in the Janesville schools, completing a high school course. He was a
youth of but sixteen years when the Civil war broke out and in the
fall of 1863, when but eighteen years of age, he enlisted for service
and was assigned to duty with Company E of the Twenty-second Wisconsin
Volunteer Infantry, which became a part of the Second Brigade, Third
Division, of the Twentieth Army Corps, commanded by Colonel Joe
Hooker. He was with Sherman on the celebrated march to the sea and
after returning to Washington, following the close of hostilities, the
members of Sherman's command were recruited and formed the temporary
division of the Fourteenth Army Corps, which was sent under Jeff C.
Davis to Louisville, Kentucky, Van Dorn of the Southwestern Department
having not yet surrendered. They were mustered out at Louisville,
Kentucky, on the 18th of July, 1865, and later Mr. Guernsey returned
to Janesville, Wisconsin, where he engaged in the insurance business.
Three years afterward, or in 1868, he went to Milwaukee, Wisconsin,
where he became a dealer in wood and coal, continuing in that business
until 1870. In January, 1871, he was appointed an officer of the reform
school at Waukesha, Wisconsin. In the meantime, however, following his
return to Janesville, he had done other military service. Major General
Starkweather, who had gone out with the First Wisconsin as colonel
and who rose to the rank of major general of volunteers, took command
of the Milwaukee Light Guards, of which he had been captain at the
outbreak of the war. Mr. Guernsey joined the Light Guards and was with
that command at the inauguration of Governor Fairchilds at Madison in
January, 1869. After spending a few months as an officer in the reform
school in Waukesha, Wisconsin, he again went to Janesville, where he
accepted a position with a hardware firm as bookkeeper. The lure of
the west, however, was upon him and on the 14th of October, 1871, he
turned his face toward the setting sun and on the 9th of November
reached Walla Walla, having traveled by rail as far as Keton, Utah, and
thence through Boise, Baker, LaGrande to Walla Walla by stage. After
spending ten days in that city he proceeded to Dayton, the town having
been platted only a few days before, and on Mr. Guernsey's arrival
there were but two buildings in the town, one being the residence of
J. N. Day, while the other was known as the "red store," the property
of Kimball & Day. On the 1st of December Mr. Guernsey succeeded Ralph
Kimball in the store and was employed by the firm until the fall of
1874, when he became a partner in the business under the firm style
of Day, Guernsey & Company. In the fall of 1875 he withdrew from that
organization and formed a new company, entering into partnership with
F. G. Frary, superintendent of the Dayton Woolen Mills, and A. H.
Reynolds, of Walla Walla, who was the only banker this side of The
Dalles. The new firm was organized under the style of D. C. Guernsey &
Company. In 1876 Mr. Frary and Mr. Reynolds withdrew and Mr. Guernsey
was joined by H. H. Wolfe under the firm name of Guernsey & Wolfe. He
thus continued active in merchandising in Dayton until 1880, when he
sold out. From the beginning of his residence there he took active part
in the upbuilding and progress of the new town.
[Illustration: D. C. GUERNSEY]
In 1876 Mr. Guernsey was instructed by the commissioners of the new
county of Columbia--F. G. Frary, G. T. Pollard of Huntsville and E.
Oliver of Pomeroy--to call a special election for the purpose of
choosing county officers. Mr. Guernsey was elected county treasurer
for one year and at the first biennial election was chosen for a full
term at a salary of three hundred dollars per year, the officers being
required to serve at a "moderate salary" inasmuch as this was an
infant county. In 1878 he was chosen to represent his district in the
territorial legislature and on the 31st of July, 1880, he succeeded
L. F. A. Shaw in the office of deputy collector of internal revenue
under Major James R. Hayden. He occupied that position for three years
and then surrendered the office to H. W. Fairweather. On the 4th of
May, 1884, Mr. Guernsey entered the Columbia National Bank of Dayton
as cashier and had complete charge of the bank's affairs through the
following sixteen years, at which time his brother, F. W. Guernsey,
became cashier, while D. C. Guernsey was made vice president and
manager of the institution. He successfully carried the bank through
the panic of 1893, although he closed one Saturday night with but five
hundred and fifty dollars in the bank. However, he most carefully
safeguarded the interests of the institution and managed to weather
the financial storm which swept over the entire country in that year.
