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Carson City, Nevada |
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ADAMS, JEWETT - EX-GOVERNOR
A man who has had a prominent
part in the building of the West is former Governor of Nevada, Jewett W.
Adams. He has seen enacted many of the history-making incidents of the last
half century. When he was sixteen years of age he finished his course in the
district school of Vermont, in which state he was born, and started for
California by way of Panama. In 1856 and 1857 he acted as clerk for General
John C. Fremont in Mariposa County, Cal. After coming to Nevada Mr. Adams
became active in politics. He was elected Governor on the Democratic ticket in
1872, and served four years. He held office during stirring times, among the
events of his term being the gold excitement at Gold Hill.
Retiring to
private life, Governor Adams engaged actively in business. For years he has
been a prominent stock man and has at all times been ready with advice and
deeds for the upbuilding of the state. He makes his home at Carson City, where
he is recouping his fortune by conducting a gypsum quarry and mill at Mound
House, a few miles from Carson. The product of his mill and quarry is much in
demand and large quantities are being shipped to San Francisco to be used in
rebuilding that city.
Former Governor Adam's looks belie his seventy-two
years. His white hair, courtly manner and slight, straight figure are well
known to all residents of the sagebrush state.
[Source: Who's who in Nevada
By Bessie Beatty 1907, Contributed by Barbara Z.]
Adams, Jewett W.,
capitalist and statesman of Carson City, Nev., was born Aug. 6, 1835. in
Vermont. He has been superintendent of the United States mint at Carson City,
Nev. In 1882-86 he was governor of Nevada. [Herringshaw's American Blue-book
of Biography by Thomas William Herringshaw, 1914 - Submitted by AFOFG,
transcribed by Jeanne Kalkwarf]
ADAMS, MAXWELL
Adams, Maxwell,
educator, chemist and author of Carson City, Nev., was born Feb. 28, 1869, in
St.George, W. Va. Since 1906 he has been professor of chemistry in the
university of Nevada. He is author of Products of Steam and Destructive
Distillation of California Pines. [Herringshaw's American Blue-book of
Biography by Thomas William Herringshaw, 1914 - Submitted by AFOFG]
HON. H. F. BARTINE.
The subject of this sketch has had a most honorable
and distinguished career as a public man. He was born March 21, 1848, in the
City of New York; he removed with his parents to New Jersey when ten years of
age. A mere boy, but little past his fifteenth birthday, he enlisted on July
20, 1863, as a private soldier in the Eighth Regiment New Jersey Volunteers,
for service in the Great Civil War. The regiment was a seasoned one and was
then at the front as a part of the Army of the Potomac, where it remained
until the close of the war. Mr. Bartine participated in about a dozen battles
and practically the entire siege of Petersburg. At the great struggle in the
Wilderness he was severely wounded, a partially spent ball striking him almost
directly over the heart. He was sent to the hospital, but returned to his
regiment in a little less than three months, although it was six months later
before the wound was entirely healed.
He came to Nevada in the early spring
of 1869, engaging in various industrial pursuits. His public life may be said
to have begun in 1876, when, in the political campaign of that year, he
obtained recognition as one of the most eloquent and forceful platform
speakers in the State. He was admitted to the bar in 1880, and at the ensuing
election was chosen District Attorney of Ormsby County, holding the office for
the period of two years. He at once took a leading place in his profession,
being regarded as especially strong in the discussion of legal questions, and
scarcely less effective as a jury lawyer. In the fall of 1888 he was elected
to Congress and was re-elected in November, 1890. He served two full terms,
the last one expiring on March 4, 1893. He acquired a national reputation as
an advocate of the complete restoration of silver to monetary use. This
reputation was enhanced and extended by his later work as editor of the
"National Bimetallist," published first in Chicago and afterward in
Washington, D. C. In 1902 he became a candidate upon the Democratic and Silver
Party tickets for the office of Justice of the Supreme Court of the State, but
was overwhelmed by the Roosevelt tidal wave that rolled over the country in
that year. He held the position of State Tax Examiner from September, 1904, to
December 31, 1905. He was appointed Railroad Commissioner in March, 1907, was
reappointed in January, 1909, and appointed for a third term in January, 1912,
the last-named term ending in February, 1915. On March 23, 1911, the Public
Service Commission was created and the Railroad Commission became ex officio
the Public Service Commission as well. Since their creation, Mr. Bartine has
been continuously chairman of both commissions, and the member who, under the
law, must be an attorney well versed in railroad law. The work of these
commissions has been most important and under the legal guidance of Chief
Commissioner Bartine, the commission is now regarded as having no superior in
aggressive force and intelligent strength west of the Mississippi River, if,
indeed it stands second to any in the country. Mr. Bartine, or "Judge," as he
is usually called, has a wife and three daughters. His home for thirty-eight
years has been in Carson City, the Capital, and he is a Democrat in politics.
[SOURCE: History of Nevada, Volume 2, Sam P. Davis, 1913, transcribed by
Sandra Stutzman]
HON. HORACE FRANKLIN BARTINE, who has served in the
lower house of the United States Congress from the state of Nevada, has been a
resident of the state since June, 1869. He is a native of New York, having
been born in New York city, March 21, 1848, and coming of French ancestors.
