Delatus Miles Aspinwall (1810-1888)

Portrait courtesy of www.ancestry.com

   A Vermonter by birth, Delatus Miles Aspinwall resided in several different states during a life that took him from humble beginnings in the Green Mountain state to the halls of the Wisconsin State Assembly. Following his one term in the assembly Aspinwall removed to Adair County, Iowa, dying there in 1888.

   Born in Vermont (sources state either Pawlet or Bennington) on August 9, 1810, Delatus M. Aspinwall was the son of Salmon (1783-1856) and Mary Montague Aspinwall (1784-1850). Aspinwall and his family resided in Vermont until about 1817, whereafter they moved to Jefferson County, New York. Here Delatus would attend the "common schools" as well as engaging in farm work. He would later be employed as a mechanic and in January 1840 married to Ms. Lovina Araminda Bates (1810-1884), with whom he would have ten children: Emma Morrison (1840-1923), Mary (1842-1932), Joel Adonijah (1845-1918), William H. (1845-1916), Ellen (1850-1926), Miles Delatus (1852-1872), David Montague (1855-1917), Ashley (1857-1908), Lovina A. 1859-1934) and Lillian M. (1861-1930).

   Six years following his marriage Aspinwall and his family left New York and established roots in the Jefferson County, Wisconsin town of Farmington. After purchasing "forty acres of government land", Aspinwall began to build his own farm in 1852, and over a decade later was the owner of 255 acres of farmland, devoted to the raising of both cattle and horses.

   Despite having held no previous elected office, Aspinwall won election to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1856. Representing Jefferson County's 1st district, Aspinwall's one term in the assembly commenced in January 1857, and during that session served on the house committees on Charitable and Religious Societies and Printing.  At the conclusion of his term, Aspinwall returned to Farmington and for several years afterward was an active member of the Jefferson County Agricultural Society, serving as both its Vice-President and as a member of its executive committee. 

  Widowed in February 1884, Delatus Aspinwall moved from Wisconsin to Adair County, Iowa a short while after his wife's death. Settling in the town of Fontenelle, he resided here for the remainder of his life, dying on May 5, 1888. The Aspinwall Geneology of 1901 notes that Delatus had remarried at some point before his death but makes no mention of his second wife's name. His burial occurred at the Fontanelle Cemetery in Fontenelle, Iowa, and, in an unusual tidbit, the gravestone carver lists Aspinwall as having died on his 78th birthday (see link for photograph.) This looks to be an error on the part of the engraver, as all the sources I've found regarding Aspinwall give August 9th as his correct date of birth.

From the Jefferson County, NY Journal, June 12, 1888.

Romanzo Norton Bunn (1829-1909)

From the "Notable Men of Wisconsin", published 1902.

    A New Yorker by birth, Romanzo Norton Bunn later removed to Wisconsin in the 1850s and shortly after his resettlement began what would become a lengthy career in Wisconsin political circles, serving a term as district attorney of Trempealeau County and later was elected to the state legislature. He would gain further prominence as U.S. District Judge for Wisconsin's Western District, serving on the bench for nearly three decades. 

   The son of Peter and Polly Ann Jackson Bunn, Romanzo N. Bunn was born in the village of South Hartwick in Otsego County, New York on September 24, 1829. He moved with his family to Cattaraugus County, New York at age three, where they established a home in the village of Mansfield. Young Romanzo engaged in farm work as a young man and later began attending the Springville Academy at age sixteen, while also teaching school during the winter time, plying his trade at schoolhouses in the villages of East Otto, Yorkshire, and Waverly, New York. He would go on to enroll at Oberlin College in Ohio and studied there for one year. While in Ohio he began the study of law in the city of Elyria and later returned to Cattaraugus County to complete his studies in the law office of William H. Wood of Ellicottville, who was later to serve a term in the New York State Assembly.

  After practicing law with William Wood in Ellicottville for about one year, Bunn experienced a case of wanderlust and removed west in 1854, settling first in Sparta, Wisconsin and a few months later relocated to Galesville in Trempealeau County. Shortly before his removal to Wisconsin Bunn had married in New York to Sarah Purdy (1832-1918) and this couple later became the parents to six children, who are listed as follows in order of birth: Charles Wilson (born 1855), Mary (1857-1919), Channing Bunn (1861-1864), George Lincoln (1865-1918), John Marshall (1867-1924) and Fannie Bunn (born 1870). Of these children, George Lincoln Bunn and John Marshall Bunn followed in their father's stead, going on to distinguished careers in public service, with George serving as an Associate Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court (1911-1917) and dean of the St. Paul School of Law. John Marshall Bunn would eventually become a prominent attorney in the Spokane, Washington area.