He remained in his official capacity with the bank until 1900, when he
retired, the institution at that time having deposits of three hundred
and seventy-four thousand dollars. He then turned his attention to
the real estate, insurance and loan business in Dayton and in 1904 he
took charge of a mining camp on the Omnaha in Willowa county, Oregon,
for the Eureka Mining Company, his position being that of managing
director. While there he built the wagon road down Deer creek from
Dobbins Cabin to Snake river. He occupied the position of director
of the mining camp for two years, after which he returned to Dayton
and through the succeeding two years gave his attention to the real
estate and insurance business. In 1908 he removed to Starbuck to assist
in straightening out the affairs of the Bank of Starbuck, of which
institution he was made cashier, occupying that position for a period
of two and a half years. He then resigned and established his present
business, with which he has since been prominently identified, being
today one of the foremost real estate, loan and insurance agents in
this part of the state. One of the local papers said: "D. C. Guernsey
has been a most important factor in the development of Columbia county
and the moulding of civilized life in the great state of Washington.
During the early history of Columbia county, hardly a business
transaction was carried through or a public enterprise launched that
was not inspired by the brain or fostered by the public-spiritedness of
Mr. Guernsey." He helped to organize and was the first president of the
Dayton Electric Light Company and built many of the buildings in that
city in the block in which the Columbia National Bank is located. He
organized the Dayton Hotel Company, which built the hotel, and was its
president for several years.
Mr. Guernsey has also left the impress of his individuality in marked
manner upon the political history of the state. In politics he has
always been a stanch republican and was a leader in the party from
the time when there were but twelve republicans who went from Walla
Walla to Lewiston. In 1879, when he became a member of the territorial
legislature, he became a member of what was known as the bunch grass
delegation, which became the controlling factor in the general
assembly. He was made chairman of the ways and means committee and did
important work in that connection. In 1890 he was appointed a member
of the state harbor line commission by Governor Ferry, the first state
governor, and was active in the work of the commission, which located
all the harbor lines in the state and submitted the plans to the United
States war department. Mr. Guernsey also became identified with the
military interests of the northwest. He assisted in organizing the
Dayton Grays, which merged into Company F of the First Washington
Regiment for service in the Philippines. He was also paymaster and
battalion adjutant of the Second Washington Regiment under Colonel Pike.
On the 23d of September, 1873, Mr. Guernsey was married to Miss Harriet
E. Day, a daughter of Dr. W. W. Day, who was the first physician in
Dayton, where his son and grandson are now practicing, so that the name
of Dr. Day has always been associated with that city. To Mr. and Mrs.
Guernsey have been born five children, four of whom are yet living:
William Day, a journalist connected with a newspaper of Schenectady,
New York; Frank Day, a mining man of Jerome, Arizona; Minerva G., the
wife of George F. Price, of Dayton; and Helen G., the wife of Frank E.
Girton, of Covello, Washington.
In fraternal relations Mr. Guernsey has occupied a very prominent
position. He was made a Mason in Independence Lodge, No. 80, F. &
A. M., of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in November, 1869, and was made a
Royal Arch Mason in Walla Walla Chapter, No. 1, in 1880. He became a
charter member and is a past master of Columbia Lodge, No. 26, F. &
A. M., of Dayton, and on the formation of Dayton Chapter, No. 5, R.
A. M., he also became a charter member of that organization and is a
past high priest. He is likewise a member and past eminent commander
of Washington Commandery, No. 1, K. T., is a member of the Lodge of
Perfection and the Chapter of Rose Croix in Walla Walla and of the
Knights of Kodosh and of Spokane Consistory, A. A. S. R. He likewise
has membership with the Knights Commander Court of Honor. He was the
first chancellor commander in Organization Lodge, No. 3, K. P., and is
the oldest chancellor commander in the state. He also has connection
with various other fraternal organizations and has been very prominent
in that connection for many years. His has been a guiding hand in
shaping the history of southeastern Washington in its material, social
and political progress and at all times he has been actuated by high
ideals, looking ever to the benefit and upbuilding of his section of
the state. Great indeed have been the changes which have occurred
since his arrival in Columbia county. The seeds of civilization had
scarcely been planted when he reached Dayton and from that time forward
he has cooperated in all movements which have been instituted for
public benefit, and without invidious distinction he may be termed the
foremost resident of Starbuck.
