 |
MTGenWeb ProjectLEWIS & CLARK COUNTY, MONTANABIOGRAPHIES - SURNAME B |
|
Edward Coddington Babcock, History of Montana, Sanders, 1913, Edward Coddington Babcock, founder of the well-known firm of E.C. Babcock and Company, which for many years occupied a high place in commercial circles of this section of the state, was recognized as one of the leading merchants of Helena. Of rugged New England ancestry, he came of a family of merchants. He was the son of Draper Babcock and his wife, Mary Eliott, the latter being a descendant of the noted Eliott (or Eliot) of Massachusetts, and was one of the four children of these parents named as follows: Edward C; Howard E., who was associated for a time with his brother Edward in Montana but died in Monmouth; Jennie, widow of Allen B. Seaman, who was a well-known attorney of Denver, Colorado; Lucious A., a resident of Monmouth Illinois and the father of two sons-Draper and Eliott Coddington Babcock. Draper Babcock was the son of Elisha Coddington Babcock, a pioneer merchant of Momouth Illinois where he for years conducted the leading and largest mercantile business in the place in which he was succeeded by his son, Draper, who continued in the business for many years, retiring a few years prior to his death. One of the maternal ancestors of Mr. Babcock was Gov. William Coddington, of Rhode Island and one of the original proprietors of Providence plantations. The original American progenitor of the house of Babcock was James, who came from England and settled at Portsmouth Rhode Island prior to 1665, and later moved to Westerly Rhode Island. From him descended the greater portion of those bearing the name of Babcock in America today. Edward Caddington Babcock was born at Monmouth Illinois on March 27, 1854 and received his early education in the schools of that city and in Monmouth College of which his father was one of the founders. He later attended Cornell University. Following the completion of his educational training he entered his father's store where for two years he received excellent mercantile training under the direction of his father. It was the wish of the elder Babcock that his son continue with him in the old established business which ad came down to him from his father, but Edward was anxious to have an independent career. He came to the west, locating in Leadville Colorado, which was at that time experiencing a boom and there he established a clothing and men's furnishing store which he conducted for two years. He then sold out and in 1885 came to Montana locating first at Butte where he established a similar store on North Main Street. He was joined by his brother Howard E. a year later and Edward C. Babcock left him in charge at Butte and established a store in Helena on Main Street opposite Broadway. Later, the keen foresight of Mr. Babcock was evidenced when he moved the business to Main Street near Sixth Avenue, the heart of the business section, and her he continued until the time of his death. For about three years Mr. Babcock was in indifferent health and he made frequent trips to other climates in the hope of receiving benefit. He was at all times, however, the head the heart of his business. On the occasion of his leaving the city and upon his return from trips of this nature, the Helena press almost invariably made reference with regret to the necessity which compelled his absence and pleasure on his return. While in Los Angeles, in search of health, his death came quite suddenly on January 1, 1910 and he was laid to rest in the family lot beside his parents, at Monmouth Illinois, his native place and boyhood home. Mr. Babcock was a very successful merchant-perhaps none in the section of the state gained a greater success in that business than did he. He was a Republican in his political faith and while he displayed an interest in the election of good men to the public offices, he took no active part in political affairs beyond the casting of his vote. He was a member of no secret societies but was especially fond of his home and home life. He was fond of travel and with Mrs. Babcock had visited practically every section of interest in this country and in 1900 and gain in 1907 they made European tours.On March 27, 1910, following his death and on the fifty-sixth anniversary of his birth, Mrs. Babcock in his memory established the Edward C. Babcock room in St. Peter's Hospital at Helena. October 13, 1881 at Monmouth Illinois Mr. Babcock was married to Miss Minnie R. Swain, a native of that place and the daughter of Alexander Hamilton and Mary Louis (Brewer) Swain, the parents being of English and Swiss extraction. Alexander H. Swain, father of Mrs. Babcock established and for thirty years owned the Monmouth Review, a leading Democratic paper of that section of the state. Mrs. Babcock continues her residence at Helena, on Harrison Avenue, her home being one of the handsome residences of the city. |
| Thomas
C. Bach, a
prominent member of the bench and bar of Montana was born in Brooklyn New
York, October 10, 1853 and is a descendent from English and Irish ancestors.
