Allegan County, Michigan - Chapter 5: Centers of Population, 1907 (part 1 of 14)

Chapter 5: Centers of Population

The organization of the townships, elsewhere described was an artificial process, following the geoiftetrical lines of the government survey. But the grouping of population and the formation of village centers are the result usually of natural growth. In the following pages it is our purpose to continue the story of settlement and growth with special reference to the grouping of people into communities and villages.

It is easy to indicate in a general way the heginnings of such a community. A fertile and arable region receives a large proportion of the immigration. Assuming that they are pioneers, it will be almost a necessity that most of them till the soil, even though combining that with another occupation. Or if a timbered region, those engaged in the lumber industry would also be subject to the centralizing influences. If the settlement was on a much traveled thoroughfare, one or perhaps more of the pioneer houses would be opened for the entertainment of the transient public. On the banks of a stream some one constructs a saw or grist mill. At some convenient and central point, a settler with commercial instincts will open a stock of goods such as will supply the other settlers and immigrants. A postoffice comes next, the postmaster being very likely the merchant or tavern-keeper. A physician, looking for a location, is pleased with the conditions and occupies a cabin near the store or inn. A carpenter or other mechanic is more accessible to his patronage if he lives near the postoffice or other common gathering point. If the schoolhouse of the district has not already been built, it is probable that it will be placed at the increasingly centra! site. And the first church is a natural addition. Already this nucleus of settlement is a village in embryo, and in the natural course of development a variety of enterprises will center there, the mechanical, the manufacturing, the commercial an<l professional departments of human labor will be grouped together for the purpose of efficiency and convenience. By such accretions of population, by diversification of industry, by natural advantages of location and the improvement of means of transportation, this community in time becomes organized as a village, and with continued prosperity, as a city.

Sometimes the development is arrested at a particular stage. The village remains a village, the hamlet ceases to grow, and we have a center of population without .special business, industrial or civic development. Then there are instances in this county of retrogression. A locality that could once be dignified with the name of village has disintegrated under the stress of rivalry from other centers or other causes, and is now little more than a place and a name.

Specific illustrations of all these processes are to be found in the history of the centers in Allegan coimty. But in general it may be stated that during the early years, when communication was primitive and isolation quite complete even between localities separated by a few miles, the tendency was toward centralization in numerous small hamlets and villages. But in keeping with the economic development for which the past century was noted, and especially because of the improvement of all forms of transportation, the barriers against easy communication with all parts of the county were thrown down, and the best situated centers grew and flourished at the expense of the smaller centers, which gradually dwindled into comparative insignificance. Nothing has done more to accelerate this movement than the establishment of rural free delivery. The postoifice was the central point of community life, and remoteness from its privileges was a severe drawback. Rural delivery has made every home a postoffice, puts each home in daily contact With the world, and while it is destroying provincialism and isolation, it is effecting a wholesome distribution of population, rather than crowding into small villages. And the very recent introduction into Michigan of the system of public transportation of school children to and from school, will remove another powerful incentive to village life. When weak districts may be consolidated and a large, well graded and modern union school be provided convenient and accessible to every child in the enlarged school area, families will no longer find it necessary "to move to town in order to educate their children."

These are the principal considerations that should be understood before we enter on the description of the various centers which Allegan county has produced in three-quarters of a century of growth.

Saugatuck village was an outgrowth of the settlement and the industries about the mouth of the river which have been described in connection with the early history of that vicinity. Its history illustrates very well the process of village formation described at the beginning of this chapter. In the case of every village whose existence has continued on a permanent basis there is to be found a reason why people have grouped themselves at that point. The trading, the lumbering, the shipping, and lastly the fruit interests have been at the basis of Saugatuck's growth and prosperity, and the village has declined and advanced abreast of these interests.

William C. Butler was evidently a man of considerable sagacity and foresight, and understood some of the important factors that make a village. Barring rivals in the vicinity, the site and the conditions of trade and industry gave fair prophecy of the building of a considerable mart on the Kalamazoo lake. It is true that the Nichols warehouse and store at the mouth of the river and the enterprising village of .Singapore almost destroyed Saugatuck's prestige for a number of years, but in time the advantages of the location, the enterprise of its inhabitants, or the establishment

In 1833, before he was joined by any other settlers. Butter had a village plat laid off on the land he had bought. This plat was recorded in the register's office of Kalamazoo county, where was located the county seat for the still unorganized Allegan county, on July 17, 1834.* In the meantime, however, Butler had sold an interest in the village to Henry Hoffman, of Niles; Jasper Mason, of St. Joseph, and John Griffith, of New York, after whom three of the principal streets were named. The name given to the village was Kalamazoo, and it was popularly called such for thirtyfive years. It was entitled to the name by sole possession until 1836, for up to that time the county seat of Kalamazoo county had been known as Bronson, in honor of its founder, Titus Eronson; but in 1836 the legislature changed the name to Kalamazoo, and thereafter tlie little village at the mouth of the river had no official title to that name. In 1835 a postoffice was established upon the application of R. R. Crosby, the tanner, whose commission as first postmaster bore date August 4, 1835. The postoffice was never known as Kalamazoo by the postal department. Mr. Crosby, being familiar with the Indian name "Saugatuck," meaning mouth of the river, suggested that as the name of the postoffice and it was accepted by the department. When the village was incorporated in 1868 this name was given to the village corporation.

During the latter thirties Singapore overshadowed Saugatuck as a commercial center. At one time it is said that the place was almost abandoned of all inhabitants except S. A. Morrison and family. A number of Indians dwelt in or about the village throughout its early career. There was little or no centering of the trade interests of the vicinity until the fifties, and the residents on the village plat usually bought their goods at the Nichols' store or at Singapore. Wayne Coats opened a drug store in 1849, S. D. Nichols established a store in 1851, Wells & Johnson, mill proprietors, started a general store in 1854, and thenceforward the village was on a permanent trade basis. The merchants in 1865 were John fhirn,';. S. A. Morrison, E. W. Phillips, R. F. Kleeman and H. D. Moore, and there were also two sawmills, a pail-stave factory, a shingle mill, and two hotels.

Though Saugatuck now has nearly as good mail facilities as any village in the county, the oldest residents can refer to a time when postal communication with the outside world was extremely irregular. For some time after the establishment of the postoffice mail came down the river from Allegan according as means could be found to convey it. Beginning with 1840, when Samuel Morrison was appointed first carrier, there was established a mail route between Saugatuck and Allegan. When the railroad came through New Richmond, the mail was brought overland from that point. There were two stages a day between these points, and old residents say they were very regular and made mail facilities hardly less than those today. When cars began running over the Holland-Saugatuck interurban in i8g6, the village was given regular mail service by way of Holland.

1893-4 and put in the first 'phones in the village, the first instrnment being stiil in use in Mr. C. E. Bird's house. This company now has five exchanges - Douglas, FennvtUe, Saugatuck, Glenn and Ganges, and connecting with the exchange at Holland, to which point a line was extended in 1896.

With the decline of Singapore and the increase of industry and trade at Saugatuck, the latter assumed a corporate activity and became to a large degree distinct from its adjacent territory. The board of supervisors, according to the law at the time, incorporated Saugatuck village in 1868. At the legislative session of 1869-70 the village was reincorporated. The charter was amended in 1893, and in 1895 the village came under the provisions of the blanket charter now governing all villages of Michigan.

The first village election was held in March, 1868, and those chosen to direct the affairs of the village the first year were ; H. B. Moore, president ; Hiram R. Ellis, clerk ; Diodet Rogers, treasurer ; R. B. Newnham, marshal, and George E. Dunn, James Hibbodine, Solomon Stanton, Warren Cook, S. A, Morrison and Samuel Johnson, trustees. The principal officers down to the present time are given in the official lists. Of the first officers only R. B. Newnham is still living.

Since incorporation many village improvements have taken place. Several costly fires have visited the village, and during the seventies the villagers began adding fire protection. A hook and ladder equipment, purchased in 1871, was the nucleus. Two hundred fire buckets were shortly added. In 1873 a Babcock extinguisher was bought and a fire company of thirty members organized, James M. Pond becoming chief engineer and A, H. Gardner first assistant.

In 1903 the citizens voted to bond the village for $8,000, later voting an additional $3,000, and with $3,000 in the treasury a waterworks system was installed that for pressure, efficiency and economy is not surpassed anywhere in the state, so the citizens claim. The system has cost to the present time, about $14,000.

The waterworks at Saugatuck were put in operation in 1904. A reservoir 38 feet in diameter and I2j^ feet deep was constructed at a height of 180 feet above the river on Lone Pine Hill. It is fed from tubular wells driven into the sand, and equipment consists of two sets of engines and pumps. The mains are laid to the village twenty-one feet beneath the river surface. The mains are now laid in circuit around the village and branches are being extended gradually to all residence and business sections. The pressure is now about 75 pounds to the inch.

Fire protection since the establishment of the waterworks has become first class, shown by a reduction of 10 cents on the $100 of insurance rates for residence property. Saugatuck Hose Company No. i is now depended upon for protection, though the village still owns an engine and pumps used under the previous system. Homer Adams is now chief engineer.

