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ALBERT L. PERKINS is a native son of Oregon. His boyhood was spent in its outdoor pleasures, his youth was spent in its logging camps and lie is now, as manager of the L'mpqua Co-operative Packing Company, prominent in one of its representative industries. He was born in Douglas county, December 24, 1869 and is a son of Solomon and Catherine (Elliott) Perkins, of whom more extended mention is made on another page in this work. Mr. Perkins was reared at home and acquired a primitive and inadequate education in the common schools of his native district. He pursued his studies for three months in each year, spending the winters from the time of his early boyhood in the logging camps in the northern part of the state. He was identified with this line of occupation until 1900. gaining during the period knowledge of the business. His industry did not allow him to be idle even during the summer months when the logging occupation was not open to him. during the five years of his identification with this line of activity, for he worked constantly through his vacations iii the fishing industry. In 1900 he engaged in buying and selling cattle throughout the state of Oregon, making his headquarters in Gardiner. He continued for five years as a successful cattle dealer before he moved to Portland where he dealt in real-estate for two years. When he returned to Gardiner he became identified with his brother in the hotel business having purchased an interest in the Old Gardiner Hotel, in 1896. He retained his holdings up to the time the building was burned in January, 1911. For a short time after his return from Portland Mr. Perkins engaged in the saloon business in connection with the conduct of his hotel, but he later abandoned this and has never since returned to it. In 1910 Mr. Perkins was one of the organizers of the Umpqua Co-operative Packing Company and is one of its chief stockholders and a director. In March. 1912, he was made manager of the plant, and his industry and good business sense have been factors in bringing the enterprise to its present flourishing and prosperous condition. In February. 1911, Mr. Perkins was united in marriage to Miss ANNA VARRELMANN a daughter of Frank Varrelmann a prominent and substantial citizen of Gardiner. Oregon. Mr. and Mrs. Perkins have one child; Oliver Kaymond Perkins. Mrs. Perkins is a devout member' of the Episcopal church. In his political views Mr. Perkins is a republican but takes very little part in local affairs and has never sought office. He is one of the representative business men in Gardiner. He is endowed with a natural industry and business judgment of a high order which qualities have bought him success.

Source: The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Volume 4 By Joseph Gaston, George H. Himes

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CHARLES A. PERKINS. A model hotel in its intricate operations is a mammoth undertaking when run successfully. No one can question the administrative ability of Charles A. Perkins, manager and director of the Gardiner Hotel of Gardiner, Oregon, who sees his smoothly running enterprise operated without noise or confusion along the most progressive and modern principles of innkeeping. Mr. Perkins is a native son of Oregon, having been born in Gardiner, Douglas county, on July 6, 1866. He is a son of Solomon A. and Catherine (Elliott) Perkins, the former a native of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and the latter of New York state. Mr. Perkins' mother came with her parents when she was a girl nine years of age to San Francisco. Her father, Thomas Elliott, was captain of the vessel which brought him and his family around the Horn in 1856. He located in San Francisco and continued the seafaring life for many years. He was the first man to sail a vessel into the port of Umpqua which was later called Gardiner. He lost his vessel in attempting to cross the bar. His ship foundered on the south beach and was completely disabled. In 1865 Thomas Elliott removed his family to Gardiner, Oregon, where he resided until his death. Mr. Elliott was one of the sturdy pioneers in the early settlement of the state of Oregon. He was the man who helped Silas Hedden carry L. L. Williams, who had been shot by the Indians at the mouth of the Coquille river up that stream to Scottsburg in order to obtain medical aid. Mr. Elliott died in 1907 after having passed his ninetieth year. His death deprived Douglas county of a man of keen and constructive intelligence whose labors, always directed along developing lines, had been' a conspicuous factor in progress and growth.