His grandfather Robert Bach came from England to this country and settled
on Long Island at an early day. He was there when the War of 1812 began
and when the attack was made on Long Island he joined the American forces
and fought until the brave American army conquered the invading foe. He
engaged successfully in the wholesale drug business and erected the first
brick house in the city of Brooklyn. This building was afterward sold and
finally passed into the hands of a charitable society and is now used as
a home for aged and infirm women. He was married in Brooklyn to Miss Margaret
Cowan, a native of Ireland. Their son, John Casnave Bach, the father of
our subject, was born in Brooklyn in 1814. He married Elizabeth Nostrand
who was born on Long Island in 1820. They had eleven children, eight of
whom are still living. John C. Bach, like his father, was a druggist and
both were members of the Episcopal Church. He died in 1885 in the seventy-first
year of his age and his wife survived him two years, her death occurring
in 1887 at the age of sixty-seven.
Judge Bach was the eighth child in his father's family, and when he was eight years old they removed to New York City where he was reared to manhood. He graduated in the Columbia College in 1875 with the degree of A.B. and in 1877 he completed his studies in the law department of the School of Arts graduating with the degrees of A.M. and LL.B. Immediately after his graduation he entered the office of Arnoux, Ritch and Woodford with whom he spent one year and after that was with the firm of Tenney and Aymar two years. The following two years he was engaged in the practice of his profession alone. In 1884 he came to Montana and after a short residence in Bozeman, formed a law partnership with Judge DeWitte of Butte where he remained until 1886. That year President Cleveland appointed him Judge of the Supreme Court of the Territory of Montana and upon receiving his appointment he came immediately to Helena where he has since resided. He held the office of Supreme Judge until 1889 when Montana was made a State. In 1892 he was elected a member of the State Legislature and was Chairman of the Judiciary Committee.In 1889 he was married to Miss Kathryn Child, a native of San Francisco, California, and they have two children, Dorothy and Marjorie. |
|
|
| Richard
P. Barden,
History of Montana, 1898, Richard P. Barden, County Treasurer of Lewis and
Clarke County Montana, is a native of Missouri, born in St. Louis, Mary
20, 1857.
Richard Barden, the father of Richard P., was born on the Emerald Isle, and in early life emigrated from that country to America, taking up his abode in Maine. In that State he was married to Miss Catherine O'Neal, a native of Maine. In 1856 they removed to Missouri, where he died in 1858, leaving a widow and infant son. Richard P. and his mother remained in Missouri until he was twelve years old, she in the meantime becoming the wife of Henry Adams, and in 1869 they came to Montana and located at Helena. Mrs. Adams still resides in Helena. Mr. Barden attended
school after coming to Montana, and his first employment was as clerk
in a stationary store. Afterward he served three years as a clerk in the
post office at Helena and as deputy postmaster at Butte City. Upon his
return to Helena he gain entered the post office and acted as assistant
one year. In 1887 he was elected Treasurer of the city of Helena. Two
years later he was elected County Treasurer, and has been twice re-elected
to succeed himself and he is now serving his third term. That he is an
efficient public servant is evinced by his long continuance in the office.
