paul & Pacific, converting it into the St.
Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba railroad.
From bankrupt and lethargic properties,
these roads became at once virile elements
in the development of the northwest. The
forward movement in city and country was
simultaneous and irresistible.
COMMERCIAL RECOGNITION.
The intimate connection between the
country and that city which absorbs its
products and exchanges them for the neces
sities not raised at home, brings again to
the front, as most significant and important
in the new period of Minneapolis history,
the events in the flour and grain business.
It has been told that with the adoption of
improvements in milling machinery, and
the reconstruction of the flour mills after
the explosion of 1878, the capacity of the
Minneapolis mills was greatly increased
while the product was demonstrated to be
unequalled in quality.
Still much re
mained to be proved to the world. It was
one thing to make the best flour and quite
another to be certain that people, habitu
ated to the use of another product, would
adopt the new foodstuff. It also became
evident that Minneapolis, to retain its
place as the market for the products of
the northwest, must be something besides
a milling center. In other words, Minne
apolis must be known throughout the
world as a grain market as well as a flourmaking city, and it must be known that
both the unground wheat, and its finished
product were the best that could be pro
duced.
One of the most important events look
ing towards the realization of these things
was the organization of the Minneapolis
Chamber of Commerce; a step which also
had a forceful influence on the commercial
development of the city in general as well
as upon the establishment of Minneapolis
as one of the great markets of the world.
Previous to 1881 there had been no recog
nized grain market in the city. The flour
mills used much wheat and absorbed prac
tically all the receipts. Through their Mil
lers' Association they controlled prices and
handling facilities. This was an excellent
thing for the city at the beginning, but, as
the northwest developed, and it became
evident that there was to be a grain pro
duction in excess of the capacity of the
mills, the necessity of a public market at
Minneapolis was recognized. The effects
60
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
of the organization of the Chamber of Com
merce were to put the grain business on a
basis similar to that of other cities; to
establish grades, to create a shipping busi
ness, to secure, as time went on, state grad
ing and weighing and inspection; to de
velop terminal facilities; to bring, through
country elevator lines, a large part of the
northwestern farming district into close
relations with the Minneapolis market;
and, eventually, to make Minneapolis the
greatest wheat market of the world. With
in a few years Minneapolis received world
wide recognition as a leading wheat market
and flour-making point, and was thus ad
vertised more effectively than could have
been accomplished by any other means.
RAILROAD SYSTEM COMPLETED.
The reorganization of the Northern Pa
cific and the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Mani
toba railroads, referred to at the beginning
of this chapter, was followed by their rapid
extension to the' termini suggested by their
names—the first to the Pacific at Puget
Sound and the second to the Canadian bor
der where connection was made for Winni
peg. On the completion of the Northern
Pacific in 1883 a jubilee was held in Min
neapolis which had special significance.
It was no mere ebullition of unintelligent
enthusiasm.
For the . Northern Pacific
meant much more to (the city than the
simple completion of a long line of rail
road. With one exception, no railroad has
been built in the northwest which had the
strategic importance of the Northern Pa
cific. It meant to Minneapolis the opening
of the rich mountain states and of the
Puget sound country to commercial rela
tions, and, beyond that, gave a vision of
the oriental traffic which later developed.
It made possible the enormous extension
of the grazing interests of North Dakota
and Montana, which must find an outlet,
as must the other industries of the far
northwest, through the Minneapolis gate
way. Other roads followed rapidly, and
the "Manitoba" (later to be known as the
Great Northern) commeflced a system of
branches which brought the entire north
western part of Minnesota, and the whole
of North Dakota into intimate touch with
Minneapolis.
At this time there was also a great de
velopment of the terminals at Minneapolis.
The Union passenger station was built,
and the stone arch bridge to furnish access
to it. The "short lines" to St. Paul were
opened and freight handling facilities were
much increased in the city terminal yards.
BUILDING THE SOO LINE.
Even before the Northern Pacific was
completed another equally important step
was taken in the railway development of
the northwest. This was the planning of
the Minneapolis, Sault Ste. Marie & At
lantic Railroad—now known as the Soo
line. The organizing company was com
posed of Minneapolis men, with General
William D. Washburn, the promoter of
the project, at the head. The significance
of the undertaking was that it was a Min
neapolis road, built to relieve Minneapolis
from the influences of other cities upon
eastern connections, and to establish an
independent all-rail route to the Atlantic
seaboard. Incidentally, a new "lake and
rail" route was opened and a vast new
country in northern Wisconsin and Michi
gan was brought into direct connection
with Minneapolis. This project grew on
the promoters' hands, and within a few
years after the Soo was opened, in 1887, a
western line was built to connect with the
Canadian Pacific and open a competitive
route to the Pacific northwest.
The construction of the Soo line was a
very good example of the "Minneapolis
idea," as it came to be known in the eight
ies. The Minneapolis idea was briefly "all
together for the city's good." At that time
any project which was regarded as of ad
vantage to Minneapolis was taken up with
the utmost enthusiasm. Minneapolis men
worked together in every emergency and
to gain any purpose which seemed to be
of public value. Their purses were always
open for the city's welfare.
THE EXPOSITION.
One of the most remarkable instances of
the working of the Minneapolis idea was
the founding of the exposition. In 1885
AN ERA OF BROADER DEVELOPMENT
many of the large cities of the country
were conducting annual expositions. It was
believed that such an institution would be
of great benefit in advertising Minneapolis
and drawing visitors who would thus come
into closer relations with the city. On Oc
tober i i , 1885, a public meeting was held,
at which $100,000 was subscribed towards
the project. Incorporation followed imme
diately, and the public was asked to sub
scribe to the capital stock of $300,000.
61
period there was no federal building in the
city, although the need was great, and the
subject was being agitated. With the
characteristic delay incident to government
projects, it was 1882 before the site was
purchased, and 1889 before the present
building was occupied. Before the federal
building was completed, the old courthouse
—a patchwork of additions—had become
quite inadequate, and in 1887 legislative
authority was secured for the erection of
THE STONE ARC H HHJDOE.
The principal railroad entrance to the Union Passenger station.
Every dollar needed was secured in Minne
apolis. By the following August, a build
ing costing $325,000 was completed, and in
September an exposition was held, which
was attended by 338,000 people. To ac
complish this undertaking, obstacles of all
kinds were overcome by sheer force of will
and energy. Eor a number of years annual
expositions were held with success; they
served their purpose for the period.
GREAT-PUBLIC UNDERTAKINGS.
The building of the exposition was but
one of a great number of public enterprises
to which a large part of the energy of the
people of the city was devoted during the
decade of 1880-90. At the opening of the
a joint courthouse and city hall. Com
menced in 1889, this building has been only
recently completed, although occupied in
part for years. Its cost is over $3,000,000.
Other buildings of a public or semi-public
character received cordial support. The
Public Library building, Masonic Temple,
Young Men's Christian Association build
ing and numerous homes and asylums are
examples of this spirit of providing the
necessary institutions of a great city with
suitable accommodations.
MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENTS.
During this period, general municipal
improvements were for the first time un
dertaken in a broad way. Until the be-
»
62
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
ginning of this period there was not a mile
of any kind of pavement on the streets of
the city, while most of the sidewalks, even
in the business center, were of wood. After
the original dirt streets came the era of
wooden blocks. From early in the eighties
until after the business depression of 1893
not much else was laid down in Minne
apolis, except a considerable amount of
granite in the lower part of the city arouml
the wholesale houses and railroad depots.
Cedar blocks, laid on pine boards which
rested on sand, went down by the mile. It
was cheap, quick and perhaps the best that
could be done under the circumstances. A
good sewer system; a complete water
works system (except a purification plant) ;
a modern fire department—these were
brought into existence within a few years.
T H E PARK SYSTEM.
Another and most creditable evidence of
the progressive spirit of the period was
the formation of a board of park commis
sioners and the acquisition of the larger
part of the area of the park system as it is
today. For this Minneapolis has to thank
two elements—the refined, intelligent taste
which conceived the park plan, and the en
thusiastic public spirit which eagerly seized
upon the idea and helped it along because
it was a good thing for the city. The board
of park commissioners was established by
law in 1883, and at once began to secure
valuable property which it was desirable fo
preserve for the public use. The earliest
work included the acquisition and improve
ment of the shores of the lakes in the south
western part of the city, and of a connect
ing drive to Minnehaha Falls.- Extensions
of this work have brought into the system
the banks of the Mississippi river for some
miles below the Falls of St. Anthony, and
many small tracts of land in various parts
of the city. The park system has been one
of the strongest influences in building up
municipal pride, and is generally regarded
as one of the best public investments Mir
neapolis has made.
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH AND PUBLIC LIBRARY.
Two buildings marking the progress of the city in the eighties.
AN ERA OF BROADER DEVELOPMENT
EDUCATIONAL MATTERS.
It was characteristic of a population
largely of New England origin that the
first forward movement of this period was
in connection with the public schools
After the consolidation of Minneapolis and
St. Anthony in 1872, the two divisions d
the city retained their separate school 01
ganizations for six years—this also prob
ably the outgrowth of the New England
idea of local control of the schools. But
a continuation of this plan was, of course
63
main building and a small agricultural
building, no structural equipment had been
added to the institution. In 1880, Presi
dent Folwell recommended a plan of ap
propriations, but nothing was done until
1883 when the University farm was pur
chased. This was followed in 1886 by the
Mechanics Arts building, and in 1889 by
the Law building, and by Gov. Pillsbury's
great gift of Pillsbury Hall. In 1884, Presi
dent Cyrus Northrop was called to the
presidency and commenced an administra-
THE CAMPUS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA ABOUT 1890.
Pillsbury Hall is the prominent building at the left.
not feasible in a large city, and in 1878
legislation was sought consolidating the
schools under a general school board. From
this time forward the progress of the school
system was rapid. To 110 branch of the
city's affairs has the public given such close
attention or such willing expenditure, and
there has been a particular pride in main
taining the schools—buildings, equipment
and teaching force at a high standard.
Shortly after the reorganization of the
school system the development of the uni
versity was taken up in earnest. Although
a state institution, the university had been
largely fostered by Minneapolis people.
But since the completion of the original
tion of unequalled success. What the uni
versity has meant to Minneapolis as a con
stant influence for culture and the higher
things of life is well understood by those
who have watched its growth and the city's
development.
One phase of this influence was the or
ganization in 1883 of the Minneapolis Soci
ety of Fine Arts, headed by Dr. Folwell of
the University. Annual art exhibitions
and the maintenance of an art school have
been the contributions of this organization
to the higher development of the city. Dur
ing the decade of the eighties, architecture
first began to be seriously considered in its
effects upon the life and affairs of the city.
«
64
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Public buildings began to take on some
architectural beauty and dwellings showed
the evidence of a cultivated taste. Minne
apolis was finding time to turn from the
struggle for existence and the accumulation
of wealth to the consideration of the refine
ments of life.
The art society found its home in the
Public Library building—another great
achievement of this aggressive period. A
library was needed, and it was decided to
connection that the period of the middle
and later eighties was perhaps the most
prolific in church building that the city has
seen. With few exceptions the larger and
older churches of the leading denomina
tions occupied new structures at some time
in this period. During this time the mem
bership of Minneapolis churches was in
creased enormously through the coming of
thousands of communicants from other
cities.
Religious and charitable work
THE WE§T HOTEL.
Erected in 1883-4.
have the best possible. To supplement a
public issue of bonds, $50,000 was sub
scribed by citizens and a building costing
$270,000 was completed in 1889. An older
private library, the Athenaeum, was made
the basis for a general public library, and
the institution was organized under the
direction of Herbert Putnam, now librarian
of congress. It has been characterized as
one of the best of the libraries of its class
in the United States.
made great progress. The Young Men's
Christian Association, originally organized
in 1866, made rapid growth and before the
close of the period was housed in its hand
some building at Tenth street and Mary
Place. St. Barnabas, the Northwestern,
St. Mary's and other hospitals were built
at this time. The Associated Charities was
organized and the first steps towards sys
tematizing and making more effective the
city's benevolences were taken.
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES.
MUNICIPAL AFFAIRS.
The history of the churches is found in
another place; it is sufficient to say in this
The city entered the eighties working
under the old charter of 1872, granted
;;-V" U. .Vv;.
66
LORING PARK—THE FIRST LARGE CENTRAL PARK.
It was acquired and Improved immediately after the organization of the Minneapolis park board in 1883-4.
when the two towns were consolidated.
Already this document was loaded with
amendments and was found to be com
pletely outgrown. A new charter was
granted in 1881—a .consolidation of various
amendments and special acts with the old
charter—but so changed as to be prac
tically a new organic act. But in a short
time it was also amended almost beyond
recognition and proved to be quite inade
quate to the needs of a large city.
The demands upon municipal officers in
those days of abnormal growth were heavy
and it is a matter of wonder that there was
no serious municipal scandal during the en
tire period. This was the more strange in
that the rapid influx of population brought
to the polls at each succeeding election a
sufficient number of voters quite unac
quainted with the municipal affairs of the
city, to hold the balance of power. It is
not surprising, therefore, that the adminis
tration of affairs swung from one party to
another and from "wide open" to "law en
forcement" with startling frequency, and
no apparent cause. The city council, con
fronted by problems of finance and con
struction seldom equaled under such circumstances, as a general thing performed
its duties with business sagacity. Many
men of fine business ability were members
of "the body. Others of lesser talents or
perverted talents, are better forgotten. Es
pecially towards the end of the period un
der consideration, when the city was be
coming large and its business attractive to
the predatory, were men of uncertain tra
ditions beginning to find their way into the
council. The appointive and elective of
fices included some of the best who have
served the city.
A CITY I N VILLAGE GARB.
If any criticism can be passed upon the
attitude of the people of the city in munici
pal matters during this time, it may be
said to be due to their failure, still, to re
gard their city as more than a village. And
if this was true of the administration of
public affairs it was equally true of the
physical aspects of Minneapolis at that
time—a fact frequently remarked by visi
tors. "Minneapolis is a beautiful place, but
looks like an overgrown village," was a not
infrequent comment. This criticism was
not ill-founded. Since Col. Stevens first
laid out the original town site, no one, apparently, had taken pains to consider the
AN ERA OF BROADER DEVELOPMENT
question of guiding the further physical de
velopment of the city. Additions were laid
out and joined to the city much as it hap
pened, and generally, it would appear, with
particular regard to the promoters' ideas,
and with no consideration of the public in
terest or the future of the city. This was,
perhaps, inevitable at a time when every
one was struggling for foothold and each
man was busy with his private affairs, or
with promoting the general success of the
city. It was a struggle to "get there"—to
use the phraseology of the time—the meth
od was not of so much consequence.
But the acceptance of addi
tions arranged so as to produce
irregularity and confusion of
streets, was not as serious as
the absence of plan for the ar
rangement of public grounds
and buildings.
Minneapolis
missed its first great opportun
ity in 1865 when it voted down
the acquisition of Nicollet Is
land for a park at a nominal
cost. Other good park propo
sitions were defeated later, but
the second great opportunity
lost was in the eighties, when
a large number of public build
ings being under consideration,
the city failed to group them
around a common civic center,
or, at the very least, to provide
some suitable setting for each.
And if this inattention to the
;
aspect of things prevailed in
public matters it could not be
expected to be absent in private
undertakings where m o n e y
considerations usually predom
inated.
Business buildings
were put up without any re
gard to the fitness of things
and dwellings were apparently
dropped into building lots
much as it happened. It was
also the custom, as the busi
ness structures encroached on
the residence portions, to move
One of
the disturbed dwelling house
to more distant parts of the
67
city. In the eighties the streets were not
infrequently obstructed with these travel
ing homes—many of them in a condition
which would warrant instant demolition.
But since it was a problem to house the
people who wanted to live in Minneapolis,
can the Minneapolitans be blamed for sav
ing everything that offered a roof for the
protection of more "population?"
The
gibes of visitors were met cheerfully and
Minneapolis w£nt on her way content for
the time to be called an "overgrown village."
I
1:1 n i u
THE METROPOLITAN LIFE BUILDING.
the first of the large ofllce buildings which were built
during the middle eighties.
Known until re
cently as the Guaranty Building.
68
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
. At the beginning of this era in the his
tory of Minneapolis the city knew nothing
of the many public, services which now are
regarded as absolute necessities. There
were, it is true, a few miles of narrow guage
street railway, on which one-horse "bob
tail" cars were operated. The first great
development was the construction of many
miles of additional lines to meet the needs
of the rapidly growing city, but about 1890
the entire system was replaced by a modern
electric system. In the same way the sys
tem of gas supply grew from a small plantin 1880 to a very large system before the
close of the period.
CHANGES IN BUSINESS METHODS.
The modern electrical inventions and
public utilities came just in time to meet
and assist certain tendencies which had not
developed at the beginning of the period in
question. The office building came in—
made possible by the telephone, the mod
ern elevator, and the system of rapid tran
sit to suburban manufacturing plants. And
thus the city in a few years found its busi
ness methods revolutionized. The lumber
and flour industries were centralized in the
great office buildings, as were, to a large
extent, the other manufacturing lines of the
city, while the actual manufacturing plants
were gradually being pushed out towards
the suburbs, forced by the requirements of
more room, better light, trackage facilities
and lower valued real estate. Business was
finding itself. Banks and financial institu
tions began to draw together into a com
mon center; wholesale trade, instead of
being scattered along the retail streets,
took definite quarters, while the retail dis
tricts became more accurately defined and
decidedly more exclusive. After 1885 the
great retail stores of the present day began
to come to the front—the department store
idea had reached Minneapolis.
This period was notable for great cele
brations, festivals and conventions. The
celebration of the completion of the North
ern Pacific railroad in 1883 has already been
mentioned. In 1884 the national encamp
ment of the G. A. R. was held in Minne
apolis—the first great gathering of the kind
in the city. In connection with the exposi
tion there were carnival events, and in 1891
the bountiful crops and general prosperity
of the northwest was celebrated with a
Harvest Festival, unique in its extent, com
pleteness and appropriate features. A mon
ster parade depicted the industries and re
sources of the city in a way which attracted
wide attention. The auditorium afforded
by the exposition building made possible
some great conventions, notable among
them being the national Christian Endeav
or convention of 1891 and the republican
national convention of 1892. In these af
fairs Minneapolis won a reputation for hos
pitality which has made the place a favorite
convention city ever since.
PHENOMENAL POPULATION GAINS.
In the decade ending with 1890 Minne
apolis advanced from a population of 46,887 to 164,738. This was a gain of 117,851
or 251 per cent., something quite unpar
alleled in the history of municipal growth
up to that time. The average gain of about
12,000 people a year would not have been
excessive for a city starting with a large
population; but it must be remembered
that Minneapolis commenced the decade
with only 47,000. As the heavier growth,
proportionally, was in the first part of the
decade, it is probable that Minneapolis ac
tually gained 25 to 30 per cent, in popula
tion in some of those earlier years.
Before considering the last period in the
history of Minneapolis—the period opening
with the recovery, from the general depres
sion of 1893—some special phases of Min
neapolis life and activities will be taken up
under appropriate headings.
CHAPTER VIII.
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
T
HE first religious organization in this
vicinity was a Sunday school estab
lished in 1823 at Fort Snelling. The
first religious work undertaken within the
present limits of Minneapolis was that of
S. W. and Gideon H. Pond who settled upon
the shores of Lake Calhoun in 1834 and com
menced work among the Indians. A year
later the Rev. J. D. Stevens came to Lake
Harriet where the first building ever used
for religious services within the present city
limits was erected. The work at Lake Har
riet was distinctly missionary and never
advanced to any form of organization.
It was connected, however, with the pres
ent church history of Minneapolis in an in
teresting way. A Presbyterian church was
organized at Fort Snelling in 1835 a i l d a s
Mr. Stevens acted as its pastor, its services
were frequently held at Lake Harriet. In
1840 the Rev. S. W. Pond became pastor
and in 1849 it was reorganized and took
the name of Oak Grove Presbyterian church
with the Rev. Gideon H. Pond as pastor.
In this period the church has been described
as "migratory" and for thirty years "had
no permanent place of worship." In 1862
the name was again changed to the "First
Presbyterian Church of Minnesota at Min
nehaha." In the meantime Mr. Pond began
to hold services at Colonel Stevens' house
at the Falls and in 1853 the First Presby
terian church of Minneapolis grew out of
this work. It did not flourish in the early
days and in 1865 was reorganized, consoli
dated with what was left of the Minnehaha
church, and has since been an active organ
ization. Through the absorption of the older
society it can claim to be the oldest church
in the state and city.
MEN OF THE PIONEER PERIOD.
The Ponds did much for the early re
ligious life of the community. They were
on the ground more than a decade before
St. Anthony was settled and they welcomed
the newcomers and assisted in religious
work. Equally useful were the pastors al
ready settled in St. Paul. In 1849 the Rev.
E. D. Neill of St. Paul, who has been de
scribed as- "a Presbyterian with Episcopal
tendencies," came every fortnight to St.
Anthony and held services which devel
oped into the organization of Andrew Pres
byterian Church. The Rev. Matthew Sorin
organized the first Methodist class in 1849
and soon afterwards the First Methodist
church was formed with the Rev. Enos
Stevens as missionary in charge. Congre
gationalism found a beginning with the
work of the Rev. Charles Secombe who
commenced home missionary effort in 1850.
The First Congregational church was or
ganized in 1851 with twelve members. The
Rev. E. G. Gear, chaplain at Fort Snelling,
held Episcopal services at the Falls as early
at 1849 but the first regular services looking
to the founding of a church were held by
the Rev. Timothy Wilcoxson who came as
a missionary in 1850. The first parish was
organized in 1852—the beginning of Holy
Trinity Episcopal church. The Rev. J. S.
Chamberlain assumed charge of the parish
and local missionary work in 1852 and in
1856 organized Ascension parish on the
west side of the river; and on August 5th
the corner stone of a church was laid by
Dr. Gear at the corner of Fifth street and
Seventh avenue south. At this moment
there was on the way to Minneapolis a
young deacon who had just graduated and
was sent west to assist Mr. Chamberlain
in missionary work. This was David Buel
Knickerbacker—a man destined to take a
most prominent and useful place in the re
ligious life of Minneapolis and the north
west. Upon his arrival he was given entire
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
as missionaries on salaries which would not
now be regarded as compensation for day
labor.
ORIGIN OF THE LARGER CHURCHES.
TWO CIIURCIIES OF 1830.
Old Westminster and Plymouth churches as they were first
erected 011 Fourth street. View taken
l'rom Hennepin Av.
charge of Ascension parish and in a few
weeks the name was changed to Gethsemane. For many years it was the center of
Episcopalianism in Minneapolis and most
of the other churches of the denomination
grew out of mission work undertaken by
Bishop Knickerbacker. Catholic activities
began with the work of Father Ravoux in
1849 when a building was commenced in
northeast Minneapolis on the land now oc
cupied by the Church of St. Anthony of
Padua. The Baptist denomination began
organized church life in 1850 when the First
Baptist church of St. Anthony was formed.
It is now Olivet Baptist church. The Rev.
W. C. Brown was the first pastor. In 1851
the Rev. C. G. Ames organized the First
Free Baptist church on the east side. It
later moved across the river and is still an
active organization. The Rev. J. C. Whit
ney became pastor of the lyrst Presbyterian
church of Minneapolis in 1853. These men
of the pioneer days were a devoted, self-sac
rificing band. Many of them were sent out
Few of the churches first founded have
become the larger churches of the present
time. For the most part the great churches
of the several denominations grew out of
later beginnings. For instance Westmin
ster Presbyterian church was not organ
ized until 1857 and its first church building
was not erected until i860. This building
stood on Fourth street between Nicollet and
Hennepin where the Hotel Vendome now
stands. Plymouth Congregational church,
organized only a few months before West
minster, built at the corner of Fourth street
and Nicollet avenue. A11 illustration shows
the old Plymouth and Westminster build
ings as they appeared when Fourth street
was in the residence part of the city. In
1857 St. Marks mission chapel was estab
lished in North Minneapolis but was re
moved in 1861 to the corner of Fourth street
and Hennepin avenue where the first serv
ice of St. Marks Episcopal parish was held
upon its formation in 1868. The First Bap
tist church was organized in 1853 but had
no house of worship until 1858, when it
built at Third street and Nicollet avenue
what was at that time the largest church in
the town. Ten years later this church
erected a new building at the corner of
Fifth and Hennepin where the Lumber Ex
change now stands. The Church of the
Redeemer (Universalist) grew out of an
organization effected, at a meeting held
in 1859 when W. D. Washburn, still a
prominent member, presided. The Rev. Dr.
James H. Tuttle became its pastor in 1866,
remaining for many years.
Augustana
Swedish Lutheran church was organized in
1866 and Trinity Norwegian and Danish
in 1867. The Church of the Immaculate
Conception was the first Catholic church
built on the west side of the river. The
present structure, erected in 1872, succeed
ed a small frame building put up three years
before. For twenty years Father James
McGolrick was pastor of this church, mak
ing it a power in the denomination and
7A
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
RT. REV. DAVII) IJ. KNICKERBACKER.
Bishop
Kniekerbacker was the first
rector of Gethsemane
Episcopal clim-ch and prominent in the early
church history of Minneapolis.
himself taking an active part in the affairs
of the city. In 1889 he was appointed
Bishop of Duluth. The Christian church,
or Church of the Disciples, had 110 organiza
tion in the city until 1877 when the Port
land Avenue Church of
Christ was formed. It has
become one of the leading
churches of the denomi
nation in the West.
71
ling organizations to positions of promi
nence and erected permanent and frequently
very costly structures. Plain old-fashioned
church buildings, very simply furnished,
gave place to handsome modern buildings,
luxurious in every appointment. It is told
of the bishop then in charge that he hesi
tated to dedicate the old Centenary Method
ist church upon its completion in 1866, be
cause of what he regarded as its extrava
gance in fittings and furnishings. To those
who can remember what seems, at this day,
the extreme simplicity of the old church the
evolution in ideas as to church building: is
manifest.
Somewhat anticipating the general move
ment Plymouth Congregational church and
the Church of the Redeemer occupied new
buildings in the middle seventies—the for
mer building the familiar landmark at
Eighth and Nicollet (only removed in 1907)
and the latter erecting the first of its build
ings at Eighth street and Second avenue
south. Westminster Presbyterian church
built at Seventh and Nicollet in 1882; Gethsemane Episcopal church built at Ninth
street and Fourth avenue south in 1883; the
Central Baptist built in 1883; Immanuel
Baptist in 1884; the Swedish Mission Tab
ernacle in 1885; the first Baptist and First
Unitarian in 1887 ; the First Congregational
and Holy Rosary Catholic in 1888; the First
Presbyterian, Park Avenue Congregational,
Oliver Presbyterian and the Church of
KELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES OF
THE EIGHTIES.
After the foundation
laying of the early days
there was a period of
moderate growth a n d
progress, followed, during
the later seventies and
the decade 1880-90, by a
time of most r a p i d
growth in all denomina
tions.
In this period
churches grew from strug-
.
tmt
OLD GETHSEMANE CHURCH.
Fifth street and Seventh avenue south.
72
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
the Redeemer (rebuilding) in 1889; An
drew Presbyterian, Wesley Methodist, and
St. Stephens Catholic in 1891 ; the Portland
Avenue Church of Christ in 1893. These
are some of the prominent church buildings
of the period. They are mentioned in a
group to show the rapid growth of the time,
when every denomination in Minneapolis
was making great strides in membership,
wealth and aggressive church and mission
work.
An important phase of the development
of church matters at this time was the estab
lishment of many churches of the Scandi
navian denominations. Previous to 1880,
the Scandinavian population, though rap
idly increasing in numbers, had made no
very marked impression on the church life
of the city.
It is quite impossible to mention all the
names associated with Minneapolis pulpits
at this period. At its opening Bishop
Knickerbacker was finishing his long rec
torship at Gethsemane Episcopal church.
In 1883 he was elected bishop of Indiana.
Bishop McGolrick was still pastor of the
Church of the Immaculate Conception. The
Rev. Dr. Robert F. Sample completed an
eighteen years' pastorate at Westminster
Presbyterian church in 1886; the Rev. Dr.
Charles F. Thwing, now president of West-
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OP 1868.
This building stood at Fifth and Ilennepin on the site of the
Lumber Exchange.
REV. ROIIHRT I". SAMPLE, D. I).
ern Reserve University, Cleveland, received
652 members into Plymouth Congregational
church in a four years' pastorate ending in
1890; the Rev. Dr. Wayland Hoyt began
his notable pastorate of the First Baptist
church; Bishop Cyrus D. Foss was resident
bishop of the Methodist church until 1888;
the Rev. Dr. J. F. Chaffee, who had first been
stationed in St. Anthony in 1857, became
pastor of the new Hennepin avenue M. E.
Church in 1879 a n d three years later was
made presiding elder; the Rev. Dr. David J.
Burrell occupied Westminster Presbyterian
pulpit for four years; in 1888 Rev. Dr. C. J.
Petri began a long pastorate at Augustana
Swedish Lutheran church; the Rev. Edwin
Sydney Williams completed in 1883 an eight
years' pastorate at the Park Avenue Congre
gational Church (then the "Second") and
for some years thereafter devoted himself to
city mission work with great success; the
Rev. Dr. T. B. Wells for a decade was the
notable rector of St. Mark's Episcopal
church; the Rev. Father Tissot in 1888
ended a long service at St. Anthony of
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
73
Padua; the Rev. Lars J. Jerdee has filled
the pulpit of the Immanuel Norwegian
Lutheran church ever since 1889; the Rev.
G. H. Trabert began in 1883 a pastorate at
the St. Johns English Lutheran church
which has continued to the present; the
Rev. E. A. Skogsbergh was pastor of the
Swedish Mission Tabernacle and is still at
the head of this great church; the Rev. Dr.
-Tuttle was still in the pulpit of the Church
of the Redeemer—and so this list might be
prolonged to great length. It was a time of
brilliant service and masterly labors and
accomplishments.
The city grew so rapidly at this period
of its history that the responsibilities of the
church people were felt very heavily. The
obligation to furnish religious teaching and
church services to the newcomers caused an
activity in establishing Sunday schools,
missions and chapels never equalled before
or since. Each denomination had its church
extension organization. The spirit of the
REV.
REV. JAMES F. CIIAFFEE, D. D.
EDWIN SIDNEY WILLIAMS.
times entered into this work; the word
"hustle," so well understood on the streets
of Minneapolis in the eighties, became a
part of the churchman's terminology. Some
one has said that the phrase "Churches
built while you wait" would also have been
appropriate at that time. One instance is
vouched for. The committee of one denom
ination, deciding at a certain meeting that
a church was needed in a particular locality,
within fifteen days had a lot purchased, a
church building erected, a congregation in
stalled therein and a minister in charge.
The growing importance of the city as a
religious center naturally led to its selec
tion as the meeting place of many im
portant conventions and gatherings. J In
the middle eighties the general assembly of
the Presbyterian Church met here; in 1892
the National Council of the Congregational
churches; in 1895 the general Convention of
the Episcopal Church. The Christian En-
74
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
REV.. JAMES II. .TUTTLE, D. D.
deavor convention of 1891 was one of the
largest religious gatherings of the time.
The more prominent denominations have
from time to time entertained their great
national associations of a missionary char
acter. These meetings have brought to the
city the leaders in the religious life of the
country.
THE CHURCHES OF TODAY.
After the financial troubles of '93 the
churches of Minneapolis were for a time
obliged to retrench as severely as the busi
ness houses. Some temporarily lost mem
bership and building projects were largely
held in abeyance. These conditions rapidly
passed away and during the decade past the
religious affairs of the city have been in a
most prosperous condition. The building
activity of the eighties has been duplicated
with a more pronounced tendency to per
manence and advanced ideas in church
architecture.
Westminster Presbyterian
church lost its beautiful building at Seventh
and Nicollet by fire and in 1898 occupied its
present structure at Twelfth and Nicollet—
one of the largest and finest churches in the
West. Plymouth Congregational church and
St. Marks Episcopal church sold their down
town property to build most beautiful spec
imens of church architecture further out.
The Second Church of Christ, Scientist,
erected a handsome church at Second av
enue south and Eleventh street—the largest
of a group of churches testifying to the
rapid growth and importance of this de
nomination in the past decade. In 1908 the
corner stone of a Pro-Cathedral was laid by
the Catholics of the city. This will succeed
the present Church of the Immaculate Con
ception. It will be a magnificent structure
of solid granite. The main nave will exceed
in size those of the cathedrals of Europe,
except that of St. Peter's at Rome which is
exactly the same width, and there will be
seats for 2,500 people. The people of Fowl
er Methodist church completed their hand
some building in 1907 and many lesser
structures all over the city have testified
in late years to the devotion, prosperity and
enterprise of the church people of Minne
apolis. There are now about two hundred
church buildings, including missions and
chapels, in the city and the membership
approximates 75,000.
With the rounding of the half century of
Minneapolis the early churches have begun
to celebrate their golden anniversaries.
These occasions have been of great inter
est. Notable among them have been the
celebrations of
Gethsemane
Episcopal
church in 1906 and Plymouth Congrega
tional and Westminster Presbyterian in
1907.
ALLIED ORGANIZATIONS.
The building of churches, the maintenance
of services and the internal life of the
churches generally, has been but a part of
the activities of the church people of the
city. Outside of regular church organiza
tion every class of religious, charitable and
philanthropic organization which would
tend to give practical force to the principles
of Christianity, has been heartily supported.
The Young Men's Christian Association
of the city of Minneapolis was organized in
1866. For many years it occupied rented
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
75
and is the second largest Y. W. C. A.
in the United States. It owns at 87 South
Seventh street a building and lot valued at
over $125,000, equipped with all that is nec
essary for the maintenance of a lunch room,
reading room, gymnasium, rest rooms, class
rooms and a hall for entertainments and lec
tures. A branch lunch room is maintained
in the wholesale district and at the two
places about 750 young women lunch daily.
Almost as many are enrolled in the edu
cational and Bible classes. With the Wom
an's Christian Association the Y. W. C. A.
sustains a Travelers Aid work and a Tran
sient Home for Girls and Women is main
tained—the two forming one of the most
practical philanthropic undertakings- in the
city. The general secretary is Miss M. Belle
Jeffery.
The Woman's Christian Association was
founded in 1866 as the Ladies' Aid Society
and took its present name in 1868. For
forty years it has been an active charitable
and philanthropic force, doing a wide range
of work, including personal visitation and
relief of the poor, and the maintenance of
the Woman's Boarding Home at 52 South
Tenth street and the Pillsbury Home at 819
Second avenue south. The association also
manages the Jones-Harrison Home for the
care of aged women and aged ministers and
their wives and joins with the Y. W. C. A.
in the Travelers Aid work. The president is
Mrs. E. M. La Penotiere.
3,400
A J*Av
A
THE CHURCH OP THE REDEEMER.
quarters which gave place about 1892 to the
handsome building at Tenth street and
Mary place, now free of debt and valued at
$175,000. The building is fully equipped for
the religious, social, educational and phys
ical culture work of the organization. Its
night school is attended by from 700 to 800
young men and boys. Its officers in 1908
are, president, J. S. P'orteous; vice presi
dents, E. W. Decker and E. L. Carpenter;
recording secretary, G. A. Gruman; treasur
er, T. M. Martin, and general secretary, S.
Wirt Wiley.
Not less interesting and successful is the
Young Women's Christian Association,
founded in 1891 and growing more and
more rapidly until it has a membership of
HOMES AND ASYLUMS.
The Washburn Memorial Orphan Asylum
was founded in 1886 under a bequest of
$375>°°° from the late Governor C. C. Wash
burn of Wisconsin as a memorial to his
mother. Gen. W. D. Washburn of Minne
apolis, brother to Governor Washburn, who
has always been at the head of the board of
trustees, gave twenty-five acres of land at
Nicollet avenue and Forty-ninth street on
which was erected a building costing $75,000, the remainder of the bequest constitut
ing a permanent endowment. C. E. Faulk
ner is superintendent.
The Catholic Orphan Asylum at Chicago
avenue and Forty-sixth street was erected
some twenty years ago to care for the or-
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
76
phans of the denomination. It is an effi
cient institution and well supported.
The Home for Children and Aged Wom
en was founded in 1881, and installed in
its present building in 1886. It has been
the special care of some of the benevolent
ladies of the city and has received generous
financial support as well as personal service.
Bethany Home, the Home for the Aged, and
as a memorial to their parents, Mr. and Mrs.
Charles A. Pillsbury, and is admirably
equipped for social settlement work. Henry
F. Burt is head resident. Unity House, 1616
North Washington avenue, developed from
work undertaken by members of the Church
of the Redeemer, but is now a co-operative
settlement devoting itself largely to reach
ing the children with helpful agencies. Miss
!
WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
Chas. S. Sedgwick, Architect.
the Sheltering Arms are all well established
and effective.
The Minnesota Soldiers
Home, while not maintained by the people
of the city, is one of the institutions in
which much interest is felt. Its grounds
are upon the Mississippi river bluffs adjoin
ing Minnehaha park—one of the most beau
tiful spots in Minnesota.
Settlement work has been undertaken in
the city at three centers. Pillsbury House,
320 Sixteenth avenue south, grew out of the
work of Bethel mission, established by
Plymouth Congregational church in the
early eighties. The beautiful building was
the gift of Charles S. and John S. Pillsbury
Caroline M. Crosby is head resident. In
the autumn of 1908 Wells Memorial House
at 116 North Eleventh street was opened
under the auspices of St. Marks Episcopal
church.
The Associated Charities of Minneapolis
was organized in 1884, largely through the
instrumentality of George A. Brackett, who
remained its president for many years. The
plan of work is similar to that of such asso
ciations everywhere—the principles of en
couragement to thrift and self support and
intelligent co-operation among the charit
able being prominent. Frank L. McVey is
president and Eugene T. Lies secretary.
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
77
sion work is beyond individual treatment.
The first large work was that undertaken
by the City Mission of 1883 on South Wash
ington avenue, of which the Rev. Edwin S.
Williams, was superintendent. In 1895 the
Union City Mission was organized as an
undenominational institution. In 1902 it
occupied its present quarters in the St.
James Hotel building at Washington and
Second avenues south, where are maintained
a hotel, lodging house, mission hall, employ
ment bureau, baths and laundry. T. E.
Hughes has been for years the president
and C. M. Stocking, superintendent.
YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION BUILDING.
Clias. S. Sedgwick, Architect.
The Board of Charities and Corrections
of the City of Minneapolis is composed of
five commissioners, of whom the mayor is
one and is charged with the care of the
poor department, the workhouse and the
city hospital. Richard Tattersfield is sec
retary of the board. .
In a city so well organized for charitable
and philanthropic work it is of course, quite
impossible to mention every organization,
In fact each church has its society; each
lodge its committee. In the same way misYOUNG WOMEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION BUILDING.
Win. Channing Whitney, Architect
Many^ of the hospitals of the city are of
a charitable character, but as their wojrk is
largely professional they are mentioned in
the chapter on the Medical Profession.
PILLSBURY HOUSE.
Bertrand & Chamberlin, Architects.
BUSHNELL, Rev. John Edward, pastor of
Westminster Presbyterian Church, Minneapolis,
and a leading- exponent of Presbyterianism in Min
nesota, was born in Old Saybrook, Connecticut,
October 21, 1858, son of John F. Bushnell of that
place. He attended the village schools and pre
pared for college at the Morgan School of Clin
ton, Connecticut, and graduated at Yale College
in 1880. After taking his theological course at
Yale Theological Seminary, he took a post grad-
78
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
nell was married to Florence A. Ellsworth, of
Brooklyn, New York, and to them have been
born three sons,—Ellsworth, John Horace and
Paul Palmer.
CLEARY, Rev. James M., for many years in
charge of St. Charles Catholic Church, Minneap
olis, was born in Boston, September 8, 1849, the
son of Thomas and Julia Cleary. He came to
the Northwest with his parents while a child and
was educated in the public schools of Walworth
county, Wisconsin, St. Francis Seminary and Col
lege, Milwaukee, and at St. Lawrence College,
Calvary, Wisconsin. He entered the priesthood
July 8, 1872. He has been widely known as a
public lecturer and has taken a prominent part in
temperance work, being for many years president
of the Catholic Total Abstinence Union of Amer
ica and vice-president of the Anti-Saloon League
of America. He has been the president of the
Minneapolis Home Protection League, and is a
member of the Catholic Knights of Wisconsin,
Catholic Order of Foresters, and the Knights of
Columbus. While in Minneapolis he has taken a
prominent part in the discussion of all civic
questions and is always to be found on the side
of temperance, saloon restriction and all prac
tical good government movements. He is a
member of the Commercial and Six O'Clock
Clubs.
REV. JOHN E. BUSHNELL, D. D.
uate course in critical studies. He received his
first call to a pastorate from the Congregational
church of Fairfield, Connecticut, where he re
mained four years, going in 1888 to the Presby
terian Church at Rye, New York, of which he was
pastor for six years. This was followed by a
pastorate of six years at the Phillips Presbyterian
Church, of New York City, when he was called to
the Westminster Church, of Minneapolis, the
largest and most important church of that de
nomination in the city. Under Dr. Bushnell,
Westminster is organized for effective work and
its influence is both dynamic and pervasive. It
is a church which does things and the great
structure which the congregation erected in place
of the one destroyed by fire about ten years ago,
is strongly suggestive of enduring strength and
achievement. During Dr. Bushnell's pastorate
the church has greatly increased in membership
and holds a position as one of the leading or
ganizations of the denomination in the country.
Dr. Bushnell received the degree of "D. D." from
New York University in 1898. He is a member
of various collegiate and clerical societies and
literary organizations. In June, 1887, Dr. Bush
FAULKNER, Charles Edward, superinten
dent of the Washburn Memorial Orphan Asylum
at Minneapolis, is descended from a long line of
ancestors among whom were men prominent in
the colonial period. Patrick Falconer of Edin
burgh who came to America late in the seven
teenth century was born in 1859 and the records
show that he was married October 2, 1689, at
New Haven to Hannah, daughter of Deputy
Governor William Jones of New Haven and
granddaughter of Governor Theophilus Eaton of
New Haven Colony. Patrick Falconer was a
citizen of Newark, New Jersey, member of First
Presbyterian Church of Newark, New Jersey, and
the records of his will showed that when he died,
in 1692, he left extensive properties in New York
and New Jersey. In course of time the orthog
raphy of the family name was changed. Ed
ward Faulkner, father of Charles E., was a mer
chant at Earlville, Madison county, New York,
at the time of his son's birth, July 12, 1844. His
wife was Abigail Doolittle Beach. She was de
scended from John Beach who lived in New
Haven, Connecticut, as early as 1643, and who
signed the Wallingford Covenant and received
allotment of land under this document. Mr.
Faulkner's grandfather was the Rev. Lyman
Beach who served in the war of 1812. During
his early boyhood the family moved to Mansfield,
Pennsylvania, where Charles attended school at
Mansfield Classical Seminary until the breaking
out of the Civil war, when he at once enlisted
under the first call of President Lincoln in April,
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
1861. While serving on the Peninsula he was
taken prisoner, June 30, 1862, and confined in
Pemberton Warehouse and on Belle Island. Af
ter the expiration of his enlistment two years
later, he served in the commissary department
until the close of the war. On June 27, 1867, he
was appointed a registration officer under the
reconstruction acts and served in Virginia during
the most interesting portion of the reconstruction
period. Mr. Faulkner next went to Kansas, es
tablishing himself at Saliny in April, 1869. He
at once entered actively into public affairs,
served as deputy county treasurer three years
and as county treasurer four years, was a mem
ber of the legislature for two terms, and from
1876 to 1887 was a member of the board of trus
tees of the Kansas Senate Charitable Institutions.
His interest in charitable and philanthropic in
stitutional work brought him the appointment in
1887 of superintendent of the Soldier's Orphan
Home at Atchison. After filling this post for
ten years he was called to the superintendency
of the Washburn Home which he has managed
with ability for the past decade. He was pres
ident of the National Conference of Charities
and Corrections at Topeka in 1900 and in 1902
president at the Minnesota State Conference of
Charities and Corrections at Rochester. Mr.
Faulkner 011 September 6, 1871, married Clemen
tina A. Coryell, daughter of Rev. Vincent M.
Coryell, at Waverly, New York. Like her hus
band, Mrs. Faulkner is descended from a long
line of forebears. Her grandfather, Emanuel
Coryell, served in the Revolution and her great
grandfather of the same name was the owner
of Coryell's ferry across the Delaware under a
patent from George II. Mr. and Mrs. Faulkner
have two sons, Dr. Coryell Faulkner and Charles
E. Faulkner, both living in Minneapolis. Mr.
Faulkner is a republican in political affiliation.
HALLOCK, Leavitt H., the pastor of Ply
mouth Congregational church, Minneapolis, from
1898 to 1907, was descended from the best early
New England ancestry on both sides, and was
born at Plainfield, Massachusetts, August 15, 1842.
He was the youngest son of Elizabeth Porter Snell
Hallock, lineal descendent of John Alden and
cousin to William Cullen Bryant. His earliest
paternal ancestor in America was Peter Hallock
who landed at Hallock's Neck, Long Island, in
1640, the source of all the Hallocks in this coun
try.
Dr. Hallock's grandfather was Moses Hal
lock, for forty-five years the pastor of the only
church in Plainfield, Massachusetts, where he edu
cated more than three hundred students for col
lege, many of whom became noted men in the
land, fifty of them ministers of the gospel and
seven foreign missionaries.
Dr. Hallock's father, Leavitt Hallock, served
his town and state in several capacities of public
trust, with honor and fidelity, and Dr. Hallock
79
has justified his honorable ancestry by his own
record.
Graduated from Williston Seminary, and from
Amherst college in 1863, at the age of twenty-one,
he took his theological course at East Windsor
Hill and at Hartford, closing his fourth year in
1867. From his graduation until 1892 he held
successive pastorates in Connecticut and in
Maine, preaching for sixteen years in the. former
state and ten years as pastor of Williston Church,
Portland, Maine, and in Waterville. Thence he
was called to the First Church of Tacoma, Wash
ington, which he served for more than three
years, and then became preacher and instructor
at Mills College, California, until called to Ply
mouth church, Minneapolis.
Politically, Dr. Hallock belongs to the con
servative branch of the republican party. He
has always been active in moral reform and to
his efficient work for tcmperance western Con
necticut was greatly indebted during his ten
years successful pastorate -in West Winsted.
Dr. Hallock has been honored by the degree
of "Doctor of Divinity," conferred by* Whitman
College, Washington, in 1893: .election as cor
porate member of the American Board of Com
missioners for Foreign Missions in the same
year, which position he still holds: membership
in both international councils of the Congrega-
CHARLES E. FAULKNER.
80
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
•*
• iii 3I S" 5 '
- ''«rv
•>, • ,< •
LEAVITT H. HALl.OCK
tional body, held respectively in London, Eng
land, in 1891, and in Boston, in 1899.
Dr. Hallock was married in June, 1867, to
Martha B. Butler, of Brooklyn, New York, who
died in October, 1873, and was the mother of his
two children, Harry Butler Hallock, a business
man of Cincinnati, and Lillian Huntington, wife of
Geo. R. Campbell, M. D., of Augusta, Maine.
On the 3d of October, 1888, Dr. Hallock mar
ried Miss Ellen M. Webster, of Portland, Maine,
who was associated with, him in the work of
Plymouth church.
JERDEE, Rev. Lars J., pastor of Immanuel
Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church, Min
neapolis, was born in Lekanger, Norway, on
January 2, 1859. His father, who was a farmer,
migrated to America in 1861 and the family
lived in Dane county, Wisconsin, for some years,
Lars attending the public schools and a Norweg
ian church school in the vicinity. When seven-
Decorah, Iowa, and graduated in 1882 with the
degree of B. A. He had determined to become a
teen years of age he entered Luther College at
clergyman and entering Luther Seminary at Madi
son, Wisconsin, to pursue his theological studies,
completed the course and graduated in 1885. In
the same year he was ordained and entered upon
his ministerial work in Polk county, Minnesota,
where he organized ten Lutheran congregations
and did mission work in general. Mr. Jerdee
remained in Polk county until 1889 when he was
called to Immanuel Norwegian Lutheran Church
in Minneapolis, where he has remained as pastor
ever since, taking a leading part in the affairs
of his denomination of the Northwest. Since
1891 he has been one of the directors for home
missions and for about the same length of time
has been one of the board of visitors for Luther
Seminary. From 1890 to 1898 he was treasurer
of the Minnesota district of the Norwegian
Evangelical Church of America. He has been
president since 1896 of the board of Enclist mis
sions. Mr. Jerdee was a member of the com
mittee editing a new explanation of Luther's
catechism, published in 1904, and for the trans
lation of Luther's catechism into English, pub
lished in 1906. During his pastorate in Minne
apolis he has also had charge of Santiago and
South Santiago in Sherburne county, Gethsemane
Church, Minneapolis, Brooklyn Church in Hen
nepin county, and Bergen Church in McLeod
county and was prime mover in organizing St.
Johannes Evangelical Church in Minneapolis.
He belongs to the Synod of the Norwegian Evan
gelical Lutheran Church of America. Mr. Jerdee
was married in 1886 to Miss Turine Husevold of
Cyrus, Minnesota. They have had five children
—three sons, Joseph C., now studying at Luther
College, at Decorah, Iowa, and Theodor Ruben,
who died, and a third son also named Theodor
Ruben, a student at Minnesota College; and two
daughters, Thina and Laila Tonette, the first of
whom died while a child.
KNICKERBACKER, David Buel, was one of
the pioneers of religious work in Minneapolis
and the Northwest and one of the most con
spicuously useful and successful clergymen which
the Episcopal church sent into the Northwest in
the early days. Bishop Knickerbacker was born at
Schaghticoke, New York, February 24, 1833. His
father, Herman Knickerbacker, inherited a large
fortune from his father Johannes Knickerbacker,
and for his lavish hospitality was called the "Prince
of Schaghticoke." He was a lawyer of ability,
occupied a seat on the bench of the county and
represented his district in congress. The son
was given a liberal education and graduated from
Trinity College, Hartford, in 1853. He then took
a theological course and graduated from the
General Theological Seminary in 1856. The
young deacon was at once appointed by the
Board of Missions in New York as a missionary
assistant in Minnesota and with his young bride
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
he arrived in Minneapolis in July of the same
year. He was placed in charge of the Ascension
parish—a name shortly afterwards changed to
Gethsemane, under which the strong church of
that name developed. The future bishop's salary
was at first $500. The church had but five com
municants at the beginning; it had no church
building—although the original structure at Fifth
street and Seventh avenue south was completed
during the year. Bishop Knickerbacker's work
was for a time of missionary character, serv
ing a number of points in association with Rev.
Mr. Chamberlain. By the following spring, how
ever, his work in Gethsemane had so strength
ened as to require his constant services, his out
side missionary work, for which he afterwards
became so famous, becoming from that time in
cidental to his work in Gethsemane. By this
time the communicants had increased from five
to fifty-three in one year. On July 12th, 1857,
Bishop Kemper made a visitation of the parish,
and Mr. Knickerbacker was ordained to the
priesthood. Under Mr. Knickerbacker's rector
ship Gethsemane church grew very rapidly. At
the end of five years the number of communi
cants had increased to 102 and the church was
in a very flourishing condition. In i860 Rev.
Mr. Knickerbacker commenced his outside mis
sionary work, holding services more or less reg
ularly at Crystal Lake, Anoka, Hassan, Water-
REV. LARS J. JERDEE.
81
ville, Mahnomin, Monticello, Clear Water, Big
Lake, Rockford, Eden Prairie, Fort Snelling and
Bloomington. In 1863 he says, "There is no
limit to church extension in this vicinity save
the ability and strength of one clergyman to do
the work." In 1869 he organized the "Brother
hood of Gethsemane" to assist him in this field
of church work. Harvest Home Festivals were
inaugurated and a Free Church Reading Room
opened and maintained on Washington avenue,
corner of Nicollet, afterward removed to Geth
semane Parish House. In 1870 Rev. Mr. Knick
erbacker, having accepted his election as Dean
of "Seabury Divinity School," resigned his rec
torship but, on the urgent protests of the vestry
and congregation to himself and the Bishop,
was induced to remain. After the chaplain at
Fort Snelling left in 1866, Mr. Knickerbacker
and his helpers maintained services at the Fort
and occasional services at the Indian village of
Mendota. This was continued for more than
ten years. On the first Sunday of the month
a goodly number of Sioux Indians from Men
dota generally appeared at Gethsemane and re
ceived the Holy Communion. After service they
received a feast of baker's bread furnished by the
rector. This custom continued all through the
remaining rectorship of Mr. Knickerbacker and
for many years after. In 1873 Mr. Knickerbacker
received the degree of D. D. and four years later
was elected missionary bishop of Arizona and
New Mexico. He did not sever his connection
with Gethsemane church, however, until 1883
when he was elected Bishop of Indiana. He had
then served as rector of Gethsemane for twentyseven years and had seen the church grow from
five to 274 communicants and with 1,000 souls
in the parish. Meanwhile numerous missions
established through his efforts had developed into
independent churches. In the same year the
corner stone of the new Gethsemane church
building at Fourth avenue south and Ninth street
was laid. Bishop Knickerbacker was consecrated
Bishop of Indiana on October 4, 1883, and died
December 31, 1894, at Indianapolis. His life and
work in Minneapolis endeared him to a very
large number of people, as his influence and
service extended much beyond the boundaries of
his own parish and of denominational lines. He
was a man of great personal magnetism, warm
sympathies and broad views and was loved by
people of all classes.
JOYCE, Isaac Wilson, (Bishop Isaac Wilson
Joyce, D. D. LL. D., one of the Bishops of the
Methodist Episcopal Church) was one of -the
most conspicuous figures of the denomination to
which he belonged. He was born October 11,
1836, in Colerain township, Hamilton county,
Ohio; the son of James W. and Mary Ann Joyce,
and the grandson of William and Hannah Joyce,
of Dublin, Ireland. To this inheritance of Irish
blood was doubtless due something of his unusual
charm in public address, and his genial spirit
82
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
which made him everywhere a favorite. As a
into many sections of the country never before
youth many obstacles were in the way of his invisited by a bishop. His administration in China
tellectual training; his poverty, the opposition of
resulted in a spiritual quickening unsurpassed
his family, the ridicule of his associates; but he
anywhere in the world in modern times. The
loved books, he was an enthusiastic student and
church in that far away quarter of the globe has
persistently availed himself of every opportunity
felt the impress of this visit to the present day,
to secure coveted knowledge. He taught school
and it is the judgment of many on the field that
to pay his way at Hartsville, Indiana, the dethe gigantic strides made in China in recent years,
nominational school of the United Brethren
are largely due to his administration and influChurch. He alternately taught school and went
ence. Returning he visited Malaysia, making a
to college for several years; finally winning his
zigzag journey across India, meeting the Central
A. M. degree at Asbury (now De Pauw) UniConference at Lucknow, preaching everywhere
versity. Later Dickinson College gave him his
a stop was made. In 1903-4 he was in charge of
Doctorate - while the University of the Pacific
the missions in South America, giving them
honored itself and him by the LL. D. He was
unusually painstaking attention and administralicensed to preach by the United Brethren
tion.
Church, but in 1857 united with the Methodist
During his residence in Minneapolis his broad
Episcopal Church, and in 1859 was admitted into
catholicity was peculiarly manifest. He devoted
the Northwest Indiana Conference. As a very
himself without reserve to the interests of his
young preacher he became pastor of some of the
own denomination, yet, at the same time exhibitleading churches in this conference, and during
ed a spirit of deep sympathy with all forms of
the ten years following promotions and honors
Christian work. He was particularly solicitous
came rapidly. At thirty-three he was presiding
for the weaker churches, and it is a matter of
Elder of the East Lafayette district, then pastor
official record that he visited and ministered unto
of Trinity Church, La Fayette. His health besomething like one hundred of the smaller comcame somewhat impaired, and he was prevailed
munities throughout the northwest where no
upon to fill the pulpit of Bethany Independent
Bishop before him had penetrated. In these genChurch, Baltimore, for one year. In that cliuinely missionary visits, he frequently paid his
mate he rapidly regained his health, but, though
own expenses, and never received compensation
that church earnestly solicited him to become its
for services rendered. On Sunday morning, July
settled pastor, he returned to Indiana, and in 1877
2nd, 1905, while preaching at Red Rock Camp
was appointed to old Robert's Chapel, GreenMeeting, he suffered a partial paralytic stroke,
castle. Here he was enabled to erect a commodiHe evidently felt a premonition of the approachous church which today is a monument to his
ing end for he abruptly changed the thread of
untiring zeal and energy. In 1880, at the close of
his discourse, as he grasped a piller for support,
his term in Greencastle, he was elected to Genhe said, "I have preached this gospel around the
eral Conference, meeting in Cincinnati, out of
world and it has always met the needs of men."
which grew his transfer to the Cincinnati ConThe Bishop was married in 1861 to Caroline
ference, and his first appointment to St. Paul's
Walker Bosserman of La Porte, Indiana, who
church in that city. After serving this important
died in 1907. Their only son, Colonel Frank M.
church for a full term, he was sent to Trinity
Joyce, is a resident of Minneapolis.
Church, which he also served for a full term, and
,
was then reappointed to St. Paul's. In 1886 he
. MERRILL, Rev. George Robert, was born
was the official representative to the General ~ and educated in the East, though a great part of
Conference of the Methodist Church of Canada,
his work has been in the West. The family from
held in Toronto. In 1888 he was elected to the
which Mr. Merrill is descended has been estabEpiscopacy by one of the largest votes, up to
lished in America from the time of its early
that time, ever given to an incumbent of that . colonization,—his ancestors emigrating to this
office. For two quadrenniums, from 1888 to 1896,
country with the Puritans and settling at Newhis Episcopal residence was Chattanooga, Tennesbury, Massachusetts. His parents were Robert
see, where he greatly impressed the church by his
Merrill, a ship joiner and builder and Ann (Babpower as a preacher and his skill as a leader.
son) Merrill, who lived at the time of their son's
During this time he was Chancellor of Grant
birth at Newburyport, Massachusetts. The son
University for five years, and for four years
was born on December 26, 1845. He was brought
president of the Epworth League, and also held
up at Newburyport and there began his educathe conferences in Europe and Mexico. The
tion, attending the public schools and graduating
General Conference of 1896 transferred him to
in 1861 from Brown high school. In April, 1862,
Minneapolis, which was his Episcopal home until
he entered Amherst College, and owing to his
• the time of his death. The first two years of
careful elementary work was able to join the class
this time he was under appointment to visit and
which had entered the College in the fall presupervise the churches in the Orient. He visited
ceding his matriculation. In addition to his coland carefully examined the work of the denomlege work Mr. Merrill taught school at East
inat'on in Japan, Korea and China, penetrating
Corinth, Maine, at Beemerville, New Jersey and
4
ftAC.
84
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
liEV. UEOltftE U. MERRILL, D. D.
in the high school at Amherst. He graduated
in 1865 with the degree of B. A. The additional
honorary degree of M. A. ad eundem was later
awarded him by Amherst. Following his gradua
tion in 1865 he was offered a position as in
structor in the Academy at Blue Hill, Maine, and
taught in that school for two semesters. He
then began his theological studies, entering Ban
gor Seminary at Bangor, Maine. The course in
that college was supplemented by further study
along theological lines at the Seminary at
Rochester, New York, and under President E.
G. Robinson, D. D. During the time devoted to
acquiring his education, Mr. Merrill filled, in the
interval of his study, various positions with busi
ness houses, as a grocer's clerk, a supply-teacher
in the grade school at Newburyport and an as
sistant mail carrier. For some time he was lo
cated at Fortress Monroe and Hampton, Vir
ginia, where he carried on the work of the
American Missionary Association among the
Freedmen after the close of the Civil War. He
completed his theological studies and was ordained
at Henrietta, New York, for the Congregational
ministry on January 2, 1867, after short pastorates
in New York, Michigan and Maine, he received a
call from the First Congregational Church of
Painesville, Ohio, where he remained for eight
years. In 1886 he resigned and moved to Min
neapolis to become the pastor of the First Con
gregational Church, of which he continued in
charge for more than twelve years, resigning in
1898 to accept a call from the Levitt Street
Church of Chicago. Since 1900 he has been the
Superintendent of Home Missions, for the Con
gregational Denomination of this city and has
devoted his whole time and energy to the ad
vancement of this work. In addition to his work
as a clergyman Mr. Merrill has always been in
terested in educational work, and has served as
a trustee of various schools and colleges at dif
ferent times, among them Hallowell Classical
School in Maine; Lake Erie College, Ohio; Chi
cago Theological Seminary and Carleton College
at Northfield; and in 1893 received from Ripon
College, Wisconsin, the degree of D. D. His
work has also included his connection for several
years with the International Sunday School ex
ecutive committee as a member and the secre
tary. In political faith Mr. Merrill is a republi
can. He was married on May 1, 1867, to Eunice
Thurston Plumer of Newburyport, Massachu
setts, after whose death he was again married on
June 19, 1885, to Miss Mary Morse House of
Paynesville, Ohio. By his first wife he had three
children: John Ernest Merrill, president of the
Central Turkey College at Aintab, Turkey, Asia;
George Plumer Merrill, pastor of Prospect Street
Church in Newburyport, Massachusetts, and Mary
Merrill, now the wife of Dr. W. L. Burnap of
Pelican Rapids, Minnesota. From his later mar
riage there are four children, Eunice House Mer
rill, now the wife of Rev. Harold B. Hunting of
Rochester, Wisconsin, Robert Charles, Laura
Alice and Marjorie Annie Merrill.
MORRILL, Rev. Gulian Lansing, pastor of the
People's Church of Minneapolis, was born on
December 1, 1857, at Newark, New Jersey, the
son of Rev. D. T. Morrill and Alida L. Morrill.
The father was a Baptist clergyman for fortyfour years, a native of Vermont and a cousin of
Senator Lot Morrill; the mother was of the Lan
sing family, of Holland Dutch descent. A clergy
man's family is very likely to be brought up in
many towns but it happened that a considerable
part of Mr. Morrill's youth was spent in St.
Louis, where he studied in the public schools and
graduated from the high school, and where he
first developed the marked talent for music,
which, but for parental training and his own later
inclination, would have made of him a profes
sional musician rather than a minister. While
still almost a boy he studied the organ with the
best masters available, receiving the highest com
mendation from Prof. E. M. Bowman. In later
years he has by no means abandoned the organ
and has many times combined the offices of
preacher and organist. He has played on some
of the most noted organs in this country and
during his wanderings abroad has been privileged
to perform upon famous instruments in old Eu
ropean cities. Mr. Morrill began his study of
theology at Shurtleff College and afterwards
graduated from the Baptist Theological Seminary
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
83
at Chicago. He took post-graduate work in He
brew and philosophy under Dr. Wm. R. Harper
and Dr. G. W. Northrup. Coming to Minneap
olis he became pastor of the Calvary Baptist
Church and remained during ten years, during
which time the new church edifice was erected.
Later he was pastor of the Chicago Avenue Bap
tist Church for three years. He has filled pastorates
at Anamosa, Iowa, Denver, and Owensboro, Ken
tucky. During his early pastorate in Minneapolis.
Mr. Morrill took a practical interest in the affairs
of the city and particularly in the amelioration of
the condition of the masses—the unchurched and
unchurchable. He had an active part in the work
which ended in the removal of the Washington
avenue dives and made possible the establishment
of the Union City mission. He has always stood
for temperance reform and the restriction of the
liquor traffic. In 1903 Mr. Morrill established
the People's church as "a place for all creeds,
classes and conditions of non-church-going peo
ple." Services have been held in the Masonic
Temple, Unique theater and Auditorium and the
pastor has brought to his aid the orchestra, organ,
soloist and chorus as well as art in the form of
lantern pictures illustrating the subjects of his
discourses. His methods have been original,
unique and sometimes sensational, (not what
would be required in the ordinary church work)
but they have been concededly effective in his
REV. CARL J. PETRI, D. D.
field. Mr. Morrill has made his work a clearing
house for the churches of the city, sending those
persons wishing permanent membership to one
or another of the denominational churches. In
J 881, on December 14, Mr. Morrill was married
to Miss Ada B. Wilkinson at Chicago. They have
two sons, David W. Morrill and Lowell Lansing
Morrill. It has been Mr. Morrill's constant habit
to write and speak outside his clerical labors.
He has lectured extensively on many subjects and
has written several books on subjects growing
directly out of his experiences in pastoral work,
in music and in travel abroad. An extensive tour
in Africa, Palestine, Asia and Europe a few years
ago provided material for "Tracks of a Tender
foot," a humorous and graphic account of per
sonal experiences and observations.
:
REV. GULIAN L. MORRILL.
PETRI, Carl Johan, one of the most distin
guished clergymen of the Lutheran Church in
this country, was born at Rockford, Illinois, June
16, 1856. His father was a tailor of that town
and the son received his early education at the
Rockford public schools, later attending the Augustana College at Paxton, Illinois, with the
class of 1877. In the latter year he graduated
with the degree of A. B., being a member of the
first class sent out from that institution, and in
1884 received the degree of A. M. from the same
college. During his college work he made es-
§6
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
pecial study of the modern and classical lan
guages and history, devoting particular attention
to classical English and at the completion of his
course was particularly proficient in these branch
es. One year after leaving Augustana he moved
to Minneapolis. At that time it was his inten
tion to continue his English studies for the pur
pose of becoming, at the request of the board of
directors, an instructor in that subject at Augus
tana College. He entered the University of Min
nesota and for a year put his energies to the
study of English and Anglo-Saxon; following
which he returned to the East, locating at Phila
delphia, from which place he had received a call
to take charge of a Swedish Lutheran congrega
tion. This position he held for several years.
In the University of Pennsylvania he again re
sumed his studies in English and history shortly
after his location in Philadelphia, at the same
time attending Dr. Krauth's lectures on philoso
phy. He was ordained to the Swedish Lutheran
ministry in 1880 1 . He returned to the West four
years later and became one of the faculty of Gustavus Adolphus College, at St. Peter, Minnesota,
as an instructor of history. In 1888 Dr. Petri
was called to Minneapolis to assume the re
sponsibilities of the largest congregation of his
denomination in the city—the Augustana Swedish
Lutheran Church. This was the beginning of a
long and successful pastorate. During his resi
dence in Minneapolis, Dr. Petri has been active
in educational and public work as well as in
his religious connections. He has served as a
member of the board of directors of Gustavus
Adolphus College and was a member of the first
board of directors of the Minnesota College,
Minneapolis, and still serves on that body, being
the vice president. For a number of years he
has been the vice president of the Minnesota
Conference of the Swedish Augustana Synod
and is now secretary of the Board of Missions
of the Conference. In 1881 he was one of the
founders of the "Augustana Observer," a Luth
eran religious p>per—the first of its kind to be
published in the English language by the Swedes
in this country. At a later period he was also
associated with the editorial department of an
English Sunday school paper issued under the
direction of the church and is now a member
of the Board of Publication of the Synod at
Rock Island. He was the originator and a prin
cipal promoter of the celebration in 1888, at Min
neapolis, of the two hundred and fiftieth anni
versary of the landing of the Swedes in America
during the seventeenth century. Likewise he
was active in arranging the celebration, in 1893,
of the three hundredth anniversary of the Upsala
Decree, being also the first scholar to translate
this decree into the English language. In the
same year he was a member of the advisory
council of the religious congress at the World's
.Fair. He is a member of the Institute of Civics;
and was one of the most influential organizers
of the Swedish hospital in 1898 and the first pres
ident of the board and of the hospital associa
tion. Dr. Petri was married in 1880 to Miss
Christine Anderson, of Rattvik, Delarne, Sweden,
the ceremony being performed in the historical
Old Swedes' Church, or Gloria Dei Church, in
Philadelphia. They have six children. The The
ological Seminary of Rock Island, Illinois, con
ferred upon him, in 1899, the degree of D. D.
Dr. Petri has always been conspicuous in the
counsels of his church. He is fluent and con
vincing in debate and courteous and engaging
in manner and his influence is commanding;
and he is frequently called uipon to lecture
throughout the Northwest in connection with
various lecture courses.
POPE, Rev. Edward Ritchie, was born in New
Bedford, Massachusetts, June 25, 1855. Here his
parents, W. G. E. and Anna F. Pope, were born
and here his ancestors lived from the earliest
settlement of the place. His paternal ancestor
in this country came to Plymouth in 163O', and
on his mother's side the first ancestor in this
country was John Coggeshall, the first governor
of Rhode Island. His great grandfather was a
Major in the Revolutionary War and his grand
father an officer in the war of 1812. Mr. Pope's
early life was spent in New Bedford, where he
was prepared for college in the Friend's Acad
emy; in 1872 he entered Harvard College but left
in the middle of his junior year, going to San
Francisco, where he studied law and was ad
mitted to practice. In 1882 he entered the Bap
tist Theological Seminary at Morgan Park, Illi
nois, (now connected with the Chicago Univer
sity) and graduated in 1885. From there he went
to Carbondale, Illinois, and in 1887 came to Roch
ester, Minnesota, serving the Baptist Church as
its pastor for rftore than six years. In January,
1894, he came to Minneapolis, having been elected
superintendent of Baptist State Missions under
the appointment of the Minnesota Baptist State
Convention and the American Baptist Home
Mission Society and this position he has filled
ever since. In' December, 1885, Mr. Pope was
married to Ella Krysher of Carbondale, Illinois.
Five daughters have been born to them, four
of whom are living.
PURVES, Rev. Stuart Ballantyne, the rector
of Holy Trinity Church of this city since 1894,
is of English parentage and birth, though he
received his theological education for the most
part in this country and has, since his ordination,
been engaged in clerical work in Minnesota. His
father was Richard Purves, a civil and mining
engineer, who practiced his profession with good
success in England, and who at the time of his
son's birth was located at Maryport. Stuart
Ballantyne Purves was born at Maryport on
July 3, 1862. The early part of his life was de
voted to his education in England, and he ob
tained his preparatory and classical training un-
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
S7
is associated with several of the fraternal orders,
being a Blue Lodge Mason, a Royal Arch Mason,
a Knight Templar and a member of the Mystic
Shrine. In 1893 Mr. Purves was married to Miss
Mary Wilson, daughter of the Rev. E. Stuart
Wilson, D. D. They have three living children—
Stuart St. Claire, Marjorie Elizabeth and Audrey
Katherine Ballantyne—one, Dorothy Marion,
having died in infancy.
. RI5V. STUAKT B. PUItVES.
der the instruction of private tutors and a taste
for study was developed which afterwards re
sulted in his preparation for the ministry. He
came to the United States and became a resident
of the state which has for nearly twenty years
been the field of his endeavor. Mr. Purves con
tinued his education here and following his in
tention to take up the work of a clergyman, he
entered the Seabury Divinity School at Faribault,
which had been founded by the pioneer Episcopal
missionary and bishop, the Rt. Rev. Henry B.
Whipple. Mr. Purves completed his theological
studies at Seabury and graduated in 1889 with the
degree of B. D. During the same year he was
ordained to the ministry by Bishop Gilbert of
Minnesota and immediately began his clerical
services as the missionary at Redwood Falls,
Minnesota. He continued the work there for
some time, and then received a call to the St.
Peter's Church of St. Paul, and was the rector
of that parish until 1894. At that time he was
called to the rectorship of the Holy Trinity
Episcopal Church of Minneapolis and has since
been its pastor. During the years of his service
in the Twin Cities Mr. Purves has been not only
successful in the work of his own parishes but
has been the head of several movements of in
terest to the clergy and public to which he has
lent an energy and enthusiasm which show him
to possess the necessary qualities to fill the re
quirements of the position he holds. Mr. Purves
ROBERTS, Rev. Stanley Burroughs, for a
quarter of a century a Presbyterian minister of
New York and Minnesota, is descended from old
New England families. Both his paternal and
maternal grandparents came from the New Eng
land states and settled in western New York
among the earliest pioneers of that region and
there were born the parents of Stanley Burroughs.
These were William M. Roberts and Betsey B.
Roberts. His father was a farmer at Phelps, On
tario county, New York, and Stanley B. was born
on the farm on August 12, 1855. He grew up
at the place of his birth and began his education
in the neighboring district school and then en
tered the Phelps Union & Classical School there
completing his preparatory training. It was his
intention to study for the ministry and he began
his college work at Center College, now Central
University, at Danville, Kentucky. He took up
theological studies and after completing the work
at the Danville institution, where he received the
degree of Bachelor of Arts, he entered upon an
other course of study at the Presbyterian Theo
logical Seminary at Auburn, New York. He
graduated from that school in 1882. Shortly fol
lowing his graduation he was ordained to the
gospel ministry in the Presbyterian Church by
the Presbytery of Utica, New York, and since
that time has been engaged in fulfilling the duties
of a constant and pleasant service in his profes
sional life. Before his graduation from the Au
burn Seminary he received an appointment as
pastor of a parish at Vernon Center, New York,
and remained there after his ordination until 1887.
In the latter year he resigned and accepted a
call to Dundee, New York. For four years he
carried on the work at Dundee and then moved
his home and church associations to Utica, New
York, and there held a pastorate from 1891 until
1899. After having preached for eighteen years
in New York he received a call from Minneap
olis to fill the position of pastor of the Bethlehem
Presbyterian Church of this city, which was ac
cepted and Minneapolis has since been his home
and the scene of his religious endeavors. In 1904
he received the honorary degree of Doctor of
Divinity at McAllister College. Mr. Roberts has
been continuously connected with the Bethlehem
Church and has not only built up a strong and
influential parish but has taken great interest and
done much active work in the general church
work of the city. Since beginning his profession
al life Mr. Roberts has been constantly in charge
of some parish and aside from his vacations has
88
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
occupied his pulpit, with but one exception, every
Sabbath for more than twenty-five years. He is
also a promoter and supporter of all movements
for improvement and progress; has often spoken
from the lecture platform in the cause of good
citizenship and temperance; and is active in the
Department of Missions in the Northwestern
Bible and Training School. Mr. Roberts was
married on December 27, 1882, to Miss Mary
Louise Hall of Waterville, New York. Four
sons and one daughter have been born, Stanley
Hall, Gladys Isabel, Harold Percy, Edward Carleton and Theodore McQueen.
SATTERLEE, Rev. William W., one of the
most prominent clergymen in the Methodist Epis
copal Church of Minneapolis, was born at La
Porte, Indiana, on April 11, 1837, and died on
May 27, 1893, at Athens, Tennessee. His father
was Ossian Satterlee and his mother Susan Curtis
Satterlee. The family is descended from the
Satterlees of Suffolk, England, and direct descent
is traced from Rev. William Satterlee of St. Ides,
Devonshire, England. The Satterlees who came
to America were among the settlers of the dis
trict of Wyoming, New York, historically famous
in Revolutionary tim<;s. Mr. Satterlee's ances
tors were participant;! in the Revolutionary and
Indian wars. Although born in Indiana, Mr. Sat
terlee's boyhood was largely spent in Wisconsin
where lie attended the pioneer country schools
and, as was customary, devoted most of his time
to farm work. While still a very young man he
was converted at meetings of the Wesleyan
Methodists and acted as an exhorter among the
churches of that denomination. He had, how
ever, determined to study medicine and the ear
lier part of his life was spent in practice which
was later combined with work as a preacher. He
moved to Minnesota and practiced medicine and
occupied frontier pulpits for three or four years
while living in Le Sueur county and at the end of
this period in 1867 joined the Methodist Episco
pal conference and became regular pastor of a
church in Waseca. He served this church for
two years, one in St. Cloud and the First Metho
dist Church at St. Anthony for two years each,
and at various times supplied, as pastor, the
churches at Delano, Sauk Rapids, Anoka, Rich
field and Seventh Street, Minneapolis. In 1873
Mr. Satterlee became deeply interested in the
temperance movement and from that time until
his death devoted much of his time to temper
ance work. He was secretary of the state prohi
bition organization for years and was an active
leader in the party, standing at various times
as party candidate for mayor of Minneapolis, for
congress and for governor. In 1886 he was elect
ed to the chair of Political Economy and Scien
tific Temperance in the Grant University in
Athens, Tennessee, a position which he occupied
during the remainder of his life. In his earlier
life Mr. Satterlee was an ardent abolitionist and
member of the Whig party and later a republican.
An injury to his left arm prevented military serv
ice during the war although he twice offered his
services. Later he was drafted but in all three
instances was rejected. He was married on De
cember 25, 1856, at Woodstock, Wisconsin, to
Miss Sarah Stout, who survives him. Their living
children are, a daughter, Mrs. L. H. Everts, and
three sons, M. P., W. E. and F. E. Satterlee, all
living in Minneapolis. Two other children, Mrs.
James Pye and Harry R. Satterlee, died some
years ago.
SHUTTER, Rev. Marion D., D. D., the pas
tor of the Church of the Redeemer, was born at
New Philadelphia, Ohio. His father, the- Rev.
Peter K. Shutter, a minister of the Baptist church,
has held various charges in Ohio and Michigan.
His pastorates were always successful, for he
was a man of great natural ability and a very ef
fective speaker. His father was of English ex
traction, while his mother was of French descent,
a combination well adapted to produce a success
ful orator. His wife, Dr. Shutter's mother, was
of early Dutch descent. Her name was Alethia
M. Haag. Her father was a fine scholar and had
charge of his grandson's early education. He was
twelve years of age before he was allowed to go
rl
•A
.4
A
.4
:%
REV. WILLIAM W. SATTERLEE.