The village hall, near the south end of Butler street, which has stood since the seventies, contains the council rooms and quarters for fire apparatus.

Of the business men of the village, Mr. A. B. Taylor, the banker; Mr. C. E. Bird, who went into the drug business thirty years ago ; Jacob Metzger, C. Walz and Fritz Walz, meat market ; H, Schnoble, hardware ; J. A. Aiiber, grocer ; John Schaberg, grocer ; Sam Reed, Blacksmith, are to be mentioned as the oldest of those still in business. A. H. Stilson, Fred Palmer, H. W. Smith, John Loomis, Joseph Randall, now the ferryman, John Wheeler, who are now living in and about Saugatuck, were all residents when J. K. Dole came here in 1856,

A tavern at the month of the river, kept by Moses Nichols, and the hospitable home of S. A. Morrison in Saugatuck village, were the only places of public entertainment in the year 1840. It is indeed a far cry from that condition to the present when Saugatuck and vicinity has become one of the popular summer retreats on the Lake Michigan east shore. The pioneers of the Saugatuck region could not have foretold this phase of Saugatuck's future. The summer resort is a development of the modem age, as characteristic of it as the log house was of the pioneer epoch. It marks the reaction from the extreme concentration of society which has produced the cities; it is made possible by better facilities of transportation. Thus the same influence which in earlier years tended to concentrate population, now, in its higher development, diffuses society and enables people to enjoy the benefits of organization without the close crowding made necessary in cities.

Saugatuck's popularity as a summer resort dates from the completion of the intenirban line from Holland in 1896. The possibilities of the situation had been recognized before that date, and the electric line was the result of the movement to develop the resort feature and to afford a commercial outlet for the village. Some cottages had been built along the lake shore about Douglas and Saugatuck in the early nineties. These villages were then reached by daily stage from New Richmond, but as long as direct rail communication could not be had the beauties of the Saugatuck region were within the avail of few.

In the past ten years Saugatuck has become known far beyond the limits of the county. Eligible locations that a few years ago could have been bought at little advance over general land values are now held at "resort" prices and most of the land is now held in small lots either by individual owners or by associations. Each year finds a larger number of visitors in this vicinity, and the impetus given to the village can be seen in many ways. The merchants regulate their business to accommodate the summer increase. The intenirban doubles its service in the summer, and many summer hotels and boarding houses are conducted during the season. With the opening of the new harbor and its improvement by dredging and adding docking facilities, both passenger and freight transportation will increase and, it is believed, restore much of the old-time prestige of this vicinity. During the summer of 1906 the passenger steamer "City of Kalamazoo" began plying between this port and Chicago, though the river has not been sufficiently dredged to allow safe and ready passage of large boats.

Largely through the efforts of Congressman Hamilton of this district an appropriation was obtained to open a new channel from the north bend of the river to the lake and the work of cutting the channel and constructing new piers proceeded rapidly during 1905 and was completed in the following spring. The hydraulic dredge finished the cutting on May 18, 1906, the Commercial Record^ of Saugatuck, speaks of the occasion as follows :

"The yacht Green Devil was first to go through the new cut, the party on board consisting of Capt. Henry Perkins, L. E. Veits, Dr. G. H. Perrin, Charles Parrish, J. F. Davis, C. O. Hauke, Clarence Wade, Chas. Converse, George Hames, Carl Bird, H. M. Bird, D. F. Litdwig. The appropriation of $250,000 for the harbor work will have been exhausted (except $9,000) when the present contract is completed, after which it will be necessary to get an extra appropriation from congress if any rev£tments are built or if the river from the Twin Cities to the mouth is dredged out.

One of Chicago's important charitable movements has large real estate interests about Saugatuck and hitherto this has been the headquarters of its summer settlement work. The organization which is known as the "Forward Movement Settlement," now owns clear of debt the Forward Movement Park of 130 acres along the lake shore at Saugatuck, with a hotel known as "Swift Cottage," an auditorium, the Vesta Putnam Summer Schools of five buildings for crippled children, other cottages and tents, a water and light system, and bouievarded roadways, all being valued at $30,- 000. In Chicago it has a substantial settlement house and kindergarten cottage and playground on a lot 95 by 187 feet at 305 West Van Buren street.

The strength of the association has been concentrated upon the summer outing work, which is the most extensive of any organization in or about Chicago. The park at Saugatuck has been open to the poor for a period of eight years. During the last summer the association gave outings of two weeks or move to more than i.ooo individuals.

A class of ninety crippled children from the Chicago public schools passed a month's vacation in the Nature Study Summer School, which is equipped thoroughly with sieeping, dining and laundry accommodations, in addition to a spacious school hall, furnished by Dr. McFatrich. They were followed by thirty deaf children from the schools who were accompanied by their teachers, spending two weeks.

Special groups from the Oak Park Y. M. C. A. and the West Side Y. M. C. A. juniors took their vacation in tents, receiving their meals in Swift cottage, a small hotel erected by Mrs. Anna M. Swift. The choirs of the First Congregational Church and of the Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul also were entertained, and families sent out by Hull House and the associated charities were guests.

A total of 40,000 meals were served at Swift Cottage during the months of July and August. Dr. Miller and Miss Dix have cottages on the grotmds, and thirty sanitary tents provide for guests not finding room in the dormitory of Swift Cottage.

The need of an assembly hall for entertainments and meetings was met by the gift of Henry C. Lytton, of Chicago, who completed a handsome structure seating 500 and with an exterior porch overlooking the lake.

The early settlement on the village site and the location of milling and other business there has already been described. The village plat laid out on section i6 by Jonathan Wade about 1851 existed for some years under the name of Dudleyville. A second plat was laid out just north of Wade's by William F, Dutcher and named Douglas. These names continued in familiar use until 1870, when the inhabitants had'increased in number and built up business to the point where they desired village incorporation. The board of supervisors incorporated the village of Douglas October 14, 1870. At the first election, held December 5, 1870, forty-one votes were cast, and the following were constituted the first set of officers to direct the village corporation : President, C. A. Ensign ; clerk, D. C. Putnam ; treasurer, Crawford McDonald; trustees, M. B. Spencer, Homer Manvil, D. W. Wiley, Thomas Gray, D. Gerber, T. B. Dutcher,

In the sixties a business community began forming around the miils. Wilham Bush had the first store, and Jonathan Wade built the Douglas House, With the growth of the fruit industry, Douglas became an important shipping point and remains so today. A postoffice was established there in 1868, with D. C. Putnam as postmaster, an office he held a number of years.

In 1872 there were two general merchants, D. C. Putnam and Thomas Gray. The lumber trade was still important, from the fact that Thomas Gray, R. M. Moore, R. S, Close were engaged in that business. John S. Payne had a grist mill ; D, Gerber & Son still conducted the tannery started in the early sixties and later owned by Wallin & Sons. W, T. Hoy and David McLean were the local physicians, the latter having located there in 1864 and also having a stock of drugs. A vinegar factory was located on the point by the bridge. The first lawyer was W. A. Woodworth, who came in 1876,

During the seventies the manufacture of fruit baskets and cases began, an industry that has grown until it is now the most important in the village. Of the early business men several remain, among them D. M. Gerber and the Dutchers. The McDonalds are leading merchants.

Population in Douglas, as in Saugatuck, began to decrease following the decline of lumbering in the seventies. The census of 1880 gave 522 ; for 1890, 404; and for 1900, 444. The village as well as the surrounding country is now showing increase, not so much in population as general prosperity, rising property values and better conditions of living. What has been said with respect to Saugatuck as a summer resort pertains of course to Douglas, since all the country between the two villages and the lake shore is now largely in the hands of resorters or devoted to that business.

Hon, D, W. Wiley is a representative of the agricultural and horticultural interests in Saugatuck township, following only the most modern and scientific methods in carrying on his business interests. He was born in Columbiana county, Ohio, June 27, 1837, a son of Nicholas and Martha A. (Davis) Wiley, who came to Michigan from the Buckeye state in 1852. the family home being established near Kalamazoo, where the father purchased eighty acres of land, and carried on farming pursuits for several years, subsequent to which time he took up his abode in Barry county, this state, and there spent his remaining days, Iiis death occurring in 1895, when he had reached the very advanced age of eighty-three years. In the family of this worthy couple were seven children but the subject of this review is the only one living in Allegan county.

D. W. Wiley was reared in his native state to the age of fifteen years, when, in 1852, he accompanied his parents on their removal to this state. He acquired his education in the district schools near his father's home, thus fitting himself for the responsible duties of life which he entered upon when starting out in life upon an independent business career. He remained with his father, assisting him in the work of carrying on the homestead property until i860, at which time he started out in life for himself, being then a young man of twenty-nine years. Upon his arrival in this county he purchased a half interest in one hundred acres of land, his partner being B, S. Williams, of Kalamazoo. In 1867 they set out a fruit orchard, devoting forty acres of the tract to the cultivation of peaches, and they also set out about three acres to grapes, raising the Concord, Delaware, Ives, Hartford, Diana and lona varieties. In 1874 they shipped fifteen thousand baskets of peaches from their farm, and in their work met with creditable success. After a few^ears Mr, Wiley disposed of his interest to his partner and then purchased hts present farm, comprising eighty acres, and with the exception of a period of a few years spent in Kalamazoo, Mr. Wiley has since made his home on his farm to the present time. This property is devoted principally to the raising of fruit, of which fifteen acres are devoted to peaches, while on the place there are fifteen hundred pear trees, four hundred plum trees, two hundred and fifty apple trees, two hundred cherry trees, two acres of strawberries, two acres of blackberries, three-fourths of an acre of raspberries, and a half acre each of currants and gooseberries, while the remainder of the place is devoted to general agricultural pufsuits, and in his work he follows practical and progressive methods, which always produce the best results.