Half a million dollars go through his hands each year and for the safe
keeping of the county's money he furnishes |
|
|
| John
Bean, History
of Montana,by Joaquin Miller, 1894 John Bean, Clerk of the District Court, Helena, came to Montana in 1883 and has since been identified with its interests. He was born in York, England, June 1, 1860, in which city he was reared and educated, first attending the common schools and afterward the Lord Mayor's College of which institution he is a graduate. At the age of thirteen he began the study of stenography, studying under the best teachers and becoming proficient therein. He also learned telegraphy and as an operator was for four year in the employ of the Northeastern Railway Company of England. At the age of nineteen he came to America, and is today the only member of his family outside of Great Britain. He is one of six children and the remaining brother and sisters reside at the old homestead in York, where the father, who was a successful merchant for many years, is now retired from active business, being a learned scholar and an accomplished linguist, and having amassed a fortune. Mr. Bean's mother is also living. She is a sister of James Carter, of Carter, Redfern & Company, the noted Liverpool merchants and importers. When he reached America, Mr. Bean at once entered the employ of D.W. King and Company, wholesale glue manufacturers at Boston Massachusetts with which firm he remained three years. Growing weary of mercantile pursuits he began reporting the lectures delivered at Tremont Temple, Boston for publication in book form. Leaving the East he came as far west as Chicago and was with George M. Pullman at Michigan Avenue and Adams Street for six months at the expiration of which time he came to Helena. Here he became private secretary of General Agent Stokes, of the Northern Pacific Railway. At the end of a few months he received the appointment of Court Reporter for the First Judicial District of Montana under Chief Justice Wade, and when the latter retired from office, Mr. Bean resigned his position and went into the law office of Carter and Clayberg and continued the study of law which he had hitherto begun. He was admitted to the bar from their office and at once entered upon the practice of his profession. Subsequently he formed a law partnership with C.B. Nolan which lasted until 1889, when Mr. Bean was elected Clerk of the District Court of the First Judicial District being elected by a handsome majority. The term of office was for three years. In 1892 he was again nominated for the same office and was re-elected for a term of four years, by a still grater majority. His present term will expire in January 1897. Mr. Bean was married in Boston in 1880 to Miss Ida F. Parsons. They have had six children, four of whom, three sons and a daughter, are living. Mr. Bean is a prominent Republican and is as popular with his associates here as he was in Boston where his fellow employees tendered him a banquet on the eve of his departure to visit his home in England. |
| M.A.
Beuschlein, History of Montana,by Joaquin Miller, 1894 M.A. Beuschlein, proprietor
of the Bon Ton, the leading hotel of Marysville, was born in Dubuque,
Iowa, September 20, 1855. His father was a native of Baden and his mother
of Bavaria, Germany, but they came to America when young and were married
in Dubuque in 1854. They J.A. Beuschlein was
taken by his parents to Minneapolis when six months old, where as he grew
up he received his education and also learned the baker's trade. He followed
that occupation in Minneapolis for eight years.In the spring of 1879 he
was induced by the Winster Brothers He was married September 23, 1885 to Miss Alice Ladd, a native of Minneapolis. they have two daughters--Minnie and Gale. |
| Leroy
Beveridge,History
of Montana, by Joaquin Miller, 1894 Leroy Bevridge, one of Helena's early settlers and one of her respected and enterprising citizens, dates his birth in Ohio, April 21, 1835. His ancestors were English. His father, Knobb Bevridge, a native of Virginia, removed to Ohio at an early day and in that state spent the rest of his life. His wife, whose maiden name was Ann Lamb, still survives him, being now in her seventy-eighth year. They had two children.Leroy Bevridge spent the first seventeen years of his life on his father's farm, where he had the benefit of a public school education. In 1852 his adventurous spirit led him to seek his fortune in the far west. He made the journey by way of the isthmus of Panama, and upon his arrival in the Golden State engaged in mining in El Dorado County. For five years he was in the mines near Coloma, where gold was discovered by Marshall. He afterward mined on Granite Creek, where he made fair wages and saved some money. In 1862 he went to San Francisco from there by water to Portland Oregon and thence up the Columbia to the Dalles where he and two others purchased three horses, packed them with provisions and from there to the Oro Phino mines. In the fall he returned to Uniontown, California where he spent the winter. During the year 1863 he was at Placerville, spent the following year at Carson City and Virginia City, returned to California and spent another winter there and in 1865 again went to Portland and thence to Idaho City. After this he mined for some time on Morris Creek where he received $6 per day for his work. In the spring of 1866 he returned to Coloma California, where he purchased 6,600 pounds of honey and from whence he shipped the same by way of San Francisco and Portland to The Dalles. He also had eleven cases of gum boots. These with the honey he packed to the gulches of Montana and sold them to the miners. Returning to Walla Walla by way of the Mullen route, he wintered there and in the spring of 1867 engaged in the same business adding to his stock meerschaum pipes and overalls. Upon his return to Helena that year he purchased an interest in a stage line and for seven years was engaged in staging carrying the mails from Helena to Confederate Gulch, now Diamond City. After disposing of his mail route, Mr. Bevridge invested in Helena real estate on which he has from time to time erected buildings. His lot on Main Street on which he has built a double brick block, then cost him $480.00. This is one of the best locations in the city, he having declined $1200 per foot for it. October 1, 1868 Mr.