DICK HARPER.
Dick Harper, who is filling the position of county auditor in Columbia
county, Washington, and makes his home in Dayton, was born August
12, 1863, in Washburn, Woodford county, Illinois. His father, James
D. Harper, was a native of Sullivan county, Indiana, born in 1838,
and when quite young removed to central Illinois, where his boyhood
and youth were passed. He was a graduate of Eureka College, Eureka,
Illinois, and devoted his entire life to educational work. He married
Marion A. Jenkins when twenty-five years of age and passed away in
Dayton, Washington, in February, 1901. His wife is a representative of
a pioneer family of New York and is now living in Dayton at the age of
eighty years and is splendidly preserved. She lived for a few months in
the same house with Abraham Lincoln during the famous Lincoln-Douglas
campaign. She has a brother living at the age of ninety years, who was
an officer in the Civil war, holding the rank of first lieutenant.
Dick Harper acquired a common school education in Missouri and also
attended the State Normal School at Warrensburg, Missouri. In 1885,
when a young man of twenty-two years, he took charge of a drug store
for his brother-in-law at Rich Hill, Missouri, and successfully managed
the business for a period of seven years, after which he came to the
Pacific coast, arriving in Portland, Oregon, in the spring of 1892.
In the fall of that year he came to Dayton, where he was identified
with farming and with the grain trade until the spring of 1903, when
he established a furniture store in Dayton and soon won for himself a
place among the active and representative merchants of the city. In
1906 he purchased the Day drug store at Dayton, which he conducted
successfully for seven years.
On the 27th of October, 1886, in Butler, Bates county, Missouri, Mr.
Harper was united in marriage to Miss Laura A. Floyd, a daughter of
John H. and Sarah A. Floyd. They have a daughter, Florence Marion, who
is the wife of Lloyd R. Terwilliger, who is living in Walla Walla and
is employed in the First National Bank of that city.
Mr. Harper has long been an active and helpful member of the Christian
church and he has membership with the Odd Fellows, the Knights of
Pythias and the Masons. For a number of years he served as secretary of
Dayton Chapter, R. A. M., and in his life has always exemplified the
beneficent spirit of the craft. He belongs to the Dayton Commercial
Club and is a member of its governing board. In politics he is a
democrat. In 1898 he was made county auditor of Columbia county by
popular vote and in 1910 and 1911 served as councilman at large. He was
chairman of the street and public property committee and also of the
light and water committee. In 1912 he was elected mayor of the city
and in 1916 was appointed police judge. He has thus long continued in
public office and those who read between the lines will recognize the
important part which he has played in public affairs in Dayton, winning
for himself a most creditable position in commercial and political
circles. In a word, he has exercised much influence over public thought
and opinion and has done much to advance public progress in his adopted
city.
CALDER H. WHITEMAN.
No class of Walla Walla's citizens is more highly esteemed than the
many retired farmers who here make their home and among them is
numbered Calder H. Whiteman, who was born in Keokuk county, Iowa, April
29, 1851. His parents, John B. and Eliza G. (Colville) Whiteman, were
natives of West Virginia and Kentucky respectively but were married in
Indiana. In 1850 they became settlers of Iowa but later returned to
Indiana, where the mother died. The father was subsequently married
twice. In 1874 he made the long journey to Oregon and four years later
took up his residence in Umatilla county, that state. He died in Milton
October 5, 1910.
Calder H. Whiteman, who is an only child by the first marriage,
remained with his father until he attained his majority and received
his education in the common schools. On beginning his independent
career he rented a farm near Salem, Oregon, having decided to devote
his life to the occupation to which he had been reared. After farming
that place for three years he removed to Umatilla county and took up a
homestead, the operation of which occupied his time and attention until
his removal to Walla Walla in 1901. In the intervening years he brought
the place to a high state of cultivation and made many improvements
thereon, making it one of the most up-to-date and valuable farms in
that locality. In 1911 he sold the Umatilla county property and bought
a farm in Whitman county, Washington, near Lacrosse, which he still
retains. He and his son now own fourteen hundred and forty acres, all
fine wheat land, well improved, and their holdings place them among the
large landowners of eastern Washington. Mr. Whiteman of this review
makes his home in Walla Walla and his residence here is commodious,
pleasing in design and thoroughly modern in its appointments.