SOLOMON A. PERKINS, the father of our subject, came west to California from New Brunswick when he was a young man and in the early 50's worked in the red woods of that state. He gave his entire active life to the logging industry. In 1865 he came to Gardiner, Oregon, in company with Thomas Elliott and later married his daughter CATHERINE ELLIOTT with whom he resided in Gardiner until four years previous to his death when he removed to Portland where he passed away in January, 1911. His wife is still living and maintains her home in Portland. Charles A. Perkins was reared at home and acquired a limited education in the public schools of Gardiner. The facilities which the city offered in this line were extremely primitive. The schools opened for instruction only three months in the year and were then carried on in a haphazard way. From early boyhood Charles Perkins was accustomed to work in the logging woods of Oregon during the time not occupied by his studies and as early as his fifteenth year was drawing a man's wages. His advancement was rapid and continuous and in the seventeen years of his labor in the logging wood he gained an expert and scientific knowledge of the details of lumbering and the method of operation in the great camps in the northern part of the state. In April, 1898, he abandoned his original line of occupation and accepted a position in the life saving station at the mouth of the Coquille river where he remained in the service until September, 1901. In that year he returned to Gardiner and bought the old Gardiner Hotel which he conducted along modern and progressive lines with gratifying success for a number of years. On March 15, 1910, he sold his property and was appointed superintendent of the building of the new cannery belonging to the Umpqua Cooperative Packing Company, in which he is a stockholder and director. In the following year his executive ability and business discernment earned him the position of manager of the concern and he was active in this line until 1911 when the new Gardiner Hotel was built and in March of the following year Mr. Perkins was made its manager, and is also a heavy stockholder and director. During the short period of his administration he has shown himself to be thoroughly conversant with the many details connected with modern innkeeping in all its aspects. He has made the hotel which he manages one of the most modern enterprises of its kind in southern Oregon and has gained for the management a reputation for courtesy and consideration in every particular. The patrons of the hotel are increasing in number every year as they become acquainted with the comforts and luxuries to be obtained there. The building is equipped with hot and cold running water and is lighted by acetylene gas. It offers all modern conveniences and is known throughout Douglas county as a thoroughly progressive and up-to-date hostelry. In 1891 Mr. Perkins was united in marriage to Miss JULIA MURPHY, a native of Callais, Maine, and a daughter of George E. Murphy, who came to Gardiner in 1877. To Mr. and Mrs. Perkins have been born two children: Clifford A. Perkins, who was graduated from a four years' business course in Columbia University, Portland. Oregon, in 1911: and Floyd Francis Perkins, now pursuing the same line of studies in the Columbia University.In his political views Mr. Perkins Ib a republican and actively interested in furthering the progress and development of his section of the country. His wife is a devout adherent of the Roman Catholic church and is well known in Gardiner as an exemplary and high-minded woman. Charles Perkins in the management of the Gardiner Hotel is building up an enviable reputation as a practical innkeeper. He possesses a shrewd and discriminating mind, a capacity for detail, combined with broad comprehension, an economic knowledge of modern food values and a specialized grasp of the art of hotel-keeping which amounts almost to an inborn talent.

Source: The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Volume 4 By Joseph Gaston, George H. Himes


MRS. MARY JANE PERKINS owns and conducts the Hotel Perkins at Drain and manifests excellent business ability in her management of this and other enterprises and undertakings. She has been a lifelong resident of Oregon, her birth having occurred on a donation claim that was taken up by a Mr. Reed and afterward purchased by Mrs. Perkins' father. Upon this land has since been built the town of Leona. Mrs. Perkins is a daughter of Newton and Elizabeth (Davis) Mulvany, the former a native of Tennessee and the latter of Illinois. They were married in Oregon, the father when a young man having driven a team of oxen over the plains in the same wagon train with which the Davis family came to the northwest. This was in the year 1852. The grandfather Davis and three of his sons, Elisha, James and Aaron, died on the journey. The grandmother continued her way with her six children, four daughters and two sons. The elder son, John Davis, took up a donation claim in Yamhill county and there the mother settled with her family. The children, however, were young men and young women grown at that time. After reaching Oregon Mrs. Davis became the wife of Samuel Laughlin and both she and her husband spent their remaining days in Yamhill county. Elizabeth Davis became the wife of Newton Mulvany on the 26th of December, 1852, and for three years thereafter lived in Yamhill county. In 1855 they left that county with California as their destination. The Indian war, however, was then in progress and Mr. Mulvany, leaving his wife at Leona, enlisted in the service against the Indians. After the close of hostilities he settled at Leona, where he purchased of Samuel Reed his donation claim and thereon made his home to the time of his death, which occurred in 1889, when he was fifty-six years of age. For many years he operated a sawmill, building the first mill of that kind in Douglas county. Parties came from Salem, Eugene and many other points from a territory many miles for their lumber in those early days and Air. Mulvany had a wide acquaintance among pioneer settlers. His labors, too, were of a character that contributed to the upbuilding and prosperity of the community as well as to individual success. Unto him and his wife were born three children, of whom two are now living: Henry, who is a mining prospector of Alaska; and Mary J., now Mrs. Perkins. Mrs. Mulvany still survives and makes her home with her daughter. Mrs. Perkins was reared at Leona and educated in the public schools. On the 8th of March, 1882, she became the wife of LEONARD M. PERKINS, a native of Kansas, who came to Oregon in 1878 with his parents, settling in Oakland, Douglas county. Following their marriage Mrs. Perkins and her husband took up their abode at Roseburg, where he engaged in railroad work. A year later they removed to Latham and when another year had passed established their home in Comstock, where they resided for five years. In 1889 they removed to the Mulvany farm which Mr. Perkins has since cultivated. It is a tract of four hundred acres which is owned by Mr. and Mrs. Perkins and her mother, Mrs. Mulvany. In 1906 Mrs. Perkins built the present commodious hotel at Drain which she has since conducted -and it has the reputation of being the best managed of any country hotel along the Southern Pacific railroad between Portland and San Francisco. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Perkins have been born five children: Nellie B. Perkins, who is employed at office work at St. Helens, Oregon; Leona R. Perkins, who occupies a situation in an office at St. Helens; Effie E. Perkins, at home; William Benjamin Perkins, who is in charge of the commissary department of the McCormack Lumber Company at St. Helens; and George H. Perkins, at home. Mr. Perkins is a member of the Woodmen of the World and his wife belongs to the auxiliary lodge known as the Circle. Mrs. Perkins is also a member of the Christian church, loyal to its teachings and liberal in its support. She owns one hundred and fifteen acres of land adjoining her town property, on which she has a herd of Jersey cows. She is a lady of excellent business ability, sagacious and far-sighted, energetic and capable, and in the management of her interests it is evident that she carries forward to successful completion whatever she undertakes.