CHURCHES AND PHILANTHROPIES
to the public schools. In the meantime he had
learned, in the village printing office, to set type,
and with this craft he had in a practical way a
knowledge of spelling, punctuation, grammar and
the use of capital letters. When sixteen years of
age he entered the preparatory department of
the Denison University at Granville, Ohio, and
attended the institution until the close of the
sophomore year. As he was thrown largely 011
his own resources he was frequently obliged to
teach school to earn money to go on with his
studies. Mr. Shutter's junior and senior years of
4he college course were taken at the University
of Wooster, Ohio, where he graduated in 1876.
Without funds to go further, the young divine
began to preach at a cross-roads in Western
Reserve, Ohio, at the rate of $200 a year. Soon
he added another preaching station, twelve miles
distant, and each Sunday used to drive twentyfour miles, preach three times, attend a Sunday
School, teach a class and eat his lunch as he
drove across the country. Although it was hard
work he enjoyed it. At the end of two years he
left two flourishing churches, each supplied with
a pastor, and went to Oberlin to take his theo
logical course. He remained there nearly two
years and then completed his studies at the
Baptist Seminary at Morgan Park, Chicago. On
the day of his graduation in 1881 he was called
to supply the Olivet Baptist church of Minne
apolis which led to a successful five years' pas
torate during which the church erected and
paid for the finest church building on the east
side of the river up to that time. In the mean
time Dr. Shutter's theological views had been
changing. The church was in a flourishing con
dition and practically out of debt. But he felt
that he could no longer occupy a Baptist
pulpit. He notified his church of the fact, and
withdrew from the church and the denomination,
having nothing in view as to his future course.
Immediately after the publication of his letter of
resignation, the young pastor received a kind note
from Dr. James H. Tuttle, pastor of the Church
of the Redeemer, whom he knew only by reputa
tion, inviting him to call and confer. Dr. Shutter
did so and set forth fully and frankly the con
clusions at which he had arrived. Dr. Tuttle ex
pressed a belief that Mr. Shutter could work with
the Universalists, and asked him to preach in the
pulpit of the Church of the Redeemer. Hs spoke
several times, with the result that he became Dr.
Tuttle's assistant with the understanding that
either party might, at the end of six months, with
draw from the arrangement. The six months
have now lengthened to a score of years. For
five years Dr. Shutter was Dr. Tuttle's assistant.
On the completion of the old pastor's twenty-fifth
year of service, in 1891, he was made pastor
emeritus for life and Dr. Shutter was made pas
tor, a position which he still holds with great
acceptance to the people and with distinguished
89
REV. MARION D. SHUTTER, D. D.
success, not only as a pastor, but as a publicspirited citizen who is in the forefront of every
movement promising the betterment of the peo
ple individually, or as a body politic. The Min
neapolis Kindergarten Association was organ
ized in his study. Dr. Shutter drafted its con
stitution. In 1897 he founded the Unity House
Social Settlement and is at present chairman
of the board managing the work.
He was
one of a committee with Dr. C. M. Jordan
and ex-Mayor Gray to establish public play
grounds in the city. He is a director of the
Board of Associated Charities. He believes that
it is better to be with the constructive forces in
a city than to indulge in denunciation of evil from
the pulpit. In addition to his large and increasing
church work, he is the author of six books which
sell well and steadily. Their titles are: "Wit
and Humor of the Bible," "Justice and Mercy,"
"A Child of Nature," "Applied Evolution," "How
the Preachers Pray," and a "Life of Dr. Tuttle,"
his predecessor. His work on "Applied Evolu
tion" attempts to interpret modern thought in
terms of religion, and has won the praises of
such scientific authorities as John Fiske and
David Starr Jordan.
CHAPTER IX.
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
A
S WAS mentioned in the chapter on
Early Settlement, the first school
• of any kind in the territory now oc
cupied by Minneapolis was'the Sioux Indian
school established on the shores of Lake
'Harriet in 1836. Soon after the settlement
of St. Anthony Miss Electa Backus taught a
private school in a frame shanty on Second
street, and about 1850 the first public school
of the village was built near by and was
taught for a time by a Mr. Lee. In 1851 the
preparatory school of the University of
Minnesota was erected and was opened in
November by the Rev. E. W. Merrill. A
school census taken soon afterwards showed
that the village even then had one hundred
and eighty-five children of school .age.
On the west side the first public scbool
was opened on December 3, 1852, in a small
house erected by Anson Northrup near the
corner of Third avenue south and Second
street. The teacher was Miss Mary E. Mil
ler and about twenty pupils attended during
the winter. This *w'as a district school.
The first district had been organized to in
clude the whole of Hennepin county on No
vember 29. Edw. Murphy, Dr. A. E. Ames
and Col. Stevens were the first school trus
tees. The summer term of 1853 was taught
by Miss Mary A. Scofield.
by the courthouse and city hall) and here
was erected a school house which was said
to be "the best building of the kind north of
St. Louis." After some delays this school,
the original Union school, was opened in the
spring of 1858 with a full corps of instruc
tors of whom George B. Stone was superin
tendent and principal, and the following
were teachers: Miss S. S. Garfield, Mrs.
Julia A. Titus, Miss H. E. Harris and Miss
Adeline Jefferson. At this time there were
three hundred and twenty pupils. Prof.
Stone was regarded as an excellent teacher
and is given credit for establishing the early
school system on a high plane. In 1864 the
old Union School building was burned and
was replaced by the Washington School
which occupied the same site until torn
down to make way for the courthouse in
1889. The other buildings were added dur
ing the 6o's and early 70's, the average for
some time being about two buildings per
year. In 1871 the system made a decided
gain when O. V. Tousley was secured as
superintendent. He served for fifteen years
and did much to establish the school system
on a sound basis. Until 1878 the schools of
St. Anthony and Minneapolis remained en
tirely distinct as separate systems.
FOUNDATIONS OF A SYSTEM.
In 1878, six years after the consolidation
of the two cities, it was decided that the
welfare of the schools demanded a single
Central organization and by legislative act
the Board of Education of the City of Min
neapolis was created and given the entire
control of all the public schools of both
places. This was the true beginning of the
public school system of today for it made
possible the development of a modern sys
tem which had been impossible while the
The real foundation of the public school
system of the city was laid in a town meet
ing held on November 28, 1855, at which
nearly every resident of the village was
present, and when it was determined to
organize a properly graded school and erect
a school building. After securing legisla
tive authority a site was secured on Third
avenue south between Fourth and Fifth
streets (one-half of the block now occupied
THE MODERN SCHOOL SYSTEM.
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
THE OLD WASHINGTON SCHOOL.
This building was erected in 1865 on Third avenue south <
where the court house and city hall now stands.
91
educational matters and have long enjoyed
a reputation for a high standard of school
work. The buildings of 1878 have nearly
all disappeared and most of the sixty-five
structures of to-day represent advanced
ideas in school construction. During this
time the problems of finance and superin
tendence have been very difficult, and the
city has been fortunate in being served on
the board of education by some of the
strongest business and professional men
resident here. With the rapid increase in
population it has, at times, seemed almost
impossible to provide sufficient school
rooms, for while the people have warmly
supported the school system, the impossi
bility of raising enough money by taxation
and bond issue to keep pace with the build
ing necessities has been manifest. During
the thirty years the schools have had but
three superintendents. Prof. Tousley re
signed in 1886 and was succeeded by Prof.
John E. Bradley, who served until 1892,
when he resigned to accept a college presi
dency. He was succeeded by Prof. C. M.
Jordan, who had been for a number of years
principal .of the Adams school. Dr. Jordan
has been repeatedly re-elected to this post,
which has added responsibilities and re
quires greater skill and ability from year to
year.
The city now has five high schools. The
oldest is the Central, erected in the early
8o's, of which John N. Greer is principal.
The other high schools are the South,
North, East and West, of which J. O. Jorgens, Waldo W. Hobbs, Wm. F. Web
ster, and A. N. Ozias are respectively the
principals.
two comparatively small districts remained
independent. The first board of education
under the new law was composed of Dorilus
Morrison, Winthrop Young, S. C. Gale,
George Huhn, Sven'Oftedal, Chas. Simpson
and A. C. Austin. Mr. Morrison was elected
president and Sven Oftedal, secretary. Prof.
Tousley continued as superintendent, and
was largely responsible for the reorganiza
tion of the system. The buildings in ex
istence at that time were the Washing
ton, Jackson, Lincoln, Jefferson, Madison,
Franklin, Adams, Sumner, Humboldt, Win
THE UNIVERSITY.
throp, Everett and Marcy. There was no
Before Minnesota had been organized as
high school building. The total enrollment
of pupils was 5,215 of which one hundred a territory the people had determined that
and ninety were in the high school division. one of the institutions of the coming state
There were ninety-eight teachers.
should be a university. It was even settled
From this has developed in thirty years the that Minneapolis (or St. Anthony) should
present Minneapolis school system with an be the home of the future school. This un
equipment of sixty-five buildings, a teaching derstanding was ratified in 1851 by the first
force of over one thousand, a total enroll territorial legislature which passed a bill
ment of about forty-five thousand pupils drawn by John W. North of St. Anthony,
with four thousand of these in the high creating the university, locating it at St.
schools. In these three decades the schools Anthony and naming Isaac Atwater, J. W.
have kept abreast of modern progress in Furber, Wm. R. Marshall, B. B. Meeker,
92
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
A
4-
:
, t ,*
I:--' S
I r<Jk. S
TYPICAL MINNEAPOLIS SCHOOL BUILDING OF TODAY.
Douglas school, corner of West Franklin and South Dupont avenues.
Socrates Nelson, Henry M. Rice, Alexander
Ramsey, Henry H. Sibley, C. K. Smith,
Franklin Steele, N. C. D. Taylor and Abram
Van Vorhees as the first board of regents.
The board organized by the choice of Mr.
Steele as president, Mr. North, treasurer
and Mr. Atwater, secretary. The board was
without funds but the act provided for the
creation of a permanent fund from the pro
ceeds of an expected land grant from con
gress. The grant proved to be only about
46,000 acres and there was little prospect
of immediate realization of cash from the
lands. In this emergency the people of St.
Anthony set about building the university
themselves. Franklin Steele gave a site and
$2,500 was subscribed with which a twostory frame building was erected in which
a school was opened on December 1, 1851.
This school was designated as a "prepara
tory school" for the university, the people
being confident, evidently, that by the time
any students were "prepared" the higher
institution would be ready to give them
instruction. The Rev. E. W. Merrill was
in charge of this school. After three years
it was discontinued and a similar experi
ment in 1858 proved equally unsuccessful.
Meanwhile, in 1854, the older portion of the
present campus was secured and in 1856
the first building was commenced, the re
gents discounting a future bright with ex
pectations of income with which to pay for
the structure. But the panic of '57 found
the building in course of erection, and
though it was finally finished, it stood for
eight years encumbered with debt while the
regents strove to solve the problem of sav
ing the institution for the state.
Gov. John S. Pillsbury's work for the Uni
versity began at this time. Called to the
regency in 1863 he proposed a special board
of regents clothed with extraordinary pow
ers to sell lands and liquidate indebtedness.
With John Nicols and O. C. Merriman, Gov.
Pillsbury was intrusted with this work.
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
THE FIRST UNIVERSITY BUILDING.
Tliis shows the original section of the "Old Main" building as
it was about 1869.
For four years Gov. Pillsbury strove against
countless discouragements. It is no dis
credit to the other members of the board to
say that he was the life of the body and
that his counsel, persistence, sagacity and
constant courage brought through what
would in other hands have proved a hope
less undertaking. In 1867 he reported the
university out of debt. Creditors had been
induced to accept lands, or cash as might
be, claims had been compromised in various
ways, patriotism had been appealed to, in
fact every resource of an unusually re
sourceful man had been used to bring about
settlements.
The university was at once reorganized
and consolidated with the new agricultural
college started under the Morrill grant, and
plans for beginning college work were
formulated. In 1867 the long vacant build
ing was repaired and furnished and a pre
paratory school was opened with W. W.
Washburn as principal. Prof. Washburn
opposed co-education but he was overruled
by the regents and the question has never
been raised again. In 1869 the regents felt
that they were ready for further organi
zation and Col. William W. Folwell was
called to the presidency. The college opened
that year with thirteen freshmen students,
two of whom completed the four years
course and made the first graduating class
in 1873.
93
The administration of President Folwell
continued fifteen years and constituted the
first natural period of the history of the
university as a working institution. The
university was most fortunate in securing
the services of such a man as Dr. Folwell
for the time of organization. Born on a
New York farm, a graduate of Hobart Col
lege, class of '57; his education supplement
ed by study and travel abroad and profes
sorships at Hobart and Kenyon; with four
years' service in the war, during which he
rose to the highest official grade in the en
gineer corps—with all these broadening in
fluences, he came to Minneapolis at the age
of thirty-six, young enough to be full of
energy and initiative, not old enough to
have lost any youthful enthusiasms and
sympathies. To him the university is in
debted for its organization. In 1869 the
American university as it is today was un
known. Dr. Folwell looked into the future
and determined to make the Minnesota in
stitution a university in fact. He also
planned to make the university a part of a
complete system of public instruction; how
well this idea has been carried out is now
a matter of general information.
It is impossible within the limits of this
sketch to trace in detail the work of the
THE "OLD MAIN" AT THE UNIVERSITY.
This view shows the newer part of the original building erected
in 1875. It was subsequently partly destroyed by fire
and later views do not show the cupola.
94
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
first fifteen years. Much was experimental;
in the nature of things there was difference
of opinion and more or less faculty dissen
sion. During most of President Folwell's
incumbency, the preparatory department
was the larger part of the institution; but at
its close this department was giving way
to the state system of high schools (carry
ing out Dr. Folwell's idea of a homogeneous
and interdependent state school system)
and the policy which opened the way for a
broad university development had obtained
general acceptance. In all Dr. Folwell's ad
ministration the university was housed,
practically, in one building. The front sec
tion of the "Old Main" building, as it was
known for years-, was built in 1875 an d soon
afterwards an agricultural building was put
up. President Folwell urged the adoption
of a liberal policy of building and extension
and in 1880 formulated a plan for new
buildings, based on an appropriation of
$30,000 a year for ten years. Although de
ferred on account of other demands upon
the state treasury, the plan was finally car
ried out substantially as recommended. In
1883 Dr. Folwell determined to satisfy his
individual taste for student and teaching
work, rather than executive details, and re
signed, immediately accepting the chair of
political science, which he filled until 1906,
when he resigned to devote himself to lit
erary work.
With 1.884 opened the administration of
President Cyrus Northrop which has con
tinued until the present time. Again the
regents had been most fortunate in the
choice of an executive. Dr. Northrop was
a Yale graduate of '57, and of the law de
partment in '59, and had been admitted to
the bar in i860. After brief experiences in
politics and journalism (editing the New
Haven Palladium in 1863) he accepted a
chair at Yale and was professor of English
Literature in 1884 when he was called to
Minnesota. A man of the highest ideals—•
educational, civic and religious—a speaker
of exceptional eloquence and ability, pos
sessed of a rare sense of humor, and a mas
ter of diplomacy in his relations with men,
he seemed to have most of the qualifica
tions for the difficult post. When he ac
cepted the work and straightway gave evi
dence of unusual executive ability the re
gents were more than satisfied with their
choice.
President Northrop found the university
with one building and three hundred and
ten students, about half of them doing pre
paratory work, only three departments, and
16 professors. Income was still small but
the appropriations called for in 1880 began
to come in. The organization of depart
ments and the erection of buildings was
the large work in hand.
Only the outlines of the colleges and de
partments can be traced here. In 1870 the
college of engineering, metallurgy and
mechanic arts was created and at first in
cluded the agricultural college. The latter
was separated in 1874 but remained a very
unimportant part of the university, even
after the purchase of the university farm in
1881, until 1888 when the school of agricul
ture was added to the department. Since
that time the success of the department has
been wonderful and the school and college
have become models in the field of agricul
tural education. A group of buildings valued
at about $700,000 has been developed and
the capacity of the equipment is constantly
taxed. Dean W. M. Liggett was at the head
of this department from 1896 to 1907, at the
same time being director of the experiment
station—a work entrusted to the university
by the state. After the agricultural college
was set off the college of engineering and
mechanics arts developed very slowly un
til it secured its first building in 1886. The
school of mining was subsequently added,
but afterwards made a separate department.
The ore testing works were built in 1895
and the school of mines building in 1903.
These departments had developed direct
ly out of the original organization. The
new departments came in as follows: Medi
cine in 1884, growing out of the Minnesota
Hospital College established in 1881 as a
private school; Law in 1888, organized by
Dean W. S. Pattee, who has continued for
a score of years its head; Pharmacy in 1892;
Dentistry in 1893; Chemistry in 1904. The
professional schools are described more at
length in the chapters on the several sub-
•
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: •
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';::i- 'v/-
96
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
jects of Courts and Lawyers, Medicine and
Dentistry.
At first
building appropriations were
grudgingly made by the state legislature;
in fact so scarce was money in the univer
sity treasury that Governor Pillsbury from
his own resources erected Pillsbury hall in
1889. The Law building was added in the
same year, the Chemical Laboratory in 1891,
the Main Medical building in 1893, the Li-
ment as regent for life. For nearly forty
years he gave time and thought, counsel
and action, probably fully one-third of his
time being devoted to the institution he
loved so well. He was honored just pre
vious to his death by the erection by the
alumni of a bronze statue upon the campus.
From the thirteen students of 1869 the
university has grown to an enrollment of
above four thousand; from a single building
-.ten#
.?> •
ENTRANCE TO UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA CAMPUS.
This gateway was erected as a memorial to Gov. John S. Pillsbury by his heirs.
brary in 1895, the Armory in 1896, the
Physics building in 1901, the Mining build
ing in 1903; and Folwell Hall in 1907.
Many other lesser buildings have been
erected. Of the gifts, next to Pillsbury Hall,
Alice Shevlin Hall (the women's building),
presented by Thomas H. Shevlin, is the
most conspicuous.
But the best gift ever received by the uni
versity was the free life-long service of
Gov. John S. Pillsbury. After his first great
work for the institution in the sixties, Gov.
Pillsbury continued until his death in 1901
a regent, much of the time president and in
1895 honored by the legislature by appoint-
and campus of uncertain value, the property
has increased to about $3,000,000 value and
the permanent invested fund amounts to
$1,400,000. The library contains 85,000 vol
umes ; the buildings are equipped with mod
ern apparatus. The standards of scholar
ship have advanced until the institution
ranks with the leading universities of the
country. On the other hand, the university
has become the head of the educational sys
tem of the state, the courses in grammar
and high schools being arranged so that
a student may pass from one to the other
and into and through the university with
out break or special preparation outside the
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
97
The present board of re
gents is composed of: Cy
rus Northrop, LL. D., exofficio; Hon. John Lind,
Minneapolis,
president;
Hon. John A. Johnson,
St. Peter; Hon. John W.
Olsen, Albert Lea; Hon.
Chas. A. Smith; Hon.
Thos. Wilson; Hon. B. F.
Nelson,
Minneapolis.
Hon. A. E. Rice, Will„: mar; Hon. Pierce Butler,
St. Paul; Hon. Henry B.
Hovland, Duluth; Hon.
S. M. Owen, Minneap
olis; Hon. W. J. Mayo.
LIBRARY BUILDING AT TIIE UNIVERSITY.
Rochester; C. D. Decker,
regular courses. In recent years the atti
Austin, secretary of the board.
tude of the state has been much broader
The executive officers of the university
and with a general understanding of the ad are: Cyrus Northrop, LL. D., president;
vantages of the university it has received Ernest B. Pierce, B. A., registrar; Jas. T.
a most liberal support.
Gerould, B. A., librarian; John F. Downey,
Realizing the almost unlimited possibili M. A., C. E., dean of the College of Science,
ties of growth before the university, the Literature, and the Arts; Frederick S.
regents, in 1907, determined to secure more Jones, M. A., dean of the College of Engin
land for the campus before the cost became eering and Mechanic Arts; Eugene W. Ran
prohibitive. A legislative appropriation was dall, dean and director of the Department of
obtained and some ten blocks of land were Agriculture; Wm. S. P'attee, LL. D., dean
purchased. Following this acquisition a of the College of Law; Frank F. Wesbrook,
competition was held which produced many
M. A., M. D., C. M., dean of the College of
excellent plans for the future development Medicine and Surgery; Eugene L. Mann,
of the enlarged campus. While no immedi B. A., M. D., dean of the College of Homeo
ate work is to be done all future improve pathic Medicine and Surgery; Alfred Owre,
ments will be made in harmony with some D. M. D., M. D., dean of the College of Den
plan for the general treatment of the whole tistry; Frederick J. Wulling, Phm. D., LL.
great campus tract.
M., dean of the College of Pharmacy; Wm.
v
GENERAL VIEW OF THE UNIVERSITY FARM BUILDINGS.
The work of the department of agriculture of the university as well as that of the experiment station is
carried on at this farm about two miles from the university campus.
98
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
R. Appleby, M. A., dean of the School of
Mines; Geo. B. Frankforter, Ph. D., dean
of the School of Chemistry; Geo. F. James,
Ph. D., dean of the School of Education;
Henry T. Eddy, C. E., Ph. D., LL. D., dean
of the Graduate School; Ada L. Comstock,
M. A., dean of Women.
PRIVATE SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES.
During the fifties a number of private
schools were opened, including St. Mary's
School for Young Ladies, under the care
of the Rev. Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlain, and
an academy conducted by Prof. D. S. B.
grown up, fostered and assisted by
the church people of this city.
Many of the prominent citizens of the
decades following the war were interested
in the founding and maintaining of Bennet
Seminary, at which many of the young ladies
of that period received their education.
Such men as Dorilus Morrison, C. E. Van
derburgh, Chas. A. Bovey, W. D. Wash
burn, C. H. Pettit, and W. H. Dunwoody
were identified with its work as trustees.
Another school which made a successful
record from 1879 to 1890 was Judson Female
Seminary, founded by Miss Abby A. Jud
FOLWELL HALL, UNIVERSITY OP MINNESOTA.
From the architect's sketch. The last building added to the group on the campus, named in honor of Dr.
W. W. Folwell, the first president and long a professor.
Johnson. About the same time Miss Lucy
D. Holman conducted a private school
and only a little later Prof. F. H. Folsom
maintained a select school in St. Anthony.
Most of these earlier schools had no per
manence, but they served to show the
willingness of the community to encour
age the best things in education. It was
not long before this tendency manifested
itself in certain denominational undertak
ings which have developed into institutions
for higher education either in the city or
vicinity. In this way Carleton College, at
Northfield, Hamline University and Macalester College, midway between Minneapo
lis and St. Paul, Augsburg Seminary, and
other denominational institutions have
son. E. D. Holmes became principal of the
Minneapolis Academy in 1884 and devel
oped it into a preparatory school which has
been maintained to the present time. After
the discontinuance of the older schools for
girls and young ladies which have been
mentioned, Stanley Hall, an English and
classical school, was opened in 1890 by Ol
ive Adele Evers and Elizabeth Wallace.
After a time Miss Wallace withdrew and
the school has since, been conducted by
Miss Evers. Graham Hall, a school for
girls, was established about ten years ago
and is now conducted by the Misses Bartlett and Ruble.
The city has been especially fortunate in
the character of its professional schools and
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
these are mentioned in the appropriate chap
ters. Among the denominational schools,
those of the Catholic church have taken a
prominent place. In addition to the ordin
ary parish schools conducted in connection
with the several churches a high school for
boys is maintained and excellent girls'
schools are well sustained.
AUGSBURG SEMINARY was organized at
Marshall, Wisconsin, but was moved to Minne
apolis in 1872. It was originally a theological
school only, but after coming to Minneapolis its
scope was broadened to include preparatory,
collegiate and theological departments. Very
soon after its removal to Minneapolis Sven Oftedal became a member of the faculty and was
made president of the board of trustees. The
success of the institution has been due largely
to his energetic efforts and intelligent leadership.
It has developed from a weak and struggling
school to one of strength and great influence
in the denomination and among the educational
institutions of the northwest. The late professor
George Sverdrup was president for many years
and was considered one of the best school men
among the Scandinavians in the United States.
The Seminary is located at Seventh street and
Twenty-first avenue south where it owns a block
of ground and where it has several buildings in
cluding a modern structure completed in 1902 at
the cost of $45,000.00. There are at present
about 175 student enrolled. The faculty is com
posed of the following members in order of their
appointment, S. Oftedal, Prof. Emeritus, J. H.
Blegen, W. M. Pettersen, J. L. Nydahl, H. A.
Urseth, H. N. Hendrickson, A. Helland, S. O.
Severson, George Sverdrup, Jr., and Wm. Mills.
ST. MARGARET'S ACADEMY.
Almost thirty years ago the Sisters of St.
Joseph, a Catholic order of women, founded in
Minneapolis the Holy Angels' Academy, a young
ladies' boarding and day school. ' It is situated at
Seventh avenue north and Fourth street, where
it has a fine tract of ground and two large build
ings, one of which is occupied by the recitation,
class and study rooms, the other, the convent
proper, being the home of the Sisters and the
dormitories of the boarding scholars. The work
and plans of the school advanced so rapidly that
they outgrew the capacity of these quarters and
in 1907 the academy under the name of St. Mar
garet's, and as a day school only, occupied build
ings more fitted to the growing needs of the
school, on North Thirteenth street between
Hawthorn and Linden avenues. The property
which has been acquired by the order, consists of
three buildings in which are maintained a high
school department, a music department, and a
commercial and grades department. The pur
pose of the academy is the higher education and
training of girls and their preparation for college
'99
work; and the curriculum includes every branch
of study necessary to the complete accomplish
ment of these ends. Each department is super
vised by efficient and experienced instructors and
covers most thoroughly the work which comes
within its provinces. The music department in
cludes both vocal and instrumental instruction
and the methods of study pursued in the famous
conservatories both of this country and Europe
are used in the daily work. The scope of the
are used in the daily work. The scope of the pupil
in the art department is almost unlimited, as the
course includes studies in water color, oil, crayon
and china decoration, carried on under the direc
tion of instructors whose talent and knowledge
assure the pupil the most careful training. In
the academic course of study are taken up all
the subjects usually handled by the intermediate
or preparatory school and the preparation for
college work is complete. The graduate of St.
Margaret's is not required to take the customary
examinations to obtain admission to the colleges
of the country but is admitted on the record of
her studies in the academy. Not only is this
done by the exclusive girls' colleges of both east
and west but by a number of the co-educational
institutions, including the University of Minne
sota. The endeavors of the school have been
most successful since it establishment and it has
drawn its pupils not only from the two cities but
the entire Northwest and for many years has
justly been regarded as one of the important
sources of education and culture of this locality,
many of the best families being desirous of plac
ing their daughters within its influences. The
Sisters, by their earnest efforts, have done much
to give the academy the standing it now holds
among the best schools of its class.
BENSON, Arthur Fleming, was born near
London, Canada, February 2, 1871. His parents,
William and Maria Benson, came of a family that
settled early in the province of Ontario. Mr.
Benson's father is a Methodist minister. The
early years of Mr. Benson's life were spent in
Canada and in the Canadian -public schools he
received his elementary education. When he
was. twelve years old the family moved to Michi
gan. After completing a grammar and high
school course Mr. Benson entered the Michigan
state normal college, from which he graduated
in 1896 as president of the largest class which the
college had ever sent out. In addition to holding
the chief executive office of his class, Mr. Benson
was during the four years of his college life a
most active member of the several literary soci
eties of the college. In this school, Mr. Benson
received his training for the various positions as
instructor which he has successively filled, and
was especially fortunate in being, for a time, a
pupil of Dr. Putnam, one of Michigan's most
noted educators. After completing his normal
studies, Mr. Benson entered upon the duties of
principal in the schools at Pontiac, Michigan, and
100
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
later acted in like capacity at Owosso and Grand
Rapids in the same state. In 1903 he came to
Minneapolis to accept the principalship of the
Seward school, one of the largest in the city, and
holds that position at the present time. During
the summer months, however, Mr. Benson re
turns to Michigan to instruct in the summer in
stitutes of that state. Mr. Benson has always
been prominently identified with measures of pro
fessional advancement in the towns where he has
resided. In connection with the Seward school
he has organized the "Young Citizens' League"
—a club of pupils for instruction in civic govern
ment and improvement. Mr. Benson is a mem
ber of the Minneapolis Teachers' Club, the
Schoolmasters' Club and the Minneapolis Prin
cipals' Club, and holds in each organization the
chairmanship of a prominent and active commit
tee. He also holds membership in the Hennepin
County Juvenile Protection League. Mr. Ben
son belongs to the Fowler Methodist Church, of
which he is an officer and the superintendent of
the Sunday School.
BOSS, Andrew, was born June 3, 1867, in
Gilford township, Wabasha county, Minnesota,
son of Andrew and Janet Boss, who came from
Scotland. He was brought up on his father's
farm, attending the common schools and doing
farm work until he was twenty-two. He then
entered the Agricultural high school of the
University of Minnesota, from which he gradu
ated and in which he was a teacher for twelve
years. He has been for several years active in
the' management of the university farm and in
experimental work. Mr. Boss is professor of
Agriculture and Animal Husbandry, in the Uni
versity of Minnesota and is well known as an
earnest promoter of liberal education in the sci
ence and practice of modern agriculture and in
the organization of farmers' clubs and institutes.
He is a member of the State Agricultural Soci
ety; of the State Horticultural Society; Farmers
Club; Secretary of the Live Stock Breeders' As
sociation and member of the American Breeders'
Association. 'Mr. Boss is a Congregationalist in
his church affiliations. He was married in 1891 to
Evalena La Mont, of Wabasha county,- Minnesota,
They have five
children—Hazel V., Elna V.,
Mabel E., Kenneth A., and Wallace L. M.
EDDY, Henry Turner, dean of the graduate
school, University of Minnesota, was born at
Stoughton, Massachusetts, June 9, 1844, the son
of Rev. Henry and Sarah Hayward (Torrey)
Eddy. He graduated from Yale University with
the degree of A. B. in 1867 and from Sheffield
Scientific School with the degree of Ph. B. in
1868 and later received the degrees of A. M.,
Yale, 1870; C. E., 1870; Ph. D,, 1872, Cornell;
LL. D., Center College, 1892. Professor Eddy
studied at Berlin in 1879 and at Paris in 1880.
His educational work has extended over forty
years. After graduating from Yale he was in
structor in field
work at Sheffield Scientific
School, 1867-68; was instructor in Latin and
mathematics at the University of Tennessee,
1868-69; was assistant professor in mathematics
and civil engineering at Cornell University, 186973; was adjunct professor of mathematics at
Princeton, 1873-74; was professor of mathemat
ics, astronomy and civil enginering at the
University of Cincinnati, 1874-90; was dean of
the academic faculty, 1874-77 and 1884-89; and
was acting president and president elect of the
same university in 1890; and was president of
Rose Polytechnic Institute, Terre Haute, Indi
ana, 1891-94. In 1894 Dr. Eddy came to Min
nesota as professor of engineering and mechan
ics at the university and was made head profes
sor of mathematics and mechanics in the college
of engineering, 1907. Since 1905 he has been
dean of the graduate school. Dr. Eddy is a
member of many learned societies, including the
American Philosophical Society, American Asso
ciation for the Advancement of Science (vice
president of mathematics and physics, 1884),
American Mathematical Society, American Phys
ical Society, Society for Promotion of Engineer
ing Education (president, 1896), Phi Beta Kappa
and Sigma Xi college fraternities. He is the
author of Analytical Geometry; Researches in
Graphical Statics; Thermodynamics; Maximum
Stresses and Concentrated Loads, and many
other scientific and technical papers in the trans
actions of the various enginering societies.
Professor Eddy was married at New Haven,
Connecticut, on January 4, 1870, to Miss Sebella
E. Taylor. They have five children.
GEROULD, James Thayer, librarian of the
University of Minnesota, was born on October
3, 1872, at Gofifstown, New Hampshire. He is
the son of Samuel L. Gerould, D. D., who had
a pastorate in Gofifstown, and of Laura E.
(Thayer) Gerould. The family is of Huguenot
origin, the first ancestors of James Thayer in
this country having left France to come to
America in 1685. Mr. Gerould received his train
ing for college at Cushing Academy at Ashburnbam, Massachusetts. He attended Dartmouth
College, taking the classical course and graduat
ing in 1895 with the degree of A. B.; and followed
this with a year's post-graduate study in the
same institution. He then went to New York
city, to take charge of the Library of the Gen
eral Theological Seminary. This position he re
tained but a year, however, resigning in 1897
when a position as assistant in the library of
Columbia University was tendered to him. This
he accepted, taking charge of one department.
He remained at- Columbia for three years as the
head of this department and then in 1900 was
appointed chief librarian of the University of
Missouri, at Columbia, Missouri, a position
which he filled
for six years.
He came
to Minneapolis in 1906 to become the li
brarian of the University of Minnesota. Mr.
102
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Gerould is a member of the American LibraryAssociation; the American Historical Associa
tion. the Bibliographical Society of America.
Among the local organizations with which he is
associated are the Bryn Mawr Golf Club and the
Six O'Clock Club; On September 18, 1900, he
was married to Miss Mary Aims Chamberlain,
daughter of Roswell H. Chamberlain of Chester,
New York.
GREEN, Samuel B., since 1888 the professor
of horticulture and forestry at the University of
Minnesota, is a native of Massachusetts, having
been born at Chelsea in that state. On the ma
ternal side of the family he is of Dutch descent,
his mother's ancestors coming from Holland to
settle in this country, and his father's lineage
was traceable through a long line of English
forebears. He is the son of Thomas Green and
Anna E. Green; his father for fifty years was a
merchant in Boston. Samuel B. spent his boy
hood in Chelsea and acquired a good elementary
training in the local schools, and having finished
his preparatory courses determined to continue
his education in the Massachusetts Agricultural
College. With the class of 1879 he entered that
institution, and there received his first training
in the lines of horticulture and forestry in con
nection with which he has since become so wellknown. Completing his studies he graduated
JOHN N. GREER.
from his college in 1879 and was awarded a de
gree of B. S. He worked nine years in horti
cultural lines before coming to Minnesota, in 1888,
where he was appointed professor of Horticulture
and soon afterwards professor of Horticulture and
Forestry in the University of Minnesota. Since
that time he has carried on the work of his de
partment with characteristic energy and ability
and beyond his duties as instructor has found
time for much general work in connection with
the forestry movements and progress of the
country, being as well, a frequent contributor to
the journalistic field. Among his more important
commissions was an appointment to take the sole
charge and management iof the department de
voted to the horticultural and forestry exhibit of
all the state experiment stations and agricultural
colleges of the country at the Louisiana Purchase
Exposition at St. Louis in 1904. At that time
the specimens and exhibits under Professor
Green's care attracted much notice and were
awarded one grand prize and in addition a gold
medal. Professor Green has been for many years
one of the most active supporters of the Min
nesota State Horticultural Society. In 1890 he
was the secretary of that organization and in
1907 was elected the president. He has been also
the chief executive officer of the St. Anthony
Park North Improvement League for many
years and is the vice-president of the Citizens'
League of St. Paul, an organization which has
accomplished much in that city for municipal bet
terment and advancement. Professor Green has
written extensively on forestry and kindred top
ics; Amateur Fruit Growing, Vegetable Grow
ing, Forestry in Minnesota, Principles of Ameri
can Forestry, Farm Windbreaks and Shelter
Belts, Outlines of Greenhouse Laboratory Work
and the various bulletins of the Minnesota Ex
periment Station being among the best known
of the books and sketches of which he is author.
Professor Green is a member of the Congrega
tional Church of St. Anthony Park. In 1887 he
was married to Miss Alice C. Hazelton of Wellesly, Massachusetts, and they have one adopted
child.
GREER, John N., son of Nathan and Rebecca
Logan McGrew Greer, was born on his father's
farm in Scott county, Iowa, April 17, 1859. At
the age of twelve years, by the death of his
father, he was obliged to take charge of the farm
—a responsibility which he met with eminent
success, continuing his studies in preparation for
the higher education which was the object of his
ambition in the period of his district school ex
perience. Later, he attended the public schools
of Davenport, Iowa, and graduated at the high
school, valedictorian of his class, after which he
taught school in Scott county until 1879, when
he entered Iowa College. He received, when he
graduated in 1882, the degrees of A. B. and B. S.
for extraordinarily good work in his classic and
scientific course during the three years he was
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
at the college. In 1885 he received from the col
lege the degree of M. A., and when he entered
the law office of Cook & Dodge in Davenport,
he had made a record of devotion to study and
kindly good fellowship and manly recognition
of the value of athletics as an offset to close ap
plication to study, which students can profitably
follow elsewhere. After studying law with Cook
& Dodge for a year, preparing himself for the
practice of law, he took a position with a tele
phone company at Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and a
year later he began the work to which he seems
to have been instinctively called, that of an in
structor and director of students. After serving
as principal of a public school in Davenport, Pro
fessor Greer was called to the North Side High
School of Minneapolis as principal in 1888, and,
in 1892, he accepted the corresponding position
in the Central High School of Minneapolis, suc
ceeding Prof. Crombie, a notably fine educator,
and soon getting in real sympathy with teachers
and students and showing his natural adaptation
to discharge the difficult obligations of the im
portant position. If the legal profession lost a
brilliant advocate when Prof. Greer entered the
ranks of educators of youth, the educational in
terests of the public have certainly been well and
wholesomely served by such a man as he. Prof.
Greer was married in 1884 to Sarah Elizabeth
Russell, daughter of Hon. Edward Russell, of
Davenport, Iowa. They have three children—
Edward Russell, Margaret R., and Abby E.
GULLETTE, Albert Martin, principal of the
Prescott school, Minneapolis, is a native of In
diana, but he is of French Huguenot ancestry.
The family originally came to this country from
Germany, where they had fled from persecution
in France. They settled first in the Shenandoah
Valley and later in the southeastern part of In
diana. Albert's father was a Methodist minister
—John Columbia Gullette; his mother a de
scendant of a prominent English family. The
first ten years of his life were spent in his native
town of Brownston, Indiana (where he was born
on June 2, 1873) amid such surrounding as Ed
ward Eggleston has described in his writings,
and he was of the stock and training which have
produced a "Hoosier Schoolmaster." His edu
cation, however, was obtained in Minnesota. He
attended the high schools at Moorhead and
Crookston, the Moorhead state normal school,
Hamline University, the Northwestern Universi
ty, and graduated at the University of Minnesota.
Since 1889, when he first came to Minneapolis, he
has been more or less identified with the life of
the city. His educational training brought him
into contact with specialists in the science of edu
cation, and gave him perhaps a broader view and
a better grasp of its problems than could have
been secured in any other way. In the course of
his school and college work he acquired business
experience as for much of the time he made his
103
ALBERT GULLETTE.
own way, earning his living "arid paying his own
college expenses. During this period he was for
a time a member of the teachers' agency firm of
E. O. Fisk & Co. Since graduation he has fol
lowed his profession and for the past two years
has been principal of the Prescott school. Mr.
Gullette is married and has two children. His
wife was Miss Kate E. McKnight Of St. Paul.
Though not in any sense a politician, Mr. Gul
lette has taken a good citizen's interest in poli
tics and has served for two years as, a council
man in the village of Robbinsdale as well as tak
ing part in party caucuses and conventions. He
was the first president of the Robbinsdale. Com
mercial Club and a member of the North Side
Commercial Club of Minneapolis. He belongs
to the Masonic order.
" '
HALL, Christopher. Webber, son' of Lewis
and Louisa Wilder Hall, was born February 28,
1845* 3t Wardsboro, Windham county, Vermont.
Like a good many other American boys, who are
born on farms with limited- family resources to
full back upon, and who have ambitions reaching
beyond the farm's, horizon, young Hall absorbed
all that the district school of his neighborhood
could bestow upon him and continuing to reach
further in the region of knowledge in the neigh
boring academies at Townsend and Chester, he
succeeded in matriculating at Middlebury College,
104
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
eiiuisToniKK w. HALL.
Hall meantime served as Assistant Geologist on
the Geological Survey of Minnesota, and as
Assistant United States Geologist since 1884. He
served for thirteen years as the valuable secretary
of the Minnesota Academy of Natural Sciences,
and more recently for several years as its presi
dent.
For many years he has edited the
Academy's Bulletins, and in every way has large
ly had direction of its work.
Professor Hall has written much on scientific
and educational subjects, more than 100 articles
standing over his name in the scientific literature
of the country. He has especially distinguished
himself in his revelations of the geological fea
tures of the state. His latest work in this direc
tion has been exerted in the preparation of an
extended work in a series of volumes on the
geography and geology of Minnesota, the first
volume of which, The Geography of Minnesota,
has already appeared and received a most flatter
ing reception. He has also for several years been
engaged on the U. S. Geological Survey in the
preparation of reports on the underground water
resources of the state, one of which is now in
press. He married again in 1883. His wife, who
was Mrs. Sophia Haight, daughter of Eli Seely, of
Oshkosh, Wisconsin, died in 1891, leaving an infant
daughter. The professor is a member of the lead
ing scientific societies of this country. He is an
independent republican, and has never sought nor
held political office. He is a member of the Con
gregational church.
Vermont, where lie graduated in 1871. His sci
entific tendencies had developed so conspicuously
that he won the botanical prize and two Waldo
scholarships, and was assigned the scientific ora
tion at the commencement and was honored by
election to membership in the Phi Beta Kappa
Society. After graduation, Mr. Hall was called to
the principalship of the Glenn's Falls (New York)
Academy and, after a year there, he went West
and became principal of the Mankato, Minnesota,
high school and, in 1873-75, filled the responsible
position of superintendent of the Owatonna
city schools. In 1875 his ardent interest in scien
tific studies led him to devote himself more en
tirely to them and he went to Leipsic, Germany,
with his bride, who was Miss Ellen Dunnell,
daughter of Hon. Mark H. Dunnell of Owatonna.
His wife died in a few months, but Mr. Hall
continued his studies until the close of 1877, when
he returned to the United States. His first work
after returning was the delivery of a course of
lectures on zoology at Middlebury College. Re
ceiving an invitation to become a member of the
faculty of the University of Minnesota, he ac
cepted it and, in the spring of 1878, he took the
chair of geology, mineralogy and biology. Reor
ganization of the departments on account of the
great development of the work, promoted him to
the Deanship of the College of Engineering,
Metallurgy and the Mechanic Arts in 1892. Dean
JONES, Frederick Scheetz, dean of the col
lege of engineering of the University of Minne
sota, was born at Palmyra, Missouri, April 7,
1862. His parents were Dr. George C. Jones
(who served as a surgeon in the Union army)
and Caroline Ash Scheetz. The family is of
French descent, Prof. Jones' great grandfather
coming to America with Lafayette, as his staff
surgeon. Prof. Jones early boyhood was spent
in Chicago and Missouri but he prepared for col
lege at Shattuck School, Faribault, Minn., and
graduated from that institution as valedictorian
of his class. At Yale he took the classical course
graduating A. B. in 1884 with honors. From
Yale he came directly to the University of Min
nesota with President Northrop and has been in
the University ever since, except when abroad.
He held the chair of Physics for twenty years.
During this long service he has had leave of
absence which has given him opportunity for
study at the University of Berlin and for courses
in electrical engineering at the Royal Polytechnic,
Berlin and the Swiss Polytechnic, Zurich. In
1890 he received his A. M. degree at Yale. His
work at the University of Minnesota has been
marked with unusual success. As a teacher he
has been exceptionally efficient and as an organ
izer and executive he has displayed much ability.
The new physical laboratory was built under his
direction and he was instrumental in securing the
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
gift of Northrop Field to the University. He is
very fond of sports and has been active for
years in the management of student athletics.
Dean Jones is a member of the American Physi
cal Society, the Society for the Promotion of
Engineering Education, a fellow of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science and
a member of many scientific and literary socie
ties. In 1906 he was elected president of the
University of South Dakota but did not accept
the position. In 1908 he was elected dean of
Yale University and will go to that institution
in 1909. Professor Jones is a member of the
Episcopal Church. He was married in 1890 to
Mary Weston Gill of Kirkwood, Missouri. They
have two children—George Gill Jones and Ellen
Bodley Jones.
JORDAN, Charles Morison, superintendent of
the public schools of Minneapolis, was born at
Bangor, Maine, November 12, 1851. His father,
Nelson Jordan, was a teacher in Western Maine
for several years and afterward was a merchant
at Bangor and was engaged later in farming,
lumbering and manufacturing in that state until
1874. He then went to Massachusetts and came
in 1877 to Minnesota where he operated a large
farm in the southern part of the state and spent
his last days in Minneapolis, where he died in
1895. The family forebears in America came
from England in 1639 settling on Richmond's Is
land, Maine. On the maternal side the ancestors
were Scottish, the American descent being from
Wiliam Morison who came from Scotland in 1740,
settling in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Dr. Jor
dan's mother was a sister of Dorilus and H. G. O.
Morison, early settlers in Minneapolis. Dr. Jor
dan received his early educational training in the
public schools of Maine and prepared for college
at Westbrook Seminary later entering Tufts Col
lege from which he graduated in 1877, valedic
torian of his class. Upon graduation he secured
the principalship of the Bangor high school at
a competitive examination, and two years latei
he was made superintendent of the lower grade
schools of Bangor. In 1883 he resigned his posi
tions at Bangor and accepted the principalship
of the Winthrop school of Minneapolis. The
same year he started the East high school, con
ducting it in the Winthrop school building. In
1884, having been transferred to the Adams
school, he initiated the work of the South high
school, conducting it in the Adams building.
Dr. Jordan's working capacity was further tested
by the devolution upon him of the supervision
of the evening schools of the city. In 1892 he was
elected to the responsible office of superintendent
of the public schools of Minneapolis for three
years and to this position he has since been five
times reelected for the triennial period. In 1892 Dr.
Jordan received from Tufts College the Ph. D.
degree. He is a member of the Zeta Psi college
fraternity and has received the honor of mem
105
bership in the Phi Beta Kappa. He has been
president of the National Council of Education
and president of the National Association of
Superintendents; is a member of the Sons of the
Revolution and is a Mason of the Thirty-second
Degree. He has also been president of the Citi
zens Staff of John A. Rawlins Post, G. A. R.
Dr. Jordan was married on May 7, 1895, to Miss
Maud Grimshaw, daughter of Robert E. Grimshaw, of Minneapolis. To them two children
have been born; Helen Dorcas (February 9, 1896)
and Mildred Salome (August 17, 1899).
LIGGETT, William M., prominently identi
fied with the educational affairs of the state, was
born in Union county, Ohio, in 1846. He at
tended the common schools but at the age of
seventeen enlisted in the 96th Ohio Volunteers
and served during the remainder of the war.. Re
turning to Ohio he became connected with the
Bank of Mairysville and was twice elected county
treasurer of Union county. He took an active
part in the National Guard service and was
colonel of the 14th Ohio National Guard and in
command of the battalion that cleared the streets
of Cincinnati during the great riot of 1884, when
he was severely wounded. In the same year he
came to Minnesota and in the past twenty-five
years has given most of his time to the service
of the state, including eighteen years as regent of
the state university, twenty years a director of
WILLIAM M. LIGGETT.
106
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
the state agricultural society, two terms as chair
man of the state railroad commission and eleven
years as dean of the state agricultural school and
director of the experiment station. During Dean
Liggett's incumbency the agricultural department
of the university developed into the foremost
work of its kind in this country. Col. Liggett
was married on July 3, 1876, to Miss Mathilda
R. Brown. They have four children.
NACHTRIEB, Henry Francis, son of Chris
tian and Friedericka Diether Nachtrieb, was born
near Galion, Ohio, May 11, 1857. His parents
came from Wurtemberg, Germany, in 1848, sev
eral of Christian's brothers having preceded him.
One of the brothers fought in the war for the
Union and gave his life for his adopted country.
Christian engaged in the tanner's business a few
years and entered the ministry of the Methodist
Episcopal Church after surviving shipwreck on
Lake Erie, and, after some years of successful
work, he engaged in the flour milling business
in Galion, Ohio, relinquishing it, after some years
of success, on account of a disastrous explosion,
and returned to the ministry. Coming to Min
nesota in 1878 he became a member of the Min
nesota Conference and now lives in Minneap
olis in honorable retirement. Prof. Nachtrieb's
mother was the daughter of an honored citizen
of Heilbron am Neckar, near Heidelberg, Ger
many, and has, during her long life as a min
ister's wife, shown the most admirable qualities
which have made her to be loved and honored
wherever she has lived. Prof. Nachtrieb's boy
hood was spent in Galion and other places in
Ohio and in Allegheny City and Pittsburgh. He
was trained in a private German elementary
school and in the public schools, conscientious
in his school work, while passionately fond of
nature and all outdoor enjoyments and showed
himself manly and courageous, withal not being
free from an element of prankishness, as a little
offset to his severe Teutonic training. He re
ceived the higher education at German Wallace
College and Baldwin University and took his
degree of B. S. at the University of Minnesota,
class of 1882; became assistant in the Biological
Laboratory of John Hopkins University in 188384 and Fellow in 1884-85, when he was called to
the University of Minnesota as instructor under
Professor C. W. Hall. In 1886 he was made
professor of Animal Biology, a new department,
subsequently having charge of the zoological
work of the Geological and Natural History Sur
vey of Minnesota, and was appointed curator
of the zoological museum. Since his connection
with the university, Prof. Nachtrieb has been
a strong factor in the promotion of the organ
ization and work of the institution. He was
prime mover and organizer of the General Alum
ni Association of the university, and advisor on
the organization of various Scientific institu
tions and societies and is a member of the
American Society of Naturalists; of the Central
Branch of the American Society of Zoologists;
of the American Breeders' Association; Ameri
can Association of Anatomists; American As
sociations of Museums; the Washington Academy
of Sciences; fellow of the American Association
for the Advancement of Science, and a member
of the IJsi Upsilon fraternity and the honor
societies of Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi.
Prof. Nachtrieb is president of the General
Alumni Association of the state university and
a member of the St. Anthony Commercial Club.
He is a member of the Hennepin Avenue Metho
dist Episcopal Church. He was married June 21,
1887, to Anna Eisele, of Buffalo, New York. To
them three children have been born, of whom
one survives, a daughter, Margaret.
OFTEDAL, Sven, president of the board of
trustees and professor of theology of the Augs
burg Seminary in Minneapolis, is a native of Nor
way, born at Stavanger, on March 22, 1844. He
studied at the best schools of the country and re
ceived the most complete education which his
broad-minded Christian parents could procure for
him. He attended the College at Stavanger,
where he received his academic training, and
after this preparatory course entered the Univer
sity of Norway at Christiania in 1862. He re
mained in that institution a year, taking up philo
sophical studies, and passing, at the completion
of his course, what is known as the "examen
philosophicum." For several years he made a
special study of languages, ancient and modern,
both at home and abroad, but suddenly changed
his plans and began the study of theology. In
1871 he took and passed his theological examina
tions. Professor Oftedal was not in sympathy
with the organization and practice of the estab
lished church of Norway, so did not care to take
a place among its clergy, but when a call came
to occupy a newly created chair of theology in
the Augsburg Seminary he realized that it offered
a splendid field for his endeavors and accepted
the position.
Augsburg Seminary had been
founded in! 1869 at Marshall, Wisconsin, for the
training of ministers for free Lutheran churches,
and had moved in 1872 to Minneapolis. Professor
Oftedal came to this city in 1873, and now for
thirty-one years has held the position of theologi
cal professor at that institution. He was elected
president of the board of trustees soon after his
connection with the school began and has been the
most active and sincere supporter and promoter
of the seminary at all times, , and by his earnest
work and straightforward character. has gained
the esteem of his faculty, students and friends.
For ten years he was a member of the school
board of Minneapolis, being for four years its
president and on account of his active work in
establishing high schools throughout the city, has
been called "the father" of the present high
school system of Minneapolis. He was also for
ten years a member of the library board, during
that time being chairman of the library commit-
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
107
tee, and the hardest worker for the organization
and establishment of the system of branch
libraries.
OZIAS, Albert Newton, principal of the West
high school, was born in Preble county, Ohio,
July 2, 1849, the son of George and Elizabeth
Ozias. His ancestors came from Alsace Loraine
before the revolution and took part in that
struggle on the side of the colonists. Mr. Ozias'
father was a farmer and his boyhood was spent
on the farm with the usual schooling during
the winter months. He prepared for the work
of a teacher at the National Normal School at
Lebanon, Ohio. Some years later he attended
the state university of Ohio and received a Bach
elor's degree in 1889 and a Master's degree two
years later. Mr. Ozias began teaching at the
age of twenty-three when he was appointed prin
cipal of the West Des Moines high school.
After six years of . service there he resigned to
accept the department of science in the Central
high school of Columbus, Ohio, following the
distinguished teacher of science, Dr. T. C. Mendenhall. He remained in this position for six
teen years. He then resigned and in 1897 ac
cepted the principalship of the Racine high
school and three years later was appointed to
the South high school of Minneapolis. Mr.
Ozias remained at the head of the South High
for nine years and his successful work in that
DAVID
II.
PAINTEIt.
school was recognized in May, 1908, by his ap
pointment to the new West high school, des
tined to be one of the largest schools of the
city. Mr. Ozias is a member of the Commercial
Club and of the Fraternal Mystic Circle in which
order he has held for twenty years the office of
supreme trustee. He is a member of Hennepin
Avenue M. E. Church. In 1877 Mr. Ozias was
married to Marie Louise McKenzie and they
have three daughters—Helen, Alice and Mildred.
ALBERT NEWTON OZIAS
PAINTER, David H., principal of the Adams
school, is a native of Ohio. He is of ScotchIrish descent, although the family has lived in
America for many years and the preceding gen
erations came from Virginia. His father is a
prominent and successful farmer. He was a
teacher in his early life and has always been
active in promoting the educational interests of
his community. During the Civil War he served
in the 135th Ohio infantry. Mrs. Painter was a
teacher, also, in her early life and it is worthy
of remark that of a family of six boys and four
girls all were teachers except one daughter. The
subject of this sketch was born on a farm near
Newark, Ohio, November 11, i860. He attended
country school, village high school, and com
pleted his schooling at the Normal University,
Ada, Ohio. He taught country schools, and was
for six years principal of the village high school
at Martinsburg, Ohio. In 1895 he came to Min-
108
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
W1LIIELM M. I'KTTERSEN.
neapolis, having been appointed principal of
Adams school, which position he still holds. Mr.
Painter's sphere of activity has not been limited
to public school work. In addition to his spe
cial work as principal he has had a prominent
part in organizing and supervising the city vaca
tion school for a term of years; and is active in
several organizations which have for their object
the civic betterment of the community.
Mr.
Painter was married in the early nineties to Miss
Carrie J. Young of Mt. Vernon, Ohio, now de
ceased. Two children were born to them, Carl
W. and M. Louise, the latter deceased. He was
again married in June, 1907, to Mrs. Vida Shore
Smith of Minneapolis. In political faith he is a
republican.
The family attends the Baptist
church.
PETTERSEN, Wilhelm Mauritz, since 1886
a professor at Augsburg Seminary, Minneapolis,
was born at Mandal, Norway, on December 16.
i860, the son of Thorn Pettersen and Athalia
Pettersen. After graduation from the high
school the son spent some time at sea, receiv
ing a mate's navigation certificate at the age of
eighteen. He early developed a fondness for
books, nature and out door pursuits and while
a very young man traveled extensively, visiting
nearly all the European countries, Africa, South
America and Mexico before coming to the
United States in 1882. Mr. Pettersen came to
Minneapolis in the fall of 1882 and entered Augs
burg Seminary, from which he graduated in 1884,
supplementing this course with one year of the
ology and one year at the University of Minne
sota where he studied philology and international
law. In 1886 he became a member of the faculty
at Augsburg and has been successively professbr
of languages, mathematics, history and Nor
wegian literature. In connection with his col
lege work he has found pleasure in extensive
reading, study and writing. A special aptitude
for learning foreign languages was recognized
in his early youth and this has developed into
a talent for the study of languages and Profes
sor Pettersen is versed in the Germanic and
Romance languages, and has written much in. eluding a volume of poems and a poetic drama
in Norwegian and from time to time a fugitive
verse in English. He is recognized as one of the
foremost Norwegian poets in the United States.
He is now especially interested in historical
studies. Professor Pettersen was affiliated with
the democratic party from 1886 to 1908, but
recently frankly stated that his views on the
larger political questions had so changed that he
would hereafter be a member of the republican
party. His attitude toward public affairs is that
of a citizen rather than a party man and in 1905
he was induced to become alderman from the
eleventh ward, Minneapolis, on the platform of
good municipal government, and has given the
city intelligent and devoted service. Professor
Pettersen is a member of the Norwegian Luth
eran Free Church and has been its vice president
for two years although not an ordained minister.
He was one of the founders and for several
years president of the Scandinavian Young Men's
Christian Association in South Minneapolis and
is a strong advocate of temperance. He is a
member of the Odin Club and other local organ
izations. Professor Pettersen was married in
1885 to Gunda Marie Nygaard and they have had
six children. Mrs. Pettersen died in 1908.
RANDALL, Eugene Wilson, dean of the agri
cultural department of the University of Minne
sota, was born at Winona, Minnesota, January 1,
1859, the son of Albert B. and Maria (Jayne)
Randall. He graduated from the Winona State
Normal School in 1879 and in the following year
became principal of the Morris (Minnesota) high
school, which he organized under the then new
state high school law. After two years he re
signed to become publisher and editor of the
Morris Tribune and in 1888 disposed of his paper
and devoted himself to agricultural and mercan
tile interests at .Morris, also serving as post
master from 1891 to 1895. In the latter year he
was appointed secretary of the Minnesota State
Agricultural Society and served for twelve years,
during which the Minnesota State Fair grew from
an insignificant position to be the first in the
country. In 1904 Mr. Randall was appointed re-
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
gent of the University of Minnesota and served
on the board until 1907 when he was appointed
dean of the agricultural department. He has
throughout his life been deeply interested in
agriculture and in the development of agricul
tural education and has brought to his present
work a large acquaintance with practical agricul
ture as well as an unusual executive ability. Mr.
Randall is a member of the Minneapolis Com
mercial Club, of the Six O'Clock Club, of the
Masonic fraternity, of the A. O. U. W. and other
orders. On March 16, 1882, he was married to
Eudora A. Stone at Morris. They have three
sons and one daughter. The family attend the
Methodist church. Mr. Randall is a republican
in political faith.
REYNOLDS, Myron Herbert, a leading
American veterinarian, was born November 5,
1865, at Wheaton, Illinois, son of Gardner W.
Reynolds, a well-known nurseryman and botanist
originally from New York state, and Mary Budd,
of the same state. M. H. Reynolds received his
early education in Iowa, whither his parents had
removed, and entered the Iowa State Agricultural
College at Ames. He graduated when under
twenty years and took the B. S. A. degree, sup
plementing it by the veterinary course, graduat
ing D. V. M. He then took a medical course at
the Iowa College of Physicians and Surgeons,
EUGENE W. RANDALL.
109
graduating M. D., and concluded his studies with
a course of Pharmacy, receiving the degree of
Ph. G. On the recommendation of the Dean of
the Veterinary Department of the Iowa State
College, Dr. Reynolds was offered the lecture
ship of the Minnesota State Farmers' Institute,
which position he filled until 1893, when he was
elected to the chair of Veterinary Science in the
University of Minnesota, and was given charge of
the Veterinary Division of the State Agricultural
Experiment Station at St. Anthony Park. He
was appointed a member of the State Board of
Health in 1897, and was the first veterinary sur
geon appointed on that board. He was made
chairman of a committee on infectious diseases
of animals, and, shortly, was made Director of
the Veterinary Department of the State Board
of Health, the veterinary sanitary work of which
soon became a standard. He took an active part
in the creation of the present State Live Stock
Sanitary Board in 1903 and has since retained an
active relation with this board, which is now
recognized as one of the two best supported and
efficient state live stock sanitary organizations
in America. In 1900 Dr. Reynolds was elected
to the Deanship of the Division of Veterinary
Science of the Iowa State College, but declined
the honor. Dr. Reynolds has written many im
portant station bulletins and has made important
contributions to veterinary literature, as "Hypo
dermic Cathartics," "State Control of Hog Chol
era," "State Control of Glanders," "Hog Cholera
and Swine Plague," "Azoturia," "Bovine Tuber
culosis," "Haemorrhagic Septicaemia." His text
book, "Veterinary Studies," has been adopted by
many state agricultural colleges. He edited for
many years the annual reports of the American
Veterinarian Association. He is a member of
The American Veterinary Medical Association,
The American Medical Association, The Ameri
can Public Health Association, The Minnesota
State Veterinary Association, The Minnesota
State Medical Association, The Ramsey County
Medical Association, and other scientific bodies.
Dr. Reynolds is a member of the republican par
ty; a member of the Congregational church; and
a Mason, including the Shriner's degree. He has
been twice married; in 1893 to Miss Eva M.
Kuhn of Iowa, who died within a few months.
In 1897 he was married to Miss May I. Shaw,
daughter of Professor Thomas Shaw of the Uni
versity of Minnesota. To them have been born
four children.
'
SNYDER, Harry, professor in the University
of Minnesota, was born in Cherry Valley, New
York, on January 26, 1867, the son of David W.
Snyder and Mary Ann (Harter) Snyder. His
father was a man of unusual mechanical skill and
natural ability and, though a farmer much of his
life, was in later years a railroad superintendent
and constructor of bridges and woodwork. On
both sides of the family the ancestors were Eng
lish and early Dutch settlers of the Mohawk
110
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Valley and participants in French and Indian
war, the war of the Revolution and the war of
1812. Professor Snyder received his education
at the country schools, the graded school at Her
kimer, the Clinton Liberal Institution at Fort
Plain and at Cornell University which he entered
in 1885. At Cornell he took the scientific course
paying particular attention to chemistry and at
the end of his sophomore year was made assist
ant to Dr. Caldwell, the head of the chemistry
department, a position which had always been
held by a graduate student. During the next two
years Professor Snyder became thoroughly fa
miliar with laboratory methods, particularly
along the line of agricultural chemistry which
was a subject not then generally taught in Ameri
can colleges. When he was graduated in 1889
he received honors for chemistry and his gradua
tion thesis received honorable mention. He was
at once appointed instructor at Cornell and in
1890 assistant chemist at the Cornell University
Experiment Station. His work brought him into
prominence and during the next year he was
called to the position of chemist of the Minne
sota Experiment Station and in 1892 was also
appointed professor of agricultural chemistry in
the University of Minnesota. Professor Snyder's
work at the Minnesota Station during the past
sixteen years has been notable. He has issued
numerous bulletins of a very practical character
dealing with soils, farm and dairy products and
human foods. His work in soil analysis has been
carried farther than in many other experiment
stations. He has been a frequent contributor
to technical journals and agricultural papers.
He has published three text books which have
passed through several editions—Soils and Ferti
lizers, The Chemistry of Plant and Animal Life,
and Dairy Chemistry—all issued by the press of
the MacMillan Co. Some of Professor Snyder's
works have been translated into other languages.
He has been president of the Association of Of
ficial .Agricultural Chemists and other scientific
organizations. He has carried on extensive nu
trition investigations with wheat and flour in
co-operation with the United States Department
of Agriculture. Professor Snyder was married
in 1890 to Miss Adelaide Churchill Craig, daugh
ter of Rev. Dr. Austin Craig, formerly president
of Antioch College, Ohio. Professor Snyder is a
member of the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity, I. O.
O. F., R. A., member of the American Chemical
Society, Society for the Promotion of Agricul
ture, Fellow of the American Association for the
Advancement of Science, and Sigma Xi.
WASHBURN, Frederick Leonard, was born
at Brookline, Massachusetts, April 12, i860,
son of
Nehemiah and Martha Parmelee
Washburn.
His father was a native of
Livermore, Maine, and a business man. Mr.
Washburn's early life was spent in Brookline and he prepared for college at the
Roxbury Latin School, from which he en
tered Harvard University, graduating B. A.,
in 1882, receiving the M. A. degree in 1895 (Thay
er Scholarship). He devoted his attention at
Harvard to the important studies, biology and
entomology, and further pursued his studies at
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, as a gradu
ate student. In 1887-88 he was appointed in
structor in Zoology at the University of Michi
gan; was Entomologist at the Oregon Experi
ment Station 1889-95, and was Professor of Bi
ology in the University of Oregon 1895-1902. He
was appointed State Biologist of Oregon in 1899.
In 1885 and 1886, under the direction of the State
Geological and Natural History Survey, he made
a collection, with data, of Minnesota birds. The
results of this work appear in the Report of Dr.
Hatch, published in 1882. In 1902, he was ap
pointed Professor of Entomology in the Uni
versity of Minnesota; Entomologist of the Min
nesota Experiment Station and State Entomolo
gist of Minnesota. Mr. Washburn is a member
of the American Society of Naturalists, Fellow
of the American Association for the Advance
ment of Science, and other scientific bodies. He
was married on December 27, 1887, to Frances L.
Wilcox of Minneapolis, and two daughters, Mar
tha and Alice, have been born to them.
WEBSTER, William Franklin, son of William
Wallace and Malvina Woodworth Webster, was
born May 23, 1862, at Clearwater, Minnesota. His
father was a merchant of that town, and the
boy attended the village schools until the age of
fourteen, when he became a cle;rk in the store.
In 1880-81 he attended the Minneapolis Academy;
and the next year he entered the University of
Minnesota, from which he was graduated in
1886, with membership in Phi Beta Kappa. After
graduating, Mr. Webster taught school at Buffalo,
Minnesota, for a year, in 1887-8 he taught in the
Minneapolis night schools, at the same time at
tending the Minneapolis Medical College. He
was superintendent of public schools for two
years at Rushford, Minnesota, and in 1890-93 held
a similar position at Moorhead, Minnesota. In
1893 he became principal of the East high school
of Minneapolis where he still remains. He is
the author of several works on the English lan
guage and allied topics. Mr. Webster is a mem
ber of the Congregational church. On August
7, 1890, he was married to Mary Alden Powell.
They have three children, Ruth, Juliet and
Marian.
WESBROOK, Frank Fairchild, pathologist
and bacteriologist; born in Brandt county, On
tario, July 12, 1868. Oldest son of H. S. Wesbrook, formerly mayor of Winnipeg, and Helen
Marr (Fairchild) Wesbrook, both of United Em
pire loyalist lineage. Educated public schools of
London, Ontario and Winnipeg, Manitoba; de
gree B. A., medallist University of Manitoba,
1887,, M. A., M. D., C. M. 1900; studied at Mc-
EDUCATIONAL AFFAIRS
Gill University, 1889; interne, Winnipeg General
Hospital, 1890, and railway surgeon, C. P. Ry,
Banff, Alberta; worked in pathology and bacteri
ology King's College, London; Rotunda Hospital,
Dublin, 1891, and University of Cambridge, Eng
land, 1892 to 1895, where he held the appointment
of John Lucas Walker, student in Pathology;
worked in Hygienisches and Pathologisches In
stitutes University of Marburg, Germany, 1894;
held the chair of Pathology, University of Mani
toba, 1892-1894, returning from Europe to give
short courses; worked in Pathological Labora
tory, St. Bartholomew's Hospital, London, Eng
land, 1895. October, 1895, called to University of
Minnesota as Professor of Bacteriology; 1896,
was made Professor of Pathology and Bac
teriology, University of Minnesota, which posi
tion he still holds and was appointed Dean of
the College of Medicine and Surgery of the Uni
versity in 1906. He was appointed a member of
the Minnesota State Board of Health in 1896,
and served until 1900, and has beeh direc
tor of the Laboratories of that Board since
1896.
He is also a member of the ad
visory board of the Hygienic Laboratory of
the U. S. Public Health and Marine Hospital
Service; an honorary member of the Massachu
setts Association of Boards of Health and be
longs to the following associations and societies:
Association of American Physicians; Association
of American Pathologists and Bacteriologists;
London Pathological Society; Pathological So
ciety of Great Britain and Ireland; American
Medical Association; Society of
American
Bacteriologists; American Public Health Associa
WILLIAMS, Henry Lane, son of Job and
Kate Stone Williams, was born at Hartford, Con
necticut, July 26, 1869. His father is principal
of the School for the Deaf at Hartford. His
direct ancestors came to New England from Eng
land and one of them, Richard Williams, founded
the town of Taunton in Massachusetts in 1642.
The descendants of this branch took part in the
Colonial wars and in the War of the Revolution
and in the War of 1812. Henry L. is the first
member of the direct descendants to locate per
manently out of New England. He attended the
Hartford grade schools and prepared for college
in the Hartford high school where he received
the prize for his graduating oration on the theme
"The Prospects of China." He was fond of all
outdoor exercise and was instinctively athletic in
his tendencies and had a passion for canoeing,
a favorite trip with his sailing canoe being down
the Connecticut River to Long Island Sound and
along the Sound from New Haven to Watch Hill.
He graduated from Yale in 1891. During his
career at the university, while distinguishing him
self as an all-around athlete and a record-breaker
in various specialties, he maintained an excellent
rank in scholarship and at graduation received a
place on the appointment list. He was one of
111
HENRY L. WILLIAMS, M. D.
the editors of the Yale Daily News during his
last two years. He taught school after leaving
college for a year at the Siglars Preparatory
School at Newburgh on the Hudson and, while
there athletically diverted himself by coaching the
first West Point football team that' beat An
napolis. Later, when studying medicine at the
University of Pennsylvania, he had charge of
the athletic sports at the William Penn Charter
School, the largest private day school in Phila
delphia. In 1893 he wrote a book jointly with
the Medical School he was a member of the
A. A. Stagg, now of Chicago, entitled "Treatise
on the American Game of Football." While in
Alpha Mu Pi Omega medical fraternity and of
the D. Hays Agnew Surgical Society, and, on
graduation, received the prize for dissection. He
entered the Howard Hospital of Philadelphia in
1895 and served as resident physician there for
one year. The next year he began the practice of
medicine in Philadelphia and for the next four
years was quiz master in the Medical Institute
at the University of Pennsylvania on physical
diagnosis and pathology, and on gynaecology and
obstetrics. He was also an instructor in gynae
cology at the University and a member of the
staff of the Philadelphia Maternity Hospital,
pathologist to the Howard Hospital and patholo
gist to the Gynaecological Department of the
Philadelphia Polycliriical Hospital.
Since Dr.
112
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Williams came to Minneapolis, in 1900, he has
been Director of Athletics at the state university
holding one of the foremost positions as coach in
Western football; and is an instructor in the
Medical School, and actively engaged in the prac
tice of medicine. Dr. Williams was appointed in
1907 to a position on the staff of the City Hos
pital, taking charge of the gynaecological depart
ment. He is now clinical instructor in gynae
cology at the University medical school. He has,
since he graduated in medicine, made four trips
to Europe for post graduate study and investi
gation, spending considerable time at Berlin and
Vienna in the specialties of gynaecology and sur
gery. He is a member of the Pennsylvania So
ciety of the Order of the Founders and Patriots
of America. He is a member of the Commercial
Club, of the St. Anthony Commercial Club, of
the Roosevelt Club, of the Hennepin County
Medical Society and of the American Medical As
sociation. Dr. Williams is a republican in poli
tics. He was married on November 24, 1897, to
Miss Nina Meadows Boyd, of Maryland, and they
have one son, Henry L. Williams, Jr., born Au
gust 31, 1898.
WULLING, Frederick John, dean of the Col
lege of Pharmacy of the University of Minnesota,
was born on December 24, 1866, at Brooklyn,
New York. In 1870 his father's family moved per
manently to their summer home at Carlstadt,
New Jersey, a suburb of New York City. Here'
Frederick graduated from grammar and high'
school and business college. In 1884 Frederick
took a position with college privileges with Dr.
C. W. Braeutigam, of Brooklyn, devoting part of
his time to work in Columbia University and to
technical translations from French, German,
Spanish and Italian Journals. He duly passed the
senior examinations in pharmacy and allied
branches before the boards of New York and
Brooklyn, and of New Jersey, before he gradu
ated from New York College of Pharmacy in
1887 at the head of his class, taking the gold
medal and a hundred dollars in gold. During
these years he also attended lectures at the Col
lege of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia.
In 1886 he was appointed lecture assistant to
Professor Bedford, the foremost pharmacist of
the profession, a year later to an instructorship,
and in 1890 he was made assistant professor ol
pharmacy in the New York College of Pharmacy.
In 1887 he made a European tour, visiting the
principal universities of the continent and taking
up post-graduate work in Munich, Berlin, Goettingen and Paris and after his return, in the
Hoagland Laboratory of Bacteriology. In 1889
he made another trip to Europe, taking advanced
work in chemistry at Munich. In 1891 he was
called to the chair of Inorganic Pharmaco-Diagnosis at the Brooklyn College of Pharmacy,
which he held until he was called to the Uni
versity of Minnesota in 1892, to organize a de
partment of pharmacy. Professor Wulling was
made the dean of the pharmacy faculty and an
executive officer of the university and has given
his whole time to the work. In 1894 he made a
tour of Scotland, England, France and Belgium,
coming in touch with the prominent scientists
and educators of those countries. Between 1893
and 1898 he continued his studies at the state uni
versity and received the degrees Ph. D., LL. B.
and LL. M. In addition he has taken during his
extensive college work the degrees of Ph. G.,
Ph. C., and F. S. Sc., and has done considerable
original research work. Dr. Wulling is a fre
quent contributor to scientific journals and has
published several larger works—in 1891, the Evo
lution of Botany; in 1892, Medical and Pharma
ceutical Chemistry; Chemistry of the Carbon
Compounds, published in Merck's Report from
1899-1900; a Course in Law for Pharmacists; and
upwards of four hundred papers and essays on
kindred subjects. He is a member of numerous
professional societies; president of the North
western Branch of the American Pharmaceutical
Association; chairman of the Scientific Section,
Minnesota State Pharmaceutical Association; ex
ecutive officer of the American Conference of
Pharmaceutical Faculties, and numerous other
organizations. Dr. Wulling was married on Sep
tember 15, 1897, to Miss Lucile Truth Gissel of
Brooklyn, New York.
CHAPTER X.
MUSIC
A
DECIDED musical taste devel
oped itself in the villages at the Falls
- of St. Anthony within a few years
of their settlement. As early as 1852 there
were three singing schools in St. Anthony
and in 1853 the first singing school in Hen
nepin county was organized at Minneapolis
under the direction of B. E. Messer and was
supported by a public subscription headed
by Colonel Stevens. It is not to be sup
posed that the work of this pioneer singing
society was of an advanced class but the
movement showed the desire for music and
a willingness to support musical endeavors
As the years passed many cultivated people
from eastern cities were added to the popu
lation at the Falls and music became a
prominent part of the social and religious
life of the young settlement. There was
always a glee club, singing school, or choral
society in which the young people gathered
and music was made an effective part of the
church services. One of the oldest and best
remembered groups was the old Plymouth
church choir which was composed of Sam
uel C. Gale, Harlow A. Gale, Mr. and Mrs.
Charles M. Cushman and Joseph H. Clark,
and which not only made the musical part
of the church service notable, but took the
lead in the concerts and musical occasions
in the young city. The gentlemen of the
choir formed a male quartet which was in
vited to many political meetings and was
particularly prominent in the life of the
state during war times.
E. M. Bowman, later to become a mu
sician of national reputation, lived in Min
neapolis for a few years as boy and young
man and an old handbill announces a grand
concert, given as a "complimentary benefit"
to E. M. Bowman in 1866. On this occa
sion Mr. Bowman was "assisted by the Min
THEATERS
neapolis Cornet Band and Orchestra and
the following ladies and gentlemen: Mrs.
Whitney, Mrs. Cushman, Dr. J. A. Bowman,
Mr. Cushman, Mr. R. P. Olmstead, Mr. S.
V. Morris, Miss Barton, Miss Varney, Mr.
Barton, Mr. J. H. Clark, Mr. H. A. Gale,
Mr. A. M. Benham, the whole under the
direction of A. M. Benham."
For a long period few musical organiza
tions were established which proved to have
any permanence. An exception was the
Harmonia Society formed by the Germans
of the city in the early seventies and still an
active choral society. Peter Rauen was a
prominent president in the early years and
Ludwig Harmsen, Richard Stempf and
other well known musicians were among the
leaders. One of the most important of the
societies of the many which have passed
out of existence was the Minneapolis Choral
Society which was organized in 1876 and
for five or six years did very creditable work.
It drew into its membership many of the
singers of the Harmonia society. George
R. Lyman was president and Mr. Harmsen
the first director and such well known
musical people as Henry Chase, Charles B.
and George B. Eustis, A. A. Guiwits, Henry
Elliott, George Harrison, Joseph H. Clark,
Dr. Bowman, Col. Charles W. Johnson,
Mrs. F. A. Chamberlain, Gen. C. McC.
Reeve and others were prominent in its
ranks. This society was the first to give in
Minneapolis such music as the Seasons, the
Creation and works of a similar character
in a thoroughly artistic manner. Its mem
bership ranged from fifty to one hundred.
The Choral Society and other organizations
kept the taste for chorus music alive and
occasionally, something in the way of a
musical festival was attempted, with aug
mented chorus and orchestra and soloists
114
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
of reputation as special attractions. A not
able occasion of this kind was that of 1884
when, upon the completion of the first drill
hall and auditorium at the university, Chris
tine Nilsson was the star at a festival which
was very creditable to the city. During the
eighties David Blakely promoted various
musical undertakings; Danz' Orchestra was
organized by Frank Danz, Jr., and for years
gave weekly concerts at the old Harmonia
Hall, and the original Apollo Club was
formed. In this decade many of the prom
inent musicians of the city came here—
Willard Patten, H. S. Woodruff, Herman
Zoch, Heinrich Hoevel, Gustavus Johnson,
the Lachmunds, Fraulein Schoen-Rene,
Clarance A. Marshall and others.