Bevridge married Anna Siddle, a native of Wisconsin, who came to Helena
in 1864. They have had seven children, all born in Helena, four having
died in early childhood. They are Charles L, the oldest has recently returned
from college and now has charge of his father's cattle ranch; Jennie,
a graduate of Mills College, OaklandCalifornia is at home with her parents;
and the Youngest Chester, is also at home. |
| William
J. Bickett,
History of Montana, 1898 William J. Bickett, County Assessor of Lewis and Clarke County was born in Marion County Kentucky, January 1, 1856. He comes of a family who were early settlers of Kentucky, his father, William J.W. Bickett having been born in that State in 1822. William J.W. Bickett was a physician by profession. He married Miss Martha Collet, a native of Missouri, her ancestors being among the early settlers of the South. Dr. Bickett came out to Montana in 1864 and in 1869 returned East for his wife and two children, whom he brought to Montana. One of these children, Anna, is now the wife of R.P. Thoughman and the other William J. is the subject of this sketch. Soon after his return to Helena in 1869, Dr. Bickett died from the effects of an overdose of medicine taken while sick. William J. Bickett was just entering his teens at the time of his father's death and at that early age he was thrown upon his own resources. He worked at whatever he could get to do and when he was sixteen he was employed as clerk in the dry goods store of J.R. Boyce and Company, retail dealers with whom he remained seven years, his long continuance with the firm being ample evidence of his ability and their confidence in him. Then with all the money he had saved during these years, he invested in the sheep business in which he met with success until the severe winter of 1880 when on account of deep snows, he lost heavily. This loss caused him to return to the mercantile business and for three years he was employed as clerk by Vanwart and Company of Helena. At the expiration of this time he was elected Assessor of Lewis and Clarke County (1886). Mr. Bickett married July 31, 1889 to Mrs. Vena E. Swett a native of New York, daughter of A.B. Taylor of that State and widow of W.C. Swett who was a cattle dealer in Montana. She had a son and daughter from that marriage and by Mr. Bickett she has one daughter, Verna. |
| N.J.
Bielenberg,
History of Montana, 1898
Mr. Bielenberg was born in Holstein Germany, June 8, 1847. At the age of four he was brought to America by his parents who located at Davenport Iowa. Here he grew up, attending the public school until 1863. In that year he went to Chicago where he served an apprenticeship in the butchering business, remaining there until the spring of 1865; that year he came to Montana, locating at Blackfoot City where he embarked in the butchering business, remaining there in that pursuit until 1870. In that year he engaged in the same business at Helena, remaining there until 1872 in which year he married Miss Anna Bosk of Deer Lodge and removed to that town. Here he engaged in the stock raising business, buying, selling and driving cattle from Montana to Cheyenne from whence he shipped them to Chicago. This he continued until 1877 going into business then at Butte, where he operated a large butchering business, erecting a cold-storage warehouse and handling beef in wholesale quantities. This business has grown into the Butte Butchering Company under which name it now exists. About 1884 Mr. Bielenberg became associated with his half-brother, Conrad Kohrs, running large herds in connection with him and his brother John. In 1884 he went into the sheep business, at first alone, then in partnership with Joseph Toomey. This business grew to enormous proportions, handling in one year over 130,000 head of sheep. Mr. Bielenberg is still engaged in the cattle and stock business. They are still running a bunch of from ten to twelve thousand head of sheep in various parts of the state. His family consists of five children, two boys and three girls, all living. |
| George
Booker, History
of Montana by Joaquim Miller, 1894 George Booker, a Montana pioneer of 1864, and one of Helena's best known citizens, is a native of St. Louis, Missouri, born February 7, 1840. He is of German and French extraction. His parents, Charles and Mary Booker, are residents of Illinois and in his early life his father was a merchant tailor. When George Booker was thirteen years of age he left home to do for himself and for some time clerked and did whatever else he could find to do. In 1859 he went to Denver, Colorado and mined there in the placer mines and also learned the trade of bricklayer at which trade he worked until he came with a mule team to Virginia City in 1864. After this he was engaged in freighting between Virginia City and Fort Benton, a distance of 210 miles, freighting being then a profitable employment. He received from 25-30 cents per pound for carrying freight