Mr. Wiley, although leading an active and busy life, has also found time for public affairs, and in 1874-75 he served as representative in the state legislature, which position he filled to the entire satisfaction of his constituents, being elected to the ofiice by the popular vote of his many friends regardless of party afiliHation. During his term of office he served on a number of important committees. He was the first president of the village of Douglas and for a number of years has served as school director, the cause of public education finding in him a stalwart friend. In 1870 he was chosen president of the Agricultural and Pomological Society, in which office he is now the present incumbent. Fraternally he holds membership relations with Dutcher Lodge No. 193, F. & A. M.

As a companion and helpmate for life's journey Mr. Wiley chose Miss Lucy A. Hall, who was born in New York, and their union has been blessed with four sons, of whom two now survive, Frank E., a farmer of Allegan county; Oscar D., a resident of Chicago ; Burton O,, who has passed away, and Homer D., also deceased. Mr. Wiley is indeed a self-made man, for, starting out in life empty-handed he has worked his way steadily upward from the bottom round of the ladder until he has now reached the topmost round, having in the meantime accumulated a good property and a handsome competence that now supplies him in the evening of his days with all of the comforts and many of the luxuries of hfe. Having spent the greater part of his life in Michigan, thirty years of which have been spent in Allegan county, he has here a wide and favorable acquaintance and is a highly respected citizen of the community, where he is known for his reliability and straightforward methods in every relation of life.

John Keen, a native of Holland, has been a resident of America since 1882 and with the exception of the first year has been continuously identified with agricultural and horticultural pursuits in Saugatuck township, Allegan county, where a good property is proof of his life of industry and thrift. Mr. Keen was born in 1857, a son of George and Jennie (Newbanning) Keen, both of whom were natives of Holland, where they spent their entire lives. Reared and educated in his native country, John Keen, when a young man of twenty-five years, crossed the Atlantic, attracted by the opportunities of the new world for business advancement. This was in 1882. The same year, soon after his arrival in this country, he was married to Miss Sarah Hoffmyer, a native of Germany. The following year he located on his present farm, purchasing forty acres, to which he has since added as his financial resources have increased, until he is now the owner of a good tract of eighty acres. It required hard, earnest and constant toil for him to convert the first forty acres into productive fields and orchards, for the land was originally covered with timber. He cut down the trees, cleared away the brush and stumps and continued the work of developing the farm until it is now a good property, bringing forth good crops of fruit and grain. He has set out one hundred peach trees, three hundred cherry trees, twenty fine apple trees and some pear trees, besides small fruit, and in addition to his horticultural pursuits, he carries on general farming. Mr. and Mrs. Keen have become the parents of seven children, Benjamin, George, Helen, John, Jacob, Jennie and Lambert. Mr. Keen and his family are members of the East Saugatuck Dutch Reformed church and may be seen each Sunday worshiping with that congregation.

H. A. McDonald is a prominent representative of commercial activity in Douglas, where he has a well equipped and tastefully arranged mercantile enterprise. He is a native son of Allegan county, his birth having occurred at Saugatuck September i, 1850. His parents were Robert A. and Cordelia (Vradenburg) McDonald, the former born in Vermont, while the latter was a native of the Keystone state. They came to Michigan in 1837, the family home being established in Saugatuck, where the father followed his trade as a ship carpenter, while in the summer months he sailed on the lakes, being employed by the Singapore Company. As time passed and he noted the advantages afforded to the agriculturist in this section of the state,- he decided to try his fortune at that pursuit and accordingly purchased one hundred acres of land on a part of which the village of Douglas now stands. In 1855 the family removed to Iowa, and a year later again took up their abode in Saugatuck and there spent their remaining days.

H. A. McDonald, whose name introduces this record, is the onlv surviving member of the four children born of his father's family. He accompanied his parents on their various removals and was a little lad of six years when a permanent home was established by the family in Saugatuck, where his birth had occurred. He was educated in the pubhc schools of his native village, and his boyhood and youth were passed upon the old homestead farm, where he remained until he had reached the age of twenty-five years. He then started out upon an independent business career, and thinking to find other pursuits more congenial, in 1875 he embarked in the lumber business, which he followed in Allegan county and also in Newaygo county, Michigan. He continued in this line of trade until 1885, in which year he suffered a severe loss by fire. However, possessing a stout heart and courageous spirit, he was undaunted by this obstacle and at once set to work to once more gain a foothold in the business world. He now engaged in general mercantile pursuits on a very limited scale, but as he prospered in his undertakings he enlarged the scope of his activities by adding to his stock of goods, and in 1890 he opened his mercantile enterprise in Douglas, where he has since continued with good success. He studies the demands of the general public and in this manner is prepared to meet the varied tastes and needs of all. He has a well equipped store, in which he carries a carefully selected stock of goods and is numbered among the leading merchants of this portion of Allegan county, having now built up a large and lucrative patronage, owing to his reliable business methods and his courteous treatment of his many patrons.

In 1872 Mr. McDonald was happily married to Miss Abigail Williams, and unto them have been born seven children, namely: Mrs. W. R. Takken, Robert (deceased), Roy, Mrs. J, P. Jacobson, Archie T., Gladys and Esther. He is a worthy and valued member of Dutcher Lodge No. 193, F. & A. M., and also holds membership relations with the Eastern Star Lodge, He is likewise connected with the Maccabees tent and the Knights of Pythias fraternity.

Since the estabHshment of his business enterprise, Mr. McDonald has borne a reputation for his honesty in all trade circles and therefore enjoys the utmost confidence and high regard of all with whom he comes in contact either in a business or social way.

William R. Takken. - In this day and age when bank failures are far too prevalent and unscrupulous speculation is indulged in with other people's money it is gratifying to the public to find a man in whom trust can be safely placed and in whose care their earnings, accumulated by hard labor and incessant toil, are secure. Mr. Takken is justly regarded as a most reliable business man, well qualified for the care of the financial interests of others as cashier of the Fruit Growers' State Bank of Saugatuck. He has occupied this position continuously since the organization of the bank in 1896 and is a most popular and trustworthy official.

Mr. Takken was born in Fillmore township, Allegan coimty, in 1871, and is a son of R. and Gertrude (Wilterdink) Takken, both of whom were natives of the Netherlands. They emigrated to America in 1854 when both were still single and located in the town of Holland, Michigan, where Mr. Takken worked at his trade of blacksmith ing, in which he became quite skilled. He finally removed to Fillmore, purchased a home there and followed his trade in the town. He was a worthy man, a good husband and father and many excellent traits of character won for him the esteem and admiration of those with whom he was brought in contact. He was born in'

1834 and died in 1899. His wife, whose birth occurred in 1835, came with her parents to this country in 1847, and the family was an old one in Michigan. Mr. and Mrs. Takken became the parents of eight children, six of whom are hving, namely, Evart, Albert, Gertrude, Daniel, Richard and William R.

The last named was reared and educated in his native township and his younger years were spent in clerical employment. He was for some time a clerk in a store at Saugatuck and in 1896 he accepted his present responsible position as cashier of tlie Fruit Growers State Bank of Saugatuck, upon its organization. This bank is capitalized for twenty-five thousand dollars and was conducted as a private institution until October, 1906, when it became a state bank. The president is A. B. Taylor and under the management of this gentleman and of Mr. Takken the bank has made steady and substantial progress and is an institution the value of which to the community can hardly be overestimated.

In March, 1889, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Takken and Miss Ruby McDonald, a daughter of Henry A. and Abigail (Williams) Mc- Donald. They now have an interesting little daugiiter, Helen, who was born in 1899. Mr. Takken has been honored with various local offices, his fellow townsmen recognizing his ability and fitness for such positions. He has been treasurer of the village of Saugatuck for several years, was township clerk for two years and has also served on the board of education and acted as its treasurer. Fraternally he is connected with Saugatuck Lodge No. 328, F. & A. M., with Holland Chapter No. 134, R. A. M. He is a typical representative of the modern spirit of business progress which utilizes each opportunity to the best possible advantage and at the same time he has maintained a high standard of business ethics in all his relations with the commercial world.