With the early nineties more permanent
organization and better results crowned the
labors of the musical people. The Minne
apolis Philharmonic Club was organized out
of the remnants of older singing societies
and began its development into the present
excellent choral club—pronounced by the
best authorities to be the equal of any in
America. Emil Oberhoffer became its con
ductor in 1901 and has brought the organ
ization to a high degree of perfection.
Through the coming of Mr. Oberhoffer Min
neapolis also obtained an orchestra of the
highest merit. The Minneapolis Symphony
Orchestra was organized in 1903 and under
Mr. Oberhoffer's leadership has obtained
first rank not only in this country but among
the orchestras of the world. Both these or-
PENCE OPERA HOUSE.
First Minneapolis theater; erected In 1867.
ganizations are supported by hearty public
commendation and liberal subscription.
The Apollo Club, organized in the eighties
and reorganized in 1895, is a male chorus,
under the leadership of H. S. Woodruff and
takes a prominent place in the musical life
of the city. The Ladies' Thursday Musicale, another organization of the nineties,
has done as much as any to promote music
al culture. A recent organization, the Uni
versity Musical Federation, seeks to pro
mote the cause of music in the state
university, with the purpose of secur
ing the establishment of a musical de
partment; for, notwithstanding the rapid
growth of musical interest in the last two
decades there has not been as much atten
tion to musical education in the public in
stitutions as would be desirable. The sub
ject has been almost ignored in the univer
sity and although music has been taught for
years in the public schools it has not been
given the recognition which the importance
of the subject demands.
PUBLIC SCHOOL MUSIC.
One of the earliest teachers of music in
the schools was Charles Marsh, a prominent
musician of the city during the seventies.
He was organist at the Church of the Re
deemer and pianist for a time for the Min
neapolis Choral Society. After Mr. Marsh
came D. and J. W. Shryock of a family
which contributed much to the musical life
of the city. Next came O. E. McFadon who
was supervisor of music for thirteen years,
assisted for a part of the time by Stiles
Raymond. Mr. McFadon brought a prac
tical knowledge of school conditions to the
work, and did much towards putting the
music in the schools on a par with other
subjects. During his regime the pupils of
the schools were heard in many public con
certs. In 1898 Mr. McFadon retired to
enter another profession and was succeeded
by Miss Helen M. Trask, who now holds
the position. Miss Trask prepared for this
special line of work by years of music study
in the east and took a special preparatory
course at Lexington Institute under Henry
Holt and Alfred Hallam. She came to the
work here at a time when public school
MUSIC AND THEATERS
music was just beginning to be taught
along more pedagogical lines than the ab
stract and technical methods of the past per
mitted; and she was not slow to adapt the
more advanced methods to Minneapolis
schools. Consequently greater interest has
been aroused among the children, and an
improved standard of teaching gained
among the teaching corps.
Another impulse toward improvement
has come through the establishment of a
training class for prospective supervisors or
special teachers of music, which has been
conducted each summer at the university
by Miss Trask. This course was organized
three years ago and is already one of the
most potent agencies at work in the state
for the uplifting of the standards of music
teaching. During the past nine or ten years
the school children have taken part in many
public entertainments, but in none with
greater success than in the final concert at
the time of the opening of the Auditorium,
when a thousand children from all parts of
the city and from all grades above the third
took part under the leadership of Miss
Trask.
PRIVATE MUSIC SCHOOLS.
The Northwestern Conservatory of Music
was organized in 1885 and in 1891 it was
purchased by Clarence A. Marshall who
was its director until 1906 when he disposed
of his interests and the school under the
same name became the musical department
of Stanley Hall though maintaining a separ
ate organization. The Minneapolis School
of Music, Oratory and Dramatic Art was
established in 1898 by Gustavus Johnson
who conducted it until 1907 when it passed
into other management. In 1908 Mr. John
son established the Johnson School of
Music, Oratory and Dramatic Art. These
institutions have given Minneapolis addi
tional reputation as the musical center of
the Northwest. The number of musical
students in the city is now very large.
THEATERS AND MUSIC HALLS.
In the days when the singing school was
the highest musical development of the city
and the only theatrical companies visiting
115
WrM
• '"in*
I
THE ACADEMY OF MUSIC.
Second theater in Minneapolis. It stood at Washington and
Hennepin.
Minneapolis were such as might be expect
ed to penetrate into a wilderness three hun
dred miles beyond the railroad, Woodman's
Hall, at the corner of Second avenue south
and Washington avenue, was the only
place of public amusement. After a time
the first of the halls styled Harmonia Hall,
was constructed at Second avenue north
and Second street, and this in turn was
followed by another Harmonia Hall at
Washington and Nicollet. When, in 1867,
the Pence Opera House was erected at the
corner of Hennepin avenue and Second
street, Minneapolis felt that she was reach
ing metropolitan conditions.
The Academy of Music, built in 1871 at
the corner of Washington and Hennepin
where Temple Court now stands, was the
principal theater and concert hall until 1883
when it was remodelled into an office build
ing. Its passing, was on the occasion of the
opening of the Grand Opera House, built
as a part of the Syndicate Block, on the
Sixth street front and opened on April 2,
1883. This was a handsome theater and for
years presented attractions which many
Minneapolis people recall with great pleas
ure. Two theaters were built in 1887—the
Lyceum, opened in September with a not-
116
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
upon the immense stage. The auditorium
is of strictly fire-proof construction through
out. It is equipped with a four-manual pipe
organ, the fourth in size in the country.
Since its completion this building has been
used for the concerts of the Philharmonic
club, the Minneapolis Symphony orchestra,
the Apollo club, for grand opera and many
theatrical and musical engagements of all
kinds. The auditorium serves to emphasize
the high estimation in which things musical
are held by the people of Minneapolis.
THE GRAND OPERA HOUSE.
able engagement of Booth and Barrett, and
the Bijou Opera House, opened on October
31, as a popular priced theater. It was
built by Lambert Hays of Minneapolis and
has always been under the management of
Theodore Hays. The Metropolitan Opera
House was opened in 1894 as the Peoples
Theater. For a year it was a stock com
pany house, and then became the Metro
politan Opera House, succeeding to the
theatrical fortunes of the Grand, which went
out of business and was soon dismantled.
Vaudeville had never been tried in Minne
apolis as a regular seasons attraction until
the building of the Orpheum theater in 1904.
BERGQUIST, John Victor, (J. Victor Bergquist) musician, was born at St. Peter, Minnesota,
May 18, 1877. His father, C. F. Bergquist, came
from Sweden, in the early seventies, and built up
by his industry, a good business in hardware and
lumber. As a boy,' his son, Victor, after some
years in the Minneapolis public schools, started
out on a business life in the employ, first, of the
Glass Block, and later, of the Minneapolis Gas
Co. His bent toward music was so marked, how
ever, that he soon found the way to gratify it by
a course in the musical department at Gustavus
Adolphus College of St. Peter, Minn. From this
he graduated with honors at the age of eighteen,
having won the gold medal in an organ contest at
THE AUDITORIUM.
Until 1905 Minneapolis had no place suit
able for concerts where a large audience
was to be expected. This want was sup
plied by the erection of the Minneapolis
Auditorium by the Northwestern National
Life Insurance Company of Minneapolis,
after plans by Bertrand & Chamberlin, and
at a cost (including the site and the adjoin
ing office building) of about $400,000. It is
a beautiful building with a frontage of no
feet and a depth of 220 feet, a seating capac
ity of 2,500 with room for a chorus of 400
J. VICTOR BERGQUIST.
MUSIC AND THEATERS
117
the college. Four years of study with the lead
ing teachers of music in Minneapolis were fol
lowed by about three years of foreign study at
Berlin and Paris in the studios of such instruc
tors as Grunicke, Scharwenka, Berger and Guilrnant. It was during this European stay, while
witnessing the Passion Play, that Mr. Bergquist
was first inspired by the idea of his oratorio "Gol
gotha." He was not able to find time to develop
this until the fall of 1904 when he began the vocal
score. The work went on at intervals during the
next twelve months and was not completed until
November of 1905, nor presented until April 6,
1906. During this year and a half of more or
less absorption in his project, Mr. Bergquist was
acting as organist of Augustana Lutheran Church,
principal of the piano department of Gustavus
Adolphus College of St. Peter, director of the
male chorus of the United Church seminary, and
organist to the Apollo Club besides maintaining
his position as director of the Cecilian Studios.
A great worker and full of musicianly enthusiasm,
Mr. Bergquist has written several other composi
tions for organ, piano and voice, but "Golgotha"
is his last and most important work; and one
which has excited much local interest as a work
of power and promise. Mr. Bergquist belongs to
the Odin Club. He was married to Emilia Elvira
Johnson, June 7, 1905.
IIEINKICII IIOEVEL.
S. CLAY GILBERT.
HOEVEL, Heinrich, Jr., musician, is of Ger
man parentage and nationality, born near Bonn,
on the Rhine, June 22, 1864. His father, Hein
rich Hoevel, indulged the evident talent of his
son for music, and gave him the opportunity of
cultivating it by instruction in the best studios
of his native place. Bonn, as the birthplace of
Beethoven, is full of musical traditions, and com
petent teachers abound. When Heinrich, Jr., was
seven years old, he received his first violin as a
Christmas present, and taught himself to play
upon it familiar airs, but it was not until he was
sixteen that his father began to consider his son's
musical abilities anything but an accomplishment
or needing more skillful training. Finding that
the bent for the musician's life was a permanent
tendency, he then sent his son to Cologne Con
servatory. The first professional engagement of
the musician after graduation was as first violin
in the Alhambra orchestra in London in the fall
of 1883. The Alhambra (now a music hall) was
then opened for English opera and the first opera
played was Geo. Frederic Clay's "The Golden
Ring." During the same period he also played
as first violin at the Crystal Palace under the
leadership of Manns. The necessity of military
service called him back to Germany after a year
in England. He served out his army term and
then spent several years on the Continent as a
member of various orchestras and as conductor
118
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
of musical organizations. In the former work,
he played under such orchestral leaders as Anton
Seidl and Ferdinand von Hiller—the latter a man
who had the reputation of being the best edu
cated musician of his time. Mr. Hoevel came to
Minneapolis in 1889, and made his first public
appearance at Dyer's Music Hall, January 6, 1890,
with the Lachmund String Quartette of which he
was solo violinist. Mr. Hoevel has been a favor
ite with both his audiences and his associates in
musical work, and has had eighteen successful
years in Minneapolis. He has been identified
with chamber music to a great extent and par
ticularly with string quartette work.
HUNT, Hamlin Harry, the son of T. J. Hunt
of Ellington, Minnesota, was born in that town
on June 5, 1866. He is descended from old New
England families that originally had their homes
in Vermont. He spent his early life in Dodge
Center, Minnesota, and there received his school
education. He then entered Carletpn College,
Northfield, Minnesota, and began a literary and
musical education.
He graduated from the
School of Music at Carleton in the year 1884,
and immediately entered upon his musical career.
He went to Winona and for three years taught
music, at the same time holding the position of
organist at the First Congregational Church. He
then went to Berlin for two seasons, where he
further pursued his musical studies. Upon re
turning to this country he located in Quincy,
Illinois, and for six years was organist of the
Congregational church and director of the Quin
cy Conservatory of Music. He again went to
Berlin for a year and afterwards studied the
organ under Guilmant in Paris. He finally com
pleted his studies and returned to this country,
coming to Minneapolis in September, 1898, where
he became the organist at St. Mark's Episcopal
Church and later at the Plymouth Congregational
Church, where he has now been for- eight years.
Each year Mr. Hunt has made a practice of giv
ing a series of free organ recitals and as director
has produced in the church services many choral
works of fine character that have contributed
much to the cause of good music and have won
for him the appreciation of the music lovers of
the city. He was also selected to give three or
gan recitals at the Pan American Exposition in
Buffalo and two on the large organ at the St.
Louis Exposition. He was appointed in 1906
organist of the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra.
Mr. Hunt believes in the teachings of the Con
gregational church. He was married on April
16, 1895, to Miss Laurina J. White in Quincy,
Illinois. They have no children.
JOHNSON, Gustavus, was born in Hull, Eng
land, on November 2, 1856. He is the son of
Peter Johanson, a native of Sweden, and Henri
etta Hole, daughter of Admiral Hole, who first
distinguished himself in the English navy as alieutenant under Lord Nelson. Admiral Hole
came of an old English family and entered the
navy about 1795, served through several notable
battles among which was the battle of Trafalgar,
was promoted to the rank of admiral, and at the
time of his death in 1870 was the oldest officer
in the navy. When Mr. Johnson was three years
old his family moved to Stockholm, Sweden, and
there he spent his early life, began his education
and graduated from the Stockholm high school.
His musical talent marked out a career for him
and he studied the piano and theory of music
under the leading masters of the art. He entered
the Schartau business college of Stockholm and
graduated in 1874. A year later he emigrated to
America and after staying for a short time in the
East, came to Minneapolis, where with the excep
tion of three years spent in Wisconisn he has
since lived. He began his musical work as an
instructor and concert pianist, and for a quarter
of a century has been known as one of the fore
most musicians of the Northwest, and has been
the instructor of a number of pianists who rank
high in their art. In 1898 he established the
Johnson School of Music, Oratory and Dramatic
Art, which became the largest institution of its
kind in the city, with an average enrollment of
nearly five hundred pupils. Mr. Johnson is also
well known as a composer, mostly of piano selec
tions but he has also written much for other in
struments as well as for the voice. His greatest
works are a trio for the piano, violin and cello
and a concerto for the piano and orchestra. Mr.
Johnson is a member of the Minnesota State
Music Teachers' Association and in 1906 was
president of that organization. He was married
in 1882 to Miss Caroline Frances Winslow, a di
rect descendant of Governor Edward Winslow
who played so important a part in Colonial
events. They have one child, a daughter, Laura
Louise, born in 1890.
MARSHALL, Clarance Alden, for many years
director of the Northwestern Conservatory of
Music in this city and one of the well known
musicians of the Northwest, was born on May
15, 1859, at Marlboro, Massachusetts. He is the
son of Alden B. Marshall, a contractor and
builder, who served during the Civil War and
later located at Newton, Massachusetts, where
h^ was well known, and highly respected by his
fellow townsmen. Clarissa Hemenway, mother
^f Clarance A., was the daughter of a prominent
family of Framingham, Massachusets, and was,
as well as Mr. Marshall, Sr., of old Colonial par
entage, the ancestors of both families having
settled in New England with the Puritans. Clar
ance Alden passed the early years of his life in
Marlboro, but when he was nine years of age
the family moved to Newton, Massachusetts,
where a splendid school system offered excellent
chances for an education. Mr. Marshall there
attended the public schools, and graduated from
the high school in 1877, and the following year
119
MUSIC AND THEATERS
entered Harvard College as a special student of
music and art. After a six years course there
during which he was under the instruction of
John Knowles Paine and others, he continued
his studies in Boston under famous instrumental
and vocal artists, and finally became associate
conductor with Carl Zerrahn, of the Handel and
Haydn Oratorio Society. For some time he was
engaged in Watertown, Roxbury, Boston, Dor
chester, Bangor, Waterville, Augusta and other
New England towns, as choir director and or
ganist and the director of choral societies. In
1887, he came west to Saginaw, Michigan, to take
charge of a choir and three choral organizations,
but the climate affected his health, so the fol
lowing winter was spent in Nashville, Tennessee,
where he was choir leader and vocal instructor
in a large young ladies' seminary. He was the
organizer and promoter of the most successful
musical festival ever held in Nashville, in the
year 1889. In the fall of that year he took charge
of the chorus and orchestra of the Mozart Society
of Richmond, Virginia, and during the two years
he remained there, was prominent and active in
the musical progress of the city, arranging semi
monthly concerts and managing two large and
successful musical festivals. In 1891 he came
to this city and purchased the Northwestern Con
servatory of Music and assumed its direction.
For fifteen years he successfully managed the
school, the annual attendance having increased
from one hundred and thirty in 189-1, to more
than five hundred pupils. In the summer of 1906
he disposed of his interests in the conservatory.
While in Minneapolis he has also held positions
as organist and choir master of Westminister
Presbyterian, Gethsemane Episcopal and the
First Congregational churches, and in other ways
has been active and influential in the promotion
of music in the Northwest. Mr. Marshall be
came a member of the Immanuel Baptist Church
of Newton, Massachusetts, when a boy, and still
retains the membership. He was married in 1891
to Miss Marion Howard of Waterville, Maine,
and they have one daughter.
OBERHOFFER, Emil Johann, a leading mu
sician of the northwest, was born near Munich,
Bavaria, in 1867. His father was a successful or
ganist, composer and conductor in the Bavarian
provinces. H'is mother also came of a musical
family and a brother as well as two sisters were
musicians. Emil very early showed musical tal
ent and when a child of ten years could play the
organ and violin with wonderful ability and taste.
He had at this time, beside the strict surveillance
of his father, the most helpful instruction of
Cyril Kistler, since renowned as the composer of
a number of operas. During a six years' course
at a literary college following, Mr. Oberhoffer
continued his musical studies under the best pri
vate teachers obtainable, in pianoforte, organ,
violin, voice, and in an excellent school and
IiMIL OHEKIIOKFEK.
church orchestra not only became acquainted
with all orchestral instruments, but had ample
opportunity to try out his talent as conductor,
which was thus early recognized. About this
time he also took a thorough course of theoret
ical studies under the Rheinberger regime. Spe
cializing as a pianist he later spent some time in
Paris with the famous technique expert Isadore
Phillip. After the completion of his studies he
came to New York but remained there only a
short time, leaving the musical directorship of
a prominent college to establish himself in the
west. He first came to St. Paul where he soon
attained a prominent position as a teacher, lectur
er, concert giver and conductor. In 1897 he
spent seven months in Europe in study and ob
servation and in the fall of the same year was
called to the position of conductor of the Apollo
Club of Minneapolis. At the same time the
Schubert Choral Association and Schubert or
chestra were formed in St. Paul under his direc
tion. In 1901 Mr. Oberhoffer became conductor
of the Minneapolis Philharmonic Club which
soon attained a leading position among the choral
societies of the country. The necessities of the
development of musical life and culture in the
city soon brought about the suggestion from
Mr. Oberhoffer that an orchestra be formed
and with the assistance and support of the lead
ing men of Minneapolis the Minneapolis Sym-
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
120
II
FLORENCE
E.
PARKS.
phony Orchestra was established in 1903 and has
since been the most prominent musical organiza
tion in the northwest. The phenomenal suc
cess of the club and orchestra under Mr. Oberhoffer's direction has led to the engagement of
his services for a term of years and the practical
perpetuation of the musical progress which has
already made Minneapolis the center of musical
education in the Northwest and given her a
reputation for musical culture quite unprecedent
ed in the east. Besides his activities as conduc
tor, Mr. Oberhoffer. finds time for a group of
advanced pupils in pianoforte-playing; he has
been organist and director of the music at the
Church of the Redeemer for the past few years
and holds the chair of music at the state uni
versity.
PARKS, Florence Estelle, born in Ohio,
Trumbull county, is a descendant of a long line
of musical ancestors, particularly on the side of
her father, Henry Clay Peck, who came of old
colonial stock, his mother's father having been
Abram Crawley, a major in the Revolutionary
war and one of those who engaged in the "Boston
Tea Party." The mother of Mrs. Parks was El
len E. (Sanford) Peck, a descendant of Nathaniel
Greene and who enjoyed the distinction of having
been one of the early teachers of President McKinley. Mrs. Parks gave evidence at an early
age of marked musical talent, being capable of
singing at sight difficult compositions at the age
of four—the system then in use being numerals
written upon the staff instead of notes. System
atic instruction for her musical education began
when she was six years old, her studies embrac
ing piano, theory of music, harmony, counter
point composition for both organ and voice. Mrs.
Parks received voice training from the best in
structors in Chicago and New York and various
cities of Europe, and has enjoyed wide experi
ence in oratorio, concert and church singing.
For the past fifteen years Mrs. Parks has been
a resident of Minneapolis and actively engaged in
the musical life of the city. During these years
Mrs. Parks has devoted her time and study prin
cipally to the "art of teaching." Her wide ex
perience as a student and singer has given her
a knowledge and comprehension of the many
various methods which, blended with her indi
vidual ability, renders her most efficient as a
vocal instructor. For the past twelve years Mrs.
Parks has had full direction of the music in St.
Charles Church. For several years she was in
charge of the vocal department of Stanley Hall
and at different times was instructor in Macalester College and the Johnson School of Music.
Mrs. Parks has been an active member of the
Thursday Musical since its beginning, and at dif
ferent times has been a member of the executive
board and program committee. She is now di
rector of the Students Quartettes and Choral
Club and her work with them is most successful.
PATTEN, Willard, was born at Milford,
Maine, on May 26, 1853. His father, Daniel Hall
Patten, a building contractor, was of Irish des
cent, who had been before taking up his con
tracting work, an unprofessional musician, choir
master, violinist and vocalist of considerable tal
ent, and from whom Mr. Patten inherited his ar
tistic instincts. His mother was Elizabeth Jones,
born in Canada but of Welsh descent. Mr. Pat
ten resided in Bangor, Me., during his early life,
and because of a weakness of the lungs when
about sixteen years old he took up calisthenics
and voice culture. He left high school before
completing his course to take private lessons in
English literature and music. His musical work
included notation, theory, thoroughbass and
musical analysis and later he studied ensemble
training and the art of conducting, the latter
under Carl Zerrahn of the Handel and Haydn So
ciety of Boston. He then began his musical ca
reer, teaching, conducting musical conventions,
and composing, producing his first operetta in
1881. Through Dr. Eben Tourgee, the director
of the New England Conservatory, he was offered
a position in that institution, but declined, and
came west in 1883, establishing himself in Minne
apolis as a solo singer and teacher of voice cul
ture. In 1889 he produced the opera, La Fianza,
with pronounced success; and afterwards several
MUSIC AND THEATERS
short pieces. He continued his studies and in
1896, after spending more than a year in the se
lection and arrangement of the text, composition,
and score, he completed his oratorio, Isaiah, and
on January 27, 1897, it was given its initial per
formance at the Metropolitan theater, before an
audience that included all the musicians and
music lovers of the two cities and the northwest.
This achieved remarkable success and established
Mr. Patten's reputation as a musician. The fol
lowing year he was appointed conductor of the
re-organized Philharmonic Club, a position he
held for three years, resigning to devote his at
tention to further composition. He has since
completed two large choral works based upon
historical data, the first entitled "Star of Empire"
and the second "Foot-Stones of a Nation." He
is at present bringing to completion a cantata in
modern form on the subject of the Resurrection.
Mr. Patten is actively interested in musical edu
cational movements and has recently been in
strumental in establishing twelve singing schools,
each under the care of a competent musician, and
his connection with the general advancement of
music quite as much as his personal successes
show the influence his work has had upon the
musical progress of the northwest. Many of his
compositions, among them his oratorio Isaiah,
have obtained wide popularity for their true
merit and become better known each year, but
Mr. Patten is too serious in his art to seek com
W1LLARD PATTEN.
121
mon-place applause, seeking rather to earn the
commendation of his peers, in which he has fully
accomplished his aims. Mr. Patten was married
in 1875 to Miss Alesta Virginia Hebberd, in Ban
gor, Maine. They have had one daughter, Ruth
Elizabeth, who died in 1901.
WILLIAMS, James Austin, one of the prom
inent concert tenors and voice instructors of
Minneapolis, is a native of England and is by
birth the descendant of an old established Welsh
family, which is traced back among the inhabi
tants of Wales for more than four centuries.
From these ancestors was^ descended Enoch
Williams who located at Mitcheldean, Gloucester
shire, England, and there established a stone
business, which developed into a flourishing and
extensive enterprise. He was married to Augusta
Parry, and his son, J. Austin, was born at
Mitcheldean, England, on April 19, 1876. Six
years later the family left England to come to
America and located at Stonewall, Manitoba, Can
ada. There J. Austin, received his education, at
tending the public schools and after completing
his academic studies began the study of music
and the training of his voice. For a time Pro
fessor Dore of London, England, was located at
Winnipeg, Canada, and Mr. Williams continued
his vocal studies under his instruction, and for a
time his vocal training was directed by Professor
Chambers, also of London. In 1905 he was a
pupil of Professor M. B. de Bor of New York, and
at intervals during the last eight years has studied
with a number of the foremost teachers and
musicians in the Twin Cities. At the present
time, in addition to his teaching and concert
work, Mr. Williams is receiving further train
ing under the supervision of Dr. Rhys-Herbert,
the well known composer of this city and now
the organist at the Hennepin Avenue Methodist
Church. Since moving to Minneapolis a few
years ago Mr. Williams has taken an active part
in the musical affairs of the city and is now
identified with several of the more important
musical organizations. For one year he was
the director of the choir of Fowler Methodist
Church and at the present time holds the same
position with the De la Salle choir. For three
years he has had the direction of the Boys'
Glee Club of the Central High School and under
his charge that organization has achieved a cred
itable local reoutation. He was a member of
the Apollo Club for several years and now is a
member and one of the board of directors of the
Philharmonic Club. Mr. Williams has been ex
tensively connected with vocal church music and
has done tenor solo and choir work in ten of
the larger churches of the citv and is now in
his fourth year as tenor of the choir at the
Church of the Redeemer. In addition to this
work he is active in concert and recital work and
takes a general interest in the promotion and
support of measures that tend to the musical
development of Minneapolis.
122
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
cessfully in the great European musical centers,
Fraulein Schoen-Rene came to this country and
has for some years made her home with her
sister, Marie Schoen, in Minneapolis. For some
time she was instructor in the University of Min
nesota and was the founder and musical director
of the University Choral Union, which has done
splendid work. Fraulein Anna Eugenie SchoenRene has taken a prominent part in the promo
tion of musical culture in Minneapolis. She is
a member of the Union des Arts et des Sciences,
of Paris, France, and a member of the "Deutsche
Buchnen genossenschaft," of Berlin. Fraulein
Schoen-Rene has been earnestly besought by
many of her friends to return to the operatic
stage, as her health has been greatly improved
in Minnesota.
ANNA E. SCHOEN-RENE.
SCHOEN-RENE, Anna Eugenie, is a native
of Prussian Poland. Her father was at one time
secretary of agriculture and forestry of the im
perial province of Alsace-Lorraine, Germany,
and an officer of the. Guards. At his death the
Emperor William, who was his close friend,
promised to care for his eight children and
through his kindness Fraulein Schoen-Rene was
enabled to prepare for the profession of a singer
in grand opera, which was her absorbing ambi
tion. She graduated from the Royal Academy of
Music in Berlin, receiving half the prize offered
by the Mendelssohn family to the most promising
student and devoted it to the completion of her
musical education in Italy. She studied with
Francesco Lamperti, Sen. of Milan in voice cul
ture, and with Madame Viardot and Maestro
Garcia in Paris, making her debut in Berlin under
the auspices of Princess Friedrich Carl, of Prus
sia. She was engaged to sing at the Royal Opera
House of Saxe-Altenburg through the Duke of
that Duchy, and soon became a musical favorite,
meeting many famous musicians and composers,
as Brahms, Rubenstein and Liszt. With marked
ability she played the leading roles in "Don
Juan," "Daughter of the Regiment," "Carmen,"
"Faust," and other operas. After singing suc
WOODRUFF, Henry Seymour, the son of
Henry and Lucy A. (Rollo) Woodruff, was born
at Cortland, Cortland county, New York. His
father was, though a merchant, a man of musical
taste and on his mother's side he was connected
with a family of musicians. His mother was,
during her early life, an instructor on the piano
and her grandfather was a musical conductor.
Mr. Woodruff began his education at the State
Normal School at Cortland and studied music in
Syracuse. When he was fifteen years of age he
served as organist in the First Baptist Church of
Cortland and later went to Cincinnati to study
for six years under Henry G. Andres, Herman
Auer, Bush Foley and Louis Ehrgott. For the
most of this time he was organist of St. Paul's
M. E. Church of Cincinnati. During this period
he was also active in organ recital work. In
1886 he came to Minneapolis to fill a six weeks
engagement as solo organist at the first Exposi
tion and was so impressed by the opportunities
of the city that he decided to locate here. Short
ly after the close of the Exposition Mr. Wood
ruff received an appointment as organist of the
First Baptist Church, then just completed, and
served in that capacity for six years, during four
of which he also acted as choir master. About
this time he opened a studio and gave instruc
tion in piano, pipe organ, and voice culture.
Upon the founding of the Apollo Club in 1887
he was appointed director for their first two sea
sons and for three years held a like position with
the Philharmonic Club. Again in 1902 he be
came musical conductor of the Apollo Club and
has held the position since that time. Mr. Wood
ruff has given many organ recitals and done much
concert work in Minneapolis, St. Paul and other
cities of the northwest. In 1893 he served as
organist at the Church of the Redeemer, but
afterwards returned to the First Baptist Church.
In 1897 he studied in Paris with Delle Sedie, the
celebrated voice teacher and upon his return ac
cepted the position of organist and choir master
-MUSIC AND THEATERS
of the Westminster Presbyterian Church, with
which he is still connected. Mr. Woodruff was
married in 1899 to Miss Corice Colburn, one of
the younger artists of this city.
ZOCH, Herman, son of Carl Frederick, and
Augusta Kunau Zoch, was born in Theerkeute,
Prussia. He is descended from a landed family,
his paternal grandfather, a distinguished officer
in the war of 1813, having held an estate in
Silesia. Carl Frederick Zoch was the director of
the estates of the Polish Count Dzieduszicki, and
on one of these estates in the province of Posen
his son Herman was born. He began his edu
cation with a private tutor, later studying in the
state gymnasium at Halle, Saxony, and then
graduating from the Thomas gymnasium at
Leipsic. His musical career which his native
ability gave promise of being so brilliant com
menced in the Royal Conservatory of Music at
Leipsic, where he studied the piano under Carl
Reinecke, Jadassohn and Coccius, the first two
being his instructors in counterpoint and compo
sition. He finished a six-year course in three
years receiving at his graduation the first prize
in piano playing. He studied for several months
in Paris, and then for two years was in Munich
where he associated with the leading musicians
of the day and performed for Joseph Rheinberger
that famous composer's piano concerto, op. 94,
which he later introduced at concerts in Berlin
and Leipsic. He toured through the principal
cities of Germany, Leipsic, Berlin, Munich, Vi
enna, Gotha and others, and gave a series of piano
recitals that added much to his rapidly increasing
reputation as an artist and pianist. He left Ger
many in 1883 to come to America and a year later
located in Minneapolis where he has been en
gaged as a teacher of piano and in concert and
recital work. Since 1889 he has made three con
cert tours and has given piano recitals in Bos
ton, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Syracuse, St. Louis,
Indianapolis, Louisville, Cincinnati, and played at
the Music Teachers' National Convention at
Cleveland in 1892. During the time he has re
sided in Minneapolis he has given some four
score recitals, not including recitals in St. Paul,
Duluth and those of his eastern trips; among
which have been three Beethoven evenings, com
123
prised of the last five sonatas of that master, Bee
thoven's Emperor-Concerto in E Flat with Or
chestra twice, four Brahms evenings, one Schu
bert evening, and in the fall of 1906 he gave in
one evening the forty-eight "Songs without
Words" by Mendelssohn. Mr. Zoch has won an
enviable reputation as an instructor of the piano
and is recognized as a performer of great merit.
His programs, on which appear such names as
Beethoven, Schuman, Chopin, Brahms, Liszt,
Rheinberger,
Rubinstein,
Handel,
Henselt,
Joseffy, Jensen, Raff, Tausig, Scarlatti, Heller,
Wagner, Reinecke and others, reveal his wonder
ful repertoire, and give some insight into the con
tinuous labor at his art that has given Mr. Zoch
a place in the front rank of present day musicians.
HERMANN ZOCH.
CHAPTER X I .
ART, ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING
A
S in most western cities—or new cities
in any land—Minneapolis gave tardy
^-recognition to things artistic. Utility
was the first consideration in the young
city and during all her earlier years the
strife for gain shut out thought of the
beautiful. However the city was often visited by artists attracted by the picturesque
location and surroundings. As early as 1848
Henry Lewis, an artist of some reputation in
those days, visited St. Anthony and made
sketches of the falls, and afterwards executed a number of paintings, some of which are
still in existence in Minneapolis. Another
early visitor was Frank B. Mayer, who was
present at the Indian treaty of Traverse des
Sioux in 1851, and afterwards made a painting which hangs 111 the Minnesota State
Historical Society's gallery. Capt. Seth
Eastman, whose water color sketch is undoubtedly the earliest painting of the Falls
in existence, was commandant at the Fort
in 1841 and was employed by the government in the fifties to make sketches illustrating Indian life and customs.
In the nature of things it was many years
before it was possible for an artist to establish himself permanently in the city, and it
was not until 1883"when the-Minneapolis
Society of Fine Arts was organized, that art
began to have a definitely appointed place
in the city's life. The formation of the
society was largely due to the efforts of
Dr. W. W. Folwell, then president of the
university, who with twenty-four others,
were the charter members.
For several
years the society only held annual exhibitions but in 1886 the School of Fine Arts
was opened under the direction of Douglas
Volk who brought to the undertaking
at Minneapolis a high order of ability, and
whose early work gave abundant promise
of his later distinction as an artist. For
several years the school occupied temporary
quarters. Upon the completion of the publie library in 1889 the school occupied rooms
in the building and has since remained
there, gradually increasing its student body
and occupying more space from year to
year. Mr. Volk was succeeded in 1893 by
Robert Koehler who has since remained in
charge of the school with continued success,
This school maintains classes in antique art,
still life, portrait painting, water colors, and
departments for decorative design, handicrafts and architecture. There are now
about two hundred students. Annual exhibitions have been maintained and for
some years exhibitions of art photography
have been held occasionally.
In 1895 the Chalk and Chisel club was
formed. The name was afterwards changed
to the Arts and Crafts Society and the organization has the honor of being the oldest
of the arts and crafts societies of the country. Its purpose includes the development
of all the lines of art work and bi-annual
exhibitions are held. Among its active
members is Miss Mary .Moulton Cheney,
who is president in 1908.
The great interest in the revival of art
in handicraft made possible the institution of the Handicraft Guild which has
developed rapidly and in four years occupied a building erected especially for its
use. It has taken a most efficient part- in
the development of artistic taste in the city,
Besides maintaining and conducting a
school of design in which there is instruction in pottery making, metal work, leather
work, book-binding, wood work, wood carving, wood block printing, water color and
other arts, the guild maintains permanent
exhibition and sales rooms. In the building
ART, ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING
is a beautiful assembly hall and the Guild
is to a large extent the center of aesthetic
activity in Minneapolis. Its organization
and rapid progress is largely due to the
work of Misses M. Emma Roberts and Flor
ence Wales, president and secretary, res
pectively. Miss Roberts had been for some
years supervisor of drawing in the public
schools of the city and is responsible for
the excellent progress which has been made
in the schools notwithstanding many ob
stacles. Miss Wales had been a teacher of
art in the Central high school and is an ac
complished artist in water color.
Another artistic influence is that of the
Craftshouse where the art work of Mr. John
S. Bradstreet finds expression. Mr. Bradstreet has long been identified with the art
life of the city and gives special attention
to interior decoration and furnishing. The
Craftshouse, like the building of the Handi
craft Guild, is architecturally beautiful and
unique.
When the public library building was
planned the study of art was given broad
consideration, and in addition to arranging
for the housing of the School of Fine Arts
an art gallery was provided for and an art
book room established. The art gallery has
grown from small beginnings to be a col
lection of much merit and is enriched by
loans of excellent pictures owned by private
collectors. In the building there is also an
admirable collection of plaster casts of
statuary. Mr. T. B. Walker has built up
the largest private art collection in the city.
It is in a spacious gallery connected with
his residence at Eighth street and Henne-
125
mi
FIREPLACE IN THE HANDICRAFT GUILD.
pin avenue, where it is open to the public
during the daylight hours throughout the
year. Mr. Walker has taken great interest
in all art development in the city and is
one of the most prominent private collectors
in the West.
Public and official recognition of art has
been slow and first found expression in the
formation of the board of park commission
ers; although it is not to be supposed that
all who assisted in the promotion of the
park system understood that they were cul
tivating the artistic development of the city.
The Art Commission of the city created in
1901, was a tardy recognition of the need
of selection and discrimination in the pos
sible purchase or acceptance of works of
art. This commission is composed of E. C.
Chatfield, president, and Robert Koehler,
Wm. Channing Whitney, Edward C. Gale
and John S. Bradstreet—all men who have
been prominent in the art development of
the city.
ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING.
THE HANDICRAFT GUILD BUILDING.
The distinct advances made in the last
twenty years in matters architectural is one
of the most gratifying phases of Minne
apolis development. The numerous exam
ples of refined taste in residence, commer
cial and public buildings, reflect the influ
ence of a group of intelligent and progres
sive architects.
With the increase of
wealth and the advance of culture there is
a growing tendency to give the architect
free rein in planning both business and
residence structures. It has come to be un
derstood that architectural beauty may
126
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
have a commercial value and that a building of the most beautiful bridges in the West*
which conforms to the canons of good taste The steel arch bridge uniting the east and
need not necessarily be more expensive than west divisions of the city at the foot of
one which offends. Some very admirable the main thoroughfares is a well designed
examples of good business buildings have •and substantial structure; while the Lake
been erected in Minneapolis in the past street bridge over the Mississippi river is
half-dozen years. No attempt to illustrate noted for its graceful lines.
this development will be made in this chap
Education in the engineering profession
ter; but some of the notable buildings of has made decided progress while in
the city will be found pictured throughout architecture little has been done. An at
the pages of other chapters, in appropriate tempt was made to establish a course in
connection. Minneapolis architects have architecture at the university but it did
taken a large part in the aesthetic develop not meet with success. On the other hand
ment of the city, working prominently in the College of Engineering is one of the
the art society, for the guild work and on most important in the institution. Its
the park commission. Landscape architec courses cover civil and mechanical engineer
ture has been given much attention in more ing and all their subdivisions of municipal
recent years; many of the best modern res and sanitary engineering, structural en
idences of the city are particularly effective gineering, electrical engineering, railway
through their admirable settings. At pres and highway engineering, etc. The Min
ent the only architectural organization of neapolis Engineers Club is an active or
the city is the Minneapolis Architectural ganization with rooms at 17 South Sixth
Club, formed in 1907 by the younger men street.
of the profession. It has rooms at 116
BERTRAND, George Emile, of the firm of
South Fourth street. A. R. Van Dyck is
Bertrand & Chamberlin, architects, was born in
president and there are some forty mem Superior, Wisconsin, on June 22, 1859, the son
bers.
of A. G. and Marie (Landry) Bertrand. He-re
The engineering profession is of course ceived a public school.education and studied the
closely affiliated with the architectural profession of architecture in Boston and Min
neapolis, spending several years in offices of
group, especially in the specialties of struc leading architects. He has been engaged in the
tural steel and concrete work which are now practice of his profession since 1881 and estab
taking a very prominent place in building. lished himself permanently in Minneapolis in
It happens that Minneapolis is the home of 1886, and in 1896, with Arthur B. Chamberlin.
very extensive structural contracting firms formed the present firm. Mr. Bertrand is a
director in the State Institution for Savings. In
which require engineering ability of a high political affiliations he is a republican and he is
order. As one of the great water power a member of the Masonic Order and of the Com
cities of the world Minneapolis has em mercial and Six O'Clock Clubs. He is also a
ployed the best hydraulic engineering talent member of the Minnesota Chapter American In
of Architects. Some years ago he served
and resident representatives of this divis stitute
as a member of the Minnesota Light Infantry,
ion of the profession are consulted from the first company of militia organized in the
every part of the continent. In municipal state. Mr. Bertrand was married in September,
construction, bridge building and the like, 1888, to Miss Lillian Stoddard, a native of In
the best abilities in this department of diana. They have two daughters, Claire and
Marie.
engineering are called into service. In the
BOEHME, Christopher Adam, was born in
work of the engineer the practical is apt
to take precedence over the aesthetic, so Minneapolis, on January 16, 1865. His parents
were Gottfried J. and Eva Boehme, his father
that it is worth recording that some of the being a general contractor and hardware mer
prominent engineering work in Minneapolis chant. Mr. Boehme was educated in Minneap
does not lack in beauty. The stone arch olis, attending the public schools, the high
bridge which affords rail entrance to the schools and the University of Minnesota. After
graduation he entered the office of W. B. Dunnell,
union passenger station is not only a re a well-known architect of the city where he re
markable engineering achievement but one mained for fourteen years and rising to a position
ART, ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING
127
IN MR. T. B. WALKER'S ART GALLERY.
of responsibility as Mr. Bunnell's assistant. In
1896 he opened an office of his own, beginning
a practice which has grown steadily. Five years
ago he formed a partnership with Mr. Victor
Cordelia under the name of Boehme & Cordelia,
and this association has proven very successful.
The firm has planned some of the best of recent
structures in the Northwest. Mr. Boehme is a
member of several organizations—the North Side
Commercial Club, the Knights of Pythias Lodge,
of the Royal Arcanum and the St. Anthony Turn
Verein society. On May 21, 1891, he married
Miss Martha Oeschger of La Crosse, Wisconsin,
and they have three children, two daughters and
a son.
BRADSTREET, John Scott, comes of the very
best New England—or for that matter, Old Eng
land—stock, his father's name, Bradford Bradstreet, proclaiming his descent from two men
whose names are among those most honored in
Colonial history—William Bradford the Pilgrim
father who came to America in 1613 and was the
first governor of Plymouth Colony; and Hum
phrey Bradstreet, who came from Ipswich, Eng
land, in 1634, a n d was representative in 1635. John
S. Bradstreet, whose mother, the wife of Bradford
Bradstreet, had been Miss Susana Pickard-Scott,
was born at Rowley, Old Ipswich, Massachusetts,
in 1845, and graduated from the Putnam Academy
at Newburyport. The first years of Mr. Bradstreet's business life were spent with the Gorman
Manufacturing Company, in whose offices, at
Providence, he held a responsible position, until
early in the seventies, he decided to come West,
and selected Minneapolis as his place of residence
Here he has lived for thirty years, and in the
course of that time has exercised a most beneficial
influence on the artistic life, not only of the city,
but of the Northwest. On first coming to Min
nesota, he was associated in business with Edward
C. Clark, but he soon embarked for himself, and
continued alone until he formed a partnership
with Edmund J. Phelps, under the name of Phelps
& Bradstreet. On the dissolution of the partner
ship, the Thurbers of the Gorham Manufacturing
Company, became interested with him, and the
new firm was known as Bradstreet, Thurber &
Co. For the last six years F. H. Waterman has
been associated with him in the extensive and
very successful organization whose headquarters
are in the beautiful Craftshouse, a building, which,
128
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
republican in political belief and is a member of
the Minneapolis Commercial and the St. Anthony
Commercial Clubs; is a member of the Masonic
Order, Khurum Lodge, Scottish Rite Masons
and Zuhrah Temple of the Mystic Shrine. On
January 18, 1885, was married to Miss Georgia
Wood. They have four children.
JOHN S. BRADSTHEET.
both in its exterior and interior is entirely unique,
resembling in its character and the influence
which it exerts on the public, an Art Institute,
rather than a place of business. Mr. Bradstreet
has traveled widely, having made many visits to
Japan, collecting and studying Japanese art, as
well as having been around the world, and being
familiar with most of the European countries. He
is a member, in addition to most of the local
clubs, of the Asiatic Society of London and the
National Arts Club of New York, and has given
valuable services to the public as member of the
Minneapolis Park Board, having had the honor or
naming the latest acquisition to the park system,
"The Parade," and is also member and vice presi
dent of the Municipal Art Commission.
CHAMBERLIN, Arthur Bishop, of the firm
of Bertrand & Chamberlin, architects, was born
at Solon, Ohio, in 1865, the son of Anson B. and
Martha M. Chamberlin. When he was two years
old the family moved to Milwaukee where the
father entered the employ of the Chicago, Mil
waukee & St. Paul Railway. Mr. Chamberlin's
early boyhood was spent at Milwaukee and he
has lived in Minneapolis since 1882, completing
his education here and at an early age entering
an architect's office. He has followed the profes
sion for twenty-three years, joining Mr. Bertrand
in the present firm in 1898. Mr. Chamberlin is a
COLBURN, Serenus Milo, of the architec
tural firm of Kees & Colburn, was born at
Ansonia, Connecticut, October 12, 1871, the son
of Richard R. and Letitia (Terry) Colburn. He
received a public school education and when
fifteen years of age came west and obtained
employment at Minneapolis as draughtsman in
the office of James C. Plant. He remained
with Mr. Plant for five
years and after
wards filled
the position of head draftsman
in several architectural offices. In 1898 he be
came associated with Frederick Kees in the
present firm, an association which has been very
successful. Among the buildings which they
have designed are: Donaldson Building, Minne
apolis Chamber of Commerce; Northwestern Na
tional Bank; Powers Building; Donaldson's
Glass Block; Deere & Webber Building, and
buildings of the Advance Thresher Company;
J. I. Case Threshing Machine Company; Great
Northern Implement Company; Emerson &
Newton; Bement, Darling & Company, and
many large residences. Mr. Colburn is a mem
ber of the American Institute of Architects and
of the Commercial and Automobile Clubs. He
was married in Minnesota in 1899 to Miss Har
riet E. Whitcomb.
CORDELLA, Victor, of the architectural firm
of Boehme & Cordelia, is a native of Austrian
Poland but for many years has now studied and
practiced his profession in Minneapolis. He was
born on January 1, 1872, at Krakow, in Austrian
Poland, the son of Marian and Florence Cordelia.
His father was a sculptor who was desirous that
his son should have a good academic and pro
fessional education. The boy was sent to the
graded schools of Austria, obtained his prepara
tory education in the high schools and then en
tered the Royal Art Academy at Krakow where
he studied for some time. Later he was a stu
dent of technology under Professor Michael
Kowalczuk at Lemberg. Coming to the United
States and locating in St. Paul he began his
architectural training in the office of Cass Gilbert.
Since that time, about eighteen years ago, he
has been engaged in building an office practice.
Following his connection with Mr. Gilbert he
was associated with several architects of this
city—W. H. Dennis, W. B. Dunnell, and Charles
R. Aldrich. Five years ago he joined C. A.
Boehme in the present firm of Boehme & Cor
delia, which handles an extensive line of work in
the local field.
Mr. Cordelia was married to
Miss Ruth Maser of Canton, Ohio, on Septem
ber 15, 1902.
ART, ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING
FANNING, John Thomas, civil engineer, is
the son of John Howard and Elizabeth (Pridde)
Fanning. His family on both sides is of old
New England stock, as he is a descendant of
Edmund Gilbert Fanning, the first of the name
in America, who came from Ireland in 1652 and
settled near New London, Connecticut; and of
Lieutenant Thomas Tracy who settled in Con
necticut in 1636. Capt. John Fanning, the sixth
in line from Edmund and the grandfather of
John Thomas, was a veteran of the Revolution
ary war. Mr. Fanning was born at Norwich,
Connecticut, on December 31, 1837. He com
menced his education in the public and normal
schools of Norwich and later studied architec
ture and engineering. At the outbreak of the
Civil war in 1861 he enlisted in the Third regi
ment Connecticut Volunteer Infantry and served
the full term of the regiment. After the close
of the war he was commissioned a lieutenantcolonel in the Connecticut National Guard, for
merly having held a lieutenancy. He opened
an office in Norwich, and from that time till
he came to Minneapolis was engaged in the
planning of public and private buildings, mills,
bridges and water supply systems throughout
JOHN T. FANNING.
129
the New England States. In 1872 he moved his
office to Manchester, New Hampshire, to super
vise the installation of the public water supply.
He also designed several of the principal build
ings of that city and while he resided there was
a member of the board of education and chair
man of the high school committee. He was
employed to report on an additional water sup
ply for New York, Brooklyn and other cities
of the Hudson valley, and in numerous instances
has been retained as an expert witness in water
and drainage cases. About 1885 he received a
commission to report on improvements in the
system of the St. Anthony Falls Water Power
Company and one year later moved his office to
Minneapolis. From this point he has supervised
many large engineering operations in the west.
He was appointed engineer and agent of the St.
Anthony Falls Water Power Company in 1886;
and later was the engineer of the Great Falls,
Montana, and Helena, Montana, water powers
on the Missouri river, and of the Spokane water
power on the Spokane river. Col. Fanning also
devised a plan for draining 3,000 square miles of
the famous Red River Valley wheat land and at
different times has been consulting engineer of
the Great Northern, the St. Paul, Minneapolis
and Manitoba, and Minneapolis Union Rail
ways. He has been a patentee of several in
ventions connected with his profession—a slow
burning building construction, a steam-pumping
engine, steam boilers, water valves, and turbine
wheels. In 1873 he invented and constructed the
first wood-stave pipes such as are now extensive
ly used in public water supply and sewerage
works. Mr. Fanning's energies have not, how
ever, been directed entirely to the practical side
of his work. He has been an occasional lecturer
at the University of Minnesota and before tech
nical societies; and has written numerous papers
on technical subjects. He is the author of "A
Treatise on Hydraulic and Water Supply En
gineering," which reached the sixteenth edition
in 1906. He is a member of a number of the
professional organizations of the country; an
ex-director of the American Society of Civil
Engineers; an ex-president of the American Wa
ter Works Association; a Fellow of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science;
honorary member of the New England Water
Works Association; and a member of the En
gineers Club of this city, the Franklin Institute
and several other scientific societies. Politically
he is a republican. On June 14, 1865, he was
married at Norwich, Connecticut, to Miss Maria
Louise Bensley and they have a son and two
daughters, Rennie Bensley, Jennie Louise, wife
of Thomas A. Jamison, and Clara Elizabeth,
and was for many years a well known business
GILMAN, James B., chief engineer of the
Minneapolis Steel & Machinery Company, is the
son of one of Minnesota's pioneer settlers, and
was born and educated in this state. His father,
130
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
James B. Gilman, was a native of New York,
man in his section of the state. He resided, prior
to his removal to Minnesota, at Danville and was
engaged in the foundry business. In the year
1848 he disposed of his interests in New York
and moved to Minnesota, locating in Dakota
county, remaining in the state until the out break
of the Civil war, when he enlisted with the
famous First Minnesota, and served with that
regiment for three years. Following his muster
ing out of service, Mr. Gilman, Sr., returned to
Dakota county and was living there at the time
of his son's birth on January 28, 1872. The
mother of Mr. Gilman, Jr., was Laura C. (Foster)
Gilman, who was born in Massachusetts and had
moved to Minnesota with her family in the early
pioneer days. Mr. Gilman spent the early years
of his life at the place of his birth and received
his elementary education in the schools of Dakctfa county. In 1880 he came to Minneapolis
and entered the public schools, after which he
attended the University of Minnesota, taking up
the engineering course. He completed his studies
in 1894 and graduated with the class of that year,
taking a civil engineering degree. In addition to
ranking high in his technical studies, Mr. Gilman
was especially well prepared along practical lines
to begin work in the engineering field, by ex
perience with surveying parties with which he
had worked for parts of two years before his
;.v>v
JAMES B. OILMAN.
graduation on the survey of the Minneapolis, St.
Paul & Sault Ste. Marie railroad. The Soo was
at that time doing construction work on the right
of way between this city and Portal, North Da
kota, and Mr. Gilman obtained not only valuable
practice in engineering, but also had an oppor
tunity to acquaint himself with the greatest grain
producing region in the country. Shortly after
his graduation in 1894, Mr. Gilman accepted a
position as engineer with the Gillette-Herzog
Manufacturing Company, which was afterwards
merged in the American Bridge Company, one
of the largest manufacturers of steel construc
tion work in the world. Mr. Gilman was ad
vanced to the office of engineer of the Minneap
olis plant and cqntinued in that position until
February, 1907.
He then resigned to accept
the post he now occupies as chief engineer of the
Minneapolis Steel & Machinery Company, one of
the largest business enterprises of the Northwest
and one of the most extensive structural steel and
machinery plants in the country. Mr. Gilman's f
work covers a large field, as the firm does in all
sections of the country, a general construction
business which gives him unlimited scope for the
application of his technical knowledge and prac
tical experience of the engineering science. He
is a member of the Minneapolis Engineers Club,
of which he is past president, also a member of
the St. Anthony Commercial Club. Mr. Gilman,
although well known among his business and
social associates, has never been active in po
litical affairs, as an office holder. As a private
citizen, however, he is a republican and supports
the principles of that party. On June 14, 1899,
Mr. Gilman was married to Miss Alice A. Hayward and they have one daughter—Dorothy Gil
man.
GILES, Robert Tait, a foremost artist in the
designing of stained and leaded glass, is a nat
ive of England, born at Gateshead on Tyne, May
1, 1872. His father, Peter Giles, was, at the time
of his son's birth, a building contractor of Gates
head. Robert Tait passed his early life in that
town and when still a boy began his artistic
education. He attended the art school located in
his home town, the Gateshead School of Art,
and graduated from that institution, later taking
a course in the Rutherford School of Art at
Newcastle on Tyne, where he completed his
studies when about fourteen years of age. A
natural talent for the work developed rapidly
under capable instruction, and at the finish of
his work in both schools was awarded certificates
of excellence, and won a scholarship at the South
Kensington School of Art, in London. After
leaving school he was for two years engaged in
architectural drawing, and then turned his atten
tion to stained and leaded glass. He served an
apprenticeship for seven years in the various de
partments of that handicraft; designing, drafting
and painting—during this time being under the
direction of W. H. Drummond, T. R. Spence and
M. H. Marsh, the latter being a member of the
ART, ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING
131
stained and leaded glass in that organization.
He is in addition a member of the Empire Club
of St. Paul, and the Church Club of Minnesota.
Mr. Giles was married on February 2, 1903, to
Miss Belle Wheeler and they have two children,
Isabel Wheeler and Robert Eldon. Mrs. Giles
is, as well as her husband, a local artist of con
siderable importance. The family attends Gethsemane Church.
ROBERT T. GILES.
Royal Academy. Having mastered this art, Mr.
Giles left England to come to the United States,
and located at Chicago, remaining there for
about four years. During that period he was
associated with the principal firms of Chicago
as artist, but nine years ago he resigned the
position he was holding at the time and came
to> Minneapolis. In 1903 he established the firm
of R. T. Giles & Company, and conducted a
stained and leaded glass business in all its
branches. Mr. Giles was the proprietor of the
concern and under his direction the company
was a success, both from a material standpoint
and in building up a reputation for the excellence
of its work. In fact the business reached such
proportions and so many large commissions were
received that larger facilities were needed and
on October 15, 1907, Mr. Giles consolidated with
the Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company of Min
neapolis, and became director of the art depart
ment of the company. Mr. Giles during the
time of his residence here has been interested
in a number of the movements connected with the
advancement of the arts and handicrafts, and is
a member of the Minneapolis Society of Fine
Arts, holding also the position of instructor of
HEWITT, Edwin Hawley, architect, prac
ticing in Minneapolis, was born at Red Wing
Minnesota, on March 26, 1874. He is the son of
Charles N. and Helen R. Hewitt. His father, Dr.
Hewitt, is a distinguished surgeon, a native of
Vermont, a graduate of Hobart College and Al
bany Medical school and a veteran of the Army
of the Potomac with which he served during the
war as surgeon in chief of a division. His son
Edwin spent his boyhood at Red Wing, attended
Hobart College for one year and then returned
to Minnesota and completed his college course
at the University of Minnesota. While at the
University he attended the Minneapolis School of
Fine Arts at night and during vacations worked
in the office of Cass Gilbert, architect, then of
St. Paul. After graduating from the University
of Minnesota he devoted a year to post graduate
work in the Institute of Technology and then en
tered the office of Shepley, Rutan & Collidge,
architects, of Boston. After three and a half
years with this firm, Mr. Hewitt married and
went at once to Paris where he took the com
petitive examinations for entrance into Ecole des
Beau Arts. His standing in this examination
placed him at the head .of the list of foreign ap
plicants admitted and within one place of heading
the entire list of foreign and French. After four
years of work at Paris with side trips for study tc
England, Spain, Switzerland and Italy, he gradu
ated and returned to America in the fall of 1904.
After a few months he opened an office in the
Lumber Exchange in Minneapolis but finding the
quarters inadequate after two months of practice,
moved to larger rooms at 14-15 North Fourth
street. Here he remained for eighteen months and
then decided to build an office for his own perma
nent use and erected the attractive and artistic of
fice building which he now occupies at 716 Fourth
avenue south. Mr. Hewitt is a director of the
Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts, a member of
the governing board of the State Art Society, a
member of the Beaux Arts Society of New York,
and belongs to the Minneapolis Club and the
Minikahda Club of this city.
HUNT, William S., who has been a practic
ing architect of the city since 1888, was born in
Wisconsin, at the town of Delavan, on May 1,
1861, the son of Dr. Henderson Hunt and Sarah
Ann (Barlow) Hunt. The members of his fam
ily on his mother's side were prominent in their
professions and held various important public
offices. Stevan A. Barlow was for two terms
132
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
the attorney general of the state of Wisconsin.
John W. Barlow was an officer of the regular
army and held the rank of brigadier-general.
Dr. Hunt was a practicing physician at Delavan, and his son remained in that town during
the early part of his life and began his education
in the local schools. When he was sixteen years
of age the family moved to Beloit and he then
entered Beloit College, taking the scientific
course. He graduated with the class of 1880.
It was his intention to follow the profession of
architecture and went to Chicago and pursued
his architectural studies for three years. • To
complete his training he then entered the office
of one of the prominent architects of Chicago
and filled the duties of office student. He came
to Minneapolis and resumed his studies there
until 1888. In that year he began an independ
ent practice which he has continued with suc
cess. He has planned and designed a number of
large buildings in the city. In politics he is a
republican. He is a member of the Odd Fel
lows. Mr. Hunt was married in 1885 to Miss
Caroline Park Graves, who died on October 8,
1902. On May 29, 1906, he was again married
to Miss Barbara C. Maurer. They have no
children.
Mr. Hunt attends the Episcopal
church of which he has always been a member.
JONES', Harry Wild, was born June 9, 1859,
in Michigan, son of Howard M. Jones, a Baptist
clergyman. He is a grandson of Dr. S. F. Smith,
author of "My Country, 'Tis of Thee," the na
tional hymn, and great-grandson of Dr. Hezekiah Smith, a chaplain in the army of the Revolu
tion. Mr. Jones received his educational training
at Providence Rhode Island, in the University
grammar school, and took his A. B. degree at
Brown University in 1882. From the university
he went to Boston, where he continued his prepa
ration for the profession of architecture. Mr.
Jones from Boston came to Minneapolis and con
tinued his work with Plant & Whitney. He has,
since he began business on his own account, de
signed many structures for business and residence
purposes, presenting the necessary features of
utility and solidity, together with a high order
of architectural beauty, such as the Cream of
Wheat building, the warehouses of Butler Broth
ers, and of Wyman, Partridge & Co., and the
residences of F. W. Clifford, and George H. Dag
gett and James Quirk. Mr. Jones was professor
of architecture in the state university in 19001902, and he was for twelve years a member of
the park board. He is a member of the Com
mercial Club, the Six O'Clock Club, and the Minnetonka Yacht Club. He was president of the
Technology Club of Minnesota in 1904 and presi
dent of the Minnesota Chapter of the American
Institute of Architects in 1898-99. Mr. Jones is
a member of the Calvary Baptist Church. He
was married in 1883 to Miss Bertha J. Tucker,
of Boston, and three children have been born
to them—H. Malcom; Mary W.; Arthur Leo.
KEES, Frederick, of the firm of Kees &
Colburn, architects, was born at Baltimore, Mary
land, on April 9, 1852, the son of Frederick and
Eva (Schmidt) Kees. He attended the public
schools of Baltimore, and at an early age entered
the office of E. G. Lind, a Baltimore architect,
as draftsman, where he continued, with the ex
ception of a brief period in Chicago, until 1878.
He then came to Minneapolis, and after a short
experience in the office of L. S. Buffington, com
menced business for himself, first as Kees &
Fiske and later as a member of the firm of Long
& Kees, and since 1901 of the firm of. Kees &
Colburn, and during this long professional service
has been identified with many of the most prom
inent structures in the city, including the Syndi
cate Block, First Baptist Church, Court House
and City Hall, Public Library, Minneapolis
Chamber of Commerce, Northwestern National
Bank, Powers Block, Donaldson's Glass Block,
and buildings for Deere & Webber, Advance
Thresher Company, J. I. Case Thresher Com
pany and others. Mr. Kees was a member of
Company A, First Regiment, Minnesota National
Guard, for five years. He is a Mason, thirtysecond degree, Knight Templar, Shriner, and a.
member of the B. P. O. E. In politics he is inde
pendent. He was married in Minneapolis in 1881
to Miss Florence Smith.
FREDERICK KEES.
ART, ARCHITECTURE AND ENGINEERING
NUTTER, Frank H., was born April 20, 1853,
at Dover, New Hampshire, son of Abner J. and
Hannah (Roberts) Nutter. The father was a
school teacher for over fifty years, one of those
New England educators who builded character
out of the plastic material which came within
their professional reach. Frank H. spent his early
life in Boston and vicinity attending the public
schools and the Eliot high school which was
founded in 1692 by John Eliot, the Apostle to the
Indians, "for the free education of any white or
Indian boy." Mr. Nutter studied civil and land
scape engineering in Boston for several years
under eminent specialists like Joseph H. Curtis
and F. L. Lee and, after engaging in business on
his own account for a couple of years, removed to
Minneapolis in 1878, and from 1880 to 1890 in
company with Mr. Frank Plummer carried on
business under the firm name of Nutter & Plum
mer. Since the dissolution of this partnership,
Mr. Nutter has engaged in the landscape engi
neering work alone. Upon the organization of the
Minneapolis Board of Park Commissioners in
1883 Mr. Nutter was appointed Park Engineer, a
position which he held until 1906, when he resigned
to devote his attention to his private business,
and his son F. H. Nutter, Jr., was appointed to
fill the vacancy. Mr. Nutter's activities extend
over a wide field.
He has- designed private
grounds in New York, Virginia and Cali
fornia, in Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota and in
Manitoba, and other states and also makes a spe
cialty of parks and cemeteries. Mr. Nutter is a
republican in politics and is a member of the
Minneapolis Society of Civil Engineers, of the
State Horticultural Society, of the Minneapolis
Commercial Club and of the American Civic Asso
ciation. He is a member of the Congregational
church. He was married in April, 1881, to Carrie
F. Alden. To them have been born three chil
dren. Frank H. (the present Park Engineer),
Willard A., assistant of his father in professional
work, and Hannah A.
SEDGWICK, Charles S., was born in Cas
tile, New York, May 9, 1856, the son of Samuel
Sedgwick, afterwards superintendent of public
schools at Oberlin, Ohio. Samuel Sedgwick was
one. of a prominent family of Stockbridge, Mas
sachusetts, and during his boyhood was, with his
brothers, intimately associated with Cyrus, David,
Dudley and Henry Field, afterwards distin
guished members of the Field family, whose home
adjoined that of the Sedgwicks. Charles Sedg
wick was one of three brothers. He received a
common and high school education in Oberlin
and Poughkeepsie, New York, and soon after
the family removed to Binghamton, New York,
he entering the employment of Isaac G. Perry,
a well-known New York architect, in 1872, and
remaining with Mr. Perry twelve years, rising
during that time from apprentice boy to foreman,
133
draughtsman and assistant, having in charge the
construction of many large and important build
ings in New York state and Pennsylvania. In
1884 Mr. Sedgwick severed his connection with
Mr. Perry and came to Minneapolis, opening an
architectural office in the Hurlburt building on
Nicollet avenue, and later in the Collom build
ing on Fourth street, and in 1903 moving into the
Lumber . Exchange, where he still remains.
During his twenty-four years' practice in this
city he has planned many public and business
buildings and many churches and residences,
prominent among which are the Young Men's
Christian Association Building, State University
Library Building, Dayton Building, Boutell Build
ing, Westminster Presbyterian Church, Andrew
Presbyterian Church, Park Avenue Congrega
tional Church, etc. He has also planned many fine
buildings and churches in other cities. One of
the largest is the Second Congregational Church
of Waterbury, Connecticut. In addition to his
regular business, Mr. Sedgwick is publishing a
book of house designs, which is advertised in
leading magazines and is sold in all parts of the
country, being the medium through which the
planning of houses and buildings is secured for
different localities. Mr. Sedgwick is publishing
a descriptive page, with illustration of house and
plan, monthly in the Home Magazine of In
dianapolis, and Northwestern Agriculturist of
Minneapolis, and a weekly contribution to the
"Actualides" of Lima, Peru, South America. He
is also publishing house plans weekly through an
Eastern syndicate in many of the leading Sunday
newspapers, covering over twenty-two states and
Canada. Mr. Sedgwick has not specialized on any
particular branch, but has extended experience
along all lines of architectural work.
WHITNEY, William Charming, was born at
Harvard, Massachusetts, April 11, 1851, son of
Benjamin F. Whitney. After the usual rudi
mentary educational training, he entered the
Lawrence Academy at Groton, Massachusetts,
and passed to the higher education in the
Massachusetts State College and graduated
with the class of 1872. He then devoted
his attention to the study of architecture, for
which he had an instinctive love and taste, and
in Boston's art schools and architects' offices and
in independent study, he developed the taste and
original qualities of perception of architectural
proprieties which have characterized his work in
Minneapolis. Mr. Whitney is a republican in
politics and is a Fellow of the American Insti
tute of Architects, a director of the Minneapolis
Society of Fine Arts, a member of the Art Com
mission of Minneapolis, and a member of the
Minneapolis Club. Mr. Whitney was married on
October 6, 1881, to Alma C. Walker, of Watertown, Massachusetts, and to them have been born
two daughters.
CHAPTER XII.
COURTS AND LAWYERS
I
N THE earliest days of its history,
Minneapolis seems to have done quite
well without courts or lawyers.
It
appears to have been an unusually peaceful
community for a frontier village, as there
are no records of serious crime committed
in the early pioneer days and there was an
entire absence of spirit of litigation among
the inhabitants. It is a matter of history
that the first term of court convened within
the present limits of the city found abso
lutely no cases to be tried.
Previous to the organization of Minne
sota Territory in 1849, there were no courts
available had there been litigants without
number. The east side of the Mississippi
river had passed successively through the
jurisdiction of the French and English and
of the territories of Indiana, Illinois, Michi
gan and Wisconsin. Under the latter gov
ernment two terms of court had been held
at Stillwater, but the potential Minneapolis
had not participated.
On the western bank of the Mississippi
there was judicial authority as early as 1835
or 1836, when Henry H. Sibley received
from the governor of Iowa a commission as
justice of the peace with jurisdiction ex
tending from below Prairie du Chien to the
British possessions on the north. Gen.
Sibley's power was almost unlimited and
his acts were never called in question by
higher authorities, but, being a man of high
character, there is no thought that he ever
misused his power, although the exigencies
of frontier conditions seemed to make it
necessary that the representative of the law
should not always confine himself to exact
limits of authority. Among certain of the
settlers it was firmly believed that Justice
Sibley had the power of life and death,
which was perhaps just as well.
Minnesota became a territory of the
United States on March 3, 1849. The or
ganic act provided that the judicial power
of the territory should be vested in a
supreme . court, district courts, probate
courts and justices of the peace. The first
of these tribunals was constituted in the ap
pointment by President Taylor of Aaron
Goodrich of Tennessee as chief justice and
David Cooper of Pennsylvania and B. B.
Meeker of Kentucky as associate justices.
Governor Ramsey issued a proclamation
dividing the territory into three judicial dis
tricts; the first , lying between the Missis
sippi and St. Croix rivers, the second be
tween the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers,
and the third composed of the remainder
of the territory, or that part south of the
Minnesota river. Judge Goodrich was as
signed to the first district, Judge Meeker to
the second, and Judge Cooper to the third.
Under these appointments and assign
ments the first term of court in the terri
tory of Minnesota was held at Stillwater on
the second Monday of August, 1849. At
this time the first grand jury of Minnesota
was impaneled, and ten indictments were
found. But when the second district court
was convened in the following week in the
old government mill at the Falls of St. An
thony, it was discovered that absolutely no
cases were to be tried, while the first grand
jury in this district could find no work to
do. Franklin Steele, the St. Anthony pio
neer, was foreman of this first grand jury.
PIONEER LAWYERS.
The absence of legal business did not,
however, deter lawyers from coming to Min
neapolis. The first lawyer to establish him
self was Ellis G. Whitall, who opened an
office on the east side in 1849; the second
was John W. North who came early in 1850.
COURTS AND LAWYERS
135
advancement in the pioneer days it may be
cited that Judge Welch was chosen justice
of the peace and while in that office was ap
pointed to the supreme bench of the state.
During the early fifties such well-known
names as William Lochren, J. B. Gilfillan,
F. R. E. Cornell, C. E. Vanderburgh, E. S.
Jones, W. D. Washburn, R. J. Baldwin, W.
W. McNair, L. M. Stewart and Eugene M.
Wilson were added to the roll of the local
bar. From this time on the rapid growth
of the city and the numerous accessions to
the bar make enumeration in detail impos
sible.
In does not appear that after the first
unproductive session of court in 1849, an Y
judge attempted another for several years,
but in the meantime the people of St. An
thony established, under the territorial law,
a justice's court, electing to the office Lardner Bostwick, who had arrived at the Falls
in 1850. Judge Bostwick had no legal edu
cation, but he was of unquestioned honesty
and practical common sense and had the
confidence and love of his constituents. He
meted out justice after his own fashion for
JUDGE ISAAC ATWATER.
many years, being re-elected from time to
Mr. North was a forceful man who took a time. Many cases of considerable import
very prominent part in the early history of ance, and which were not properly in the
the young city. The third attorney to jurisdiction of a justice's court, were
come here was the late Judge Isaac At- brought before Judge Bostwick and tried
water. He arrived in October, 1850, and and decided with no question from any
with Mr. North formed the first law part one. Judge Bostwick's court was held for
nership. Judge Atwater was even then a many years in a small frame building at
versatile and progressive man. He had a the corner of Main street and Second ave
hand in the foundation laying of the city nue northeast. In 1856 Judge Bostwick
and never lost interest in matters pertaining was admitted to the bar and in after life he
to the public welfare. Before he had been served the city and county in various public
in the state a year he was appointed upon capacities.
the board of regents of the University of
In 1853 the territorial legislature passed
Minnesota, and in 1857 was elected associ an act directing that two terms of court be
ate justice of the supreme court. Mean held each year in Hennepin county. The
while he had edited newspapers, invested first term held pursuant to this law con
in real estate and taken an active part in vened on April 4, 1853. There was, of
local and territorial politics. Later he course, no court house, and the commission
served in the city council and on the board ers secured the use of a parlor and two
of education.
bed rooms in the house of Anson Northrup,
Soon after Judge Atwater came D. A. on First street, near Fourth avenue south.
Secombe, who was a leading member of the At this term the lawyers present were Isaac
bar until his death in 1892. In 1852 Wil Atwater, D. A. Secombe, E. L. Hall, James
liam H. Welch arrived in St. Anthony. As H. Fridley and George W. Prescott. The
an instance of the opportunities for rapid county attorney was Warren Bristol. The
136
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
COURT HOUSE AND CITY IIALL.
clerk of the court was Sweet W. Case, and
the foreman of the grand jury impaneled
was Dr. A. E. Ames. The subsequent terms
of the district court, until the erection of
the courthouse at Eighth avenue south
and Fourth street, were held in a frame
building on Bridge Square.
THE FIRST COURTHOUSE.
The building, of the first
courthouse
caused great commotion in the village,
owing to the rival claims of the upper and
lower town. The latter won and the court
house was built at Eighth avenue south.
The first term of the district court held in
the new courthouse of 1857 w a s presided
over by the late Judge Flandrau. Upon the
organization of the state, next year, James
Hall of Little Falls became the first judge
of this, the fourth judicial district, which
then included thirteen counties besides Hen
nepin.
With the admission of Minnesota to
statehood, in 1858, came many changes in
the courts. The judicial office was made
elective and the supreme judges ceased to
serve on the district bench. During the
first year of statehood eighty-nine lawyers
were enrolled in the office of the clerk of
the supreme court as members of the bar
COURTS AND LAWYERS
of the state. This number increased very
rapidly. Provision was also made for the
establishment of other courts at the pleasure
of the legislature. This power led later to
the establishment of courts of common
pleas and municipal courts.
As the constitution provided for only one
judge to a district, the growing needs of the
fourth district were met by the 'gradual
lopping off of outside counties. But in 1872
it became necessary to provide for larger
business, and a court of common pleas was
created, with Austin H. "Young as judge.
After a few years this extra court was found
cumbersome, and it was merged in the
district court. There were then two judges
of the district court. Judge Charles E. Van
derburgh had been elected in 1859 and had
retained the position ever since; holding it,
in fact, until his elevation to the supreme
bench in 1882. In 1881 the business of the
district had so greatly increased that the
legislature authorized an additional judge,
and William Lochren was appointed to the
position by Governor Pillsbury. These
three judges occupied the bench for much
longer terms than any others who have ever
served the district.
The court house of 1857 was outgrown at
a very early date. Numerous additions
gave temporary relief but added to the unsightliness of the structure, and in 1887 for
mal steps were taken towards the erection
of a suitable building. The legislature of
this year intrusted a commission with the
duty of purchasing a site and erecting a
building to be used jointly by the city and
county as a courthouse and city hall. The
members of this commission were William
D. Washburn, Charles M. Loring, John C.
Oswald, John Swift, Oliver T. Erickson, W.
S. Chowen, David M. Clough, Lars Swenson and Titus Mareck. To these were sub
sequently added George A. Brackett, E. F.
Comstock and E. M. Johnson. Upon the
resignation of Mr. Loring, John DeLaittre
was appointed. After some negotiation,
the block bounded by Fourth and Fifth
streets and Third and Fourth avenues
south was secured and the work of con
struction was commenced in 1889. The
county side of the building was practically
137
JUDGE A. II. YOUNG.
completed and opened for use in November,
1895. It is one of the finest courthouses in
the country and cost over $3,000,000.
FEDERAL COURTS.
Minnesota was constituted a judicial dis
trict of the United States immediately upon
its admission, but terms of the United
States courts were always held in St. t*aul
until 1890, when the district was sub-di
vided. . Since then the court has been held
during stated terms in the federal building
in Minneapolis. The first Minneapolis law
yer to receive appointment to the U. S. dis
trict bench was Judge William Lochren,
who had long served as judge of the state
district court. He was appointed in 1896
and served until 1908, when he resigned,
and Milton D. Purdy of Minneapolis was
appointed his successor. Eugene M. Wil
son and Eugene G. Hay have represented
the Minneapolis bar in the list of U. S. dis
trict attorneys.
138
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
JUDGES OF THE DISTRICT COURT.
The judges of the fourth judicial district
since the organization of the state have
been these: James Hall, May 24, 1858, to
October 1, 1858; Edward O. Hamlin, Octo
ber 1, 1858, to December 31, 1858; Chas. E.
Vanderburgh, January 1, 1859, t o January
1, 1882; A. H. Young, January, 1877, to
January, 1891; John M. Shaw, January 13,
1882, to January 8, 1884; M. B. Koon, Jan
uary 8, 1884, to May 1, 1886; John P. Rea,
May 1, 1886, to March 5, 1889; William
Lochren, November 19, 1881, to May, 1893;
Henry G. Hicks, March 16, 1887, to Janu
ary, 1895; Frederick Hooker, March 5, 1889,
to September, 1893; Seagrave Smith, March
5, 1889, to May, 1898; C. M. Pond, Novem
ber 18, 1890, to January, 1897; Thos. Canty,
January 5, 1891, to January, 1894; Robert
D. Russell, May 8, 1893, to October 20,
1897; Robert Jamison, September 19, 1893,
to December 1, 1897; Charles B. Elliott,
January, 1894, to October 4, 1905; Henry
C. Belden, January, 1895," to May 5, 1897;
David F. Simpson, January 5, 1897, to Janur
ary, 1909; Edward M. Johnson, May 5,
1897, to January, 1899; John F. McGee,
October 20, 1897, to November 19, 1902;
Willard R. Cray; November 19, 1902, to
January, 1905 ; William A. Lancaster, De
cember 1, 1897, to January 2, 1899; Alex
ander M. Harrison, May 19, 1898, to Janu
ary, 1905 ; Chas. M. Pond, January 2, 1899,
to January, 1905; Frank C. Brooks, January
2, 1899, to January, 191 1; Andrew Holt,
January 2, 1905, to January, 191 1; Horace
D. Dickinson, January 2, 1905, to January,
1911; John Day Smith, January 2, 1905, to
January, 191 1; Frederick V. Brown, Octo
ber 4, 1905, to January, 1913.
During, the territorial period Sweet W.
Case was clerk of the district court. Under
the state government the clerks have been
as follows: H. A. Partridge, H. O. Ham
lin, J. P. Plummer, George H. W. Chowen,
D. W. Albaugh, L. Jerome, J. A. Wolverton, E. J. Davenport, C. B. Tirrell, George
G. Tirrell, C. N. Dickey, A. E. Allen.
During the period from 1867 to 1872 the
office of city justice was held by Judge
Charles H. Woods, H. A. Partridge, D.
Morgan, J. L. Himes, and Henry G. Hicks.
The names of the city attorneys for old
St. Anthony, Minneapolis and the consoli
dated city after 1872 will be found in the
list of city officials in the chapter on Public
Affairs and Officials. Frank Healy, the
present incumbent, was appointed in 1897
and is now serving his twelfth year of ser
vice—by far the longest term of any city
attorney since the beginning of the city.