[Illustration: MR. AND MRS. CALDER H. WHITEMAN]
Mr. Whiteman was married in 1874 to Miss Ella M. Dorman and they became
the parents of four children, of whom three survive: Jessie L., the
wife of F. E. Allison of Lind, Washington; Clarence C., a resident of
Pendleton, Oregon; and Calder Otis, who is his father's partner in his
farming interests. The wife and mother passed away in 1896 and in 1897
Mr. Whiteman was married to Mrs. Mary M. (Jackson) Morton, a native of
Canada. By her first marriage she had two children, both of whom have
passed away.
Mr. Whiteman endorses the principles of the republican party and gives
his loyal support to its candidates at the polls. For four years he
was a member of the city council of Walla Walla and his record in that
office is one of unusually capable work in behalf of the welfare of
the municipality. For twenty-two years he has been a member of the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows and he also belongs to the Woodmen of
the World and the women's branch of that organization, known as the
Women of Woodcraft. Both he and his wife are active members of the
Christian church, of which he is an elder, and he is also president
of the board of directors of the Northwest Christian Home of Idaho,
Montana, Oregon and Washington at Walla Walla. It is under the
supervision of the Benevolent Association of the Christian church,
which organization is designed to erect homes and hospitals for the
young, old and needy of that church, and Mr. Whiteman gives much of his
time to looking after the affairs of that institution. The prominence
which he has gained establishes beyond question his ability, for his
advancement has at all times come as the direct result of his own
efforts and he is indeed a self-made man.
P. B. DOWLING.
The average farmer is apt to think of Washington as a great forest
country, and while there are wonderful tracts of timber land, making
this one of the leading centers of the lumber industry on the
continent, there are also great stretches which are most splendidly
adapted to farming and particularly to wheat raising, so that
Washington has come to be known as one of the great wheat producing
states of the Union. Among those who in following farming have devoted
their attention to wheat culture in Walla Walla county is P. B.
Dowling, who in 1887 arrived in this section of the state and who is
now the owner of one hundred and forty acres of land, constituting
one of the best farms in the Walla Walla valley. He was born in
Springfield, Illinois, March 14, 1860, and is a son of William and
Margaret Dowling, who were natives of Ireland. They came to America in
early life and established their home in Illinois, but afterward both
returned to Ireland and their last days were spent in that country.
P. B. Dowling was accordingly reared and educated in Ireland, where
he had good opportunities for developing his intellectual powers,
being given a college education. He was graduated from the London
Veterinary College and engaged in the practice of his chosen profession
with success for a number of years. In 1886, however, he determined
to return to his native land and crossed the Atlantic to America,
first establishing his home in De Kalb county, Illinois. He came to
the northwest with W. L. Elwood, a well known importer of horses,
and in 1887 brought the first carload of Percheron horses that was
shipped into the valley. He afterward purchased the farm whereon
he now resides, comprising one hundred and forty acres of very rich
and productive farm land, upon which he has placed many modern
improvements. Here he has lived continuously since and has long been
numbered among the representative and successful agriculturists of this
part of the state.
In 1890 Mr. Dowling was united in marriage to Miss Katherine Rourke,
who was born and reared upon the farm where Mr. Dowling now resides.
The wife passed away, however, in 1903, and was laid to rest in
Mountain View cemetery. She left a husband, two brothers and three
sisters to mourn her loss and there were many friends who deeply
regretted her passing.
Mr. Dowling gives his political allegiance to the republican party and
is thoroughly informed concerning the questions and issues of the day.
He is a self-made man who owes his business advancement entirely to
his own efforts. He is recognized as one of the prominent men of the
valley, being forceful and resourceful in his business connections,
while in matters of citizenship he stands with patriotic loyalty for
all that tends to advance the welfare and progress of this section of
the state.
HENRY A. KAUSCHE.
Henry A. Kausche devoted his active life to farming in Garfield
county but at the time of his death was living retired in Pomeroy.