Roger E. Reed. - The spirit of progress which has been a dominant factor in the settlement and development of Michigan finds a worthy representative in Roger E. Reed, who is living in the village of Saugatuck. Born in Canada, his natal day was June 4, 1868, and in 1870 his parents came to Allegan county, settling in Saugatuck. He is a son of Samuel C. and A. B. (Culver) Reed, who were likewise natives of Canada, the former born in March, 1848. In 1870 they came to Saugatuck, since which time the father has followed his trade of blacksmithing in the village. He has likewise extended the field of his activity by dealing in agricultural implements, buggies, wagons and harness, and is accounted one of the alert and enterprising residents of the town. His fellow citizens, recognizing his ability and worth, have conferred upon him various positions of piiblic honor and trust. He served for two years as president of the village and trustee for five years, and whether in office or out of it his co-operation can always be counted upon to further any movement that he deems will prove of benefit to the general public. He and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, with which they have been connected for twentythree years, and in which Mr. Reed has served as steward and trustee. He likewise belongs to Saugatuck Lodge No, 328, F. & A. M., of which he is the present secretary. The family numbers two sons, Roger E, and David S., and the father was also one of two sons, his brother being David A.

Reared and educated in the village of Saugatuck, Roger E. Reed learned the blacksmith's trade under the direction of his father, who was a skilled workman, so that he soon became an expert at the anvil. He followed that pursuit for five years but at length abandoned the forge, and in 1885 became identified with E. E. Weed & Co., proprietors of a fruit package factory. He spent eighteen -years in that establishment and for five years of the time was a member of the firm. During these latter years he invented and perfected a machine, on which bushel and half bushel baskets were made. These machines were patented in 1903, at about the time that Mr. Reed severed his connection with the company and took up his present line of business. He is conducting one of the largest livery stables in the coimty and has recently erected a new and commodious cement building for this purpose, thirty-six by one hundred feet. He keeps twenty-four horses, high spirited animals which are in good condition, and he has thirty-two vehicles of various styles and uses, inchiding some of the most modern design. His livery barn receives a liberal patronage, owing to his reasonable prices and his earnest desire to please his customers. He is likewise identified with mercantile interests of the village, and since 1903 he has conducted the transfer line. As a merchant he deals in various commodities, including coal, wood, hay, straw, salt, roofing, lime, cement, sewer pipe and wood fiher plaster, for which he finds a ready and profitable sale.

October 31, 1898, Mr. Reed was happily married to Miss Josephine Simonson, a daughter of Simon and Marie Simonson, and a native of Saugatuck, where her entire life has been passed. They now have an interesting little daughter, Kari N. Mr. Reed served as deputy marshal of the village of Saugatuck for some time but prefers to concentrate his energies upon his business interests, which are growing in volume and importance. He is a worthy member of Saugatuck Lodge No. 328, F. & A. M., and is well known in the village and this part of the county, where almost his entire life has been passed, and that his stanchest friends are among those who have known him from his boyhood is an indication that his fife record has been at all times commendable, displaying sterhng traits of manhood.

Edwin H. House, working industriously and unremittingly in the operation and improvement of his farm in Saugatuck township, is making steady progress in his business career and at the same time finds opportimity to keep in touch with the trend of modern thought, for an air of intellectual culture as well as business activity pervades his home. He was born May 6, 1875, on the farm where he still resides, his parents being H. L. and Jessie M, (Wright) House, who were natives of Oswego county, New York, and who were married in 1856. They became residents of Saugatuck township, Allegan county, in August, 1868, and Mr. House was one of the first to engage in the cultivation of fruit north of the Kalamazoo river. He had faith in and soon demonstrated the possibilities of the county for fruit production, showing that his ideas were practical and that profitable results could be secured. He was an active charter member of the Agricultural and Pomological Society, which was organized early in the

'70s, and he carried on his business interests along scientific lines, keeping pace with modern progress and readily determining the practical from the purely theoretical. He was therefore a man of influence and stability in his community and was a worthy meiiiber of the Congregational church, in which he held the ofiice of deacon. There was in him an earnestness of purpose and depth of character which not only made him a devoted and helpful member of the church but also won for him the respect of all with whom he came in contact. He died July 7, 1897, at the age of seventy-two years, and is still survived by his widow, who resides on the old homestead. In her younger days she engaged in teaching for several years in the Ward schoolhouse, this being about 1871 and 1873. She was ever an able helpmeet to her husband, assisting and encouraging him. When they took possession of the farm it was in its primitive condition, but Mr. House resolutely undertook the task of clearing and developing it, and it is today one of the model fruit farms of Saugatuck township. Here Mr. and Mrs. House reared their family of three sons and two daughters, Dr. Walter B. House, who is a practicing physician in Oberlin, Ohio ; Rev. Herbert E. House, a minister of the Presbyterian church in New York; Jessie M., who is engaged in missionary work in Huntsville, Alabama; Alice L., deceased, and Edwin H.

The last named has had control of the home farm since his father's death in 1897. His education has been liberal and thorough. In addition to the usual literary branches, he pursued a full course in the Columbia School of Oratory, of Chicago (now the Columbia College of Expression), and his readings and impersonations are of superior merit. While a student there he formed the acquaintance of Miss Philinda H. Davis, who was also a student and afterward a teacher in that school, and who is a daughter of Jerome Davis. They were married in 1900 and have since resided upon the farm in Saugatuck township, known as the Riverside Fruit Farm. It is conveniently located near the village of Saugatuck and is bordered by the Kalamazoo river, which in its winding course, with banks crowned by orchards, fields, or natural forest growth, is a beautiful stream.

The buildings upon the place are neat, roomy and comfortable and the farm presents a most thrifty and well kept api>earance. It comprises eighty acres, on which are two thousand fruit trees, the orchards containing apples, pears, peaches and cherries. Mr. House is making good use of his opportunities and the years are bringing to him well merited success. Books and periodicals indicate the literary taste of Mr. and Mrs. House, who find congenial companionship in the master minds of all ages. In community affairs Mr. House is interested and is now serving on the school board and the board of review, while in the Congregational church of which he is a member, he is now serving as a trustee.

Simon Simonson, a well known and prosperous farmer of Saugatuck township and one of the large fruit-growers north of the Kalamazoo river, manifests in his business career the unfaltering industry and perseverance which have- ever been dominant characteristics of the Norwegian race. A native of the land of the midnight sun, he was born April 28, 1835, his parents being Simon and Carrie Hanson, both of whom were natives of Nor-

The last named remained a resident of his native country until about twenty-eight years of age and during that period acquired a fair education in his youth and was trained to habits of industry and frugality, which have in later years borne rich fruit in his active business life. The year 1863 witnessed his emigration to the United States and in 1871 he bought his first farm in Saugatuck township. The land was in its primitive condition but the sound of his ax soon awakened the echoes of the forest and the track of the plow had in a brief time soon crossed the fields. Tlius the wild land was converted into a productive farm, which soon brought him substantial returns for his labor. To his original purchase he kept adding from time to time as his financial resources increased until he had acquired one hundred acres, the last purchase being made in 1886. He is one of the extensive fruit growers north of the Kalamazoo river and in former years he had eighty acres devoted to peaches and apples, but has reduced his peach orchards to five acres. He now has two hundred pear trees and four hundred cherry treees, besides much small fruit, including strawberries and blackberries. In addition to his work along horticultural lines he carries on general farming on an extensive scale. He has erected a commodious and comfortable residence with a basement under the house and his is one of the attractive country homes of the locality.

January 26, 1866, Mr. Simonson was united in marriage to Miss Marie Olson, a daughter of John and Malena Olson. She was born in Norway, and with her parents came to the United States in 1855. Her mother died that year and her father married for his second wife Enger Peterson. There were six children by the first marriage and three by the second. He became the owner of eighty acres of land in this county, on which he resided from 1857 until his death, which occurred in 1884. His wife survived him until 1891. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Simonson have been born seven children: Charles, Caroline and Carrie, all deceased; Sophia. Josephine, Herman C. and Martha, The family are members of the Lutheran church and are highly respected by their neighbors as people of genuine personal worth. Mr. Simonson has lived a life of unremitting industrv and unabating energy, acquiring all that he now possesses through his own labors.

Jervib H. Kibby seems to be fitted by nature for the hotel business, possessing a genial dispo.sition and kindly snirit - qualities which are essential to the successful hotel proprietor. He has conducted the Douglas House at Douglas, Michigan, since 1874, and has gained a wide reputation for the able manner in which he caters to the pubhc taste. One of Allegan county's native sons, be was born in the village of Allegan on the roth of December. 1843, his parents heins Barton and Hannah (Star) Kibbv. the former a native of New York and the latter of Ohio.- They emigrated to Michigan prior to their marriage, becoming pioneer residents of Allegan county, where they located in the early '50s. They became acquainted and were married here, and Mr. Kibby, who was a carpenter by trade and an expert mechanic in his line, became one of the useful and highly respected residents of Allegan. The family numbered three sons and two daughters ; Lewis, William, Jervis, Mrs. Julia Knickerbocker and Mary, deceased.

Jervis H. Kibby has spent his entire life in the county of his nativity, and in his youth acquired a good English education in the public schools. He was about thirty-one years of age when he took charge of the Douglas House, of which he has since been proprietor. His hotel is large and of modern construction, thoroughly up-to-date in every respect. He can accommodate from forty to fifty guests, and since 1894 he has been largely entertaining city people who come to this locality for the summer. He has put forth every effort to make his house and its surroundings pleasing and attractive - a fact which his numerous guests appreciate to such an extent that the Douglas House is always occupied to its full extent through the summer months. Beside being a prosperous and popular host he is also a successful horticulturist and fruit grower, and owns eighty acres of excellent fruit land, situated in Saugatuck township, and known as the Uba Dam Fruit Farm, There are three thousand peach trees, one thousand pear trees, one hundred cherry trees and a large number of apple trees upon his place, and as he has raised his fruit from good nursery stock, the size and quality of his products are such as to secure a ready sale on the market. This farm has been in possession of Mr. Kibby since 1881, and has been carefully controlled and successfully managed by him.