Since 1888 the term of office has commenced
on January 1 and has been for two years.
THE MUNICITAL COURT.
WILLIAM S. PATTEE.
Dean of the College of Law, University of Minnesota.
Soon after the consolidation of the two
cities an act was passed, in 1874, establish
ing a municipal court in Minneapolis. This
court was given much larger jurisdiction
than the city justices. Grove B. Cooley was
elected municipal court judge in 1874 and
served until April, 1883. In 1877 the busi«
ness of the court had so increased that a
special judge was provided, and Reubin
Reynolds was appointed and served until
1879. Francis B. Bailey was then appointed
and held the office until April, 1883, when
COURTS AND LAWYERS
139
X:
FROM THe SWEET COLLECTION
LAW BUILDING; UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA.
he was elected regular judge for the term
expiring Jan. I, 1889. At the same time
Stephen Mahoney was elected special judge.
George D. Emery was elected judge for the
term commencing January 1, 1889, and
Judge Mahoney was re-elected special judge
at the same time. Upon the resignation of
Judge Emery, in 1891, Charles B. Elliott
was appointed to the office for the unex
pired term, and was re-elected in 1892. He
served until January 4, 1894, when he was
appointed to the district bench and Andrew
Holt was appointed as his successor. In
1896 William A. Kerr was elected special
judge to succeed Judge Mahoney. In 1901
H. D. Dickinson succeeded Judge Kerr and
in 1905 both Judge Holt and Judge Dickin
son were elevated to the district bench and
Edward F. Waite and C. L. Smith were ap
pointed to fill the vacancy. In the fall of
1906 Judge Waite was elected judge of the
municipal court for the full term and Judge
Smith was elected special judge at the same
time and both are now serving on the bench.
The first judge of probate in Hennepin
county was Joel B. Bassett, who was elect
ed in 1852. It appears from the records
that during his two years' service only one
person died who was possessed of any prop
erty requiring the care of the court, and no
estates were administered. Judge Bassett
was succeeded by E. S. Jones, who held the
office for four years. Lardner Bostwick
was judge of probate in i860 and 1861, and
N. H. Hemiup from 1861 to. the close of the
year 1870. The succeeding judges were
these: Franklin Beebe, 1870-1875; E. A.
Gove, 1875; P- M. Babcock, 1876 and 1877;
John P. Rea, 1877 to 1882; A. Ueland, 1882
to 1887; F. Von Schlegel, 1887 to 1890;
Francis B. Bailey, 1890; J. R. Corrigan, 1891
and 1892; John H. Steele, 1893—1896;
140
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
building, but an appropriation of $25,000
was soon secured and the original law
building was erected in time for the open
ing of the fall session of 1889. This build
ing has since been greatly enlarged to meet
the growth of the student body. An enroll
ment of sixty-seven students during the
first year was followed by a rapid increase
until the college has become one of the lead
ing law schools of the country.
In 1895 the course of study was length
ened from two to three years. There was
some fear lest this change should prove too
radical, as this was the first western school
to propose such a forward movement; but
other schools soon followed the example.
In the same year of 1895 a graduate depart
ment was organized leading to the degree
BAR ASSOCIATIONS.
of LL. M. This course of study included
In 1883 the Minneapolis Bar association the subjects of general jurisprudence, politi
was organized with the purpose of building cal science, constitutional history and juris
up a substantial and permanent law library. prudence, and some others which vary from
Its first president was the late E. M. Wil year to year as necessity requires. Those
son, and it had a membership of forty-six students only are admitted to this course
leading lawyers. It has since grown in who have received their degree of B. L. In
strength, and its library—long housed in 1898 a third course consisting of advanced
Temple Court—has now found a permanent work in comparative jurisprudence, Roman
home in the courthouse.
law, the philosophy of jurisprudence and
The Hennepin County Bar association political science was organized. No definite
was formed in 1896, in recognition of a de time was prescribed within which the work
mand for an organization which should in required for graduation should be per
clude all reputable members of the profes formed, but students are permitted a rea
sion in Hennepin county, and with the sonable time to prepare and present their
avowed objects of advancing the science of final theses, the acceptance of which by the
jurisprudence, promoting the administra faculty entitles the candidate to the degree
tion of justice and upholding the honor of of D. C. L.
the law. The body has no regular meet
The faculty of the college of Law is as
ings, but is called together from time to follows: Cyrus Northrop, president; Wil
time as needs arise.
liam S. Pattee, dean; A. C. Hickman, James
Paige, Henry J. Fletcher, Edwin A. JagLEGAL EDUCATION.
gard, Howard S. Abbott, Robert S. Kolliner,
In 1888 the College of Law of the Uni Hugh E. Willis, Hugh V. Mercer, Homer
versity of Minnesota was established and W. Stevens, Charles W. Bunn, Christopher
was opened on September 11, with an ad D. O'Brien, and Jared How. The special
dress by Dean W. S. Pattee, who had been lecturers are John Lind, Charles B. Elliott,
called to the head of the school and who A. B. Jackson, T. D. O'Brien, John W. Wil
has since continuously devoted his time and lis, William F. Lancaster, Rome G. Brown,
abilities to its interests. At first the law Daniel Fish, Edmund S. Durment, John F.
department was quartered in the old main McGee.
Frederick C. Harvey, 1897 to 1907; George
R. Smith, 1907.
Since the organization of the state, Hen
nepin county has had eighteen county at
torneys. The complete list follows: James
R. Lawrence, November 1, 1858; W. W.
McNair, May 5, 1862; J. B. Gilfillan, May,
4, 1863; George R. Robinson, May 1867; J.
B. Gilfillan, May, 1869; David A. Secombe,
May, 1871; J. B. Gilfillan, March, 1873;
James W. Lawrence, January 1, 1875; W.
*E. Hale, 1879; John G. Woolley, 1883;
Frank F. Davis, 1885; Robert Jamison,
1889; L. R. Thian, 1891; Frank M. Nye,
1:893; James A. Peterson, 1897; Louis A.
Reed, 1899; Fred H. Boardman, 1901; A1
J. Smith, 1905.
COURTS AND LAWYERS
ABBOTT, Howard Strickland, son of the Rev.
Abiel H., and Mary Ellen Strickland Abbott, was
born Sept. 15th, 1863 at Farmington, Minn., and
spent his boyhood in Minnesota. His father be
came a member of the Minnesota Methodist
Church Conference, which he joined in 1855, con
tinuing to be an active clerical worker until his
death in 1903. The son Howard came near being
a victim of the Sioux Indian massacre in 1862,
his father being then stationed at St. Peter. When
fourteen years old he taught school, and, after
preparation at the Minneapolis Academy, he en
tered the state university, graduating in 1885 with
the degree of B. L. He studied law in Minne
apolis with James D. Springer, then general solic
itor for the Minneapolis & St. Louis and the
"Soo" railway companies, and was admitted to
the bar, after oral examination by the Supreme
Court, in April, 1887. After admission, he was
appointed assistant general solicitor for the M.
& St. L., and "Soo" railways and, in 1890, be
came assistant counsel for the Atchison,
Topeka & Santa Fe R. R., at Chicago and then
at St. Louis. From 1886 to 1890 he was secretary
of the Wisconsin, Minnesota & Pacific Ry. Co.,
and in 1897 succeeded W. D. Cornish as special
master in chancery of the Union Pacific Railway
Company, then in the hands of receivers. He
devoted himself for the next four years to the
task of closing up the affairs of that corpora
tion, which involved the solution of many dif
ficult problems and the supervision of the proper
disbursement of many millions of dollars paying
claims and operating the road besides writing de
cisions as to disbursements and questions of
policy which were in no case reversed on appeal.
Mr. Abbott, upon the termination of this work,
came to Minneapolis and was appointed Stand
ing Master in Chancery, U. S. Circuit Court,
District of Minnesota, and has lectured on public
and private corporations and civil law in the law
department of the state university. Mr. Abbott
is the author of several valuable works on the
law of corporations, the most recent being a
three volume work on municipal corporations,
which has received the highest encomiums from
judges and lawyers as a discussion of rare schol
arship and analytical acuteness. Mr. Abbott
has also distinguished himself as a bond and
security expert and an authority on railway ques
tions. He is now a director of the Minneapolis
Trust Co., and a member of the executive com
mittee. The family, which is descended from
George Abbott of Rowley, Mass., who came to
this country in 1632, can boast of many members
who have done notable work in literature, as the
historian J. S. C. Abbott, Jacob Abbott, noted
as an educator and writer, and Austin and Ben
jamin Vaughn Abbott as lawyers and the distin
guished Dr. Lyman Abbott, who are near rela
tives of Howard S. Abbott.
Mr. Abbott is a member of the Minneapolis,
the Minikahda and the Lafayette Clubs and a
141
HOWARD S. ABBOTT.
member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon college fra
ternity. He attends St. Marks Episcopal Church
and is a member of the vestry of that parish and
one of the trustees of the Diocese of Minne
sota. He was married on June 28, 1898, to Mary
Louise Johnson, of Racine, Wis. To them two
children have been born, Emily Louise and
Howard Johnson.
ALBERT, Charles Stanley, lawyer, is a Pennsylvanian, born at Williamsport, July 10, 1872,
and the son of Allen D. and Sarah A. (Faber)
Albert. Until he was sixteen he went to the
common schools of Wilkesbarre—to which city
his parents removed when he was four—and of
Towanda, where he lived between ten and sixteen.
His father then took a post as a government offi
cial at Washington, D. C., and his son Charles
studied law in the office of Worthington & Heald
and attended the law school of Columbian Uni
versity, (now George Washington University).
He graduated from Columbian with his LL. B. in
1892, and LL. M. in 1893, then came to Min
neapolis and entered the office of Benton, Rob
erts & Brown, attending the University of Min
nesota law school in the winters of '93-'94- He
received his LL. B. from this in 1894. Between
1897 and 1900 Mr. Albert was in partnership with
W. E. Dodge. After Mr. Dodge's appointment
as general attorney for the Great Northern Rail-
142
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
way, with headquarters at St. Paul, he formed a
partnership with Rome G. Brown. Mr. Albert is
a gold democrat. He belongs to the legal fra
ternity of Phi Delta Phi and to the American,
State, Hennepin County and Minneapolis Bar
associations, and is a member of the Minneapolis,
Minikahda, and the Lafayette clubs. He is un
married. As a member of the firm of Rome G.
Brown and Charles S. Albert he is attorney for a
large number of corporations in Minneapolis and
in Minnesota.
ANKENY, Alexander Thompson, son of Isaac
Ankeny and Eleanore Parker Ankeny, was born
at Somerset, Pennsylvania, December 27, 1837.
After receiving in his native town a common school
education he attended the Disciples' College at
Hiram, Ohio, and later an academy at Morgantown, West Virginia, and Jefferson College at
Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. He then received an
appointment at Washington in the office of the
United States Attorney General, Hon. Jeremiah
S. Black, at the same time reading law there. He
was admitted to the bar at Somerset in April.
1861. During the war he held a position of more
than ordinary trust in the War Department under
Hon. Edwin M. Stanton. Mr. Ankeny came to
Minneapolis in April, 1872, and for some years
was connected with thq* lumber firm of W. P.
Ankeny & Bro. In 1878 he resumed law prac
tice and has since continued therein. During his
g, a
BRUSH, PHOTO
ALEXANDER T. ANKENY.
residence in the city he has been identified with
its best progress and development. He has fre
quently been a candidate of the democrats, in
1890 coming within a few votes of election as
one of the district judges. In 1896 he was the
party candidate for mayor. From 1886 to 1895
he was a member of the board of education, and
for the last four years of the term was its presi
dent, also being ex-officio a member of the li
brary board. From 1899 to 1903 he was presi
dent of the state normal school board. Mr. An
keny was one of the incorporators of the Ma
sonic Temple Association in 1885, and for sev
eral years has been president of the board. He
is identified with the Portland Avenue Church
of Christ and is one of its three trustees. Mr.
Ankeny was married at Wheeling, West Virginia,
in 1861, to Miss Martha V. Moore. Four children
now grown reside in this city, the eldest daughter,
Mrs. Chester McKusick, having died at Duluth,
Minnesota, in 1900. Mrs. Ankeny died here May
27, 1904.
ARCTANDER, Ludvig, lawyer, was born at
Skien, Norway, on January 3, 1863, the son of
August H. and Caroline Ahlsell Arctander. His
father was a college professor at Skien. The
Arctander family is one of the old families of
Norway and one whose members have taken an
active part in the intellectual and political life
of the country for four hundred years. A cousin,
Sophus Arctander, is a member of the present
Norwegian cabinet and was one of the chief
actors in the movement which resulted in the
dissolution of the union between Norway and
Sweden. As a boy Mr. Arctander attended the
high school and college at Skien and received
the degree of M. A. at the University of Christiania in 1881. In the same year he emigrated to
the United States. He first went to Willmar,
Minnesota and taught school in Kandiyohi and
Renville counties during 1882, '83 and '84; edited
the Willmar Argus in 1885 and all this time de
voted himself to the study of law. He was ad
mitted to the bar in 1885 and in January, 1886,
commenced practice in Minneapolis. His twenty
years of practice have been closely devoted to
his profession and he has given little time to
outside pursuits. His only participation in poli
tics has been as an independent voter and citizen
—so much so that he has no party affiliations
and has never taken any active part in political
campaigns or filled public office. Mr. Arctander
was married in 1903 to Mrs. Dolly Miller. They
have no children.
AUSTIN, Charles D., lawyer, is the son of
David Austin, a Maine farmer. He was born
April 26, 1856, at Belgrade, Kennebec county,
Maine. He was brought up on his father's farm
to which he returned for his vacations while fit
ting for and attending college. During a portion
of the time he was attending college he spent
143
COURTS AND LAWYERS
against an entryman, which was carried to the
Supreme Court of the United States by him and
where his contention was finally sustained, was
a very important case and one of general inter
est.
On June 1st, 1893, he moved to Minneapolis
and formed a partnership with Judge Bailey,
which continued until his death. After that he
was in partnership with Judge Pierce for several
years, but is now in business for himself. Mr.
Austin is a Republican. He is a member of the
Westminster Presbyterian Church of Minneapolis.
By his marriage to Adelaide J. Van Vleck, Jan
uary 25, 1888, he has one child—Van Vleck Aus
tin.
BARDWELL, Winfield W., was born July 18,
1867, at Excelsior, Hennepin county, Minnesota,
son of William E. and Araminta Hamblet Bardwell, his father being an engineer. After attending
the common schools and academy at Excelsior,
Winfield entered the office of Harlan P. Roberts
in Minneapolis as stenographer and clerk, and
then took a course of law at the State University,
receiving from that institution the degree of LL.
B., and the supplementary degree of LL. M., for
the required graduate work. Since 1891 Mr. Bardwell has been engaged in the practice of his pro
fession, first in partnership with James M. Burlingame, as Burlingame & Bardwell, and later
with C. L. Weeks, as Bardwell & Weeks, and
SWEET, PHOTO
CHARLES IX AUSTIN.
his vacations in teaching school to defray ex
penses. He attended the Wesleyan College but
did not complete the course there. In the year
1880, upon the advice of his brother, Horace Aus
tin, Ex-Governor of Minnesota, then Register of
the United States Land Office at Fargo, Dakota,
he started for Fargo reaching therein the spring
of that year. At that place he entered the gov
ernment service in the Land Office where he re
mained for about one year while looking for a
suitable place to locate permanently.
He located at Lisbon, Ransom County, Da
kota Territory (now North Dakota) on July 5th,
1881, when the town was forty miles from the
nearest railroad station. This section of the
country was just being developed and he did a
large land and loan business from the outset.
Having been admitted to the bar in 1882 he en
gaged in the practice of law in addition to his
other business.
He was a member of the territorial legisla
ture during the session of 1884-5, the stormy ses
sion at which an attempt was made to remove
the capital from Bismarck. He held several other
offices having been mayor of Lisbon, a member
of the board of education, besides holding several
minor offices. As a lawyer, Mr. Austin was en
gaged in important litigation. The Hewitt case,
involving the right of the Northern Pacific Rail
road Company to select indemnity lands as
SWEET, PHQTO
WINFIELD W. BARDWELL.
144
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
with the American Express Company. In 1885
he matriculated at Williams College, and grad
uated with an A. B. degree in 1887, winning the
Van Vechten prize, awarded to the best ex
tempore speaker of the graduating class by the
popular vote of the students and faculty. He
moved to Minneapolis and the following year
commenced to qualify himself for the legal pro
fession by studying law in a Minneapolis law
office and in 1889 was admitted to the bar. Mr.
Baxter began his active legal practice in 1890
at Minneapolis, and in 1906 was appointed gen
eral counsel for the Northwestern National Life
Insurance Company, a position he now holds.
In 1891 Mr. Baxter was married to Miss Gertrude
Hooker of Minneapolis, and they have three
children, Beth, Helen and John, aged respec
tively fifteen, eleven and four years. Mr. Baxter
is a member of the Commercial Club, the Six
O'clock Club, the American Bar Association
and the Minneapolis Bar Association of which he
was for fifteen years secretary.
BLEECKER, George Morton, was born at
Whippany, New Jersey, on November 19, 1861,
being descended from one of the earlier Knicker
bocker families who settled on Manhattan island.
He attended the public schools and Whippany
Academy, and after coming to Minneapolis, in
1883, entered the University of Minnesota and
continued special work during that and the fol-
SWEET, PHOTO"
JOIIN T. BAXTER.
latterly he has practiced alone. Mr. Bardwell was
a member of the legislature in the sessions of
1903-1905, and chairman of the Hennepin county
delegation and of the committee on insurance in
1905. He introduced and put through bills for
general salary adjustment of Hennepin county
officials and introduced a bill placing city clerk,
assessor and engineers on the elective basis, but
the measure did not pass the senate. Mr. Bard
well is a member of the Commercial Club, of the
Masonic Order, and the Royal Arcanum, Secre
tary of the Hennepin County Bar Association,
and member of the executive committee of the
Minneapolis Bar Association. Mr. Bardwell is
a member of the Park Avenue Congregational
Church. He was married in 1892 to Edith May
Champlin and three children have been born to
them, Mildred I., Charles Champlin and Marion A.
BAXTER, John T., general counsel for the
Northwestern National Life Insurance Company,
was born at Berlin, Wisconsin, on October 15,
1862, the son of Thomas Baxter and Susannah
(Lewis) Baxter. He acquired a grammar and
high school education at West Salem, Wisconsin,
and then entered Ripon College at Ripon, Wis
consin, for a preparatory course. He studied
there for three years, taking a prominent part in
the oratorical work of his school; and at the
same time held a position as express messenger
8WECT, PHOTO
GEORGE M.
BLEECKER.
COURTS AND LAWYERS
lowing year. His legal education was acquired
in. the law department of the University of
Michigan, which he entered in 1885. After
graduating in June, 1887, Mr. Bleecker returned
to Minneapolis and was admitted to the bar of
Minnesota in December of that year, and has
practiced in this city continuously since that date.
With the exception of three years, from 1894 to
1897, when he was associated with Edward E.
Witchie, Mr. Bleecker has practiced alone. His
clients include a number of the larger corpora
tions of the city and state and his practice ex
tends into the state and federal courts. Mr.
Bleecker has not taken an active part in political
affairs, but has had a lively interest in good poli
tics, and has twice been called upon to serve the
public. He served as clerk of the Probate Court
of Hennepin county during the years 1891 and
1892, and was also a representative in the State
Legislature during the session of 1893, and would
probably have received further honors had he
not been a democrat living in a republican dis
trict. Mr. Bleecker is married (his wife was
Mary Frances Martin) and the family attend the
Episcopal church. He is a member of several oi*
the social and fraternal organizations of the city,
including the Masonic and Odd Fellows bodies
and the Order of Elks.
BRIGHT, Alfred H., general counsel for the
Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Rail
road, was the son of Thomas Bright and Jane
(Crittendon) Bright and was born at Adams Cen
ter, New York. Thomas Bright was of English
birth, coming to New York when ten years of
age and removing, in 1850 to Wisconsin where his
son attended the common schools and the state
university from which he graduated in 1874 with
the degree A. B. and L. B. Two years later he
was admitted to the bar. He practiced law in
Wyoming from '84 to '87. In '87 he went to
Milwaukee, where he was solicitor of the Mil
waukee and Northern Railway Co. until 1891.
During his residence in Milwaukee he was a
member of the law firm of Williams, Friend &
Bright. In 1891 he came to Minneapolis to ac
cept the position of general solicitor of the Min
neapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie railway, or
the "Soo Line" as it is more familiarly called.
This office he filled until in February, 1908, he
was appointed general counsel for the same line,
the office which he now holds. Mr. Bright is a
republican in political faith, and though not a
politician, takes a lively interest in public affairs.
In Wyoming he was for four years prosecuting
attorney of Fremont county but he has not held
office at any other time. Since coming to Min
neapolis he has taken a special interest in educa
tional matters and has been considered as a de
sirable candidate for the board of education. He
is one of the board of directors of the Associated
Charities and is a member of the Minneapolis
Commercial Club. A Universalist, he is affiliated
with the Church of the Redeemer. He married
145
Emily Haskell September 15, 1887. They have
four children, Elizabeth, George Noyes, Katherine, and Agnes.
BROWN, Frederick Vaness, was born on
March 8, 1862, in Washtenaw county, Michigan.
He lived on his father's farm until he was seven
years old, when the family moved to Shakopee,
Minnesota. After attending the public schools
and studying for one year at Hamline University,
he was employed for two years as storekeeper for
the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Rail
road in St. Paul, after which he read law in the
office of Hon. H. J. Peck in Shakopee and was
admitted to the bar at Shakopee in June, 1885.
He practiced his profession there for four years,
after which he removed to Minneapolis where he
engaged successfully in general practice. On
October 1, 1905, Mr. Brown was appointed by
Gov. Johnson Judge of the District Court to fill
the vacancy caused by the election of Judge El
liott to the supreme bench. In the following year,
1906, at the regular November election, he was
re-elected to the same office. Mr. Brown is a
democrat in politics; is a member of the Masonic
Order and of the B. and P. Order of Elks, and a
member of the Minneapolis and Commercial
Clubs. On April 7, 1903, he was elected presi
dent of the State Bar Association. He is a mem
ber of the First Unitarian Church. On Novem
ber 10, 1886, he was married to Esther A. Bailey
at Prescott, Wisconsin, and to them have been
born two children, Jessica M. and Howard Selden.
BROWN, Rome G., former president of the
Minnesota State Bar Association, and a well-known
lawyer, was born at Montpelier, Vermont, June 15,
1862. He is the son of Andrew C. and Lucia A.
(Green) Brown, and on his family tree appear
some of the most noted names of colonial his
tory—among them those of Chad Brown and of
the Putnams and Stoddards. When Mr. Brown
was born, his father was editor of the Vermont
Watchman. Later he was in the insurance and
telephone business but is now retired. The son
was educated at the Montpelier common and
high schools, and graduated with honors from
Harvard University in 1884. Bringing his A. B.
home with him to the law office of the Hon. Ben
jamin F. Fifield, after three years of study there,
he was admitted to the Vermont bar, October 24,
1887. Two months later he came to Minneapolis
and entered the office of Benton & Roberts, be
coming a partner after three years of practice,
under the firm name of Benton, Roberts & Brown.
On Col. Benton's death, January 1, 1895, the part
nership was dissolved and Mr. Brown practiced
alone, building up from that time a large general
practice. On May 29, 1895, he was admitted to
practice in the United States Supreme Court.
Since January 1, 1900, his firm has been Rome G.
Brown and Charles S. Albert. A large part of his
professional work has been given to questions of
water power and of riparian rights on lakes and
146
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
v fe
•* m ^ x
ROME G. BItOWN.
streams. He is attorney for the Great Northern
Railway, having charge of that company's legal
business in five counties of Minnesota, including
Minneapolis and Hennepin county. In all, Mr.
Brown represents some dozen corporations, lo
cated chiefly within the state of Minnesota and
dealing mostly with public utilities. He has writ
ten several monographs upon important public
questions, among them "The Pollution of Lakes
and Streams" and the "Question of Establishing
a Three Years' Course for the Degree of A. B.
at Harvard," the latter in connection with the
work of The Associated Harvard Clubs. Both
of these last have had a wide circulation, though
among different circles, throughout the country.
He belongs to the leading social and business
clubs of Minneapolis, is a member of the Loyal
Legion, vice-president of the Minnesota Harvard
Club, of the American Bar Association for Min
nesota and president of the Vermont Association
of Minnesota. On May 26, 1906, he was elected
president of The Associated Harvard Clubs, an
organization representing all the leading Har
vard clubs in the United States. Mr. Brown be
longs to the First Unitarian Church. He was
married on May 25th, 1888, to Mary Lee Hollister, of Marshfield, Vermont, and has two chil
dren—a son and daughter.
CAIRNS, Charles Sumner, has practiced law
in Minneapolis since 1883, when he came to the
city from Decatur, Illinois. He is of remote
Scotch-Irish descent on the paternal side. Wil
liam Cairnes or Careins was a Scotch-Irish Pres
byterian who came to this country in the year
1774, and settled in Maryland, at what is now
the town of Jarretsville, some distance north
of Baltimore. From him Mr. Cairns is a direct
descendant. Wm. Cairns, Jr., son of the head of
the American branch of the family, was born
and raised in Maryland. He fought in the war
of 1812; was afterward married and made his
home at Jarretsville, remaining there until a few
years after his son, Robert, was born. He moved
to Ohio and became a farmer of Muskingum
county; and his son Robert (father of Charles)
followed the same occupation as well as en
gaging in mercantile pursuits for a time at New
Concord. The ancestors of Mr. Cairns upon his
mother's side were numbered among the Puritan
colonists of rocky New England, Samuel Haynes
having come to America in the ship Angel Gab
riel which was wrecked on the Maine coast in
1635. He was a founder and selectman of Ports
mouth, New Hampshire, and his descendants
were prominent colonists, who were among the
number that served under Washington during
the War of the Revolution. Mary A. Haynes,
mother of Charles S., was a remarkably talented
woman, who accomplished considerable in liter
ary and journalistic fields, and published a book
of poems for private circulation. Her younger
brother, Judge John Haynes, was a distinguished
jurist of California. Charles Sumner was born
near Duncan's Falls, Muskingum county, on July
4, 1856. His education began in the district
school, where he acquired his preparatory train
ing, then entered the Muskingum College at New
Concord, Ohio, and graduated with the class of
1876, taking an A. B. degree, and after post
graduate work was awarded the degree of M. A.
It had, since boyhood, been his ambition to study
for a legal career, and with that end in view he
entered the, law offices of Roby, Outten & Vail
at Decatur, Illinois, reading law with that firm
about a year. He continued his legal studies in
the law department of the University of Michi
gan, graduating and taking an LL. B. degree in
1882. Soon after leaving college he entered into
a partnership with Judge William E. Nelson, but
in the following year came to Minneapolis and
determined to remain here and practice his pro
fession. He formed another partnership, in this
instance with David S. Frackelton. After &
period of five years, this connection was severed
and, for the most part, Mr. Cairns has since
practiced alone. Mr. Cairns is a republican in
politics; an enthusiastic worker in the party af
fairs of the state; and in 1893 was elected to the
state legislature, where he became prominent
through the introduction of a bill for the direct
nomination of political candidates by the people
—the foundation of the primary election law
COURTS AND LAWYERS
adopted in 1899, which latter act he drafted for
the most part. In 1896 he was an alternate dele
gate to the National Republican convention which
met in St. Louis and nominated William McKinley for president. At the time of the twelfth
United States census he was appointed supervisor
for the fifth congressional district of Minnesota,
filling the office most successfully. He was a
member and a director of the Board of Trade
and as a member of the Minneapolis Commercial
Club he has always taken an active part in its
public work. Mr. Cairns was married to Miss
Frances V. Shellabarger, a daughter of an old
Illinois family and graduate of the Wesleyan
College, Cincinnati. They have two sons, Mil
lard S. and Carl A. The family are members of
the Westminster Presbyterian Church of which
he is a ruling elder.
CARLETON, Frank H., was born at New
port, New Hampshire, October 8, 1849, the son
of Henry G. Carleton, who was for many years
a banker at that place. The family is of English
descent and traces its line back to Sir Guy Carleton. As a boy Frank H. Carleton attended the
public schools of Newport, later preparing for
college at Kimball Union Academy at Meridan,
New Hampshire. He entered Dartmouth College
in 1869 and completed the course with the class of
1872. Like many New England young men he
SWEET, PHOTO
FRANK H. CARLETON.
147
largely worked his way through college. He taught
at various places, at one time being principal of an
academy in Mississippi. After leaving college
Mr. Carleton was for awhile city editor of the
Manchester (N. H.) Daily Union. He then came
west, first finding employment in Minneapolis as
a reporter on the Minneapolis News, and later
as city editor of the St. Paul Daily Press. But
he wished to study law and after a year with the
Press he entered the office of the late Cushman
K. Davis and C. D. O'Brien where he read law,
at the same time serving as clerk of the municipal
court. Five years later his health failed and he
resigned his position and made a trip to Europe.
When he returned he served a short time as
private secretary to Gov. John S. Pillsbury—at
the time when the famous railroad bond matter
was reaching final settlement. With the expira
tion of Gov. Pillsbury's last term in office Mr.
Carleton found a desired opportunity to enter ac
tive law practice and moved to Minneapolis, form
ing a law partnership with the late Capt. Judson
N. Cross and Judge H. G. Hicks. This firm has
continued to the present time with but one
change in name—it became Cross, Hicks, Carle
ton & Cross when Norton M. Cross, son of Capt.
Cross, was admitted to partnership. In the course
of his professional career Mr. Carleton has been
called upon to handle much special litigation and
to act as administrator and trustee in many im
portant cases. He has never engaged actively in
politics but has been a lifelong republican and
has served the public in office, first as assistant
city attorney, from 1883 to 1887, and later as a
member of the library board. During his service
in the city attorney's office he had charge of much
litigation arising from the passage of the famous
patrol limits law and successfully combated all
suits brought for the annulment of that ordi
nance. Mr. Carleton has been for many years one
of the trustees of Park Avenue Congregational
church. He was married in 1881 to Ellen Jones,
only daughter of the late Judge E. S. Jones. They
have had seven children.
CHILDS, Clarence H., is a native of Iowa.
He was born August 19, 1858, at Tipton, Cedar
county, the son of Eugene Childs, a merchant,
and Caroline S. Childs. His boyhood was spent
at Fort Dodge, Iowa, where he attended the dis
trict and high schools, afterwards going to Michi
gan University from which he graduated with the
degree of Ph. B. in June, 1882. Very soon after
he came to Minneapolis and commenced the
study of law with James D. Springer, general
solicitor of the Minneapolis & St. Louis railway.
Upon being admitted to the bar in 1884 he com
menced general practice and has followed his
profession continuously since that time and since
1901 has been examiner of titles under the Torrens law in Hennepin county. Mr. Childs' po
litical affiliations are with the republican party.
He is a member of the Minneapolis and Minikahda Clubs. On June 6, 1889, he was married
148
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
1894 was a member of Company I , F i r s t Regi
ment, M. N. G. I n politics he is independent a n d
progressive, especially in local matters.
Mr.
Child is a member of the First Unitarian church
of which he has f o r many years been a trustee.
H e was married on July 5, 1 8 8 4 , t o Miss Alice
W e b b e r of Rumford, Maine. T h e y have four
children, Sherman W., Emily, Marjorie and
Lewis W .
C R A N E , J a y W., was born in the village of
Perry, New York. H i s father was the Rev.
Stephen Crane, D. D., a Universalist minister for
over forty years, now deceased. Mrs. C. J a n e
Crane, widow of Stephen, and mother of J a y W.,
now lives in Minneapolis a t the home of her son.
Mr. Crane passed the early years of his life in
New York, where he attended the public schools
and later entered the high school a t Hillsdale,
Michigan, f r o m which he graduated. After com
pleting his preparatory work Mr. Crane entered
Lombard College a t Galesburg, Illinois. H e took
up the study of law shortly after his graduation
from the Galesburg institution, and was admitted
to the bar a t Columbus, Ohio, in 1 8 9 0 . F o r t w o
years prior t o 1 8 9 0 , Mr. Crane had been engaged
in teaching in Illinois and in the public schools
of Norwalk, Ohio, and until 1 8 9 1 continued t o
hold his position a s a n instructor in t h a t city.
Since that time Mr. Crane has been continuously
engaged in the work of his profession, and has
carried on a general practice successfully. T h o u g h
S.
R. CHILD.
t o Miss Sarah M. Henshaw. T h e y have one son,
George H . Childs. T h e family attends St. Mark's
Episcopal Church where Mr. Childs has been a
vestryman f o r some six o r seven years.
C H I L D , Sampson Reed, was born on Septem
ber 2 2 , i 8 6 0 , a t Paris, Oxford county, Maine. H e
was the son of Lewis W a s h b u r n Child and Emily
Reed Child. H i s father was a farmer. Mr. Child's
boyhood was spent a t Rumford, Oxford county,
Maine, where h e attended the public schools after
which he fitted f o r college a t North Bridgton
academy, Maine. Graduating f r o m the academy
in 1 8 8 0 he entered Bowdoin college the same
year and completed his course in 1 8 8 4 , with the
degree of A. B. Mr. Child a t once came west and
commenced t h e study of law in Minneapolis with
the late J u d g e Seagrave Smith a n d the late Samp
s o n A. Reed. H e was admitted t o the bar in
1 8 8 6 and has since been in active practice of his
profession in Minneapolis. Mr. Child has been
constantly interested in the public affairs of the
city and though never an office holder o r office
seeker has been identified with various move
ments looking t o the improvement of municipal
and social conditions. H e was appointed a mem
ber of the first Minneapolis charter commission
a n d has since taken part in the campaigns looking
t o the adoption of a n improved charter for the
city. H e has been f o r years a member of the
Academy of Natural Sciences and from 1 8 8 9 t o
JAY W. CRANE.
14$
COURTS AND LAWYERS
he has applied himself closely to his legal work
he has also been a strong political worker. He
is a republican and is associated with several
organizations interested in the advancement of
the party; among them being the Fifth Ward Re
publican Club, of which he is president, and the
Garfield Republican Club. He was a member of
the Hennepin county republican campaign com
mittee for many years. The Minneapolis Com
mercial Club also includes him in its membership.
Mr. Crane is a Universalist, and is a member of
the First Universalist Society of Minneapolis (the
Church of the Redeemer), of which he is clerk.
He is not married.
CRAY, Willard Rush, for thirty years a mem
ber of the Minneapolis bar and formerly a judge
of the district court, is a native of Vermont. He
was born on May 5, 1853, at Highgate, Frank
lin county, and the son of Carlos Lawrence
Cray and Sarah Spooner Cray. The family is
traced back to Scotch and English ancestors,
whose descendants settled in New England in
early times. Carlos Cray was a farmer and his
son grew up amid the surroundings of the New
England farm life of that period, attended the
traditional little red school house and inter
spersed his years of higher schooling with terms
of teaching, clerking and such other occupations
as would serve to defray the expenses of an
education. He passed through the high school,
Addison County Grammar School (Vermont),
and graduated from Middlebury College, Ver
mont, in 1876. After leaving college he entered
the law office of Noble, Davis, Smith & Stevens
at St. Albans, Vermont, but during the follow
ing year, 1877, he came to Minneapolis and con
tinued to read law in the office of Shaw & Levi.
He was admitted to the bar in 1878 and has
practiced continuously in Minneapolis except
during the years 1902-1904 when he served upon
the district bench for the Fourth Judicial District,
Hennepin county, Minnesota. For many years
he was a law partner of the late Judge J. M.
Shaw, the firm of Shaw & Cray being one of
the most prominent in the Northwest. Judge
Cray has taken an active part in the affairs of
the city and is a member of various organiza
tions and clubs including .the Minneapolis,
Lafayette and Minikahda clubs and the Sons of
Veterans and Citizens Staff of John A. Rawlins
Post, G. A. R. He is a republican and though
not conspicuous in politics is not one of those
who neglects the primary and the voting booth.
In 1896 he was elected to the state legislature
as representative from his district and served
during the session of 1897. Judge Cray was one
of the organizers of the Minneapolis Bar Asso
ciation and its president in 1902, and is a mem
ber of the Minnesota State Bar Association and
the American Bar Association. He has been
for many years a prominent member of Plymouth
Congregational Church. He was married on
December 10, 1879, to Marguerite L. Douglas.
They have two children, Jessie Kitchel and Flor
ence Marguerite.
DEUTSCH, Henry, was born in Minneapolis,
August 28, 1874, son of Jacob and Malchen A.
(Valfer) Deutsch. He received his early educa
tional training in the public schools of Minne
apolis. was graduated from the Central high
school in 1891; was graduated LL. B. from the
law department of the University of Minnesota
in 1894; took Yale University's LL. M. ("Magna
cum Laude") in 1895, and was admitted to the bar
October, 1895, when he was associated with A1
J. Smith (now county attorney) as partner; in
1907 he became associated in active practice with
Frank M. Nye and soon became his partner under
the firm name of Nye & Deutsch. In 1908 Mr.
Nye having been elected to congress, this partner
ship was dissolved and Mr. Deutsch with E. P.
Allen and A. M. Breding formed the law firm
of Deutsch, Allen & Breding. Mr. Deutsch is a
member of the board of directors of the Minne
apolis Commercial Club, of which he was second
vice president in 1905. He is a member of the
American Bar Association, of the Commercial
Law League of America (of which he is one of
the vice presidents); of the Minnesota State Bar
Association; and of the Hennepin County Bar
Association. He is a member of the Six O'Clock
Club and of the Garfield Club and is a prominent
HENRY DEUTSCH.
150
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
member of the Elks, the Maccabees and the
Royal Arcanum. He is a Past Master Hennepin
Lodge No. 4, A. F. & A. M., has K. C. C. HDegree, Scottish Rite bodies Masonic; and is
Wise Master St. Vincent De Paul' Chapter, Rose
Croix No. 2; member of Zuhrah Temple Mystic
Shrine and past president Minnesota Auxiliary
Fraternal Congress. Mr. Deutsch is a member
of the Second Church of Christ, Scientist, of
Minneapolis. He was for two years chairman of
the Public Entertainment and Convention Com
mittee of the Minneapolis Commercial Club and
was a member of the executive committee of the
G. A. R. Encampment, in 1906. He was mar
ried May 2, 1898, to Miss Grace A. Levi and three
children have been born to them, Clarence S.,
Maria Hope, and Henry Noel.
DILLE, John Ichabod, was born at Andrews,
Indiana, on November 18, 1857, the son of Icha
bod and Rebecca Dille. His early years were
spent on his father's farm and his schooling was
that of the local educational institutions until he
fitted for college and entered the University of In
diana. From this university he obtained his de
gree of LL. B. in 1877 and shortly afterwards
entered upon the practice of his profession at
Huntington, Indiana, and remained there until
the spring of 1889. Mr. Dille's^ first entrance into
railroad service was as attorney for the Chicago,
Rock Island & Pacific Ry. for Oklahoma and In
dian Territory in 1891 with offices at El Reno,
Oklahoma. He continued to' fill" this position
until 1898, when he became assistant attorney
for the same road for Iowa, South Dakota and
Minnesota, with headquarters at • Des 'Moines,
Iowa. On September 1, 1905, he resigned to
accept the appointment of general attorney of
the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railroad Com
pany, the Iowa Central Railway Company and
the Des Moines & Fort Dodge Railroad Com
pany, with headquarters at Minneapolis. * He
at once took up his residence in this city and
entered actively upon his duties as attorney. Mr.
Dille is associated with the Knights of Pythias,
and is a Past Grand Chancellor of that order."
In 1897-8 he was president of the Territorial Bar
Association of Oklahoma. He has been promi
nent in educational work in the different states
where he has resided. While attorney for the
Rock Island at Des Moines he was also dean of
the Highland Park College of Law in that city.
In Oklahoma he was associated with the uni
versity of that state for several years as presi
dent of the Board of Regents, and after moving
to Des Moines received the degree of LL. D.
from that institution. Mr. Dille was married in
1876 to Miss Mary J. Mohn. They have five
children.
DODGE, Fred B., senior member of the law
firm of Dodge & Webber, was born at Moscow,
Livingston county, New York, February 4, 1854.
He received his education at Temple Hill Acad
emy at Geneseo, New York, and Fairfield Sem
inary, Herkimer county, New York, and the
University of Rochester. He was admitted to
the bar of New York in 1879, and came to Minne
apolis in 1881, where he has since been engaged
in general legal practice.
DWINNELL, William Stanley, was born at
Lodi, Wisconsin, December* 25, 1862, son of John
Bliss and Maria C. Dwinnell. His father was a
merchant and later a farmer, his family having
settled at Topsfield, Massachusetts, in 1660.
The original *home is still in the posses
sion of the family. His mother's
family
include in their direct line of descent, Jona
than Edwards and the Dwight family of
Connecticut and New York. W. S. Dwinnell
spent his early life in Wisconsin where he at
tended the public and high schools at Lodi, and
then took two years of undergraduate course at
the University of Wisconsin and graduated from
the law department in 1886. For the next two
years he was employed by the supreme court of
Wisconsin preparing opinions for publication and
at Madison he enjoyed the close friendship of
Governor Jeremiah M. Rusk. He accompanied
the Governor and his staff, on invitation, to the
funeral of Gen. Grant in New York and was with
•weet, photo
JOHN I. DILLE.
BRUSH, PHOTO
152
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Governor Rusk during the Milwaukee riots of
1886. After serving as district attorney of Jack
son county, Wisconsin, in 1888-89, Mr. Dwinnell
came to Minneapolis as attorney, under contract,
for a large building and loan association, but re
signed on account of radical differences as to
policy, and engaged in the practice of law chiefly
relating to corporations. Since 1900 he has, to
avoid too close confinement to his office, given
larger attention to outside matters and has oper
ated in realty in Minneapolis and St. Paul and
in timber lands in California and British Colum
bia. He is president of Fraser River Tannery
in the latter province, and treasurer of the Ur
ban Investment Company of St. Paul. Among
the substantial public services of Mr. Dwinnell
may be mentioned his agency in securing the con
sideration and passage of the Direct Primary
Law by the Legislature of 1899 and the passage
of the Anti-trust Law. Mr. Dwinnell has been
and is a strenuous champion of good government
and does not spare himself in the work of secur
ing the nomination of worthy candidates for
municipal, state and federal offices. He was for
several years a member of the public affairs com
mittee of the Commercial Club and was vicechairman of that committee for the year 1906.
He holds membership in the Minneapolis, Minikahda, Commercial, Six-O'clock Clubs, the Amer
ican and Minnesota Bar associations and the
American Economic Association. Mr. Dwinnell
is a member and vestryman of St. Mark's Epis
copal Church. _ He was married on April 24, 1889,
to Virginia Ingman, and they have three chil
dren—Stanley W., Katherine and James Bowen.
McNAIR, William Woodbridge, one of the
pioneers of Minneapolis, and for many years a
distinguished member of the Hennepin county
bar, was born at Groveland, Livingstone county,
New York, on January 4, 1836. He was the old
est son of William W. McNair, whose family
was of Scotch-Irish descent, while his mother,
Sarah Pierrepont, was a descendant of Rev.
James Pierrepont, one of the founders of Yale
College, and of a family which traced its line
back to the time of William the Conqueror. Mr.
McNair's talented mind received from private
tutors and the academies of Genesee and Canandaigua education and culture.
When nineteen
years old, he came west and entered the law
office of Judge J. P. Doolittle at Racine, Wis
consin, but after two years came to Minneap
olis, in 1857. He was admitted to the bar during
the same year, and for twenty-seven years re
mained in active practice in this city. From 1861
to 1868, Mr. McNair was associated with the late
Eugene M. Wilson under the firm name of Wil
son & McNair, and upon Mr. Wilson's election
to Congress in 1868, he formed a partnership with
Judge William Lochren as Lochren & McNair.
J. B. Gilfillan was later admitted to this firm,
which for many years was the leading law firm
of the city. After Judge Lochren's appointment
to the district bench in 1881, the business was
continued by McNair & Gilfillan until Mr. Gilfillan's election to Congress in 1884, when, on
account of impaired health, Mr. McNair retired
from practice. During his long practice in Min
neapolis, he was connected with much important
litigation and was considered one of the strong
est lawyers at the bar. Although much engaged
with his practice, he was deeply interested in
public affairs, but though frequently importuned
to accept office, on only a few occasions con
sented to public service. For four years prior to
1863, he was county attorney, and in 1868 was
elected one of the school directors of St. An
thony.
In 1869, he was elected mayor of St.
Anthony and continued at the head of the city
government until the consolidation of St. An
thony and Minneapolis in 1872. He affiliated
with the democratic party and, against his wishes,
received the nomination for Congress in 1876 and
was complimented by a vote which largely re
duced the usual republican majority in the dis
trict. In 1883 he was tendered the nomination
for governor, but positively declined.
A busi
ness man of unusual ability, Mr. McNair's name
was connected with many of the successful en
terprises of his time, including the Minneapolis
Gas Light Company and the Minneapolis Street
Railway Company, in each of which he was one
of the original incorporators. He was also an
original stockholder and director in the Minne
apolis & St. Louis Railroad, and was extensively
interested in lumbering and contracting for tim
ber supply for the northwestern railroads. Be
ing strongly impressed with the future of the
city, he invested very largely in real estate in
and about Minneapolis. Mr. McNair possessed
fine social qualities and the most genial and gen
erous disposition. Mr. McNair was married on
August 21, 1862, to Miss Louise Wilson, daugh
ter of Edgar C. Wilson of Virginia, and sister
of the late Eugene M. Wilson of Minneapolis.
They had two daughters, Agnes O., now Mrs.
Louis K. Hull and Louis P., now Mrs. Francis
M. Henry. Mr. McNair died on September 15,
1885, leaving many devoted friends who mourn
their great loss.
REED, Frederick Watson, was born at Fow
ler, Ohio, on November 7, 1853, the son of Ben
jamin Franklin and Susan (Dewey) Reed. The
family moved to Iowa and Mr. Reed's boyhood
was spent on a farm in that state where he at
tended school and fitted for college, making his
own way during most of his school and college
life. He was graduated from Iowa College, Grinnell, Iowa, in 1879 and immediately went to
Montana where he was principal of schools dur
ing the next two years. He then engaged in
business in Montana but after two years came
to Minneapolis and began the study of law in
the office of Shaw, Levi & Cray. In 1886 he
was admitted to the bar and has since been con
tinuously in active practice in Minneapolis.' He is
a member of the Hennepin County, Minnesota
, • , :•£ J
•
,
-
.
I
154
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
State, and American bar associations and of the
Commercial and Six O'clock clubs. In political
faith Mr. Reed is a republican though independdent in thought and action, especially in local
matters. He takes a very active interest in
municipal affairs and has been prominently iden
tified with all movements of the past twenty
years looking to the promotion of good govern
ment and better municipal conditions.
Con
spicuous in this work has been his participation
in the campaigns for a better city charter. Mr.
Reed was married at Cincinnati on December
30, 1891, to Miss Selina Brown, daughter of the
late Charles E. Brown of the Cincinnati bar.
GALE, Edward Chenery, son of Samuel C.
•and Susan (Damon) Gale, was born in Minneap
olis, August 21, 1862. The father, Samuel C.,
came to Minneapolis in 1857 from Massachusetts,
educated as a lawyer; but he early engaged in real
estate in which business as well as in the general
civic life of the community he has long taken an
active part. The family are of English descent, the
forebear in this country being Richard Gale, who
settled in Watertown, Massachusetts, in 1636. Ed
ward C. attended the public schools of Minnea
polis and graduated from the high school in
the class of 1878. He attended the state uni
versity for two years and then went to Yale
bWtET, PHOTO
EDWARD C. GALE.
University where he graduated with the class of
1884. After a year abroad he studied law in the
office of Shaw & Cray, Minneapolis, and sub
sequently took the degree of A. M. at the Law
School of Harvard University. Mr. Gale has at
tained a most worthy and honorable position in
the profession he has chosen. He is at present a
member of the law firm of Snyder & Gale, his
associate being Fred B. Snyder. Mr. Gale is
a director in the Minneapolis Society of Fine
Arts, of which society he has also been presi
dent; treasurer of the Minneapolis Academy of
Sciences; director of the Minneapolis Athenaeum-*,
secretary as well as a member of the Municipal
Art Commission of Minneapolis, and active in
many other movements making for the better
things in life, civic as well as individual. Mr.
Gale was married to Sarah Pillsbury, daughter of
Ex-Governor John S. Pillsbury, June 28, 1892.
They have one child living—Richard Pillsbury.
F. w. REED,
GJERTSEN, Henry John, (Henry J. Gjertsen) though born in Norway, October 8, 1861, has
lived in Hennepin county ever since 1868, and
has been a zealous worker for the state which
adopted him. His father was Herman J. Gjertsen, a Norwegian sea-captain who came to Min-*
nesota in 1868 and after a generation spent in
farming, retired from active labor some years
ago. Mr. Gjertsen, Sr., was born in Bergen.
COURTS AND LAWYERS
There the family has long been prominent, as
was also that of his wife, Albertina B. Gjertsen,
whose family name was that of Wulf, also of
old Norwegian history. On both sides the mem
bers of the two families have followed the pro
fessions, more or less. Henry J. Gjertsen grew
up on a Minnesota farm when farming in Hen
nepin county knew nothing of agricultural col
leges. He worked summers and went to the
district schools in winter. These last schools,
and Red Wing Seminary later, made his prelim
inary training for the study of law. For this
latter purpose he spent two years in study in
Minneapolis, was admitted at twenty-three, and
has since been successful in his profession to
more than the ordinary degree. Under the ad
ministration of Gov. Lind, he held the post of
Brigadier General for two years; under Gov.
Van Sant, he was Judge Advocate General for
four years. His politics being republican, he has
had a good chance to render effective public
services as a member of the Minneapolis Charter
Commission and as state senator from the fortysecond district in 1902. In the latter position he
drew up the bucket shop law, which was passed
in 1905. He also took an important part in the
legislation that resulted in the new code. Mr.
Gjertsen is a member of the Odin Club, the Elks,
K. P., and Masonic bodies. He attends the
Lutheran Church. He is married to Gretchen
Groebel, of Red Wing, and has one daughter,
now studying music in Berlin.
HALE, William Edward, son of Isaiah Byron
Burr and Mary E. Hale, was born at Wheeling,
West Virginia, May 11, 1845. His father was a
lawyer and was descended from Samuel Hale,
who came from England and settled in Glastenbury, Connecticut, in 1637, making a record in
the early Indian wars, while the family did patri
otic duty in the War of the Revolution, in later
years appearing with favorable conspicuity in
public life—as James T. Hale, of Pennsyl
vania, in congress, and the great naval
secretary, Gideon Wells. William, who had
visited Minnesota with his father when he
was a boy, returned in i860 and resided
in Plainview where, in 1861, he enlisted
in the Third Minnesota Infantry and served three
years during the war for the Union, receiving an
honorable discharge. He then entered H&mline
University, at that time located in Red Wing,
and, after taking a collegiate course for three
years he studied law in the office of Judge Wilder
of Red Wing, and was admitted to the bar in
1869. He located in Buffalo, Wright county,
where he practiced his profession and was elected
county attorney and held the office two years.
In 1872 he came to Minneapolis where he has
since lived. He was elected county attorney for
Hennepin county in 1878, and re-elected for a
second term. He has made a notable record in
the practice of the law. He has been in partner
ship with Judge Seagrave Smith (1877-80) and
155
subsequently with Ju.dge C. M. Pond (Hale &
Pond), and with Charles B. Peck (Hale & Peck),
and latterly the head of the firm of Hale & Mont
gomery. Mr. Hale is and has always been an
active, loyal member of the republican party, but
he has never yielded to the allurements of officeholding, except in the few instances when he has
held the office of county attorney.
HARRISON, Alexander M., was born in Ven
ango county, Pennsylvania, on November 5, 1847,
the son of Charles Harrison and Catherine E.
(DeWitt) Harrison. The father was descended
from English stock and was a successful farmer;
the mother was of Dutch descent. During his
boyhood he received excellent school training,
first attending the district school in Perry, Ven
ango County, and later an academy in the same
place and afterwards the academy at Pleasantville, Pennsylvania. He completed his education
at Fredonia academy in Chautauqua county, New
York, where he graduated when he was twentyone years of age. Before graduation he had commenced reading law and after leaving Fredonia
he worked for a time in the oil fields of Penn
sylvania to earn money with which to complete
his law studies. Having secured sufficient funds
to pay his expenses during the law course he
entered the law department of the University of
Michigan from which he graduated in 1870.
Judge Harrison came west and first established
himself at Charles City, Iowa, where for three
years he practiced alone and then became asso
ciated with Samuel B. Starr and John G. Patter
son under the firm name of Starr, Patterson &
Harrison. After the death of Mr. Patterson in
1878 the partnership was continued as Starr &
Harrison until December 1, 1886, when Judge
Harrison came to Minneapolis. In 1898 Judge
Harrison was nominated by the republican party
of Hennepin county as one of its candidates for
the district bench, and was elected by a large
majority at the election that fall. He served
upon the bench until the expiration of his term in
January, 1904. After retiring from the district
bench Judge Harrison resumed active practice.
On August 13, 1873, he was married-to Miss Lizzie
O. Chapin. They have three children, Merton E.,
Ruth, and Helen. Judge Harrison is a member
of the Minneapolis Club and the Elks.
HERTIG, Wendell, was born August 13, 1868,
on a farm in Fayette county, Pennsylvania, son
of Ulysses and Emily P. (Litman) Hertig. After
having received a good rudimentary education he
graduated in June, 1884, from the state normal
school at California, ^Vashington county, Penn
sylvania, and taught a country school the same
winter. Coming to Minneapolis in 1887 he became
connected in an official capacity with several finan
cial corporations and was a bank cashier from
1892 to 1895. In 1891 he entered the Law School
of the University of Minnesota, and, after having
taken the full night law course, graduated in
1895, since which time he has been practicing his
156
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
profession, combining with the same a real estate
and mortgage loan business. Mr. Hertig is a re
publican in politics and was elected alderman of
the Fifth Ward in 1905. He is a member of the
Commercial Club, the Roosevelt Club, the Minikahda Club, the B. P. O. E. No. 44 and of all the
Masonic Bodies. 1'
JACKSON, Anson Blake, was born in Brook
lyn, New York, February 17, 1850, the son of
William B. and Elizabeth Blake Jackson. The
father was a manufacturer and banker and the
family trace their ancestry through several
generations of Connecticut farmers, who took
part in the War of the Revolution. Mr.
Jackson's early life was spent in Brooklyn,
Foresport and Utica, New York. He gradu
ated from Hobart College, Geneva, New York,
in 1870, and from Columbia law school, New
York, in 1873, having been a student in the office
of Roscoe at Utica during the. year 1871. Mr,
Jackson practiced his profession in New York
City for about five years. During most of the
year 1878, he was employed in Kansas City as
attorney for the Bondholders Committee of the
Kansas Pacific Railway, and, on the absorption
of that road by the Union Pacific in 1880, he re
moved to Minneapolis where he has since been
engaged in private practice, from 1880 to 1883
as a member of the firm of Jackson and Pond,
and from 1885 to 1893 of the firm of Jackson and
Atwater.
. t
Mr. Jackson is a republican in politics, and was
married in 1881 to Eugenia Cheney Adams. They
have two children. living—Anson Blake Jackson,
Jr., a graduate of Yale University, class of '07,
and Margaret E. Jackson, who graduated from
Rosemary Hall, Greenwich, Connecticut, class
of '06.
HALL, Albert H., senior member of the law
firm of Hall & KollJner, of this city, was born
on July 11, 1858, at Alexandria, Licking county,
Ohio. His family on both sides were early set
tlers in that state, his maternal grandfather being
the first white child born within the confines of
Union county. Levi -Hall, his father, was for
many years a Methodist Episcopal clergyman,
who later entered the medical profession and
moved to Minneapolis where he has for more
than a quarter of a century been a practicing
physician. His mother's name before her mar
riage was Lucinda Mitchell. Mr. Hall received
his education in the public schools, first in Ohio,
and later attending the high school at Austin,
Minnesota, where the family moved in 1872.
Three years later he came to this city and en
tered the University of Minnesota, supporting
himself while in college by night work in tele
graph and telephone service. At the end of his
junior year in 1881, he left school and entered
the law office of the late Judge Frederick Hooker.
A position in the treasury department at Wash
ington was offered him which he accepted, and
at the same time attended the Columbia Law
School, from which he graduated in 1883. Re
signing his position, Mr. Hall returned to Minne
apolis, and since that time has been engaged in
the practice of his profession. Soon after return
ing here he formed a partnership with N. F.
Hawley, which continued for several years, Mr.
Hall severing the connection to accept an ap
pointment as assistant city attorney of Minne
apolis in 1889. During the two years which he
served he conducted successfully several impor
tant cases, including the well known garbage
dump cases. He resumed his general legal prac
tice until 1893, when he was selected by the grand
jury and appointed by Judge Seagrave Smith,
special assistant attorney for Hennepin county,
and filled that office for eighteen months. He
tried many important criminal cases for the
county and made a record as an able speaker
and effective trial lawyer. Among the cases with
which he was connected were the notable Scheig
and Floyd cases; the Harris murder case which
Mr. Hall successfully prosecuted; and the famous
Hayward trial in which his unceasing efforts se
cured the admissions and evidence which made
possible the conviction of the guilty parties. At
the expiration of his term Mr. Hall again took
up his practice and has since been engaged in
general practice, both in this city and throughout
the Northwest. He formed in 1902 a partnership
with Robert S. Kolliner under the firm name of
Hall & Kolliner—an association which still con
tinues. From his earliest manhood Mr. Hall has
taken an active interest in politics and has been
an efficient worker for the republican party for
many years. In 1904 he became a candidate for
the republican nomination for congress, but was
defeated in a strong campaign against Hon. Loren
Fletcher, who had been the incumbent for a num
ber of successive terms. Mr. Hall was again a
candidate in 1906 and made an even better run
against a larger field for opponents. Mr. Hall was
married in 1883 to Miss Nellie J. Pearson. They
have one daughter, Faith. The family attendsi
the Hennepin Avenue Methodist Church. Mr.
Hall is a member of the Commercial Club and
other organizations of a social character.
JOSLYN, Colin C., is a native of the state of
Illinois, the son of De Witt C. Joslyn and Philura
L. Joslyn. His father was a farmer at Cortland,
Illinois, where Colin C. was born on December
9, 1857. He grew up on the farm and attended
the graded school at Cortland. After completing
the necessary preparatory work he entered Ripon
College, in Wisconsin, where he took the aca
demic course receiving his degree with the class
of 1883. He studied law, was admitted to the
bar and commenced practice in Minneapolis, in
1885, where he has since continuously practiced.
Mr. Joslyn is a member of the Minneapolis Com
mercial Club and attends the Universalist Church.
In 1899 Mr. Joslyn was married to Miss Marie
A, Rich and they have three children.
AVJWV^-^
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W^W^SflT-JpWlfl
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J^l^i*MM<,«S
158
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
KOON, Martin B., one of the most prominent
& Bennett. The practice of the firm is mainly in
men of the Hennepin county bar, was born on
the line of corporation law. They are attorneys
January 22, 1841, at Altay, Schuyler county, New
for the Minneapolis Street Railway Company.
York. His ancestry on his father's side was
Judge Koon is a member of the Minneapolis Club,
Scotch and through his mother he was descended
the Commercial Club, the Chamber of Commerce
from Connecticut pioneers. His father, Alanson
and a trustee of the Church of the Redeemer. He
Koon, was a farmer in Schuyler county New
was married November, 1873, to Josephine VanYork, a man in moderate circumstances but of
dermark and has two daughters, Kate Estelle,
highest integrity and enjoying the respect of the
now Mrs. E. C. Bovey, and M. Louise, now Mrs.
community. While his son was yet quite young
Charles Deere Velie.
Alanson Koon removed with his family to Hills
LAYBOURN, Charles G., was born at Spring
dale county, Michigan. It was on a Michigan
field, Clark county, Iowa, March 23, 1851, the
farm that Judge Koon spent his boyhood studying
son of Joseph Laybourn and Ann (Kirkley) Layat the district school in winter and doing farm
bourn. His father was a native of Clark county,
work in summer. His advantages were those of
and was descended from an old New York family
the average farmer's boy at that period. At the
which counted among its members one of the
age of seventeen he had by diligent study pre
early mayors of New York City. His mother was
pared himself to enter Hillsdale College. During
of English descent, her parents' family having
his college course he mainly supported himself
settled in central Ohio when she was but a child.
by teaching and had, in 1863 when he graduated,
Mr. Laybourn's schooling was had in the district
so impaired his health that it was necessary to
school near his father's farm, supplemented by a
seek a change of climate. He went to California
course at a private school in which he matte such
by the old Panama route and spent two years on
progress that, at the age of sixteen, he was able
the coast holding a position as teacher. Having
to obtain a first grade teacher's certificate. For
regained his health he returned to Michigan and
some time he was engaged in teaching, but inter
took up the study of law, in the office of his
rupted this work to learn the trade of carriage
brother, E. L, Koon. In 1867 he was admitted
making which he followed until he met with a
to the bar in Hillsdale, Michigan, and soon after
disabling accident. He then took up teaching
ward entered into partnership with his brother,
which association continued until 1878. While again and desiring to secure a higher education
entered the Illinois State Normal University at
he did not go actively into politics he held the of
Normal, Illinois, in 1874, four years later graduat
fice of prosecuting attorney in Hillsdale county
ing with honor in both the normal and classical
from 1870 to 1874. In 1873 he spent four months
courses. For two years following his graduation
in travel in Europe. He had become persuaded,
he was a teacher,in Markham's Academy, Milwau
however, that Hillsdale did not offer a promising
kee, resigning to take up the study of law. He
field and in 1878 he moved to Minneapolis, where
entered
the law department of the University of
he formed a partnership with E. A. Merrill, to
Michigan, graduated in 1881, and immediately be
which firm A. M. Keith was afterward admitted.
gan practice at Creston, Iowa. He made rapid
This firm enjoyed an extensive practice until the
progress in building up a practice, but after four
fall of 1881, when, owing largely to overwork, Mr.
Koon fell a victim to typhoid fever, and on his years, wishing a wider field, he came to Minneap
olis where he has been engaged in practice since
partial recovery he went to California in search
of health. In 1883, after his return, Judge J. M. 1885. While Mr. Laybourn's practice is general
Shaw resigned from the district bench, and Gov it has been perhaps most extensive in com
mercial and insurance law. He has been fre
ernor Hubbard appointed Mr. Koon to fill the
quently retained by fraternal insurance orders.
vacancy. This was entirely without Mr. Koon's
Mr. Laybourn is a member of the leading or
solicitation and wholly unexpected. He accepted
ganizations, social and fraternal, and takes an
the office with much reluctance, doubting his
active interest in public affairs as well as in
qualifications for the position. He filled it with
politics. He has been several times mentioned
such eminent satisfaction, however, that in the
as a candidate for the district bench and has re
following fall he was unanimously elected to the
ceived very complimentary support at the prim
same office for the term of seven years. But he
did not find the duties of the office congenial to ary elections for this office. In 1883 he was mar
him, and May 1, 1886, he resigned. During his , ried to Miss Blanche Gove of Creston, Iowa, and
they have four children two boys and two girls.
occupancy of the bench he tried a number of im
portant cases, among them the Washburn will
LEONARD, Claude Bassett, was born at
case, the St. Anthony water power case, the KingRemington case, the Cantieny murder case, anc^ Chelsea, Massachusetts, son of Rev. Charles H.
and Phoebe A. (Bassett) Leonard. His father
others scarcely less notable. This work involved
is Dean of the Theological School of Tufts Col
an enormous amount of study and research. On
lege, Medford, Massachusetts, and has reached
his retirement from the bench he resumed the
the age of eighty-four years. Claude B. Leonard
practice of his profession and has been for years
received his earlier educational training at Dean
the senior member of the firm of Koon, Whelan
Academy, Franklin, Massachusetts, and gradu-
v K%'1
w^sgSwSg
Sa>*J?cdi
ttj.'fS>K
SWEET, PHOTO
160
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
ated at Tufts College with the A. B. degree.
Mr. Leonard studied law in the office of Starbuck
& Sawyer at Watertown, New York, was admit
ted to the bar in October, 1878, came to Minne
apolis from Summerville, Massachusetts, on
November 7, 1878, and entered vigorously
into the activities of the Northwestern metropo
lis.
He was clerk of the probate court
in 1879-80, and is now attorney for the Farmers'
and Mechanics' Savings Bank and for the TriState Telephone & Telegraph Company. In a
military way he has a record as a member of
the National Guard, State of New York. He is
a republican in politics; a member of the Com
mercial Club; Past Master of Cataract Lodge
No. 2, A. F. and A. M.; a member of St. Anthony
Falls, Chapter No. 3, R. A. M.; of Adoniram
Council, No. 5; of Darius Commandery, No. 7,
K. T., and Zuhrah Temple, N. M. S. Mr. Leonard
attends All Souls Universalist Church. He was
married to Ella J. Eddy at Watertown, New York,
on April 14, 1880, and they have three children—Ruth Eddy, Emily Bassett and Elva Llewelyn.
LYON, George Asa, was born at Rockford,
Floyd county, Iowa, on June 9, 1871, son of O. H t
and Belle Alden Bradford Lyon. The mother
was a direct descendant of William Bradford,
who was chosen governor of the heroic Pilgrim
band who landed from the Mayflower on the big
boulder known as Plymouth Rock, December 21,
1620, and ruled the Plymouth colony for thirtysix years as the successor of John Carver, both
being apostles of self-government in this land.
Mr. Lyon's father, who is a cousin of General
Nathaniel Lynn, served during the entire Civil
War in an Iowa regiment, and was promoted to
the captaincy of the Third Iowa Battery for
heroic service. Mr. Lyon attended the public
schools of Rockford, Iowa, then attended Grinnell College and later graduated at the Law
School of Harvard University with the LL. B.
degree. Mr. Lyon while in college was an all
around athlete, and was a member of the Grinnell college base ball and foot ball teams for three
years, being captain of the foot ball team during
the last year, and was Inter-Collegiate champion
of tennis for three years. He came to Minneapolis
November 1, 1903, and has since practiced his
profession here with marked success. He has
been associated in the practice of law with the
firm of Lancaster & McGee since 1904. His ex
perience in the responsibilities of office-holding is
derived from his tenure of the mayoralty of the
city of Rockford, Iowa, for a term or two. He
is a member of the Commercial Club, and of the
State Bar Association. He is a member of the
Plymouth Congregational Church. Mr. Lyon was
married on October 5, 1905, to Elizabeth McLean,
of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
McCUNE, Alexander, clerk of the probate
court and for a long time an attorney in general
practice in Minneapolis, was born March 2, 1859,
at Mecca, Parke county, Indiana. He is the son of
Henry Clay McCune and May Ann (Melvin) McCune. The family is Scotch-Irish in origin and
its history in America dates back over a century,
to when the first McCune came to Pennsylvania
from the north of Ireland. Its members have
intermarried with colonial stock and the family
chronicles are rich in incidents of interest. Mr.
McCune was brought up on an Indiana farm.
He went to the common schools of the country
until he was twelve. Then the grandfather for
whom he was named took him to his home at
Lima, New York. The elder McCune was a man
of unusual originality and force of character. His
grandson received from association with him an
education in the art of living which he says was
as valuable as the academic training which he
got from the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary of
Lima. From Lima the grandson was sent to
Princeton. With him went Lyman G. Morey, a
seminary classmate—afterwards well known in
Minneapolis by his work on the Minneapolis
Journal—but who met a tragic and early death
by drowning, in a Michigan lake. Mr. McCune
had also a native Minneapolitan, Wm. H. Van
derburgh, as a classmate in the classical depart
ment of Princeton. It was through his friend
ship for Mr. Vanderburgh, which brought him
here later on a visit, that Mr. McCune decided
that Minneapolis was the only city in the country
for his permanent home. After graduation at
Princeton and a year of law study in Indiana,
he went to Ann Arbor, meeting there in the law
department of Michigan University Frank Healy,
who further confirmed his faith in Minneapolis.
In March, 1883, Mr. McCune came to this city,
entered the office of Cross, Hicks and Carlton
and was admitted to practice in October of the
same year. He pays high tribute to the kind
ness of the late Capt. Cross and to the courtesy
and patience of Judge Stephen Mahoney in court
practice, for many chances to better establish
his own future as a young lawyer. After a few
months of independent practice in 1884, he united
with E. S. Slater under the firm name of Slater &
McCune. Three years later he became associated,
with the Hon. E. M. Johnson, out of which grew
the ten years' partnership of Johnson, Leonard
& McCune. Upon Mr. Johnson's appointment
as District Judge, Mr. McCune took up practice
alone and has so continued. He has held the
office of alderman of the eighth ward. His pres
ent post as clerk of the Probate Court came to
him without solicitation or previous knowledge.
Mr. McCune is a Presbyterian in church faith.
He was married October 20, 1886, at Lima, New
York, to Clara A. McNair, and as a result of this
union three children, Clara, Mary and Anna,
have been born to them.
MORRIS, William Richard, was born on
February 22, 1859, in Fleming county, Kentucky.
His father was Hezekiah Morris of three-quar
ters Negro blood, who, born in slavery in the
COURTS AND LAWYERS
161
to exercise his native talent in the successful
handling of many important cases, one of the
most notable being his defense of Thomas Lyons
in the famous Harris murder trial. Mr. Morris
has always been keenly interested in all move
ments for the advancement of his race and has
lent his own time and energy to such purposes.
In 1885 he represented the Afro-Americans of
the South at the meeting of the A. M. A. at Madi
son, Wisconsin, delivering an address on "The
Negro at Present." The following year he held
institutes in Tennessee for the Afro-American
teachers of the state under the auspices of the
Superintendent of Education. In 1891 he was
elected president of the Minnesota State League
of Afro-Americans and for some time has been
the political leader of the Negroes of the state
Republican party. Mr. Morris is a Mason of the
Thirty-third Degree Scottish Rites and has held
several important offices in that body, being a
past grand master and past grand secretary. In
the Odd Fellows he is a past most venerable pa
triarch and is a past grand chancellor of the
Knights of Pythias, in which order he is at pres
ent deputy supreme chancellor and brigadier
general for Minnesota. He is a member of the
Plymouth Congregational Church. On July 14,
1896, Mr. Morris was married to Miss Anna M. La
Force, and they have one son, Richard Edward,
born April 2, 1900.
8WEET, PHOTO
WILLIAM
R. MORRIS.
south, by his industry bought his freedom and
learned the trade of mattressmaking.
His
mother was Elizabeth (Hopkins) Morris of half
Negro parentage. When William R. was two
years of age his father died and after remaining
in Kentucky through the war his mother moved
to Ohio, locating at New Richmond. There her
son attended the public schools and later a pri
vate school of the same place and after moving
to Chicago he entered a Catholic school. Com
pleting his studies there his ambitions urged him
to acquire a college and professional training and
he entered Fisk University at Nashville, Tenn
essee, in 1876, taking the classical course. He
was at the University for eight years, and grad
uated with high honors with the class of 1884.
During his college work he was a powerful debator and orator, as well as being strong in his
studies. Following his graduation a position as
instructor of mathematics, languages and sci
ences in the institution was tendered him which
he accepted; and where he remained for four
years—the only Afro-American member of the
faculty. During this time he was also engaged in
legal studies and in 1887 completed his law
course, resigning his position at Fisk in 1889 to
begin his legal practice. He was admitted to the
bar by the Supreme Court of Illinois and came
to Minneapolis, where he immediately com
menced practice. He has found opportunity here
MORRISON, Robert George, son of David H.
and Margery B. (McConnell) Morrison, was born
at Blair's Mills, Huntington county, Pennsylva
nia, on July 31, i860. His father was a merchant
of Blair's Mills and Mr. Morrison spent the first
twelve years of his life at that place. The family
then moved to Morning Sun, Iowa, where he
finished his common school education and en
tered the local high school. After graduating
from the latter he entered the Iowa State Uni
versity and in 1882 received his A. B. degree, and
delivered the valedictory address at the class-day
exercises of his class. He studied one year
longer at the same institution and took an LL. B.
degree in the law department. He also returned
a few years later and was given his A. M. degree
in 1890. Mr. Morrison's energies have always
been turned toward the study and practice of his
profession, and, aside from the experience ac
quired in his father's store during his vacations,
he received no business training. When he fin
ished his college course, he commenced to prac
tice and since moving to Minneapolis has con
tinued to apply himself to his profession, and,
during this time has been connected with several
cases that have attracted more than local atten
tion. Mr. Morrison is a republican in his polit
ical beliefs but has never consented to run for
office, although he is actively interested in polit
ical measures. While in college he was a mem
ber of the Zetagathian Literary society, was
prominent in the work of the club and held at
one time the office of president. At the present
162
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
of the Northwest and he seems to have had his
program of activities defined in his own mind
when, in his youth, he was learning the lumber
business and preparing for the study of law. Mr.
Nichols is a republican in politics and is a mem
ber of the East Side Commercial Club.
PATTEE, William Sullivan, dean of the Col
lege of Law, University of Minnesota, was born
at Jackson, Maine, September 19, 1846, the son
of Daniel and Mary Ann (Bixby) Pattee. He
prepared for college at Kent's Hill, Maine, and
entered Bowdoin College in 1867, graduating in
1871. He studied law while teaching school after
graduation and coming to Minnesota was ad
mitted to the bar on June 28, 1878, at Faribault.
In 1884 and 1885 Dean Pattee served in the state
legislature while living at Northfield, Minnesota,
and in 1888 was elected dean of the College of
Law, organized the college and has since con
tinued at its head, building it up in twenty years
to a high position among the law schools of the
country. Dean Pattee is the author of "Illus
trative Cases in Contracts," "Illustrative Cases
in Equity," "Illustrative Cases in Personality,"
"Illustrative Cases in Realty," "Elements of Con
tracts," and "Elements of Equity." From 1886
he was a member and president of the Board of
Normal School Directors of Minnesota for a
ROBERT G. MORRISON.
time he is a member of the Westminster club
and at different times has taken a part on the
annual program of that association. Mr. Morri
son attends and is a member of the Westminster
Presbyterian Church. He was married in 1903 to
Miss Alice B. Gilmore of this city, and they have
one daughter, Elizabeth.
NICHOLS, John F., was born at Rice Lake,
Wisconsin, October 15, 1882, son of Amos C. and
Augusta C. Nichols. He attended the public
schools at Rice Lake and was employed by t,he
Rice Lake Lumber Company for some time,
meantime making such preparations for a pro
fessional life that he was able to enter the Min
nesota state university upon coming to Minne
apolis in 1901, graduating in law in 1904 with-the
degree LL. B. Since then Mr. Nichols has en
tered vigorously into the law and real estate busi
ness under the firm name of Nichols, Frissell &
Smith, which firm has for some time made its
headquarters in the Andrus Bldg., Minneapolis.
They have built up a large business in organizing
land syndicates, to develop hardwood timber,
prairie and cut-over timber tracts, dairy and blue
grass land, etc. The firm has developed several
new towns in Wisconsin and throughout the
northwest; they have lines of business in Canada,
North Dakota, Colorado and elsewhere. Mr.
Nichols is a young man to assume large business
responsibilities, but he has the push and energy
SWEET, PHOTO
JOHN F. NICHOLS.
COURTS ANt) LAWYERS
163
period of twelve years. He was married at Ply
mouth, Maine, on November 30, 1871, to Miss
Julia E. Tuttle. In 1894 Dean Pattee received
the degree of LL. D. from Iowa College. Hei is
a speaker of ability and is frquently called upon
for public addresses and lectures. He is a mem
ber of the Congregational church.
PRENDERGAST, Edmund A., was born in
St. Paul on October 16, 1875. His parents were
Patrick Henry Prendergast and Bridget Louise
Prendergast and the family was among the pio
neers of the state, six brothers having settled in
St. Paul in the year 1856. When Edmund A.
was four years old his parents moved to Minne
apolis where he has since lived. The family has
always been connected with the Roman Catholic
Church and Mr. Prendergast was educated in
the institutions of the denomination. He took
a six years' classical course in the College of St.
Thomas at Merriam Park, graduating in June,
1894, and completed his collegiate education with
a post-graduate course at Grand House of Phil
osophy, Montreal, Canada, during the years 1894
and 1895. Returning to Minneapolis he entered
the law department of the University of Minne
sota, from which he graduated in 1899. Mr.
Prendergast at once commenced practice in Min
neapolis and has a general clientele, although
making a specialty of corporation law. For the
past three years he has been general attorney for
the Northwestern Telephone Exchange Company
of Minneapolis and local attorney for the Wiscon
sin Central Railway Company. Mr. Prendergast
is a republican in political faith though not a
politician. He is interested in civic and philan
thropic problems and has been a member of the
board of directors of the Associated Charities.
He is a member of the Minneapolis Club.
ROBERTS, Harlan Page, is a native of Ohio.
His parents were Rev. George Roberts and Ann
J. Roberts and he was born on December 5,
1854, at Wayne, Ashtabula county, Ohio, while
his father held a charge in that place. When
he was nine years old he went to Iowa to live
with a sister and his schooling, begun in the
rural schools of Ohio, was continued in the
schools of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, and at Howe's
Academy in the same state. Schooling, as is
often the case with country boys, was diversified
with hard work. At one time Harlan P. spent
a year at Pentwater, Michigan, packing shingles.