His father, Horace S. Bartine, was born in New York and married Matilda K.
Casterline, a native of New Jersey. Joseph Casterline, her father, was a
Revolutionary soldier and served under Washington at Valley Forge, Trenton and
Princeton. Horace S. Bartine died from the effects of a severe cold contracted
in the sixty-fifth year of his life, but his wife survived him and lived to be
eighty-five years old. The only child of this worthy couple was Hon. Horace
Franklin Bartine.
The education of Mr. Bartine was begun in the public
schools of New York and continued until he was ten years old, when his parents
moved to New Jersey,and he resumed his studies in the public schools of that
state. When he was fifteen years old he was five feet nine inches in height,
and looking much older than his years, he enlisted in Eighth New Jersey
Volunteer Infantry, July 1, 1863, representing that he was eighteen years old.
This regiment had been in service since the commencement of the war, and new
enlistments were taken to fill its depleted ranks. There were only eighty
officers and men present for duty when he was permitted to enlist, and as it
was a veteran regiment it was then at the front. Mr. Bartine participated in
four hard-fought battles up to and including the battle of the Wilderness,
where he received a gunshot wound in the breast. This kept him from service
for three months, but as soon as possible he returned to his regiment, and for
three months more wore a pad over the large hole in his breast. Following this
he participated with his regiment in all the battles of the division until the
surrender of General Lee. At the taking of Petersburg his regiment had the
honor of capturing a whole regiment of North Carolina soldiers, and he was
also in the battle of Sailor's Creek, which was the last before the surrender.
His regiment took part in the grand review at Washington, was honorably
mustered out July 20, 1865, and he returned home and engaged in farming.
Soon after his return from the war Mr. Bartine married Lydia M. Cooper, a
native of New Jersey, and a daughter of David Cooper, of that state, who was
descended from an old English family. In 1869, in search of better facilities
to improve his financial condition, Mr. Bartine came west and arrived in San
Francisco about the middle of March of that year. He secured work in a quartz
mill. In June of that year he came to Nevada and for some time was engaged in
washing blankets at the Weston Mill. After two years he abandoned that class
of work and took charge of the Dayton & Virginia toll road as toll collector,
spending his spare moments reading history and general literature. Three years
later he was employed in the manufacture of bluestone at Dayton and in 1874 he
removed to Carson City to continue that business in the employ of the Lyon
Mill & Mining Company. During all this time he had continued his studies.
In the presidential campaign of 1876 he labored long and earnestly for the
Republican success, and his efforts were highly appreciated, especially those
made with Hon. Thomas Wren when they stumped the state on behalf of the
latter's candidacy for congress. This trip through the state brought Mr.
Bartine into notice, and his speeches were quoted, the young politician
receiving much favorable comment. Impressed with his eloquence and ability,
Mr. Wren suggested to Mr. Bartine that he read law, and presented him with
sets of Blackstone and Kent. This advice Mr. Bartine took. After the close of
the campaign he obtained a position in the United States mint, continuing to
hold it until 1879, all of that time studying very hard. In 1880 he was
admitted to the bar by the supreme court of the state after a public
examination, and in the fall of the same year was elected district attorney of
Ormsby county.
In 1888 the Republican party made him their candidate for
Congress, while the Democratic party put in nomination the Hon. G. W. Cassady,
a very strong man. Mr. Bartine stumped the state and was elected by a majority
of twelve hundred and thirty-two votes, and was re-nominated and elected to
succeed himself. When the great financial question of that period came before
the lower house, Mr. Bartine advocated bimetallism and delivered very able
speeches in defense of his position. However, this placed him upon unfriendly
terms with the leaders of his party, and in 1896, when the Republican
convention declared for gold standard, he severed his connection with that
party and devoted his talents, time and energy to the support of the silver
cause, firmly convinced that the stand he was taking was for the best
interests of the entire country.
During the campaign of Mr. Bryan, Mr.
Bartine was one of the most effective speakers and workers, and finally became
the editor of the National Bimetalist, published in Chicago and Washington. D.
C. In 1898 and 1900 he was the mining editor of the Anaconda Standard, owned
by Marcus Daily. This paper was the leading journal of Montana. In 1901 Mr.
Bartine became associate editor of the Washington Times, published at
Washington. D. C., but the following year he returned to Nevada and
participated actively in the Nevada state campaign on behalf of the fusion
ticket, both his writings and speeches being attended with brilliant results.
Nearly all of the state fusion ticket was elected. He delivered the oration on
the Fourth of July celebration of 1903 at Virginia City. Upon that occasion he
surpassed himself and fired his listeners with patriotic zeal and pride in the
glorious Union. At present he is engaged in newspaper work and his law
practice in Carson City.
Mr. and Mrs. Bartine have three daughters, namely:
Laura M., now Mrs. E. V. Muller; Amy B., unmarried; and Liva C, now Mrs.
Thomas McCabe. Mr. Bartine has always taken an active part in the work of the
Grand Army of the Republic and is one of its prominent officials. He is also a
member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen. [Source: A History of the State
of Nevada: Its Resources and People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing Company,
Published by The Lewis publishing company, 1904, Transcribed by Andaleen
Whitney]
CHARLES E. BRAY, one of the honored early settlers of Carson
City, arrived here in October, 1862. He is a native of Maryland, where he was
born in 1835, coming of Scotch, English and French ancestry. His parents were
Joseph and Mary (Hawkins) Bray. He was only ten years of age when he lost his
mother, and when he was fourteen years old his father died. As there were
eight children in the family and five of them younger than himself, he was
obliged to take care of them. For three years during the winter months he
attended school in the log shanty, while in summer he worked upon the farm.