Source: The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Volume 4 By Joseph Gaston, George H. Himes


JULIAN WELLS PERKINS was born October 27, 1870, in the manufacturing town of Meriden, Connecticut. His parents were William Henry Perkins, born August 6, 1843, in Glastonbury, Connecticut, and Julia Ellen (Atkins) Perkins, born April 5, 1847, in Bristol, Connecticut, and both parents were of direct English descent. His father, WILLIAM H.  PERKINS, at the outbreak of the Civil war, enlisted in the First Connecticut Volunteers, Heavy Artillery, and served the entire term of four years. At the termination of the war he received his honorable discharge as sergeant, and located in Meriden, Connecticut, and was married to JULIA ELLEN ATKINS. William H. Perkins died December 19, 1897. Julia Ellen Perkins still survives at the time of this writing, residing in Portland, Oregon. Two children were born to this union, William G. Perkins, on August 6, 1867, now residing in Portland, Oregon, and Julian Wells Perkins. Julian Wells Perkins lived in Connecticut with his parents until the age of fourteen, attending the public schools of that state. In the fall of 1884, the entire family moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, in which city his father, William H. Perkins, assumed general management, at the solicitation of his wife's uncle. E. C. Atkins, of the saw manufacturing establishment incorporated as E. C. Atkins & Company. J. W. Perkins completed his education in Indianapolis, and was offered by his father the choice between a profession, with the necessary preparatory education, and a practical life at the factory, including learning the trade as saw maker, and advancement as merit justified, and he chose the latter. Graduating from the Indianapolis high school in 1888, he immediately entered the factory serving in the various departments, in the office, and on the road as traveling salesman, until his father's death in 1897, at which time he was elected assistant secretary of E. C. Atkins & Company, and also a director, which position he resigned in 1900 to become general manager of the Portland branch of E. C. Atkins & Company, which branch he established and handled successfully until 1903, when on account of failing health he was obliged to leave office work, and he purchased a ranch in Medford. Jackson county, Oregon, for the purpose of recuperation.
He remained in Medford for your years, from 1904 to 190R. and was active in starting the boom which made Medford famous as a fruit-producing center. For three years his orchard, now celebrated and known as Hillcrest, carried the world's record for fruit sold at auction in New York city, obtained on a fancy grade of pears known as Cornice. Leavins Medford, in 1908. after selling out his property In that section, he went to Roseburg, Douglas county. Oregon, and his first work was the organization and promotion of what ia known as the Sutherlin project, being a large irrigated orchard proposition, and including a town-site proposition, the present town of Sutherlin. This project was promoted successfully, and after selling out to advantage he centered his interests in Roseburg, where he is now promoting a large bituminous coal property, which will be by far the moat extensive of any of his enterprises. Mr. Perkins erected the Perkins building in Roseburg, completed in 1912, being exclusively an office building of the highest grade of construction, and the finest building of its kind in the state of Oregon, outside of the city of Portland. On January 21, 1902, Mr. Perkins was united in marriage to Miss ETHEL McKAY SHERMAN, of Portland, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. J. Sherman. The political affiliations of Mr. Perkins have always been republican, although he leans to the progressive branch of that party and has been firm in the support of its principles. He was elected on the republican ticket in 1907 to the Oregon state legislature from Jackson county. He is a thirty-second degree Mason, a Knight Templar Mason, and a noble of the Mystic Shrine. He is also prominent in the order of Elks.

Source: The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Volume 4 By Joseph Gaston, George H. Himes



Ashland, OR - Nov. 16th, 1905 - McHENRY C. PERKINS, who claimed to have been a resident of Los Angeles, CA for thirty years and to have sons and daughters there more or less prominent in affairs, died here last night without means to provide for his funeral expenses. Perkins came here a few months ago. He was 87 years old.

Source: Los Angeles herald. (Los Angeles [Calif.]) November 17, 1905.


Florence, Colorado: Nov. 17th, 1904 - Mrs. Albert Mooney of this city to-day received word that her father, WILLIAM PERKINS, better known as "Moccasin Bill", died on a ranch near Montrose. He was about 80 years of age. He came to Colorado in 1860 as a Government scout to watch the movements of the Indians. He was a famous bear hunter.