Fitting himself for college he entered Oberlin,
graudating in 1875. He then attended Yale The
ological seminary and graduated in the class of
1878. Next came a few years of experience as
a pastor in the west. During this period Mr.
Roberts determined to study law and entered the
office of Nathaniel E. Slaymaker of Silverton,
Colorado. He was admitted to the bar in Col
orado in 1883 and came to Minneapolis in Decem
ber, 1884. Since that time he has been continu
ously engaged in the practice of his profession in
this city. His practice has been of a general
SWEET, PHOTO
EDMUND A. I'JUCiNUEUGAST.
character but he has had special experience in land
and title law and was for several years examiner
for the state under the Torrens land title reg
istry system in vogue in Hennepin county. An
increasing general practice necessitated the re
linquishment of this position. Mr. Roberts has
taken a lively interest in good government, both
local and state, but has not entered politics, ex
cept at the caucus and in local conventions. He
is president of the Minneapolis Humane Society
and has been active in other philanthropic work.
On October 3, 1888, he was married to Miss
Margaret Lee Conklin. They have two children
living, Marjorie and Harlan C. The family at
tends the Park Avenue Congregational Church.
ROBERTS, William Preston, son of Job and
Hannah Pickering Roberts, was born June 16,
1845, in Gwynedd, Montgomery county, Penn
sylvania. The forebears of the family on the
father's side were Welsh Quakers who accom
panied William Penn to Pennsylvania in 1698,
settling in Montgomery county, near Philadel
phia, and on the mother's side they were Eng
lish Quakers. William P. was brought up on his
father's farm and continued there, with the ex
ception of a few years spent in Maryland, until
he began training for the teacher's profession at
the normal school, Millersville, Pennsylvania, in
the fall of 1862. Here his studies were interrupted
164
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
WILLIAM P. ROBERTS.
by Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania in 1863. An
emergency company of the students was hastily
armed and sent to the front to aid in obstructing
the progress of the rebel invader. Most.of these
improvised soldiers were soon mustered in the
army as Company H, Forty-seventh Pennsylvania
Volunteer Militia during the battle of Gettysburg,
but were ordered to serve under Gen. Meade in
the pursuit of Lee up the Cumberland Valley and
to the Potomac. The regiment served thereafter
under Sigel and was mustered out in the fall, and
Mr. Roberts went back to school but responded
to a call for officers to command colored troops,
and was commissioned Second Lieutenant by the
War Department "and assigned to the Forty-fifth
U. S. Colored Troops which served until the
close of the. war, in Maryland, Virginia and West
Virginia. Mr. Roberts just missed being at the
surrender of Lee, as he had been sent back with
a detachment to bring up provisions for the whole
army. He went with his regiment under Gen.
Sheridan, with the 2^th Army Corps, to the Mex
ican border to demonstrate against Napoleon's
puppet Maximilian in Mexico, and the regiment
was not mustered out until December, 1865, Mr.
Roberts having in the Texas service served on
the brigade staff and having been in command of
of his company during his whole service, coming
out First Lieutenant and recommended for a
captain's commission. He returned to his studies
in the Millersville normal school and graduated
in 1867, and soon entered the law school of the
University of Michigan, graduating in 1869, and,
on application to the Circuit Court in Ann Arbor
and examination, he was admitted to the bar of
Michigan. Six weeks later he removed to Ne
braska City, Nebraska, and practiced law there
until 1874, when he came to Minneapolis where
he has since resided. He was in partnership with
Col. Reuben C. Benton and his brother, C. H.
Benton, as Benton, Benton and Roberts, from
1878 to 1881, and with Col. Benton alone as Ben
ton and Roberts, and then with Col. Benton and
Rome G. Brown, as Benton, Roberts and Brown
until 1895. Since the death of Col. Benton, Mr.
Roberts has practiced alone. He was an original
member of the Minneapolis Bar Association, of
which he holds the oldest outstanding share. Mr.
Roberts was an active and efficient member of
the lower house of the Minnesota legislature dur
ing the sessions of 1899, 1901, 1902 and 1905, serv
ing on the most important committees. He in
troduced the first bill in Minnesota for nomina
tions by direct vote of the people, which in some
respects was better than the measure which be
came a law at the session of 1899, notably in
keeping the primaries for state, county and city
nominations separate. In 1902 he prepared and
passed through the lower house the so-called
"wide-open" tax amendment to the constitution,
which is practically identical with the amend
ment introduced by him at the session of 1905,
and ordered for submission to ratification by the
people at the ensuing general election.
Mr.
Roberts also, as a member of the House Judiciary
Committee and joint conference committee, took
an important part in the construction and enact
ment of the Revised Code in 1905. He was
prominent in his efforts that year to secure ap
propriations for the new buildings of the State
University, as chairman of the appropriations
committee, as well as for the Women's building
at the Soldiers Home.
Mr. Roberts is a strenuous republican in poli
tics and one who believes that it is every man's
duty to show his patriotism by taking an active
part in national, state and local politics between
campaigns as well as in the heat of campaign ac
tivities. He believes in intelligent organization
in political action but not in machine politics,
and his course since he came to Minneapolis in
dicates that he has lived up to his principles. He
was an active member of the old Union League
of Minneapolis and of the original Union League
of Civil War times. He helped organize the
Fourth Ward Republican Club and always at
tends its meetings when in the city. In 1872,
with many other Republicans, he joined the socalled Liberal Republican movement, involving
a coalition with the Democratic party, in revolt
against the political shortcomings of the domin
ant party, under the leadership of Horace Greeley.
He, with two other veterans of the Civil War,
COURTS AND LAWYERS
started the revolt in Nebraska and he was one of
the delegates from that state to the Liberal Re
publican Convention in Cincinnati and repre
sented it on the platform committee, exerting his
influence against the "tariff-for-revenue-only" ele
ment, who were led by Carl Schurz, Stanley
Mathews, David Wells, and others who stood for
Charles Francis Adams for nomination to the
presidency. He voted for Greeley at the start and
brought the Nebraska delegation and ultimately
the whole convention to his support. Mr. Rob
erts did some of the hardest work of his life dur
ing that campaign, whose disastrous ending con
vinced him that the reformation of a party is
only really possible by a movement from within
its own ranks, and since then he has worked for
party in regular ways in the regular Republican
ranks. He was president of the Minneapolis Un
ion League when the movement to nominate McKinley to the presidency began in 1895, and used
all his influence in securing a delegation from
Minnesota instructed for McKinley. Mr. Roberts
is a member of the G. A. R., George N. Morgan,
Post No. 4, and has always been conspicuous in
its councils officially and otherwise. He is an
original member of the Commercial Club and a
member of Hennepin Lodge No. 4, A. F. A. M.,
in which he has held and holds important posi
tions. He is a member of the several bodies of
the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite Masons
in Minneapolis, and of Zuhrah Temple of the
Noble Order of the Mystic Shrine, and of the
Independent Order of Good Templars for the
past forty years. In 1908 he was re-elected Grand
Master of the Masonic Grand Lodge of Minne
sota. He is a Universalist and a member of the
Church of the Redeemer and president of the
Universalist State Convention. He married in 1869,
Anna N. Pugh, of Chester county, Pennsylvania,
who died childless in 1870. In 1876 he married
Agnes D. Taggart, of St. Clairsville, Ohio, who
died in 1895, leaving two sons of that marriage—
Horace W., born July 8, 1877, and Roy G., born
January 29, 1880. Horace is in the Philippine
civil service and Roy lives in Manitoba.
ROCKWOOD, Chelsea Joseph, was born
September 13, 1855, at Bennington, Vermont, son
of Joseph R. and Rhoda (Hurd) Rockwood. His
father was a farmer in his earlier life and later
became a clergyman. The farm on which Chel
sea J. was born had been settled by his mother's
grandfather, Moses Hurd, in 1769. In 1869 the
family removed to Garden City, Blue Earth
County, Minnesota, arriving in December of that
year.
Mr. Rockwood attended the common
schools and studied in the preparatory department
of Carleton College, going thence to the state
university, taking the four-year course and grad
uating in 1879, B. A. Like many other under
graduates, Mr. Rockwood, during his course at
the university, had to take some reefs in his purse
strings. He had only fifty dollars when he en
165
tered, and pulled through largely by what he
made carrying newspapers. He was then em
ployed as principal of the Le Sueur schools dur
ing the next two years, and, after reading law
in the offices of Shaw, Levi & Cray and of Judge
P. M. Babcock, he was admitted to the bar by
examination of the District Court of Hennepin
county in November, 1882, and has been prac
ticing law in Minneapolis since. Mr. Rockwood
was attorney for the Board of Park Commis
sioners from 1889 to 1892 and since 1895 to the
present time. He was a member of the board in
i 893-95He is a member of the Commercial
Club and of the local and national bar associa
tions. Mr. Rockwood is a republican in politics
and a member of the Baptist church. He was
married on October 30, 1883, to Carrie D.
Fletcher, of Mankato. They have had four chil
dren, the oldest of whom, Paul, born in 1884, died
in 1890. The living are Ethel (1886), Edith (1888)
and Fletcher, born in 1893.
'•
REED, Sampson A., a practicing attorney of
Minneapolis for about thirty years, was born
in Boston, December 8, 1849, and died in Min
neapolis, May 31, 1908. He was the only child
of Elisha B. Reed of Hartford, Maine, and Abbie Brett of Canton, Maine. His father was an
older brother of Captain Axel H. Reed of Glenco, Minnesota, and a pioneer of that town. When
Sampson was very young the elder Reed, be-
SWEET, PHOTO
CHELSEA J. ROCKWOOD.
166
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
cause of failing health, returned from Boston'
with his family to his native town, where he
soon after died. He was descended from pure
New England stock through those ancestors
that settled in Oxford county, Maine, after the
Revolutionary War. He is descended on his
mother's side from three Mayflower ancestors,
and on his father's side, from one, Governor
Bradford of the Plymouth colony. Soon after
the Revolution, many revolutionary soldiers with
others, went to the wilds of Maine to found new
homes. One Sampson Reed, whose father had
died in Massachusetts, was one of those who
in 179s went with his mother to Hartford,
Maine, then a wilderness. The subject of this
sketch is the fourth Sampson Reed from the
pioneer referred to, but with him dies the name
as a family name. Sampson Reed's boyhood
was spent in Canton and Buckfield, Maine,
where he attended the public schools. He fitted
for college at Hebron Academy, of which Mark
Dunnell was at one time principal, and was
graduated from Dartmouth College in 1874.
While in college, Mr. Reed was an active and
prominent member of various college debating
FERNANDO W. ROOT.
societies. He supported himself while in the
academy and in college, by teaching school. Mr.
Reed did not linger long in the east, but in the
same year, 1874, came west as principal of the
high school in Glencoe, Minnesota. In the fol
lowing year, 1875, he came to Minneapolis and
began the study of law in the office of the late
Judge Isaac Atwater. After his admission to the
bar in 1877, he practiced for a time by himself and
in 1883 entered into a law partnership with the
late Judge Seagrave Smith, under the firm name
of Smith & Reed, which continued until the ap
pointment of Judge Smith to the district bench
in March, 1889. Mr. Reed, although always in
the general practice of his profession, made
something of a specialty of land titles and real
estate law. He also developed excellent business
judgment and was the confidential adviser of
many men of large real estate interests. He was
in politics a republican and in religion a Universalist, being a member of the Church of the
Redeemer. He was married on November 7,
1877, to Miss Abbie Eells of Belfast, Maine, and
is survived by her and by one daughter, Miss
Abbie M. Reed. He was a member of lodges
of Elks and Odd Fellows. Mr. Reed was a man
of high integrity in his profession and was
popular and well beloved by all who knew him
best.
ROOT, F. W., solicitor of the Chicago, Mil
waukee & St. Paul Railway Company, at Min
neapolis, is a native of New York. He was
born at Guilford, August 7, 1855, the son of
Silas and Mathilda Root, both of Revolutionary
stock. During his boyhood he attended the local
schools and afterwards went to Oxford Academy,
Chenango county, New York. He had deter
mined upon the law as his profession and after
leaving the academy he entered the law office
of Henry R. Mygatt at Oxford where he studied
for three years. He was admitted to the bar at
the general term of the supreme court of New
York at Ithaca on May 4, 1880. Mr. Root came
to Minneapolis in October, 1881, and for a time
was associated with the law firm of Jackson &
Pond. In the following year he entered the
office of W. H. Norris, solicitor of the Chicago,
Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Company at Min
neapolis." His position was that of law clerk and
his efficient service led to his eventually being
intrusted with many important cases, especially
personal injury cases, in the state and federal
courts. In the defense of this class of cases he
has won special distinction and is acknowledged
to be without an equal in the defense of personal
injury cases. Later the trial of important cases
involving questions connected with the transpor
tation of freight were added to his department
of the work. Mr. Root continued as attorney
for the C. M. & St. P. Ry., associated with Mr.
Norris, until the latter retired in 1902 when he
was appointed solicitor. Mr. Root is a repub
lican in political faith but has never sought
168
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
political preferment. He takes an active part
in local movements for good government and
is a member of various public and social organ
izations. Since 1904 he has been Judge Advocate
General with title of Brigadier General on Gov
ernor Johnson's staff.
SEEVERS, George W., general counsel for
the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway, is an Ohio
man,—born at Coshocton in that sta;te on Septem
ber 23, 1845. His parents were Robert and Ellen
Bryant Seevers. The family moved to Iowa
when George W. was ten years of age, and his
schooling was largely obtained in the public
schools near their new home. From high school
he went to Oskaloosa (Iowa) College, and later
completed his academic education with a post
graduate course at the University of Michigan
at Ann Arbor. He graduated from the law de
partment of the University of Michigan, after
which he began the work of his profession, and
soon had a large general practice at Oskaloosa,
Iowa, which he continued until 1895, when he was
appointed general counsel of the Iowa Central
Railway, with headquarters at Oskaloosa. In
1904 Mr. Seevers, in addition to his position with
the Iowa Central road, was made general counsel
for the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway Com
pany, and moved to Minneapolis, where he has
since maintained general offices. He afterwards
became the vice-president and general counsel of
the Minnesota, Dakota & Pacific Railway, and at
the present time is still connected with the lines
named in the same capacities. In politics Mr.
Seevers is a republican. He has become closely
identified with the railroad and legal life of the
city, and is well known in social and club circles.
He is a member of the Minneapolis Club, the
Minikahda Club, the Automobile Club, and is also
a Sir Knight Mason.
SHAW, Frank W., of the law firm of Cohen,
Atwater & Shaw, was born at Hodgdon, Maine,
the son of Charles Shaw and Mary Jane Wiggin.
His ancestors were prominent in the colonial
wars and public affairs and in the Revolutionary
War. Mr. Shaw's early life was passed at Houlton, Maine, and he received his education at
Ricker Classical Institute from which he grad
uated in 1876 and at Colby University, Waterville, Maine, graduating with the class of 1880.
In September of that year he came to Minne
apolis and during the next three years studied
law in the office of Rea, Woolley & Kitchel.
Upon his admission to the bar on June 30, 1883,
he became a member of the law firm of Rea,
Kitchel & Shaw, a partnership which continued
until 1886 when the style was changed to Kitchel,
Cohen & Shaw. After the death of Mr. Kitchel
in 1900, J. B. Atwater was admitted to the part
nership, the firm becoming, Cohen, Atwater &
Shaw as at present. Mr. Shaw is a republican in
political belief and is a member of the Lowry
Hill Congregational Church. He belongs to the
Minneapolis Club and to the Delta Kappa Ep-
silon fraternity. He has been twice married, in
1882 to Eliza A. Warnock and in 1899 to Julia C.
Fairbairn and had two children by the first mar
riage and four by the second.
SELOVER, Arthur William, for a number of
years a well-known member of the legal frater
nity in the Twin Cities, was born at the town of
Flatbush, Long Island, on July 9, 1871, the Son
of Peter and Jennie H. Selover. His father is a
builder and contractor and was engaged until
1879 i n that business in New York state, at
which time the family came to Minnesota and
located at Lake City. Their son attended the
public schools there and took his preparatory
work for college in the Lake City high school,
from which he graduated in the year 1888. He
matriculated at the University of Minnesota for
the continuation of his studies, entering the aca
demic department. He graduated from that de
partment in 1893, receiving at the time his degree
of B. A., returning to complete his training for
the legal profession, which he had determined
to follow, in the law college. He finished the
GEORGE W. SEEVERS.
COURTS AND LAWYERS
169
ward. He is a member also of the Apollo
Club. On December 19, 1900, Mr. Selover was
married to Miss Bessie S. Warner of St. Paul,
and they have two children, both sons—Arthur
Lucien, aged five, and Harvey William, now three
years of age. The family attends the First Pres
byterian Church of Minneapolis, and Mr. Selover
is the superintendent of the Sunday School.
SHEARER, James Duncan, came to Minne
apolis in 1883, when twenty-one years of age, and
since the following year has been a practicing
attorney of this city. He is descended on both
sides from old Scotch families; his father, Robert
Bruce Shearer, was a descendant of Robert Bruce
of Scotland; his mother, Elizabeth Eliza Camp
bell McDougall, was a second cousin of the last
Duke of Argyle, and grand-daughter of Dr. John
Lawson of Edinburgh, physician to Sir Walter
Scott. James D. Shearer was born on March 25,
1862, at Janesville, Wisconsin, then the home of
his parents. When he was three years of age
thfe family moved to central Iowa and he grew
up on a farm in that state, the youngest of six
children.
His education began in "the little
white school-house" and after the usual prepara
tory training he entered the Iowa State Agricul
tural College at Ames. His studies were carried
on there for five years and he graduated in 1879,
when only seventeen years old, being, in fact, up
to that time the youngest student of the instituSWEET, PHOTO
AKTI1UU W. SELOVER.
law course in 1894 taking a LL. B. degree; and
at the time of graduation was awarded the honors
of his class for the preparation of the best and
most complete legal thesis. After leaving col
lege Mr. Selover followed his legal studies for a
time and in 1897 took the additional degree of
LL. M. In 1894, following his graduation from
the law department of the University of Minne
sota, he had accepted a position on the editorial
staff of the West Publishing Company of St.
Paul, and took an important part in the editing
of the law books handled by that house. He
was associated with that firm as legal editor for
five years, but in 1899 resigned his office to fol
low his original intention of entering the legal
profession. He chose Minneapolis as the field
for his practice and has since been engaged with
legal work in this city. Much important litiga
tion has come under his management during the
course of his practice. Mr. Selover is also the
author of several legal books, the most impor
tant, possibly, being a volume on negotiable in
struments which is used as a standard authority
throughout the country and which the Yale Law
School has adopted as a text book. This was
published in 1900. A year later he completed and
published a work on bank collections. Mr. Sel
over is a republican in politics and has been ac
tive in the work of his party, and in 1908 became
the candidate for alderman from the Fifth
BRUSH, PHOTQ
JAMES D. SHEARER.
170
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
tion to receive a diploma. After leaving college
Mr. Shearer taught in the Iowa schools for sev
eral years, but the work of a teacher did not offer
scope for either his ambitions or abilities. So in
1883 he resigned his position and came to Minne
apolis, and has since been a resident and a mem
ber of the legal fraternity of the city. Soon after
his arrival here, Mr. Shearer began to study law
in the offices of Judge Bagg, and on October 17,
1884, was admitted to the bar by the state su
preme court. He commenced practice at once in
Minneapolis. His work has not been confined to
any one branch of the law, but has been along
general lines, and at the present time his list of
clients is large and his practice successful. For
several years he has been a member of the law
firm of Belden, Jamison & Shearer. On March
2 5, I 9°7, Mr. Shearer was appointed receiver of
the Minnesota Title Insurance & Trust Company
and since that time has been largely engaged in
settling up the affairs of the institution. Mr.
Shearer is a member of the republican party and
is active in its work. In 1903 he was elected to
the Minnesota house of representatives, and
served during 1903 and 1904. He is a member of
various organizations, social, political, and pro
fessional; among them being the Minneapolis
Commercial Club and the Six O'Clock Club. On
September 18, 1888, Mr. Shearer was married to
Miss Emma Evans of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and
they have
daughter.
four
children,
three
sons
and
a
SMITH, Edward E., a practicing attorney of
Minneapolis, was born on May 5, 1861, at Spring
Valley, Minnesota. He is a son of Dryden Smith
and Elizabeth Ann (Hines) Smith. He attended
the public schools at Spring Valley, where he
passed his boyhood and youth, but studied law
at Charles City, Iowa, where he was admitted
to the bar in 1883. Most of Mr. Smith's profes
sional life has been passed in Minneapolis, where
he moved not long after his admission to prac
tice. He has always taken an active interest in
politics and has been repeatedly elected to the
State Legislature as a republican. He first served
in the house of representatives in 1895, and
was re-elected for the session of 1897. He was
elected to the state senate in 1898 and again in
1902 and 1906. Mr. Smith was married in 1883
to Esther E. Leonard, and they have two chil
dren, Harriet and Rollin. He is a member of the
Minneapolis and Commercial clubs and is promi
nent in all the Masonic orders.
SMITH, George Ross, lawyer and judge of the
probate court of Hennepin county, was born in
Stearns county, Minnesota, May 28, 1864, the son
of David and Katharine (Crowe) Smith. He at
tended the district school until fifteen years of
age, working on his father's farm during the sum
mers. In 1886 he graduated from Lake View
Academy and was awarded a gold medal for
scholarship. He taught school until 1891, when he
entered the College of Law of the University of
Minnesota, from which he graduated with the
degree of LL. B. in 1893. While, in the university
he was elected president of his class. Since 1893
he has been actively engaged in the practice of
law in Minneapolis. He was elected to the legis
lature from the Thirty-eighth legislative district
in 1902, and was the first republican representative
to be sent to the house of representatives from
that district. He was elected judge of probate of
Hennepin county in November, 1906. On Janu
ary 9, 1895, Judge Smith was married at Minneap
olis to Mrs. F. J. Horan. He is a member of
the State Bar Association and several fraternal
orders and local clubs. His recreations are hunt
ing and fishing.
SMITH, Seagrave, for many years a -promi-nent member of the Hennepin county bar and
judge of the district court, was born on Septem
ber 16, 1828, at Stafford, Connecticut, the son of
Hiram and Mary A. (Seagrave) Smith.
His
father was a farmer of Welsh descent and his an
cestors on both sides were early settlers of New
England. His early life was that usual to the
farmer's boy in New England and he finished a
common school education with a course at the
Connecticut Literary Institution at Suffield,
where he graduated in 1848. He had already de
termined to be a lawyer, but this course was
strongly opposed by his father, who refused him
GEORGE R. SMITH.
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172
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
ous positions, as attorney general of the state
and chief justice of the supreme court, but with
the exceptions noted was not elected, his party
being largely in the minority in Minnesota. In
every case, however, Judge Smith ran ahead of
his party ticket, as he was widely known as a
man of the highest character and ability and one
whose partisanship could not detract from his
able, conscientious work as an official. Judge
Smith was married three times. His first wife
was Miss Almira Cady of Monson, Massachu
setts. They had four children. His second wife
was Mrs. Fidelia P. Hatch of Hastings, who had
one son, Theron S. Smith. Judge Smith's third
marriage was to Mrs. Harriet P. Norton of Otis,
Massachusetts, who survives him and is still liv
ing in Minneapolis. The only surviving child of
Judge Smith is Claribel Smith, principal of Ham
ilton school, in this city. Judge Smith died in
May, 1898.
SWEET, PHOTO
JOHN DAY SMITH.
any financial aid, and he accordingly supported
himself while studying for the bar by teaching
school. He read law with Alvin P. Hide at Staf
ford, Connecticut, and was admitted to the bat
on August 13, 1852. He began to practice in
Colchester, Connecticut, and during his residence
there served as town clerk, state senator, and
clerk of the probate court. In 1857 he grati
fied an early desire to settle in the west and
came to Hastings, Minnesota, where he formed a
law partnership with J. W. De Silva. During
his twenty years residence at Hastings he took
a prominent part in the politics of Dakota coun
ty, serving from time to time as county attor
ney, county commissioner, judge of probate and
as a member of the state senate. He was at
torney for the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul
railway and other railroad corporations.
In
1877 Judge Smith moved to Minneapolis and
formed a law partnership with W. E. Hale,
which continued for three years. In 1883 he en
tered into a partnership with the late S. A. Reed,
which continued until March, 1889, when Judge
Smith was appointed to the district bench. Al
though a life long democrat, Judge Smith was
elected in 1890 by the united support of all par
ties and in 1896 was again elected to the bench
on the democratic ticket. In 1887 he was elect
ed city attorney and held the office for two
terms. He was frequently nominated for vari
SMITH, John Day, member of the district
bench of Minnesota, is the descendant of English
Colonial ancestry that settled in this country a
half century before the Revolutionary War and
took part in the struggle for independence. His
great-grandfather, James Lord, was a lieutenant
"uid led a companv at Bunker Hill. John Day,
the son of a Kennebec county, Maine, farmer,
was born in that region on February 25, 1845.
After completing his preparatory education he
entered Brown University and graduated with
the class of 1872. Returning for further work he
took an A. M. degree,in 1875 and in his senior
year became a member of the Phi Beta Kappa
fraternity. He taught school for a short time
and then entered Columbia University and stu
died law, receiving an LL. B. degree at that insti
tution in 1878 and his degree of LL. M. three
years later at the same place. In 1881, shortly
after his graduation from Columbia he was ad
mitted to the bar in the city of Washington. In
1885 he came to Minneapolis and has resided here
since that time. He practiced his profession in
this city, as senior partner of the law firm of
Smith and Parsons until 1901 and then inde
pendently until his election to the district bench
in 1904. Besides his legal work Judge Smith was
a lecturer at the state university on American
constitutional law, from 1890 till 1905, when he
was promoted to the bench, and was engaged for
a time to lecture at Howard University. On June
26, 1862, he enlisted with Company F., Nineteenth
Maine Volunteers and fought in most of the prin
cipal battles of the Civil war—Fredericksburg,
Chancellorsville, Bristoe Station, Mine Run, the
Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Bethesda Church,
North Anna, Cold Harbor, Siege of Petersburg
and Jerusalem Road. He was slightly wounded
at Gettysburg and at Jerusalem Road was almost
fatally shot in the face. Though given up by
the surgeons he recovered and was discharged, as
a corporal, April 25, 1865, on account of his
wounds. Judge Smith has always been active
COURTS AND LAWYERS
politically and has held several public offices. He
has usually supported the republican party
though in 1896 he followed the political leader
ship of William J. Bryan. In 1889 he served in
the lower house of the Minnesota legislature and
was the representative from the Thirty-fourth
District in the senate from 1891 to 1895, and was
an able leader of the republican sentiment and
movements in that body. During his last term
he was chairman of the judiciary committee of
the senate. After his second term in the senate
he returned to private life and practiced his
profession until 1904 when as mentioned he was
elected to the district bench. Judge Smith is
prominent in the affairs of military fraternal or
ganizations—he is a member of the G. A. R. and
in 1893 was chosen as commander of the depart
ment of Minnesota. In December, 1906, he was
elected president of the Minnesota Society of the
Sons of the American Revolution to succeed
Judge F. M. Crosby. He is also a member of
Ark Chapter, Darius Commandery of the Knights
Templar, and of Zuhrah Temple, and was the first
master of Ark Lodge A. F. and A. M. In 1872
he was married to Miss Mary Hardy Chadbourne,
of Lexington, Massachusetts, who died in 1874.
He was again married in 1879 to Miss Laura
Bean, of Delaware, Ohio. They have four chil
dren. The family attends the Calvary Baptist
Church.
SWEET, PMOTO
FRED B. SNYDER.
173
SNYDER, Fred B., son* of Simon P. and Mary
R. Snyder, was born in Minneapolis, on Febru
ary 21, 1859, in the original Colonel Stevens
house, the first dwelling erected on the site of
Minneapolis. He is the second son in the fam
ily and has spent his life from his birth in this
city. He attended the local public schools, grad
uated from the high school and then entered the
University of Minnesota from which he gradu
ated in 1881. He received his degree in that
year and then read law; first in the office of
Lochren, McNair & Gilfillan and later with the
law firm of Koon, Merrill and Keith. He was
admitted to the bar in 1882. He practiced in
partnership with Judge Jamison till 1889. He
has handled a number of important cases, notably
that of the State vs. Pillsbury, in which he upset
the provisions of the City Charter relating to
special assessments for local improvements; and
that of the State vs. Westfall, when he sustained
the constitutionality of the Torrens Land Law,
of which he himself is the author. Mr. Snyder
has always been a republican in politics and has
been elected by that party to several public of
fices. In 1892 he was elected alderman of the
second ward and served four years, being presi
dent of the council in 1894-1895. Two years later
he was the representative in the legislature from
the University district, in 1899 was advanced to
the senate, and in 1902 declined re-election for a
second term. While in the city council he pro
posed the gas arbitration plan, which materially
reduced the price of that commodity, and created
the office of City Gas Inspector. He also advo
cated and voted for the Harvey transfer ordinance.
As a member of the legislature he was the origi
nator and supporter of several important meas
ures—introducing and passing the bill increasing
the annual revenue of the state university. While in
the senate he introduced and passed the Board
of Control Bill and supported and voted for the
increase of the gross earnings tax from three to
four per cent. He was also the author of the
Probation Law for juvenile offenders.
Mr.
Snyder while in college was elected to the Chi
Psi and P. B. K. fraternities, and is a member of
the Minneapolis and Commercial Clubs. In 1885
he was married to Miss Susan M. Pillsbury, who
died in 1891. In 1896 he married Miss Lenora
Dickson of Pittsburgh. There are two children,
a son, John Pillsbury, and a daughter, Mary
Stuart. Mr. Snyder attends the First Congrega
tional Church.
SWEET, John Cochrane, was born at Fort
Wayne, Indiana, April 24, 1870, son of Kay Chit
tenden and Elizabeth (Cochrane) Sweet. His
father was a locomotive engineer whose forebe'ars
in this country came from England and settled
in Rhode Island in 1630. Mr. Sweet spent his
boyhood in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and received
his early educational training in the public
schools of that city and at Waseca, Minnesota,
whither he went in 1882. In 1890 he went to
174
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Mankato, Minnesota, and the next year he came to
Minneapolis to enter the university where he won
the Paige prize for the best graduation thesis in
1893, also winning the gold medal for first place in
the two hundred and twenty-yard dash on college
field day, 1892. Pursuing his studies in the law de
partment of the university, Mr. Sweet received
the LL. B. degree in 1893 and LL. M. in 1896.
When the Spanish war broke out Mr. Sweet en
tered the United States service as second lieute
nant, Company A, Fifteenth Minnesota Volunteer
Infantry. Mr. Sweet represented the thirty-ninth
district in the lower house of the Minnesota
legislature during the sessions of 1901 and 1902.
He is secretary and director of the Minneapolis
Oil Company and, since 1901, has been receiver
for the Minneapolis Fire & Marine Mutual In
surance Company, and since 1896 has been lec
turer on the Law of Mortgages in the Law De
partment of the state university. Mr. Sweet has
interests in Minneapolis real estate and in petro
leum lands in Kansas and is interested with W.
S. Dwinnell in British Columbia timber lands.
He is a member of the Minneapolis and Com
mercial clubs; is secretary and treasurer of the
Psi Upsilon Association of Minnesota, and a
member of the Phi Delta Phi Fraternity and, not
withstanding his professional engagements, main
tains a lively interest in athletics and automobiling. Mr. Sweet is a member of the First Con
gregational Church of Minneapolis. He was mar
ried on May 19, 1897, to Mary, daughter of Chas.
D. Lougee, and two daughters have been born
to them—Catherine Elizabeth (born February 8,
1901) and Margaret Cochrane (born June 17,
1903). Mr. Sweet resides at 526 Eleventh avenue
southeast.
THOMPSON, Charles T., of the law firm of
Keith, Evans, Thompson & Fairchild, is a native
of Ohio. He was born at Glendale, near Cin
cinnati, on June 6, 1853, the son of Samuel J.
and Eveline K. Thompson. His father was one
of the distinguished Cincinnati lawyers of the
last generation. He began his education at Glen
dale where he fitted for entrance to Denison Uni
versity at Granville, Ohio, from which institution
he graduated in 1873 with the degree of A. B. He
then went abroad studying at the University of
Edinburgh, Scotland, where, in the fall of 1874,
he took honors in logic, metaphysics and in
Roman law, having completed a two years course
in one year. Returning to America he entered
the Cincinnati Law School (now law department
of the University of Cincinnati) from which he
graduated in June, 1876. He at once began prac
tice with the firm of King, Thompson & Longworth, but on account of his health moved to
Minneapolis in 1878. For a few years he prac
ticed alone and then iq August, 1883, formed the
partnership with Mr. Arthur M. Keith, which
has continued until the present time. The firm
was at first Keith & Thompson and in 1887 the
present partnership was formed. It has always
BRUSH, PHOTO
OIIAULES J . T K A X L E R .
been one of the prominent law firms of the city
and has conducted much important legal busi
ness. During his thirty years residence in Min
neapolis Mr. Thompson has taken an active part
in all matters looking toward the betterment of
social and political conditions, though he has
never held or sought public office. His political
affiliations are with the republican party and his
church relations with the Presbyterian denomina
tion, in which he has held many important posi
tions. He has served as elder and clerk of West
minster Presbyterian Church for many years.
He is a member of the Sons of the American
Revolution, the Citizens' staff of the Rawlins post,
G. A. R., the Beta Theta Pi fraternity, the Min
neapolis Club, the Commercial Club, the La
fayette Club, the Westminster Club, the Six
O'Clock Club, and the American and Minnesota
State bar associations. Mr. Thompson was mar
ried on September 28, 1881, to Kate L. Harris of
Minneapolis. They have three sons, Arthur H.,
Telford K. and Charles Stanley.
TRAXLER, Charles Jerome, son of John and
Rebecca Yount Traxler, was born in Henry
county, Iowa, near Mount Pleasant, on December
16, 1858. The father was a farmer and brickmaker and the son spent his early years on the
farm near Mount Pleasant where, after attending
the public schools, he took the academic course
at Howe's Academy. After a course in Iowa
COURTS AND LAWYERS
Wesleyan University at Mount Pleasant, Mr.
Traxler completed his collegiate education at the
State University of Iowa at Iowa City from which
he graduated, LL. B., in 1882, meantime having
read law with prominent lawyers. He began the
practice* of his profession in partnership with
Hon. Clay B. Whitford (now of Denver, Col.)
and after that gentleman's departure for Denver,
the partnership being dissolved, Mr. Traxler be
came a member of the editorial staff of the Daily
Tribune-News, of Evansville, Ind., holding the
position of associate editor in chief. In 1886 he
resumed the practice of law in western Kansas,
where he was twice elected county attorney of
Seward County. He came to Minnesota in 1889
locating in Minneapolis where he has since been
practicing in his specialty as corporation counsel.
Mr. Traxler is an Independent in politics, in later
years generally voting for republican candidates.
As counsel for several freight receivers' associa
tions, Mr. Traxler has given intelligent attention
to the rate question and a plan for the regulation
of rates was considered by the government last
year which Mr. Traxler originated and which was
regarded with considerable favor by. the Federal
authorities and men of affairs who considered it.
It left the r-ate-making power with the railroads
and devolved upon them the burden of proof,
while avoiding any ground for basing a charge
that the commission is combining judicial and
legislative functions or that a special tribunal has
been created for a special industry. Mr. Traxler
is the author of several books which have re
ceived the "commendation of recognized legal au
thorities. His "Annotated Lien Laws of Minne
sota," published in 1890, has been indorsed by the
justices of the state supreme court and leading
members of the bar and by the dean of the law
department of the state university, where it is
used as a text book. His treatise on the "Law
of Mechanics' Liens of Iowa," also has the unani
mous indorsement of the members of the Iowa
supreme court. In 1907 Mr. Traxler was ap
pointed by the Minnesota supreme court as one
of the six members of the state board of law ex
aminers and assumed the duties of his office on
May 1 of that year. Mr. Traxler was married in
1886 to Mary Comstock, daughter of Col. A. W.
Comstock, of Mount Pleasant, Iowa. To them
have been born three children—Marian Avery,
Hazel Alice and John Austin.
TRYON, Charles John, a Minneapolis attorney
in active practice in the firm of Tryon and Booth,
was born September 8, 1859, at Batavia, New York.
He is the son of A. D., and Amanda H. Tryon,
and both parents were of English colonial an
cestry, the New York branch of the family hav
ing migrated from Connecticut—-the original
hgrne of the first settlers—and established them
selves in New York early, in that state's history
The father was a druggist and book seller in pros
perous circumstances and the son after an early
education in the common schools of Batavia,
175
went to Columbian University, Washington, D.
C., for his law course. Soon after graduation,
he came to Minneapolis, where he has since lived,
and practiced as a lawyer. Mr. Tryon is a re
publican in politics, and a Congregationalist in
church affiliations. He was married June 10, 1901,
to Miss Isabel Gale, the daughter of Harlow
A. Gale, one of the early pioneers of Minneapolis.
He has seven children—three sons and four
daughters.
VAN VALKENBURG, Jesse, was born in
Sharon, New York, on December 31, 1868, and is
of a family whose ancestors took part in the
Revolution. His father, Joseph Van Valkenburg,
was at the time of his son's birth a New York
farmer, but later engaged in business, and is now
retired; his mother was Harriet Seeley Van
Valkenburg. The family moved West and Jesse
grew up at Farmington, Minnesota, attending the
local schools and afterwards taking a course at the
Mankato state normal school. After graduating
at Mankato, he completed his education with
the academic and law courses at the University
of Minnesota, graduating from the former in
1894 a n d the latter in 1895. During the later
years of his university work he was on the staff
•of the'Minneapolis Tribune as a reporter and con
tinued for a short time after graduating, or until
he commenced practice in his chosen profession.
During his ten years' membership in the bar of
the city and state he has made a large acquaint
ance and established a satisfactory practice. " A
republican in politics, he has not taken a poli
tician's part in party affairs, but has been inter
ested in civic betterments and good government.
He is a member of the Masonic order and of
the society of the Sons of the American Revolu
tion. Mr. Van Valkenburg is married and has
three children. The family attend the Congre
gational church.
VANDERBURGH, Charles Edwin, better,
known as Judge Vanderburgh, an early settler
of St. Anthony and the first judge of the dis
trict bench from this district, was born on De
cember 2, 1829, at Clifton Park, Saratoga county,
New York. His ancestors came to this country
from Holland before the Revolution, his grand
father fought under the flag of the United Col
onies and shortly after the close of the war
settled in Saratoga county, where the father of
Charles Edwin, Stephen Vanderburgh, was born.
Charles Edwin received his grammar education
in the district school, later taking a preparatory
course in Cortland Academy at Homer, New
York, and entering Yale College in 1849 with
the class of 1852. He graduated in the latter
year and soon after commenced his legal studies
with Henry R. Mygatt, an eminent lawyer of
his day, at the same time holding the office of
principal at Oxford Academy, Oxford, New
York. Admitted to the bar in 1855, he came to
Minneapolis the following spring, where he soon
formed a partnership with F. R. E. Cornell and
176
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
commenced the practice of law, the firm becom
ing one of the most successful in the state. At
the age of twenty-nine elected judge of the
Fourth Judicial District in 1859, and successively
re-elected, Judge Vanderburgh dispensed justice
in the territory embracing everything north and
west of Minneapolis for twenty years, driving
over a large part of the circuit. In a day when
the jurisprudence of Minnesota was but slightly
developed, his excellent training and sound judg
ment blazed out the way of interpretation which
other courts followed. In 1881, he was elected
to the supreme bench, the death of Judge Cor
nell having left a vacancy, and served until the
expiration of his last term in 1894. Probably his
most famous decision was that rendered while on
the district bench in i860, in the case of Eliza
Winston, a slave woman brought by her owner,
Colonel Christmas, from Mississippi to this state
and taken before Judge Vanderburgh on a writ
of habeas corpus. He decided that slavery was
a local institution, and that a slave brought into
a free state by its owner became free. This
made the woman free to leave her former owner
and with the aid of a party of abolitionists she
evaded a forcible attempt at recapture and
escaped into Canada. His supreme court de
cisions were distinguished by strong common '
sense, thorough investigation and conciseness.
A former associate said of him, "The fidelity and
painstaking care with which he discharged judi
cial duties, may be likened to that which a
sculptor bestows in chiseling the form and face
of a statue, anxious always, that no fault or flaw
should be revealed in the finished work." When
it is remembered that Minnesota had only 150,000
people when he went on the bench and had
grown to a million and a half when he left it,
it will be seen that he was an influential factor
in the determination of most of the important
litigation that has occurred in the state. On his
retirement from the bench, he entered into the
general practice of law, took an active part in
the political campaign of 1896 and presided at
the first meeting held by W. J. Bryan, in Min
neapolis. With his family he attended the First
Presbyterian Church of this city and for many
years was an elder and the superintendent of the
Sabbath school. He was married to Miss Julia
M. Mygatt of Oxford, New York, on September
2, 1857, and they had two children, W. H. Van
derburgh, now a practicing attorney in Minne
apolis, and Julia M. Vanderburgh, who was
drowned in 1871. After the death of his first
wife in 1863 Judge Vanderburgh was again mar
ried to Miss Anna Culbert of Fulton county,
New York. One daughter, Isabella, was born,
who died in 1893. Judge Vanderburgh died in
March, 1898, at the age of sixty-eight years.
^VILSON, George Potter, son of Samuel and
Elizabeth Wilson, was born at Lewisburgh,
Pennsylvania, January 19, 1840. His father was
a farmer of Scotch-Irish descent; his mother of
wzsm.
6WEET, PHOTO
GEORGE T. AVILSON.
German descent. The father served in the war
of 1812. The subject of this sketch was a boy
when his parents died. He remained at Lewis
burgh until he was eighteen years old and at
tended the Lewisburgh (now Bucknell) Uni
versity during the last two years of his residence
there. He then attended the Wesleyan Univer
sity at Delaware, Ohio, for two years and in
i860 he removed to Winona, Minnesota, where he
studied law in the office of Lewis & Simpson and
was admitted to the bar in the fall of 1862. He
practiced his profession at Winona as a member
of the firm of Simpson & Wilson until October,
1878. Meantime he was elected, and served for six
years, or three terms, as county attorney of Wino
na County. He was elected to the lower house of
the legislature in November, 1872, and was elected
Attorney General of the state of Minnesota in
November, 1873, and was twic«e reelected, his last
term ending on January 1, 1880. Mr. Wilson then
removed to Fargo, North Dakota, and practiced
law under the firm name of Wilson & Ball until
July, 1887, coming then to Minneapolis, where he
has since remained in the practice of his profes
sion. He was elected to the state senate from
the Forty-first District in 1898, and re-elected in
1902. Among the distinctions which have marked
the career of Mr. Wilson, he was appointed by
President Grant, in 1871, one of the government
commissioners on the Southern Pacific Railroad,
....
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178
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
the construction of which had just commenced
from San Francisco south and east. The com
missioners inspected the work from San Fran
cisco to Gilroy, eighty miles. Mr. Wilson was
one of the counsel for the state of Minnesota in
that celebrated case. The State of Minnesota
against The Northern Securities Company, on
each side of which the strongest legal talent was
engaged. Mr. Wilson is a member of the Metho
dist Episcopal church. He was.married in Sep
tember, 1866, to Ada H. Harrington of Winona,
and they have had three children, Jessie M., mar
ried to W. R. Sweatt: Walter H., and Wirt, all
of whom reside in Minneapolis.
WILLIAMSON, James Franklin, was born in
the town of Osborn, near Dayton, Ohio, on Jan
uary 9, 1853. His grandfather, James W. Will
iamson, was one of the pioneer settlers of Ohio.
James Franklin is the son of George C. and Sarah
A. Williamson, being of - Scotch-Irish descent
upon his father's side and German descent on his
mother's side. He was educated at the public
schools and Princeton University, graduating
from the latter in 1877 with the degree of A. B.
and receiving therefrom the degree of Ph. D. in
1879, on examination for post graduate work.
He studied law in the office of ex-Governor
George Hoadly, at Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1881 he
came to Minneapolis, here continuing his studies
with the law firm of Lochren, McNair & Gil-
FREDERICIC B. WRIGHT.
fillan, and in November of the same year was
admitted to the bar. He accepted an appoint
ment, in the fall of 1881, as an examiner in the
United States Patent Office, remaining about two
years. He resigned from government service in
1885, a °d opened a law office in this city, making
a specialty of patent and trade-mark law and
soliciting. He has since been continuously en
gaged with that branch of legal work, and has
a well-established practice in the United States
courts and before the Patent Office. After prac
ticing alone in this city for fifteen years, Mr.
Williamson, in 1900, took into partnership Mr.
Frank D. Merchant, under the firm name of
Williamson & Merchant. This association still ex
ists, and the firm has built up a most success
ful business, numbering among its clients not
only prominent corporations in the Northwest,
but some of national repute in other sections
On June 9, 1896, Mr. Williamson was married to
Miss Emma F. Elmore, and they have two chil
dren, both sons. Mr. Williamson is a member
of the leading business and social organizations
of the city, including the Minneapolis Club and
Commercial Club of this city, and is also a mem
ber of the University Club of New York City.
WRIGHT, Fred B., was born January 17,
1856, in Coos county, New Hampshire. His father,
Beriah Wright, was a farmer of moderate means
directly descended from Beriah Wright who had a
part in the war of 1812 as a captain in the army
of the United States. The family have had dis
tinguished representation in the legal and med
ical professions in both the East and the West,
and have been eminently successful in agricul
tural and commercial life. Fred B., after a good
district school education, entered the St. Johnsbury Academy at St. Johnsbury, Vermont, from
which he graduated in 1878 and, after teaching
school for a time, he began to read law in the
office of George A. Bingham at Littleton, New
Hampshire; and later completed his studies at
the Boston Law School. In 1883 Mr. Wright
came to Minneapolis and began, here, the prac
tice of his profession. He has continuously prac
ticed here since that time and been eminently
successful in his professional career. In politics
he is a republican and is active in the work of
the State League of Republican Clubs, of which
he was president for two years. He was elected
to the state legislature in 1906 from the Fortieth
District which is identical with the Fourth Ward
of Minneapolis and during the session of 1907
was a member of many important committees
and chairman of the committee of drainage. In
response to the pressing demand for a revision
and extension of the drainage laws, Mr. Wright
revised and rewrote the old drainage laws with
the view to making them meet the present de
mand of the state. This work was done so thor
oughly that the result brought him warmest com
mendation and it is conceded that Minnesota now
has the best system of drainage laws of any state
180
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
in the Union. Mr. Wright is a high degree Ma
son and is a member of the Minneapolis No. 19
Blue Lodge, St. John's Chapter No. 9, Zion Commandery No. 2, Knights Templars, and Zuhrah
Temple. On August 27, 1884, he was married to
Helen M. Conant, of Greensboro, Vermont, and
they have four children—Ralph C., Fred B., Jr.,
Barbara Helen, and Donald Orr.
WAITE, Edward Foote, judge of the munic
ipal court of Minneapolis, was born on January
15, i860, in Norwich, New York, the son of John
Waite and Betsey N. Foote. His father was a
lawyer and his ancestors on both sides of the
family were among the early settlers of New
England. Judge Waite's early life was spent at
Norwich and in that vicinity, where he obtained
his earlier schooling and prepared for college.
He entered Colgate University at Hamilton, New
York, and graduated with the degree of A. B.
in the class of 1880. His professional education
was obtained at the Columbian (now George
Washington) University Law School at Wash
ington, D. C., from which he was graduated in
1883 with the degree of LL. B. and from which
he received his LL. M. in 1884. Judge Waite
did not engage in practice at once. He had been,
during his law studies, a clerk in the United States
Pension Department at Washington, and con
tinued in the service of the pension department,
serving as special examiner at various points, the
last being Minneapolis, where he was stationed
from 1888 to 1897.
In the latter year Judge
Waite withdrew from the public service and com
menced the practice of law. He was for some
time associated with the late Judge A. H. Young,
who had served upon the district bench in Min
neapolis for many years. In 1901 Mr. Waite was
made assistant city attorney of Minneapolis and
in August, 1902, was appointed Superintendent of
Police by Mayor David P. Jones, who had come
into office upon the retirement of Mayor A. A.
Ames. The appointment of Judge Waite as
superintendent of police was for the avowed
purpose of complete reorganization and rehabilita
tion of the police force of the city and for the
absolute suppression of various forms of vice and
crime which had been given free rein. This
work was accomplished in a few months and when
Supt. Waite retired from the position on Jan
uary 1, 1903, the police force was thoroughly re
organized on a basis of independence, complete
protection to the public and no protection to law
breakers. This reorganization was a remarkable
demonstration of the possibilities of the police
department when handled solely for the main
tenance of law and order. In December, 1904,
Judge Waite was appointed to the municipal
bench by Governor Van Sant to fill an unex
pired term and in November, 1906, he was regu
larly elected for the six years' term. Judge Waite
is a republican in party affiliations though quite
independent in local affairs. He takes an active
part in all questions of good government and
improvement of municipal conditions in all ways
and in philanthropic and charitable movements.
Since he has been on the municipal bench this
court has inaugurated a system of parole under
suspended sentences for minor offences, which
has been practically successful in effecting ref
ormation in many cases. Judge Waite is a
member of Plymouth Congregational Church.
He was married May 5, 1892, to Miss. Alice M.
Eaton, at Brooklyn, New York. They have had
one son, Bradford, who died in infancy.
YALE, Washington, Jr., was born January 7,
1875, at Norwalk, Huron county, Ohio. His
father, Charles W. Yale, a descendant of Thomas
Yale, (a brother of Elihu Yale, from whom Yale
University derived its name) is a capitalist.
Washington Yale lived in Ohio until he was
thirteen years old, then came to Minneapolis and
lived with his great-uncle, Washington Yale, for
whom he was named. He attended the Central
high school, later the Engineering school of the
state university, and finally the Law school, from
which he graduated with the class of 1898 and
was then admitted to the bar. Mr. Yale's prac
tice has had to do chiefly with commercial and
real estate law, including the care of property
for both residents and non-residents. During the
last three years and at the present time, he has
given considerable attention to the erection of
modern homes for rental purposes. During his
senior year in college, he was Major of the Uni
versity Cadet Corps. A republican, Mr. Yale
has been a member of the Roosevelt Club during
the last two campaigns. He is also a member of
the Minneapolis Commercial Club, an honorary
member of "Scabbard and Blade," the University
military society, and a very active member of
Plymouth Congregational Church, being secretary
of the society and recently a member and chair
man of the board of directors of Drummond Hall,
one of its missions. He was also a charter mem
ber and first secretary and treasurer of Plymouth
Club. He married May Wilman Emery, of Waltham, Massachusetts, October 25, 1899.
CHAPTER XIII.
MEDICINE
T
HE history of the practice of meclicine in any city is largely told in the
lives of the individual members of
the profession, and this is true of Minneapolis. For more than fifty years Minneapolis has demanded and received medical treatment of the highest order and
from the very beginning the standard of
professional life has been very high and
the medical profession has numbered among
its members physicians who have ranked
with the foremost in the country. The
first physician of the regular school of medicine to arrive in St. Anthony was Dr. J.
H. Murphy who came in 1850 and was then
just twenty-four years of age and a recent
graduate of Rush Medical College. He became one of the most distinguished physicians in the state and gave to the early
settlement a high standard in matters medical. Dr. A. E. Ames came in 1851. He
was also a graduate of Rush but had had
several years' experience. After a short
time these two physicians entered into partnership and they both took a very active
part in the affairs of the two villages at St.
Anthony Falls. Dr. Ames moved across
the river to Minneapolis and was frequently
called upon to serve the city in public office.
Dr. Ira Kingsley and Dr. Hezekiah Fletcher
also arrived at the Falls in 1851. Dr.
Fletcher was a prominent citizen of the old
Minneapolis but is not included in early
lists of practicing physicians. Another
physician to arrive in very early times was
Dr. A. E. Johnson who came in 1853 and
became a partner of Dr. C. W. Le Boutillier. The latter died in 1863 but Dr. Johnson remained to become the veteran of the
profession in the city. Dr. C. L. Anderson
arrived in 1854, Dr. Adolph Ortman in 1857.
Dr. Ortman also proved to be a permanent
resident of the city, living for many years
in St. Anthony as a successful practitioner,
Dr. J. S. Elliot who became a most distinguished citizen settled in Minneapolis in
1854. Dr. W. H. Leonard came in 1855
and Dr. J. J. Linn in 1857. AIL these remained long in practice and became well
known in the community. A list of physicians of all schools practicing at the Falls
at the close of 1858, compiled by Colonel
Stevens, includes: Dr. J. H. Murphy, Dr.
A. E. Ames, Dr. M. R. Greeley, Dr. J. S.
Elliott, Dr. W. H. Leonard, Dr. B. Jodon,
Dr. A. Ortman, Dr. W. D. Dibb, Dr. C. W.
Le Boutillier, Dr. C. L. Anderson, Dr. P. L.
Hatch, Dr. J. B. Sabine, and Dr. Simon
French Rankin.
As the number of physicians increased
the exact date of their arrival in the city
became of less importance but it is interesting to group the following men who joined
the ranks of the profession in the city between i860 and 1880: Drs. N. B. Hill, A.
H. Lindley, C. G. Goodrich, H. H. Kimball,
R. S. McMurdy, O. J. Evans, Edwin
Phillips, E. H. Stockton, Chas. Simpson,
E. J. Kelley, A. W. Abbott, T. F.
Quimby, F. A. Dunsmoor, I. D. Alger, A.
C. Fairbairn, Geo. F. French, S. F. Hance,
J. W. Murray, A. E. Hutchins, A. H.
Salisbury and C. L. Wells. Of the foregoing Drs. Hill and Lindley were among
the earliest arrivals (coming in 1861) and
became the most prominent physicians in
the city for a time. They were both men
of high professional attainments, broad culture and eminent public spirit. Of those
commencing practice here previous to 1870,
Dr. Leonard, Dr. Kimball and Dr. Phillips
are the only ones still in active practice at
the present time.
The early medical men of Minneapolis
shared with their brethren of other new
communities the difficulties of pioneer prac-
182
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
MINNESOTA COLLEGE HOSPITAL.
This building was originally the Winslow House and
a famous hotel in the days before the war.
was
tice. Fifty years ago Minneapolis physi
cians were not called to as great distances
as their successors of today but a call from
an isolated farm or lumber camp, if not
more than twenty or thirty miles away from
town, still meant infinitely more difficulty
and hardship for the doctor than a call from
a point hundreds of miles distant at the
present day.' In the absence of all means
of transportation except that afforded by
a horse and buggy, without any of the mod
ern inventions—mechanical or remedial—
which facilitate the work of the physician,,
the doctors of a half century ago found the
practice of medicine a very strenuous occu
pation. The Minneapolis pioneer physi
cians were, however, the kind of men to
whom difficulties meant no more than did
the difficulties of business to their fellow
townsmen. With few exceptions they seem
to have done their work well, maintained
the standards of their profession and at the
same time to have taken an active and effi
cient part in the organization of the young
community. Very early they realized the
advantages of organization for themselves
and the present Hennepin County Medical
Society grew out of the St. Anthony and
Minneapolis Union Medical Society organ
ized in 1855 at the residence of Dr. A. E.
Ames at Eighth avenue south and Fourth
street. Dr. Ames was president and Dr.
Wheelock, secretary. The society was re
organized in 1870 under its present name
with Dr. Ames again as president and since
that time it has taken a very prominent part
in the life of the profession and has been
most influential in maintaining standards
and securing reforms when necessary.
Among its executive officers have been:
Drs. C. G. Goodrich, Edwin Phillips, A. H.
Lindley, E. J. Brown, Wm. Asbury Hall,
L. A. Nippert, H. R. Sweetzer, A. W. Ab
bott, J. W. Bell, C. H. Hunter, D. O. Thom
as, Frank C. Todd, and F. A. Knights.
The society has brought together a large
medical library and maintains rooms in the
Donaldson building, where its semi-monthly
meetings are held. Of later organizations
the Society of Physicians and Surgeons was
active from 1882 for several years but dis
continued upon the organization of the Min
nesota Academy of Medicine in which Min
neapolis physicians have taken a leading
part. The Minneapolis Medical Club was
organized a few years ago and numbers in
its membership many of the younger phy
sicians of the city. It meets monthly at
the court house. Its presidents have been
Drs. Lester W. Day, George D. Haggard,
J. C., Litzenberg, A. T. Mann and R. E.
Farr.
J. H. MURPHY, M.
D.
MEDICINE
Until 1881 Minneapolis had no medical
schools but Dr. F. A. Dunsmoor had ad'
vocated the establishment of a college and
to his earnest work was due the organiza
tion in that year, of the Minnesota College
Hospital with a board of directors composed
of Thomas Lowry, president and Drs.
George F. French, A. W. Abbott, and C.
H. Hunter and Judge C. E. Vanderburgh.
Dr. Dunsmoor became dean. The old
Winslow House was secured and was oc-
183
lege of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery
and the College of Dentistry. Into these
colleges were merged the Hospital College
including its dental division, the St. Paul
Medical College and the Minnesota Home
opathic Medical College, the officers of all
these institutions joining in urging the de
sirability of this consolidation and tender
ing the use of their several properties with
out charge to the state. From this begin
ning has grown the medical department of
MILLARD HALL.
One of the group of medical buildings at the University of Minnesota.
cupied for four years, or until the comple
tion of a college building at Ninth avenue
south and Fifth street. At the time of the
removal to this building the institution was
reorganized, dropping the hospital feature
and assuming the name of the Hospital
College, while a free dispensary was added.
The first faculty of the Department of
Medicine of the University of Minnesota
was appointed in 1883 but for five years con
fined itself to the examination of candidates
for degrees and the general duties of a state
board of medical examiners under the pro
visions of a state law of 1883. In 1888 the
department was reorganized as a teaching
school of medicine with three colleges: The
College of Medicine and Surgery, the Col-
the university—now one of the leading
medical schools of the country. After a
few years buildings began to appear upon
the campus and the scattered quarters were
permanently abandoned.
A College of
Pharmacy was added in 1891 and the four
colleges are now housed in five buildings,
Millard Hall, the laboratory of medical
sciences, the laboratory of chemistry, the
laboratory of anatomy and the institute of
public health and pathology. In the latter
building is a very complete museum and a
technical library. The officers of the sev
eral colleges are: Frank Fairchild Wesbrook, M. A., M. D., C. M., Dean of the Col
lege of Medicine and Surgery; Eugene L.
Mann, B. A., M. D., Dean of the College of
184
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
3
A. II. LINDLKY, M. I).
Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery; Al
fred Owre, D. M. D., M. D., Dean of the
College of Dentistry, and Frederick J. Wulling, Phm. D., LL. M., Dean of the College
of Pharmacy.
The statement that the Minnesota Home
opathic Medical College was merged in the
department of medicine at the university,
calls for an account of the origin of this
institution. The practice of Homeopathy
in Minneapolis dates from 1856 when Dr.
William A. Penniman came here from Al
bany, New York. He was a graduate of
Brown University and of Jefferson Medical
College and while practicing in Pittsburg
changed to the homeopathic school. He
was the first president of the Minnesota
State Medical Institute—the first Home
opathic medical society in the state. In
1858 Dr. Philo L. Hatch, a graduate of the
Homeopathic Hospital and College of
Cleveland, visited Minneapolis and was so
pleased with the place that he made it his
home and became a prominent physician as
well as a leading citizen and an ornitholog
ist of repute. Dr. William H. Leonard, who
had been a practicing physician in the city
since 1855, determined, in i860, to embrace
the doctrines of Hahnemann and took his
place in the homeopathic school. He is the
oldest living practitioner in the city and is
held in the highest respect by physicians
of all schools as well as by the people of
the city who have known his fifty years of
devoted service. The year 1866 brought
Drs. T. R. Huntington and David M. Good
win; the year 1870 Dr. Otis M. Humphrey.
Other physicians began practice here in this
order; Dr. Adele S. Hutchison, 1877; Drs.
A. E. Higbee and John A. Steele in 1878;
Dr. W. D. Lawrence, 1879; Drs. John F.
Beaumont, W111. E. Leonard, and S. M.
Spaulding in 1880; Dr. H. W. Brazie in
1881 ; Drs. George F. Roberts and George
E. Dennis in 1884; Dr. Henry C. Aldrich
in 1887. In 1872, through the efforts of Drs.
W. H. Leonard and D. M. Goodwin, the
Hahnemann Medical Society of Hennepin
County was organized and for some years
did very effective work in the promotion of
the interests of homeopathy. Among other
things accomplished was the establishment
of the Homeopathic Free Dispensary. The
society was renamed and reorganized in
1891 as the Minneapolis Homeopathic Med
ical Society with Dr. George F. Roberts as
president. Dr. H. C. Aldrich, Dr. A. S.
Wilcox, Dr. G. E. Dennis and Dr. H. H.
Leavitt have been among the later presi
dents of the club. The promoters of this
organization were also active in the found
ing of the Homeopathic Hospital and took
a prominent part in the agitation which fin-
SWEET COLLECTION
ST. BARNABAS HOSPITAL.
MEDICINE
ally led to the organization of the Minne
sota Homeopathic Medical College which
was incorporated early in 1886 and began
college work in the following autumn. Dr.
P. L. Hatch was dean, assisted by a strong
faculty, many of whose members became
professors in the new College of Homeoathic Medicine and Surgery at the univer
sity upon the consolidation of 1888. In this
college, as in the others in the department,
the standards are equal to the highest
among the schools of the country.
185
medical profession and developed in the
last forty years. It was organized in 1870
as the Cottage Hospital largely through the
influence of Bishop Knickerbacker. It
was first located at Washington and Ninth
avenues north but in 1881 was removed to
Ninth avenue south and Sixth street and
given its present name. In later years the
buildings have been greatly extended and
the hospital very thoroughly equipped. St.
Barnabas has always been under the control
of the Episcopal denomination and has on
FROM THE SWEET COLLECTION
THE MINNEAPOLIS CITY HOSPITAL.
In 1883 the Minneapolis College of Physi
cians and Surgeons was organized with
Dr. Edwin Phillips, president and Dr. J. T.
Moore, dean of the faculty. In 1895 it was
made the medical department of Hamline
University though maintaining its own
building at Fifth street and Seventh avenue
south in Minneapolis. It continued as a
successful medical school, until 1908 when
it was merged in the medical department
of the university, the members of its faculty
generally becoming professors in the con
solidated college.
HOSPITALS AND DISPENSARIES.
St. Barnabas Hospital was the first of
the group of institutions fostered by the
its staff a number of the leading physicians
of the city.
The Minneapolis Free Dispensary was
established in 1878 by C. A. Pillsbury, Geo.
A. Brackett, C. M. Loring, A. B. Barton
and E. S. Jones. It did excellent work un
til 1882 when it was merged into the Minne
sota College Hospital which had been estab
lished in 1881 through the efforts of Dr. F.
A. Dunsmoor. The College Hospital as
its name implies combined educational pur
poses with hospital service and is referred
to under the subject of medical education.
In 1882 the Northwestern Hospital was
organized and in 1887 removed from tem
porary quarters to its present location on
186
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Swedish. Hospital was founded in 1898 and
in 1902 occupied its own building at Tenth
avenue so.uth and Eighth street. The
Homeopathic Hospital was incorporated in
1881 but was not opened until January 1883.
In 1884 it moved to Fourth avenue south
and Twenty-fifth street where it continued
in successful operation for some years.
Maternity Hospital was founded in 1886
through the efforts of Dr. Martha G. Ripley
and is the only hospital in the city or state
.devoted entirely to the care of women dur
ing confinement. Its work is largely charit
able and has interested many women, who
in fact make up its entire board of officers
and directors. It occupies a building at
2201 Western avenue. Dr. Ripley has al
ways been physician in charge. There are
various other hospitals and homes in the
city, ranging from the fully equipped hos
pital to the charitable home where med
ical treatment is merely incidental. The
physicians of the city have taken a very
large part in the promotion and conduct
of these institutions and have given very
X. B. Ill M., M. D.
Chicago avenue and Twenty-seventh street.
The lots were the gift of L. M. Stewart and
$20,000 of the building fund was contrib
uted by Mrs. Jane T. Harrison. St. Mary's
Hospital, one of the best equipped institu
tions in the city was established in 1888 by
Hishop Ireland and has been under the
charge of the Sisters of St. Joseph, having
011 its staff many prominent physicians.
The Minneapolis City Hospital was not
opened until 1888 when it occupied tempo
rary quarters at Eighth street and Eleventh
avenue south. The present City Hospital
building was commenced some years later.
The management was at first vested in the
council committee on health and hospitals
but was later transferred to the board of
charities and corrections. Asbury Metho
dist Hospital was organized in 1892 occupy
ing first the.building vacated by the Minne
sota College Hospital at Ninth avenue south
and Sixth street and only recently moving
to its own building at Fourteenth street and
Ninth avenue south. It is under the direc
tion of the Methodist denomination. The
ASA E. JOHNSON, M. D.
MEDICINE
freely of their time and professional abil
ities to the inmates.
In public service the physicians of the
city have always been active and loyal.
Much interest was taken in the organization
of the department of health immediately
upon the incorporation of the city in 1867.
The first "sanitary committee" as it was
styled, consisted of Drs. A. E. Ames, N. B.
Hill and A. H. Lindley, the latter being
health officer. After serving two terms Dr.
Lindley gave place to Dr. Leonard who in
turn was succeeded by Dr. Charles Simpson.
These men set the pace for later administra
tion of the department. There have been
few serious epidemics and these have in the
main been very well handled. I11 1889 the
health department was reorganized under a
special law and its work broadened to cover
the necessities of a large city. The health
officers have been these: 1867-68, Dr. A. H.
Lindley; 1869-71, Dr. W. H. Leonard; 187275, Dr. Chas. Simpson; 1876, Dr. G. F.
Townsend; 1877, Dr. A. A. Ames; 1878, Dr.
O. J. Evans; 1879-80, Dr. A. H. Salisbury;
1881, Dr. O. J. Evans; 1882-3, Dr. J. Cockburn; 1884-87, Dr. T. F. Quimby; 1888-90,
Dr. S. S. Kilvington; 1891-92, Dr. E. S.
Kelley; 1895, Dr. H. N. Avery; 1899, Dr.
A. K. Norton; 1901-08, Dr. P. M. Hall.
The city physicians have been, Dr. S.
M. Spaulding, 1880-1; Dr. J. C. Cockburn, 1881-2; Dr. A. B. Cates, 1883-4; Dr.
C. T. Drew, 1884-5; Dr. S. H. Van Cleve,
1885-6-7; Dr. James H. Dunn, 1887-8; Dr.
C. A. Chase, 1889-92; Dr. Charles G. Wes
ton, 1893-98; Dr. W. J. Byrnes, 1899-1900;
Dr. Henry S. Nelson, 1901-2; Dr. George
E. Ricker, 190^-4; Dr. E. H. Beckmaii, ico^7; Dr. P. M. Holl, 1908. '
Among the coroners of Hennepin county
have been Drs. -A. C. Fairbairn, R. J. Hill,
Frank E. Towers, Wm. J. Byrnes, W. P.
Spring, J. M. Kistler, George E. Dennis,
Henry S. Nelson and U. G. Williams.
ABBOTT, Amos Wilson, for many years a
prominent surgeon of Minneapolis, was born at
Ahmednuggur, India, on January 6, 1844, the son
of Amos and Anstice (Wilson) Abbott. He was
educated at the Phillips Academy, Andover, Mas
sachusetts, at Dartmouth College and at the Col
lege of Physicians and Surgeons at New York.
He served in the Union army during the Civil
war as a member of Company C, Sixteenth New
187
Hampshire Volunteer Infantry. In 1869 he com
menced practice. For many years he has resided
at 21 South Tenth street where he still maintains
his office and in • 1902 he established a private
hospital at 10 East Seventeenth street, of which
he is surgeon in chief. He is a member of the
American Medical Association, Minnesota State
Medical Association, Minnesota Academy of
Medicine, and the Hennepin County Medical So
ciety. Dr. Abbott was married on August 19,
1880, at Delhi, New York, to Miss Helen G.
Wright. '
•
:
ALGER, Edmund Whitney, son of Isaac D.
and Ellen' Whitney Alger was born in Minne
apolis, July 13, 1877. His father is a physician
of distinction who settled in Minneapolis in 1874
and was recognized as an expert in gynecology.
The family are descended from oae of the early
colonists of Massachusetts, a branch of the Algers
settling in Vermont, whence Dr. Isaac Daniel
Alger came to Minneapolis. The son, after at
tending the public schools of Minneapolis and
graduating at the East Side high school, in
stinctively followed the professional tendencies
of his forebears, many of whom were noted phy
sicians, and graduated from the medical depart
ment of the state university with the degree M.
D. in 1902, and is engaged in the practice of his
profession. Dr. Alger is a member of the East
Side Commercial Club and of the Hennepin Coun
ty Medical Society and of the Minneapolis Medi
cal Club.
ALGER, Isaac Daniel, for more than thirty
years a practicing physician of this city, was born
at Morristown, Vermont, on March 16, 1844. He
is the son of Dr. Isaac Smith Alger, a native of
Strafford, Vermont, born in 1802, who lived for
most of his life and practiced his profession of
medicine at Williston, Vermont. His health failed
when he was twenty-one years old, and for five
years he lived on the sea returning to Stowe
where he remained till he was forty-two years
old, when he moved to Williston, where he re
sided until he came West. In 1875 he came to
Minneapolis to reside with his son, who had
moved to this city a short time before. Dr. I. D.
Alger's mother was the widow of Daniel Robin
son, her maiden name being Priscella Churchill
Lathrop, born at Stowe, Vermont, on May 22,
1800. The ancestry of the family seems to have
been originally French, as a, distinguished eccle
siastic of Liege bore the name in the early part
of the twelfth century. The name is a rather
unusual one in this country and the first record
of it is that of Andrew Alger, of Scarborough;
Massachusetts, who settled in this country in
1651. There is also record of a Thomas Alger
who resided in Taunton, Massachusetts, about
1665, and although the genealogical connection
has been lost it is probable that the Algers of
Vermont are descended from these early settlers.
While he was still a child Dr. Alger's family
moved to Williston, Vermont, where he was
188
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
raised and received his academic training at the
BECK, James Flournoy, physician in general
YVilliston Academy. He took a course of medical
practice, was born at Dubuque, Iowa, April 21,
study under his father and then attended Burling1871. Dr. Beck is of Kentucky ancestry and
ton College for two years. He took a final course
Revolutionary descent. His parents went from
at Harvard University and there received his M.
Kentucky to Iowa about the time of the Civil
D. degree in 1864. After his graduation he immeWar period and Dr. Beck received his elediately went to Stowe, Lamoille county, Vermont,
mentary and common school education in the
where he practiced for four years. He then leschools of Dubuque, where he lived until he was
turned to his native town and forming a partner- fifteen
years of age. He then took the academic
ship with his father practiced there until 1874,
course at Princeton University in the class of
when he came to Minneapolis. He* has followed
1894, but left a year before graduation to study
his profession in this city continuously since that
medicine. He entered the medical department
time and for many years has had a large and
of the University of Minnesota in January, 1893,
satisfactory practice. Shortly after he had moved
graduating in 1896. During the next year he was
to Minneapolis Dr. Alger returned to his home
house surgeon at the Minneapolis City Hospital
state and on February 10, 1875, was married to
and for the six years following he was upon the
Miss Ellen Josephine Whitney, the daughter of
medical staff of the same institution. Dr. Beck
Edmund Whitney of Williston, Vermont. On his
belongs to the Minneapolis Medical Club and the
return his father and mother accompanied him
State Medical Society. He is a republican in
and resided with him until their deaths. Dr.
politics, but is not actively interested in political
Alger has one son, Edmund Whitney, born July
affairs. His church relations are Episcopalian.
13, 1877, a graduate of the University of MinneHe was married Feb. 8, 1899, to Katherine Consota, and now a practicing physician of this city.
way, and has one child, a son, born in 1901.
AVERY, Jacob Fowler, was born January 19,
1873, at Poughkeepsie, New York. He is descended from the Groton, Connecticut, branch of
the Averys. His father, Henry Newell Avery,
who married Catherine Sebring Fowler, was a
practicing physician and surgeon, who, at the
time of his death, April 17, 1898, was serving his
second term as commissioner of health of Minneapolis. It was through his influence that the
present system of city milk and dairy inspection
was instituted and put on an efficient basis. Dr.
Avery, senior, came West when his son was six
months old and lived at Winona, Minnesota, and
Galesville, Wisconsin, until 1882 when he moved
to Minneapolis. His son attended the Central
high school, graduating in 1892, had one year of
the scientific course at the state university and
then taught for a year. In '95 he entered the
medical department of the university and graduated in 1899. In 1903 he took a post-graduate
course at the Chicago Polyclinic. During the
summer of 1899 he was senior medical interne at
the City Hospital. In the fall of that year he
went to Virginia, Minnesota, where he formed a
partnership with Drs. J. R. and Cyrus Eby to
conduct a mine-hospital. He was also assistant
surgeon for the D. M. & N. Ry. and health officer
of Virginia. He was assistant surgeon at Aitkin,
Minnesota, for the Northern Pacific Railway for
a year from June 1, 1905, and while there was a
member of the library board. He is a member
of the Aitkin County Medical Society, the Upper
Mississippi Medical Society, the Hennepin County Medical Society, the Minnesota State Medical
Society and the American Medical Association.
Dr. Avery has always been a republican. He is
a member of the Fifth Avenue Congregational
Church. On June 4, 1902, he married Mary Letitia Esmond, formerly of I" ort Wayne, Indiana.
They have one child, John Esmond Avery.
BECKMAN, Emil H„ city physician from
I 9°S» t o January, 1908, was born Februar^
l &7 2 > at Grundy Center, Iowa.
He is
t h e s o n o f E m i l , H - a n d Catherine Beckman, his
father being a well known banker of that locality,
and
w a s educated in the public schools of his
n a t i v e P l a c e u n t i l h e w e n t t o Grinnell College,
From Grinnell he received the degree of Ph. B.
i n i 8 94After a brief experience in banking and
school teaching, in the latter case as principal
^he Stillwater high school, Dr. Beckman came
*°
University of Minnesota for a medical
course, graduating from the medical department
* n I 9° I - An appointment as assistant bacterioloS i s t f o r t h e S t a t e B o a r d o f Health followed gradnation. He held this for four years until his
appointment as city physician in July, 1905. Dr.
Beckman has filled this position with ability and
efficiency. He is secretary of the Minneapolis
Pathological Society as well as a member of the
national, state and county medical associations,
I n politics he is republican, and in religious
f a i t h a Methodist.
On January 1, 1902, Dr. Beckm a n married Miss Jessie Sayre.
He has one
child, a daughter.
BELL, John W., was born in Butler county,
Ohio, March 18, 1853, son of R. J. and Ann Bell,
His father was a farmer and the son was bred to
farm life, receiving his early educational training
in the public schools. With a strong inclination
to professional life he steadily accomplished the
necessary preparatory work and entered the Ohio
Medical College in Cincinnati and graduated in
1876. After a period of postgraduate study in
Germany, Dr. Bell came to Minneapolis and commenced active practice. From 1886 to 1889, he
was professor of the Theory and Practice of
Medicine at the Minnesota Hospital and has been
professor of Physical Diagnosis and Clinical
Medicine at the state university since the opening
MEDICINE
of the Medical Department. He is a visiting
physician at the Northwestern Hospital and con
sulting physician at the City, the Asbury
and Swedish and the St. Mary's hospitals. Dr.
Bell has a very high standing in his profession
and, in private as well as in his hospital practice,
his valuable experience is in demand as consulting
physician. In politics, Dr. Bell is an independent
democrat. He was a member of the State Senate
from 1891 to 1895, a member of the Charter Com
mission, and of the Voters League. Dr. Bell
belongs to the Commercial and Minikahda clubs;
of the professional organizations he is a member
of the Hennepin County Medical Society; of the
State Medical Society; of the Minnesota Academy
.of Medicine and of the American Medical Associa
tion and is an ex-president of the first three. Dr.
Bell is a Universalist in his church affiliations,
and is a member of the Church of the Redeemer.
He was married on November 11, 1890,, to Kate
M. Jones and to them have been born two sons.
BENJAMIN, Arthur Edwin, was born Decem
ber 19, 1868, at Hutchinson,Minnesota, son of John
and Elizabeth Garner Benjamin. His father was
a physician, who practiced his profession in Bos
ton until 1857 and came to Hutchinson in i860.
Both parents were educated in England. Arthur
Edwin was born and brought up on a farm, at
tended the common schools; graduated from the
high school in 1887, and after teaching school two
years, entered the medical department of the
University of Minnesota and graduated in medi
cine in 1892, when he began to practice his pro
fession in Minneapolis. The last three years he
has been limiting his practice to the specialties
of surgery and gynecology. Dr. Benjamin, after
graduation, did excellent service in the medical
department of the state university as clinical as
sistant. He has read numerous papers in surgery
before the various medical societies to which he
belongs and they have been published in different
medical journals throughout the United States.
He is a member of the staffs of the St. Barnabas,
Swedish and City hospitals, Minneapolis, and is
a teacher in clinical gynecology in the college of
medicine and surgery of the University at the
present time. • Dr. Benjamin is a republican in
politics. He was president of the Alumni Asso
ciation of the Medical Department of the State
University in 1904, and is a member of the Amer
ican Medical Association, and of the Minnesota
Medical Association and of the local medical so
cieties. In church relations he is a Congrega
tionalism He was married in 1900 to Blanche
Grimshaw and to them has been born one child
—Edwin G.