The work of the first year netted him one hundred dollars and by the time he
was eighteen years old, in addition to caring for others, he had managed to
save two hundred dollars. Later he became a huckster in the Baltimore market,
buying and selling fruits and vegetables, but after three years, in 1857, he
removed to Keokuk, Iowa, and purchased a farm on which he resided until 1862.
He then crossed the plains to Carson City, whence he made his way to
Sacramento. After working upon a farm there, he returned to Carson City and
worked first in a livery stable, but soon became engaged in gardening, and
raised vegetables for the miners and sold them in Virginia City, and was very
successful. In 1868 he went to White Pine, and for two years was engaged in
freighting between Francis, Washoe county, and Hamilton, White Pine county.
Still later he was in the employ of Trydel and Yerington in the mountains,
getting wood and lumber, and he also worked on the construction of the capitol
building. In 1871 he engaged in the transfer and baggage business, hauling
freight and doing a general transfer business, in which he has been
successfully engaged for thirty-two years, the enterprise showing a steady and
healthy increase. Like a number of the business men of Carson City, he has
prospected for gold, and owns several paying claims within fifty miles of the
city, out of each of which he has taken considerable gold.
Since casting
his first vote, he has been a Republican, and has served as trustee of the
city for six years and is one of the county commissioners, and has always
taken an active part in both city and county affairs, being at all times a
conscientious and efficient public official.
In Iowa, in 1861, Mr. Bray was
married to Miss Nancy Highler, a native of Ohio, born near Cincinnati. Two
daughters have been born of this union, namely: Olive, now Mrs. C. H. Adams,
of San Francisco: and Mary, at home. Mr. and Mrs. Bray have a pleasant home,
where their many friends are made welcome. In religious connections they are
members of the Episcopal church. Mr. Bray is a member of the Knights of
Pythias and is very popular in that organization. [Source: A History of the
State of Nevada: Its Resources and People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing
Company, Published by The Lewis publishing company, 1904, Transcribed by
Andaleen Whitney]
W. H. CAVELL, D. D. S., the leading dentist of Carson
City, Nevada, is also one of the highly respected native sons of the city. He
was born September 11, 1869, and is of English ancestry. His father, John
Cavell, was born in England and was brought to the United States when only two
years of age. In 1861 he came to Carson City, and for some years followed the
occupation of painter. In politics he is a Democrat and a man of liberal
ideas, and at the present time makes his home in Modesto, California, aged
sixty-seven years. The maiden name of his wife was Grace Wren, and she was
also born in England. Four children were born to Mr. and Mrs. John Cavell,
three of them born in Carson City and one in California.
William Henry
Cavell was educated in the public schools of Modesto. California, and in the
dental department of the State University of California, from which latter
institution he was graduated in 1894. After his graduation Dr. Cavell returned
to the city of his birth and began the active practice of his profession,
meeting with a most gratifying success. In manner he is genial and courteous,
and is an expert in his profession.
In politics Dr. Cavell is independent,
voting for the man and the principles he deems best for the community at
large. Fraternally he is a member of the Knights of Pythias, the Benevolent
and Protective Order of Elks, and is a prominent Mason, being both a blue
lodge and a chapter Mason, and has been honored by office in both degrees.
Although yet a young man, Dr. Cavell has proved himself capable, enterprising
and one who can be thoroughly trusted, and his success as a professional man
and social factor is assured. [Source: A History of the State of Nevada: Its
Resources and People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing Company, Published by
The Lewis publishing company, 1904, Transcribed by Andaleen Whitney]
ALFRED JEAN CHARTZ, a noted journalist and attorney residing at Carson City,
is also widely and favorably known as one of the pioneers of the state, having
arrived in Nevada in 1863. Since that time he has been connected with many
events which find mention in the annals of the commonwealth, and has aided in
molding public opinion and shaping public thought and action. He has thus left
the impress of his individuality upon the progress of the state, and his name
is enduringly inscribed on the pages of its history.
Mr. Chartz is a native
of Canada, his birth having occurred in la Baye du Febore, on the 9th of
February, 1851. He comes of French ancestry, although for many generations the
representatives of the family have been residents of America. His father, John
Chartz, was born in the state of New York, in 1818, and became a prominent
contractor and builder. Associated with his father in business, they entered
bids for the construction of a tunnel under the St. Lawrence river at Montreal
and he was accorded the contract for the building of the railroad across the
Victoria bridge to that city. He executed many other contracts of importance,
and was recognized as one of the leaders in his chosen calling in that section
of the country. In 1854 he went to California by way of the Isthmus of Panama.
He had married Miss Emilie Hamel, a native of Canada, who was of French
extraction and who died on the 1st day of January, 1860. Two sons and two
daughters were born to them, of whom three are now living. Mrs. S. E. Carlon,
who was a noted writer and died at Berkeley, California, in 1896, was of this
family.