Source: The San Francisco call. (San Francisco [Calif.]) November 18, 1904


GEORGE W. PERKINS, one of the highly respected early settlers of Yam Hill county, OR, came to Oregon in 1853. Following is a brief outline of his life. George W. Perkins was born in Cattaraugus county, New York, July 11th, 1819. His father, Eli Perkins, was a native of Massachusetts, a descendant of early New England settlers, and his mother, Sally (Hull) Perkins, was a native of Vermont, and a the daughter of a Revolutionary soldier. Of their seven children only three are now living: George W. Perkins, and his two sisters, wives of Dan and James Johnson, pioneers of La Fayette, Oregon. Mr. Perkins spent eighteen years of his early life in Tippecanoe county, Indiana, where he was married to Miss HARRIET HERNDON, a native of that State, and a daughter of C. Herndon. The Herndons were respected farmers, and worthy members of the Baptist Church. Mr. and Mrs. Perkins started with their family across the plains for Oregon in 1853, and this journey was marked by two important events, namely, the death of one child and the birth of another. While they were on the plains their little two year old boy accidentally fell into a kettle and was scalded, dying soon afterward. When they were on the Blue mountains, en route to Yam Hill county, OR, their son, Edgar Perkins, was born. This son is now a successful business man of La Fayette, OR. They had forty-three head of cattle when they started on this journey, and when they arrived in Oregon all the stock they had left was a pair of mules, the rest having died. Arrived in Oregon, Mr. Perkins first employment was in a sawmill, and his wife helped to cook for the mill hands. Then they settled on their donation claim, a tract of 305 acres, and on it lived eighteen years, working hard to develop it. He was successful in his undertakings. In 1870 he retired from the farm, purchased some lots in La Fayette, OR, built a good house and barn, and here he and his wife are quietly spending the evening of their lives in pence and comfort. Of their children we make the following record: George M. Perkins, resides with his parents; Sarah Catharine Perkins, is the wife of John J. Cary, and lives in La Fayette, OR, near her fathers home; Mary Jane Perkins, is now Mrs. Newton Hembree, and is also a resident of La Fayette, OR; Emma Perkins is the wife of J. J. Hembree, a merchant of La Fayette, OR; Delmar Perkins having charge of the donation claim. This pioneer couple have seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Mrs. Perkins is a member of the Baptist church. Mr. Perkins in politics is a good representative of the old Jacksonian Democrat.

Source: An illustrated history of the state of Oregon [microform] : containing a history of Oregon from the earliest period of its discovery to the present time, together with glimpses of its auspicious future ; illustrations and full-page portraits of some of its eminent men and biographical mention of many of its pioneers and prominent citizens of to-day (1893)


JOHN PERKINS, who came to Oregon in the year 1844, was born in Greene county, N.Y., August 21st, 1811, and in 1817 was taken by his parents to Cattaraugus county, N.Y., where he resided continuously until 1832. In that year the family removed to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, where in 1836, John Perkins was united in marriage to Miss SARAH FELIX. Subsequently they moved to Benton county, Indiana, where they lived until 1844, when they determined to establish a home in the far northwest, thinking that by taking advantage of its pioneer conditions they might eventually secure a good home and comfortable competence. Accordingly they crossed the plains, accompanied by the family of Mr. Perkins father. They were upon the road for about six months, and endured many hardships, trials and difficulties during that long journey, which led across the hot, sandy plains of the middle west, and over mountains which hardly afforded a trail. In November, 1844, however, they reached Wall Walla. Mr. Perkins there separated from the others of the train and assisted Dr. Whitman in repairing his mills and grinding grain for the emigrants. Mr. Perkins conducted a grist-mill until the fall of 1844, and in the spring of 1845 came to the Willamette valley, locating on a farm near North Yamhill, where, with the exception of the time spent in a trip to California in 1849, he resided continuously until his death. On his return to Oregon, however, he and his father erected a saw and grist-mill, the first in Yamhill county. Shortly afterward Mr. Perkins purchased the property and ran the mills several years. In 1853 he furnished flour to the Spanish packers, who took the same to the Yreka mines of California. Unto Mr. Perkins and his wife were born nine children, of whom eight are yet living. Mr. Perkins reached the age of seventy-five years, while his wife has attained the advanced age of eighty-seven years, and now resides with her daughter, Mrs. Bedwell. He served as county commissioner, and was a leading and influential citizen of his community. Local progress and improvement were causes dear to his heart, and he cooperated earnestly and effectively in the efforts to reclaim this district for civilization, and to carry forward the work of improvement and advancement here.

Source: Portrait and Biographical Record of the Willamette Valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present. Chapman Brothers Publishing Co. - v. 1 (1903)