   Despite being a resident of Wisconsin for a short period Romanzo Bunn quickly advanced to prominence in local law circles, being elected as District Attorney for Trempealeau County. He served from 1857-58 and in the following year won election as one of that county's representatives to the Wisconsin General Assembly, where he served for one term. After leaving the legislature Bunn returned to private practice and moved back to Sparta, where he had first settled after coming to Wisconsin with his wife. He continued along this route until 1868 when in that year he was elected as Judge for Wisconsin's Sixth Judicial Circuit. He served a term of six years and was reelected in 1874, holding his seat until 1877. In 1872 Bunn served as a Presidential Elector on the Republican ticket, casting his vote for Ulysses Grant.

                                 Romanzo Bunn, from the"History of the Bunn Family of America", 1928.

   Bunn's reputation as one of Wisconsin's foremost legal figures reached its apex in 1877 when he was selected by President Rutherford Hayes to fill a vacancy on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin. This vacancy had come about with the death of sitting judge James Campbell Hopkins, who had died in September of that year. Bunn's name had been put forward for the post by both of Wisconsin's U.S. Senators, as well as several state attorneys and fellow judges. Confirmed in October of 1877, Bunn would serve on the bench until his retirement at age 76 in 1905, having logged 28 years of service on the court.

  Aside from his judicial service to Wisconsin, Judge Bunn was described by the Historical Gazetteer and Biographical Memorial of Cattaraugus County as a well-read man with a penchant for reading Shakespeare, noting that he was:

"A man of fine literary taste and culture, and spends many leisure hours in his carefully selected private library of several thousand volumes. Perhaps his greatest pleasure is in studying and comparing the different versions of plays of his favorite writer, Shakespeare, of whose works he is exceedingly fond and has more than a dozen editions. He is frequently invited to lecture before the students of Madison University and the literary societies of Madison on some literary subject, and always responds with something interesting to the most cultivated listener."

   Romanzo Norton Bunn spent the remainder of his retirement residing in Madison, where he died on January 25, 1909, at age 79. He was interred at the Forest Hill Cemetery in that city and was survived by his wife Sarah, who, following her death in 1918, was buried at the same cemetery as her husband. 

Alvarus Eleazer Gilbert (1825-1891)

From the History of Waukesha County, 1880.

   The life of obscure Wisconsin political figure Alvarus Eleazer Gilbert is profiled today, and the following article will be one of the more somber ones you'll read here. Mr. Gilbert served two terms in the State Assembly during the late 1870s and was considered a figure of distinction in the county of Waukesha both before and after his election. Gilbert's life ended under tragic circumstances in August 1891 when he committed suicide by hanging, in what was described by the Waukesha Freeman newspaper as a "fit of insanity". 

   Alvarus Eleazer Gilbert was born in the small town of Alexander, New York on August 17, 1825, one of the ten children born to Daniel and Catherine Showerman Gilbert. The Gilbert family resided in Alexander until August of 1839 when they relocated to Milwaukee. Their stay here was short-lived, and after a few weeks resettled in the town of New Berlin. The History of Waukesha County ( published in 1885), notes that the Gilbert family resided in a single-room log house with the ten-member Hiram Hollister family for a short period, and this author is amazed that one log cabin could support twenty-two people! It should also be noted that Daniel Gilbert later erected a cabin of his own, and also had numerous acres to go along with it.

   Alvarus Gilbert attended schools local to the New Berlin area and was engaged in farming for most of his adolescence. In October 1849 he married Harriet Hollister (daughter of the aforementioned Hiram Hollister) and eventually became the father to six children: Minnie, Willis, Florence, Herbert, Ernest, and Willie. Alvarus and his family removed to Illinois in the early 1850s and following his settlement engaged in railroad work, being the head of a construction crew. During their Illinois residency, two of Gilbert's young sons (Willie and Ernest) died and in 1861 the family returned to the New Berlin-Prospect, Wisconsin area. Shortly afterward Alvarus purchased a 190-acre farm where he would reside for the remainder of his life. 

  Gilbert first became active in public office during the 1860s when he was elected as New Berlin town clerk. He would go on to serve in other local offices, including stints as town treasurer, town supervisor, and as a member of the Waukesha County Board of supervisors. In 1877 he was elected to the Wisconsin State House of Representatives, representing Waukesha County in the session of 1878. In the following year, Gilbert eked out a narrow reelection victory (1476 votes to 1326) over his Democratic opponent, William E. Hennessey. A passage with those election results was featured in the 1879 Wisconsin Blue Book and has been posted in its entirety below. The Blue Book also notes that during his second legislative term, Gilbert held a seat on the committee on Incorporations.

  Gilbert returned to his farm at Prospect Hill, Wisconsin following his term and is mentioned as being involved with the "town insurance society". Little else could be found on his later years with the exception being his death. An archived version of the August 27, 1891 edition of the Waukesha Freeman, details the circumstances of his death. The accompanying information and snippets were located in the aforementioned newspaper.

  

   As the Freeman related in its coverage of the incident, Gilbert had been in impaired health for at least a few months before his suicide and notes that he had never been confined to his home because of it. Curiously, the Waukesha Freeman gives no mention as to what his illness may have been but does note that he was "known to be in a serious condition. His family and friends were especially concerned over the deep melancholy  in which he was constantly brooding." This seems to imply that Gilbert suffered from a deep depression for at least several weeks before his death.