In 1864 occurred the marriage of Jervis H. Kibby and Miss Jane Updyke, a daughter of David and Elizabeth Updyke, who were early settlers of Ganges township. Mr. and Mrs. Kibby have a daughter, Mrs. D, Plummer, now of Chicago. In his fraternal relations ^r. Kibby is connected with Dutcher Lodge No. 193, F. & A. M. He has served as trustee of the village of Douglas and in community affairs is deeply interested. Not to know Jervis H. Kibby in Douglas and in this part of Allegan coimty is to argue one's self unknown. His circle of friends is co-extensive with the circle of his acquaintance and he possesses a genuine worth and genial disposition which have made him very popular.

F. H. Herbert is proprietor of the Riverside Fruit and Stock Farm. To say that he is a practical and wide-awake business man is but just and merited praise, and in fact he deserves even more commendable language, for he is not a follower but a leader in the work of progress as manifest in the scientific agriculture and deserves classification with the leading representatives of horticultural and agricultural hfe in this part of the country. His farm is both attractive and profitable and has the appearance of being operated by a master hand. Indeed, every detail about the farm presents an appearance of thrift and neatness - a result which is due to the efforts of Mr. Herbert, whose labors are now most practical as well as of a progressive character.

A native of Illinois, F. H. Herbert was horn on the 15th of Mav, 1858, and was brought to Michigan at the eatly age of six years by his parents, Henry and Sophia (Herbst') Herbert, both of whom were natives of Germany. They crossed the Atlantic to the new world in 1853 and became residents of Chicago. The father is a tanner by trade and in early life also acquainted himself with the butchering business. He is now living in Grand Rapids, Michigan. His family numbered eight children, but only

As previously stated, F, H. Herbert was brought by his parents to Michigan when a lad of six summers and was educated at Schoolcraft, this state. He learned the machinist's trade and followed that pursuit for five years, relinquishing it only on account of failing health. Removing to Saugatuck he continued a resident of that village for three years and thence went to Douglas, where he remained until 1878. In that year he made a trip abroad, visiting England, France, Germany, Switzerland and Holland, remaining in the old world an entire year, and visiting many points of historic and scenic interest. On his return he took up agricultural pursuits, but after a brief period he made a trip to South Bend, Indiana, and later to Racine, Wisconsin, spending three years in the latter city. He finally located in Grand Rapids, where for fourteen years he was engaged in the transportation business, and on leaving that city he came to his farm, whereon he has since resided. It passed into his control in 1894, at which time it was in a run-down state and needed many improvements in various ways. It is today a model property under a high state of cultivation, as the result of the well directed labors and keen business discernment of Mr. Herbert. He has upon his place apple orchards covering twelve acres, six acres of peaches, four acres of pears and one of pJums, while one and a half acres is devoted to the cultivation of strawberries. The production of fruit is therefore an important branch of his business and the products of the farm because of the excellence of the nursery stock are of high quality and flavor, and bring a ready sale on the market. Mr. Herbert has also stocked his farm with the best blooded cattle and fleet-footed horses, and he likewise raises poultry and keeps very fine varieties of chickens. His farni contains sixty acres under cultivation and one hundred and twent}'- five acres of bottom land, which he uses for pasturage.

On March 29, 1881, occurred the marriage of Mr. Herbert and Miss Annie Doornkaat, a daughter of Sebo and Alice Doomkaat. They now have one son, Joseph, who is upon the stage. Mr. Herbert is a member of various fraternal organizations, including the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Knights of the Golden Eagle, and the Ancient Order of LTnited Workmen. He is likewise an active member of Dutcher Lodge No. 193, F. & A. M., and he and his wife hold membership relations with the Eastern Star. Mr. Herbert is a strong advocate of the cause of temperance, whose life is in conformity with a high standard of moral ethics and who in his business and other relations closely adheres to the golden rule. He is a self-made man in the best sense of the term, owing his education as well as his prosperity to his earnest and unfaltering labors, and while leading a busy life he manages to keep in touch with the trend of modern thought and progress. The Riverside Fruit and Stock Fann is now a valuable property and is the visible evidence of the thrift and energy which have found exemplification in the life of its owner.

Christopher Schultz, a well-to-do farmer of Saugatuck township, owning one tract of land of fifty acres on section 21, and another tract of sixty acres on section 22, carries on his work along most practical lines, resulting in success. Bom in Germany in 1841, he is a son of Fritz and

Sophia (Gustoff) Scliultz, both of whom were natives of the fatherland. In 1852 they emigrated to the United States with their family, setthng first in Chicago, where they remained for three years, while in 1855 they came to Saugatnck, Michigan, where the father purchased forty acres of land adjoining what is now the village of Douglas. The tract was formerly owned by Jonathan Wade, and the land was still in its primitive condition but was cleared during the occupancy of Fritz Schultz, who, however, subsequently sold it to a Mr. Williams in 1864, and purchased a part of the land now owned and operated by his son Christopher, becoming owner of a forty acre tract. Only about three acres of this had been cleared, so he again took up the arduous task of reclaiming raw land and transforming it into a productive tract. Christopher Schultz came into possession of the farm in 1887 upon the death of his mother, his father having passed away some years previously. There were two sons in the family, but Frederick is now deceased, leaving Christopher Schultz as the only survivor.

When a youth of fourteen years he accompanied his parents on their removal to Saugatuck township. He was, however, a youth of only eleven years at the time of the emigration to the new world. His education was acquired to some extent in Germany, in Chicago and in Michigan, and from the age of fourteen years he has continuously resided in or near Douglas. Previous to inheriting his present farm he purchase<l forty acres on section

21, and on coming into possession of the old homestead he took up his abode there and now owns one hundred and ten acres situated on sections 21 and

22, in Saugatuck township. On the sixty-acre farm he has five acres set out to fruit and on the fifty-acre farm a tract of fifteen acres is devoted to hortiailtural pursuits. In the raising of both fruit and grain he is quite successful and now has a well developed and productive property. In 1888 he erected his present residence, which is a modern home, built in tasteful style of architecture.

In 1867 Mr. Schultz was united in marriage to Miss Emma Albright, a daughter of Henry and Emma Albright, and they have become the parents of seven children - Frederick. Henry. Lewis, George, Charles, William and Minnie, the last named the wife of Thomas Bennet. Mr. Schultz has held the office of road commissioner for three years and has been a member of the school board for two terms. No trust reposed in him has ever been betrayed in the slightest degree and on the contrary he is ever conscientious in the discharge of his pubhc duties, which he prefers to do to the best of his ability. Socially he is connected with the Knights of the Maccabees.

Lieutenant Willi.\m White. - The gentleman whose name introduces this sketch bears a most honorable record in both military and private circles, and his honesty and integrity is ever above reproach. He is one of three brothers who emigrated to the United States, one of whom, David. !S a resident of Saug;atuck, and whose parents were George and Jane (Desson) White, both of whom were natives, of Scotland, but later took up their abode in America, making their home in Nova Scotia, where both the father and mother passed away. Their family numbered six sons and five daughters, but one of the number has passed away.

reports concerning the United States and the opportunities which it offered to young men of ambition and enterprise, Mr. White, in company with his brother David, decided to try his fortune in this country, and accordingly, in 1855, made his way to Michigan, locating in Saugatuck township, and both he and his brother have since continued their residence here to the present time. After a decade had passed, Mr. White, having saved his . earnings, was thus enabled to start out in life on his own account and made a purchase of eighty acres of land, which was in its wild and uncultivated state. He at once set to work to clear his land and develop his fields, and soon his property was placed in a productive and improved condition. He plowed his fields, planted his crops, and each year annually harvested crops, and as time passed and his financial resources permitted he further improved his property by the erection of good buildings, which are modern and convenient in their construction and thus add materially to the value of his farm. He later increased the boundaries of his farm by the purchase of an additional twenty-acre tract, so that his place now comprises one hundred acres of good land, which has greatly increased in value since coming into his possession and today it ranks second to none in Allegan county. He has a fine orchard, containing one thousand peach trees, four hundred pear, trees, three hundred apple trees, one thousand plum trees, twenty-five cherry trees and twelve hundred currant bushes, and thus it will be seen that fruit growing is an important branch of his business. In addition he carries on general farming and altogether has met with unbounded success in his business venture.

His private business interests were interrupted when, in 1862, the call was made for loyal men who were witling to give their service in defense of the Union at the time of the Civil War. Mr. White willingly responded, for he had formed an attachment for his adopted country. He enlisted as a private in Company I, Fifth Michigan Volunteer Cavalry, but was soon promoted to the office of first sergeant in 1863. In 1864 he was taken prisoner at Stevensville, Virginia, and was sent to Andersonville prison, where he was held for one year, after which he was exchanged and returned to his regiment. In 186."; he was promoted to the office of second lieutenant, and when he received his discharge was serving as first lieutenant. With the exception of the year he was held as a prisoner he took part in all the battles and skirmishes of his regiment, and during his service was never ill or wounded and never missed a meal. At the close of hostilities he returned home, having made a most creditable militarv record.