After remaining for some time in California Mr. John Chartz here
took passage on the steamship Golden Gate in order to return to his old home
in Canada for the purpose of bringing his children to the Pacific coast. This
ship, however, was wrecked off the coast of Mancinello, and three hundred
passengers were lost, but Mr. Chartz who was an expert swimmer, not only
managed to reach shore, but also succeeded in rescuing a child. Later he
brought his family out across the plains and settled in Oakland, California,
where he engaged in contracting and building and in handling real estate. He
afterward removed to Berkeley, and in his sixty-sixth year he became blind. He
never recovered his eyesight, and died in his seventy-second year. He was a
man of excellent business ability, and one whose well-conducted affairs and
honorable methods secured to him the respect and admiration of all with whom
he came in contact. He was a supporter of Bell and Everett for president and
vice-president in 1860, and he delivered many campaign addresses, speaking on
local and national issues. But later, becoming disgusted with the corruption
in public office and among party leaders, he ceased his activity in political
affairs and even refused to vote.
Alfred J. Chartz attended the public
schools in Oakland. California, and afterward pursued a six months' course in
Heald's Business College. He learned shorthand, and after coming to Nevada
acted as reporter in the courts. Thus becoming interested in law, he read the
various text books on the subject .and was admitted to practice in October,
1864, since which time he has followed the profession with good success, being
connected at different times with various important cases. He began his
journalistic career on the Oakland News, entering that office on the day on
which President Lincoln was assassinated. He was advanced consecutively from
"devil" to editor on the Virginia Enterprise, and was thus actively associated
with newspaper business for thirty-five years. He is the author of the
"Quelquefois" letters, on topics of general interest, which are widely read
and awaken deep attention. These are published in the Gardenville Courier. He
has both talent and love for journalism, and has indulged his taste in this
direction, becoming well known as a newspaper writer in this part of the
country.
Mr. Chartz is also interested in mines and mining and is the
president of the Oest Mining Company, the mines of which have produced over
six hundred thousand dollars. He joined in the re-organization of the Bullion
Exchange Bank of Carson City, was one of its directors, and assisted
materially in placing it on a sound financial basis, and, acting as its
attorney in settling up its business, he never lost a dollar and succeeded in
settling its affairs with little recourse to litigation.
In his political
views Mr. Chartz was a Republican until General Hancock became the Democratic
candidate for the presidency, and since that time he has been a stalwart
Democrat. In his younger days he won fame as an athlete, and was captain of
the Eureka baseball team, when the Hon. Thomas Wren played third base. He
could have obtained an engagement then with any of the best teams in the
country. He was also a very swift runner, and Mr. Wren backed him and became
his manager in a running race against an Indian and eight other noted runners.
Mr. Chartz won the race, and Mr. Wren gained thereby fourteen hundred dollars.
This was at a time when the citizens of Nevada were lovers of fun and sports,
and when money was very plentiful, being easily earned and quickly spent.
In 1876 occurred the marriage of Mr. Chartz and Miss Emma Rader, a native of
Germany. They have four children: John McGregor, Carl Willhelm, Helen Emily
and Beatrice Elizabeth, all of whom are now in school. The family home is one
of the finest residences in the city. Mr. Chartz belongs to the Ancient Order
of United Workmen, and the family attend the services of the Episcopal church.
Perhaps no better testimonial of the life and character of Mr. Chartz can be
given than by quoting the words of the Hon. W. E. F. Deal, who said of him in
open court: "I have known Mr. Chartz for over twenty years and his word is as
good as his bond." This is certainly a compliment of which he has reason to be
proud, and his life history bears out the statement of his friend. [Source: A
History of the State of Nevada: Its Resources and People, By Thomas Wren,
Lewis Publishing Company, Published by The Lewis publishing company, 1904,
Transcribed by Andaleen Whitney]
HON. TRENMOR COFFIN, a prominent
citizen and leading representative of the bar of Nevada, came to the state in
August, 1871. He was born in Hendricks county, Indiana, August 22, 1848, and
is a son of Addison Coffin, a native of New Garden, North Carolina, where he
was born January 28, 1822.
Addison Coffin was a farmer and Quaker. He
walked from his home in North Carolina to Hendricks county, Indiana, in 1844.
On July 5, 1845, he was married to Emily Hadley in Hendricks county. She was a
native of North Carolina. It was on account of his opposition to slavery that
Addison Coffin left his native state, and in Indiana he played an important
part in the underground railway, assisting many slaves to escape. His most
excellent wife died when Trenmor was a child, but he survived until 1897, when
he died in his home in Indiana, aged seventy-five years.
Trenmor Coffin was
reared upon his father's farm and attended the public schools in winter. Later
he was sent to the National Normal School at Lebanon, Ohio, from which he was
graduated, and he then began to teach in Ohio. From that state he moved to
Carson City, Nevada, and resumed his teaching. He worked with pick and shovel
when it was necessary and did any honest work. After teaching in the grammar
school he was placed in charge of the state library, and he then began his law
studies under the direction of Ellis & King, being admitted to practice in
October, 1874. Immediately thereafter he engaged in the practice of his
profession in Carson City and has since made it his home, becoming one of the
most successful men in his profession.