JOSEPH B. PERKINS. Among those courageous pioneers who slowly moved over the plains long before the emissaries of gold rendered less dangerous the vastness of the western country, and who, as they carried civilization with them, were obliged to fight nature at every step, to circumvent untold dangers, and over their camp fires indulged in ghastly prophecies of destructions at the hands of murderous savages, where those messengers of peace and prosperity who arrived in Oregon in 1844. Already the noble Whitman had paved the way for others equally ambitious, and the embryo town called in his honor was suggestive of a semblance of awakening activity. Thither came John Perkins, the father of Joseph B. Perkins, the latter a farmer of Yamhill county, and born in Tippecanoe county, Indiana, January 5th, 1841. John Perkins was born in Genesee county, N.Y., August 21st, 1811, and married Sarah Felix, who was born in Union county, PA, December 6th, 1815. Mrs. Perkins, who is now living with her daughter, Mrs. H. F. Bedwell, was reared in Ohio, and removed to Indiana when nineteen years of age. Here she met her husband, who was a carpenter, millwright and blacksmith by trade, and with home she crossed the plains in 1844. The first winter in the northwest Mr. Perkins passed at Whitman station, and there ran a grist-mill for the man whom the station was named. In March, 1845, he took up a donation claim of six hundred and forty acres, adjoining and constituting a part of that now owned by his son, Joseph B. Perkins, and there remained for the balance of his life. He was unusually prosperous, and admirably succeeded in controlling and utilizing the opportunities by which he was surrounded. At the last he owned two thousand and nine hundred acres of land, all of which was divided among his nine children and wife, the latter holding a dower right on three hundred and twenty acres. He was a Democrat in politics, and was a consistent and active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Reared among strictly agricultural surroundings, Joseph B. Perkins left home at the age of sixteen, but soon returned and worked on the paternal farm until about twenty-five. After his marriage he went into the saw-mill business in Washington for a year, and then began to farm on one hundred and forty-seven acres of land six miles north of McMinnville, OR. This property was afterward disposed of to Clem Scott, and Mr. Perkins made his home in Gaston, OR for six years. After living in McMinnville for a year, he made his home on a farm in Klickitat county, Washington, for nine years, and on the latter property engaged principally in the sheep business. He also ran a steam ferry across the Columbia river for two years. Upon returning to Oregon he ran a saw-mill for a year, and then had charge of an electric light plant in McMinnville, OR for six months. He then settled on his present farm, which adjoins his father's estate, and of which he has disposed of all but twenty-three acres. Eleven acres of this are under hops, of which the present owner has made a great success, and the present year he had to show for his pains sixty-six bales of this marketable article. Mr. Perkins is a notable addition to the agricultural captains of industry of Yamhill county, and is well known socially and otherwise. He has been a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen for over twenty-four years, and has passed through all of the chairs. In politics he is independent, but has often taken an active interest in supporting worthy friends. In religion he is a member and deacon of the Christian Advent Church. The family of Mr. Perkins consists of his wife, ELLEN E. (GAUNT) Perkins, who was born near St. Louis, MO, August 31st, 1850, and whose father, G. D. Gaunt, crossed the plains in 1853. Of this union there have been born the following children: Mrs. Eleanor (Perkins) Force, wife of T. D. Force, living thee and a half miles east of the home farm; Mrs. Rose (Perkins) Helmer, of Portland, OR; Claude C. Perkins, living with his parents; and Floyd F. Perkins, also living at home.

Source: Portrait and Biographical Record of the Willamette Valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present. Chapman Brothers Publishing Co. - v. 1 (1903)
 


GEORGE W. PERKINS, engaged in agricultural pursuits during the greater part of his life, George W. Perkins, who now resides four miles northwest of Yamhill, OR has achieved the success due to the industrious, progressive and painstaking farmer. He was born February 22nd, 1850, and is the son of John and Sarah (Felix) Perkins. Both of his parents were natives of the east, his father being born in 1811, in New York and his mother in 1813, in Pennsylvania. It is told that when his father crossed the plains the horses and mules of the party were captured and that John Perkins, together with six other men, brought them back to their rightful owners. This shows his early bravery and his sense of responsibility. His mother removed to Indiana at the age of nine years and lived there until she was married, in 1833. After continuing to live in Indiana for eleven years, they finally came to Oregon in 1844 and settled upon a donation claim in Yamhill county, OR. This claim was held throughout their lives and since then has been owned exclusively by their children. At the advanced age of eighty-two years the father died on the home place and in 1902 the mother passed away at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Bedwell, in Yamhill county, OR. To their union nine children were born; Sarah (Perkins) Richards (deceased), Eli Perkins of Linn county, OR, Joseph Perkins (deceased), Elvira (Perkins) Russell, E. A. (Perkins) Bedwell, both residents of Yamhill Co., OR, William F. Perkins (deceased), Lucretia (Perkins) Walker, of Alberta, Canada, George W. Perkins of this review, Norris H. Perkins, of Yamhill, OR. Until his marriage, in 1876, George W. Perkins lived at home and assisted in the kind of work he was soon to take up independently. This encouraged in him the settled and regular habits and the close attention to his chosen occupation which have been so noticeable through his life. He was married on February 22nd, 1876, to FLORENCE SHULL, the daughter of John W. and Marcia (Moore) Shull. Mr. Shull was born in Peoria, Illinois, and died in eastern Oregon, being one of seven children: Mrs. Lizzie (Shull) Otis and Mrs. Leona (Shull) Kemp, of Portland, OR, Mrs. Ella (Shull) Davis, deceased, Oliver Shull of Kansas, Annie (Shull) Lloyd, residing in Eastern Oregon, and John Shull, deceased. Mrs. Skull was the younger of two children, the other being Major Moore, deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Skull were the parents of Mary Shull and Henry Shull, deceased, Mrs. Powers, of Portland, Oregon, Mrs. Marcia (Shull) Stuart, residing in Montana; and Mrs. Florence (Shull) Perkins.  After his marriage, Mr. Perkins started in farming for himself on three hundred and thirty acres, situated four miles northwest of Yamhill, Oregon. On this tract of land he lived for nineteen years and brought it under the high state of cultivation which his good judgment and proper distribution of energy made possible. After this arduous life, he retired from active farming and lived in Yamhill, Oregon for fourteen years. But he again identified himself with agricultural pursuits by removing to a farm. Today this place is recognized as one of the most beautiful and most highly cultivated farms in the county. But Mr. and Mrs. Perkins give their attention to comfort as well as to mere productive enterprises and their commodious and well appointed home, on their one hundred and seventy-five acres of developed land, affords them ever comfort. Mr. Perkins is an advocate of the principles of the democratic party and is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of the Masonic Lodge and of the Grange. He is also a member of the Methodist church, his fraternal and church relations being indicative of the high principles which constitute the motive force of his life.

