Portland
People Abroad
Many of Portland's former citizens who got a start in life in that town,
and who alone or with their families have gone beyond its territorial limits,
have become prominent in their respective communities.
The information is not at hand to enable a separate mention of the
success attained by Portland's sons and daughters and especially those who were
given the advantage of schooling other than that offered by the rural school.
It will be of interest to note as many
of them as our information will warrant.
In the early part of this story, it was told how several natives of
Ireland
reached
Portland
on foot, nearly all of whom died after a long
and useful life in the town. Among
them was Daniel Leahy whose son, Captain John Leahy, is still a prominent
business man of
Wausau
,
Wis.
, where at one time he had amassed a large
fortune.
His brother Stephan died just as he began a brilliant career at the bar
and his brother Michael was a captain in the Civil War.
John Roger's son, William H., is a prominent lawyer at
San Jose
,
California
and is an ex-mayor of
Madison
,
Wis.
. John
Wickhem left a large family, nearly all of whom finished the high school course
at
Waterloo
,
Wis.
. His
son, P. F. Wickhem, known in
South Dakota
as "Senator Wickhem" is one of the
leading citizens of that state and is a thrifty merchant and stockraiser.
His son, James G. Wickhem, is a prominent lawyer at
Beloit
,
Wis.
; an ex-postmaster and treasurer of that city.
Michael Wickhem is on the old homestead where he lives with his sisters
in a palatial residence.
B. McCormick's son, James, is a prominent business man at Plankinton, S.
D. and his son, John, recently retired from farming after schooling all his
children and whose son, B. E. McCormick, is instructor in science in the
Waukesha High School. Stephen
Jannifin educated his family. His
daughter,
Lydia
(Mrs. P. Purcell) was for many years a teacher
and her son, John Purcell, is now an expert in chemistry and is employed by the
Swift Packing Co. located at
New York
. His
son, Daniel Hannifin, represented
Portland
twice in the State Legislature, was Town Clerk
for a number of years, and is now a citizen of
Oklahoma
.
Sam Phelps, the popular and efficient editor of the Alexander Herald, S.
D., made cheese in the old Burnham Cheese Factory for several years and boarded
in
Portland
while attending
Waterloo
High School
. His
wife, Mattie Smith, was the popular daughter of Sam M. Smith who conducted a
general store in
Portland
as early as 1848.
It may be said that the little band of Irish tenants proved themselves
worthy citizens of their town. The
late James Joice, who with his father's family arrived in the 40's, led all in
the size and education of a
Portland
family. Sixteen
children graced his board at a family reunion in April 1907.
Nearly all of them hold diplomas granted by the board of the
Waterloo
High School
. Three
of them, Martin, Thomas and Frank are physicians.
Dr. Martin Joice is located in Brinsmade, N. D.
Of the daughters, Mary is proprietoress of massage parlors in
Milwaukee
; Catherine and Rose are likewise engaged in
Chicago and Margaret in
St. Paul
. This
large family was raised and educated by Mr. and Mrs. Joice on their
Portland
farm.
James Ruane, who housed his family in a barn because of his poverty, gave
his son James a chance to go to school which helped to make him a leading
citizen of
Slayton
,
Minn.
where he is postmaster and editor of the Slayton
Gazette.
James
Stokes in a like manner has become a worthy business man of
Elkhorn
. John
corcoran's son John became a wealthy banker of
Escanaba
,
Mich.
, and his son James is one of the leading
business men and bankers in northern
Michigan
, located at
Crystal
Falls
.
James Sheldon's son Chauncey became prominent in railway circles and is
now a successful promoter in mining property.
Edwin Foster rose to distinction in railway management and his sister,
Maria Hanchett, of
Madison
,
Wis.
has achieved good success in the field of
literature, having had the management of the official organization of the Womans
Christian Temperance Union. James
Byrne educated a large family and his son Felix, who for many years was chairman
and town clerk of
Portland
, is now at
Escanaba
,
Mich.
Arthur Youker's son Henry is Superintendent of Schools at
Grand Rapids
,
Wis.
and is acknowledged to be one of the ablest men
in the public school work. D. C.
Stam, whose father, David Stam, ran a country blacksmith shop in 1855, across
the way from Daniel Draeger's present residence; practiced law but left that
profession for that of a real estate broker.
He is now prospering at
Prosser
,
Wash.
where he is among the leaders.
Dr. Edward Torpey of
Minocqua
,
Wis.
is a son of one of
Portland
's oldest families, that of Michael Torpey.
At
Fond du Lac
,
Wis.
, resides a trio of
Portland
boys who rank well with the business men of that
city. August Dallman, Edward Cooper
and Adolph Beerbaum carry on one of the largest depots for the sale of farm
machinery in
Wisconsin
.
At
Monticello
,
Minn.
, Harry Whipple, who is the grandson of Alfonso
Whipple and son of H. P. Whipple, is the leading attorney in his county.
South Milwaukee
has a Chief of Police in the person of Philip
Gaffney whose native soil is
Portland
. W.
L. Rosencrans, one of
Milwaukee
's successful jewelers, was a barefoot boy in the
50's among
Portland
's young people.
Squire C. Kenyon, president of the Kenyon-Noble Lumber Co. of Bozeman,
Mont.
is a son of Moses C. Kenyon, who was the second
town clerk of
Portland
. L.
W. Cook, a resident of
Portland
in the late 50's, was for forty-four years an
officer of the U. S. Army having enlisted from
Portland
in '62. He
was made Brigadier General in 1906 and retired from the service in March of the
same year. In
South Omaha
, H. E. and A. W. Tagg will
be found, composing the Live Stock Commission Company.
They are sons of Thomas R. Tagg, an early
Portland
pioneer. William
F. Bond's son Frank is now a citizen of
Barron
,
Wis.
where he is the proprietor of a local newspaper.
For many years, he was a prominent farmer of
Alexandria
, S. D. W.
F. Bond was an officer in
Portland
in 1847. Charles
Storer, a son of John Storer, is a successful pharmacist in the City of
Chicago
.
Nat Finney became an expert telegrapher and was in the service of the
Associated Press at Washington, D. C. Willie
Hayhurst is located at
St. Louis
where he is the western manager of the largest
wholsale drug house in the
United States
. E.
T. Hayhurst is a manager for Pneumatic Malting Drum Mfg. Co. with headquarters
in
Milwaukee.
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