He is an active Republican, and in
1876 was nominated by his party for the office of district attorney and
elected by a good majority. In 1880, unsolicited by him, his party nominated
him for the state assembly, and after a thorough canvass he was elected. After
a very honorable career in the lower house, he was re-elected to succeed
himself, and he then had the honor of being chairman of the assembly. He has
also served as county treasurer for two years; United States district attorney
of Nevada for four years, receiving the appointment from President Arthur;
served as regent of the State University and has always taken a deep interest
in educational matters, serving as school trustee for a number of years. He
was also a candidate of his party for supreme judge, but was defeated, and was
also chairman of the Republican state central committee and did effective
service for his party in that capacity. But when the gold platform was
adopted, he resigned and allied himself with the silver party and supported
Mr. Bryan, although he has never joined the Democracy, styling himself a
silver or bimetallist Republican. During his long life in Nevada he has become
greatly interested in irrigation, and is now connected with a large canal
being constructed in Inyo county, California, which when completed will
irrigate twenty thousand acres of land. The canal is forty-four miles in
length and is proving a great success.
On June 4, 1885. Mr. Coffin was
married to Marie Tonisa Benoit, a lady of French extraction. Two children have
been born to them, namely: Trenmor, Jr., and Emily, both bright young people
at school. Mr. and Mrs. Coffin have a pleasant home in Carson City, where
their large circle of friends is always warmly welcomed. Mr. Coffin has passed
all the degrees in the Masonic fraternity and held all the offices from lowest
up, and is now deputy grand master of the state. When the next grand master of
the state is selected he will probably be called upon to fill that office if
his health permits.
He still adheres to the faith of his Quaker ancestry,
and is a man highly respected throughout the state for his many excellent
traits of character. [Source: A History of the State of Nevada: Its Resources
and People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing Company, Published by The Lewis
publishing company, 1904]
SIDNEY BERT COHEN, the leading dry-goods
merchant of Carson City, Nevada, was born in England, October 28, 1865, and
was educated in that country and Australia. He laid the foundations of his
present prosperity after his health failed from overstudy. His original aim
was to become an artist, and he devoted four years to careful preparation for
that life, but after his health broke down he clerked in Modesto and Fresno,
California, for five years, and thoroughly learned the details of the
dry-goods business. After he felt prepared, he removed to Carson City, Nevada,
and he now has a floor space of forty-four by seventy-five feet, covered with
a fine line of drygoods, and has a large dressmaking establishment in
connection. From the beginning he has made a success of his enterprise, and he
has firmly established himself in the confidence of the entire community,
where he is so prominently identified with its best interests.
In July.
1891, he was married to Miss Bert Cohn, a native of Carson City and a daughter
of the well known M. Cohn of that city and a pioneer of the state. One
daughter, Alice Majorie, has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Cohen. In politics he
is a Republican, but aside from doing his duty as an American citizen he does
not take any part in local affairs. Enterprising, an excellent manager and
good business man, Mr. Cohen has been unusually successful, and has many
friends not only in the city, but throughout the surrounding country. [Source:
A History of the State of Nevada: Its Resources and People, By Thomas Wren,
Lewis Publishing Company, Published by The Lewis publishing company, 1904,
Transcribed by Andaleen Whitney]
EX-GOVERNOR R. K. COLCORD
There
lives a man in Nevada who was elected Governor on the Republican ticket. This
may seem astonishing in these days, but it is true nevertheless. R. K.
Colcord, assayer in charge of the United States Mint at Carson City, has the
honor. In the days before the fusion of the silver men and the Democrats the
Republicans were in control, and it was during that time that Colcord was
elected.
Former Governor Colcord has been a prominent figure in this
western country. He was born in Maine, April 25, 1837. He studied engineering
in his youth and went to California in 1856 to engage in placer mining and
mill and bridge building. He came to Nevada in 1863 and located on the
Comstock in Virginia during the height of the gold excitement. He remained
there for eight years building some of the big mills. He was manager of the
mines and mills at Bodie, just across the line in California, for seven years
and held a similar position for five years in Aurora, the sister town on the
Nevada side of the state line.
Governor Colcord has been a leader in the
Republican party in the state for years. He was elected Governor in 1891 and
served until 1895, when he went back to his mining work. He was appointed
superintendent of the mint in 1898 by President McKinley. The mint is now
conducted as a government assay office.
"I am a miner," says the former
Governor, "and I tell you it is the most satisfactory and cheerful calling in
the world. I will not stop as long as I have a cent. Legitimate? Why, it is
just as legitimate as raising wheat." [Source: Who's who in Nevada By Bessie
Beatty 1907, Contributed by Barbara Z., Transcribed by Jeanne Kalkwarf]
JOHN LYONS CONSIDINE, the warden of the Nevada State Prison at Carson
City, is a native son of the state, his birth having occurred at Gold Hill on
the 25th of September, 1871. He comes of Irish ancestry, his parents, Joseph
and Susan (Lyons) Considine, having been natives of Ireland. His father came
to the United States in 1856, and the mother arrived in this country in 1861.
