Erie County PA Biographies
Mrs. Harriet Bunker Austin
AUSTIN, Mrs. Harriet Bunker, author, born in Erie, Pa., 29th December, 1844. She is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John F. Bunker, descending from New England, stock. Her greatgrandfather, Benjamin Bunker, was a soldier of the Revolution, and was killed in the battle of Bunker Hill. The hill from which the battle was named comprised part of the Bunker estate. On her mother's side she is related to the Bronson Alcott and Lyman Beecher families. When quite young, she removed with her parents to Woodstock, McHenry county, Ill., where she has since resided. Her education was received in the Woodstock high school and Dr. Todd's Female Seminary. At the close of her seminary life she was married to W. B. Austin, a prosperous merchant of that city. She has been a prolific writer, many of her poems having been set to music and gained deserved popularity. She has always taken an active interest in every scheme for the advancement of women, and is ever ready to lend her influence to the promotion of social reforms.
(American Women, Fifteen Hundred Biographies, Vol 1, Publ. 1897. Transcribed by Marla Snow.)
Mrs. Sarepta M. (Irish) Henry
HENRY, Mrs. Sarepta M. I., evangelist, temperance reformer, poet and author, born in Albion, Pa., 4th November, 1839. Her father, Rev. H. Nelson Irish, was a Methodist clergyman of the old style. He was preaching in Albion at the time of the daughter's birth. In 1841 he was sent to Illinois as a missionary, where he did heroic pioneer work and where he ended his days. In 1859 Miss Irish entered the Rock River Seminary, in Mt. Morris, 1ll., when she had for her pastor Rev. J. H. Vincent, then just coming into his life work. Recognition had been given to her literary ability, and during her school days she won many honors in composition. On 7th March, 1861, Miss Irish became the wife of James W. Henry, of East Homer, N. Y. The Civil War broke in upon the plans of the young couple and left Mrs. Henry, in 1871, a soldier's widow. The trio of children born from this union are just such as would be expected from so true a marriage. Mary, an alumna of the Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., is already a writer of acknowledged ability in both prose and verse, and at the national convention of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union in New York, in 1888, she was elected to the position of superintendent of the press department. Alfred, the oldest son, is a faithful and eloquent clergyman, and Arthur is an author. Mrs. Henry was among the first to join the crusade against rum. From the beginning of the organization of the Woman's Christian Temperance Union she has been associated with the national body as superintendent of evangelical work and as evangelist. The result of her seven years of service in gospel temperance in Rockford, Ill., would alone suffice to crown the labors of any ordinary life-time. A partial record of this work is found in her book "Pledge and Cross." Her published books number fourteen, of which two, "Victoria," written during the first year of her daughter's life, and "Marble Cross," are poems. The prose works are "After the Truth," in four volumes, "Pledge and Cross," "Voice of the Home and its Legend," "Mabel's Work," "One More Chance," "Beforehand," "Afterward," "Unanswered Prayer," and "Frances Raymond's Investment." Mrs. Henry has long occupied pulpits among all denominations throughout the land. Through her evangelistic work saloons have been closed, churches built and hundreds converted. Her home is now in Evanston,. Illinois.
(Source: American Women, by Frances Elizabeth Willard, Mary Ashton Rice Livermore, Vol 1, 1897. Transcribed by Marla Snow)
Michael Liebel
Bio, City of Erie Pa Water Commissioner. Elected in 1877.
Michael Liebel, Water Commissioner was born was born in Germany, June 17th 1843. Son of John and Barbara Hammer Liebel, latter a native of Germany. Our subject received his education mainly in the common schools. He came to America when he was about fourteen years of age and learned shoe-making in the city of Erie. He embarked for himself in the boot and shoe making business in 1862, carrying it on five years. Since then he has been in business of various descriptions. He was married in the City of Erie in 1865 to Clara daughter of John Uhr, by whom he has three sons--Eugene, clerk in a hardware store in the city of Erie, Frederick W. And Marion at school. Mr Liebel and his wife are members of the Catholic Church. In Politics is a Democrate.
Mr Liebel was a councilman in the City of Erie for seven years, and for a time President of the Select and Common Council, was elected Water Commissioner seven years ago, last May, and served one year. He has been sufficiently successful in business to enable him to accumulate a comfortable income. He has been engaged in various speculations in the City of Erie Pa.