   In the above passage, we can read that Gilbert's "mind had become obviously affected, and so melancholy and dejected did he become that his family feared suicide, especially as he was wont to discuss the question of self destruction in a manner that left no doubt as to his wishes." Gilbert's disturbed state of mind worried his family to such an extent that they began keeping a "strict watch" on his behavior, but all to no avail.

   The Waukesha Freeman notes that in the early hours of August 20, 1891, Alvarus E. Gilbert dressed, took his hat and cane, and made his way to a barn located on his property. It was here that he hanged himself from a barn timber, using "a rope halter used in tying stock". His body was discovered by a family member a few hours later and a certain Dr. Ingersoll concluded that Gilbert's death was caused "by his own hand while in a state of insanity was rendered."

   One can only wonder what underlying mental illness Gilbert may have had, and one could also venture a guess that monetary or business problems could have been a contributing factor in his taking his own life. The newspaper mentions "illness" numerous times but gives no clue as to whether or not he was ill with cancer or some other malady. 

Eschines Pierson Matthews (1832-1913)

  Portrait from the Pioneer History of Milwaukee, Volume IV, 1886.

  Today's write-up centers on the life of the oddly named Eschines Pierson Matthews, a native Ohioan who sought his business and political fortunes in the city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Eschines ("E.P.", as most sources refer to him) and his brother Alonzo were the founders of the famed Matthews Bros. Furniture Company, one of the most prominent furniture manufacturing houses in the United States during the 19th century. While this fact alone makes Eschines Matthews a notable figure in Wisconsin history, it is his service as a Wisconsin state representative in the 1880s that earns him a place here.
  Considering that Matthews was a fairly prominent man in Milwaukee throughout the latter period of the 19th century, you'd figure that there would be at least one substantial biographical resource on him. Although there are a few brief mentions of him in various works chronicling Wisconsin history, the only one that can be considered "significant" is the 4th volume of the Pioneer History of Milwaukee, published in 1886. The portrait of Matthews shown above was discovered in this book, as was a good majority of the information that constitutes his profile here.
  Born and raised in Ohio, Eschines Pierson Matthews' birth took place in Painesville on September 11, 1832, the son of former state representative Anson and Betsy Durand Matthews. Eschines and his younger brother Alonzo (1835-1901) received their education in schools local to the Chagrin Falls area and attended Hiram College in Hiram, Ohio. When both brothers reached manhood they relocated from Geauga County, Ohio to Milwaukee, Wisconsin in June 1857 and soon set about establishing the Matthews name in local business circles.
  Within a few years of their resettlement, the Matthews brothers had built a prosperous furniture store on East Water Street in Milwaukee as well as a manufacturing facility on River Street. Eschines and Alonzo were joined in the business by a third brother, John Quincy Adams Matthews in 1867 and he soon became a full partner. 
   The Matthews Bros. Furniture Company continued to grow throughout the 1870s and throughout that decade moved to larger quarters on more than one occasion. After two enlargements in 1879 and 1882, the company could boast of a payroll with over 200 men and an incorporated capital of over $100,000. The Pioneer History of Milwaukee also notes that the company showrooms were "filled with the most costly and elegant furniture to be found in the West, nearly all of which is the product of their own factory."A photograph of the Matthews Brothers building is shown below, as looked around the turn of the century.

  With his name now firmly established in the Milwaukee business community, Eschines P. Matthews entered city politics, and in 1878 was elected to a two-year term on the Milwaukee Board of Aldermen. This was his first attempt at public office, and James Smith Buck, author of the Pioneer History of Milwaukee makes note of  Matthews's disdain for political life, stating that "Indeed, such was the disgust engendered in his breast for anything remotely smelling of politics, by his short service in that body.......would tempt him to enter the arena of politics again". 
  The above observation proved to be somewhat premature, as Matthews did indeed venture into the field of politics once again. In 1880 he ran for and was elected to a seat in the Wisconsin State Assembly as a Republican. The 1881 Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin lists Matthews as defeating his Democratic challenger (George P. Harrington) by a vote of 1492 to 941. During his term, he represented the 4th ward of Milwaukee County and served on the committee on Charitable and Penal Institutions, and was chairman of the committee on Cities. A roster from the 1881 session (with Eschines P. Matthews's name highlighted in yellow) has been provided below.

  Eschines Matthews continued active involvement with his furniture company after his legislative term, and at the beginning of the 20th century, the company began the manufacture and sale of furniture pieces designed by eminent American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Eschines himself died at age 81 on July 30, 1913, and the company experienced a dip in business in the years following his demise. The company eventually closed its doors in 1937 after eighty years of business. The obituary of Matthews shown below appeared in the Fond du Lac Daily Commonwealth on the day following his death. Curiously, it makes no mention of him having served a term in the Wisconsin legislature.