BESSESEN, Alfred Nicholas, was born Jannuary 18, 1870, in Freeborn county, Minnesota.
He is the son of John and Delia (Anderson) Bessesen, both natives of Norway. His father, a
jeweler, came to America from Bergen, Norway,
in the year 1867 and his mother came from Telemarken, her native town, in 1850. They settled
189
on a farm in Freeborn county and there Dr.
Bessesen passed the first twelve years of his life.
The family then moved to Albert Lea, Minne
sota, and Dr. Bessesen began his education, grad
uating from the high school of that city. At this
time he attended the Norwegian Lutheran Church
and in connection with it organized a young peo
ples Christian Endeavor society. In 1890 he en
tered the Rush Medical College at Chicago, and
completed his course there in 1893, receiving his
diploma in March. During the last two years
he held the office of president of the Chicago
Intercollegiate Department of the Y. M. C. A.
After his commencement he returned to Minne
apolis and assisted Dr. J. H. Dunn in his prac
tice and was also, during the winter of 1893-94
interne at St. Mary's Hospital. He was appointed
Demonstrator of Anatomy in the Medical Depart
ment of Hamline University and during 1895 and
1896 was professor of histology in the same in
stitution and a year later became a lecturer on
anatomy. Dr. Bessesen is now a surgeon on the
staff of the Norwegian Deaconess Hospital and
also a member of the board of trustees for the
United Church Hospital, which, it is planned,
shall be built in North Minneapolis and of which
he is one of the most active promoters. Dr. Bes
sesen is connected with a number of the fraternal
orders and clubs of the city, being a Mason; the
medical examiner for the Bridal Veil Camp of the
M. W. A.; a member of the Sons of Norway; of
the Minneapolis Amateur Athletic Association
and the Minneapolis and North Side Commercial
clubs. He is also affiliated with the national
state and county medical societies and attends the
United Norwegian Lutheran Church of America.
In politics he is a republican. In 1895 Dr. Bes
sesen was married to Florence Emma Holland
and they have four children—Alfred Nicholas,
Jr., Daniel Holland, Grace Isabelle and Florence
Delia.
BISHOP, Charles Wesley, was born in Mon
treal, Canada, in the year 1874. His father was
George C. Bishop, now retired from active life.
Dr. Bishop's early life was passed in his native
town and he attended the grammar schools of
that town. After finishing , his elementary and
preparatory education, Dr. Bishop graduated from
the medical department of the McGill University,
with the class of 1895. For a year after his grad
uation he continued his studies as interne at the
Asbury Methodist Hospital and during 1897-98-99
held the same position in the Manhattan Hos
pital of the eye, ear, nose and throat. He then
began to practice in Minneapolis, and in 1900
limited his attention to the study and treatment of
the diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. Dr.
Bishop is a member of the Minnesota State
Medical Society, the Hennepin County Medical
Societv and the Minneapolis Medical Club and
City Hospital staff. He is also connected with
the Commercial and Minikahda Clubs. He was
married on February 20, 1906.
190
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
BLAKE, James Joseph, was born in Ontario,
Canada, April 2, 1872, son of John and MaryBlake. His father was a farmer of Ontario and
like many other young Canadians, he came to the
States to try his fortunes. Settling in Mankato,
he attended the Normal School and graduated
from the advanced course in 1896. He soon after
ward came to Minneapolis and entered the State
University from which he graduated in medicine
in 1901, and, after serving as interne at the Min
neapolis City Hospital for one year, he began
the practice of medicine in West Minneapolis
in 1902. He was married in 1904 (June 21) to
Agnes Catherine Macdonald, of Mankato, and
one child has been born to them.
BOOTH, Albert E., assistant professor of sur
gery in the college of homeopathy of the state
university was born at Patterson, New Jersey,
September 30, 1871. His father, Andrew Booth,
removed to Lawrence, Massachusetts, where Dr.
Booth spent the first eight years of his life. In
1879, the family came to Lyon county, Minnesota,
and settled on a farm, where the district schools
gave the only chance for an education until 1888.
Then as a youth of seventeen, Dr. Booth taught in
the country school for two years; later after grad
uating from Tracy high school he took two years
of scientific training at Hamline University, fol
lowed by the medical course in the College of
Homeopathy of the state university. For a short
time after graduation Dr. Booth was house physi
cian at the City Hospital, then went to Spokane
as a venture, but shortly returned to settle in
Minneapolis. Except for .one year of post
graduate study in New York City he has been in
active practice ever since. He is a member of
several secret societies and college fraternities,
and of the State Institute of Homeopathy, and
the Minneapolis Homeopathic Medical Society
He is also a member of the St. Anthony Com
mercial Club. Dr. Booth is republican in poli
tics. Was married to Nina L, Fritz in 1902 and
has two sons.
BRACKEN, Henry Martyn, (H. M. Bracken)
secretary of the Minnesota State Board of
Health since 1897, and Professor of Materia
Medica and Therapeutics in Minnesota Univer
sity, was born in Noblestown, Pensylvania, Feb
ruary 27, 1854. His father was Dr. Wm. C.
Bracken; his mother, Electa (Alvord) Bracken.
The Brackens and Alvords are of colonial
descent, the Brackens being early settlers
in Delaware—about 1700—and the Alvords
coming to Massachusets about fifty
years
earlier.
Both families have had genealogies
published.
Dr. H. M. Bracken's life is one
of those stories of perseverance against the
odds of circumstance and fortune which have
made the history of the American people so full
of results in nation-building. In his early life
he was given the usual advantages of education
in the common schools of Pennsylvania and
Ohio. At thirteen he entered Eldersridge Acad
emy, a preparatory school conducted by a rela
tive and fitting for Washington and Jefferson
College. Between fourteen and sixteen he studied
with a tutor. At seventeen he taught school in
the summer, but went back to Eldersridge .in
the fall. The death of his father cut 'short his
plans for a Princeton course. He made arrange
ments for study in a physician's office, teaching
school between times. At twenty he was ready
for a year at Michigan University's Medical De
partment. Then he went back to work again,
and at twenty-two was able to give another year
to medical study, this time in the Medical depart
ment of Columbia College, New York City. From
here he graduated in the spring bf '77, spent a
year in post-graduate and hospital work and at
twenty-four was in a Venezuelan gold-mining
camp as surgeon. A few months of this exper
ience enabled him to go to Edinburgh for study.
He received his diploma of Licentiate of the
Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh, (L. R. C. S.
E.) in May, 1879, and in the fall of the same year
entered the service of the Mail Steamship Com
pany as surgeon. He returned to the United States
after three years of this work, went into general
practice at Thompson, Conn., where he spent one
and one half years and then again went, as sur
geon, to a gold-mining camp in Mexico, under
the superintendency of a personal friend. He
spent eighteen monfhs in camp, went back to
New York City for a post-graduate course, and
removed to Minneapolis for regular practice in
1885. The Minnesota Hospital College soon after
placed him upon its staff to occupy the chair he
still holds in the state university's medical de
partment. In 1895 Dr. Bracken was appointed on
the State Board of Health, and in 1897 was made
secretary of that body. The demands of this
post and of his university work have almost com
pletely filled his time to the exclusion of general
practice. He has twice been elected as director
of the National Association of the Study and
Prevention of Tuberculosis, his last election hav
ing been made in 1906. Dr. Bracken is also ex-vicepresident of the American Public Health Associa
tion, a member of the American Climatological
Association, and of kindred national and local
health and medical societies. Dr. Bracken has
made a most efficient and vigorous state health
official and has used his long opportunity for in
fluencing civic and state sanitary legislation in a
broad and disinterested way.
He is known
widely as a man who accomplishes things, and
though he has not escaped opposition and criti
cism, he is none the less respected as one who
stands pat to his convictions of public duty. He
is republican in politics and Presbyterian in faith.
He was married February 13, 1884, to Emily
Robinson, of Orange, New Jersey.
BROWN, Edward Josiah, (Dr. Edward J.
Brown) a Minneapolis specialist in diseases of the
eye and ear, was born January 14, 1851. in Bruke,
MEDICINE
Vermont. His father, Ira Brown, also a physi
cian, could trace his lineage back to John Browne,
one of those early Massachusetts settlers who
followed in the wake of the Pilgrims and who
was Governor's assistant from 1636-1653. He
was also a Commissioner of the United Colonies
of New England in the years from 1644-1655.
A farm at Seekonk, Long Island, bought by John
Browne's great-grandson, Samuel, is still a family
possession. Dr. Brown's mother, Emily Clark
Brown, was a descendant of Nathaniel Clarke, a
prosperous citizen of Newburyport, Massachu
setts. Her son went through the frequent youth
ful apprenticeship of the ambitious New England
boy of that day. Between village schools and va
cation farming he progressed to his preparation
for Dartmouth College, from which he graduated
with good standing, and the degree of A. B., in
1874. After two years in the West, spent in
teaching and in business, he went back to Dart
mouth for the medical course. At its close he
took a winter at New York University, and after
a few years of practice in New Hampshire re
moved to Minneapolis, in 1882. Here he at once
identified himself with those phases of medical
practice which call for fearless and vigorous ac
tion in defense of the public health. During his
first six years of Minneapolis practice he became
noted for his connection with reform methods
while upon state and city boards of health. At
the same time he filled the chairs of chemistry
and preventive medicine in the College of Phy
sicians and Surgeons and later held the chair of
deseases of the eye and ear in the same college.
Resolving upon devoting his attention to a special-;
ty he spent a year in study in New York and
Berlin, returning to take up the treatment of eye
and ear diseases. In 1891 he designed an infant
incubator which attracted considerable attention
and has been very successful in results. Dr.
Brown is a member of the State and American
Medical Associations, and of the Hennepin Coun
ty Medical Society of which he was president in
1888. He was married to Mary Peck Fullerton
in 1890 and has six children. Dr. Brown is an
Independent Democrat in his politics. To Con
gregationalism he has always been a loyal ad
herent.
BURTON, Frank, was born on October 2nd,
1853, at Albany, New York. He is of* Dutch
descent, his ancestors having located on the Hud
son with the early settlers from Holland, mem
bers of the family making a home at Albany
when that city was but a colonial village and his
father, grandfather and great-grandfather were
all born and educated in that city. On the ma
ternal side he is of Scotch ancestry, his mother's
father being born in Inverness, a printer by trade
who came when young to America and located
in New York. Frank Burton is the son of
Benjamin Burton and Christina A. (Davidson)
Burton. His father was a stone manufacturer at
Albany where his son passed the early,part of his
191
life and received his education. He attended the
Old Albany Academy and graduated from the
medical department of the Union University in
1879. Following his college work he remained
at Albany, obtaining practice by interne work m
the hospital and instructing in anatomy in his
Alma Mater where he had received an appoint
ment as assistant professor of that subject. Dur
ing this time he was also assistant to Professor
John Swinburne, the noted surgeon who at that
time had so prominent a reputation throughout
the country and for whom the famous Swinburne
Island Hospital in New York was named. In
1881 Dr. Burton had spent months abroad, study
ing in the important medical institutions of Eng
land and Ireland, returning again to Albany,
when he came in 1883 to Minnesota. He was first
located at Detroit in this state, where he prac
ticed until February 1884, when he moved to
Minneapolis. He has since practiced continuously
in this city. He has held during this time numer
ous appointments in addition to his practice. He
was the demonstrator of anatomy in the Minne
sota College Hospital and was later made pro
fessor of that subject. He also taught in the
medical school in what is now the Asbury Hos
pital. For twelve years he was the general sur
geon of the Minneapolis & St. Louis road, until
that office was abolished by a new management.
He was county physician of Hennepin County for
six years and at the present time holds the office
of chief medical inspector of the health depart
ment. He has been on the staff of St. Mary's
Hospital since it was founded and is a staff sur
geon of the City Hospital. His practice has been
confined almost exclusively to surgery, and his
work in that field has been varied and success
ful. He is a member of the Hennepin County
Medical society and the Minnesota State Medi
cal society. Politically he is a republican. Dr.
Burton was married in September 1882 to Miss
Rebecca Knower Palmer, daughter of Erastus
Dow Palmer, the sculptor.
BYRNES, William Joseph, was born in Min
neapolis, January 3, 1859, the son of William
Byrnes and Katherine (Campbell) Byrnes, both
of whom were natives of Ireland. They came to
this country in 1848 settling first in New York
but three years later preempting a claim on the
present site of Minneapolis. William Byrnes
served through the war reaching the rank of
first lieutenant of Company K., 10th Minnesota
Volunteers and in 1866 was elected sheriff of
Hennepin county. He died during his term of
office in November, 1867. His son was educated
in the public schools of Minneapolis and at St.
John's College, Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin and
St. John's College, Collegeville, Minnesota. He
graduated from the medical department of the
University of Michigan in 1882 and was at once
appointed assistant house surgeon at the Univer
sity hospital. In 1883 he returned to Minneapolis
and began practice entering the office of Dr.
192
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
Edwin Phillips with whom he was associated for
eleven years. Before he had been at home a year
he was appointed demonstrator of anatomy at the
Minneapolis College of Physicians and Surgeons
with which institution he has since been con
tinuously connected being appointed professor of
anatomy in 1886, professor of surgical -anatomy
and clinical diseases of women in 1895 and pro
fessor of the principles of surgery in .1900. In
1885 Dr. Byrnes visited Europe and spent some
months in study at the principal medical schools
of the old world. He was president of the Hen
nepin County Medical Society in 1889 and in
1893 was appointed to the Minneapolis board of
pension examining surgeoas. He was appointed
county physicial of Hennepin county during the
years 1887 and '88 and from 1890 to '92 was county
coroner. In 1899 Dr. Byrnes was appointed city
physician of Minneapolis, a position which he
held for two years. Dr. Byrnes is a member of
the State and Hennepin County Medical Societies
and of many fraternal organizations including the
A. O. U. W., Royal Arcanum, Military order of
the Loyal Legion, and Brotherhood of Elks. In
political faith he is a democrat. He was married
in 1887 to Miss Josephine Armstrong of Ann
Arbor, Michigan. They have had four children,
Lyle, William, Mortice, and Josephine.
CAMPBELL, Robert Allen, specialist and in
structor in diseases of nose and throat at the
University of Minnesota, was born at Detroit,
Michigan, December 27, 1868. Through his fa
ther, Geo. G. S. Campbell, who was a Michigan
mill-owner, he is descended from the Campbells
of Argy-le, Scotland. His mother, Mary Anscomb
Campbell, was of English ancestry. Dr. Camp
bell's early education was had in the common
schools of Detroit. While still a lad, he came
to Alexandria, Minnesota, where he graduated
ffom the Alexandria high school in the first
graduating class of that institution. He took his
medical training at the University of Minnesota,
receiving his M. D. in 1896, and following this
by post-graduate work in New York. In 1899
and 1900 he was assistant city physician for Min
neapolis. Since then Dr. Campbell has also
served on the medical staff of both the City Hos
pital and Asbury Hospital. He was appointed to
his present position in the university department
of medicine in 1903. Dr. Campbell belongs to the
Minneapolis Medical Club and to the state and
county medical societies. He is a republican and
attends the Episcopal church. He was married
some years ago to Mary S. McKusick, -a grand
daughter of the Hon. Jno. McKusick of Still
water, and has three children—a daughter and
two sons.
CATES, Abraham Barker, son of Charles
Bunker and
Margaret
Baker
Cates, wa c
born on May 12, 1854, at East Vassalboro,
Maine. He was prepared 'or college at Oak
Grove Seminary at Vassalboro, and at Coburn
Classical Institute at Waterville, Maine. From
the latter school he graduated in 1870, and, at
fifteen years of age, he began to teach a district
school and was so engaged for two terms, when
he entered Colby College at Waterville, Maine,
from which he graduated, receiving the A. B.
degree in 1874 and A. M. in 1877. From 1874 to
1877 he was principal of the high school at
Cherryfield, Maine. He graduated M. D. in 1880
from Harvard University Medical Department,
and engaged in postgraduate work at the uni
versities of Berlin and Vienna in 1880 and 1881,
coming in the. fall of 1881 to Minneapolis and
entering upon the practice of his profession. At
the same period he began lecturing on obstetrics
at the Minnesota College Hospital. Ever since
that time he has lectured on obstetrics of which
subject he is professor in the medical and sur
gical department of the State University. Dr.
Cates is also obstetrician to the Northwestern
Hospital and obstetrician and pediatrician to the
Bethany Home. Within two years of his arrival
in Minneapolis Dr. Cates was honored with the
appointment of city physician, an office which he
held during 1883-84. He is a member of the state,
local and national medical societies. Dr. Cates
was married on June 19, 1-889,
Jewett Mills,
Wisconsin, to Abby W. Jewett. They have five
children: Helen, Catherine, Natalie, Abram and
Louise.
CHOWNING, William Mack, is a native of
Illinois, having been born in Millersburg in that •
state on May 10, 1874. His father was John P.
Chowning, a practicing physician; his mother
Florence Chowning. Dr. Chowning passed the
early part of his life and began his schooling in
Illinois. Dr. Chowning completed his prepara
tory training at Knox College, from which he
graduated in 1894 with the degree of B. S. The
next fall he entered Johns Hopkins University
'for one year's study, and there earned his A. B.
degree. Dr. Chowning accepted a position as
instructor of biology and chemistry in the high
school of Warren, Ohio. Later he moved to
Rock Island, Illinois, where he occupied a simi
lar position for a time. In 1901 he graduated
from the University of Minnesota with an M. D.
degree and shortly after began practice in Min
neapolis. Dr. Chowning was for three years,
1901-1904, instructor in the pathological depart
ment of the University of Minnesota, resigning
to devote his time to surgery. He is a member
of the surgical staff of the City Hospital. In
politics he is independent in his views, but be
yond the interest of the private citizen he does
not engage in political matters. He is a member
of the Hennepin County Medical Society; the
Minnesota State Medical Society, the American
Medical Association and the Minneapolis Medi
cal Club. In 1902 Dr. Chowning was married to
Miss Sophie P. Thies, and they have two chil
dren, John Patterson, aged four and a half years,
and Sophie Loraine, two years of age. The fam
ily attends the Episcopal church.
MEDICINE
COOK, Henry Wireman, was born at Balti
more, Maryland, November 8, 1877, and is de
scended from prominent southern colonial families.
His father is Wm. W. L. Cook also a native of Bal
timore, who has retired after an active business
career. Dr. Cook lived in Baltimore during the
early part of his life and there received his pre
paratory training, and later entered the academic
department of Johns Hopkins University, win
ning a valuable scholarship a t ' t h e competitive
entrance examination, and graduating with the
degree of A. B. in 1898. The same year he en
tered the Johns Hopkins Medical School and
graduated in 1902 with an M. D. degree. Upon
the excellence of his record during the four
years he was awarded a position in the Johns
Hopkins Hospital and served his interne service
there as resident medical officer. Later hospital
appointments included services as assistant
resident physician to the Thomas Wilson Sani
tarium for sick children, Maryland, and chief
resident physician of Memorial Hospital, Rich
mond, Virginia. In 1905 he returned to Balti
more to accept a position at the Johns Hopkins
and to practice medicine in association with Dr.
Joseph C. Bloodgood of that city. Dr. Cook has
acted as the referee for the Mutual Life Insur
ance Company of New York in Virginia and had
received special course for this work at the
home office in New York. He has also acted as
examiner for Germania Life, New York Life,
Washington Life, Manhattan Life, Home Life,
Security Trust & Life, Travelers Life, etc., in
Richmond, Baltimore, and Minneapolis. At the
re-organization of the Northwestern National
Life Insurance Company, Dr. Cook was offered
the position of medical director and located in
Minneapolis, January, 1906. Not only has he
been very active as a physician but has also done
considerable original research work and expe
rimenting and is the inventor of Cook's Modified
Rivo Rocco Sphygmomanometer, which he origi
nated in 1902 and which is now extensively used
by physicians both in this country and abroad
for the measurement of the strength of the pulse.
He is a frequent contributor to scientific and
technical journals and is the author of numerous
medical papers, among them, Nitrogen Excre
tion in Pneumonia, published in the Johns Hop
kins Hospital Bulletin in January, 1903; Clinical
Value of Blood Pressure Determinations as a
Guide to Stimulation in Sick Children, which ap
peared in the American Journal of Medical Sci
ences in March, 1903; the Value of Accurate De
termination of Arterial Tension in General
Practice in the Journal of the American Medical
Association on Mav 21, 1903; Arterial Hyper
tension in the same paper on January 28, 1905;
and Cardio Vascular Regulation during Opera
tion, published in the American Journal of Med
ical Sciences in April, 1907. On May 8, 1904,
he read one of the first papers presented before
a public audience in this country on the Pre
193
vention of Tuberculosis, at the meeting of the
Conference of Charities and Corrections at Nor
folk, Virginia. Dr. Cook is a member of the
more important medical societies—The Johns
Hopkins Alumni Association, the American
Medical Association, the Association of Medical
Examiners, of which he was for a time vice
president, the Minnesota Medical Society, the
Hennepin County Medical Society, the Minne
apolis Medical Club, and is a Fellow of the
Medical Society of Virginia. He also belongs to
the Lafayette Club and attends St. Marks Epis
copal Church. In 1906 he was married to Miss
Ellen McCain Davenport, of Richmond, Vir
ginia.
CORBETT, J. Frank, city bacteriologist, was
born at Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, February
16, 1872. His father, W. C. Corbett, was a mer
chant there at that time, but the schooling of Dr.
Corbett was begun in the Minneapolis public
schools, and completed by a three years' course
in the academic department of Minnesota Uni
versity followed by the full medical course. In
his academic years Dr. Corbett was president of
the Engineers Society. After his graduation as
an M. D., in 1896, Dr. Corbett was interne at the
City Hospital for a year. He was appointed pro
fessor of Bacteriology at Hamline University the
following year, which position he held until the
medical department was merged in that of the
University of Minnesota. In the 'latter institu
tion he is assistant professor of surgical pathol
ogy. In 1898 he received his present appoint
ment as city bacteriologist. At that time the
local equipment for his work consisted of one
bare room without any apparatus. Dr. Corbett
at once set to work to establish the municipal
laboratory of Minneapolis upon such a basis that
it should be able to create a national reputation
for scientific results. At present, after a decade
of work he has thoroughly equipped a suite of
rooms in the Court House, with complete appara
tus, and is still working toward his ideal of
municipal sanitation. Dr. Corbett is a member
of the American Public Health Association, the
Minneapolis Pathological Association, and the
state and county medical bodies. He is also
pathologist and bacteriologist at the city hospital.
In 1898 he was married to Miss Nellie Yates.
CIRKLER, Alexander A., a practicing physi
cian, who has the distinction of being the first
American student to whom the privilege of pass
ing the German State Examination was ever
granted, was born in St. Paul, January 1, 1865.
He is the son of Herman and Johanna Cirkler
and brother of C. H. Cirkler of Minneapolis. His
parents removed from St. Paul to Minneapolis
when Dr. Cirkler was very young, and his early
education was taken entirely in the public schools
of Minneapolis, first at the old Washington, and
later at Central high school. He then went into
the drug business with his brother for a year,
and later went to Germany to carry out his in-
194
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
tention to study medicine. There in the universi
ties of Freiburg, Heidelberg and Munich he spent
three years, followed by five years at Berlin,
where he received his degree of M. D. and where
he finally took the state examination referred to
above. Dr. Cirkler was accorded this privilege
through a special permit issued him by Chan
cellor Caprivi, in consideration of his having
studied the same number of semesters and com
pleted the same preparatory courses prescribed
for the regular German student. After another
year of preparation spent in post-graduate and
clinical study in foreign cities and in the eastern
cities of the United States, Dr. Cirkler returned
to Minneapolis, took the state medical examina
tions in 1894, and at once began work. He has
identified himself with the state and county medi
cal societies, belongs to the American Medical
Association, and is a member of the Commercial
Club. He is not married.
CRAFTS, Leo Melville, was born at Minne
apolis, Minnesota, on October 3, 1863, the son of
Major Amasa and Mary J. (Henry) Crafts. He
is a descendant from the earliest colonial stock^the Crafts being among the founders of Boston,
who came in Winthrop's expedition in 1630—
and members of the family were prominent and ac
tive as colonial and revolutionary patriots. His
parents were among the earliest prominent pio
neers of Minneapolis, having settled here in 1853.
He was educated in the public schools of
Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota
from which he took the degree of B. L. in 1886,
and Harvard Medical School from which he
graduated in 1890. During 1890 and '91 he was
house physician at the Boston City Hospital. He
then came west establishing himself in Minne
apolis where he has taken an active part in the
professional and public life of the city. He has
been professor of nervous and mental diseases at
Hamline University Medical School since 1893,
was dean of the faculty from 1897 to 1903 and
was instrumental in securing a new plant, new
grounds and new equipment for the institution.
He is now visiting neurologist on the staff of four
of the Minneapolis hospitals. Dr. Crafts was
president of the Minnesota State Sunday School
Association from 1893 to 1896, a member of its
board since 1893, president of the Minneapolis
Sunday School Officers' Association from 1895 to
1906, treasurer of the Hennepin county Medical
Society, 1895 to 1897, chairman of the Nerve
Section of the State Medical Society 1899, and a
member of the board Of directors of the Minne
sota National Park and Forestry Association,
and was secretary of the general executive com
mittee of all organizations combined for a nation
al park and reserve in the state. He has been
prominently connected with the Western Society
for the Suppression of Vice and was president of
the Native Sons of Minnesota in 1906 and is a
member of the Sons of the American Revolution.
Dr. Crafts is a member of the American and
Minnesota State Medical Associations, Fellow of
the Massachusetts Medical Society, Hennepin
County Medical Society and Harvard Medical
and Boston City Hospital Alumni Associations.
He is the author 01 a number of articles for
professional magazines and is a writer on Sunday
School topics. He is also interested in forestry
and has spoken and written quite extensively on
the subject of forest preservation, and is also a
student of state history having prepared several
articles and delivered various addresses on that
subject. Dr. Crafts was married at Minneapolis
in 1901 to Miss Amelia I. Burgess. He is a mem
ber of the Minneapolis Commercial Club. For
merly a college athlete he is interested in legiti
mate sport, but finds his own recreation through
outings among the pine woods of northern Min
nesota.
DREW, Chas. Wayland, was born at Bur
lington, Vermont, January 18, 1858. His father,
Homer C. Drew, was a contractor and builder
and a representative of a family which had
lived in Vermont for several generations,
coming there from Connecticut in revolutionary
times. Charles attended the public schools of
Burlington and at fifteen entered the University
of Vermont. The natural bent of his mind was
toward the sciences and especial attention was
devoted to chemistry and collateral branches of
science. He graduated in 1877, receiving the
degree of Bachelor of Philosophy and was hon
ored by election to membership in the Phi Beta
Kappa Society. After a further study of chem
istry in leading laboratories, he entered the
Medical Department of the University of Ver
mont, graduating with the degree of M. D. in
1880, and receiving the highest honors in his
class. During the year following he practiced
medicine in Brattleboro, Vt., in association with
one of the leading physicians of the state, and
in 1881 he came to Minneapolis where he soon
secured a satisfactory practice. The following
year he was appointed professor of chemistry in
the Minnesota Hospital College which position he
held for seven years. In 1884 Dr. Drew was
appointed city physician serving for two years.
In 1886 he entered upon an extensive investiga
tion of Food Adulterations in Minnesota, pub
lishing a valuable report upon the subject, and
doing much to awaken public interest. As a re
sult he was appointed state chemist to the Dairy
and Food Department and not only did a large
amount of valuable work as a chemist during
his six years with the department but was large
ly influential in determining the policy of the
department and in securing the enactment of
the laws under which such efficient work has
since been done. In 1886 Dr. Drew established
the Minnesota Institute of Pharmacy and this
school has just completed its twentieth year.
During this time its attendance has aggregated
nearly two thousand and it numbers among
MEDICINE
its graduates nearly one-half of all the legally
qualified pharmacists in Minnesota and the sur
rounding states. In 1895 Dr. Drew was appointed
chemist to the city of Minneapolis and served for
seven years, and in 1898 he was appointed pro
fessor of chemistry and toxicology in the Medi
cal Department of Hamline University and served
until he resigned in 1902. During the later years,
Dr. Drew has been so fully occupied with his
special lines of work that he has largely discon
tinued his medical practice, devoting himself to
expert work in chemistry. He is a republican
in politics but the public offices which he has
filled have been those relating to the duties of
his profession solely. He is a member of the
medical societies of Hennepin county and the
state of Minnesota, the State Pharmaceutical As
sociation, the American Medical Association and
the American Chemical Society. He was made a
Mason in 1879 in Burlington, Vt., afterwards
affiliated with Khurum Lodge, Minneapolis,
which he left to become a charter member of
Minnehaha Lodge of which he is a Past Master.
He is at present a member of Ark Lodge, Ark
Chapter, Minneapolis Mounted Commandery
Knights Templar, of which he is Past Com
mander, and of Zuhrah Temple of the Mystic
Shrine. He is also Grand Treasurer of the Grand
Commandery of Knights Templar of Minnesota
and a member of the Elks and the Commercial
Club. Dr. Drew is a member of the Episcopal
Church. He was married Sept. 18, 1884, at Brattleboro, Vt., to Annah Reed Kellogg, daughter
of Henry Kellogg, of Boston, Mass. Two chil
dren have been born to them—Julia Kellogg and
Charles Wayland, Jr.
DUNSMOOR, Frederick Alanson, son of
James A. and Almira Mosher Dunsmoor, was
born on May 28, 1853. His parents came to Min
nesota in 1852, from Maine, and settled at Rich
field, in Hennepin county, where Frederick A.
was born, and where he began his education in
the public schools. He attended the public
schools of Minneapolis and the University of
Minnesota. His medical course he took in the
Bellevue Hospital Medical College in New York,
taking the M. D. degree in 1875. He took private
courses with such eminent men in their special
ties as Frank H. Hamilton, Alfred G. Loomis,
Austin Flint, Sr., E. G. Janeway and R. Ogden
Doremus; and then commenced to practice in
Minneapolis in partnership with Dr. H. H. Kim
ball with whom he was connected about a year.
In 1877 he accepted a position in the St. Paul
Medical College as professor of surgery, which
he held till 1879, during which year he was coun
ty physician for Hennepin county. For two years
he held the chair of surgery in the medical depart
ment of Hamline University, but in 1881 became
vice president and dean of the Minnesota College
Hospital, with the organization of which he had
been prominently connected, holding at the
time the office of professor of surgery and at
195
tending surgeon in the hospital and dispensary.
This institution, in connection with other medical
schools of Minneapolis and St. Paul, was reor
ganized in 1889 into the medical department of
the state university and since that time Dr. Dunsmoor has held the chair of operative and clinical
surgery in that department of the university.
He has also served as surgeon to St. Mary's
Hospital since 1890, to St. Barnabas Hospital
since 1879, a s gynecologist to the City Hospital
since 1894, to the Asbury Hospital since 1892, and
to the Asbury Free Dispensary since its organ r
ization. Dr. Dunsmoor had made an especial and
extensive study and practice of gynecology and
surgery, increased each year by a short period of
study in the large hospitals, colleges and scien
tific centers, both in this country and Europe and
holds an enviable reputation as an operative sur
geon. He is a member of the International Med
ical Congress, the American Medical Association,
the National Association of Railway Surgeons,
the Minnesota Academy of Medicine, the West
ern Surgical and Gynecological Association, the
Tri-State Medical Association, the North Dakota
State Medical Association, the Crow River As
sociation, the Society of Physicians and Surgeons
of Minneapolis, and the county and state medical
societies. He is a surgeon for the Northern Pa
cific; the Chicago, St. Paul, Milwaukee & Omaha
and the Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste Marie
railroads, and the medical director for the Surety
Fund Life Company. He is also well known in
the club and fraternal life of the city and holds
membership in the Nu Sigma Nu fraternity, the
Masonic Order, the Good Templars, the Druids,
the Minneapolis club and the Commercial club,
being a charter member of the last two. Dr.
Dunsmoor was married on September 5, 1876 to
Miss Elizabeth Emma Billings, the daughter of
the late Surgeon George F. Turner, U. S. A.
They have three children living—Marjorie Allport, Elizabeth Turner and Frederick Laton. Dr.
Dunsmoor attends and is one of the stewards of
the Hennepin Avenue Methodist Episcopal
Church.
EITEL, George Gotthelf, was born September
28, 1858, at Chanhassen, Carver County, Minne
sota, son of John G. Eitel, a farmer and flour
miller. His early life was spent on a farm in
Carver county. He attended the public schools
of Chaska' and Chanhassen and the MoravianAcademy at Chaska and received private instruc
tion in physics, mathematics, botany and geology
and began the study of medicine at the Minnesota
Hospital College, September 1, 1885, and grad
uated in May, 1888, receiving- the first prize in
surgery. He then spent the next ten months at
tending lectures at the University of Berlin, Ger
many, and in the fall of 1890, after practicing six
months, he entered the medical department of
the University of Pennsylvania where he grad
uated in 1891, returning thereafter to- the Uni
versity of Berlin to resume the special studies
196
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
which he had left in 1889. At that great school
he passed all examinations; presented and de
fended a thesis on appendicitis and received the
M. D. degree in December, 1901. Before locating
in Minneapolis in 1893, Dr. Eitel practiced in
Centralia, Washington. He was appointed one of
the surgeons to Asbury Hospital by his friend,
Dr. F. A. Dunsmoor and is a surgeon to St. Barna
bas hospital and the Norwegian hospital. Dr. Eitel
is a member of the Hennepin county, state, Min
nesota Valley, Western Surgical and American
Medical associations and of the Commercial Club
of Minneapolis.
ERB, Frederick Alexander, is a native of
Minneapolis. He was born here July 5, 1873.
His father, Alexander Erb, is a business man
of the city, who retired from the grocery
business some time ago. Dr. Erb grew up in
Minneapolis, went through the public schools,
and was a member of the first class of grad
uates from the East Side High school. He
took the academic course in the state university
as a preparation for the medical department, from
which he graduated in 1902. Dr. Erb is a staunch
republican, believing that the republican party
is the party of the past, present and future of the
country. Though in the ranks of the younger
element of the medical profession of Minnesota,
he is already becoming well known and belongs
to the standard older medical societies, as well as
to the Minneapolis Medical Club—an association
of the young physicians of Minneapolis. Dr. Erb
holds rank also in Sigma Chi and Nu Sigma Nu
fraternities. He was married June 20, 1905, to
Jessie M. Cribb, of Milwaukee. They have one
daughter, Catharine Louise.
ERDMANN, Charles Andrew, professor of
anatomy in the University of Minnesota, though
born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, August 3, 1866, has
so identified himself with the city of Minneapolis
in the past decade that he may be considered a
native. From his father, Andrew Erdmann, who
was a. skilled mechanic, Dr. Erdmann probably
inherited his love for the thorough study of
every new condition and of its correct adjust
ment to natural laws which has already given
him a place of authority in his profession. He is
a graduate of the Milwaukee public schools and
of the University of Wisconsin, but received his
doctor's diploma from the medical department of
the University of Minnesota in 1893. To this
preparation he added later a year at Berlin and
Vienna. From 1894 to 1899 he held the position
of demonstrator of anatomy in Minnesota Uni
versity. The following year he was given a full
professorship which he now holds. He is a re
publican and during his college course served as
deputy coroner of Hennepin county. Dr. Erd
mann belongs to several secret societies. He is
also a member of the American Association of
Anatomists, American Medical Association, the
state and county medical societies and the Min
neapolis Medical Club. He married Caroline A.
Edgar in 1896, and has two children, Edgar and
Elizabeth.
FIFIELD, Emily W., physician, was born in
Iowa, and is the daughter of the Rev. Lebbens B.
and Emily (Walworth) Fifield. On the mother's
side, Dr. Fifield is a Daughter of the Revolution,
her maternal great-grandfather having been Capt.
Charles Walworth, who served in that war. Dr.
Fifield has inherited a good deal of the pluck and
determination of those days, and whatever she
sets out to do, she usually completes, if not by
the original plan, by some other resource. Her
early education was at home and in the common
schools. Later she took a course at Holyoke,
traveling in the United States extensively after
ward. Before taking up medicine Dr. Fifield
tried teaching, and was so successful that she
was asked to take a man's place with a woman's
wages. But this not seeming to offer sufficient
practical inducements, she decided to become a
physician and entered the Woman's Medical Col
lege of Baltimore. After graduation and a year
of post-graduate study in New York, Philadelphia
and Baltimore, Dr. Fifield came to Minneapolis
in 1885 and has been in practice here since, ex
cept for study abroad. She has served in various
professional relations on the staff of Bethany,
the Northwestern, Asbury and the City hospitals,
and is a member of the Hennepin county and
the state medical societies. Dr. Fifield has al
ways been interested in the Humane Society and
the Young Women's Christian Association. Of
this last society she was one of the earliest mem
bers, her office at one time being the only meet
ing place of the members. Dr. Fifield is a Congregationalisf. Is unmarried.
GEIST, Emil Sebastian, physician and sur
geon and instructor in Orthopedic Surgery in
the University of Minnesota, is a genuine son of
Minnesota. He was born in St. Paul, Minnesota,
May 9, 1878, and his father, Emil Geist, Sr., is a
well-known jeweler of St. Paul. Dr. Geist's early
schooling went on in the St. Paul schools en
tirely until he entered the state university in
1895. He graduated at the age of twenty-two
from the medical department of the university.
After that three years were spent in European
universities. Since then his professional advance
has been rapid, although one of the youngest
members of his profession in active work. Dr.
Geist already liolds, besides his position at the
state university, several important consulting po
sitions. He is orthopedic surgeon to the Uni
versity Free Dispensary, St. Barnabas Hospital,
Asbury Hospital, St. Mary's Hospital and the
City Hospital. Dr. Geist belongs to the German
Orthopedic Society, the American Medical Asso
ciation, Hennepin County Medical Society, the
Minneapolis Medical Club and the Crow River
Valley Medical Society.
MEDICINE
GOULD, James Bennett, was born January
23, i860, at Eden Prairie, Hennepin county, son
of Aaron and Matilda (Channel) Gould. His
father was a farmer and James Bennett spent his
earlier years on the farm, receiving his educa
tional training in the rudiments at the district
school. In 1873 he entered the public schools of
Minneapolis and, continuing on the ascending
grade to the higher education, he entered the
state university, from, which he graduated in
1882 with the degree of A. B. After spending one
year as a student in the office of Dr. C. N. He
witt, then secretary of the State Board of Health
of Minnesota, he matriculated at Jefferson Medi
cal College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1883,
and in 1886 received from that institution the de
gree of Doctor of Medicine. During both his
collegiate and medical courses he filled the role
of schoolmaster. His first school was taught
when he was but. seventeen years old in a new
school building erected on the site of the "old log
school house," the one built by his uncle. He is
medical examiner for various life insurance com
panies, and for the Royal Arcanum, in which or
ganization he has held the position for some
fifteen years. Since 1901 he has been medical
examiner for the Independent Order of Foresters,
and since 1903 for the Modern Woodmen. He
is a member of the American Medical Associa
tion, State Medical Society of Minnesota and the
Hennepin County Medical Society. He belongs
to the Masonic fraternity, affiliating with Ark
Lodge No. 176, A. F. and A. M., and with Ark
Chapter No. .53, R. A. M. In politics he is a
republican. Dr. Gould married, December 26th,
1889, Ella M. Crombie, of Michigan. His present
address is 313 Pillsbury Building, Minneapolis.
HALL, William Asbury, was born at Aurelius, New York, 011 June 17, 1853. His father was
a farmer of only moderate circumstances but a
descendant of a family which came to Connec
ticut from England in 1639 and which has been
noted for its learning and scholarly work rather
than for its ability to accumulate wealth. On his
mother's side, Dr. Hall was descended from
Hollanders who settled in New Amsterdam at a
very early date. Dr. Hall received his primary
education in the public schools, graduated from
the Auburn, New York, High School, passed the
examination for the University of the state of
New York when only fourteen years old and
two years later was making his own way as a
teacher. When he was nineteen he entered the
office'of Dr. A. S. Cummings, of Cayuga, New
York, and began to study medicine. In 1872 he
entered the Albany medical college graduating
on December 23, 1875, with special honorable
mention for his graduation thesis on the sub
ject, "Inflammation." Soon after graduation, al
though only twenty-two years of age, he re
ceived, after a competitive examination, an ap
pointment as senior resident physician and sur
geon of the Albany, New York, Hospital. Here
197
he remained until 1877, when he established him
self at Fulton, Oswego county, New York, and
engaged in practice. During his ten years' resi
dence in Fulton he became widely known
throughout northern New York through his great
success in surgery and in 1885 he was elected
president of the Oswego County Medical society.
In the next year he moved to Minneapolis. In
1888 he was appointed professor of medical juris
prudence in the Minnesota College Hospital and
attending surgeon at St. Mary's Hospital. In
1892 he was elected president of the Henne
pin County Medical society and from 1894 to
1899 held the chair of professor of the principles
of surgery and clinical surgery in the medical
department of the Hamline University. He is
attending surgeon at the Minneapolis City Hos
pital and St. Mary's Hospital, consulting surgeon
at Asbury Hospital and consulting physician to
the Northwestern Hospital. In 1901 he was
elected president of the Minnesota State Medical
society, and in 1903 and 1904 represented the
state of Minnesota "in the House of Delegates of
the American Medical association. Although a
surgeon of high standing, Dr. Hall continues a
general practice as he does not look favorably on
specialization in the profession. Dr. Hall is a
republican in political faith and is an active
member of the national, Minnesota and local
medical societies and is a member of the Minne
apolis club and other social bodies of the city.
In 1880 he was married to Miss Ida A. Dickinson
of Lowville, New York. They have two children
—Le Roy and Helen. The family attends the
Episcopal Church.
HARE, Earle Russell, was born at Summerfield, Ohio, in 1872, the son of John W. Hare and
Mary Cornelia (Taylor) Hare. Dr. Hare had
the usual common school education supplemented
by a course at the Kansas City' high school,
where he graduated in 1890. Coming to Minne
apolis he entered the College of Medicine and
Surgery of the University of Minnesota from
which he graduated with the degree of M. D.
He has since been continuously in practice in
this city and has a wide acquaintance and mem
bership in all the leading medical organizations,
including the Minneapolis Medical Club, Henne
pin County Medical Society, the Minnesota State
Medical Society and the American Medical Asso
ciation. Dr. Hare was married in 1900 to Miss
Maude Wilson and they have one child, Horace
Barstow Hare. The family attend the Methodist
Episcopal church.
HAYNES, Frederick Eugene, the son of O. F.
Haynes, engineer, but formerly a blacksmith,
was born at Shelburn Falls, Massachusetts, on
November 22, 1875. A few years after his birth,
his parents moved to Minneapolis, and in this
city Dr. Haynes passed his youth and received
his education. He attended the public schools
and after the grammar course entered the South
198
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
high school and graduated from there in 1895.
In the fall of the same year he matriculated at
the University of Minnesota, and took up the
work of the medical department. The degree of
M. D. was awarded him in 1899 and he immedi
ately began to practice his profession in Pelican
Rapids, Minnesota, where he remained till the
year 1901, when he moved to .Minneapolis. He
has since continued his regular practice in this
city and in 1903 was appointed to fill the position
of inspector on the Minneapolis Board of Health.
Dr. Haynes is a member of the Minneapolis Med
ical Club, the Hennepin County Medical Society
and the State Medical Society. He was married
in 1900 to Miss Edythe Mills.
HEAD, George Douglas, son of* Newell S.
and Mary Elizabeth Head, was born September
10, 1870, at Elgin, Minnesota. His father is a
general insurance adjuster, has held this position
with several companies and is one of the pioneer
fire insurance men in this state. Dr. Head re
ceived his education in the public schools of Min
nesota; attended and graduated from the Fargo
high school, delivering the oration for his class,
and then entered the University of Minnesota.
He received his degree of B. S. in 1892, and was
again given the honor of delivering a class ora
tion. He returned in the fall of the same year
and took up his professional studies in the medi
cal department, and graduated in 1895 with a
"cum laude" degree.' In this course he also suc
ceeded in winning the Alexander Stone medal
in gynecology. Upon leaving school, Dr. Head
commenced to practice in this city. In the years
1898 and 1900 he took post-graduate work in the
Johns Hopkins Medical School. Again in the
year 1903 he studied for nine months in Vienna
arid upon his return to this country, started to
practice in Minneapolis as a specialist in "In
ternal medicine." Dr. Head has held a number
of offices at the state university and at present
is Chief of Dispensary Clinic of that institution.
Two years after his graduation he was appointed
as assistant in medicine and in 1895 took the posi
tion of instructor in clinical medicine and mi
croscopy. .The position of professor of Clinical
Medicine and Microscopy was offered to him in
1902, which place in the faculty he now holds.
He has been president of the Alumni Association
of the Medical Department of the state universi
ty, and is now a member of the Minnesota Acad
emy of Medicine; the American and state medi
cal associations; the Hennepin County Medical
Society; the Minneapolis Medical Club and the
Minneapolis Pathological Society. He holds the
position of attending physician at the City and
Asbury hospitals and is a consulting physician at
the Northwestern Hospital. Dr. Head is a re
publican in politics. He attends the Methodist
church and was married in 1898 to Miss Sarah
Belle Parry. They have one son, Douglas Parry
Head.
HILL, Richard J., a practicing physician of
the regular school, was born February 11, 1853, at
Hill's Store, North Carolina. His father, Nathan
Hill, was a physician and surgeon, who left the
south in 1861, at the breaking out of the Civil
War. He came to Minneapolis, where his son
was educated in the public schools, later taking
the first two years at the state university. De
ciding upon his father's profession and not being
able then to pursue it at Minnesota university,
the young sophomore took a full course at Jef
ferson Medical College, Philadelphia, where he
graduated in 1875. Securing a position as con
tract surgeon in the medical department of the
army, he spent three years on the frontier, re
turning to Minneapolis and a general practice in
1881. Dr. Hill's politics are republican. He was
the coroner of Hennepin county for two terms
of an effective administration. He belongs to the
county and state medical associations, to the
Minnesota Academy of Medicine and to the
American Medical Association. His church af
filiations are with the Society of Friends. He
was married to Louise T. Johnson in 1881, and
has two children, a son and daughter.
HVOSLEF, Jacob, son of Bishop F. W.
Hvoslef and Alethe Catherina Frost Hvoslef, was
born at Tromsoe, a city of northern Norway, and
the starting point of many Arctic expeditions,
near the seventieth parallel of 'latitude. The
family immigrated to Norway from South Den
mark in the beginning of the eighteenth century,
the first member arriving being a merchant; most
of the family, however, were prominent in law
and the church. Dr. Hvoslef's parents were
visited by Bayard Taylor when they lived in
Kantokeino, Norway, his father being at that
time a missionary to the Lapps. Mr. Taylor re
lated the incident in his book detailing his north
ern travels. Dr. Hvoslef attended the Latin
school in Tromsoe for five years and continued
his studies at Drammen in Southern Norway
five years more and at Bergen he made his final
preparation for admission to the Royal Univer
sity of Christiana, Norway, which occurred in
1883. Dr. Hvoslef's father was made bishop of
the diocese of Bergen in 1881, and the son, after
taking the academic course at the university,
studied medicine and graduated in 1891. After
spending a year as an interne <at the government
hospital in Christiana, he came to the United
States, locating in Minneapolis, where he has
since practiced his profession, with the ex
ception of one year which he spent at Tracy,
Minnesota. Dr. Hvoslef has built up a fine prac
tice, the fruitage of his thorough preparation
for his life work and his devotion to it. He
is a member of the Hennepin County Medi
cal Society, the State Medical Society, the Ameri
can Medical Association, and is lecturer on
orthopedic surgery at Hamline, University. He
is also a member of the Odin Club. On October
MEDICINE
ii, 1893, he was married to Miss Clara Johnson,
of Minneapolis, and they have two children, F.
Waldemar, born in Tracy, Minnesota, 1894, and
Catherine Elizabeth, born in Minneapolis in 1900.
HYNES, John Eldon, was born on July 25,
1878, at Winnebago, Minnesota, where his father,
John A. Hynes, was a farmer and stockraiser.
Here he spent all his early life, going to the com
mon school and graduating from the Winnebago
high school in 1898. He came to Minneapolis
for his professional education. In 1900 he gradu
ated from the College of Pharmacy of the Uni
versity, and in 1904 graduated from the Medical
Department. The University work was supple
mented by a year's experience as interne in St.
Luke's Hospital. He is now an instructor in
medicine at the University of Minnesota. Dr.
Hynes is a member of the Hennepin County
Medical Society, the Minnesota State Medical
Society, the American Medical Association, the
Minneapolis Medical Club, the Minnesota Patho
logical Society, and the Roosevelt Club. Dr.
Hynes was married on November 27, 1907, to
Martha F. Harris, of Minneapolis.
IRWIN, Alexander Francis, son of Thomas
and Margaret Irwin, was born in Chatham,
Ontario, Canada, receiving his early education in
the public and high schools and academic work
in the University of Toronto, receiving medals in
natural science and classics. He graduated from
the medical department of the University of
Michigan in 1889 and was honor graduate in
medicine of McGill Medical College in 1890. He
served six years in Minneapolis as assistant city
physician; was secretary of the Hennepin Coun
ty Medical Society during '93 and '94; is a member
of the American and Minnesota State Medical
Association and local Shakespeare Society; also
a member of Royal Arcanum and Masonic bodies.
JOHNSON, August Emanuel, was born in
Lund, Wisconsin, on August 23, 1881. His par
ents, a few years after his birth, moved to Min
neapolis and in this city he spent his early life.
He entered the public schools here, but after
some years' work, left his course uncompleted
and entered Carleton College, at Northfield, Min
nesota. After his preparatory work in that insti
tution, Dr. Johnson commenced to study for his
profession at Hamline University, and finished
his course and graduated from there in 1903 with
the degrees M. D. and C. M. Since that time he
has carried on a general practice in Minneapolis
and in addition held (until the closing of the de
partment) a position in the Medical Department
of Hamline University as instructor in clinical
surgery. Dr. Johnson is on the staff of the Swe
dish Hospital, and is a member of the Hennepin
County Medical Society, the State Medical Soci
ety and the American Medical Association.
JONES, William Alexander, was born at St.
Peter, Minnesota, May 24, 1859. His parents
were of Welsh and Scotch ancestry and both his
19§
grandsires were soldiers of the War of the Revo
lution. His father, a native of Vermont, was
taken by his parents to New York City, when a
child, and, when he grew to manhood, he came to
Minnesota, and, in 1854, located at St. Peter
where he opened a drug store and in 1858 mar
ried Miss M. A. Virginia Christian, a New York
lady who shared with him the storm and stress
of frontier life, when they encountered the hor
rors of the Indian outbreak of 1862. They shel
tered many refugees in their home, their son,
William, being a little child at the time. The
latter attended the common schools of St. Peter
and the high school, and gained a good knowl
edge of the drug business in his father's store.
He studied medicine at the University of the
City of New York, Medical Department, gradu
ating in 1881, after which he became assistant
physician at the State Hospital for the Insane in
St. Peter. In 1883 Dr. Jones came to Minneap
olis where he practiced medicine until 1886, when,
after his marriage to Annie R. Johnson, of Den
ver, Colorado, he went with her to Europe where
he entered upon special study of nervous diseases
in the school and hospitals of Berlin and Vienna.
After his return to Minneapolis, Dr. Jones de
voted himself to practice in his specialty, and has
proven himself a most successful lecturer 011
nervous and mental diseases, as clinical professor
of these specialties in the medical department of
the state university. He is attending neurologist
for St. Mary's Asbury Methodist,.the City, North
western, Norwegian and Swedish hospitals, and
is chief of the staff of the Northwestern Hospital,
and is editor of Journal of the Minnesota State
Medical Association and the Northwestern Lan
cet, a well-known leading medical journal. Dr.
Jones is a democrat in politics.
KIMBALL, Hannibal Hamlin, a practicing
physician in Minneapolis since 1867, was born
at Carmel, Penobscot county, Maine, on August
18, 1843. He is descended from old families of
good standing on both sides. His father, John
Kimball, was a lawyer with great ability and a
good education who was prominently connected
with the public affairs of his state and who oc
cupied a seat in the state Senate. Abigail Hornans, his mother was of Spanish descent, a woman
of much talent and power, from whom Dr. Kim
ball inherited much of his ability and to whose
early training he feels much of his success is
due. Dr. Kimball received a district school educa
tion and then entered and graduated from the
Hampden Academy and the Lewiston Seminary
(now Bates College). He intended to acquire a
medical education, so for a time studied under Dr.
P. A. Stackpole at Dover, New Hampshire, and
then entered the Pittsfield Medical College, fol
lowing his studies there with a complete course at
Bellevue, New York. During the latter part of
the Civil War he acted as contracting surgeon
under Dr. S. B. Morrison of the regular army.
200
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
He entered Bowdoin College to continue his
medical studies, during his senior year being
prosector of surgery. Graduating with the class
of 1866, he came to Minneapolis in 1867 and for
forty years has practiced in this city. For a time
Dr. Kimball's work was arduous, as in any young
town—long, hard drives of twenty and thirty
miles into the outlying districts. The number
of his patients increased with the growth of the
town, and by his thorough knowledge of medicine,
his hard work, and his own personality, he es
tablished and has sustained one of the most ex
tensive practices in the city. Soon after opening
an office in Minneapolis Dr. Kimball shared it
with Thomas Lowry, then a young but ambitious
lawyer, and later J. M. Shaw, another lawyer,
also had his office with them. In 1868 Dr.
Kimball and Mr. Lowry moved into an office in
the Old Harrison building where Dr. Kimball was
established for many years. He formed a partner
ship with Dr. C. G. Goodrich in 1869 and they
practiced together for five years, the only time
Dr. Kimball has been connected with any one in
his work. Though his practice was eminently
successful, Dr. Kimball wished to pursue his
medical studies still farther and for that pur
pose went to Europe in 1879-80, where he spent
severals months in the hospitals of London,
Heidelberg, Berlin and other large cities, and
several times since he has visited Europe with
the same motive. Dr. Kimball is a member of the
county, state and national medical associations
and since 1869 has been 011 the United States
Board of Pension Examiners. He is also a
member of the Masonic order. In 1870 he was
married to Miss Grace Everett Morrison, daugh
ter of the first mayor of Minneapolis, the Hon.
Dorilus Morrison.
HILL, Nathan Branson, a prominent Min
neapolis physician from 1861 until his death in
1875, was born in Randolph county, North Caro
lina, on May 13, 1817. He was the son of Samuel
and Mary Hill—the father a merchant and the
head of a large family. For generations the
Hills had been Friends and Dr. Hill's education,
after preparatory study at the schools of Ashboro, North Carolina, was obtained at the
Friends Boarding School, at New Garden, North
Carolina, at Guilford College and at Haverford
College, an institution maintained by the Friends
near Philadelphia. For a time he was employed
as a teacher in the New Garden school and after
graduation from Haverford he joined his father
in business. But desiring to enter the practice
of medicine he attended lectures at the Jeffer
son Medical College at Philadelphia during 1842
and 1843. In May, 1845, Dr. Hill was married to
Miss Eliza J. Menden'hall and about two years
later moved to Ohio and completed his medical
education at Ohio Medical College, Cincinnati,
receiving his diploma in 1848.
He had ex
pected to remain in the north but circumstances
led to his return to Carolina where he practiced
his profession until the breaking out of the Civil
War in 1861. During the stormy period before
the war Dr. Hill's frankly expressed anti-slavery
sentiments and his aid and advice to negroes
rendered his situation in Carolina difficult, and
war once declared he had no recourse but re
moval to the north. In company with Dr. A.
H. Lindley, his brother-in-law, he came to Mim
neapolis where the two families were soon es
tablished and the two physicians entered into
a partnership which only terminated at Dr.
Hill's death. Dr. Hill's leadership in the profes
sion was soon recognized and for fifteen years
he occupied a most prominent place in the com
munity. His natural abilities and loveable char
acter won him many friends and he enjoyed, to
an unusual extent, the confidence of his fellow
citizens. He was soon called to take a prom
inent part in the affairs of the young city, serving
three years in the city council of Minneapolis,
after the incorporation in 1867, and again after
the consolidation of the two cities in 1872, for
a one-year term. In 1871 he was appointed to
the state board of health by Governor Austin.
LAPIERRE, Charles Arthur, was born No
vember 2, 1870, at Quebec, Canada, son of Pierre
and Salome (Cinq-Mars) Lapierre. Mr. Lapierre
was brought up in Quebec, the ancient capital of
Canada and received his educational training in
Quebec Seminary from which he graduated in
1888, and in Laval University, which was founded
in 1663 by the first bishop of Quebec, whose
name it bears. From this old and well-equipped
institution, Mr. Lapierre graduated in medicine
in 1892. In 1893 he came to Minneapolis and
has been practicing his profession with great suc
cess since. Dr. Lapierre is a democrat in poli
tics, but his party affiliations are not allowed to
divert him from his professional duties. He per
mitted his name, however, to be used in 1906 as
democratic candidate for the nomination to the
office of coroner. Dr. Lapierre is a member of
the American Medical Association, the State
Medical Society, the Hennepin County Medical
Society, the St. Anthony Medical Club and the
St. Anthony Commercial Club. Dr. Lapierre is
a member of the Roman Catholic Church. He
was married in 1893 to Arthemise L. Laliberte
and they have five children—Esther, Arthur, Jean
Thomas, Ada and Marguerite.
LAWRENCE, William D., was born May 16,
1852, at Lawrenceville, Province of Quebec, Cana
da. His father, Erastus Lawrence, was the direct
descendant of Sir Robert Lawrence of Ashton
Hall, born in Lancashire, England, in 1150 A. D.
His mother was Sarah Harvey. His childhood
was spent in eastern townships of Canada and he
attended the Waterloo Academy and Granby
Academy in the Province of Quebec. Erastus
Lawrence was a merchant, so the young man saw
more or less business life in the general store at
Lawrenceville and in the lumber and milling busi
ness, but for his professional training he came to
the states—to Iowa University, to the Chicago
MEDICINE
Medical College and to the Chicago Homeopathic
Medical College. He came to Minneapolis in
1879 and has been in active practice ever since.
He has been president of the Twin City Academy
of Medicine, managing director of the Minneap
olis Homeopathic Hospital, president of the Min
neapolis Medical and Surgical Institute and presi
dent of the Lawrence Sanatorium of which he is
the founder. Dr. Lawrence is a republican. He
is actively interested in the cause of temperance
and is founder and president of the International
Uplift Society. He has had no military experi
ence in the United States, but was Captain of
the 79th Highlanders, Montreal Division, in
Canada. He is a member of the Minneapolis
Commercial Club, the national and state asso
ciations of Charities and Corrections and the
Medico Legal Society of New York. He has been
vestryman of Gethsemane Episcopal Church for
many years, and deputy to the General Conven
tion of the Episcopal Church. His marriage with
Lucy Mayo Beach, of La Fayette, Indiana, took
place in 1878. E. H. Lawrence, their only child,
died in infancy in 1881. His step son, Henry
Mayo Lawrence, is associated with him as secre
tary and treasurer of the Lawrence Sanatorium,
a large and flourishing institution.
LEAVITT, Henry Hooker, was born on a
farm near Waterloo, Iowa, April 1, i86t. His
parents were William Hunt Leavitt and Celia E.
(Dunnell) Leavitt. They were from Charlemont, Massachusetts, and had gone to Iowa a
year or two earlier, when Iowa was a new state
with almost no railroads. As a boy Dr. Leavitt
attended the public school in Waterloo, later at
tending Beloit (Wisconsin) Academy and gradu
ating A. B., from Beloit College in 1884. As
soon as he was graduated, he entered the Minne
sota Hospital College, now the Medical Depart
ment of the University of Minnesota, but com
pleted his studies at the Chicago Homeopathic
Medical College from which he received the M.
D. degree. In June 1887 he received the M. A.
degree from Beloit College. Dr. Leavitt began
practice in Minneapolis but after three years he
went abroad, spending a year in the hospitals and
clinics of Vienna, paying special attention to
diseases of the ear, nose and throat and also to
diseases of children. After his return to Minne
apolis he was appointed professor of diseases of
children in the Homeopathic Medical Depart
ment of the state university and after a few years
of general practice finished preparing himself to
make a specialty of the eye, ear, nose and throat,
studying at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary
and the New York Post Graduate Medical Col
lege. Since 1897 he has confined his practice to
this specialty. Dr. Leavitt's immediate family
consists of his wife, who was Miss Mabel L.
Howe, of Des Moines, Iowa, and three daughters,
Louise, Helen and Alice. He is a Congregationalist, a member of the Minnesota Congregational
Club, the Commercial Club, the Automobile Club,
201
the American Institute of Homeopathy, the
Ophthalmological, Otological, and Laryngial So
ciety, the Minnesota State Homeopathic Insti
tute, and the Minneapolis Homeopathic Medical
Society. Dr. Leavitt has been since 1904 profes
sor of Opthalmology in the College of Homeo
pathic Medicine and Surgery of the University of
Minnesota. Dr. Leavitt's ancestors were among
the early settlers of New England. His grand
father was Col. Roger H. Leavitt, who repre
sented his county in the state senate and his
district in the house of representatives; was one
of the incorporators of the Troy & Greenfield
railroad, and one of the earliest promoters or the
Hoosac Tunnel. His brother, Joshua Leavitt, was
the editor of the Emancipator and the New York
Independent. Roger Leavitt, Dr. Leavitt's great
grandfather rendered conspicuous services to the
cause of education and of temperance and to the
anti-slavery movement, and was nominated, the
day before his death, by the new liberty party as
its candidate for lieutenant governor. Roger
Leavitt was the son of Rev. Jonathan Leavitt,
born in 173x, one of the noted preachers of his
time. The earliest known Leavitts came to this
country from England and settled in Kingham,
Massachusetts about 1636.
LELAND, Muret N., Jr., was born January
8, 1874, at Wells, Faribault County, Minnesota.
His father, Muret N. Leland, is president of the
T. M. Roberts Co-operative Supply Company of
Minneapolis. The subject of this sketch passed
his earlier life at Wells attending the common
schools and graduating from the Wells high
school in 1891. The next three years he spent
at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and
in 1896 he graduated from the College of Physi
cians and Surgeons, Chicago, and served one term
as Resident Surgeon at St. Elizabeth Hospital in
that city. Leaving there on October 27, 1897, he
entered upon general practice at his old home,
Wells, Minn. He was county coroner there from
1898 to 1901 and served as U. S. Pension Ex
aminer and was chairman of the board of health.
Dr. Leland came to Minneapolis in April, 1901,
and has since practiced his profession here. Dr.
Leland is a member of the Hennepin county and
state medical societies. He attends the Methodist
Church While not a member of that communion.
Dr. Leland is Minnesota-born and bred and par
takes of the progressive spirit of the state.
LITTLE, John Warren, physician and sur
geon, and professor of Clinical Surgery in the
University of Minnesota, was born in Clark Coun
ty, Ohio, in 1859, on his father's farm, where
he alternately worked or went to school in the
locality until he taught his. own first pupils, when
he was eighteen years old. He is the son of
John and Mary Ann Little. On his father's side,
his ancestors were Welsh and Irish. His mother
was of English stock. This mixture of races
has so often resulted in the best blood of the
United States that it was to be expected that Dr.
202
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Little should graduate from the high and normal
school of Lebanon, Ohio, at an early age. He
took his medical training at Jefferson Medical
College, and went at once into practice in Minne
apolis upon receiving his diploma in 1883. Dr.
Little stands high in his profession. His ability
as a surgeon has brought him the position of
sr rgeon to the Chicago Great Western Railway
and that of chief of staff at Asbury Hospital. He
holds various other positions as consultant in his
own specialty at St. Mary's, the Swedish and the
City hospitals. In politics he is a republican.
He belongs to the Commercial Club, to several
Masonic orders of the Scottish rite, to the Minne
sota Academy of Medicine and to the Hennepin
County Medical Society of which he is an expresident. Dr. Little is not himself a church
member, but his family attend the Methodist
church. He was married to Nellie C. Marshall
in 1887 and has three children, a son and two
daughters.
MacDONALD, Irving Coburn, was born in
Minneapolis, on March 16, 1874. He is the son
of John W. MacDonald, who came to Minnesota
from Canada in 1865 and established throughout
the Northwest a line of flour mills, which he
owned and operated successfully until his death.
Dr. MacDonald's mother was Sarah (Coburn)
MacDonald, also, born and educated in Canada.
Dr. MacDonald attended the Minneapolis public
schools, completing his preparatory training here.
He took his college course in the University of
North Dakota, taking the academic work, and
graduated in 1895 with a B. A. degree. He did
not immediately begin his medical training, but
until 1898 served as principal in the schools of
different North Dakota towns. In the latter
year he entered the medical department of the
University of Minnesota. He graduated and re
ceived his M. D. degree in 1902 and in the same
year began a general practice in this city which
he has continued successfully. His work includes
all the branches of professional practice, but he
has specialized somewhat on obstetrical work.
In politics Dr. MacDonald is a republican, but is
not active in political work. He is a member
of the Minnesota State Medical Society, of the
Hennepin County Medical Society, of the Minne
apolis Medical Club, of the St. Anthony Medical
Club and the Alpha Kappa medical fraternity.
He is a Presbyterian and is not married. Dr.
MacDonald is fond of athletic sports and is him
self an enthusiastic automobilist.
MANN, Arthur Teall, (Arthur T. Mann) As
sociate Surgeon to the Northwestern Hospital,
and professor of Clinical Surgery in the Univer
sity of Minnesota, was born in 1866, in New York
City. He is the son of Samuel R. and Georgiana
Teall Mann, and both the Manns and Tealls have
been distinguished by the members of their stock
who have taken active part in the affairs of colon
ial times. The first Mann who came to America
was Richard Mann who left England in the reign
of Charles I and settled in Scituate, Mass. His
son Richard is on record as receiving a grant of
land in Connecticut for services in "the Indian
War." In the next century Capt. Andrew Mann's
name appears in the history of New London, Con
necticut as receiving his title of Captain at the time
the British burned New London. On the Teall side
the first emigrant to America was Oliver. His
father was apothecary-in-chief to William III
and to Queen Anne's troops. George I gave him
the family coat of arms presumably for services
on the field under Marlborough. His grandson,
Oliver Teall, Jr., followed in his steps, and was
surgeon in the British army during the French
and Indian War. In the third generation on this
side the Yankee blood began to take force, and
the grandson of the first Oliver, Nathan Teall,
cast in his lot on the American side during the
Revolution. Nathan's first child was Elmira for
whom the town of Elmira, New York (originally
Newton) was renamed. Dr. Arthur Mann spent
his youth in New York, but came West after his
father's death, entered the University of Minne
sota, and graduated with the degree of S. B., in
1888. He went to Harvard Medical School for
his M. D., and carried off two scholarships during
the course. In addition to four year ; of hospital
seivice in Massachusetts hospitals, where he was
successively House Surgeon at the Boston City
Hospital and Resident Physician at the Massa
chusetts State Hospital, Dr. Mann look a post
graduate abroad in 1904. Since hi.; return to
Minneapolis he has been occupied with his place
on the staff of the university as Professor of
Clinical Surgery and in surgical practice. He is
a republican, belongs to the state and county
medical societies, to the American Medical Asso
ciation, and to the Minneapolis Medical Club, of
which he has been president, He is also secre
tary and treasurer of the Western Surgical and
Gynecological Society. Dr. Mann married Wi
nona B. Orff in 1904.
MOORE, James Edward, (James E. Moore)
Professor of Surgery in the University of Min
nesota, chairman of the executive committee of
the American Medical Association and Surgeonin-Chief of the Northwestern Hospital, was born
in Clarksville, Pennsylvania, March 2, 1852, and is
the son of the Rev. George W. Moore and of
Margaret J. Moore. Dr. Moore has the distinc
tion of being the first specialist in surgery west of
New York City—beginning 1888—and he has now
an established position of authority in his own
line among his Northwestern associates in the
profession of surgery. Dr. Moore's early educa
tion was that which the public schools of various
Pennsylvania cities could give in the usual journeyings of a Methodist pastor. As he grew older,
he was sent to Union Seminary, Poland, Ohio,
and to the University of Michigan. He grad
uated from Bellevue Hospital Medical College in
MEDICINE
1873, took a course at the New York Polyclinic,
and spent 1885-86 at Berlin. His first practice was a
country one at Emlenton, Venango County, Penn
sylvania. Coming in 1882 to Minneapolis, it was not
until after his Berlin study that he began to call
attention to his work as a surgeon. In the past
twenty years his skill has brought him into gen
eral demand in the West and Northwest, and
insured him national recognition, as witnessed by
the associate honors which have come to him.
Beside the offices first mentioned Dr. Moore is
now the only living American Honorary Fellow
of the American Orthopedic Association and is
ex-president of the Western Surgical and Gyneco
logical Association, and ex-chairman of the sur
gical section of the American Medical Associa
tion. He is also the author of Moore's Or
thopedic Surgery, published in 1898, and editor
of the Department of Surgical Technique of
American Surgery for 1906, besides being a con
tributor to several leading American Medical
journals. In politics he is a republican. As a
clubman he belongs to the principal medical
clubs of the Northwest and to the Commercial,
Minneapolis, Lafayette and Minikahda clubs. He
attends the Universalist church. Dr. Moore's
first wife died leaving him one daughter, now
Mrs. Bessie Moore Forsell, of Minneapolis. He
was married, in 1887, to Louise C. Irving.
MOORE, Jehiel Tuttle, was born on Octo-'
ber 4, 1848, in Oxford county, Ontario, Can
ada. His father, Alexander Moore, was a gen
tleman farmer and until twenty years of age he
spent his time on his father's farm attending the
country school. In 1868 and 1869 he attended
the Canadian Literary Institute in Woodstock,
Ontario, but in 1870 he changed to the Collegiate
Institute in Gault, Ontario. During the same
year he had private medical instruction under Dr.
Joy which was followed by the medical course in
McGill University, Montreal, from which he grad
uated in 1874. He practiced his profession in
Canada for eight years holding there the posi
tions of associate coroner for the county of Ox
ford and staff surgeon of the Great Western
Railway. In 1883, the year after his removal to
Minneapolis, he was one of the organizers of the
Minneapolis College of Physicians and Surgeons
of which he was Dean for thirteen years, that
is, until 1896 when the school became the Medical
Department of Hamline University. He taught
theory and practice in the school from its or
ganization and from 1897 until the closing of the
department in 1908, he was its (vice) and acting
president. In 1886, Dr. Moore presented a reso
lution to the State Medical society of which the
ultimate result was the appointment of the first
medical board by the legislature to control the
requirements for medical practice in the state
of Minnesota. The present board is an evolution
from this first appointment. Dr. Moore was a
liberal in Canada and a republican since coming
to the United States. He has been a Mason
203
since 1869, occupying every office in the Blue
Lodge before he left Canada, and he is a member
of the Hennepin County and State Medical so
cieties and the American Medical Association.
Dr. Moore is an Episcopalian and was vestry
man of Gethsemane Church for ten years. He
married Frances Winifred Joy, daughter of his
old preceptor, in 1876. Their only child, Miss
Maude Moore, graduated from the American
Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York in 1894,
and is now teaching in the Minneapolis School of
Music Oratory and Dramatic Art. Dr. Moore
belongs to the staff of St. Barnabas Hospital, and
during 1896 was chief of staff.
MURPHY, William Bernard, was born at
Chicago, March 9, 1871, son of Patrick and Mary
Ann Lawton Murphy. His father was a brick
layer and building contractor, who served in
Company F, First New York Volunteer Engin
eers in the Civil War, and was wounded in the
knee at Swamp Angle and crippled permanently,
and was discharged ranking sergeant.
His,
brother John served in the U. S. Navy through
the Civil War. William B. spent his childhood in
Chicago and from ten to eighteen years of age
he worked on a farm near Woodstock, Illinois, re
ceiving his early educational training at the pub
lic schools and, after clerking in a country store
at Stoughton, Wisconsin, and later in a wholesale
house, he studied at Hamline University and in
1897 took the degree of M. D., C. M., was ap
pointed interne at St. Joseph's Hospital, St. Paul,
in 1897-98, and was druggist at the Minneapolis
City Hospital and on the staff of that hospital
until 1905. In the course of his practice he at
tended the late Ignatius Donnelly in his last ill
ness. Dr. Murphy is a republican in politics and
has attended many conventions in Minneapolis.
He was deputy coroner from 1900 to 1904. He is
a member of the American Medical Association;
of the county and state medical societies and the
Minneapolis Medical Club, the A. O. U. W.,
Knights of Columbus, the B. P. O. E. and other
organizations of the kind. He is a member of
the Roman Catholic church. Dr. Murphy was
married on January 29, 1902, to Amelia C. Heiker,
a graduate nurse of St. Joseph's Hospital, St.
Paul. There have been born to them - three chil
dren, Kathleen Adele, William Bernard, Jr., and
Edward Patrick.
MURRAY, William Robbins, clinical profes
sor of diseases of the nose and throat in the Min
nesota University was born at Marquette, Michi
gan, in 1869. He is an Ann Arbor graduate, hav
ing received the degree of Ph. B. from that in
stitution in 1892. In 1897 he took an M. D. from
Rush Medical College of Chicago. Dr. Murray is
a member of the American Medical Association,
American Academy of Medicine, the Academy of
Ophthalmology and Oto Laryngology, and of
the state and county medical associations.
204
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
NEWHART, Horace, was born December 9,
1872, at New Ulm, Minnesota, son of J. Newhart,
a lawyer and a veteran of the Civil War. He
passed his early life in New Ulm, where he at
tended the public schools and the high school.
After studying at Carleton College, Northfield,
Minnesota, in 1892 and 1893, he went to
Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire,
where he graduated in 1895, with
com
mencement honors, receiving the honor, also,
of election to the Phi Beta Kappa Soci
ety. In 1898 he received the degree of M. D.
from the Medical Department of the University
of Michigan. The following year he spent abroad
and took up post graduate work at the University
of Vienna, where he was again engaged in special
clinical work in 1905. In 1899 he was a member
of the medical staff of the Jackson Sanatorium,
Dansville, New York, and, later, served as
surgeon on the staff. Since coming to Minne
apolis, Dr. Newhart has entered successfully on
the practice, of his profession. He is a Fellow of
the American Academy of Medicine; a member
of the American Medical Association; of the Min
nesota and Hennepin County Medical Societies;
of the Minneapolis Medical Club and of the Min
neapolis Commercial Club; the Minikahda Club;
a member of the Dartmouth Association of the
Northwest; a member of the Minnesota Congre
gational Club and of the Phi Rho Sigma and the
Sigma Chi Fraternities. Dr. Newhart was mar
ried on September 3, 1904, to Anne Hendrick, of
Albany, New York, and to them one child, a
son, has been born—Elwood Hendrick.
NIPPERT, Louis Albert, son of the Rev.
Louis Nippert, D. D., was born in Bale, Switzer
land. His father, now deceased, was formerly
president of the Methodist Theological Seminary
at Frankfort on the Main, Germany, and was
directly descended from French Huguenots, who,
when driven from their fatherland, had emigrated
to Alsace. The early years of Dr. Nippert's life
were spent in the schools of Switzerland and Ger
many, and in them he received his elementary
education. Preparatory to his college course he
took the work in the "gymnasium" and polytechnical high school in Karlsruhe, Germany,
graduating from the latter institution in March.
1879. He then came to America and entered the
Miami Medical College of Cincinnati. Ohio,
where he completed his course and was awarded
his degree of M. D. in 1883. Immediately after
his graduation he received the appointment of
house physician in the City Hospital of Cincin
nati, and a year later was advanced to the posi
tion of senior house physician in the same insti
tution, which office he held until 1885. After
leaving the hospital he went to Paris to attend
the clinics, and from March to June, 1885, was
in the hospitals of that city. In September of
the same year he went to Vienna with a like
purpose in mind, staying in the hospitals there
until March, 1886. H«? then returned to America
and commenced his general practice in Minneap
olis. In 1907 Dr. Nippert again visited Europe
and spent much time in the hospitals and clinics
at the great centers of medical research. Dr.
Nippert is a member of various medical and pro
fessional associations, among which are the Hen
nepin County Medical Society (of which he has
been president), the Minnesota State Medical
Society and the Minnesota Academy of Medicine
and is clinical professor of medicine in the Uni
versity of Minnesota. He was married in 1887 to
Miss Mary Rauen and they have two children,
Lillian, and Rauen Louis Nippert.
NOOTNAGEL, Charles F., a well known
physician and surgeon of Minneapolis, was born
in Wisconsin in 1863. His father before him
was also a physician and surgeon, and the son
took a thorough preparation for the medical pro
fession by two years at Ann Arbor, completed at
Bellevue Hospital Medical College. Dr. Nootnagel also spent a year in European study. He
has a well established and valuable practice in
Minneapolis and is regarded as one of the solid
men of the profession.
O'BRIEN, Richard P., was born February 27,
1863, at Marengo, Illinois. His father, William
O'Brien, was a grocer of that place, married to
Mary McManus. His early life was spent at
Marengo where he attended the public schools
and graduated at the high school. Later he
studied medicine at the Chicago Medical Col
lege and engaged in general practice. He was
the only member of his class to receive a hos
pital appointment from the Dean after gradua
tion. In 1887 and 1888 he was professor of physi
ology at Hamline University and served as coun
ty physician in Minneapolis in 1893 and 1894. He
is a member of the Knights of Columbus, of the
Maccabees, of the Ancient Order of Hibernians,
of the Modern Woodmen of America, of the
Bankers' Union and of the Catholic Order of
Foresters. Dr. O'Brien is a member of the
Catholic Church. He was married on November
26, 1890, to Miss Mary Ring, daughter of Martin
Ring, a prominent contractor of Minneapolis.