Source: The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Volume 2 - By Joseph Gaston, George H. Himes

 


NORRIS H. PERKINS, a prominent farmer of North Yam Hill, OR, was born on his father's donation claim, the place on which he now resides, Oct. 27th, 1851. His father, John Perkins, an honored Oregon pioneer of 1845, was born in Genesee County, New York, August 21st, 1811. The ancestors of the family came from England at an early day and settled in that country. In 1832 Grand-father, Eli Perkins moved from New York to Tippecanoe county, Indiana, and in that State John Perkins was subsequently married to Miss Sarah Felix, a native of Pennsylvania. They had four children. In the spring of 1844 they emigrated from Benton county, Indiana, to Oregon. Grandfather Perkins and family also crossed the plains with ox teams at the same time, all imbued with the hope of obtaining 640 acres of rich land in the mild climate of the Pacific coast. To accomplish this journey and secure the land they braved many dangers and privations, but never regretted the undertaking. North Yam Hill was to them the land of promise, and with its wooded hills and grass covered valleys it presented a pleasing prospect. Grandfather Perkins located his land near La Fayette, OR. As he grew old he retired from the farm and lived with his daughter,  Mrs. Daniel Johnson, in La Fayette, OR, where his death occurred. John Perkins took his donation claim of 643 acres at North Yam Hill, and here he built his cabin and began pioneer life. He build the first gristmill and one of the first sawmills in the country, and became a prominent factor in the settlement and development of this section of the country. He was a stockholder in the building of the woolen factory at Oregon City, OR, the first factor of the kind on the Pacific coast. His efforts seemed to result in prosperity from the very first, and as soon as he was able he purchased a section of land adjoining his claim and another section in the same county, and as the years went by invested in other tracts of land, becoming one of the largest landholders in the State. He was largely interested in general farming and stock-raising, in a single year he raised as high as 3,600 bushels of wheat and 5,000 bushels of oats. He died March 26th, 1886, in his seventy-sixth year, and left a widow and nine children. A man of marked business ability and the highest integrity of character, he hand the confidence and respect of all who knew him. Norris H. Perkins, whose name heads this article, was reared on his father's farm and was educated in the district school and the academy at La Fayette, OR. He married Miss EMMA GLANDIN, a native of Iowa and a daughter of Fielden Glandin. They have six children: Minnie B. Perkins, Elsie E. Perkins, Ermon Ottie Perkins, Lolo P. Perkins, Cloan C. Perkins and Vera V. Perkins. After the death of his father the estate was divided, and Norris H. Perkins received as his portion the place on which he was born and some other valuable tracts of land. He how owns 978 acres, all of which he has under cultivation, and he also cultivates 200 acres of other land. His comfortable residence commands a view of his broad acres and a beautiful stretch of country, one of the richest and most delightful sections of the State. He is interested in raising fine stick, keeping Durham cattle, Norman-Percheron horses and fine Cotswold sheep. Mr. Perkins is an Odd Fellow and a member of the Grange, having served as Master of the latter. He is a Democrat, but is not an active politician. As a business man and citizen he is held in high esteem by all who know him.