-- Contributed by Linda Dougan
CHAUNCEY WALKER WEST
Chauncey Walker West, presiding Bishop of Weber county from 1855 to 1870, was the son of Alva West and Sally Benedict and was born Feb. 6, 1827, in Erie county, Pennsylvania. His colonial ancestor, Francis West, who settled in Duxbury, Massachusetts, about the year 1620, is supposed to be identical with the Captain (afterwards Admiral) Francis West, brother of Lord De La Ware, who was governor of Virginia in 1609. (See Hist. Dudley Family, Fol. 978.) His parents removed in his childhood to the State of New York, where in his sixteenth year, he obeyed the gospel, and soon after started out as a traveling Elder. In the fall of 1844 he gathered with his parents to Nauvoo, Ill., where, early in 1845, he was ordained a member of the 12th quorum of Seventy--quite a distinguished position in those days for a young man only seventeen years of age. When the Saints were expelled from Nauvoo in 1846, he assisted in starting the first company for the west. In June, 1846, he left with his and his father's family, to seek a home in the Rocky Mountains. He partook of the hardships incident to that memorable journey, losing many of his kindred on the way, among the number his father and mother and brother Joseph who died at Winter Quarters. With no available resources but his indomitable will and untiring activity he succeeded in bringing his father's large family to Great Salt Lake valley, where they arrived in the fall of 1847. He was one of the first settlers of Salt Lake City and also of Provo, Utah county, from which latte place, in the month of December, 1849, he started with a company of men under the direction of Apostle Parley P. Pratt to explore the southern part of Utah. The company was gone two months and suffered many hardships, but returned in safety. It was upon this return trip, and when the company was threatened with starvation, and came near perishing in the snow, that Brother Pratt selected Chauncey W. West and Nathan Tanner from among the members of his party to go to the settlements for relief; they made a most remarkable night and day journey to Provo.
In the fall of 1852, Brother West and thirty-six others were called to go upon missions to Eastern Asia. They started from Salt Lake City on the 21st of November, taking the southern route to California. On reaching San Francisco, the Elders, who were practically without means, learned that $6,250 would be needed to take them to their several fields of labor. Nothing daunted they immediately distributed themselves over the city of San Francisco and throughout the mining regions of the state, seeking assistance. Elder West went to the latter section, and in less than two weeks the required amount was raised. Jan. l25, 1853, Elder West made a contract with Captain Windsor of the ship "Monsoon," for the passage of the Hindostan and Siam missionaries to Calcutta, agreeing to pay $200 per passenger. On the 28th they set sail and on the 25th of April, 87 days from the time of their embarkation, the vessel cast anchor in the river, in front of the cit of Calcutta. From Calcutta Elder West's labors were extended to many of the principal cities of Hindostan, and to the island of Ceylon. He labored principally in the latter place and in the cities of Madras and Bombay. After an absence of two years and eight months, he returned home, arriving at Salt Lake City July 15, 1855. Among the many very marvelous occurrences of this eventful mission, interesting and profitable mention might be made of the following: Five days after leaving San Francisco, Elders Richard Ballantyne and Levi Savage broke out with smallpox to the great consternation of the captain and crew. The Elders promptly called upon the Lord in fervent prayer for the speedy restoration of their brethren, and the preservation of themselves and then drew from the dreadful disease. God gave them an immediate witness that their prayers would be answered, and in less than two weeks the stricken Elders left their bunks and the smallpox, at first so threatening, disappeared from among them. The night previous to their arrival at Calcutta Elder West dreamed of seeing a little boy standing on the wharf among a crowd of people waiting for the arrival of the Elders, and, sure enough, when they did arrive, there he stood. Upon going ashore, Elder West picked him out and remarked to his companions as he did so: "This is the little boy that I saw in my dream." Upon inquiry it was found that Sister Matthew McCune, learning of the expected arrival of the Elders and having no one else to send to meet them (her husband being away with the British army at the time) sent her little boy to the wharf. That little boy was Henry McCune, now a resident of Ogden, Utah who but a little time ago related the incident to the writer. During their voyage from Ceylon to Bombay the Elders encountered a terrific storm, and through an error in the captain's calculations, the ship was driven so near the shore that the vessel grounded and came near being broken to pieces. The life boats were launched, but immediately foundered, in the midst of these dreadful scenes, Elders West and Dewey rebuked the winds and waves in the name of the Lord, and almost immediately the raging elements were calmed, and the vessel swung off into deeper water. Although greatly damaged, and having several feet of water in the hold, the ship was taken safely to port and no lives were lost. When homeward bound Elder West engaged passage for himself and Elder Dewey from Canto to San Francisco on the American vessel "Hiega," and had gone as far as Hong Kong, China, when the Lord warned him in a dream to leave the ship, which he, in a vision, had seen wrecked upon the coral reefs. The warning was promptly obeyed, and the vessel put out to sea never to return. It was wrecked in precisely the manner seen by Elder West in his vision, for the captain, whom he afterwards met, told him the whole occurrence, and wanted to know why he had left his ship in such a mysterious manner.