Mr. White was imited in marriage to Miss Caroline Martin, a daughter of Josiah and Amy Martin, who were numbered among the early pioneer settlers of Allegan county. Unto our subject and his wife have been born three daughters - Mrs. Jennie Marwedel, Mrs. Mary A, Koning. and Bessie, the wife of WiJliam G. Tisdel. Mr. White has served as justice of the Union at the time of the Civil war. Mr. White willingJv responded, supervisor for two years, being the present incumbent in that office. He holds membership relations with the Grand Army of the Republic, in which he has served as senior vice-commander and has also been aide-de-camp on the state staff, thus maintaining pleasant relations with his old armv comrades. Mr. White has led a' very busy life and is honored by all with whom he has been associated, for he is known for his reliability and straightforward dealing, and a review of his life history will show that his private and political relations have, like his military record, been creditable and honorable.

Herman Clausek. - Experiment and scientific investigation have completely revolutionized the business of fruit growing in the last quarter of a century and wonderful results have been produced through the utilization of modern methods. Herman Clausen is among those who, keeping in touch with the spirit of modern progress, are winning success as orchardists in Allegan county. He resides in Saugatuck township and his thrift, enterprise and close application have caused him to gain a position of prominence in the line of business activity, to which he is devoting his time and energy*

A native of Denmark, Mr. Clausen was born March 12, 1855. He is a son of Christian P. and Dorothy (Clausen) Clausen, who were also natives of Denmark. Their family numbered three children, but our subject is the only survivor and is the only one that emigrated from Denmark. He was reared and educated in that land, receiving liberal advantages in the Latin school at Schleswig, but as the years passed by, leaving their impressupon his mind, his plans changed and his thoughts turned into another direction. While yet in his teens he served in the Prussian army under Frederick in the Ninth Army Corps of the Flying Artillery for one year. He emigrated to the United States in 1872, attracted by the broader opportunities and greater advantages of the new world. Making his way to Chicago, he entered upon business life in this country as a traveling salesman and was thus employed for a number of years by the National Biscuit Company. When his savings justified his embarkation in business on his own account he established a grocery and market, which he conducted successfully until 1904. and in the meantime he had made judicious investment in property in Chicago, where he still owns considerable realty. In the meantime, however, he became owner of farm land in Saugatuck township, Allegan county, Michigan. His present farm was purchased in 1902 and is known as the R. M. Moore farm. Locating upon this place, Mr. Clausen here owns one hundred acres of first-class land and also rents forty acres, so that he is now cultivating one hundred and forty acres. On his own farm he has seven thousand peach trees, four hundred pear trees, three hundred cherry trees, three hundred apple trees and two hundred plum trees, while two acres are devoted to small fruits, including blackberries and raspberries. Mr. Clausen intends pushing his fruit-growing industry to a high state of perfection and of magnitude, and has already gained a place among the prominent agriculturists of Allegan county.

Mr. Qausen was happily married to Miss Belvina, a daughter of Nathaniel and Mary Stratton, on the 22d of April, 1884. She was bom in Allegan county in 1863. Her father was a successful lumberman and farmer of this part of the state and owned and operated one hundred and twenty acres of fine land. He died in 1902. bxit the mother still survives.

In his fraternal relations Mr. Clausen is an Odd Fellow, in sympathy with the principles of that organization. He has served his township as path master and is looked upon as one of the worthy and valued citizens of his adopted country. A man of business abilitv. he issagacious and farsighted, readily recognizing and utilizing opportunities. The alert and enterprising spirit wiiich characterized him in his business relations in the western metropolis has been manifest in the promotion of his agricultural pursuits in Allegan county and argues well for a successful future in this line.

Rev, James F. Taylor. - "The world is better for his having hved," was the universal verdict when the Rev. James F, Taylor passed from this life. Really the whole of his manhood was devoted to the work of the church and yet this did not entirely cover the field of his activity, for he stood for progress and improvement in all those lines of life which are of benefit to men and continually broadened his knowledge by reading and investigation. He did much to promote the horticultural interests of Michigan in his later years, and was an active worker in the State Horti- ' cultural Society. Far-reaching and beneficial was his influence and many lives have been heljDed by his wise counsel and his words of encotiragement and truth. He was born in Penn Yan, New York, November 4, 1824, and came of Scotch-Irish ancestry. He was named in honor of his grandfather, James Taylor, who came from Lough Brie kl and, county Down, Ireland, and settled at New Windsor, Orange county, New York, about 1770. When the colonies attempted to throw off the yoke of British oppression he joined Washington's army and participated in the battle of White Plains and other engagements with the British troops along the Hudson river that led up to the final victories that crowned the American arms and established American independence. In 1816 he removed to western New York, and a year later took up his abode in Yates county. His son, William Taylor, became a farmer of western New York and wedded Margaret Coleman. Three members of their family are still living: William M,, of Penn Yan; H. R., of Clifton Springs, New York ; and Mrs. Sarah Rappleye, of Bellona, New York.

The boyhood and youth of James F. Taylor were spent upon his father's farm, and the outdoor life bringing vigorous exercise, undoubtedly laid the foundation for the strenuous work which he was able to perform in his later professional career. He prepared for college at Franklin Academy, at Prattsburg, New York, and matriculated in Amherst College in 1848. He was graduated from Union College, at Schenectady, New York, in 1852, and afterward pursued theological and post graduate courses at Princeton and Yale, thus being provided with the most liberal educational privileges. His was a mind well trained in the severest school of investigation and to which close reasoning became habitual and easy. In June, 1902, he had the pleasure of celebrating at Union College with six of his classmates the fiftieth anniversary of their graduation. He was ordained to the ministry of the Congregational church at Pekin, Niagara county, New York, January 11, 1855, and served as pastor of churches of that denomination at Pekin from 1854 until 1856; at Newark, Illinois, from 1857 until 1859; at South Bend, Indiana, in 1859 and i860; at Chelsea, Michigan, from i860 until 1867; and at Saugatuck from 1868 until 1877. During his pastorate at Chelsea, which covered the trying period of the Civil war, he was engaged for a time on work for the Christian Commmission with the Union army in Kentucky. After the close of the Saugatuck pastorate he was frequ'ently called upon to supply vacant pulpits in that vicinity and, up to the date of his death, continued active in the work of the church and Sunday-school, having resigned the superintendency of the Sunday-school of the Congregational church in Douglas only January i, 1903, after twenty years of continuous service. His wide acquaintance with the earlier settlers in western Allegan county caused him to be called upon to officiate at weddings and funerals in their families long after he gave up the active work of the ministry, so that he was personally known to a very large portion of the people of the lake shore region. Impaired health having warned him of the necessity for an out-of-dpor life, in 1872 he purchased the farm on tlie lake shore southwest of Douglas, to which he removed his family from Saugatiick village in (877. There he established a very successful orchard and nursery, which he continued to direct until the time of his death. He was one of the organizers, as well as one of the strongest supporters of the Saugatuck and Ganges Pomologicai Society, and for many years was an active worker in the State Horticultural Society. In all his connection with these and similar organizations he stood for advanceemnt and progress along conservative lines. His interest in educational matters caused him to be chosen continuously for many years a member of the school boards of Saugatuck and Douglas villages, and he was for many years a member of the county board of school commissioners. Through his educational work he was continuously in touch with the younger people as they grew up around him and came to exert a wider influence upon the community than falls to the lot of most men, many young men and women having received their stimidus toward effort for self -improvement and progress from him and his beloved wife. Modest and unassuming in demeanor, he was everywhere recognized among those who knew him as a man of sterhng worth, sound judgment and most kindly disposition, whose loss is most keenly felt by the community. His health in recent years was such as to cause his friends but little concern until the present summer, and his sudden death, after only two or three days of distinct sickness, came as a severe shock to his many friends,

Mr. Taylor was married at Penn Yan. New York, to Miss Mary A. L. Porter, October 14, 1858, whose death, November 19, 1896, was his greatest sorrow. The union was blessed with five children, three of whom, William A. and Mabel L. Taylor, of Washington, D. C., and Grace L. Taylor, of Douglas, survive, together with two grandchildren, Porter Ross Taylor and Ritchie Patterson Taylor, of Washington, D. C. The son, William A. Taylor, is a resident of Washington, D. C, where he holds the office of pomologist in charge of field investigation. The daughter. Grace L., is living upon and conducting the farm of sixty-five acres, which is devoted to the raising of fniit. including peaches, pears, apples, plums and cherries. Mr. Taylor carried on his fruit-raising interests along most scientific lines, continuing in business as a nurseryman and horticulturist for ten years with excellent success, and standing for improvement and progress at all times. He preached the gospel of advancement to the fruit-raisers of the state and his influence was an element for good in this line of industrial activity. Wherever the Rev. James F. Taylor was known he was honored and respected. He was an elociuent and forceful preacher, a wise and careful pastor, and a true and loyal friend, while in bis home life he was largely the ideal husband and father. Gifted by nature with strong intellectual force he developed his latent powers and was ever an earnest and discriminating student, who, in working toward the ideal, used the practical means at hand. His purposes were ever kindly, his sympathy unbounded, and ail who knew him felt honored by his friendship.