Source: An illustrated history of the state of Oregon [microform] : containing a history of Oregon from the earliest period of its discovery to the present time, together with glimpses of its auspicious future ; illustrations and full-page portraits of some of its eminent men and biographical mention of many of its pioneers and prominent citizens of to-day (1893)


R. S. PERKINS, proprietor of the Perkins House, of Portland, OR, an estimable man and influential citizen of the metropolis, is a native of Bristol, England, where he was born Feb. 4th, 1830. His father was one of the prominent wholesale butchers and cattle dealers of Bristol, an honest and deserving man, highly respected by all who knew him. R. S. Perkins was educated at the boy's school, near Bristol, after which he entered his father's establishment, studying there the process of butchering, in which he afterward became very skillful. In 1851 he emigrated to the United States, first locating in Cleveland, Ohio, where he was employed by the large establishment of Stedman Brothers. In the fall he went to Toledo, OH where he was employed through the packing season by Howard & Walker. Passing the winter at Worcester, Ohio, he started in April, 1852, across the plains for Oregon, driving four yoke of oxen for Robert Perry for his board and transportation for the journey. They accomplished this long journey without unusual incident or hardship, and arrived at the Dalles in November immediately following. Proceeding thence to the Cascades, having only $16, he was there employed by one Bush, who kept a boarding house. Late in November he arrived in Portland, OR, where he worked for a few weeks for Albright & White, butchers, when he and A. H. Johnson formed a partnership under the firm of Johnson & Perkins, and conducted the Empire Market for about ten years. In 1862 the firm dissolved, Mr. Perkins engaging in the droving business, purchasing cattle throughout the Willamette valley, and driving them to the mines in Idaho. He continued in this business for about two years, when he went to Montana, and was there also engaged in buying and selling. He then returned to Portland, OR following a similar occupation there. In 1869, with 4,400 sheep, he started for California, but selling them on the road, he then went to Texas, where he picked up a heard of 4,000 cattle, with which he started across the plains for Oregon. He passed the winter of 1870-71 in Idaho, where he sold part of the herd, and in the spring of 1871 drove the balance to Oregon, where he subsequently sold the rest to Johnson & Spaulding, the enterprise proving very successful. He then followed farming in Washington county until 1872, when he bought a herd of 800 cattle, and drove them to Umatilla county, eastern Oregon, where he purchased eighty acres on Butter creek for a corral; he then turned his cattle loose, and engaged in the stock business. Increasing his heard to 5,000, with about 500 horses, he continued in the business until 1886, when he sold out and returned to Portland, OR. He then rented the Holton House, which he conducted for five years. In 1890 he built the Perkins House, on the corner of Fifth and Washington streets, 100x100 feet, six stories high, which was opened Feb. 4th, 1891. It is one of the most imposing buildings and one of the best hotels in the city, provided with all modern improvements and handsomely furnished. Its headquarters for the stockmen of the Northwest. Mr. Perkins was married in Polk county, OR in 1857, to Miss ELIZABETH EAST, a daughter of John East, who came with his family across the plains in 1843. They have eleven children, ten surviving, five sons and five daughters. He owns much valuable improved property in Portland, OR, besides a quantity of which is unimproved, but in a desirable location. He has besides this 800 acres in Washington county, OR, and eighty acres in Columbia county, OR, having, probably more land than any other one man in the State. He is a prominent member of the F. & A. M., of the Ancient Order of Druids, and is president of the Cattle Men's Pioneer Association.

Source: An illustrated history of the state of Oregon [microform] : containing a history of Oregon from the earliest period of its discovery to the present time, together with glimpses of its auspicious future ; illustrations and full-page portraits of some of its eminent men and biographical mention of many of its pioneers and prominent citizens of to-day (1893)



E. L. PERKINS. On the roster of county officials in Washington county, OR, appears the name of E. L. Perkins, who is now serving as county recorder, his service is that connection gaining for him firm hold on the regard of those who appreciate fidelity and capability in public office. Moreover he is numbered among the native sons of Washington county, OR, his birth occurring here on the 8th of August, 1885, his parents being Thomas B. and A. J. (Francis) Perkins. The father, who was by occupation a general merchant, was born in Kentucky in 1852 and the mother's birth occurred in Missouri in 1854. The seven children born of their union are all yet living and are as follows: T. L. Perkins, of Portland, OR, J. W. Perkins, also of that city, Flora Perkins, the wife of J. H. Humphreys, Ida Perkins, who married M. S. Berdan, of McMinnville, Oregon, E. L. Perkins, of this review, B. R. Perkins, residing in Seattle, Washington, and J. B. Perkins, who makes his home in Hillsboro, Oregon. The early education of E. L. Perkins was received as a pupil in the common schools of Washington county and the Failing School of Portland, OR. He was but a lad of fifteen years when, putting aside his textbooks, he went to the Philippines and there served for three years as a member of the regular army. He received honorable discharge in Fort Wayne, Michigan, in 1903, and, returning home, resumed his studies, taking up the study of law under the preceptorship of H. T. Bagley, in Hillsboro, OR. After a thorough course of reading he was admitted to the bar in 1909 but, owning to the duties which have devolved upon him in an official capacity he has never engaged actively in the practice of his profession. In 1906 he was appointed to the office of deputy recorder for Washington county, serving in that capacity until 1910, in which year he was elected county recorder, assuming the duties of that office on the 1st of January, 1911. The broad experience and comprehensive training which came to him as deputy recorder have well prepared him for the duties of his present office which he performs with marked promptness and fidelity, and his course is proving entirely satisfactory to his constituents and all concerned. Mr. Perkins was married, in 1906, to Miss EVA J. CORNELIUS, who was born in Hillsboro, Oregon, a daughter of B. P. and Esther (Barrett) Cornelius, the former serving as postmaster of Hillsboro, Oregon. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Perkins have been born a son and daughter, Kingsley Perkins and Esther Frances Perkins, both born in this city. Mr. Perkins gives stalwart support to the republican party, while his fraternal relations are with the Knights of Pythias. Although numbered among the younger citizens of Hillsboro, his youth has seemed no barrier in his upward progress, for, fortunate in possessing an ability and character that inspire confidence, he has, by the simple weight of his character and ability, won a place for himself that augurs well for future attainment.