They were married in Pennsylvania in 1870, and came to Nevada, in which state
Mr. Considine had made his home since 1865. Here he turned his attention to
mining, which he followed for a number of years. They had two children, Mary
E. and John L.
John L. Considine, the elder child, was educated in public
and private schools. He has always had a liking for journalism and possessed
considerable talent in that direction, winning for himself a creditable record
because of his newspaper. He was editor and manager of the Virginia Report for
four years, and was afterwards editor of the Virginia Chronicle for two years.
In his early life he was for five years engaged in the railway mail service.
He was chosen to his present position of honor and trust in January, 1903. by
the board of prison commissioners, consisting of the governor, the secretary
of state and the attorney general. He is a bright, intelligent and
well-informed young man, of unfailing courtesy and polite address and is well
qualified for the office which he is now filling.
He has shown an
enterprising and progressive spirit in his conduct of the institution, being
the first Nevada official to introduce the Bertillon system into the state.
Within the first six months of his incumbency he inaugurated a number of
improvements, such as the installation of an electrical alarm system and an
electrical pumping plant, and is now engaged in the construction of a state
boulevard from the prison to Carson City. The Nevada State prison has the
reputation of being one of the most humane institutions of the sort in the
United States, but at the same time the strictest discipline is maintained by
Warden Considine. [Source: A History of the State of Nevada: Its Resources and
People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing Company, Published by The Lewis
publishing company, 1904, Transcribed by Andaleen Whitney]
WILLIAM D.
COTTRELL, blacksmith and carriage-maker in Carson City, has been identified
with the industrial and civic life of Carson City for over a quarter of a
century. He was born in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, July 26, 1852, a son of George
W. and Laura (Pierson) Cottrell, the former a native of England and the latter
of Scotland. His parents came to America in childhood, and they passed most of
their lives in the state of New Jersey, where they both now lie buried, in the
town of Wheatland. They both lived to advanced age, his father dying at the
age of eighty-seven and his mother at the age of eighty-three.
William D.
Cottrell was educated in the public schools of Wisconsin, where he also
learned his trade of blacksmithing and carriage-making. He came to Carson City
in 1877, and he has had a shop in this city ever since, at which he does
everything in his line, and has the reputation of being a very reliable and
successful man.
Mr. Cottrell was married in New Jersey in 1873 to Miss
Lizzie Chubbuck, a native of Massachusetts and a representative of an old New
England family. They have four children, Flora, Elsie, Carrie and Charles. Mr.
Cottrell has a good home of his own in Carson City, and he has always been
thrifty in the management of his business affairs. In politics he is a
Democrat, and has fraternal affiliations with the Knights of the Maccabees and
the Woodmen of the World. He has served as a school trustee, and in 1900 was
elected one of the trustees of the city.
[Source: A History of the State of
Nevada: Its Resources and People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing Company,
Published by The Lewis publishing company, 1904, Transcribed by Andaleen
Whitney]
HON. SAMUEL P. DAVIS, controller of Nevada, came to the state
some thirty years ago under engagement to write on the Virginia Chronicle then
owned by Dennis McCarthy. He was born in Branford, Connecticut, April 4, 1850.
He comes of Welsh ancestry, but several generations of the family have resided
in New England. His father, Rev. Geo. R. Davis, an Episcopal clergyman, was
born in New Haven, Connecticut, where he married Sylvia Nichols, a native of
Maine. He came to Nevada in 1875 and spent a long and useful career in the
ministry, but is now retired and resides in Carson City, a man revered and
beloved by all who have the honor of his acquaintance. Four children were born
to him: Robert, now on the editorial staff of the New York World; William, a
writer on the Stockton Mail; Mrs. H. G. Shaw, of San Francisco; and the
subject of this sketch.
Mr. Davis received his education at Racine College,
Wisconsin, and since that time has devoted himself to journalism, having been
connected with the Chicago Times, Omaha Herald, Marysville Appeal. Chronicle,
Examiner and Argonaut, of San Francisco, Virginia Chronicle and Salt Lake
Tribune. For more than twenty years he has been the editor and publisher of
the Carson Appeal, the oldest paper to be published continuously in the state,
and now one of the leading fusion organs.
Mr. Davis has been in active
politics since young manhood, and for a number of years was an ardent
Republican. In January, 1890, he startled the politicians of the state by
hoisting the flag of revolt against the party and called upon those who did
not believe that Nevada was benefited by a high tariff and the demonetization
of silver, to join in the formation of a new party. He was derided by his late
political associates and read out of the party, but a few years later had the
satisfaction of seeing, not only his own state but the whole west, fighting on
the same political lines.
In 1889 he was nominated for controller by
acclamation by the silver party and elected. Immediately upon assuming the
duties of his office, he in conjunction with Governor Sadler, made a tour of
the state in the interests of a reorganization of the revenue system, and
opened an aggressive war upon the interests which were escaping a just
proportion of taxation. The result of this agitation was the passage of what
is known as the Pitt revenue bill, and other revenue legislation tending to
raise valuations and lower tax rates. Mr. Davis has made a thorough study of
revenue matters not only in Nevada but taxation in other states, and is
regarded as authority upon all questions connected with taxation and revenue.
During his administration the system of equal taxation, based upon high
valuations and low rates, has been featured systematically, and as a result
Nevada has added many millions each year to its assessment roll, and outside
capital has flowed in to further distribute and equalize the burdens of
taxation under which Nevada staggered for a long time. In the administration
of his office he has treated the rich and the poor impartially, the
corporation and the cabin-owner being upon the same footing.