His birth occurred in Germany, February 16, 1839, and he was a son of
Christopherson and Hannah Kausche, who were born in Germany and there
remained for a number of years after their marriage. In 1851, however,
they came to America and for a short time lived in New York. They then
removed to Michigan, which remained their home for more than twenty
years. At length they came to Washington to make their home with their
son, Henry A., and both passed away in Garfield county. All of their
three children are likewise deceased.
Henry A. Kausche received the greater part of his education in Germany,
as he was twelve years of age when brought by his parents to the
United States. He grew to manhood in Michigan and lived there for five
years after his marriage. At the end of that time he went to Johnson
county, Missouri, but after residing there for six years cast in his
lot with the Pacific northwest, settling in Linn county, Oregon. Some
time later, in 1878, he came to Garfield county, Washington, and took
up a claim. He resided upon that place continuously until 1902 and as
the years passed he brought his farm to a high state of development.
He extended its boundaries by purchase, becoming the owner of eight
hundred acres, from which he derived a gratifying income. In 1902,
feeling that he had earned a period of leisure, he retired and removed
to Pomeroy, where he passed away July 4, 1903.
[Illustration: HENRY A. KAUSCHE]
Mr. Kausche was married June 8, 1865, to Miss Paulina Lohrbert, who
was born in Ohio and is a daughter of Frederick and Katherine (Rock)
Lohrbert. The father was born in Germany but in young manhood came to
the United States and took up his residence in Ohio, of which state
his wife was a native, and there their marriage occurred. In 1860 they
removed to Michigan, where they lived until called by death. All of
their five children still survive. To Mr. and Mrs. Kausche were born
eleven children, of whom five are living, namely: Laura, the wife
of Andrew J. Brown, of Spokane, Washington; Evelyn, who married Leo
McMullen and now resides in Canada; Ida A., the wife of George McCarty;
Alvina, the wife of Henry Freeborn; and Charles A., who is operating
the homestead.
Mr. Kausche was a democrat in politics and felt the concern of a good
citizen for the public welfare but was never an aspirant for office.
His life was a busy and useful one and his labors were felt as a factor
in the agricultural development of Garfield county. He had made many
friends and his demise was the occasion of deep regret.
ROBERT KENNEDY.
In the great wheat growing belt of eastern Washington lies the farm
of Robert Kennedy, his place being situated on section 15, township 7
north, range 36 east, Walla Walla county. It is a valuable tract of
land of nine hundred and twenty acres, all of which has been brought
under a high state of cultivation and annually the great wheat yield
returns to him a most gratifying income. Mr. Kennedy still gives
supervision to the work, of the place although he has now passed the
eighty-seventh milestone on life's journey. He was born in Rush county,
Indiana, June 20, 1830, a son of John and Margaret Kennedy, both of
whom were natives of Tennessee. Removing northward to Indiana, they
resided in that state for a time and later became residents of Shelby
county, Illinois, where both passed away.
Robert Kennedy started out in life on his own account when a youth
of but fourteen years and in 1851, when twenty-one years of age, he
crossed the plains to the Pacific coast, attracted by the opportunities
of the great and growing west. He made his way to Oregon, where he
settled on a farm and continued a resident of that place for eight
years. In 1859 he arrived in Walla Walla county and settled on Dry
creek, where he has since made his home. As the years have passed he
has added to his possessions, his industry and determination bringing
to him larger resources. His investments in farm property have made him
the owner of nine hundred and twenty acres of valuable wheat land and
upon his place are many substantial improvements. His farm presents
a very neat and thrifty appearance and is supplied with all modern
conveniences.
Mr. Kennedy has been married twice. He first wedded Miss Anna Smith
and they became the parents of three children of whom only one is now
living, L. L. Kennedy, a resident farmer of Oregon. The wife and mother
passed away in 1876 and in 1879 Mr. Kennedy was again married, his
second union being with Mrs. Margaret (Jackson) Dennison. Mrs. Kennedy
is a cousin of William Dennison, who was governor of Ohio. To Mr. and
Mrs. Kennedy have been born seven children: Rebecca, the deceased wife
of Professor R. E. Stafford; Martha, the wife of John Connell; Robert
P.; Edna; William B.; B. H.; and Edith May, who has passed away.