and usually handled about 2,500 pounds each trip he made with his four-mule team. This business he continued about two years. He came to Helena in 1866, his first employment here being as clerk for P.A. Ray. Then he turned his attention to the auction and commission business, in which he has been since engaged. He has sold at auction all kinds of properties, lands and pools, and has done more of that kind of business than any other man in the state of Montana and is in Helena the principal auctioneer of the city. During all these years, Mr. Booker has had various partners, his present partner being James B. Loomis, their store being located at the corner of Park Avenue and Edwards Street. Mr. Booker built his pleasant residence on one of the heights in the city of Helena, No. 305 Pine Street, the view from which of the city and surrounding country is magnificent. Here he and his family are surrounded with all the comforts of life. He as married in 1872 to Mattie E. Walton, a native of Missouri and a daughter of Moses E. Walton, Esq., her father being now a resident of Silver City, Montana, where he is engaged in mining and farmer. Mr. and Mrs. Booker
have three children: Ethel Laticie, Clinton Talbert and Lester Harry,
all natives of Helena. Politically Mr. Booker is a Democrat and for many
years he has been a member of the Fire Department of Helena. In 1868 he
was made a Master Mason and ever since that time has been devoted to the
order. He has taken all the degrees in the blue lodge, chapter, council
and commandry, has received the 32nd degree in the Scottish rite, and
has the honor of having filled nearly all the chairs in all the branches
of Masonry. He has been Secretary of Helena Lodge, No 3 for twenty-two
years, Helena Chapter No 2, five years, Helena Council, No 9, sixteen
years, Helena Commandry, No 2, eighteen years, Chapter Rose Croix, two
years, and Algera Temple, A.O.O.N.M.S., four years and is at the present
time Secretary of all the branches mentioned. For two years he was Treasurer
of the Grand Commandry of the state. Few have done more in Montana to
advance the interests of the order than has he, and from his brother Masons
he has received the name "Encyclopedia of the Order." At an
early day during the Indian wars, Mrs. Booker served as transportation
master, and rendered much valuable service in forwarding supplies to the
soldiers. |
| Alexander
C. Botkin, History of Montana,by Joaquin Miller, 1894, Hon. Alexander C.
Botkin, Lt. Governor of Montana, is a native of Wisconsin, born at Madison,
October 13, 1842. He is of Scotch Irish ancestry.
His father Alexander Botkin was born in Kentucky, of Irish parents, March 4, 1801 and was married to Jane R. Sinclair, a native of Scotland. they had three sons of whom Alexander C. is the youngest.Alexander C. Botkin was reared and educated in his native county, graduating at the University of Wisconsin in 1859 and receiving the degree of Master of Arts in 1862. From 1862 to the close of the war he served as paymaster's clerk. In 1866 he graduated in the law department of theUniversity at Albany. Between 1869 and 1874 he served as city editor first and afterward managing editor of the Chicago Times. From 1874 to 1878 he was editor n chief of the Milwaukee Sentinel and in 1878 he was appointed United States Marshal for the district of Montana by PresidentHayes. In this capacity he served until 1885 and from 1886 to 1890 was City Attorney of Helena. He has also been the candidate of the Republicans for delegate to Congress for Montana. In 1892 he received the nomination for Lt. Governor of the state and was elected in the ensuing election by 2,300 majority, running some 1,300 ahead of his ticket. He is a member from Montana of the Republican National Committee by all of this showing that he has led a useful and influential life in the affairs of not only his own state but also that of the whole country. In 1872 he was happily
united in marriage to Harriet E. Sherman, a native of Woodbury Connecticut
and a daughter of George P. Sherman, she being a resident of Milwaukee
at the time of their marriage. They have a son and daughter, Alexander
W. and Alice Sinclair. |
|
James R. Boyce, a venerable pioneer of Montana was born in Logan County Kentucky, October 11, 1817. He is descended from early settlers of the Old Dominion, three generations of his ancestors having been born in Virginia. His grandfather Boyce fought in the Revolution for American independence. Richard Boyce, the father of our subject, was born in Virginia in 1780 and was married there to Miss Mary Smith, a native of that State, her birth having occurred in 1786. They removed to Logan County Kentucky; here they spent the residue of their lives, there rearing a family of five children, three of whom are still living. He was a man of considerable prominence in the frontier settlement where he lived. He owned a large plantation, served as County Court Judge and was also Sheriff