He has always
been an advocate of state development, and was the first to import
thoroughbred Holstein cattle to the state. He still maintains a breeding farm
two miles from Carson City. In 1880 he married Nellie V. Mighels, widow of
Harry R. Mighels and sister of Professor Addison Verrill. of Yale College, one
of the leading zoologists of America. Two lovely daughters have been born to
them, Lucy and Ethel.
For years past Mr. Davis has enjoyed a national
reputation as a writer, and contributed to the leading magazines and
periodicals of the United States. His best story, one which has been
translated into several languages and republished and revamped more than any
of his works, is "The First Piano in Camp."
As a public speaker he is
regarded as at his best when called upon after the wine and walnuts at a
public function. He generally sets the table in a roar, and a contemporaneous
writer has said of him that his oratory is governed by the brand of wine on
the menu. A stem-winding effort from "Sam." as he his affectionately called by
his friends, means the best brand in the market. The best of these efforts and
a piece of word painting which will always live, is his glittering oratorical
tribute to electricity at the banquet given in honor of the introduction of
cheap power on the Comstock.
In political campaigns he delights in being in
the thick of the fight, and his off-hand talks to a political audience are
noteworthy for their entire absence of any attempt at eloquence and the
abundance of hard slugging which characterizes them. He calls a spade a spade,
and his talks are regarded as vote-getters for" the party.
Only when the
entire fire of the opposition can be concentrated upon himself does he
consider that he is doing his duty by his associates upon the ticket.
In
1885 he published a book of "Short Stories and Poems" which met with a very
cordial reception from the critics of the country. [Source: A History of the
State of Nevada: Its Resources and People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing
Company, Published by The Lewis publishing company, 1904]
HENRY ALBERT
LEMMON and HERBERT C. DUNN, editors and publishers of the Carson City News, a
daily, six-column, four-page paper, the organ of the Republican party at the
capital, are enterprising newspaper men of this great state of the west.
Mr. Lemmon is a native of California, having been born in the Sacramento
valley, December 28, 1873, and is descended from an old American family. He is
a son of Benjamin I. and Mary L. (Battelle) Lemmon, natives respectively of
New York and Ohio. The former went to California in 1849, and has spent his
life in mining, although now retired from active life, being aged
seventy-seven years. Mr. Lemmon was the only child, and he entered a printing
office at the age of sixteen years in San Francisco, working for the Dewery
Publishing Company and learning the printer's trade. Later he established the
Mountain Mirror in Sierra county, but moved his plant to several places, and
is now associated with Mr. Dunn, as before stated.
Herbert C. Dunn was born
in Portland, Maine, in 1857, and is of Scotch ancestry, although several
generations have lived in America. Mr. Dunn was educated in the public schools
of his native state, and came to the Pacific coast in 1872. He has been
interested in mining and is now interested in the Carson City News. In 1880 he
was married to Miss Eva Graham, a native of his own state.
The young men
are well spoken of, and their paper is a power among the Republicans of their
locality. They are enterprising and live men, and they play an important part
in state politics. [Source: A History of the State of Nevada: Its Resources
and People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing Company, Published by The Lewis
publishing company, 1904, Transcribed by Andaleen Whitney]
JAMES EASTON
is filling the position of county commissioner of Ormsby county and is one of
Nevada's well known and respected settlers, having come to the state in 1864.
He is now living retired after many years of connection with active business
affairs, wherein his labor, intelligence and energy proved an excellent
foundation upon which to rear the superstructure of success.
A native of
Scotland, Mr. Easton was born in October, 1838, and in the land of the hill
and heather spent the first sixteen years of his life. He then started out to
make his own way in the world, and, thinking that he might do better on the
western continent, he crossed the Atlantic to Canada, where he remained for
five years. He then left the queen's domain, and in 1859 made his way to
California, where he engaged in mining at Columbia, Toulumne county. Later he
became connected with the sheep-raising industry in the Sacramento valley,
having as high as two thousand sheep at one time. There he resided until his
removal to Nevada. Coming to this state, he went into the mountains above
Carson City and engaged with the Carson Tahoe Lumber and Fluming Company as
superintendent of the flume for conveying wood and lumber to the mines in
Virginia City. He was thus busied for twenty-seven years, and then retired. He
was fortunate in his choice of a business, and his energy, keen foresight and
perseverance enabled him to so conduct his affairs that they brought to him a
splendid financial return, enabling him now to rest from further labor and to
enjoy the fruits of his former toil.
In the fall of 1875 Mr. Easton was
united in marriage to Miss Bessie Davidson, who was also a native of Scotland,
but was reared in Canada, becoming a resident of Carson City in August, 1874.
To them have been born two sons, James Davidson and Thomas Hewitt, both born
in Carson City. Their parents have given them good educational privileges, and
they are a credit to their native city. The parents and sons are valued
members of the Presbyterian church, always attending its services, taking an
active part in its work and doing much for its upbuilding and substantial
growth.