To them have been born four children, William
Claude, Richard Martin, Gerald and Marian.
OFSTAD, Arnt E., practicing physician, was
born in Norway, July 14, 1866. His father was
both a farmer and merchant, and the son had
excellent chances to secure the best that Norway
can give her sons in the way of higher educa
tion. He received the full course of common,
liigh and Latin schools and took his A. B. at the
University of Christiania. Coming to the United
States, Dr. Ofstad took the medical course at
Chicago Medical College, graduating in 1894, and
later returning for three months of post-graduate
work. Ten years later, in 1904, he graduated
from Hamline University of Minnesota, and then
spent one year as interne in the Minneapolis City
MEDICINE
Hospital. He came to his profession doubly
equipped with thorough preparation for work
among new conditions. Dr. Ofstad belongs to
the Odd Fellows, M. W. A., the Sons of Norway
and the Independent Order of Foresters. Before
leaving Norway he served his time in the artil
lery service under the compulsory military regu
lations of Norway. Dr. Ofstad is a republican
and of the Protestant faith. He married Anne
Marie Sorum in 1895. He has no children.
PETERS, Ralph Moore, was born May 24, 1872
at Anoka, Minnesota, son of A. L. Peters, treas
urer of the Peters Arms & Sporting Goods Com
pany, Cincinnati, Ohio. His parents have . re
sided in Minnesota since 1867. Ralph graduated
at the St. Paul high school in 1891, president of
his class. He graduated at Rush Medical Col
lege, Chicago, in 1894, and served as interne at
St. Mary's Hospital, Minneapolis, in 1894-95,
and was associated with Dr. J. H. Dunn,
when he began the practice of medicine in 1895
in Minneapolis. Dr. Peters is an active and
respected member of his profession in Minne
apolis, not only among his confreres but among
his clientele as well. Dr. Peters is a republican
in politics and a member of the Commercial,
the Roosevelt and the Automobile clubs. He is
a member of Gethsemane Episcopal Church. In
T895 Dr. Peters was married to Margaret Emily
Wiggins, formerly of Saratoga Springs, New
York.
PORTEOUS, William N., was born in On
tario, Canada, on June 20, 1857. His father was
David Porteous, who had studied medicine at
Edinburgh University in Scotland, but who had
subsequently given up practice and engaged in
flour milling in Canada. Dr. Porteous' mother,
whose maiden name was Jessie Bell, was the
daughter of a Canadian manufacturer and of a
family engaged extensively in large business un
dertakings in that part of the country. Dr. Por
teous received his common school and college
education in Ontario, graduated from McGill
University at Montreal and studied medicine in
Scotland at Edinburgh University. After re
ceiving his degree at Edinburgh he took a course
in London, England, and then returned to this
country to commence practice. In 1893 he came
to Minnesota and established himself in Minne
apolis, where he has since continued to practice,
making a specialty of the diseases of the ear,
.nose and throat. He is a member of the vari
ous medical societies, of the Minneapolis Club
and other social organizations. In 1894 Dr. Por
teous was married to Miss Alma Norton John
son, daughter of the late Col. Charles W. John
son, an old citizen of Minneapolis. Mrs. Por
teous is widely known as a concert singer of
charming voice and personality.
PRATT, Fred John, Jr., was born May 29,
1876, at Jackson, Michigan. He grew up at Jack
son, attending the grade schools and graduating
205
from the Jackson high school. He then attended
the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, and
graduated from the medical department in 1901.
For the next two and a half years he was assist
ant to Dr. C. W. More, at the More Hospital,
Eveleth, Minnesota. He then took post-graduate
work during 1904 at Chicago Eye, Ear, Nose and
Throat College fitting
himself especially for
practice in diseases of the eye, ear, nose and
throat, and for one year following was assistant
to Dr. J. A. Pratt, a specialist of the eye,, ear, nose
and throat at Aurora, Illonois. Dr. Pratt came
to Minneapolis in 1905 and established himself
as an eye, ear, nose and throat specialist on the
East Side where he has since practiced. He is
a member of Phi Beta Pi fraternity, Masonic
and K. P. Lodges, Hennepin County Medical So
ciety, Minneapolis Medical Club, St. Anthony
Medical Club and the American Medical Associa
tion.
REES, Sorer P., physician and instructor in
Physical Diagnosis and Clinical Medicine at the
state university, was born in Denmark, Septen?
ber 27, 1870. He is the son of Peter Nelson Rees,
a Danish farmer, and his earliest schooling was
had in the common schools of Denmark. Com
ing to America with his parents while a child,
the family at once removed to Minnesota. Here
Dr. Rees completed his common and high school
course, graduating from the Stillwater high
school, and taking his college and medical train
ing at the University of Minnesota. In 1895 he
received his degree of B. S. from the college, and
was also honored by election to membership in
Phi Beta Kappa. Dr. Rees was editor-in-chief of
the 1895 Gopher and during his medical course
acted as instructor in Histology and Embryology.
Immediately after receiving his diploma of M. D.
he became resident physician for a year at St.
Barnabas Hospital. The next three years follow
ing were spent in general practice at Anoka,
Minnesota. In 1901 Dr. Rees returned to
Minneapolis to become associated with Dr.
J. .W. Bell, in which connection he has
made himself
recognized during the past
seven years as one of the actively pro
gressive men of his profession. He belongs
to the county, state and national medical societies
and to the Minnesota Academy of Medicine. In
politics he is a republican, taking an earnest and
active interest in all civic reforms. But he is
specially interested in the work and advancement
of the state university, for like all men who have
had to work hard to obtain an education he values
highly the opportunities of his own Alma Mater.
He has shown this appreciation by being the
chief agent in putting the present general alumni
association on an efficient basis by securing funds
to support a paid secretary for the association.
Dr. Rees is one of the board of directors of the
association, representing the medical department;
and his energy and enthusiasm are always ac
tively enlisted in plans for the future development
206
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
of the new body. He attends Trinity Baptist
Church. He was married on August 3, 1898, to
Miss Estelle Crocker, and has one son, Soren
Douglas.
RIPLEY, Martha George, a practicing physi
cian of this city and founder of the Maternity
Hospital, was born at Lowell, Vermont, on No
vember 30, 1843. She is of English and Scotch
descent; the ancestors of the family on both sides
came to America with the Pilgrims and settled
in New England. During the Revolutionary War
the great-grandfather of Dr. Ripley fought under
the flag of Washington and died while serving
his country in that bitter winter at Valley Forge.
Dr. Ripley is the daughter of Francis and Esther
Ann (George) Rogers. Her father was a stock
farmer of Vermont who became a pioneer settler
in northeastern Iowa, where he brought his fam
ily and established a typical New England home.
Dr. Ripley was raised amid these surroundings
and commenced her education in the public
schools and attended and graduated from the
Lansing, Iowa, high school, and then held a posi
tion as instructor in the public schools for seven
terms. While yet a young woman, Dr. Ripley
became actively interested in charitable and phil
anthropic objects giving her time and energies
during the Civil War to the work of the Sanitary
Commission. She was married in 1867 and went
to her husband's home in Massachusetts. The
desire to aid humanity urged her, however, to
become a physician and she entered Boston Uni
versity taking her medical studies in the School
of Medicine of the same institution. Following
her graduation in 1883 she moved to Minneapolis
and devoted herself to a practice which has
proved increasingly successful, and to the ac
complishment of many and varied works of char
ity and philanthropy. Perhaps the most worthy
of her benevolent efforts have been expended in
the foundation and support of the Maternity Hos
pital, which she organized and founded about
twenty years ago and of which she has been con
tinuously the physician in charge. This is but one
of the many ways, however, in which Dr. Ripley
has, by her sympathy, counsel and material aid,
found it possible to perform, in a great measure
unknown even to her friends, countless acts of
warm-hearted charity. In addition to these du
ties she held for a time the office of professor of
children's diseases in the Homeopathic Medical
School and is often called upon to read technical
essays before various medical bodies. Dr. Rip
ley is a firm believer in the equal right to the
ballot and is a prominent member of city and
state woman suffrage societies, being for six years
the president of the latter association. She is a
member of several professional organizations,
among which are the American Institute cxf
Homeopathy, the Woman's Medical Club of Min
neapolis and the city and state homeopathic so
cieties. She is a member of and attends the
Plymouth Congregational Church. Dr. Ripley
was married on June 25, 1867, to William W.
Ripley and they have four children, Mrs. Abigail
Ripley Smith, Mrs. Clara Ripley Smith, Mrs.
Edna Ripley Page, and Miss Hester Ripley.
There are eight grandchildren.
ROBERTS, Thomas Sadler, clinical profes
sor of Children's Diseases in the medical depart
ment of the university and director of the De
partment of Birds in the Minnesota Natural His
tory Survey, was born February 16, 1858, at Phil
adelphia, Pennsylvania. He is the son of
John
Roberts
and Elizabeth
Sadler,
his
father being of Welsh descent and of Quaker
faith, while his mother was of
English
descent and an Episcopalian. The Roberts
family in America traces its history back
to a Welsh ancestor, Thomas Roberts, who came
over in the time of William Penn, settled near
Philadelphia and became the forebear of a long
line of Pennsylvania farmers. The "Old Rob
erts Home" and "Roberts School" are still stand
ing. In 1867, John Roberts and his family re
moved to Minneapolis. Dr. Roberts was then
only nine, and his previous schooling had been
chiefly at the Friends' School in Germantown, Pennsylvania. He entered the Minne
apolis public schools and graduated from
the high school in the class of 1877 as
valedictorian.
The two years following were
spent at the University of Minnesota. Then
ill health compelled him to drop out of the
course and to take up temporarily some outdoor
occupation. During the summer of 1879, he was
with a State Natural History Survey party on
the north shore of Lake Superior studying the
birds and plants of that region and making a col
lection of ornithological and botanical specimens
for the university. During the four following
summers he was in charge of parties engaged
in examining the land grant of Northern Pacific
Railrod in Minnesota, Dakota and Montana.
When he resumed college work it was at the
medical department of the University of Penn
sylvania from which he graduated in 1885, rank
ing fifth in a class of one hundred and thirty-two.
After fifteen months of practice as interne at the
Philadelphia Children's Hospital and Philadelphia
City Hospital, Dr. Roberts came back to Minne
apolis in the fall of 1886, since which date he has
been in general practice. He was on the staff of
St. Barnabas Hospital for twelve years and chief
of staff for six years. He is at present on the
staff of the Northwestern, City and Swedish hos
pitals and the Home for Aged Women and Chil
dren, the latter for twenty years past. Besides
these positions he is a member of the anti-tuber
culosis committee of the Associated Charities
and belongs to the American Medical Associa
tion, the state and county medical societies and
the Minnesota Academy of Medicine. In his or
nithological work he has placed in the state uni
versity a collection of about 5,000 specimens for
the state natural history survey and has pub-
MEDICINE
lished numerous articles relating t© Minnesota's
birds. The latest work will be issued, when fin
ished, as a report of the State Natural History
Survey. He has been both secretary and presi->
dent of the Minnesota Academy of Natural Sci
ences and is now a trustee of that body. He has
been a fellow of the American Ornithological
Union since its formation and for some years
past one of the council. He is also a correspond
ing member of various scientific societies, and be
longs to the Minneapolis and Minikahda and Long
Meadow Gun clubs. Though in early life he
was a Friend, Dr. Roberts for a time attended the
Episcopal church, and is now a Univesrsalist. Po
litically he is a republican. He was married Oc
tober 1 8 , 1 8 8 7 , to Jane Cleveland, and has three
children—two sons and a daughter.
ROME, Robert R., was born March 4, 1865.
His childhood was passed on a farn% with his
parents, at Union Grove, Wisconsin. Here he
went to the district school. At sixteen years of
age, he went to Chicago to attend school. He
matriculated at Rush Medical College in 1883.
After one year there he was given a scholarship
in the old Chicago University where he took four
years of academic work. Then he went to Denison University at Granville, Ohio, for a year's
work to prepare for the ministry. In 1 8 8 8 he
supplied the pulpit in the Baptist church at Albert
Lea, Minnesota. The year following he matric
ulated in Hahnemann Medical College, Chicago.
After graduation there in 1 8 9 1 he came to Min
neapolis and entered the department of Homeo
pathic Medicine and Surgery of the University of
Minnesota, class of 1 8 9 2 . He was at once ap
pointed lecturer and adjutant professor in ob
stetrics in that college. In 1 8 9 5 he was made full
professor of obstetrics. In 1 9 0 1 he was appointed
to the chair of gynecology of which he is now
senior professor. Dr. Rome joined the Baptist
church in Chicago in 1 8 8 7 , and in 1 9 0 6 his letter
was transferred to the Linden Hills Congrega
tional Church of Minneapolis.
He married
Jeannie May Nichols of Buffalo, New York, in
1894.
They have two sons: Robert Carroll and
Richardson Rome.
SEASHORE, Gilbert, was born July 14, 1874,
at Dayton, Iowa. His father, Alfred Seashore,
was a farmer. Gilbert attended the public schools
of Iowa and entered Gustavus Adolphus College
at St. Peter, Minnesota, where he graduated in
1 8 9 6 valedictorian of his class, taking the A. B.
degree. He then studied two years in the medi
cal department of the University of Iowa and two
years more in the medical department of the Uni
versity of Minnesota, graduating in 1 9 0 2 . Dr. Sea
shore, after graduation at St. Peter, served ac
ceptably as principal of the public schools in
North Branch in 1 8 9 6 - 9 7 , and in 1 8 9 7 - 9 8 he held a
similar position at Marine Mills, Minnesota. In
1 9 0 2 and 1 9 0 3 he was house physician at the
Swedish Hospital in Minneapolis and is at present
207
established in a growing practice. Dr. Seashore
is a republican in politics. He is a member of
the Hennepin County Medical Society and is a
Lutheran in his church affiliations.
SMITH, David Edmund, the son of Charles
Henry and Clarissa (Moody) Smith, was born
at Winona, Minnesota, December 2 0 , 1 8 6 7 . His
youth was spent in Chicago where he attended
the public schools and the University Prepara
tory School. Dr. Smith graduated from Amherst
College in 1 8 9 1 and received the degree of A. M.
in 1 8 9 5 . His medical degree was given him in
1 8 9 4 by the Rush Medical College of the Uni
versity of Chicago. Additional training was re
ceived in post graduate work at eastern medical
schools and in service at Asbury Hospital where
he was house surgeon and where he is still a
member of the staff. Dr. Smith is a member of
the Minnesota State Medical Society, the Hen
nepin County Medical Society, the Minneapolis
Medical Club, the Commercial, Six O'clock and
Westminster Clubs. His party affiliations are
republican and he is a member of Westminster
Presbyterian Church. On September 23, 1896,
Dr. Smith was married to Miss Alice Dyer.
SMITH, Norman M., was born September 22,
in Monticello, Iowa. His father, Rufus P.
Smith, prominent business man and manager of
the Electric Light & Power Co. of Monticello,
was the son of Norman M. Smith, who held dur
ing the Civil War the position of surgeon in the
Sixth Regiment of Iowa Volunteers. After the
usual grade preparation, Dr. Smith entered the
Monticello high school and graduated in 1893.
He then attended for two years Monmouth Col
lege, at Monmouth, 111., when he left college and
entered the service of the C. M. & St. P. Ry. at
Monticello, as assistant agent. Coming to Min
neapolis in 1 8 9 8 he matriculated at the State
University in the medical department and for
three years applied himself to his professional
education. In 1 9 0 1 he entered the Hahnemann
Medical College of Chicago and graduated from
that school in the following year with the degree
of M. D. At the same time that he was com
pleting his course, Dr. Smith held the office of
instructor in physiologic chemistry in the same
college and was taking the additional course in
the Illinois College of Electro-Therapeutics, re
ceiving from the latter school his M. E. degree
in 1 9 0 2 . Soon after completing his studies, Dr.
Smith commenced to practice his profession in
Allison, Iowa, where he remained until he came
to Minneapolis in 1 9 0 3 . In addition to his suc
cessful practice in this city Dr. Smith holds a
position on the visiting staff of the City Hospital
and of the University Free Dispensary. In poli
tics he is a stanch republican and believes firmly
in the principles and doctrines of his party. In
1 8 9 8 , the governor of Iowa, Leslie M. Shaw, offi
cially authorized Dr. Smith to organize and drill
a company for service in the Spanish American
1875,
208
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
war. He was appointed captain of his company,
but the sudden termination of the war prevented
enlistment and active service. At the present
time he is associated with the Sons of Veterans
and is a member and surgeon of the Red Cross
Corps. He also holds membership in the Ma
sonic Lodge, the civic educational clubs, the Min
neapolis Homeopathic Medical Society and the
Minnesota State Homeopathic Institute, holding
in the last two organizations the office of secre
tary. Dr. Smith attends Plymouth Congrega
tional Church. He was married to Miss Crissie
May Benton, the daughter of C. H. Benton, in
1902.
SODERLIND, Andrew, was born in Sweden,
on January 31, 1861. He is the son of An
drew and Caroline Soderlind. His father was
a surveyor of logs. From both his father's and
mother's lineage Dr. Soderlind is descended from
the highest families—his mother being of the
House of Aldrin and his father directly in line
with Stalhandske, both ranking among the nob^
lest families of the kingdom. His father, how
ever, was too democratic to retain his patrician
name, so adopted that by which his descendants
are now known. Dr. Soderlind spent his early
life in Sweden and there attended the public
schools. He was anxious to acquire a profession,
so after completing his preparatory studies he
took up the study of pharmacy and in the year
1887 was awarded his diploma as a registered
pharmacist. He continued his college work and
two years later graduated as a doctor of medicine
and surgery. Since that time he has, to complete
his professional education, taken post-graduate
courses in Baltimore and Berlin. He now has an
extensive medical and surgical practice in this
city and holds the position of chief of the staff
physicians of the Swedish Hospital. Dr. Soder
lind is connected with a number of the more im
portant fraternal and professional organizations—
the American Medical Society; Minnesota State
Medical Society; the Hennepin County Medical
Society; the Masons; I. O. O. F.; Gustaf Adolf
Society; the Modern Samaritans, the Modern.
Woodmen and the Odin and South Side Com
mercial Clubs. He is a republican in politics. In
1893 he was married to Miss Anni Schult and they
have two sons and a daughter, Ellen, Ralph and
Ragnar. The family attends the Lutheran church.
STEWART, J. Clark, physician and surgeon,'
and professor of Principles of Surgery in the
University of Minnesota, was the first person to
enter the freshman class of Minnesota, 1871, and
also left his class at graduation, 1875, as first in
standing. Minnesota, however, does not claim
Dr. Stewart's birthplace. He is a New Jersey man,
born at Camden, October 21, 1854, the son of
the Rev. Daniel Stewart and of Eliza M., his
wife. The ancestry is Scotch on the father's
side. On the mother's there is a long list of the
original settlers of Rhode Island, among them
three governors and some dozen others of dis
tinction in colonial times. Dr. Stewart was edu
cated entirely in the private schools of Camden,
of Johnston, New York, and of New Albany, Indi
ana. When the family removed to Minneapolis, Dr.
Stewart entered the University at the age of
seventeen, and graduated—a B. S. and C. E.—
at twenty-one, the youngest graduate of the Uni
versity at that time. After trying a business life
in the wholesale field for several years, Dr.
Stewart took up medicine and entered the Col
lege of Physicians and Surgeons in 1881, coming
out in 1884, again with honors. After two years in
Mt. Sinai hospital and New York City dispen
saries, he returned to join the staff of the old Min
nesota Hospital College; later merged in the
Medical Department of the University of Min
nesota. He has held various positions in the
University, before taking the chair he now holds,
and is also on the consulting staff of Asbury and
Northwestern hospitals and surgeon at the City
Hospital. He is a republican who looks for the
right man in the right place rather than for party
gains. Dr. Stewart holds membership in several
important medical and social clubs, as well as in
the Society of the Colonial Wars, which last is
an inherited honor. He is a Presbyterian. Has
never married.
STROUT, Eugene Silas, though born near
the western shores of Lake Michigan on Au
gust 3, 1862, came to Minnesota when only
two years old, and therefore may be called a
native of the state. He is the son of Silas
C. and Maria L. Gatchell Strout. His father, for
some time a farmer of Raymond, Racine county
Wisconsin, removed to Stearns county, Minnesota,
in 1864, when he engaged in farming and later in
the mercantile business. Dr. Strout's prelimin
ary education was received in the common
schools and the state Normal school at St. Cloud.
He received his medical training in the University
of Michigan, from which he graduated in the year
1891. Then followed post-graduates at Chicago,
London and Vienna, with reference to an eye
and ear specialty. After some three years of
practice at Ironwood, Michigan, Dr. Strout came
to Minneapolis, where he has lived for the past
twelve years. He is a member of Hennepin
County Medical Society, and of the American
Medical Association, also of the State Medical,
and is on the staff of the Northwestern Hospital.
Dr. Strout attends Calvary Baptist Church. He
was married in 1892 to Henrietta Udell Elliott,
who died in 1896. In 1898 he married Nellie A.
Matthews, a graduate of the Northwestern Hos
pital training school. He has two children—a
son and daughter.
THOMAS, David Owen, was born in 1852 at
Penybenglog Mill, Pembrokeshire, Wales, the
son of Thomas and Margaret Thomas, of a family
of ancient lineage. When nineteen years of age
he came to America and made his home at
MEDICINE
Youngstown, Ohio. Desiring to complete his
education, which had been begun in Wales, he
entered Bethany College in West Virginia, and
graduated in 1878, with the degree of B. A. He
determined to become a physician and according
ly entered the Medical College of Indiana, In
dianapolis, where he graduated in 1884, receiving
the Mears gold medal for the best thesis on
''Caesarean Section." Dr. Thomas at once came«
to Minneapolis, but after three years practice he
determined to secure a more extended clinical
experience and went to the College of Physicians
and Surgeons of New York where he took two
years work in one and graduated in 1889. He
then went abroad and after some travel in Eu
rope, returned to London, and continued his
clinical work for two years at St. Bartholemew's
Hospital. He successfully passed the examina
tions of the Conjoint Board of the Royal College
of Physicians of London and the Royal College
of Surgeons of England, and holds the degree of
L. R. C. P. and M. R. C. S. In 1891 he returned
to Minneapolis and resumed the practice of his
profession and for years until the closing of the
department in 1908, was a professor of the Dis
eases of the Chest of the Medical Department of
Hamline University, and likewise a visiting physi
cian to the City Hospital and the Asbury Hos
pital. He is an active member of the Minnesota
State Medical Society and was president of the
Hennepin County Medical Society in 1905, and is
alive to all medical progress, as well as a con
tinuous student in some private matter of literary
research. In politics Dr. Thomas is a republican
though distinctly independent in his views. He
is a prominent member of the Portland Avenue
Church of Christ and has taken an active part
in the affairs of the denomination at large. In
1885 he was married to Miss Anne E. Butler,
daughter of the late Ovid Butler, founder of
Butler College, University of Indianapolis.
WANOUS, Ernest Z., physician and surgeon,
is a native son of Minnesota, having been born
in McLeod county, January 24, 1875. He is the
youngest of the four children of Frank Wanous,
who came to this state in 1854, and at present
resides at Glencoe, Minnesota. Doctor Wanous
received his first lessons of school discipline in
the little district schoolhouse by the roadside, but
this was soon abandoned for the much more per
fect public school at Glencoe. His parents gave
up their agricultural pursuit to enter upon a busi
ness career in the village, that the children might
receive the benefits of the grade system and the
high school work, which had been inaugurated
through the efforts of the first settlers in that
vicinity. After entering upon his high school
studies, he spent his spare time and vacations in
•a drug store, thus becoming interested in the first
elements of his chosen profession. After gradua
tion, he further prepared himself at the medical
department of the University of Minnesota. At
twenty-two he received his degree of M. D. and
209
spent one year practicing in the country. In 1898
he received the appointment of assistant superin
tendent of the Minneapolis City Hospital. He
served one year, then resigned his position to
accept the position of assistant medical superin
tendent of the Rochester State Hospital, where
he remained for three years. In 1902 he resigned
this position to enter upon a private practice in
Minneapolis. Doctor Wanous has done special
work in the New York, Baltimore, and Chicago
hospitals. He is a member of the state and
county medical societies, and the American Medi
cal Association. He was married in June, 1907,
to Miss Julia Bell Hopkins at Mendon, Michigan.
WARHAM, Thomas Tweed, was born in Can
ada, at Kingston, Ontario, on August 31, 1866,
the son of Richard Lee Warham and Agnes
Warham. The family is a very old one, the lin
eage having been traced back to the early part
of the seventeenth century to an Episcopal bishop
who bore the same surname. The father of
Thomas Tweed was a painter by occupation, who
moved with his family in 1873, to Belleville,
Canada. His son attended the public schools of
that town and continued his education in the
high school from which he graduated when fif
teen years of age. Dr. Warham did not enter
college at that time but after working in a tele
graph office for nine months and in the dry goods
business for a short time, learned the paper
hanger's trade. He came to Minneapolis in 1886
and worked at his trade in this city with several
different firms.
It was his wish, however, to
enter the medical profession, and with that end
in view he studied for a time under a private
tutor, Professor Hall, at the Minneapolis Acad
emy, preparatory to entering the Hamline Uni
versity for his professional training taking up his
work in the medical department of that institu
tion and graduating with the class of 1897 tak
ing M. D. and C. M. degrees. He commenced to
practice in Vernon Center, Minnesota, remaining
there until 1904 when he moved to Minneapolis
and resumed his medical work in this city. H?
has been appointed medical inspector for the De
partment of Health of Minneapolis for the term
of 1907-1909 and fills that office at the present
time. Dr. Warham has held several other public
and semi-public positions, for four years he was
county physician of Blue Earth county, and in
the summer of 1906 was the commander of the
Red Cross corps and surgeon-in-chief of the
emergency hospital during the Fortieth Annual
Encampment of the G. A. R. in Minneapolis. He
is a republican in politics and has engaged active
ly in the work of the state party. For two years
he was chairman of the republican county com
mittee of Blue Earth county and for four years
a member of the executive committee of the re
publican county committee of the same district.
Dr. Warham in 1888 joined the Sons of Veterans,
'and has held every office which his camp could
bestow and in 1903 and 1904 was elected Division
Commander of the state. He is also a member
210
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
of various professional and fraternal orders; a
member and Past Master of Kurum Lodge, A. F.
and A. M. Mount Horeb Chapter, R. A. M.; a
member of the Vernon Center Chapter of O. E.
T., of North Star Lodge No. 6, I. O. O. F.; Union
Encampment No. 14, P. C. P. and Captain of the
degree staff; a Past Captain of Minnesota Can
ton No. 1, P. M.; of Mankato Lodge No. 225, B.
P. O. E.; and is examining physician and a mem
ber of the following, Yoemen, M. B. A., M. W.
A.,, R. N. A., E. F. U., A. O. U. W. His profes
sional affiliations are with the following organi
zations: the Hennepin County Medical Society,
the State Medical Society, the Mississippi Valley
Medical Society and American Medical Associa
tion.
WESTON, Chas. Galen, was born at Chelsea,
Massachusetts, April 25, 1858. His father, Seth
Weston, was a successful business man of Boston,
well known as a contractor and builder. The son
had his early education in the Chelsea public
schools, from which he graduated in 1875. He en
tered Harvard Medical School two years later. At
intervals before securing his degree of M. D., Dr.
Weston was house-physician at the Boston
Lying-in Hospital and interne at Boston City
Hospital. Immediately after the completion of
his Harvard course, in 1882, he began practice at
Peabody, Massachusetts, where he remained until
coming to Minneapolis in 1888. Dr. Weston at
once established himself here on a sound profes
sional basis and was appointed assistant city phy
sician for the two years of 1891-93, and city physi
cian from '93 to '99. His latest public appointment
was chairman of the hospital committee of the
Board of Charities and Corrections. He was a
prime mover in securing the present city hospital
plant and has put the hospital on a modern basis
with a visiting staff and a training school for
nurses. Dr. Weston also occupies several staff
positions on various hospitals of the city. He
belongs to the American Medical Association, to
the state and county medical societies and to the
Minnesota Academy of Medicine. Of the last
two bodies, he is an ex-president.
Dr. Weston was married in 1884 to Ella C.
Derby of Salem, Massachusetts, and has three
children; two sons and a daughter.
WHITE, Solon Marx, associate professor of
pathology in the state university, is a native of
Minnesota, born at Hokah, July 16, 1873. He is
the son of Solon C. and Anna Armstrong White,
and for two generations before him, his ancestors
have been physicians. His maternal grandfather,
Dr. Thomas Armstrong, was a pioneer physician
of the early settlers days of eastern Wisconsin.
His father, Dr. Solon C. White, practiced medi
cine for many years in Wisconsin and at Sand
wich, Illinois. Dr. S. Marx White was educated in
the Hokah village schools until he was ten, and
afterwards went to Sandwich, Illinois, where he
graduated from the Sandwich high school in
1890. He took his college course at Champaign,
Illinois, receiving his B. S. degree from the Uni
versity of Illinois. His professional training he
gained at the Northwestern University, graduat
ing in 1897, and later served as interne at Cook
county hospital, Chicago. Dr. White has held
his present post in the medical department of the
University of Minnesota for some time, and is
also on the medical staff of St. Barnabas, the
Northwestern and the City hospitals. In 19021903 he was president of the Minneapolis Patho
logical Society. The summer of 1904 was spent
in Vienna at work along the special lines to which
he has limited his practice—'Internal Medicine and
Pathology, He belongs to the American Acad
emy of Medicine; the American Medical Asso
ciation; the Minnesota Academy of Medicine, and
the regular state and county medical societies.
Dr. White is Baptist in his religious affiliations.
He was married July 25, 1900, to Sara Miner
Abbott, and has two children, a son and daughter.
WILLIAMS, Charles Winthrop, professor of
Materia Medica and Therapeutics in Hamline
Medical College, until the closing of the depart
ment in 1908, ex-member of the Board of Health
of the city of Minneapolis and ex-physician to
post office employees, is a Wisconsin man who
was born at Barneveld, Iowa county, Wis
consin, April 10, 1863. His father, Daniel
Williams, a farmer by occupation, was born
in Wales, where he married Elizabeth Da
vis, also of Welsh ancestry and the daugh
ter of a large land owner of Wales. Daniel
Williams migrated to America and with his fam
ily settled at Blosburg, Pennsylvania, and
later moved to Wisconsin where he set
tled on a farm. Dr. Williams received his
first instruction at the district school, later
graduated at the neighboring high school
of Spring Green, and then took a course
in medicine at the Northwestern Medical
College of Chicago. Coming to Minneapolis to
practice he was soon called to the chair of
materia medica and therapeutics in Hamline
University. Besides this post, he has at Various
times been appointed to fill the public offices
previously outlined in this sketch. Dr. Williams
is also on the medical staff of the City Hospital.
He is a Knight Templar Mason and is a member
of the state and county medical societies and the
Hamline Medical Club. He is a republican in
politics. His church affiliations are Presbyterian.
Dr. Williams was married October 9, 1891, to
Minnie L. Benham, daughter of Major Benham
of Michiian.
WILLIAMS, Ulysses Grant, ex-coroner of
Hennepin county, was born in Chicago, Illinois, in
1864. His father, who came from Wales to Ameri
ca in 1838, married a resident of Oneida county,
New York, and settled in business in Chicago
until his son was about seven, when he removed
to a farm near Columbus, Wisconsin. Dr. Wil-
MEDICINE
liams received his education from the country
district school and the high school of Columbus.
He came to Minneapolis, a youth of nineteen, in
1883. Going into the drug business immediately,
he at once set about the study of medicine by a
practical experience with remedies. In 1886 he
entered the Minnesota Hospital College as a stu
dent. Before he graduated in June, 1889, that
institution had been merged in the College of
Medicine and Surgery of the state university. Dr.
Williams kept up his retail drug business during
his student years and continued it until 1897,
when the demands of an active practice led him
to abandon it. For two successive terms between
1899 and 1902, Dr. Williams was coroner, an office
which he filled with such ability and general sat
isfaction that the suggestion of his second term
received the largest majority given any republi
can candidate for that office. He also held for
a short period the office of sheriff. During his
coronership he was the author of a bill for put
ting the office on a salaried basis. He belongs to
several secret societies, to the Commercial Club
and to the state and county medical societies. He
is also an honorary member of Alpha Kappa
Kappa. Dr. Williams was married in 1899 to
Gertrude H. Twine.
WOODARD, Francis Reuben, a practicing
physician in Minneapolis since 1881, was born at
Madison, Ohio, on July 15, 1848. The ancestors
of the family were early settlers in America and
the grandfather of Francis R. Solomon Woodard,
fought in the War of 1812, holding the rank of
Colonel of his regiment. Dr. Woodard is the son
of Joseph S. Woodard and Frelove M. Baker,
who were early settlers in the state of Ohio, and
were married in 1847. Francis, the eldest son,
spent the first ten years of his life in that town
and began his education in the public grammar
schools. In 1858 the family moved to Roches
ter, Minnesota, where Dr. Woodard finished his
elementary training. In the year 1869 he entered
the University of Michigan, taking the work of
the literary department until his senior year
when he changed his course and for a year
studied law. He was anxious, however, to ac
quire the training for the profession of medicine,
so in 1876 entered Rush Medical College at Chi
cago, carrying on in connection with his studies,
practical work in the Cook County Hospital. He
graduated with the class of 1879 and almost im
mediately came to Minnesota and located at
Claremont, where he practiced for about three
years, coming to Minneapolis in 1881, where he
has since been in continual practice of his pro
fession. In addition to this practice Dr. Wood
ard holds surgical positions on the staffs of the
Asbury, Swedish, City and several other hospi
tals in Minneapolis, has other appointments in
the city, and for twelve years was chairman of
the hospital committee for the city hospital.
During the administration of Mayor Winston he
211
was appointed to the Board of Charities and Cor
rections and was a member of that body for four
teen years, during the terms of Mayors Winston,
Eustis, Pratt, Gray, Ames and Haynes, and
served for six years as president of the board.
In politics Dr. Woodard is a republican, but is
not active in political matters. He is a member
of the prominent professional organizations,
among which are included the American Medical
Association, Hennepin County Medical Society,
Minnesota State Medical Association and the
Minnesota Academy of Medicine. He is also a
member of the Minneapolis Commercial Club.
Dr. Woodard was married in 1874 and has five
children, Harry S., Joseph N., Lawrence B.,
Frances H. and Luella. The family attends the
Park Avenue Congregational Church.
WRIGHT, Charles D'a, was born November
22, 1863, and is the son of William S. and Eliza
beth Ann Wright. His early years were spent
in Wisconsin, where he attended the common
schools of Dodgeville and the higher institutions
at Madison. He received his diploma of M. D.
in 1887, from the medical department of Michi
gan University, afterward taking a post-graduate
course at the Vienna Royal University and in
London, Paris and Berlin. He came back to the
United States to the position of demonstrator of
Ophthalmology and Otology at Michigan Uni
versity. Dr. Wright limits his practice to dis
eases of the eye and ear and is now oculist and
aurist to St. Mary's Hospital and to the State
Hospital, both of Minneapolis. He is also the
consultant at Asbury Hospital. He is ex-presid^nt of the H'elmholtz Ophthalmological Society
and is at present a corresponding member of
that body and president of the Northwestern
Ophthalmological Society. Dr. Wright is a re
publican in politics. He was married to Kathryn
E. Keating in 1890, and has one child—a daughter,
Muriel Kathryn Wright. Dr. Wright is a mem
ber of Alpha Chapter of Nu Sigma Nu of Ann
Arbor, Michigan, and is by religion a Catholic.
WRIGHT, Franklin Randolph, instructor in
Dermatology and Genito-Urinary Diseases in the
University of Minnesota, was an Illinois boy,
who, like so many other western youths, came
to our state university for the completion of his
studies, and liked Minneapolis so well that he has
made it his home. His father was Dr. George W.
Wright, of Canton, Illinois, one of the early sur
geons of that state. Franklin was born at Canton,
Illinois, June 15, 1866. The family moved to Shen
andoah, Iowa, when he was twelve. His education
went on at the public schools of Canton and Shen
andoah until he entered the university from which
he graduated at twenty-four, as a member of the
dental class of 1890. He practiced dentistry at
Hutchinson for a short time, but soon returned
to university life in order to complete the full
medical course. Receiving his diploma in 1894,
212
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
he was for eighteen months the house surgeon
at the St. Barnabas hospital and then for five
years practiced general medicine in this city. In
1900 Dr. Wright took up his present specialty,
going to Vienna for study. Upon his return, he
was appointed to the position he now holds at
the state university. Dr. Wright's politics are
democratic. He inherits, membership in the
Loyal Legion through his father who was Lt.
Col. of the 103 Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Pro
fessionally he belongs to the state and county
medical associations. Dr. Wright believes in the
doctrine of evolution. He is not married.
LINDLEY, Alfred Hadley, for many years
one of the leading physicians of Minneapolis,
came to this state from North Carolina where
he was born on May 23, 1821, at Cane Creek,
Chatham county. The family was an old one,
established in Chatham county since before the
Revolution and tracing its line back to Pennslvania, where the first of the Lindleys, who.
where always Friends, probably followed William
Penn from England. Dx. Lindley's father was
Thomas Lindley, a farmer and merchant, and
his mother was Mary (Long) Lindley. He at
tended the village school until he was sixteen
years , old and then after two years study at the
Friends New Garden Boarding School in Guil
ford county, became a teacher in the same in
stitution. He had determined to be a physician
and after two years teaching, returned to Cane
Creek where he studied with Dr. Abner Holton.
Later he studied at Jefferson Medical College,
Philadelphia, where he received his degree in
1850. Until the breaking out of the Civil War
he practiced in his native place and then, at
great sacrifice, abandoned his home, connection
and interests and came north to begin life anew.
He was entirely opposed to the war both on
principle as a Friend and through his belief in
the Union and the insufficiency of cause for the
rebellion. Dr. Lindley had been married, on
May 2, 1850, to Miss Eliza J. Hill of Uharie,
North Carolina. Mrs. Lindley was a sister of
Dr. Nathan B. Hill, who shared Dr. Lindley's
views on the war and who had already left
Carolina when Dr. Lindley started. The two
families met in Indiana and settled upon Min
neapolis as their future home. Arriving here on
September 10, 1861, Drs. Hill and Lindley
formed a partnership which continued until Dr.
Hill's death in 1875. Both gentlemen entered
with enthusiasm into the life of the young city
and took prominent part in its affairs. When
Minneapolis was incorporated as a city in 1867
Dr. Lindley became its first health officer and
organized the wo*"k of this important depart
ment. For years he stood in the front rank
of the profession in city and state and was
honored" with election to official positions in the
various medical societies. With advancing age
he relinquished active practice and during the
later years of his life he devoted himself to his
property interests which were large and to the
enjoyment of well earned leisure. He remained
an -active and loyal citizen of Minneapolis, an
interested participant in all things looking to
the true progress of the city and its people, un
til his death on February 16, 1905. He was sur
vived by Mrs. Lindley, who continues a life
long interest in che philanthropies of the city,
and an only son, Clarkson Lindley, engaged in
the real estate business in Minneapolis.
CHAPTER XIV
DENTISTRY
T
HE history of the practice of Den Athenaeum library which was the founda
tistry in Minneapolis begins with the tion of the present public library of Minne
settlement of Dr. Gould in "the vil apolis.
lage of St. Anthony, early in the fifties.
Dr. J. A. Bowman came to Minneapolis
He was followed in 1857 by Dr. A. L. in 1865. He was a native of Vermont and
Bausman who opened an office on Helen commenced practice in Canton, New York,
street (the old name of Second avenue south) in 1858. This practice was interrupted by
and became the pioneer dentist of Minne the war to be resumed in Minneapolis upon
apolis proper. He is still living in the city its close. Dr. Bowman first practiced in an
though retired from practice. Dr. B. L. office on Bridge Square and from time to
Taylor had arrived in the city the year be time moved up town as the city developed.
fore Dr. Bausman but he did not commence He became one of the most prominent den
practice for some years, devoting himself
tists in the northwest and continued in
in the meantime to business pursuits. It active practice until a few years ago. Dr.
may be inferred that in those days the prac B. L. Taylor, who, as stated, came here in
tice of dentistry in the young city of Min 1856, opened an office for practice of his
neapolis offered little attraction to ambi profession in the Pence Opera House build
tious and progressive men. Compared with ing in 1869, and has been continuously in
the practice of the present day dentistry practice for nearly forty years.
'was in its infancy; and not only had the
In 1874 Dr. Charles M. Bailey came to
practitioner less to offer his patients but Minneapolis from Machias, Maine, where
people generally were not yet trained to the, he had been in practice for several years,
habit of dental consultation and treatment, •at the same time attending dental lectures
many only visiting a dentist when extrac at Harvard University from which he re
tion was necessary.
Fifty years have ceived his degree in 1871. He entered ac
brought great changes both in the progress tively into the professional life of the city
of the profession and the attitude of the and has been a working member of the city
public. In the great evolution which has and state organizations of the profession
taken place the members of the profession and was for years one of the faculty of the
in Minneapolis have taken a prominent, dental department of the Minnesota Hospi
useful and practical part.
tal College and the College of Dentistry of
Among the earlier dentists of prominence the University of Minnesota. Like Dr.
in the city was Dr. Mark D. Stoneman who Bailey, Dr. Wm. A. Spaulding, who came
came here in 1863 and. for over twenty years to Minneapolis in 1875, took a most active
was a leader in the. profession. He was a part in the work of organization and educa
native of Virginia, a practicing physician tion which made for the advancement of
for twenty years, and commenced the study the profession. Also like Dr. Bailey he was
of dentistry in 1858. During the early part a native of Maine. He had studied at the
of the war he was a surgeon in the army. Ohio College of Dental Surgery where he
About the same time that Dr. Stoneman had graduated with honor receiving the
commenced practice Dr. Kirby Spencer degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery. He
opened an office on Bridge Square. He is was made a member of the faculty of the
best remembered by his bequest to the dental department of the Minnesota College
214
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Hospital in 1884 and became dean in 1886.
Dr. Spaulding left Minneapolis some years
ago and is now living in Hamburg, Ger
many.
Dr. M. M. Frisselle, who came to Minne
apolis in 1880, was the first lecturer on
medical and surgical dentistry in the Col
lege Hospital and in 1882 was authorized
to organize the dental department, taking
his place at the head of the faculty. He
was a frequent contributor to medical and
dental literature. He retired in 1889 and
for some years before his death he lived at
his country home at Lake Minnetonka. Dr.
Hugh M. Reid arrived in the city in 1880
resigning a chair in the Ohio College of
Dental Surgery to commence active prac
tice here. He was the first president of the
Minneapolis Dental Society. Dr. Francis
H. Brimmer settled in Minneapolis about
the same time. He graduated from the
Philadelphia Dental College and was made
a member of the first faculty of the dental
department of the College Hospital.
Dr. E. H. Angle who commenced practice
here in 1884 was a prominent member of
the profession, one of the faculty of the col
lege, a careful student and a contributor to
the dental publications. -He is now prac
ticing in St. Louis. Dr. J. H. Martindale,
now of Los Angeles, was also a prominent
participant in the development of dental af
fairs in Minneapolis during the early eight
ies, serving as one of the college faculty,
as a member of the state board of exam
iners and as president of the Minneapolis
Dental Society.
These were some of the men who took
part in the affairs of the profession during
the formative days. During the later sev
enties and the eighties the arrivals in the
city were too numerous for detailed men
tion. Many men of large natural ability
and splendid preparation for their profes
sional duties have come to the city and the
ranks of the profession are now filled with
as strong and progressive a group of men as
can be found in any city of the country.
The members of the profession in the
city early took measures looking to the
maintenance of a high professional standard.
Dr. Frisselle in writing of the earlier en
deavors of the profession says: "The es
sential forces that have been important fac
tors in the advancement of the profession
here, are the Minneapolis Dental Society,
Minnesota State Dental Association, and
the College of Dentistry of the University
of the state of Minnesota. These, with the
conservative, stringent laws that forbid the
practice of dentistry by any person not
authorized by the State Board of Examiners
—the board consisting of members of the
profession appointed by the governor of
state—effectually protects the community
from irregular and incompetent practition
ers."
The Minneapolis Dental Society was or
ganized in 1882 with Dr. H. M. Reid, pres
ident, Dr. A. T. Smith, vice president, and
Dr. J. H. Martindale, secretary. It was
largely through the influence of this society
that the state laws regulating the practice
of dentistry and providing for examination
by the state board of examiners, were adopt
ed. The society also took a prominent part
in reorganizing the Minnesota State Dental
Association, which was accomplished on
January 16, 1884, at a meeting at the Nicol
let Hpuse in Minneapolis. Dr. H. M. Reid
of Minneapolis was elected president; Dr.
L. W. Lyon, vice president; Dr. Crittendon, secretary; Dr. T. E. Weeks, corres
ponding secretary, and Dr. S. D. Clements,
treasurer. The organization at once be
came influential in the professional affairs
of the state and has remained a most effi
cient body.
The College of Dentistry of the Univer
sity of Minnesota grew out of the appoint
ment in 188.1 of Dr. Frisselle as lecturer
on Medical and Surgical dentistry in the
Minnesota College Hospital. During the
next year Dr. Frisselle organized a regular
dental department. Among the members
of the faculty were: M. M. Frisselle, M. D.,
D. D. S., Professor of Medical and Surgical
Dentistry and Therapeutics; W. F. Giddings, D. D. S., Professor of Operative Den
tistry ; W. A. Spaulding, D. D. S., Profes
sor of Mechanical Dentistry; J. A. Parker,
D. D. S., and Dr. L. D. Leonard, demon
strators of Operative Dentistry; F. H.
Brimmer, D. D. S., and C. E. Cleveland,
D. D. S., demonstrators of Mechanical Den
tistry.
DENTISTRY
The dental department moved to the col
lege building at Sixth street and Ninth
avenue south in 1885 and was reorganized
along with the medical department and in
1889 was absorbed into the University of
Minnesota, becoming a college of that
institution. Since its association with the
university the dental college has grown in
facilities and student body until it is one
of the prominent schools of the profession
of the country. It is a member of the Na
tional Association of Dental Faculties and
its diplomas are recognized by the dental
examining boards of every state. Dr. Al
fred Owre is dean and many of the leading
dentists of the city are-on the faculty.
BAILEY, Charles Monroe, for more than
thirty years a practicing dentist in Minneapolis,
was born in Portland, Maine, December 6, 1843.
From an early age he made his own way in life.
When only thirteen he entered the law office of
Deblois & Jackson at Portland, and for the next
six years was variously employed, having no
definite profession in view.
At nineteen,
through the influence of his brother, he . entered
the office of Dr. James E. Grant, of Calais,
Maine, where he commenced the study of den
tistry. After five years he commenced practice
at Machias, Maine, and during the four succeed
ing years combined study and practice, attend
ing lectures at the dental department of Har
vard University, graduating in 1871 with the de
gree of D. M. D. In 1874 Dr. Bailey came to
Minneapolis, where he has since been in contin
uous practice. Soon after his arrival here, Dr.
Bailey began active participation in the affairs
of the profession, taking special interest in all
movements looking to the raising of profes
sional standards. He was one of the first mem
bers of the Minneapolis Dental Society and was
twice its president; an active member of the
Minnesota Dental Association, and has fre
quently represented the state in national so
cieties of the dental profession. In 1886 he was
elected to the chair of Dental Materia Medica
and Therapeutics in the dental department oi
the Minnesota Hospital College, occupying the
chair until the College was merged in the Uni
versity of Minnesota, when he was appointed to
the chair of Prosthetic Dentistry and later added
the duties of the chair of Orthodontia. For
two years, Dr. Bailey was secretary of the Col
lege and the office of dean being then vacant,
was acting dean during this period and carried
the larger part of the responsibility of the de
partment. Dr. Bailey was married in 1876 to
Miss Laura Longfellow of Mathias, Maine, who
died within two years, leaving one son, Campbell
L. Bailey, at Northome, Minn.
215
COBB, Frederick Emory, was born Decem
ber 18, 1867, at Chicago, Illinois. He was the
son of Cyrus Bradley Cobb, a dealer in lum
ber and reaL estate, and Ella Jane Morrison.
He attended the grammer and high schools in
Chicago and the Shattuck School at Faribault,
Minnesota, graduating with the class of '86. He
graduated from the college of dentistry of the
University of Minnesota in 1895. Dr. Cobb is
a republican. He is the secretary of the Minne
sota State Dental Association, National Dental
Association, a member of the Theta Delta Chi
Fraternity and Delta Sigma Delta Fraternity, and
a Scottish Rite Mason. His church affiliations
are with the Episcopalian denomination. His mar
riage with Jessie Helen Sharpnack took place
April 30, 1892. Their daughter, Lois Steele was
born March 10, 1900.
COX, Norman Jeffrey, was born November
30, 1873, at Centerville, Wisconsin, son of Charles
and Anne Cox. His father was a Methodist min
ister of English descent. The son, after receiv
ing his earlier educational training at the grade
and high schools, took the scientific course in
the class of 1898 and afterward graduated from
the college of dental surgery at the University of
Minnesota. He has since been in dental practice
in Minneapolis, also filling the position of in
structor in dentistry, in the dental department of
the state university. Dr. Cox is a- member of the
Minnesota State Dental Association; and of the
Twin City Dental Club. Dr. Cox was married on
June 20, 1905, to Miss Stella E. Lynch.
KREMER, Frederick B., was born at Middleburgh, Snyder county, Pennsylvania, on June 22,
1861, the son of Frederick E. and Elmira G. Kremer. His father was a farmer. In 1872 the fa,mily
moved to Lena, Illinois, where Dr. Kremer com
pleted his public school education and had his
first business experience with a jeweler of that
town. Subsequently a few years were spent in
clerking but having determined to become a den
tist he went to Waterloo, Iowa, where he com
menced the study of dentistry in the office of Dr.
H. D. Spaulding. For a time he practiced at Cale
donia, Minnesota, then completed his studies at
the University of Iowa, from which he graduated
in 1890. In 1892 he came to Minneapolis and com
menced practice at the same time taking the po
sition in the college of dentistry in the university
of Minnesota, of demonstrator under Dr. Charles
M. Bailey.
After five years he succeeded Dr.
Bailey in the chair of prosthetic dentistry, but
after one year resigned to devote himself exclu
sively to his private practice. He was for some
years-lecturer on oral pathology and therapeutics
at the medical department of Hamline university
and for one year was lecturer on the same subject
in the College of Homeopathy in the medical de
partment of the university. He has for some
time been on the staff of Asbury hospital as con
sulting dentist. Dr. Kremer's practice has been
general although for a number of years he has
216
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
specialized to a considerable extent in oral sur
gery. During his residence in Minneapolis Dr.
Kremer has taken a most active part in the affairs
of the profession, has been a constant worker in
the dental societies, has held numerous offices of
responsibility and honor in these societies and has
accomplished much for the advancement of the
profession in this state. He is president of the
State Dental association and was chairman in
1907 of the committee which was successful in
bringing to Minneapolis the annual meeting of
the National Dental association—a meeting
which was a record breaker in attendance. Dr.
Kremer is an officer of the national association
and a contributor to dental periodicals. In polit
ical faith he is a democrat and he is a member of
the Masonic body, of the Minneapolis Commercial
club and supreme chapter of the Delta Sigma
Delta, the professional fraternity. He was mar
ried on December 27, 1881 at Lena, Illinois, to
Miss Lillias M. Ambrose. They have one son,
George E., now a practicing lawyer in Minneap
olis
McCREA, John Franklyn, was born March 6,
1868, near Shelbyville, Indiana. His parents were
Albert McCrea, a farmer, and Mary Campbell.
The McCreas came to this country from the
Highlands of Scotland before the Revolutionary
war and played their part in colonial affairs. It
was the murder of Jane McCrea by Indian ma
rauders which aroused among the colonists such
bitter hatred for the savages. From these early
settlers are descended nearly all the McCreas in
this country who use that orthography of the
name. When Dr. McCrea was two years of age
his mother died, and he spent his early life on
the farm until he went to college. He attended
the Normal school at Danville, Indiana, and hav
ing completed the course there entered the North
ern Indiana College, taking a course in engineer
ing. He taught school during his vacation, and
graduated in 1889 taking a B. S. degree. He
matriculated at the Chicago College of Dental
Surgery and completed his course there in the
spring of 1892, receiving his degree of D. D. S.
Since that time he has practiced in Minneapolis
and is well known in his profession. Dr. McCrea
is a member of the International Dental Congress
and in August, 1900, was a delegate to that body
at the convention held at Paris. In 1905 some
business associates commissioned him to go to
the Isthmus of Tehauntepec in southern Mexico,
to investigate the conditions in that locality rela
tive to industrial investment. Dr. McCrea is a
member of all the more important dental societies
among them, the International Dental Congress,
The Twin City Dental Academy and the Minne
sota State Dental Association, and in the last
named organization he has successively held all
the important offices including that of president.
He is also connected with, and an officer in. many
of the minor clubs about town. In politics he
is an independent thinker, but usually supports
republican principles. In April, 1895, Dr. McCrea
was married to Miss Etta Johnson of Minneap
olis. They have two children, Ruth and John, Jr.
MUNNS, Edward Ernest, D. M. D., was born
in the town of Deseronto, Ontario, Canada, on
August 11, 1874. He is the son of Edward Munns,
a constructional contractor and builder of Dese
ronto. Dr. Munns lived in the town of his birth
until he was seven years old when the family
moved to St. Paul. He there obtained his pre
paratory education in the public schools and grad
uated from the Humboldt high school of that
city. He then turned his attention to the pro
fession he intended to follow and entered the Col
lege of Dentistry at the University of Minnesota
with the class of 1900, graduating in that year
with the degree of D. M. D. He started to prac
tice soon after in East Minneapolis, and has since
been in active professional life. Dr. Munns is a
member of the State Dental Association, and at
tends the Episcopal church. He was married in
June, 1904, to Miss Marion Drew.
WELLS, James O., the son of Osborn and
Cornelia T. Wells, was born in Newberry, South
Carolina, February 13, 1871, and died at Min
neapolis August 24, i§o8. His father was a
general contractor of Newberry, and Dr. Wells
passed the early years of his life in that city.
After finishing the grade and high school courses,
he matriculated at Newberry College and in 1892
graduated from that institution with the degree
of A. B. During the two years following he re
turned for post-graduate work and took his M. A.
degree in 1894. While carrying this work, Dr.
Wells was also teaching school and he held the
position of instructor until 1896 when he came to
Minneapolis. In the fall of that same year he
entered the dental department of the University
of Minnesota and completing the three-year
course received his diploma in 1899 with the de
gree of D. D. S. Dr. Wells was, during the first
two years he spent at the University, "Quiz mas
ter" in histology and shortly after his graduation
was appointed to the position of assistant pro
fessor of operative dentistry, an office which he
held in connection with his regular practice.
Since 1899 Dr. Wells has practiced continuously
in this city and in 1904 was appointed professor
of crown and bridge work at the state university.
He was married on June 18, 1905, to Miss Helen
Barnholdt, of Minneapolis.
CHAPTER XV.
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
T
HE printing press has played a prom
inent part in the history of Minne
apolis. The first press was brought
into the village of St. Anthony at so early
a period that it was quartered in a log
house, while Indians frequently peered in
through doors and windows to inspect the
white man's marvellous machine; but in
less than sixty years the product of the
press became fifth in value among the in
dustries of the city and has outstripped even
the great lumbering industry and has placed
Minneapolis far ahead of many cities of
larger population as a publishing center;
while as an influence upon the life of the
community and in promoting the interests
of the city, the press has 110 peer among
the activities of Minneapolis.
In a community of comparatively poor
people settled in the midst of a wilderness
there was 110 very inviting field for an ex
perienced newspaper publisher so it came
about that to satisfy the demand of the*
enterprising village for a paper, the first
publisher came from the tailor's bench and
the first editor from the lawyer's desk. The
St. Anthony Express came out on May 31,
1851, published by Elmer Tyler, a tailor and
edited by Isaac Atwater, a lawyer. It was
the seventh paper to be started in Minne
sota Territory; in politics it supported the
whig party. Tyler was confident of suc
cess ; Atwater pessimistic as to the outcome.
The latter proved to be correct in his ideas
for Tyler soon abandoned the venture in
disgust and Judge Atwater was obliged to
continue it in the hope of recouping him
self for advances made to the publisher.
He finally sold out at a loss of $3,000. The
paper passed through various hands and D.
S. B. Johnston closed a brief newspaper
career with it in 1861 when the paper dis
continued and the plant was sold. The ex
perience of most of the other pioneer jour
nalistic ventures was not more satisfactory
than that of the Express. The Northwest
ern Democrat, first published on July 13,
: 853> by Prescott & Jones, was the second
paper; The St. Anthony Republican ap
peared in 1855. The Democrat publishers
soon tired of the venture and the paper was
then sold and moved to the Minneapolis side
of the river where the first newspaper ever
printed west of the Mississippi and north
of the Iowa line was issued on September 2,
1854, by W. A. Hotchkiss. Although en
dorsing Fremont in 1856 the Democrat
claimed to be "Thoroughly JefTersonian."
Its plant soon passed into other hands and
for a time C. H. Pettit and John G. Williams
owned it and published the Minneapolis
Journal. The Republican was purchased by
W. A. Croffut and Edwin Clark in Septem
ber 1857 and on September 28th they issued
the first number of the first daily paper
published at the Falls—the Daily Falls
Evening News. It soon reverted to the tri
weekly class, but in i860 again tried the
daily experiment. Meanwhile there ap
peared a new force in Minneapolis journal
ism. Colonel William S. King, a compar
atively newcomer in the city, started the
State Atlas on May 28, 1859. It was an
inauspicious time for promoting new , pub
lishing enterprises but Colonel King was
not the man to stand for difficulties, however
formidable. He espoused the cause of the
new and growing republican party and dis
cussed all questions with characteristic
vigor, sparing no one when he disapproved
of actions or policies. His forcible editorial
and business management made the paper a
success in spite of local conditions; al-
218
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
•I H i t
msssam w
TIIE TRIBUNE Bl'ILDINU.
though a temporary issue of a daily proved
as financially unsatisfactory as in the case
of other early ventures.
The State Atlas continued to be the lead
ing- Minneapolis paper until 1867. In July
1866 Colonel John H. Stevens, Colonel L.
P. Plummer, Frederick L. Smith and Willard S. Whitmore commenced the publica
tion of the Chronicle as a weekly, making
it a daily a few weeks later and conducting
it with such vigor that the influence of the
Atlas was threatened. After a few months
lively competition the papers settled their
differences by consolidating, and renaming
the combined sheet The Minneapolis Trib
une.
THE MINNEAPOLIS TRIBUNE.
The first issue of the Minneapolis Tribune
came from the press on May 25, 1867, and
the paper is thus about forty-one years old
and the oldest daily in the city. The prin
cipal stockholders were Colonel W. S. King,
Dorilus Morrison, W. D. Washburn, A. B.
Stickney, Dr. Levi Butler, W. S. Whitmore,
Colonel L. P. Plummer, Frederick L. Smith.
Dr. George H. Keith and W. A. Newton,
and the first editor was John T. Gilman.
The ownership was unharmonious politically
and in those days politics cut a very large
figure in the management and success or
failure of a paper. Mr. Gilman was very
soon succeeded by George K. Shaw who
came to Minneapolis in 1868. In 1870 the
Tribune owners found agreement impossible
and a controlling interest in the paper was
sold to Hugh W. Greene of Boston. Four
years later the ownership passed to Clifford
Thompson and L. W. Powell, with Major
John H. Howell, and, later, Judge John P.
Rea, as editors. Then came an interesting
episode—the raid of the publishers of the St.
Paul Pioneer Press in 1876 by which the
Tribune was temporarily put out of exist
ence, the "St. Paul and Minneapolis Pioneer
Press and Tribune" taking its place. The
vigorous protest of the Minneapolis people
resulted in a compromise. The Evening
Tribune was started and an agreement made
by which Minneapolis was to have a morn
ing paper franchise whenever it was ready
to pay $18,000 as purchase money. In the
same operation the Pioneer Press had wiped
off the newspaper map the Evening Mail
which had been running since 1874 under
the management of Johnson & Smith. In
1879 the Tribune was owned by David
Blakely, Col. Plummer and George K.
Shaw, when General A. B. Nettleton came
to the city and purchased first Shaw's and
then Plummer's interest and in May of the
following year, paid the $18,000 to the Pio
neer Press and started the morning Tribune
again. Mr. Blakely sold his interests to
Gen. Nettleton in 1881 and the paper con
tinued under one head until 1885 when it
passed into the hands of Alden J. Blethen
and the Haskells of the Boston Herald. For
years the Tribune had been housed in the
old city hall but about the time of the new
regime it moved into the first Tribune build
ing at Fourth street and First avenue south,
now the Phoenix building. Colonel Blethen's management was forceful and sagacious
and the paper made rapid progress. In
1888 Colonel Blethen sold his interests to
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
Haskell & Palmer but after a year bought
back the paper and conducted it until 1891
when he sold again to Pierce & Murphy.
Meantime, on November 30, 1889, had oc
curred the fearful Tribune building fire,
when the entire plant of the paper was de
stroyed and several lives lost. The new
Tribune building on the opposite side of
Fourth street was constructed with great
rapidity and temporary quarters were mean
while occupied in the Rochester building.
During a large part of Colonel Blethen's
regime, Dr. Albert Shaw, now editor of the
Review of Reviews, was associate editor of
the Tribune. Charles Alf. Williams, one of
the best known Minneapolis newspaper men
of the eighties, was city editor, managing
editor and dramatic critic during most of the
same period. Gov. Pierce's connection with
the Tribune was not long. The paper soon
passed solely into the hands of William J.
Murphy who has since directed its fortunes
with great success. The Tribune was. a
second time burned out in 1899. For some
years Charles H. Hamblin, who came to
the paper in 1889, has been its editor and
manager.
In 1887 C. A. Nimocks started the Even
ing Star, which he managed for about three
years, when it was merged with the. Tribune
as the Tribune-Star, becoming in fact the
evening edition of the Tribune. Within a
short time the original name was dropped
and since 1890 the afternoon edition of the
Tribune has been known as the Evening
Tribune.
THE MINNEAPOLIS JOURNAL.
The Minneapolis Evening Journal dates
from November 26, 1878, when F. E. Cur
tis, C. A. French, Charles H. Stevens and
E. J. C. Atterbury undertook the perilous
enterprise of publishing a daily without a
press franchise and with very limited cap
ital. The paper made progress from the
first and in the autumn of 1879 had reached
2,000 -circulation; but in the spring of 1880
when the Tribune went back to morning
publication, its evening franchise was pur
chased by George K. Shaw, C. A. Nimocks
and W. A. Nimocks who made preparations
to start a new afternoon paper. The pros
pects of the Journal were gloomy. At this
219
juncture the plant of the Journal was burned
and its founders sold out its name, circula
tion and good will to Shaw and the Nim
ocks for $2,000." Mr. Shaw later disposed o.f
his interest to the' Nimocks brothers who
in turn sold the whole paper to Lucian
swift, A. J. Blethen, W. E. Haskell and H.
W. Hawley in November, 1885, for $130,000.
Soon" after this transfer the office of the
paper was moved from 255 First avenue
south to the Tribune building where it re
mained until the fire of 1889.. E. B. Has
kell soon acquired Mr. Blethen's interest in
the paper and J. S. McLain and C. M.
Palmer became stockholders upon the with
drawal of Mr. Hawley. On no paper in/the
city have there been so few changes in staff.
Mr. Swift became manager at the outset and
has remained in charge of the business af
fairs of the paper, .while Mr. McLain who
was at first managing editor soon became
editor-in-chief, the position which he Mill
holds. W. B. Chamberlain and A.; J. Rus
sell have, been associated with the editorial
department, Charles A. Tuller with the
business department and William H. Web
ster with the mechanical department al
most from the beginning of the present
ownership while Charles L. Bartholomew
• Bart"—has been cartoonist since 1890.
William A. Frisbie the present managing
editor came to the paper in 1893 and W. W.
Jermane, the Washington correspondent,
went on to the staff in 1892. The fire of
1889 w a s not a serious setback to the paper
as its new building at 47-49 South Fourth
street , was nearly completed and was soon
occupied. This building has since been
much enlarged. In 1905 The Journal com
menced the publication of a Sunday morn
ing edition.*
OTHER DAILY PAPERS.
There has never been a permanently suc
cessful attempt to establish a democratic
daily paper in Minneapolis. The most am
bitious undertaking in this direction was the
Minneapolis Times which was founded in
1889 as a morning paper by C. A. Nimocks
*On September 1, 1908, The Journal was purchased
by H. V. Jones and Wm. S. Jones, both well known
Minneapolis newspaper men. Messrs. Swift, McLain
and Frisbie having sold their interests at once retired
and H. V. Jones became editor and W. S. Jones busi
ness manager.
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
220
and R. B. Gelatt, the latter being editor-inchief. James Gray, who had begun news
paper work on the Tribune in 1885, was
managing editor. The first number was is
sued on October 1, 1889. In the following
April John Blanchard purchased Mr. Gelatt's interest and remained with the paper
until his death. Although started as an in
dependent paper the Times soon developed
democratic tendencies and in the autumn
cf 1890 a number of prominent local dem
ocrats became interested. For a time the
paper prospered but the panic of 1893
brought disaster. For several years the
fortunes of the paper were uncertain. Mr.
Gray left the staff in 1898 to become a can
didate for mayor; shortly afterwards Mr.
Blanchard died, and after a few years the
paper was discontinued.
The present Minneapolis Daily News was
established in 1903 by B. D. Butler with the
prestige of association with popular one
cent papers of the Scripps-McRae group.
The Daily Tidende (mentioned more at
length elsewhere) was established in 1887
by T. Guldbrandsen. It is the only Scandi
navian daily in the Northwest and has been
very successful. The Market Record, Mar
ket Reporter and Daily Legal News serve
the purposes indicated by their names and
are successful class papers.
As suggesting the growth of daily jour
nalism in the city the following figures from
the most recent census reports are interest
ing:
Aggregate
NUMBER
Circulation
Census Total Morning Evening per Issue
1905
1900
1890
11
9
9
207,812
137,906
92,323
Average
Circulation
Per Issue
18,892
15,323
10,258
Although ranking nineteenth in popula
tion the city stands sixteenth in aggregate
circulation of dailies.
TRADE AND CLASS PAPERS.
Minneapolis is exceptionally strong in the
matter of class publications of all kinds.
As early as 1857 Col. Stevens (who had a
hand in many of the newspaper enterprises
of the city) started the Cataract and Agri
culturist—the forerunner of the large agri
cultural papers of today. Tt lived under
THE JOURNAL BUILDINO.
various names and owners until about 1870.
The Rural Minnesotian of 1859 only sur
vived a short time and this was the fate of
all other early enterprises of this character.
The first of the large trade papers of the
present time was the Mississippi Valley
Lumberman founded in 1876 by Col. Piatt
B. Walker, whose son, Piatt B. Walker, Jr.,
is now editor and manager. It has become
one of the strongest lumber papers in the
country.
The Northwestern Miller, for years the
leading milling journal of the world, was
founded at LaCrosse, Wisconsin, in 1877
and moved to Minneapolis in 1879 when C.
M. Palmer became its principal owner.
Wm. C. Edgar became business manager
in 1882 and in a few years advanced to be
general manager and editor, having had
entire charge of the paper since 1886 and
owning a controlling interest since 1895.
The Housekeeper was established by A.
G. Wilcox in the late seventies and was one
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
221
of the earliest of the monthlies devoted to is to represent the dominant spirit of the
home matters. It passed through several Northwest, which is not always the popular
ownerships with varying fortunes until the one. Its tone is ultra-conservative. In
Housekeeper Corporation was formed in politics as in other things it is independent,
1895 with Lucian Swift as president and and it exercises the strictest censorship of
Frederick Fayram as secretary, treasurer any paper in the United States'over the ad
and manager. Under Mr. Fayram's direc vertising admitted to its columns. It is hand
tion the paper has taken a foremost place somely illustrated, printed on expensive
among the publications of its class and has paper and made as nearly perfect typograph. ically as is possible.
reached a very large circulation.
The Commercial Bulletin was started in
T H E SCANDINAVIAN PRESS.
1883 as the Grocers Bulletin. Wm. S. Jones
In a state where there is so large a popu
acquired an interest in 1886 and for twenty
lation of Scandinavian origin, Minneapolis
years was identified with the paper, build
has very naturally become the center of
ing it up to a strong position. He sold it
publication of journals in the Swedish and
in 1906 to the Root Newspaper Associa
Norwegian languages. Nordisk-Folkeblad
tion and George D. Mekeel is now its man
was the first of a long list of these papers.
ager. Farm Implements, a leading paper
It was moved to Minneapolis in 1868 but
in its line, was established in 1886. Luman
after a few years was sold and discontinued.
C. Pryor is its editor.
Budstikken was started as a weekly in Sep
Agricultural journals have been prosper
tember, 1873, was purchased by Mr..Guldous since the eighties. Farm, Stock and
brandsen of the Tidende in 1888 and in 1895
Home was established in 1884 a n d has be
was consolidated with other papers and
come a powerful influence among the rural
changed to the weekly Tidende and contin
population under the editorship of S. M.
ues as the largest Norwegian weekly in the
Owen. The Northwestern Agriculturist,
northwest. Folkeblaclet was issued first in
established in 1886 in North Dakota, was
1877, edited by Professors Oftedal and
moved to Minneapolis a few years later
Sverdrup of the Augsburg Seminary; Svenand since 1893 when it came under the man
ska Folkets Tidning was established in 1881
agement of P. V. Collins, has attained a by Alfred Soderstrom and with Magnus
prominent place among farm papers.
Lunnow as editor; Ugebladet moved here
In 1892 H. C. Chapin, who had been con from Chicago in 1886.
nected with the daily papers of the city for
The Svenska Amerikanska Posten was
some years, withdrew to enter business for founded in 1885 by Swan J. Turnblad as
himself and founded the Chapin Publishing a prohibition paper but developed into a
Company which issues the Improvement general weekly and has become the most
Bulletin and the Northwestern Druggist, important paper published in the Swedish
two very successful trade papers. Another, language in this part of the country. Since
prominent daily newspaper man, Herschel these older papers were established there
V. Jones, resigned from a long connection have been many more put forth, some of
wih the Journal in 1901 to found The Com which have become large and influential.
mercial West, a paper devoted to western
P R I N T I N G AND PUBLISHING.
investments, manufacturing, milling and
grain. In medical journalism the North
The story of the book and job printing
western Lancet, under the direction of W. and publishing business of the city is, of
L. Klein, has taken a foremost place.
course, very closely interwoven with that of
One of the very latest of Minneapolis the newspapers. The earlier printing offices
publications is The Bellman, edited and combined job and newspaper work as a
conducted by William C. Edgar. It was matter of course and there were few inde
established in 1906 and is published every pendent job offices for a long time. As late
week. It is a political, social and literary re as 1874 only six were listed in the city direc
view of some thirty-two pages and its aim tory, The veteran of all the printers of
222
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
Minneapolis is Fred L. Smith of the Harri
son & Smith Co. who came to the city in
1857, a boy of fourteen, and soon went to
work at the printers trade in the old news
paper and job office of CrofTut & Clark.
He was connected with some of the
earlier newspaper ventures, in 1867 became
mechanical superintendent of the newly
launched Minneapolis Tribune, and in 1871,
with the late Colonel Charles W. Johnson,
established the job printing firm of Johnson
& Smith which has continued without,break
to the present time, Mr. Smith being the
THE NORTHWESTERN MILLER BUILDING.
president and manager. The Tribune estab
lished a job department soon after it was
founded which, after a while, was separated
from the newspaper company and became
fhe Tribune Job Printing Company. C. A.
Mitchell was for years the owner of this
business. Henry M. Hall of Hall, Black &
Co. is next to Mr. Smith, the oldest printer
in the city. He was the first journeyman to
work for Johnson & Smith in 1871. Of
other job printing houses of today, that of
Kimball & Storer Co. was founded as Todd
& Kimball in 1878 and Swinburne & Co.
by J. W. Swinburne in 1883.
Publishing as distinct from newspaper
printing was not a recognized business un
til about 1880. The late Major A. G. Wil
cox was one of the first book publishers of
the city, under the name of the Buckeye
Publishing Company. Warner & Foote
were early historical and map publishers.
But the larger publishing establishments,
notably the concerns publishing books in
the Scandinavian languages, have grown up
with the past two decades. The Augsburg
Publishing Company, The Free Church
Book Concern, The Lutheran Publishing
House and others are prominent. Many
of the large eastern publishing houses have
established regular offices in the city and
the A. N. Kellogg Newspaper Company
maintains its northwestern offices and plant
here. A unique and notable publishing
house is that of the The H. W. Wilson
Company. This was established in 1889 as
Morris & Wilson and at first handled only
university supplies and occupied a room in
the old main building. In 1899 the concern
moved to 315 Fourteenth avenue southeast,
enlarging its stock and adding a printing
plant and in 1907 it had grown to such pro
portions as to require a much larger build
ing and occupied the present quarters at
1401-1405 University avenue southeast. The
business of the company is principally the
publication of indexes and catalogs used in
public libraries throughout the United
States and to some extent in other coun
tries.
The enormous growth of the publishing
and printing business of the city may be best
appreciated through a comparison of the
business in 1900 and 1905 as supplied by
the United States Census bureau. In this
period the amount of capital employed, as
well as the value of the output, doubled,
as shown in the following statement:
KstabCensus ii s j,ments
1905
1900
89
73
Capital
Misc.
Cost of
Expenses Materials
Value of
Products
$977,333 $212,809 $387,577 $1,426,441
474,357
68,706 209,474
770,839
The number of employes increased from
548 to 776 and the total wages paid nearly
doubled.
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
BARTHOLOMEW, Charles L., known to the
reading world as "Bart," has been the cartoonist
of The Minneapolis Journal for eighteen years.
In this long period he has drawn daily cartoons,
missing very few days of publication, an enor
mous drain upon the invention of any man no
matter how prolific. Bart draws cartoons as the
editorial writer writes articles, from the news of
the day. He is an editor in outline. His cartoon
is a first-page editorial, couched in the most tell
ing phrases and simplest grammar.
Bart was a pioneer in the newspaper cartoon
field, not only in the northwest but in the country
at large, The Journal being one of the first pa
pers in the United States to use the daily cartoon
feature. He came to Minneapolis at the age of
nineteen after taking an engineering course at the
Iowa State college. After two years with other
twin city papers, he began work with The Jour
nal as a reporter, and literally created the depart
ment in which he has made a name. The success
of the idea was immediate, but has grown from
year to year until Bart's cartoons are known
around the world, and The Journal and Minneap
olis are familiar names to many abroad who
otherwise might never have heard of them.
The Journal cartoons have been reproduced in
every part of the Union and in England and Eu
ropean countries, by many daily papers and maga
zines. Even in far away Australia they are fre
quently reproduced. In his book, "The Ameri
canization of the World," W. T. Stead says:
"One of the most capable cartoonists of the Un
ited States is Mr. Bart of The Minneapolis Jour
nal." In this book and in Mr. Stead's magazine,
The European Review of Reviews, Bart's car
toons have appeared more frequently even than
in The American Review of Reviews, whose edi
tor, Dr. Albert Shaw, says:
"The esteem in which The Review of Reviews
holds the political cartoons that appear in The
Minneapolis Journal is sufficiently shown by the
frequency with which it has reproduced them
Mr. Charles L. Bartholomew of The Journal,
whose work is signed 'Bart/ has not merely a
very ingenious and ready pencil, but he has a re
markable political instinct that makes his draw
ings to a very unusual extent valuable as elucidat
ing the situation or re-enforcing an editorial po
sition or point of view."
Of the wonderful advertising value of Bart's
cartoons B. O. Flower, the editor of The Arena,
wrote in a recent article: "We doubt if even the
management of The Journal fully appreciates the
enormous value of Bart's work in familiarizing
the reading world at large with the name of his
paper," and to this, he might have added, with
the name of his town also.
The artist has made a name for himself, but
better than that he has made a home for himself.
Mr. Bartholomew married a college classmate.
They have a home in town and a summer place at
Lake Minnetonka, where Bart, his wife and their
three boys spend the happiest of summers. Many
CIIARLKS
L.
223
BARTHOLOMEW.
flattering offers have come to him*from publica
tions in other cities east and west, but his envir
onment is so congenial where he is that it would
take something like a revolution to lift Bart from
Minneapolis or from The Journal.
Mr. Bartholomew is the son of Col. O. A.
Bartholomew, an attorney at Chariton, Iowa. He
was turned toward newspaper work by his mother
whose habit was to read aloud to her children.
She encouraged the future cartoonist to learn the
printer's trade, and later coached him in editing
the home paper during college vacations.
BLETHEN, Alden J., formerly editor and
owner of the Minneapolis Tribune and now edi
tor-in-chief of the Seattle Daily and Sunday
Times, and president of the Times Printing Com
pany, comes of one of the oldest families of this
country, his ancestry tracing back to 1680, when
representatives of the name located at Ipswich,
Massachusetts. As a rule, the men of the family
have devoted their energies to either agricultural
or sea-faring pursuits.