of Logan County. Both he and his wife were members of the Baptist Church. She died at the age of forty-two years and he lived to be sixty-seven. James R. was the first born of his father's family. He was reared and educated in Kentucky and was married there in 1837 to Miss Maria L. Wright, daughter of William Wright of Russelville Kentucky. The Wrights were also an old Virginia family. In 1842 Mr. Boyce and his family moved to Columbia Missouri where he was engaged in merchandising until 1863. During the early part of the Civil War he was in the Quartermaster's Department of the Confederate service and by the rages of war he lost his property. In 1863 Mr. Boyce crossed the plains to Denver Colorado, where he was engaged in merchandising for a year. Hearing of the gold excitement in Montana, he set out for this place, making the journey hither with a pair of mules and a wagon loaded with provisions and after seventy-two days of travel, landing at Alder Gulch, June 14, 1864. Soon after his arrival here he became a member of the firm of Tulle, Leach and Company and opened a store. They hauled goods in wagons from St. Joseph and Denver and did a prosperous business, getting fabulous prices in gold dust for their goods, and continuing there for a period of three years. The business was then removed to Helena and he continued in that place until 1880 when he sold out and went to Omaha. He conducted business in Omaha four years. At the end of that time he returned to Helena and invested some in city property, which he still retains and has since been retired from active business. In 1875 Mr. Boyce had the misfortune to lose by death the companion of his life, she being fifty-five at the time of her death. Of their children, be it recorded that they are all settled, mostly in Montana and are occupying honorable and useful positions in life. The oldest William R., is a farmer of Silver Bow County. Mattie is the wife of Col. Thomas L. Thuroughman, a distinguished lawyer of St. Louis. James R. Jr. is a retired merchant of Butte City. Annie is the wife of Hon. William Thompson of Butte City; and Lee the youngest, is a printer engaged on the Montana Methodist. Mr. Boyce makes his home with his son, James R. and his daughter, Mrs. Thompson, alternating between the two places at his pleasure. The passing years have left their traces, his hair is white as snow, and but that age is creeping upon him he is still well preserved, both mentally and physically, showing that his life has been one of temperance in all things. In his early life Mr. Boyce, like his father before him, was a Whig, being great admirers of Henry Clay. When the Whig party died he became a Millard Fillmore American and afterward belonged to the "Know Nothing" party. At the outbreak of the civil War while he was a Union man at heart and loved his country, his home was in the South. His friends and kindred were there and he had no alternative but to take the side of the South. During the early years
of his residence in Montana, when the lawless element prevailed and the
lives and property of the citizens were in danger, Mr. Boyce allied himself
with the Vigilantes and did his part toward putting a stop to the depredations
that were being committed on all sides. Indeed in all the walks of life
he has ever cast his influence and his support on the side of justice
and right. For many years he has been identified with the Methodist Episcopal
Church, in which he has served as Steward, Class leader and Trustee. |
| Eugene
Burford Braden,
History of Montana, 1898
Eugene Burford Braden, manager of the U.S. Public Sampling Works at Helena, dates his birth at Indianapolis Indiana, May 12, 1864. Mr. Braden is of Irish descent. His great grandfather Braden was born in Ireland and emigrated from that country to this, settling in Pennsylvania. On one side of his ancestry belonged the noted Robb family. William Braden, the father of Eugene B. was born in Pennsylvania in 1820. He married Miss Martha B. Burford, a native of Kentucky and on her mother's side a descendant of the old Virginia family of Ruckers. After their marriage he removed to Indiana and at Indianapolis in 1844 founded a blank book and publishing business, in which he continued until 1880 when his death occurred. His widow is still living. They had a family of four children, all of whom survive with the exception of the eldest. Eugene Braden, the second son in the family was educated in Indianapolis and Kentucky and began life for himself as a railroader, first as ticket agent at Indianapolis. Next he was at San Francisco, general agent for the Manitoba road and afterward at Los Angeles as general agent for the Chicago and Northwestern. To him belongs the distinction of having sold at Helena the first ticket and made the first waybill for the Great Northern Railroad. In 1887 he was cashier of the Montana Central Railroad. After this he went back to California but a year and a half later returned to Helena and since October 1890 has been with his brother in the U.S. Public Sampling Works occupying his present position. The business consists in sampling ores and selling to the various smelters. June 5, 1894 Mr. Braden received from President Cleveland the appointment of assayer in charge of the Helena U.S. Assay Office and took charge of the office during the succeeding month. |