In his political views Mr. Easton has been a life-long Democrat,
and has kept well informed on the questions and issues of the day, but has
never sought or desired office. At local elections he has voted quite
independently of party ties, supporting the men whom he thinks best qualified
for office. He is now acting as county commissioner in a manner which makes
his devotion to the general good and his loyalty to the public welfare above
question. In the discharge of his official duties he is both progressive and
economical, and looks beyond the exigencies of the moment to the possibilities
of the future. He has been a business man of high integrity, and he and his
family have the respect of a wide circle of friends in the state in which they
have so long been worthy citizens. [Source: A History of the State of Nevada:
Its Resources and People, By Thomas Wren, Lewis Publishing Company, Published
by The Lewis publishing company, 1904, Transcribed by Andaleen Whitney]
MR. P. B. ELLIS has been an active and prominent factor in connection with
the development of the rich mineral interests of Nevada and California for
twenty-one years, and his residence in the former state dates from 1861. His
career has been one of activity, full of incidents and results. In every
sphere of life in which he has been called upon to move he has made an
indelible impression, and by his excellent public service and upright life has
honored the state in which he has been honored with official preferment. The
history of Nevada's development has been an open book to him since 1861, in
which year he took up his abode in the territory.
Mr. Ellis is a native son
of California, his birth having occurred there on the 13th of October, 1853.
He is of English descent, his ancestors having settled in Virginia in the
early days of its colonization. Robert B. Ellis, his father, was born in
Sussex county, that state, and was a physician and surgeon of marked ability
and broad learning. In 1850 he became a resident of California, and was the
president of the first medical society in that state. He long maintained a
foremost position as a representative of his chosen calling in the west, his
labors proving of the greatest benefit to the sick and sufferings He also took
an active part in the affairs of California, aiding in molding its public
policy and shaping its history. He was elected to the general assembly, in
which he served for several terms, leaving the impress of his individuality
and undoubted loyalty upon the legislation enacted during that period. He was
also active in the public affairs of the state of Nevada after his removal
thither, and his labors were of direct public benefit. He married Miss Sarah
J. Buckner, a native of Illinois and a daughter of James Buckner, who was also
a pioneer settler of California. Their union was blessed with five children,
all born in California, while four of the number are still living.
Brought
to Carson City in his early boyhood, P. B. Ellis obtained his education in the
public schools here. The rich mineral resources of the west furnish the basis
of the prosperity of this section of the country, and throughout his business
career he has been connected with a line of business bearing upon the
development of the mines. For twenty-seven years he has been engaged in
assaying. He has had charge of the Eureka cyanide plant on the Carson river,
and has had charge of the State Line mill and mine is Esmeralda county. He has
been assayer in the United States mint at Carson City for a number of years,
and was assayer in chief under Presidents Harrison, Cleveland and McKinley. He
is splendidly equipped for his work, thoroughly understanding the hest methods
of assaying ore, and his capability has been the means of securing to him
positions of much responsibility. He is now secretary of the State Agent and
Transfer Syndicate. This company was formed under the provisions of the
general corporation law of Nevada, approved March 16, 1903, and is empowered
to act as the resident or fiscal agent of any state, municipality, body
politic or corporation. and in such capacity to receive and disburse money, to
transfer and register certificates of stock, bonds or other evidences of
indebtedness, and to act as the agent of any corporation, foreign or domestic,
for any purpose now or hereafter required by the statute or otherwise. After
the discovery of the mines of Tonopah it was noted that a great many of the
corporations of Nevada were going to the states of Delaware and New Jersey for
the purpose of organization, the corporation laws then in force in Nevada
being inadequate to the times and conditions then existing. A committee was
appointed to draft a law that would allow incorporators the same privileges
that were to be obtained in other states, and at the same time to eliminate
such provisions as were inimical to corporations, the desire being to allow
incorporators the same rights and privileges that individuals might be
entitled to enjoy, at the same time protecting the state and the public from
unjust discriminations. The present law of Nevada offers more inducements to
corporations, whether operating within its jurisdiction or transacting its
business wholly without the state of Nevada, than any other commonwealth. The
State Agent and Transfer Syndicate numbers among its clients corporations from
Alaska to the Philippine Islands and from New York to California, and promises
to be one of the important and lasting institutions of the state of Nevada.
Mr. Ellis is connected with the Nye and Ormsby County Bank, one of the
strongest financial institutions of Nevada, and he is one of its board of
directors.
In 1886 occurred the marriage of Mr. Ellis and Miss Lou A.
Spencer, a native of Bangor, Maine. They now have a daughter, Annie Louise,
born in Carson City. Theirs is an attractive home, and its hospitality is
greatly enjoyed by the many friends of the family. Prominent in Masonry, Mr.
Ellis belongs to Carson Lodge No. 1, F. & A. M. He has since taken all the
degrees of the York Rite, becoming a member of Lewis Chapter No. 1. R. A. M.,
and DeWitt Clinton Commandery, K. T. He is likewise a member of Islam Temple
of the Mystic Shrine at San Francisco, and belongs to the Knights of Pythias
fraternity. In politics he is a Republican, and has served as deputy secretary
of the state under John M. Dormer. His activity in mining interests and his
genial manner and cordial disposition win him friends wherever he goes.
[Source: A History of the State of Nevada: Its Resources and People, By Thomas
Wren, Lewis Publishing Company, Published by The Lewis publishing company,
1904, Transcribed by Andaleen Whitney]