To his great astonishment Elder West related his dream, when the captain said with an oath, "Why did you not tell me?" The Elder replied that if he had he would have paid no attention to the warning, but denounced him as a fool. The captain replied with another oath, "I guess you are right." While waiting to secure another passage home, Elder Dewey was taken violently ill with chills and fever at a boarding hose kept by a Mr. Young. In the meantime Elder West had arranged with Captain Miller of the vessel "Cressy" to ship as a sailor to San Francisco, for $15 per month, provided his companion was able to accompany him by the time the vessel was ready to sail. Most fervently did they pray for Elder Dewey's recovery; and one day, while thus engaged, they were irresistibly impressed to leave the hotel and go on board the ship. For some days past it had been raining very hard, and soon after they left the hotel, the storm loosened a large rock from the mountain side near by, which came rolling down with terrific forced and struck the hotel, completely demolishing it. One of the inmates was killed and several were wounded.
In the fall of 1855 Brother West settled in Bingham's Fort, Weber county, and on the 29th of May removed to Ogden, having been appointed Bishop of the First Ward. In the fall of the same year he was appointed presiding Bishop of Weber county, a position which he held up to the time of his death, fourteen years late, He was also elected to the House of Representatives by the Weber county constituency about this time and continued a member of that body until the year 1869, when failing health compelled him to retire from the position.
As a prominent ecclesiastical officer of the Church he was untiring in his labors and zealous in the extreme. His devotion to the cause, and loving fidelity to his brethren, early won for him the esteem of his superiors and the affectionate regard of those over whom he was called to preside. As a legislator he was equally efficient. While not overly fluent in speech, he was possessed of a sound judgment, and keen appreciation of the needs of his constituency, and the commonwealth in general, so much so that he was early called to occupy leading positions on the most important committees of the House, and became prominently identified with all the leading legislative movements of those exciting and crucial times.
July 18, 1857, he received his commission from Governor Brigham Young as colonel of the Fifth regiment, in Weber Military District, and in March, 1858, was made brigadier-general in the Nauvoo Legion for distinguished services in the Utah war, which position he filled with honor and ability. Being a man of great courage, unbounded energy and commanding presence, he was frequently selected for the most difficult and dangerous expeditions. He and his command were among the first to be called to the defense of the Saints when the misguided President Buchanan sent an invading army to Utah. At Echo canyon his regiment, which was said to be among the best drilled and disciplined of the Legion, occupied the post of danger ( always the of honor) in the center of the defile, and when the tidings came of Johnston's intended detour via the Bear river, General West was selected to head him off. By forced marches he and his trusted men made such rapid progress and presented such an aggressive front to the enemy that, hearing of their movements, the invading troops returned to their former rendezvous and went into winter quarters. This practically ended active hostilities, and gave the government an opportunity of obtaining a correct understanding of the Utah situation.
In the spring of 1863 Chauncey W. West was a member of the legislative convention of the inchoate State of Deseret which drafted a constitution and sent Hons. Wm. L. H. Hooper and Geo. Q. Cannon, senators, as a delegation to ask for the admission of Utah into the Union as a State; and at the April conference, 1863, Elder West was selected to go to England and take charge of the European mission, in the absence of Geo. Q. Cannon, then its president. He left Ogden April 21, 1862, in company with Hon. William H. Hooper, and traveled, under cavalry escort, to the frontiers. Upon leaving Ogden, the people of Weber county turned out en masse to bid him goodbye. The artillery fired a salute and bands of music heading civic and military organizations accompanied him some distance upon his journey. This public demonstration of esteem for one whose brief sojourn of six years among them had so
won the hearts of his fellow-citizens, was only equaled by the right royal welcome that met him on his return sixteen months later. At Washington he was introduced to President Lincoln and other distinguished statesmen, and on the 21st of June he sailed per steamer "City of Washington" for Liverpool, arriving there on the morning of the 4th of July. He immediately entered upon the duties of his calling as president of the European mission and so continued until President Cannon's return. He visited all the leading conferences of the British Isles and traveled extensively in Europe, preaching the gospel wherever opportunity offered. Upon the return of President Cannon he assisted him generally with the affairs of the mission until released to return home in the fall of 1863.
As a business man Bishop West was pre-eminently successful until the closing ears of his life, when misfortune of an unusual, and seemingly unavoidable character, overtook him. Prior to this he was one of the most resourceful men in Utah, always abounding in enterprises that had for their primary purpose the profitable employment of his people. He was foremost in the building of canals and wagon roads, and the first to develop the lumber industry by the building of saw mills in the mountains. He and Francis A. Hammond established a tannery, boot and shoe and saddle and harness manufactory in Ogden. He also conducted a mercantile business, a hotel, a livery stable, a blacksmith and wagon shop, a meat market and many other minor establishments. In connection with Joseph A. Young he erected what was then one of the largest and finest flouring mills in the Territory. He also engaged extensively in freighting and carried the surplus products of his people to distant markets. In all these enterprises employment was furnished to hundred of his fellow-citizens.