John W. Dick, whose home is one of the fine farm residences of Saugatuck township and who owns one hundred and fourteen acres of productive land, is one of the citizens that Ohio has furnished to Allegan county. He was born in Williams county, of the Buckeye state, August 28, 1851, and is a son of Peter and Barbara A. (Saltsgiver) Dick. The former was a native of Germany and emigrated to the new worid at the age of twenty-iive years, while the latter was born in Pennsylvania. Prior to his marriage Peter Dick located in Richland county, Ohio, and subsequent to that important event in his life he removed to Williams county, where he resided until 1858, when he took his family to Will county, Illinois. It was there that the subject of this review was reared and educated. At length selling out his interests in Illinois, Peter Dick went to Iowa, where he and his wife spent their remaining days. Their family numbered nine children, seven of whom reached adult age: George E., Lydia C., John W., Lewis D., Ross T., Michael and William. The last named is now deceased.

John W. Dick was reared to farm life, the days of his boyhood and youth being passed in a manner similar to that of most lads of the locality and period. He has never had desire to change his occupation, but has always followed farming, which George Washington said "Is the most useful as well as the most honorable occupation of man."

On March 12, 1874, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Dick and Miss Lorettie F. Walker, who was born in Michigan October 3, 1850, a daughter of J. Walker. In 1877 Mr. Dick removed with his little family from Illinois to Allegan county, Michigan, where he has since made his home. Here he purchased one hundred and fifty-four acres of land, which was then in its natural state, but he has since placed thereon the improvements necessary to make a fine and profitable farm. His land is devoted to the production of grain and fruit. He formerly had scvcnty-five acres planted to peaches and the remainder of the farm was utilized for the growing of apples and pears, but he is now replacing his peach trees with other farm products, for certain diseases are prevalent in the peach orchards, and he claims, with reason, that it is necessary to give the land a rest in order to get rid of the disease. In 1895 he replaced his frame house with a fine brick residence, erected at a cost of four thousand dollars. It is a beautiful and comfortable dwelling, tastefully furnished, and one of its chief charms is its cordial hospitality, which is extended to the many friends of the family.

Mr. Dick is an earnest advocate of Republican principles, and as every pub He- spirited citizen should do, feels an interest in the political situation of the country. He has served his township in the capacity of highway commissioner and was also moderator of the school board for nine years.- He holds membership in the Douglas Congregational church, of which he is a deacon and also a trustee.

Jacob Haub, deceased, was well known in Saugatuck and the western part of Allegan county, so that his life record cannot fail to prove of interest to many of the readers of this volume. Born in Oberhochstadt, Nassau, Germany, on the 20th of August, 1839, he was a son of Peter and Agnes Haub, who were also natives of that country. They came to the United States in 1853, bringing with them their family of six children; Agnes and Elizabeth, now deceased ; Margaret, Mary, Jacob, of this review, and Matthew.

Jacob Haub was a youth of fourteen years when he accompanied his parents on their emigration to the new world, becoming a resident of Lee county, Illinois, where his time and energies were devoted to farming. He was thus engaged until after the outbreak of the Civil war, when his patriotic spirit was aroused in behalf of his adopted country, and in August, 1862, he enlisted in defense of the Union, as did so many of his fellow countrymen. He became a private of Company I, Eighty-ninth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, and participated in all the battles with his regiment up to and including the battle of Dalton, where he was captured. He was then incarcerated for six months in Andersonville prison, suffering all the hardships and horrors of southern prison life, which have been so graphically described by other historians and yet which exceed any word painting that can be given. At the end of a half year he was released with shattered health, but with patriotism and loyalty undimmed. He was never again, however, able to take part with his regiment in active field service and was honorably discharged in 1865. The effects of his army life with its hardships, privations and exposures, remained with him throughout his subsequent years, and he frequently found it necessary to seek a change of climate for the benefit of his health.

On the 20th of April, 1869, Mr. Haub was happily married to Miss Anna J. Ulbrich, also a native of Germany, born April 8, 1840. She crossed the Atlantic in 1864, arriving in the month of October. Unto this union were born five children, of whom two are now living - Hugo J. and Anna I. The daughter is a well educated and highly informed young lady, who was graduated from the grammar -department of the Chicago schools and later from the Saugatuck high school with the class of 1894. After the war Mr. Haub remained in central Illinois until 1867, when he removed to Chicago, where he entered the express business. In 1S70, however, on account of his health, he removed to Colorado, and subsequently to Pentwater, Michigan. Later he was at Brinkley, Arkansas, and afterward returned to Chicago, making all of these changes of residence on account of his health. After his return to Chicago he spent ten years as foreman in the Pullman Car Shops, being a carpenter by trade and becoming an expert mechanic in that line, so that he was well qualified to direct the labors of others. In July, 1891, he came to Allegan county, locating in Saugatuck township, where he purchased thirty acres of land. In 1896 he bought eighty acres and sold his first farm. His attention was given to agricultural pursuits in this county for about six years, and on the 24th of August, 1897, he was called from this Hfe. He was a devout member of the Roman Catholic church, of which his family are also communicants, and he was a member of the Catholic Benevolent Asso- ciation and of th'e Grand Army of the Republic. In his business life he prospered and was a self-made man, who through his own efforts and untiring perseverance advanced from a humble position to one of affluence. Mrs. Haub and her son and daughter reside upon and operate the farm of eighty acres, which is devoted to the production of grain and fruit crops and which has been brought under a high state of cultivation and improvement. In 1899 they built a fine residence in modem style of architecture and of handsome design and it is now accounted one of the beautiful country homes of Allegan county.

James H, Phillips, proprietor of the Eureka Lane Farm, comprising forty-one acres of land, which is devoted to the cultivation of fruit, is also a prosperous business man of Chicago, where he conducts a furniture establishment as a member of the firm of Phillips & Feldman, their place of business being located at JSIos. 827-829 West Madison street. The place, which is now owned and operated by our subject, was settled by the paternal grandfather, James C. Haile, who in the early '30s came to Michigan with his wife, Martha Haile, who was born in New York state, and settled in Saugatuck township, this county, at a very early day. Their family numbered three children, of whom all are now deceased. Mr. Phillips' father had a farm of fifty-five acres situated in Saugatuck township, besides having land in various other places. He wedded Juha R. Haile, and to them were born six sons and two daughters : William G. and Jennie S., both of whom are deceased; James H., of this review, and John D. The remainder died in early youth,

James H, Phillips was born in Allegan, on Miner Hill, August 16, 1859, but was reared and educated in the city of Chicago, where he has always made his home, having since 1886 been a member of the firm of Phillips & Feldman, in which business he is meeting with gratifying success. In 1884 he invested his money in the farm which is his present property and here are seen commodious and substantial buildings of modem construction, and all erected by the present owner. The farm is devoted to the cultivation of fruit, there being four thousand and five hundred peach trees, fifty pear trees, twenty plum trees and fifty cherry trees planted, in addition to which two acres are devoted to strawberries, one-fourth of an acre to grapes and an eighth of an acre to raspberries. The fruit raised upon this farm is of the best quality and flavor, and therefore commands a ready sale upon the market.

In 1885 Mr. Phillips chose as his life companion and helpmate Eva J. Edridge, the daughter of Joseph and Marie (Jump) Edridge Mrs. Phillips was born in Coldwater, this state, in June, 1863, and was reared and educated in Ganges township. Her father is of English extraction and was a miller by occupation, which pursuit he followed throughout his entire life. The Jump family came from New York to this state in i860, being numbered among her best and most respected citizens. Mrs. Phillips has but one sister - Mrs. James Chase. Unto our subject and his wife have been born a son and a daughter, Jay H. and Hattie M., who are at present in school.

The village of Fennville has been an incorporated village since 1882 and as a railroad station and one of the centers of the fruit business of the county its importance has steadily increased. Like other villages, its beginning dates from the days of the lumber industry, and its first enterprise was a sawmill. Henry Blakeslee is said to have been the first settler on the site, but it was Elam A. Fenn and Levi Loomis who erected a sawmill in 1862 just west of where the railroad now crosses the village site. The mill was destroyed by fire, but rebuilt by Fenn and others and the place became quite a productive center for the lumber business.

In 1870 came the railroad, hastening the lumber activity and the general enterprise of the vicinity. March 10, 1871, a survey was taken by Elisha Mix, surveyor, for the H. Fisher & Co. mill company to plat a village called "Fennsville," in the southwest quarter of section 32, Manlius township. The plat was bounded by the town line on the south, but the village has since spread into Clyde township and east to the railroad.

That part of the village site in Clyde township was also platted in 1871 by Emerson & Co., proprietors of the Fenn mill. The entire village was destroyed by fire in the fall of 1871, but rebuilding was soon begun. Among the early business men were Stephen Atwater, the first storekeeper; Dr. Asa Goodrich, physician and druggist; Daniel Thomas, blacksmith, besides those engaged in the sawmill business. A postoffice had been established near the mill in 1866, Elam Fenn being the postmaster, and the office being known as "Fenn's Mill."