| Donald
Bradford,
History of Montana,by Joaquin Miller, 1894
Donald Bradford first came to Montana in 1884 but after remaining a short time he returned to the East. His residence here, although brief, had given him a favorable opinion of the state and in 1886 he came back to Montana and took up his abode at Helena where he has since made his home and the headquarters of his operations.Donald Bradford was born in Springfield, Illinois, September 14, 1861. During the earlier years of his life he attended the common schools of his native state and Mississippi and his education was completed in the University of Virginia. He determined to follow the profession of law and upon locating in Helena he entered upon a law practice, which, however, he abandoned at the end of one year in order to engage in more congenial pursuits. The large areas of land susceptible of irrigation and which would under cultivation produce large crops attracted Mr. Bradford's attention and he entered into enterprises to render these lands available for farming. His first venture was the construction of the big Dearborn canal, conveying water from the Dearborn River to adjacent lands and furnishing irrigation to an area of 75,000 acres hitherto unworked to any extent. Other extensive irrigating enterprises have also been promoted by him and he is largely interested in Helena real estate, and farming lands adjacent to the city, as well as property elsewhere.In 1890 Mr. Bradford was the Democratic nominee for Mayor of Helena and was triumphantly elected over a candidate who had been deemed invincible by the members of the opposing party. In addition to this office,he has been secretary of the Helena Board of Trade, has organized the Chamber of Commerce and the Commercial Club and is president of the Northeastern Abstract Company. He is a member of no secret organizations, but is an active and prominent member of the Montana Club. He belongs to the Episcopal Church. Although a young man he is prominently identified with the interest of Montana and is an active promoter of measures looking to the prosperity of the state. Mr. Bradford was married in Springfield Illinois in 1888 to Esther Fox and they have one child. |
|
ALEXANDER F. BURNS,
In the Helena Independent (newspaper ) dated 28 May 1908. " CAPTAIN
BURNS ANSWERS CALL" After a long eventful
and distinguised career, Captain Alexander F.Burns, a member of the Montana
constitutional convention, died at -First to Enlist.- -Moved to Helena- -Funeral Tomorrow- |
| Alexander
Burrell, History
of Montana, by Joaquin Miller, 1894 Hon. Alexander Burrell, who has been prominently connected with the Great Drum Lummon Mine during the greater part of its history, was born near Edinburg, Scotland, January 14, 1851, a son of Archie and Eliza (Telfer) Burrell, natives also of that country. In 1856 the family came to America, locating in Chicago, where the father followed the coppersmith's trade. Soon after his arrival in this country he became a victim of the cholera and died, leaving the family without husband or father, in a strange land. The mother now resides at Great Falls, Montana, having reached a good old age. Alexander Burrell, the second son in order of birth, received his education in the Morris Illinois public schools, and at an early age began his career as a miner in the coal mines of Illinois. He was thus occupied for nearly twenty years, and for a time was also engaged in the manufacture of building material and mining with his brother near Chicago. In 1888 Mr. Burrell came to Marysville Montana for the first two years had charge of the supplies for the Montana mining Company, for the following two years held the position of superintendent of works for the same company and in 1893 was promoted to superintendent of mining, his present position. He has had long and thorough experience in underground works and is proving himself to be the right man in the right place. Since coming to Montana, Mr. Burrell has identified himself with many of the offices of the county, is a Republican in political matters and has the honor of having been selected by the people of his district as Representative in the Legislative Assembly of Montana. Mr. Burrell was married April 8, 1879 to Abby Kiersted, a native of Morris Illinois and a daughter of George K. Kiersted. They have six children: George L, Alexander A., Grace, Sidney, John and William. |
Should you have any questions, please email the County Coordinator.
 |
 |
Copyright MTGenWeb Project. ©Copyright 2013 - Present MTGenWeb County Coordinator