When the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railways were being built, he and Ezra T. Benson and Lorin Farr took a contract to grade 200 miles of the latter road from Ogden west. It was in the prosecution of this work, undertaken under circumstances that made it Herculean in character, that Bishop Chauncey W. West's eventful life was brought to an early termination. He had been given immediate personal supervision of the work, which was being pushed with all the vigor that money and the competitive energy that the two companies could command. As the Union and Central Pacific forces neared each other, work was kept up night and day, and to add to the already high tension of affairs, the Union Pacific company advanced wages so as to draw off the working force of its competitor. This in turn had to be met by another raise on the part of the Central Pacific contractors, and thus they were placed at the mercy of their men who became masters of the situation instead of servants of those by whom they were employed. It was under these circumstances of labor demoralization that the most expensive part of this work had to be done, and in consequence its cost was enormous, and far beyond the prices to be paid therefore as specified in the contract. Governor Stanford, who was personally upon the ground and understood the situation fully, promised to make the contractors more than whole, if they would not slacken their efforts, bur rush the work to completion with the utmost possible dispatch. This was done, but the promise was never fulfilled, and in consequence, the contractors were financially ruined. Bishop West went to San Francisco to get a settlement with the Central pacific company, but died without accomplishing it. He health had been greatly impaired by the hardships and exposure to which he had been subjected in prosecuting
This work and the damp, foggy weather of the coast, coupled with his great anxiety to secure such a settlement as would enable him to discharge his obligations, proved too much for him in his enfeebled condition. On Jan. 6, 1870, he was compelled to take his bed, from which he never arose again. In his last moments his great anxiety was to prevent grief on the part of his family. Just previous to his demise he declared to his wife that he had been visited by his mother and many of is departed relatives who had expressed joy at the prospect of welcoming him speedily to their society.
At 6 o'clock on the morning of January 9, 1870, his noble spirit passed away to the realms of the just. In speaking of his death Elder Charles W. Penrose in the "Ogden Junction" says: "Weber county has lost a faithful and devoted minister, and the poor a generous and large hearted benefactor. Among the many encomiums passed upon his character, one of the brightest and best and most frequently repeated is, 'He was a friend to the poor.' Chauncey W. West has passed from the sight, but not from the memory of his friends, for his name will be numbered among those of earth's greatest and noblest" Although but 43 years of age at the time of his death, Bishop West left a large family to mourn his loss.
This biographical sketch of Bishop Chauncey W. West will be most fittingly closed with the following brief review of his labors in the British mission, and of his life and character in general, from a private letter written by President George O. Cannon to his son, Hon. Joseph A. West, dated January, 1887: "His labors during this mission were greatly appreciated by myself and the Elders and Saints. During my entire acquaintance with him, from the time of his arrival at Nauvoo until his death, he was a man of untiring energy and industry. He was remarkable for these qualities and for his great hopefulness. I do not think he ever had a feeling of discouragement in his life. His boundless hope doubtless led him into enterprises from which other men would shrink and made him carry burdens which others would not have attempted to lift. He had an excellent command of his temper, and a very pleasing address, and being a man of handsome face and figure, he made friends wherever he went. The experience which he had in public life, combined with these personal advantages, made him a most valuable aid tome in my labors, and our association together while he was in that mission forms one of the pleasantest recollections of my life. In the early years of my acquaintance with him, and especially in summer and winter quarters, and in crossing the plains, and the first two years of our settlement in the Salt Lake valley, which was as long as I remained there before taking my first mission, I was always greatly impressed with the ripeness of his physical and mental powers. He was a self-confident, full-equipped and well developed mature man when others of is age were but youths in appearance and action. I was the more impressed with these characteristics of his because there was not a month's differences in our ages, and I was the older. When he left Nauvoo he was only nineteen years, and when he reached Salt Lake valley only twenty years of age; but among those of his acquaintances who did not know his age, he always passed as a man several years older." From this and many like expressions given to the memory of his life by noble compeers his record may close thus: "Chauncey Walker "West was held in the highest esteem, and regarded with the deepest affection by those who knew him best; he is spoken of as having been a worthy citizen; as a militia commanding officer of high spirit and courage, as a business man of pre-eminent enterprise and ability, and as a never-failing friend and benefactor of his fellow man.
(Source: The Utah Genealogical And Historical Magazine. January, 1911. Transcribed by Richard Ramos)