Fennville, after the passing of the lumber industry, retained its importance by becoming an equally favorite point for the shipment of fruit. Twenty-five years ago peaches and apples amounting to one hundred and fifty thousand bushels were shipped from this point, and the business has steadily grown. In the early eighties the enterprising citizens had their village incorporated. The principal village officers are named on other pages. The population in 1890 was 360, and in 1900 was 454. Some of those prominently connected with village affairs and some of the leading business enterprises arc mentioned and described in other connections.

John P. Wade. - Few of the present generation, - living in the midst of an advanced civilization, with modern school facilities and other advantages, - realize how much they owe to the pioneer, who came in the early forties to the middle west, and out of a wilderness shaped the foundations of our great western states, making it possible to evolve from the rugged forest the valuable and productive farms of today.

Among these pioneers was John P. Wade, who was born at Scituate Harbor, Massachusetts, December 15, 1822, where he was reared and educated. He is a son of Snell and D. A. R. (Jacobs) Wade, both natives of Massachusetts and of English descent, and a grandson of Isicar Wade, who was a sailor during the Revolutionary war under the Colonial government. In 1844 John P. Wade migrated to Michigan and located at Singapore, where he was engaged in a clerical capacity, later entering the mercantile line on his own account, and continuing the business until 1858. He then purchased his present farm of seventy acres, in Ganges township.

of which only nine acres were cleared. He then set about clearing and improving the place, teaching school at intervals to procure ready money, and has evolved what is today one of the finest farms in all the fruit-raising district of Michigan. On this farm are about four thousand trees - apples, peaches, plumsj cherries and pears, to say nothing of small fruits. Mr. Wade was also engaged incidentally in the nursery business for about seven years, associated with Mr. Walsh, under the firm name of Walsh & Wade.

Mr. Wade has been married twice. By his first marriage he has one daughter, Charlotte, now Mrs. Steams. By his second marriage, which occurred in 185 1 to Sarah S., daughter of John S. Barnes, of New York, they have nine children, viz. : Viola M., wife of William H. Leonard ; Linda O., wife of George Meechani; Willard B., who married Miss Jennie Hendricks; Theodosius; Sarah D., the wife of H. Werden; Lefy A., the wife of Amos Tucker; May, deceased; Josephine, wife of Leon Shepard; and John P., Jr., who married Miss Helen Dunn.

From political preference Mr. Wade is a Democrat, and has held the offices of school inspector and commissioner of highways, having also been a notary public for the last thirty years. He holds membership in Damascus Lodge No. 415, F. & A. M., in Eureka Chapter No. 50, and has the further distinction of being the oldest member of the I. O. O. F. in the state of Michigan.

George L. Dutcher, of Fennviile, is one of tlie well known business men of that place, where he deals in coal, brick, hay and salt, and not only has he built up a large and lucrative business, but he has established a reputation for integrity and sound business ability.

Mr. Dutcher was born in Douglas, Michigan, in 1859, where he was reared and educated. His parents, Thomas B. and Rebecca Kline Dutcher^ were natives of Pennsylvania and Ohio, respectively. Thfey moved to Michigan in 1836 and were one of the early families in the "fruit belt." Thomas Dutcher was a resident of Douglas for a number of years, where he was engaged in a successful lumber business. He also owned a flour mill and was identified with other enterprises, proving himself a worthy and enterprising citizen. Douglas borough elected him president and has at different times conferred upon him offices of trust and responsibility. In 1894 he moved to Fennviile, and in company with his son, George L. Dutcher, our subject, purchased a grist mill, the property of Merchant Brothers, who had moved it from Black Lake. This mill was owned and operated by Mr. Dutcher and his son for nine years, when it was sold to Mr. Hutchinson. On May 15, 1903, the elder Mr. Dutcher died, leaving a widow and three children : Florence, Belle and George L., all of whom are still living.

George L. Dutcher is a member of Damascus Lodge No. 415, F. & A. M. He was united in marriage to Miss Ada Porter, to whom three children have been born; Florence, Thomas E. and George.

H. G. Welch. - No man in the state of Michigan is better known than the gentleman whose name introduces this record, for he has been instrumental in promoting the interests of fruit growers not only in Allegan county, but all over the state, having for several years filled the office of deputy state inspector of orchards and nurseries, his work taking him into- every section of the state. He has made a special study oi fruit culture and has familiarized himself with the diseases to which the trees are subject, so that he is considered authority on all subjects pertaining to horticulture. About 1865 a disease in the peach orchards of Michigan became prevalent which was known as the yellows, which at one time threatened the destruction of the peach from this state. Again in 1893-4 another disease appeared, which is known as the little peach, and about twelve years ago a disease known as the San Jose scale made its appearance. Mr. Welch began to study the conditions which existed and by reading, observation and experiment found that these diseases could be overcome. Owing to his knowledge along this line he was appointed "yellow" commissioner of Saugatuck township, and his successful efforts in this line led to his election to his present position - that of deputy state inspector of orchards and nurseries. Mr. Welch is employed by the state and it is his duty to travel over the districts devoted to fruit raising, which covers various portions of the state, for Michigan is noted as a fruit growing center. These diseases cannot be discovered by the average horticulturist, but Mr. Welch's study of the subject enables him to readily detect the affected trees. He visits the various orchards, as directed by the state, and as soon as a defective tree is found it is cut down and burned to avoid the spread of the disease. It has been found, however, through experiment, that a tree which is affected by the San Jose scale can be saved by the appliance of blue vitriol, salt and lime in proper proportions. When Mr. Welch located in Saugatuck township he purchased a farm of eighty acres, this being in 1888, The land was not considered at that time to be a good fruit producing soil, owing to the substance of clay found In it. The owner, however, began to make a study of the conditions and thought possibly to overcome the obstacles. Accordingly he began to drain his land and to set out fruit, and it was soon demonstrated that this region was as good as any in the state for carrying on horticultural pursuits. Soon others followed his example and made this one of the best districts of the state for this industry. On his farm he has set out forty-two hundred and eighty peach trees, of which four thousand arc in bearing, one hundred and fifty apple trees, two hundred pear trees, and two hundred plum trees, while seven acres are devoted to the cultivation of strawberries. In addition he carries on general agricultural pursuits, raising crops sufficient for feeding his stock.

Mr. Welch is a native son of Michigan, his birth having occurred in Lenawee county November 10, 1856, a son of Ephraim and Elizabeth (Bossard) Welch, both natives of New York, The family home was established in Michigan in 1846, where the father conducted a sawmill throughout his active business career. The son came to Allegan county in 1872 and has always followed horticultural pursuits, and now makes his home with his mother, to whom he shows every possible attention. In the family of this worthy couple have been born six children, three of whom now survive - Charles B,, H, G. and Mrs. Dora Gaylord.

Mr. Welch has served as drain commissioner and as school inspector. He is a member of the Agricultural and Pomological Society, of which he is now acting as treasurer. He is a worthv member of Dutcher Lodge No. 193. F. & A. M., has taken the Roval Arch degree in Holland chapter, and U a Knight of Pythias.

Hon, Theodosius Wade, attorney, whose office is located at Fennville, Michigan, is widely known and universally respected by the citizens of Allegan and adjacent counties. He traces his ancestry from an old New England family, who immigrated from England about the year 1611 and who took a conspicuous part in favor of the Colonies during the war of the Revolution, holding subsequently various offices of trust and responsibility under civil government.

Mr, Wade was born in Ganges township, Allegan county, Michigan, November 14, 1858, and is the son of John P. and Sarah S. (Barnes) Wade, who are pioneers of Allegan county. He received a common school education, later attending school at Douglas, where he prepared himself for the work of a teacher, which calling he followed for a short time. Subsequently he entered the law department of the University of Michigan, where he was graduated in 18S8. The year previously he had been admitted to the Michigin bar in Mecosta county.

In 1903 Mr. Wade was the choice of the people of the second district of Allegan county as their representative at the state capital, serving them honorably and well. During his two years' membership of the assembly he had the honor to be the appointed chairman of the judiciary committee of the house and was spoken of in the highest praise by the Lansing press, earning the well merited reputation of being one of the most capable and conservative members of the body. He devoted himself thoroughly and consistently to the work in hand and came to be known by the frequency with which he put himself on record, earning thereby the respect of his colleagues as a man who did not hesitate to declare himself. As an attorney and as head of the judiciary committee his favorite discussions were points of law and minute discussions of the statutes. Like some of his judiciary rivals he fell into the seeming error of appearing rather oracular in some of his decisions, but his thorough equipment and his unmistakable sincerity gave weight to his utterances. No one appears more chagrined than he when he makes a mistake, and no one is more eager to champion a cause which appeals to him as right or to denounce one that appears iniquitous. His honesty and good name have never been assailed, either at the state capital or at home, and he seems to have retained to a great extent his boyish enthusiasm, even amid the responsibilities and discouragements of legislative work. As a debater he exceils, and as an orator he is in the front rank.