The paternal grand
mother was a second cousin of Ethan Allen, the
gallant Vermont general. Again the family was
represented by loyal service in the Civil War,
three elder brothers of A. J. Blethen joining
the union army. Colonel Blethen is a native of
Maine, having been born at Knox, Waldo coun-
224
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
ty, on December 27, 1846, his parents being Alden
and Abbie L. Blethen. After acquiring a com
mon school education he entered Wesleyan sem
inary and college, where he was graduated in
1868. In 1872 he won the degree of Master of
Arts at Bowdoin college. He then took up the
profession of teaching and was lessee and prin
cipal of the Abbott Family school at Farmington,
Maine, from 1869 until 1873. At the same time
he carried on the study of law and was admit
ted to the bar of Maine in the latter year, estab
lishing an office in Portland. He there engaged
in practice until 1880, when on account of ill
health he removed to Kansas City, Missor
where he entered upon the vocation for which
he is so admirably fitted. For four years he was
manager of the well known Kansas City Joural. Thence he removed to Minneapolis in 1884,
where his field was enlarged by purchasing an
interest in the two leading papers here—the
Tribune and the Journal. He served as editor
of the Tribune and manager of the Journal until
1888, when he sold his interest in those papers
for two hundred and fifty thousand dollars spot
cash.
Having a decided liking as well as a special
ability for newspaper work, Colonel Blethen re
purchased the Tribune the following year, but
fire destroyed the building in November of the
same year and he suffered a loss of one hundred
thousand dollars. Nothing daunted, he set to
work to build in 1890, erecting the new Tribune
building at a cost of one hundred thousand dol
lars, but the financial panic of 1890, caused by
the failure of the Barings Brothers followed
so closely after the fire only to be succeeded by
the greater panic of 1893, that it brought dis
aster to him as it did to so many others and he
lost all.
After his financial failure, desiring to begin
anew in the newspaper field, Colonel Blethen
went to Seattle in 1896, where he purchased the
plant of a bankrupt daily paper, with a circula
tion of thirty-five hundred. He increased this
over fifty-six per cent in the first year and the
Times has since steadily grown until its circula
tion is over fifty thousand each evening and sev
enty thousand Sunday morning. It now occu
pies its own building, and has the largest plant
in the northwest. The growth and prosperity
of the Times during the twelve years of the man
agement of Colonel Blethen may be better un
derstood from the following facts: White
paper consumed in 1895, 125,000 pounds, in 1907,
8,468,844 pounds; circulation in 1895, 3,831 copies
daily, in 1907, 53.949 copies daily; the Sunday
Times, 1907 (started in 1902) 70,125 copies each
issue. The advertising carried in 1895 was 131,040 inches, in 1907, 836,987 inches. From an in
significant plant valued at $3,000 in 1895, the
Times has increased until today its plant is val
ued, including building, above $500,000.
Newspaperdom recently said:—"With match
less energy and foresight Colonel Blethen has
made the Times the greatest afternoon and Sun
day newspaper on the Pacific Coast, and has de
voted it as a mighty instrument for the upbuild
ing of Seattle. There is not at this time a bet
ter or a more elegantly equipped newspaper
plant west of Chicago, than that from which the
Seattle Daily and Sunday Times are issued,—all
the result of the indefatigable energy of Colonel
Blethen."
While in Minneapolis Colonel Blethen took
a nost active part in the public affairs of the
city and was particularly prominent in the pro
motion of the Minneapolis exposition—an under
taking which he was the first to propose in the
editorial columns of the Tribune. He served,
while in Minnesota, as Colonel on the staffs of
both Governor Nelson and Governor Clough.
At Farmington, Maine, on March 12, 1869,
Colonel Blethen was united in marriage to Miss
Rose, a daughter of Captain David F. Hunter,
and a granddaughter of David Hunter, who came
from Scotland to America and was one of the
early settlers of northeastern Maine. Four chil
dren have been born of this marriage, two sons
and two daughters. Joseph, the eldest son, is
manager of the Times, and the secretary and
treasurer of the Times Printing Company.
Clarence B., the younger son, is the managingeditor.
ALDEN J. BLETHKN.
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
PAUL V. COLLIN'S.
CHAPIN, Harold C., was born at La Crosse,
Wisconsin, on September 22, 1861, the son of
Nathan C. Chapin and Mary Fountain Chapin.
His father was a Congregational minister, who
for fifteen years until 1872 held the position of
pastor of the First Congregational Church at La
Crosse and afterwards held pastorates at Fari
bault, Rochester and St. Cloud, Minnesota. Mr.
Chapin passed the early years of his life in La
Crosse and studied there under the tutorship of
his father and in the public schools, acquiring
thus his preparatory education. He entered Beloit College, at Beloit, Wisconsin, of which his
uncle, A. L. Chapin, was president so many years,
and graduated in 1881, winning high honors in
scholarship and representing his class as its
salutatorian. Three years later he took in ad
dition an M. A. degree. In selecting the field
for a career, Mr. Chapin chose that of journal
ism, and in the fall of 1881, came from Rochester,
Minnesota, where his home had been for some
time, to Minneapolis, to accept the position of
private secretary to Mr. A. B. Nettleton, at that
time the owner and editor of the Minneapolis Tri
bune. For two years he was with that paper,
being promoted to a position on the staff of the
city editor. He resigned in order to fill a simi
lar position on the Minneapolis local staff of the
Pioneer Press, and upon the resignation of J.
N. Nind was placed in charge of the Minneap
olis editorial department. For many years he
225
held this office and by his energy and natural
ability for the journalistic work became promi
nent among the newspaper men of the North
west. He later resumed his connection with the
Tribune and for some time was city editor. At
the time of the famous Tribune Building fire on
November 30, 1889, Mr. Chapin was one of those
who narrowly escaped death in the burning build
ing. In 1892 Mr. Chapin abandoned daily news
paper work and established the Northwestern
Press Clipping Bureau. The following year he
began a publishing business and started the pub
lication of the Weekly Improvement Bulletin, and
for some years later issued the first copy of the
Northwestern Druggist. These two publications
are now ranked among the successful trade jour
nals of the country. Mr. Chapin still owns all
of these interests and is at the head of the active
management of them, the business being incorpo
rated as the Chapin Publishing Company. Dur
ing his residence in this city Mr. Chapin has been
interested in the promotion and support of all
movements for the civic welfare or improvement
and is associated with several organizations for
that purpose. In 1904 he held the office cf presi
dent of the Linden Hills Improvement Associa
tion. He is also a member of the Minneapolis
Press Club, the Minnesota Trade Press Associa
tion and the Minneapolis Automobile Club. He
was married on May 5, 1887, to Miss Virginia E.
Coe, daughter of C. A. Coe of this city. They
have two children Rollin C. and Harold F. They
have an attractive suburban home on the shore
of Lake Harriet.
COLLINS, Paul V., editor of the Northwest
ern Agriculturist, and president of the P. V.
Collins Publishing Company, is a direct descendent of the famous Quaker Collins family of
England, one of tTie first followers of George
Fox. His English ancestors were Edward and
Mary Collins of Oxfordshire. Their son, Francis,
migrated to America in 1681 with the first ship
load of colonists sent over by William Penn, and
settled at Burlington, New Jersey, where Francis
Collins built the first Quaker meeting house. In
a collateral line from the same ancestors, was
Isaac Collins, who in Revolutionary times started
and published the New Jersey Gazette, the first
editorial champion of the American patriots, and
whose loyal services as editor were recognized
by Congress in a resolution, expressly exempting
Isaac Collins and all his printers from military
duty. Another ancestor of distinction was Ed
ward Doty, a passenger on the Mayflower, who
became the forefather of Eunice Doty, paternal
grandmother of the subject of this sketch. The
maternal grandmother of Paul V. Collins, Rhoda
Littell, was a cousin of the founder of the Boston
literary magazine, Littell's Living Age. * Paul V.,
the son of Samuel and Abigail Jane Collins, was
born in Camden, Preble county, Ohio, but his
parents removed to Dayton when he was about
seven years of age, where his father was a mer
chant. He graduated from the Dayton high
226
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
school in 1879 and a year later began his journal
istic career as a reporter on the Dayton Democrat.
In 1882 he became reporter and staff correspon
dent on the Cincinnati Commercial Gazette, a
position he held for two years. Discontinuing
his journalistic work, he then took up the study
of art in the Art Students' League in New York
during 1884 and 1885, after which he re-entered
journalism by forming a syndicate of metropol
itan papers, among them the New York Tribune,
Boston Globe and St. Louis Republic, for special
European correspondence by mail and cable, and
in 1885 went to Paris. From the French capital
he cabled detailed interviews with Pasteur on
the discovery of his hydrophobia cure, with De
Lesseps after his inspection of the Panama Canal
in 1886; Meissonier Bougereau, Constant, Gerome
and other famous artists on the paintings of the
Paris Salon, and while there he was a member
of the famous Ramblers' Club which consisted
of American and English artists and journalists,
having headquarters in that city. He returned to
America in 1886, and located in Minnesota, pur
chasing the St. Peter Tribune. Later, at St.
Peter, while still publishing the Tribune, he pur
chased Skordemannen, the only Swedish farm
paper in America; and in 1890 he sold the Tri
bune for the purpose of bringing Skordemannen
(a paper he could not read) to Minneapolis and
developing its business. After putting the Swed
ish publication on a successful financial basis, he
sold it in June, 1893, and purchased the North
western Agriculturist. This was a monthly of
9,000 circulation at the time of Mr. Collins' pur
chase; the following fall (1893) he changed it to
a semi-monthly, and in March, 1904, to a weekly.
It has now a circulation (1908) exceeding 83,000
a week—equal in the year to any other two farm
papers in the Northwest combined. In 1904 Mr.
Collins purchased The Home Magazine, a month
ly publication of 150,000 circulation founded by
Mrs. John A. Logan in Washington, District of
Columbia, and he removed it to Minneapolis,
where he published it until January, 1906, when
it was sold and removed to Indianapolis. In
August, 1904, the P. V. Collins Publishing Com
pany was incorporated, for publishing the North
western Agriculturist and The Home Magazine,
Mr. Collins holding a controlling interest in the
corporation, and being its president and manager.
With this business he is still engaged, and under
his editorial and business management, the
Northwestern Agriculturist has attained a posi
tion of leadership amongst the agricultural press.
Mr. Collins is prominent in the various press and
editorial associations of the country, and has
held offices in several of the more important. In
1904 he was president of the National Editorial
Association and one of the two vice presidents
for America of the World's Press Congress, both
of which organizations met at the St. Louis
World's Exposition.
The meeting of the Na
tional Editorial Association on that occasion
were the largest editorial gatherings ever held
in the world, the average daily attendance ex
ceeding a thousand, including the best known
journalists of the country. Mr. Collins was also
(in 1901) president of the National Agricultural
Press League. He is a member of the Commer
cial, Publicity, and Westminster clubs of Min
neapolis, and is an active member of Westmin
ster Presbyterian church. He was married June
20, 1889, to Miss Mary G. Rhoads.
COMMERCIAL BULLETIN—An important
factor in the growth of Minneapolis as a whole
sale center has been the Commercial Bulletin
and Northwest Trade, which since it was founded
in 1883, has ably and consistently labored to
extend and increase the trade of the wholesale
and manufacturing industries of the city. A
weekly paper, having a wide circulation among
retail merchants throughout the Northwest, it
has grown with the development of the market,
until today it is recognized as one of the strong
est trade publications of the country. The his
tory of the Commercial Bulletin and Northwest
Trade dates back to October, 1883, when T. T.
Bacheller founded the Grocers' Bulletin, which
was financed by one of the large jobbing houses
of the city. It soon became evident to Mr.
Bacheller that Minneapolis was to be a great
jobbing center and that with St. Paul it would
control the greater part of the trade of Minne
sota and the Dakotas, with sections of Iowa and
Wisconsin, and gradually reach out westward, to
the coast. Accordingly, in May, 1884, he placed
his paper on an independent footing, changing
its name to the Commercial Bulletin and cham
pioning the wholesale and manufacturing in
terests of Minneapolis in such an aggressive way
that the paper soon became known as the rep
resentative organ of the Minneapolis merchan
dise market. Up to 1885 the Commercial Bul
letin had depended almost entirely upon the Min
neapolis market for its support, but as the years
moved on its influence with the retailers of the
Northwest became so strong that manufactur
ers and wholesalers in all parts of the United
States came to recognize it as the best medium
for reaching the retail trade of the Northwest.
Its success inspired the establishment in 1884 of
the Northwest Trade. In May, 1885, Mr. Bachel
ler sold the Commercial Bulletin to S. W. Alvord, a Pennsylvanian backed by two Minne
apolis attorneys. Early in 1886 Mr. Alvord sold
a half interest in the paper to Will S. Jones, then
an advertising solicitor on one of the Minne
apolis daily newspapers, and in 1887 sold the
remaining half interest to Red Clay McCauley.
Mr. Jones a little later bought out Mr. McCauley's interest, thereby becoming sole owner and
manager. The Northwest Trade was soon after
ward acquired by Mr. Jones and the two papers
were consolidated.
Since 1902 the editorial
direction of the paper has been in charge of
W. E. Davis, with the exception of a year and a
half, when I. A. Fleming occupied the editorial
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
chair. In April, 1906, the Commercial Bulletin
and Northwest Trade became the property of
the Root Newspaper Association, publishers of
a number of the most important and successful
trade publications of the country. George 1).
Mekeel, formerly of St. Louis, assumed the busi
ness management of the property. Since that
time it has been much enlarged and improved
and now ranks as one of the strongest journals
devoted to retail merchandising.
EDGAR, William C., a resident of Minneap
olis since 1882 when he came to the city to asso
ciate himself with the Northwestern Miller,
comes of old American families in both the
paternal and maternal branches. His father was
Joseph C. Edgar who for a number of years was
an architect in St. Louis, Missouri. William C.
Edgar was born in La Crosse in the year 1856.
The family soon after moved to St. Louis, Mis
souri, where Mr. Edgar passed the early part of
his life and began his education in the public
schools. He also attended the high school of
that city but did not graduate. In 1874 he took
a position in a St. Louis business house where
he remained until 1882. In the latter year he
received an offer from the Northwestern Miller,
then as now, the foremost milling journal of the
country, to become its business manager. He
accepted and came to Minneapolis to begin his
long connection with the paper. Two years later
he became general manager and since 1886 has
also been its editor. In 1895 he purchased a
controlling interest in the stock and became pres
ident of the Miller Publishing Company. Covering, as it does, one of the broadest fields with
which class journalism is connected, the Miller
has given to Mr. Edgar a splendid opportunity
to exercise his knowledge of the editorial depart
ment of newspaper work as well as his ability as
a business manager. In July of 1906 Mr. Edgar
established and began the publication of "The
Bellman," a weekly illustrated paper issued in
Minneapolis. He is a contributor to numerous
periodicals and the author of several books and
pamphlets. Among these are the Story of a
Grain of Wheat, published in 1903; The Russian
Famine, 1893, and The Miller's Evil Genius. Mr.
Edgar is actively interested in improvement and
reform movements and has been the head c>f a
number of such efforts to better the public con
dition. Possibly his most important public serv
ice was rendered by his connection with the re
lief movement for the famine stricken peasants
of Russia in 1891. The plan was conceived and
executed by him; through his efforts the millers
of this country were induced to contribute a
shipload of flour; and under his personal super
vision it was collected, shipped and distributed.
The food furnished by these means to the suffer
ing population of the Empire did much to relieve
the situation, and as a mark of the appreciation
felt for the efforts of Mr. Edgar in behalf of his
people, the Emperor presented him with a gold
227
flagon. Well known in the social life of the city
as well as in business circles, Mr. Edgar is natu
rally associated with a number of the larger
clubs, both of Minneapolis and other cities. His
local affiliations include memberships in the Min
neapolis, Minikahda, Lafayette and Skylight
clubs and he is also on the roll of the St. Louis
Club of St. Louis, and the Salmagundi Club of
New York. He is connected with several scien
tific and improvement organizations, the chief
ones being the American Social Science Associa
tion of New York; the American Free Trade
League, Boston; the National Municipal League,
Philadelphia; the Minnesota Trade Press Asso
ciation, of which he was the first president; and
the Voters League, of the executive committee of
which he is a member. Mr. Edgar was married
in 1883 to Miss Anne Page Randolph Robinson
and they have two children—a son, Randolph,
and a daughter Marjorie.
FARM, STOCK AND HOME, one of the
leading agricultural papers of the west, was
established in 1884 by the late Horatio R. Owen,
who was its business manager until his death in
1900.
The Hon. Sidney M. Owen assumed
editorial management of the paper in 1895 and
still occupies the position of editor with the
utmost success. His son, Harry N. Owen, has
long been connected with the paper, and on the
death of Mr. Horatio Owen succeeded him as
business manager and still continues at the head
of that department of the paper. The business
is now owned by the Farm, Stock & Home Com
pany, a corporation, and the enterprise is on a
sound basis financially.
Its circulation is over
104,000 copies, it is issued semi-monthly, and
the paper enjoys the confidence of a large con
stituency among the farmers of the Northwest.
Its office is at 830 Hennepin avenue, where is
occupies an entire floor, fully - equipped for the
production of a modern class paper.
FAYRAM, Frederick, was born on April 3,
[852, at Rotherham, England. His father Amos
Fayram, a life insurance actuary, is still living
but has now retired; his mother, Martha Blackmore Fayram, died in 1891. They were both na
tives of England and through them Mr. Fayram
is connected with prominent and well known
aristocratic families in England. His early boy
hood was spent in England but when he was nine
years of age, his parents came to Canada and
settled at Hamilton. In the schools of that place
and of Toronto, Canada, he received his educa
tion, going through the common schools and tak
ing a course in a business college. For a time
Mr. Fayram studied the cabinet making trade,
but his inclinations were toward a journalistic
career and in 1875 he went to Detroit, Michigan,
and there entered the employ of the Detroit Free
Press. He remained with this paper for nineteen
years, becoming business manager in 1887. He re
signed this position in 1894 to come to Minneapo
lis and one year later, in July, 1895, he associated
228
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
himself with Lucian Swift in the purchase of "The
Housekeeper," and of this publication he has
been secretary, treasurer and general manager
since that time. Mr. Fayram has always had a
keen interest in music and its promotion and for
nineteen years while in Detroit sang profession
ally in church choirs and was one of the famous
Arion Male Quartette of Detroit. He continued
his connection with musical affairs in Minneap
olis and since 1897 has been president of the
Philharmonic Club. He was largely instrumental
in bringing about the movement which resulted
in the erection of the Minneapolis Auditorium.
At the institution of the Minneapolis Symphony
Orchestra he was one of the most active workers
on the behalf of that organization and is now
one of the managing committee. Mr. Fayram is
fond of athletic and water sports, belongs to the
Minneapolis Athletic and Minnetonka Yacht
clubs and is actively interested in sailing, automobiling and all vigorous out-of-door sports.
He is also a member of the Minneapolis, the
Commercial and the Six O'Clock clubs and is
prominently identified with the club life of the
city. In 1892 Mr. Fayram was married to Miss
Carrie J. Young, of Mount Vernon, Ohio: They
have no children.
HALL, BLACK & CO.—The firm of Hall,
Black & Co., general printers, was organized in
1886 by Henry M. Hall and W. F. Black and
has continued ever since without change of
name or membership in the partnership. Both
the partners were from Maine. Mr. Hall learned
the printer's trade in Houlton, Maine, and came
west to establish himself in business. Mr. Black
had been in the printing business in Boston, but
owing to failing health had sold out and for
some years engaged in the more active work
of telegraph and telephone construction and
superintendence. He was superintendent of the
Worcester division of the New England Tele
graph and Telephone Company at the time of
the general consolidation of the Bell telephone
interests and was soon sent to Minneapolis to
act as cashier in the local office. After a year
or so of service as cashier and acting superin
tendent in Minneapolis he formed the partner
ship with Mr. Hall and has since been in busi
ness for himself. The job printing business taken
up by the firm was that originally started about
1880 or 1881 as the Journal Job Printing Com
pany. The new owners moved the plant to 304
First avenue South, where they enlarged it year
by year and'built up a satisfactory business. Af
ter 15 years the quarters were outgrown and
in 1901 the concern moved to its present loca
tion at 329 'Hennepin avenue. Here a modern
cylinder press of large capacity and other equip
ment was added to the plant and the business
still further 'developed. The firm is perhaps the
only one in the city which has undergone no
changes or suffered from any business vicis
situdes in the course of its career of a score of
years.
FREDERICK
FAYRAM.
JONES, Herschell V., editor of the Minne
apolis Journal, was born at Jefferson, Schoharie
county, New York, August 30, 1861, son of W.
S. Jones, a merchant of that place. Mr. Jones'
ancestors helped to make history in the older
days in Connecticut and Massachusetts, some
of them having been numbered among the
minute men who made the stand at Concord
Bridge in 1775 and "fired the shot heard round
the world." As a boy Mr. Jones attended the
public schools in Jefferson, New York, and after
wards the Delaware Literary Institute at Frank
lin, New York. With strong journalistic instinct
lie conducted a country newspaper, when he was
eighteen years old, and, subsequently, as a member
of the editorial staff of the Minneapolis Evening
Journal for seventeen years, he acquired ample
experience in metropolitan journalism. As com
mercial editor of that paper Mr. Jones developed
a remarkable aptitude in the difficult science of
crop-estimating and forecasting, and his close
approximations to officially declared results in
the spring wheat area, have given him a wide
recognition in the commercial world as an expert
crop estimator. In 1901 Mr. Jones founded "The
Commercial West," a journal devoted to the
promotion of the financial and commercial inter
ests of the West. This undertaking proved very
successful and the paper has taken a place as a
recognized authority in its field. On Septembei
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
I , 1908, Mr. Jones, with his brother William S.
Jones, purchased the Minneapolis Journal. He
became the editor and his brother the business
manager of the paper. He is a member of the
Minneapolis, the Minikahda, the Commercial and
the Sky-light Clubs. In 1885 Mr. Jones was
married to Lydia G. Wilcox, of Jefferson, New
York, and seven children have been born to them.
KLEIN, William Livingston, publisher of the
Journal-Lancet, is a native of Illinois. He was
born at Barry, Pike county, on January 28, 1851,
the son of Joseph and Agnes G. Klein. His
father was a lawyer.
He attended the local
schools during his boyhood, and prepared for
college at the Pittsfield, Illinois, high schooi
From Pittsfield he went to Ithaca, New York,
and entered Cornell University. After completing
the four years' course he graduated in 1873 with
the degree of B. S. After leaving college Mr
Klein spent a few years teaching school being,
successively, the principal of the Argyle Academy,
Argyle, New York; principal (for three years)
of the Woodstock, Illinois, schools; and principal
of the Jefferson, Illinois, high school—now a
part of the Chicago school system. Since 1878
he has been editor and publisher of professional
books and periodicals. He came to Minneapolis
in 1882 and for the past fifteen years has been
manager of the Lancet, the leading paper of the
medical profession in the Northwest. Mr. Klein
is the author of "Why We Punctuate; or Rea
son vs. Rule in the Use of Marks," which was
published anonymously and caused much com
ment among literary and educational papers. It
received high praise from the leading literal*}
journals of the country, and Dr. J. L. Pickard, a
prominent American educator, said of it: "The
author has introduced punctuation into litera
ture." Mr. Klein was married in 1875 to Nora
C. Sprague of Homer, New York, and they have
two children, Horace C. and Kenneth O. I lie
family attends Trinity Baptist Church.
McLAIN, John Scudder, editor of the Min
neapolis Journal, was born in Brown county,
Ohio, 011 May 26, 1853, the son of James Robin
son and Nancy (Anderson) McLain. He spent
his early years 011 a farm in Kendall county, Il
linois, where the family located in 1854, and at
tended the common schools, completing his edu
cation at Jennings Seminary, Aurora, Illinois,
and at Wabash College, which he entered in 1870.
He began newspaper work 011 the St. Louis
Democrat in 1872 at the same time studying at
Washington University at St. Louis. In 1875 he
returned to Wabash College and graduated in
1877 and in 1902 received the degree of A. M. In
1897 he delivered the annual alumni address at
Wabash. From college Mr. McLain went to
Kansas City where he began newspaper work on
the Kansas City Journal, acting as city editor and
managing editor until 1881, when ill-health com
pelled him to take up another class of work. For
229
four years he was in the employ of the A. T. &
S. F. Railway at Topeka. Mr. McLain came to
Minneapolis in 1885 as editor of the Journal and
for a score of years has been one of the leading
newspaper men of the northwest. He was vicepresident of the Journal Printing Company until
September 1, 1908, when (with the other stock
holders.) he sold his interests and retired from
the editorship of the paper. A tour of Alaska
a few years ago was followed by the publica
tion in 1905 of "Alaska and the Klondike,"
recognized as an authoritative work and
the first comprehensive book written on the
subject. He belongs to the leading local clubs—
the Minneapolis, Commercial, Six O'Clock and
others and is a member of the National Municipal
League, American Social Science Association,
American Economic Association, National Geo
graphical Society, Phi Beta Kappa and Beta
Theta Pi. In 1881 he was married at Crawfordsville, Indiana, to Miss Caroline E. Thompson.
They are members of Westminster Presbyterian
Church.
MEHAN, James Edward, general Northwest
ern agent for George Barrie & Sons, was born on
November 21, 1866, in New York state, at Mechanicville, Saratoga county. His parents were Mar-
8WEET, PHOTO
JOHN S . McLAIN.
A HALF CENTUkY OF MINNEAPOLIS
230
they have one child, a daughter. They have al
ways resided in Minneapolis, their present home
being on Park avenue.
ii:
.
MEYST, Frank Jay, resident manager of the
A. N. Kellogg Newspaper Company, was born at
Amsterdam, Holland, on January 23, 1858. His
father was Peter Meyst and his mother Nellie
(Faber) Meyst. He came to St. Paul with his
father when only eight years of age. They were
accompanied by five other families and together
the colonists bought a full section of land in Sil
ver Creek, Wright county, Minnesota, from the
old St. Paul and Pacific Railway. In those days
farming meant hard work for the whole family
and the boy up to the age of twelve had but two
years of schooling. In 1870 he entered the office
of the St. Cloud Times and his education as
printer and publisher—that of so many active
and successful men—was obtained at the case and
in the editorial chair. After eighteen months as
printer's devil in the St. Cloud office he went to
St. Paul and entered the employ of the late H. P.
Hall who was then conducting the St. Paul News
paper Union. He continued with Mr. Hall for
many years working for him during his ownership
of the St. Paul Globe. For some twenty years
he was associated with Mr. Hall for most of the
time but at intervals had engaged in country
journalism being the founder of the Brainerd Dis
patch and the Osakis Observer. Soon after the
6WEET, PMOfO
JAMES E. MEHAN.
tin Mehan and Catherine Mehan, and at the time
of his birth his father was engaged in farming at
Mechanicville. James Edward began his educa
tion at that place, attending the public schools
and later continuing his studies for three years
in the Mechanicville Academy. While in the
academy he earned his tuition by performing jani
tor services for the school and doing such other
work as he could obtain. Having studied for
three years at the Academy,' .Mr. Mehan left
school land began his commercial training. He
remained in the east for a few years and then ac
cepted a position with George Barrie & Sons,
the Philadelphia book'publishers. In 1890 he
came to Minneapolis to take charge of the local
branch of that firm as its general northwestern
agent, and for the past seventeen years has filled
that office. Mr. Mehan has made a pronounced
success in establishing his, business. In 1901 Mr.
Mehan began study at the University of Minne
sota, entering the night Law Department, from
which he graduated, after completing the three
years' course, in 1904. His dfegree of Bachelor of
Laws was received at that time. After two years'
work in post graduate studies he obtained the ad
ditional degree of*Master of Laws in 1906. Mr.
Mehan does not practice his profession, having
taken up his legal training as an assistance in
his commercial work. In 1895 he was married to
Stella A. Neuman of Little Falls, Minnesota, and
FRANK J. MEYST.
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
, sale of the Globe to Louis Baker in 1885, Mr.
Hall started the Mutual Benefit Publishers' As
sociation for the making of ready printed sheets,
with himself as president and Mr. Meyst as secre
tary. After two years this business was sold to
the A. N. Kellogg Newspaper Company. Mr.
Meyst has been resident manager of the Kellogg
Newspaper Company for the past fourteen or
fifteen years. He is a prominent member of the
State Editorial Association and no man is better
acquainted with newspapers and newspaper men
throughout the Northwest. Mr. Meyst is a
Knight Templar and a Shriner in Masonry and
a member of the Minneapolis Commercial Club
and other local organizations. He was married
on May 26, 1881, to Lena Furch of Minneapolis
and they have four children, Lillian D., May E.,
Bessie L. and Frank J., Jr.
NELSON, Milton Orelup, for many years a
newspaper writer in Minneapolis, was born on
September 24, 1859, at Wayne, La Fayette coun
ty, Wisconsin, the son of James H. and Sarah
Nelson.
He is descended from old Colonial
stock. His first American ancestor, John Nel
son, came from Norfolk, England, about 1660
and was a prominent citizen in Flatbush, New
York. James Nelson, great grandfather of Mil
ton Nelson, fought in the French and Indian War
and afterwards in the Revolution and his son
Justus was a captain in the war of 1812. Mr.
Nelson's father was born near West Point on
the Hudson river and was a Wisconsin pioneer,
settling in Waukesha county in 1844. On his
mother's side Mr. Nelson comes from Con
necticut Puritan stock. After a boyhood spent
on his father's farm, Mr. Nelson attended college
at Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin,
and at the University of Wisconsin from which
he graduated with the class of 1884. His first
newspaper work was that of editor and'publisher
of the Northwestern Mail, a weekly publication
at Madison, Wisconsin. In 1891 he came to Min
neapolis and has filled the positions of asso
ciate editor of the Mississippi Valley Lumber
man, Commercial Bulletin and Commercial West,
and has done much general newspaper corre
spondence and editorial writing. He has for
years been an authoritative writer on lumber mat
ters and has been for some time secretary of
the Northwestern Cedarmen's Association. Mr.
Nelson early became interested in public affairs
and especially in the beautification of public and
private grounds on which subject he has written
and lectured in an enthusiastic but practical man
ner and has exerted his influence generally to
better municipal conditions. In the fall of 1906
he was elected a member of the board of park
commissioners of Minneapolis for a six years'
term. Mr. Nelson was married on June 20, 1889,
to Anna M. Henry, of Madison, Wisconsin, and
they have one son, Donald O. Nelson. They at
tend the Westminster Presbyterian Church.
231
NIMOCKS, Charles A., for many years prom
inently identified with the newspaper and public
life of the city, is a* native of Jonesville, Hills
dale county, Michigan. He was born on October
16, 1842. He spent his early life in his native
state, curtailing his education to enter the army
on the breaking out of the Civil War and making
an excellent military record as Captain of Com
pany C., Seventh Regiment of Michigan Infantry
volunteers. Mr. Nimocks came to Minneapolis
in 1871 and in 1880, in connection with George
K. Shaw, bought the name and good will of the
Evening Journal whose plant had just been de
stroyed by fire. He became business manager of
the Journal and retained an interest in the paper
until 1885 when he sold to the present owners.
Mr. Nimocks spent two years in Detroit, Michi
gan, as business manager of the Tribune of that
city and then returned to Minneapolis where he
started the Evening Star which he conducted for
three years. One year later Jie founded the Min
neapolis Daily Times which he conducted for
about three years. Later he assumed charge of a
collection agency; in connection with which he
established a bureau for the purpose of collecting
back taxes which had been over-assessed and
over paid and he has recovered for tax payers
a large sum of money. He is still the president
of the company. In 1908 he was appointed a
BRUSH, PHOTO
CHARLES A. NIMOCKS.
232
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
deputy United States marshal and served four
years. Mr. Nimocks was one of the earliest
members of the Chamber of Commerce and was
one of the group of men which donated the site
of the old Chamber. The first draft of the act
providing for a park commission for Minneapolis
was presented at a meeting of the old Board of
Trade in 1882 by Mr. Nimocks. He took a very
lively interest in promoting the necessary legis
lation looking to the founding of the magnificent
park system of the city and was elected to the
board at the first election held under the law.
During the two terms in which he served he had
an important part in the work of laying out the
earlier parks and parkways. Mr. Nimocks was
again elected to the park board in the fall of 1906
and is now serving his third term in that body.
NILSSON, Victor, editor and musical critic,
is a native of Sweden, born March 10, 1867. He
is the son of John and Bertha Nilsson. His
father was a merchant as was his father before
him. Victor Nilsson was graduated from the
Latin College at Gothenburg. He came to Min
neapolis iii 1885 and began his training for
journalism. He has been an editorial writer
and musical critic ever since. At present he is
musical critic for the Minneapolis Journal. He
is a doctor of philosophy, University of Minne
sota, 1897. For ten years he had charge of the
east side branch, public library. He has pub
lished The Lives of the Presidents of the United
States, 1893; History of Sweden, 1899; Loddfafnismal, Eddie study, 1898. Dr. Nilsson is a char
ter member* of the American Union of Swedish
Singers, and was secretary of the Scandinavian
music festivals held in Minneapolis in 1891 and
1903. Music runs in the family, Dr. Nilsson
having two sisters who are professional singers,
Emma Nilsson and Bertha Nilsson Best.
O'BRIEN, Frank G., is a native of Maine,
born at Calais on May 15, 1843. His father Wetmore O'Brien, a lumberman, and one of the early
settlers of St. Anthony, came to what is now
East Minneapolis in 1855, when his son was
twelve years old. Mr. O'Brien's education was
limited, as he attended school but eighteen
months; and for three years previous to coming
West he did his share, as was usual in the early
days, toward keeping up the* home, his first work
being in a sawmill. He started an active busi
ness career immediately after coming to Min
nesota and has had marked success in his under
takings. He has now retired from active business
life, however, and has placed his affairs in the
hands of his son, Edward James O'Brien, while
he devotes his energies to writing. His "Min
nesota Pioneer Sketches" was recently success
fully published, and he now has almost ready for
the press the '"Adventures of the Jones and Jepson Boys." In addition to his other literary work,
he is a frequent contributor, in prose and verse,
to the press and many have become acquainted
with his articles through the local papers. Mr.
O'Brien has been an active participant in the
commercial, social and club life of the city since
its infancy. He is an officer in the Minnesota
and Hennepin County Territorial Pioneers' Asso
ciation and of the Writers' League and is a mem
ber of the Press Club; The Monday Club; of the
Masonic Order; the Legion of Honor; the Min
nesota Historical Society and the New Thought
Lyceum. He attends the Unitarian Church. He
was married on May 8, 1866, to Miss Lizzie E.
Bostwick, daughter of Judge Lardner Bostwick,
a pioneer jurist of this state who came with her
parents to the Falls of St. Anthony in 1850, and
was well known in the social life of the city, and
as a writer of verse for the press. Their only
child is Edward James O'Brien of this city. Mrs.
O'Brien died on January 13, 1908.
PRYOR, Luman C., editor and manager of
Farm Implements, was born at Bay View, Mil
waukee county, Wis., January 8, 1864, the son of
William R. and Elizabeth M. Pryor. His father
is of English origin, both father and mother hav
ing been born in that country. William R. Pryor,
when about seven years of age, left England with
his father and the rest of his family. They set
tled first in Canada, near Toronto, removing a
few years later to the United States, and taking
up their permanent residence at Rochester, New
York. The spirit of adventure brought William
R. Pryor to the west in the later forties. He set-
BRUSp, PHOTO
PRANK J. O'BRIEN.
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
tied on the shore of Lake Michigan, and engaged
in farming, his homestead being located within a
very short distance of the townsite of Milwaukee.
Many years ago, the city limits were sufficiently
extended to include all of the Pryor farm. Here
the childhood of Luman C. Pryor was spent.
When thirteen years of age, he moved with the
family to Waupun, Wis., following the death of
his parents. He received his education in the
common schools of Bay View, and the high
school at Waupun. After leaving school, he en
tered the newspaper business, and has made that
his life work. In 1882, he moved to Minneapolis,
and after spending ten years on the various pa
pers in Minneapolis and St. Paul, purchased Farm
Implements, the paper which he has since con
ducted. At the time of acquiring this property,
the business in farm inplements was divided be
tween the two cities, and Mr. Pryor has witnessed
the wonderful growth of the trade in Minneapolis,
including the gradual transfer of many of the
houses in this line from St. Paul, until Minneap
olis has developed into the greatest implement
center in the country. Farm Implements has kept
pace with the growth of the business. It was
established in 1887, but previous to 1892 had not
made marked progress. An energetic policy and
progressive methods have developed the paper
from meager beginnings to the position of one of
the principal publications in the implement line.
Mr. Pryor was married October ix, 1888, to Miss
Lulu Marion Judd, daughter of William A. and
Alice M. Judd, of St. Paul. They have one
daughter, Marion G. Pryor. The family attend
St. Mark's Episcopal church. Politically, Mr.
Pryor is a republican, but is not active in politics.
He is a member of various clubs, including the
Minneapolis, Minikahda, Lafayette and Commer
cial clubs.
SMITH, Fred L., was born in Maine, July 2,
1843. He came to St. Anthony in 1857 and has
resided in Minneapolis ever since. He was mar
ried in 1869 to Roxana G. Sinclair and has two
children, both married.
He commenced the
printing trade with Messrs. Croffut & Clark in
September, 1857, and was carrier boy on the Falls
Evening News, the first daily paper printed at
the Falls of St. Anthony. In 1865 he was one
of the founders of the Minneapolis Daily Chron
icle and when the Chronicle was merged with
the Atlas in 1867, forming the Minneapolis Tri
bune, Mr. Smith became superintendent of the
mechanical department of the Tribune. In 1871
he, with Col. Chas. W. Johnson, established a job
printing business, and the present concern of
Harrison & Smith Co., of which Mr. Smith is
president, is the outgrowth of the partnership
formed with Mr. Johnson in 1871. Mr. Smith
has had considerable experience in public life,
having represented the fifth ward in the City
Council of the city of Minneapolis for five years,
occupying the president's chair when he resigned
in 1881. He has served ten years on the Park
Board of the city, and is an ex-president of the
233
board. In former years Mr. Smith was quite
active in Masonic circles, and has passed the chair
in all the Masonic bodies meeting at the lodge
room of Cataract Lodge No. 2, in East Minne
apolis. He is a thirty-second degree Mason and
for many years was secretary of the Scottish rite
bodies of Minneapolis.
SWIFT, Lucian, for twenty-three years pres
ident, manager and treasurer of the Minneapo
lis Journal, was born at Akron, Ohio, July 14,
1848, the son of Lucian (his father was chief
justice of Connecticut) and Sarah S. Swift. He
graduated from the Cleveland, Ohio, high school
and from the University of Michigan in 1869
with the degree of M. E. In 1871 he came to
Minneapolis and was connected with the draft
ing department of the Northern Pacific Railway
until 1876. For the next nine years he was
identified with the Minneapolis Tribune and in
1885 with three others purchased the Minneapo
lis Journal of which he was manager for twen
ty-three years. During all this time he has
been actively connected with the development
of Minneapolis and the public enterprises of the
northwest. On September 1, 1908, Mr. Swift
(with the other stockholders of The Journal)
sold his interests and retired from the manage
ment of the paper. Mr. Swift is president of
LUCIA N
SWIFT.
234
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
the Housekeeper Corporation. He is a mem
ber of the Minneapolis, Commercial, Lafayette,
Minikahda, Minnetonka Yacht, and Bryn Mawr
Golf Club and Union League Club of Chicago,
and of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
THE SVENSKA FOLKETS TIDNING, a
Swedish-American weekly, sent its first number
into the world October 25, 1881. It was then
published by the Swedish Publishing Company
of Minneapolis, whose officers were Victor
Berggren, president; P. J. E. Clementson, treas
urer; and Alfred Soderstrom, secretary. Its first
editor was Magnus Lunnow, who held this posi
tion for nearly twenty years. Among the early
contributors were Hon. John Lind, editing from
New Ulm the judicial query department, Hon.
Hans Mattson, mostly correspondence during
travels in Europe, India and Mexico, Hon. Al
bert Berg, then of Fargo, and others. The paper
has always been liberal in its tendencies, trans
mitting and commenting upon news and the
leading questions of the day without social,
political or clerical restrictions, yet of moderate
tone. It is educationl in purpose and republican
as far at its party affiliations are concerned.
Svenska Folkets Tidning was successful from its
very start, gaining more than 3,000 subscribers
within the first three months of its publication
and increasing this number more than three
times within the second year. In 1883 the paper
was sold by the Swedish Publishing Company
to its three principal workers, Alfred Soder
strom, Magnus Lunnow and Olof Hoglund, in
whose possession it remained until the spring of
1899. The paper's career has not been without
its trying vicissitudes and has four times passed
through fire. When the first Tribune Building
was destroyed in November, 1889, the Svenska
Folkets Tidning lost its entire plant, which was
located on the seventh floor. This was a total
loss to the owners as the insurance policies had
just expired. The modern requirements for a
newspaper, solid financial backing and an en
larged, up-to-date plant, in 1899, caused the in
corporating of the Swedish Printing Company
of Minnesota, into the hands of which Svenska
Folkets Tidning was then placed. The incor
porators were N. O. Werner, C. A. Smith, J. P.
Hedberg, P. H. Stolberg, Carl Ekman, John
Peterson, N. E. Nelson, Magnus Lunnow, C. J.
Larson and Olof Hoglund. Of these the last
mentioned has later sold his shares and Magnus
Lunnow and C. J. Larson are dead. Carl Ek
man has been the general manager ever since
1899 and is in a large measure responsible for
the rapid strides of advancement made by the
paper of late years. The Svenska Folkets Tid
ning possesses in Gudmund Akermark, Ernest
Spangberg and Dr. Victor Nilsson three able
editorial writers. The former is editor-in-chief
and also edits Odalmannen, a semi-monthly agri
cultural paper started by the Swedish Printing
Company in May, 1904. Dr. Nilsson is also the
FUKD I>. SMITH.
publisher of a monthly journal, the organ of the
American Union of Swedish Singers.
MINNEAPOLIS DAILY TIDENDE, the
only Scandinavian daily paper in the Northwest,
was established in 1887 by Mr. T. Guldbrandsen.
Mr. Guldbrandsen had been publishing a small
weekly paper at Grand Forks, North Dakota,
when he conceived the bold plan of establishing
a Scandinavian daily in Minneapolis. The first
issue appeared on January 24, 1887. No better
illustration of the success which has been at
tained by Mr. Guldbrandsen in his undertak
ing could be offered than a comparison between
the modest looking four-page, five-column sheet
issued on the date named and the handsome
jubilee issue of the publication twenty years
later, January 24, 1907, when a thirty-two pagft
paper made its appearance, profusely illustrated
and full of interesting matter regarding the citv.
and especially its Scandinavian contingent, be
sides news matter and numerous special articles.
Established as it was at a time when the city's
population of Scandinavian extraction numbered
about 30,000, it took some little time for the
"Tidende" to obtain a firm foothold, but Min
neapolis grew, the Scandinavian element of the
population increased still more rapidly, and the
NEWSPAPERS, PUBLISHING AND PRINTING
"Tidende" gained in influence and importance,
until it today occupies an enviable position of
prestige and influence among the 100,000 Scan
dinavians of this city. The Daily Tidende had
been published but a few months when the
five-column pages were widened to six columns.
About the same time a large Sunday edition was
made a feature. The weekly paper which Mr.
Guldbrandsen brought from Grand Forks was
published separately until in 1888 he bought the
weekly "Budstikken," established in 1873 and the
oldest Norwegian paper in Minneapolis. The
two papers were published as one under the
latter name. In 1890 Mr. Guldbrandsen bought
"Faedrelandet og Emigranten," the oldest Scan
dinavian paper in America, established under the
name of "Emigranten" in" 1851 at Inmansville,
Rock county, Wisconsin, later moved to La
Crosse and from there to Minneapolis. Beginning
with the year 1895 these various weeklies were
consolidated and published as the "Minneapolis
Tidende." This paper has increased steadily in
circulation and importance and now stands as
one of the largest, most influential and widely
circulated Norwegian weeklies in America.
TURNBLAD, Swan Johan, was born October
7, i860, in Tubbemala, Sweden, son of Olof M.
and Ingjard Turnblad, who came to this country
and settled at Vasa, Goodhue county, Minnesota,
Swan at that time being only nine years old.
The father, who was of limited means, engaged
in farming and the son laid the foundations of his
education at the public and high schools of Vasa,
developing a strong tendency to be a printer. To
gratify an instinctive yearning for that art he
bought a small printing plant and taught himself
enough of its mysteries to set up and print an
arithmetic prepared by P. T. Lindholm, head of
the Vasa high school, when he was seventeen
years old. When nineteen years old he came to
Minneapolis and set type on the Minnesota Stats
Tidning and Svenska Folkets Tidning and, until
1887, continued in such employment and that of
insurance solicitor until he was called upon to
take charge of the Svenska Amerikanska Posten
and raised it from a moribund condition to
substantial prosperity as an independent paper in
politics and an exponent of temperance princi
ples. Mr. Turnblad has given much of his atten
tion to the promotion of temperance principles.
He organized the first Scandinavian temperance
society in Minneapolis and, a prominent Good
Templar, he has organized several lodges of that
order in the state. Independent in politics, he has
declined to enter the political arena as an office
seeker and has accepted only one state appoint
ment, that of member of the board of managers
of the state reformatory at St. Cloud, which was
offered to him by Gov. Lind in 1899. He is a high
degree Mason, a Shriner, an Elk, and a member
of Westminster Presbyterian Church. Mr. Turn
blad is an interesting example of the energetic
and progressive material which comes to this
*235
country with the Scandinavian immigration. He
gives the best talents that he has to the welfare
of his adopted country; has proven himself a
power in Scandinavian-American journalism, and
has given liberally of his acquired fortune for the
building up of the city where his life's greatest
activities have been wrought. Coming to Min
neapolis with a few dollars, he has, by his own
talent and industry, acquired a fortune. He be
lieves in buying Minneapolis realty and improving
it. In 1883 Mr. Turnblad was married to Chris
tina Nelson, of W'orthington, Minnesota, and one
child, Lillian Zenobia, has been born to them.
WALDELAND, Erik, is a native of Norway,
but has lived in this country since 1882, during
most of which time he has been associated with
the publishing business as at present, first in
Iowa and later in the state of Minnesota. He
was born at Christiansand, Norway, on January
15, 1861, the son of Erik Waldeland and Karen
W. Waldeland. His father was a school-teacher
and educator in the town of his son's birth, and
Erik, junior, was raised in Norway, and attended
school until he had reached the age of fifteen,
getting a good preparatory education. He then
obtained employment and a great part of the
training that qualifies him for his present posi
tions has been acquired from the experience of
actual business life. He remained in Norway
until he was twenty-one in 1882, and then came
to this country and went into business in De
corah, Iowa, where he remained until 1887. In
that year Mr. Waldeland removed to Northfield,
Minnesota, where he had been offered the position
of manager of the Northfield Publishing Com
pany. This office he accepted, and remained in
Northfield for three years, and devoted his time
and energies to the establishment of a progres
sive and successful publishing concern. In 1890
the business was sold to the Augsburg Publish
ing House of Minneapolis, and on the consolida
tion Mr. Waldeland was appointed assistant
general manager. He was promoted in 1904
to the office of general manager and now
has entire charge of the business, and is
rapidly making it one of the large publish
ing houses of the city. In 1904 also Mr. Wal
deland was appointed treasurer of the United
Norwegian Lutheran Church of America, an of
fice which he still holds. Mr. Waldeland is a
public spirited citizen and though never active
in politics, is interested in all measures tending
toward civic improvement and is a member of
several organizations for that purpose, among
them the South Side Commercial Club. He is a
member of the Bethlehem Norwegian Lutheran
Church. In July, 1886, he was married to Miss
Edvine Osmundsen, who died in 1887 leaving one
child, a son, Karl. Mr. Waldeland again married
in 1891, his wife being Miss Ida G. Ness. They
have five children, Leonora, Dorothy, Edmund,
Marie and Henry.
-
CHAPTER X V I .
THE GROWTH OF BANKING
T
HE business of banking in Minne in Minneapolis. Messrs. Snyder and Petapolis had an inauspicious begin tit are believed-to be the only survivors of
ning, for the pioneer bankers had this pioneer group of bankers.
scarcely opened their doors when the
In 1857 Rufus J. Baldwin opened a bank
panic of 1857 swept over the country car in the old Cataract House on lower Wash
rying away many older and much better ington avenue, Cyrus Beede and R. J. Menestablished financial concerns. In a new denhall commenced business on Bridge
and isolated community where credit Square and J. K. Sidle entered a long bank
had not been firmly settled and capital ing career in the then newly completed
had yet to be accumulated the effects Nicollet House. Other banks started soon
of the panic were even more disastrous than afterwards were those of D. C. Groh, Orrin
elsewhere. But the records of these early Curtis, B. D. Dorman and Graves, Towne
banking operations show a most creditable & Co.
story of heroic endeavors to tide over dis- "
Banking was conducted under great diffi
aster and self-denying loyalty to the home culties. The lack of currency, the isolation
business men and the community.
of the frontier town, the impending panic,
Banking was on a very different basis were all causes of trouble for the bankers.
then than now. There were no national It is said that the ruling rate of interest
banks, only crude state banking laws and was "three per cent per month and five per
no bank examiners; and, except in the larger cent after maturity."
eastern cities, no associations of bankers or
There was little available currency, and
any system of mutual support. Minnesota at one time "Indiana wild cat"—as the notes
was still a territory; Minneapolis was 300 of certain Indiana banks were styled—was
miles from the nearest railroad and more the chief circulating medium. To meet the
completely out of touch with the east than need of small change the local merchants
are the remotest settlements in Alaska to issued scrip in sums of ten, fifteen, twentyday. Most of the earlier banks were con five and fifty cents. The following is an
ducted by men engaged also in other busi actual copy of one of the issues:
ness.
Minneapolis, Minn., Oct. 20th, 1857.
The first bankers at the Falls of St. An
"25 Cts. This certificate for twenty-five cents
thony were Richard Martin, who came to will be redeemed with current bank notes, at
the village of St. Anthony in 1854, and our store, corner of Bridge and First street, when
Farnham & Tracy, who opened a bank in presented, to the amount of one dollar."
MOORE & POWER.
the same year. In 1855 Simon P. Snyder
and Wm. K. McFarlane arrived in Minne
These notes had a large circulation al
apolis and at once formed a partnership in though there was a very warm discussion
the real estate and banking business, be
over their issue. Later state scrip was is
coming the first bankers on the west side
sued and during 1858 sixty-four merchants
of the river. They were provided with
ample capital and their energy and progres joined in a published statement that they
sive methods did much for the development would receive state scrip at par for debts
of the young city. C. H. Pettit arrived in or goods. An attempt was also made to
the same year and opened the second bank establish a currency in the form of notes
THE GROWTH OF BANKING
secured on the state railroad bond issue of
1858.
* Conditions improved somewhat after a
year or so but were again so bad in 1862
that the town of Minneapolis issued scrip
which was "redeemable in bank notes in
sums not less than five dollars." The sig
natures of S. H. Mattison and George A.
Savory, president and secretary of the town
organization, and the endorsement of R. J.
Mendenhall, treasurer, gave, this temporary
currency a value which led to its free cir
culation.
Notwithstanding the almost incredible
financial hardships of the young city it 1^
a notable fact that not one of the pioneer
bankers failed to meet his obligations. Some
were forced to discontinue business but all
paid in full.
Statehood and the adoption of banking
laws and the passage of the national
bank act brought about a better con
dition of affairs. At the same time the
panic cleared the atmosphere. The bankers
who had developed staying powers pulled
themselves together and in the early sixties
the foundations of some of the older banks
of the present day were laid. R. J. Menden
hall and Rufus J. Baldwin in 1863 bought
out the State Bank of Minnesota at Aus
tin, and removing it to Minneapolis, founded
a banking institution which was the virtual
beginning of the present Security National
Bank. In the same way the First National
Bank grew out of the business of Sidle,
Wolford & Co. In 1865 J. K. Sidle re
organized the business under the name of
the Minneapolis Bank, and shortly after
wards, taking advantage of the passage of
the national banking law started the First
National Bank of Minneapolis, with the
same capital, officers and business.
From 1865 to 1873 there was almost ab
normal progress in the northwest. To meet
the necessities of business, banks multiplied
and constantly increased their capital. The
first new bank to be organized in this period
was the National Exchange Bank, which
began business in 1867, with a capital of
$50,000, and H. Miller of Troy, N. Y., as
president and W. P. Westfall, cashier.
237
Eight years later its business was wound up
with all depositors paid in full.
In 1868 the State Bank of Minnesota,
whose organization has already been men
tioned, was merged into the State National
Bank of Minneapolis. Its capital was $100,000. R. J. Mendenhall was president and
R. J. Baldwin, cashier. T. A. Harrison,
who was destined to become a most prom
inent figure in northwestern banking, suc
ceeded Mr. Mendenhall, and two years af
terwards Joseph Dean became cashier in
place of Mr. Baldwin. When the Security
Bank was organized in 1878 the business of
the State National was transferred to the
new institution.
The old City Bank was organized in 1869.
J. W. Pence was the first president, and T.
J. Buxton, long a prominent banker of the
city, was its cashier. In 1870 the First
National Bank of St. Anthony was formed
and subsequently became the Merchants'
National Bank of Minneapolis
The year 1872 saw the founding of the
Northwestern National Bank.
It com
menced with a capital of $200,000. The late
Dorilus Morrison was the first president.
In the centennial year of 1876 the Citizens
bank was added to the early list of Min
neapolis financial institutions. The Hen
nepin County Savings Bank was founded
in 1870, and the Farmers' and Mechanics'
Bank in 1874. The Security Bank of Min
nesota was organized in 1878 with a capital
of $300,000.
BANKING CENTERS.
At this period, now about thirty years ago,
the banking center of Minneapolis was at
Washington and Hennepin avenues. The
First National was at Nicollet and Wash
ington. J. K. Sidle was president, and H.
G. Sidle, cashier. Directly on the corner
of Hennepin and Washington were the Hen
nepin County Savings Bank and the Bank
of Minneapolis, the former officered by
Judge E. S. Jones as president and J. E.
Bell, cashier, and the latter headed by T. W.
Wilson. The City Bank was one block down
Hennepin, at Second street, and directly
back of it, 011 the Nicollet avenue front,
Valentine G. Hush conducted a private
bank, The old Merchants' National was
238
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
located just north of Hennepin avenue on
Washington, and the Security Bank was at
Third and Hennepin. The Northwestern
National was at First avenue south and
Washington, and the Farmers' and Mechan
ics' Savings Bank at Nicollet and Washing
ton. The only bank in the city outside oi
the immediate vicinity was the Citizens,'
which was at Washington and Fifth avenues
south. N. F. Griswold was its president
and George B. Shepherd its cashier.
During the next decade there was a de
cided tendency towards scattering. But
this movement was quickly followed by one
of concentration and nearly all the changes
of location of the last fifteen or twenty years
have been towards a new common center in
the general vicinity of First avenue south
and Fourth street.
Concurrently with this centralization of
the larger banking interests has developed
a group of neighborhood or outlying banks,
serving the needs of the smaller business
centers of the city which have come to large
commercial importance during the past
decade.
Another notable development of later
years has been the erection of permanent
banking buildings. When the banks of a
city abandon rented quarters and establish
themselves in substantial buildings of their
own, little need be said of the stability of
the institutions and the confidence of finan
cial circles in the future of the place. One
uT COLLECTION
R. J. MENDIONII ALL'S BANK,
Corner of First street and Hennepin avenue.
About 1870.
SWEET COLLECTION
OLD FIRST NATIONAL BANK.
of the first to build was the Farmers' and
Mechanics' Savings Bank. The Northwest
ern National erected in 1903 the finest bank
ing house west of Chicago. The Swedish
American occupies its own building and
the First National completed in 1907 one of
the most complete exclusive bank buildings
in the country. The Security National holds
permanent and especially constructed quar
ters in a building which bears its name. The
St. Anthony Falls Bank owns its own hand
some building and the German-American
has erected one of the most substantial and
architecturally beautiful banking houses in
the city.
THE CLEARING HOUSE.
In T88 O the Minneapolis Clearing House
Association was organized. Previous to
that time exchanges were effected through
messengers. With the organization of the
clearing house, Minneapolis banking affairs
were given a better footing, the clearings
were reported and the city was given its
place as one of the financial centers of the
west. In 1881 the clearings were $19,487,650. In 1883 they had reached $87,568,000,
and in 1885, $125,000,000.
The year 1890
found them at $303,000,000; 1895, $372,000,000; 1900, $579,000,000, and 1905, $913,000,000. In 1906 they reached $990,000,000, and
in 1907 passed the billion dollar mark with
a total of $1,145,462,149.
For many years the Clearing House
served its original purpose as a medium for
the daily exchanges, but it has gradually
assumed larger functions and within the
THE GROWTH OF BANKING
past ten years the clearing house banks of
the city have virtually become an associa
tion for mutual protection and public safety.
They employ their own special bank
examiner through whom they keep informed
•of the condition of all local financial institu
tions including their own membership; and
stand ready to act for the common good in
event of complications in a single institu
tion or general financial difficulty.
During the decade of 1880-90 banks mul
tiplied in Minneapolis as they did in all parts
of the country. Rut the enormous growth
of the city and its surrounding territory
made possible an expansion here which was
not without its evils. Too many banks were
started. Some of them were excellent in
stitutions and successfully weathered the
financial storms of the next decade, but
others were quite unnecessary and, managed
by men of little financial experience and bad
judgment, succumbed to the first squall of
the storm of '93. Of the banks organized
during the eighties which are still in exis
tence the most important are the Peoples
Bank, 1886, the Swedish American National,
1888, and the German-American, 1887. The
National Bank of Commerce, the Nicollet
National, the Metropolitan—all strong bank
ing houses in the eighties—were merged
into other banks during later years. More
239
pir"«
ft
FIRST BUILDING OF THE NORTHWESTERN NATIONAL
BANK.
Corner Washington and First avenue south. About 1880.
recently have been organized the St. An
thony Falls Bank, the Germania, the Min
nesota National, the East Side State Bank,
the Union State Bank and the Metropolitan.
R A N K S A N D C A P I T A L I N 1908.
A complete list of the banks of the city
at the present time, with their capital, fol
lows :
NATIONAL BANKS.
First
Minnesota
Northwestern
Security
Swedish American
$2, 000,000
200,000
2, 000,000
1,,000,000
500,000
STATE BANKS.
a, 1 f
—
/ r '•
j
t:*' M
•-vi.if:.
Fill] MlU-r
' TT
C
SWEET COLLECTION
OLD SECURITY BANK.
Corner Hennepin avenue and Third street.
Central
East Side
Germania
German-American
Hennepin County
Merchants' & Manufacturers'..
Metropolitan
People's
St. Anthony Falls
South Side
Union
Total capital
25,000
100,00c
50,000
100,00c
100,000
50,000
100,000
60,000
200, OOG
50,000
50,000
$6,585,000
This statement of banking capital as con
trasted with the $200,000 credited to the
Minneapolis banks forty years ago is sig
nificant. The development of banking facil
ities has been phenomenal. As late as 1870
the total capitalization of Minneapolis banks
240
A HALF CENTURY OF MINNEAPOLIS
ings banks, but did not include the deposits
of trust companies or funds in the hands
of private bankers.
INDIVIDUAL BANK HISTORY.
It. J. MEXDEXIIALL,
was given as $270,000. In 1880 it was re
ported as $2,434,800; in 1890, $7,905,000. Af
ter 1893 the total was considerably reduced,
but in 1900 was $4,835,000. In 1903 it had
advanced to $5,635,000, and at the close of
1907 to $6,585,000.
But this does not show the full capital
assets of the banks, for nearly all of them
carry heavy surplus accounts, aggregating
approximately $5,000,000, or fully eighty
per cent of the capital stock.
Deposits show a marvelous growth of
wealth in the city and the northwest. In
1866 the village was proud of a statement
of $493,000, aggregate deposits. In 1870 the
total had reached $850,000, but ten years
later, in 1880, the deposits amounted to
$4,264,000. By 1890 they had mounted up
to $27,752,000. This included savings bank
deposits of over $5,000,000. There was, of
course, a falling off after '93, but the recov
ery was rapid and by 1902 the totals had
reached fifty millions. The last statement
of 1907 showed totals of $79,327,666, which
included some $15,000,000 deposited in say
The individual history of the older banks
of the city is of much interest. The oldest
bank is the First National, which, as has
been stated, grew out of the business
founded by J. K. Sidle in 1857. This busi
ness became the Minneapolis Bank—a state
institution—and that in turn was succeeded
in 1864 by the First National, whose charter
number was 710. The first board of direc
tors consisted of J. K. Sidle, president; H.
G. Sidle, cashier; G. Scheitlin, Loren
Fletcher, E. B. Ames, D. C. Bell, E. A.
Veazie, Anthony Kelly and W. A. Penniman. John Martin was added to the board
in 1866. At the start the capital of the First
National was $50,000, but it was raised to
$100,000 in 1872, to $200,000 in 1874, to
$600,000 in 1877, t o $1,000,oco in 1885, and
to $2,000,000 in 1903. The present officers
are F. M. Prince, president; C. T. Jaffray,
vice-president; George F. Orde, cashier;
and D. Mackerchar, E. C. Brown and H. A.
Willoughby, assistant cashiers. The capital
is $2,000,000; the surplus $2,000,000 and the
deposits $14,600,000.
The Northwestern National Bank was or
ganized April 23, 1872, by Dorilus Morri
son, H. T. Welles, Anthony Kelly, Paris
Gibson, F. S. Gibson, C. G. Goodrich, E.
A. Harmon, Hon. William Windom, S. E.
Neiler, A. H. Barney of New York, C. B.
Wright and William G. Moorhead of Phila
delphia. The authorized capital was $200,000. Dorilus Morrison was elected pres
ident and S. E. Neiler cashier. The bank
was opened for business on September 21,
1872, with $183,000 paid up capital, and
deposits of $80,651. Later H. T. Welles be
came president and S. A. Harris cashier, and
the capital was increased to $1,000,000. Af
ter several changes in the course of years,
Wm. H. Dunwoody became president, M.
B. Koon, vice-president; Edward W.
Decker, vice-president and active manager;
Joseph Chapman, Jr., cashier, and Frank E.
Holton, Charles W. Farwell and R. E. MacGregor, assistant cashiers.
Under this
THE GROWTH OF BANKING
management the bank made rapid advances,
and on May 14, 1908, its statement showed
a surplus of $1,000,000, undivided profits
of $321,000, and deposits of over $12,000,000.
In June the Northwestern absorbed the
National Bank of Commerce, consolidating
the business of the two banks and shortly
afterwards increased its capital stock to
$2,000,000 and its surplus to $2,000,000,
241
Powell, cashier. In 1888 J. W. Raymond
was elected president and the capital in
creased to $1,000,000. The next year H. H.
Thayer was elected cashier. These officers
managed the bank until 1892, at which time
Mr. Raymond retired to become president
of the Northwestern and S. A. Harris, who
had formerly been associated with the
Northwestern, was elected president. In
• NORTHwE
—''ml*-,
->
«
. -,
-\
!
A.
THE NORTHWESTERN NATIONAL BANK BUILDING.
(Kees & Colburn, Architects.)
while the deposits of the enlarged institu
tion reached approximately $20,000,000.
The officers of the bank remained the same
except that Mr. Chapman became a vicepresident and Mr. Holton the cashier, while
A. A. Crane, vice-president of the Bank of
Commerce, and W. F. McLane, S. S. Cook,
and I. F. Cotton, assistant cashiers, as
sumed the same positions in the North
western.
The National Bank of Commerce had
been organized in 1884 with a capital of
$400,000. The first officers were E. F. Gould,
president; V. G. Hush, vice-president; Wm.
January, 1895, A. A. Crane was elected as
sistant cashier and in January, 1900, became
its cashier. The officers at the time the
bank retired from business were: S. A.
Harris, president; A. A. Crane, vice-president; F. E. Kenaston, vice-president; W.
S. Harris, cashier; W. F. McLane, S. S.
Cook and I. F. Cotton, assistant cashiers.
The origin of the Security National Bank
has already been traced from the State Bank
of Minnesota, brought from Austin to Min
neapolis in 1863 by R. J. Mendenhall and
Rufus J. Baldwin. T. A. Harrison came
into the bank in 1868, and in 1878 the
242
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
Security Bank of Minnesota was organized
and the business of the State Bank was
transferred to the new institution. The
capital was $300,000, and T. A. Harrison
was president, his brother, H. G. Harrison,
the vice-president, and Joseph Dean, cash
ier. The board of directors included these
officers and Judge C. E. Vanderburgh,
Judge Franklin Beebe, Judge J. M. Shaw
and W. W. McNair. The bank commenced
business in the building at Third street and
Hennepin avenue, now occupied by the
Western Union Telegraph Company. In
1879 the capital was increased to $400,000,
and in 1880 to $1,000,000. The death of Mr.
T. A. Harrison in 1877 and of his brother
in 1891 removed the founders of the bank,
but their policies were continued by F. A.
Chamberlain, who became president, and
Perry Harrison, a son of Hugh G. Harrison,
who became cashier and subsequently vicepresident. In 1908 the Security became a
national bank. The statement of July, 1908,
showed capital $1,000,000, surplus $1,000,000, and deposits of $13,427,702. The offi
cers are now: F. A. Chamberlain, presi
dent ; Perry Harrison, vice-president; E. F.
Mearkle, vice-president; J. S. Pomeroy,
cashier; Fred Spafford, George Lawther,
S. H. Bezoier, assistant cashiers.
The Swedish-American National Bank
was organized as the Swedish American
Bank in 1888, and began business with a
capital of $100,000. O. N. Ostrom, formerly
a banker at Evansville, Minnesota, was
president; Col. Hans Mattson, secretary of
state for Minnesota, the vice-president; and
N. O. Werner, formerly of Red Wing,
cashier. It gained a foothold at once, and
its growth was rapid and substantial, neces
sitating in two years an increase in capital
to $250,000. Mr. Mattson resigned the vicepresidency about this time and was suc
ceeded by C. S. Hulbert, who has since held
the position. I11 1893 occurred the death of
President Ostrom. Mr. Werner succeeded
him. In 1894 the bank was reorganized un
der a national charter. The capital of the
bank was again increased in July, 1905, to
$500,000.
The surplus and profits are
$400,000, and the deposits about $3,200,000.
The present officers are N. O. Werner,
president; C. S. Hulbert, vice-president; J.
A. Latta, vice-president; E. L. Mattson,
cashier; and A. V. Ostrom, assistant cashier.
The Hennepin County Savings Bank was
organized in 1870 by the late Judge E. S.
Jones and J. E. Bell, they being respectively
president and cashier. The capital was at
first $50,000, but was increased to $100,000
within a few years. Both a savings and a
general banking business have been done
and the bank has been very successful. Af
ter many years location at the corner of
Washington and Hennepin avenues, the
bank moved to the Phoenix building at
Fourth street and First avenue south. The
bank now shows a surplus of $100,000 and
deposits of $4,000,000, and the officers are
as follows: John E. Bell, president; David
P. Jones, vice-president; W. H. Lee,
cashier, and H. H. Barber, assistant cashier.
These with F. A. Chamberlain, David C.
Bell, F. M. Prince, and Andrew Tharalson
are the trustees.
The Farmers' & Mechanics' Savings Bank
of Minneapolis was formed in 1874. Eder
H. Moulton was its treasurer and manager
at the outset and for many years, building
it up from nothing to the position of the
largest savings bank in the Northwest. Its
board of trustees has always included a
group of the strongest business men of the
city. For many years Clinton Morrison was
president. In 1905 Mr. Moulton's outside
business interests led him to withdraw from
the management of the bank and N. F.
Hawley was elected treasurer, and has
since served the bank as its executive offi
cer. The deposits are now about $11,500,000, and the officers are: John DeLaittre,
president; Thomas Lowry, vice-president;
O. C. Wyman, second vice-president and
assistant treasurer; N.' F. Hawley, secretary
and treasurer. The officers with H. C. Akeley, T. B. Janney, C. S. Langdon, E. H.
Moulton, Wm. G. Northup, A. F. Pillsbury,
and John* Washburn constitute the board of
trustees.
The German-American Bank was or
ganized in 1886 at Plymouth and North
Washington avenues by Anthony Kelly, A.
H. Linton, Henry Gund, John Heinrich,
Edmund Eichhorn, R. B. Langdon, J.
THE GROWTH OF BANKING
M. Griffith, E. C. Chatfield, Charles Gluek,
J. A. Schlener, Henry Doerr, Jas. C. Miller,
Henry Winecke, George Huhn, Geo. W.
McClelland, Robert Pratt and J. C. Oswald,
and with a capital of $50,000. On the first
of January, 1886, the deposits were only
$36,000, but from this they have grown to
about $1,850,000. The present capital is
$100,000, and the surplus is also $100,000.
The present officers are: Francis A. Gross,
president; Chas. Gluek, vice-president; J.
243
came its cashier. Its capital is $50,000,
with as much more in surplus and undivid
ed profits accounts, while its deposits are
over $400,000. Its officers are: F. E. Kenaston, president; A. M. Woodward, vicepresident; Conrad Birkhofer, vice-presi
dent; A. A. McRae, cashier; Olaf E. N.
Olson, assistant cashier.
The Peoples Bank dates back to 1886,
when it was founded by A. D. Cotton. It
was reorganized some time later, and for
T H E F I R S T NATIONAL B A N K BUILDING.
M. Griffith, vice-president; G. E. Stegner,
cashier; G. P. Huhn, assistant cashier.
The Germania Bank was organized by
Otto E. Naegele in 1893. It has been very
successful, and in addition to its capital of
$50,000, has a surplus fund approximating
that amount and deposits reaching up
wards of half a million. The present offi
cers are: O. E. Naegele, president; L.
Paulle, vice-president; J. J. Heinrich, vicepresident; George Vollmer, assistant cash
ier.
The South Side State Bank was orga
nized in 1899 by A. A. McRea, who be-
many years has been doing a prosperous
business at the old quarters of the First Na
tional, corner Nicollet and Washington
avenues. Its capital is $60,000, and its de
posits are over $400,000. The officers are:
H. G. Merritt, president; G. J. Sherer, vicepresident; C. L. Grandin, vice-president;
C. E. Cotton, cashier; H. D. Davis, assist
ant cashier.
Two of the more recent banks of the city
are the East Side and the Metropolitan.
The former was organized in 1906, with F.
E. Barney as president and Howard Dykman as cashier. The bank has made rapid
244
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
progress. Its capital is $100,000 and de
posits run well over $200,000. The officers
are: F. E. Barney, president; Isaac Hazlett, vice-president; D. L. Case, cashier;
C. L. Campbell, assistant cashier. The Met
ropolitan was incorporated in April, 1907,
with a capital of $100,000, and George C.
Merrill as president. In a year's time it
was carrying deposits of approximately
twice the amount of its capital. The offi
cers are now: V. H. Van Slyke, president:
M. R. Waters, vice-president; C. F. Wyant, cashier.
TRUST COMPANIES.
In 1883 the business of trust companies
was commenced in Minneapolis by the Min
nesota Loan & Trust Company, which was
formed by E. A. Merrill and E. J. Phelps,
the former being president and the latter
secretary. The capital stock was first $200,000, but was soon increased to $500,000.
The company erected "a fine office building
at 313 Nicollet avenue, which it still occu
pies. It has been very prosperous, and now
shows a surplus account of some $250,000.
The officers are: E. A. Merrill, president;
M. B. Koon, vice-president and trust offi
cer; A. M. Keith, vice-president; H. L.
Moore, treasurer; W. A. Durst, secretary.
The Minneapolis Trust Company was
formed in 1888 by Samuel Hill, who was
its first president, with Clarkson Lindley
as secretary and treasurer. Its capital is
$500,000, with $25.0,000 in the surplus ac
count. For years the company occupied its
building at Fourth street and Hennepin
avenue, but in 1907 moved into the new
First National Bank building, occupying
the banking room No. 109 South Fifth
street. The present officers are: Elbridge
C. Cooke, president; W111. H. Dunwoody,
vice-president; Robert W. Webb, secretary
and treasurer.
BARNEY, Fred Elisha, president of the East
Side State Bank, of Minneapolis, was born at
Swanton, Vermont, October 10, 1859, the son of
Valentine G. and Maria L. Barney. The father
was in the marble business in Vermont; served
in the Civil War and was Lieutenant-Colonel of
the Ninth regiment of Vermont volunteers. In
1869 the family left Swanton and moved to Min
neapolis and, in 1872, moved to Charles City,
Iowa. In the autumn of 1881 he came back
to Minneapolis to work in the Commercial Bank,
East Minneapolis, having had business training
in an abstract and loan office in Charles City,
Iowa, where he attended the public schools. Dur
ing the last two years of service in the Commer
cial Bank, Mr. Barney was assistant cashier.
Since March, 1888, he has conducted an insurance,
loan and real estate agency in Minneapolis repre
senting five important insurance companies. He
was active in the organization of the East Side
State Bank, in 1906, and became its president. He
has always been a republican in politics and was
elected, in 1 9 0 0 , a member of the board of county
commissioners and served four years, in 1903-4
being chairman of the board. He is a member of
the Commercial Club, and is a director and has
been a member of the public affairs committee;
a member of St. Anthony Club and a director; a
member and director of the Minneapolis Whist
Club; a member of the Masonic order and of the
Sbriners. Mr. Barney attends the First Congre
gational church, but is not a member of any
church. He was married September 17, 1885, to
Mary Case, of Charles City, Iowa, and to them
three children ' have been born—Hadwen C.,
Elizabeth and Mary, all of whom are attending
the East Minneapolis high school.
CHAMBERLAIN, Francis A., president of
the Security National Bank, was born April 20,
1855, at Bangor, Maine, son of James T. Cham
berlain, a merchant of that city. Mr. Chamber
lain passed his early years at Red Wing, Minne
sota, where he attended the public schools and
subsequently studied two years at the State Uni
versity but did not graduate. His business train
ing was early devoted to banking and finance for
which he proved himself admirably adapted, nota
bly because such special knowledge rested upon
a broad substructure of good general busi
ness principles. Mr. Chamberlain has shown
himself to be a wise financial counselor, and the
Security National Bank, under his management,
has proved itself to be one of the strongest bank
ing institutions in. the Northwest. He is an
example of steadfast adherence to economic and
financial truth. Mr. Chamberlain is a director
of the Minneapolis Athenaeum and a member
of the Minneapolis and Commercial clubs. His
church affiliations are with the Methodist Episco
pal denomination. He was married on May 23,
1883 to Frances Foss, daughter of Bishop Cyrus
D. Foss. They have three children—Cyrus, Ruth
and Caro.
CAMPBELL, Wallace, lawyer and banker,
was born at Waverly, Tioga county, New
York, September 8, 1863. He is the son of
Solomon C. Campbell and Mary Aurelia (Farwell) Campbell. His father was, for twenty-two
years, resident buyer at New York City for the
246
A HALF CENTURY O F MINNEAPOLIS
Chicago house of J. V. Farwell & Co. There
was stanch Scotch-American ancestry on both
sides. Campbellstown, New York, was founded
by Robert Campbell, great-grandfather of Wal
lace. On the maternal side another great
grandfather, John Knox, founded Knoxville,
now part of the city of Corning, New York.
Wallace Campbell was educated in the public
schools of Corning and at Hamilton College,
from which he graduated in 1883, as an A. B.
After a year of alternate teaching in the Brooklyn
Polytechnic and of study at Columbia Law
School, he was admitted to the New York Bar,
beginning practice in the Hon. R. W. Todd's of
fice. Two years later he came to Minneapolis
where he became a member of the law firm of
Stryker & Campbell until 1891, when he entered
the firm of Hill Sons & Co., bankers. Seven
years later he gave, up his interests here to be
vice-president of the Northwestern Life Insur
ance Co. Mr. Campbell later became president
of the People's Bank. He has also occupied
other positions of trust and responsibility in
business and professional ways. He is an ar
dent republican, stumped the state in the Harri
son campaign of 1888, and has been a frequent
contributor to the best magazines of the country,
writing upon national topics with force and ease.
He is an enthusiast on rare books—also upon out
door sports; and a first edition has the same
charm of the cha,se for him that the first trout
catch has. Mr. Campbell belongs to the Minne
apolis Club, the Minneapolis Commercial Club and
the Twin City Bankers Club and the Automobile
and Miltona Clubs. At Lake Miltona he has a
country home.
He attends the Presbyterian
church. He was married in 1886 to Minnie V,
Adams, of Chicago, and has two daughters.
CHAPMAN, Joseph, Jr., vice president of the
Northwestern National Bank, is a native of Iowa.
He was born in Dubuque on October 17, 1871.
He is the son of Joseph and Catherine Cassidy
Chapman. His father for many years has been
connected with the railroad business and at the
time of his son's birth was division freight agent
of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railroad
with headquarters at Dubuque. At the present
time he is located at Fairport, Ohio, as manager
of the terminal? of the Baltimore &" Ohio'road.
The son attended the public schools of Dubuque
until 1887, wfien the family moved from Iowa to
this city. He at once entered the Central high
school to finish his preparatory course and grad
uated the following year. Upon graduation Mr.
Chapman obtained a position with the Northwest
ern National Bank and has since been continu
ously connected with that institution. He ad
vanced rapidly from one position to another and.
was appointed cashier several years ago. As an
aid to his business training Mr. Chapman took
the night law course of the University of Min
nesota and graduated in 1897. Mr. Chapman is
a member of several of the social and municipal
improvement organizations of the city and is
well-known among his associate business men.
He is a member of the Minneapo