Source: The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Volume 2 - By Joseph Gaston, George H. Himes


FINDLEY P. PERKINS, one of Clatsop county's successful ranchmen, was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on the 26th of January, 1854, a son of Jacob and Eleanor E. (Black) Perkins. The father was a native of Jackson county, Mississippi, and the mother of Pennsylvania, but both passed away in Memphis. Of their union there were born ten children, four of whom are still surviving. After the acquirement of a good practical education, Findley P. Perkins was qualified to begin his career as a wage earner and at the age of nineteen years began to set out for himself. He followed various pursuits for a time in his endeavors to discover something that he would like to adopt for a life vocation. At last he studied telegraphy and for eighteen years thereafter followed the vocation of operator in the railroad service. Withdrawing at the expiration of that period he engaged in the livery business at Falun, Saline county, Kansas. In April, 1904, he removed to Clatsop county, Oregon, and bought one hundred and seventy-one acres of land, known as the spelmire ranch. It is a valuable property, finely improved and partially under cultivation, and Mr. Perkins future would seen to be assured and most promising, as ultimately his property will net him a substantial income. On the 8th of July, 1887, Mr. Perkins plans for a home of his own had their culmination in his marriage to Miss ARAMINTTA ELLEN CUTSHALL, whose birth occurred in Fulton county, Indiana. Mrs. Perkins is a daughter of the late Andrew H. and Margarette Catherine (Secrist) Cutshall, the father a native of Pennsylvania and the other of Ohio. The mother passed away while the family were still residents of Indiana, but the father's death occurred in Caldwell, Kansas. Mr. and Mrs. Cutshall were the parents of two daughters. In matters politic, Mr. Perkins has ever been loyal to the principles of the democratic party for whose candidates he casts his ballot. Although progressive and public-spirited in his recognition of the duties of citizenship he has never participated in governmental matters as a candidate for political honors. He is a capable business man in addition to which he possesses the ambition, energy and perseverance which must characterize the man who succeeds in the northwest.

Source: The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Volume 3 - By Joseph Gaston, George H. Himes


HOWARD A. PERKINS is one of the influential and respected citizens of Josephine county, Oregon where he is engaged in the cultivation of his ranch containing one hundred two and one-half acres of land located on Wolf creek. He has the distinction of having served in the regular army as a scout under the immortal General Custer. He received his honorable discharge and was mustered out of service two years before the Custer massacre occurred. He was born in Wisconsin, February 20, 1855, and is the son of William E. and Lucretia A. (Gilson) Perkins. The father was a native of Canada and the mother of Massachusetts. William E. Perkins settled in Wisconsin in 1842 and some time later removed to Minnesota where he remained for six years. In 1887 he removed to Oregon and settled first in Wallowa county and later removed to Ashland in Jackson county where he lived for some time and then established his residence at Central Point and there continued to live until the time of his death, which occurred at the age of eighty-three years. Mrs. Perkins also having died in their home at the age of eighty-three years. To this union twelve children were born, six of whom are still living. Howard A. Perkins was reared in his parents' home and received his early education in the public schools of the district in which he lived. At the early age of twelve years he left the parental roof and was employed as  common laborer for a number of years in Wisconsin. He later established himself upon a farm, making a specialty of truck gardening and continued to devote his attention to that industry for a number of years. In 1885 he moved to western Oregon and two years later he settled in Jackson county, that state, where he continued to reside for seventeen years. He then purchased a ranch of one hundred two and one-half acres in Josephine county on which he has since continued to reside and devote his attention to its cultivation. Mr. Perkins was united in marriage September 19, 1875, to Miss LILLIAN KING, a native of Wisconsin and the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. G. L. King, and to them seven children have been born: Ada Perkins, the wife of A. C. Spence, of Glenn county, California; Gerald L. Perkins, a resident of The Dalles; Elver Perkins and Elmer Perkins, who are twins and still reside with their parents; two children not named, who are deceased; and Hazel L. Perkins, who married W. D. McIntosh, of Josephine county, Oregon. Mr. Perkins is affiliated with the republican party and has served for some time as a member of the school board of the district in which he lives. He is an enterprising and industrious citizen of Josephine county and a man who is highly respected for his integrity among all his friends and business associates.

Source: The centennial history of Oregon, 1811-1912, Volume 3 - By Joseph Gaston, George H. Himes


GEORGE JEFFERSON PERKINS, senior member of the law firm of Perkins & Bailey, was born on a plantation in Lee county, Alabama, September 14, 1876. His father, Benjamin F. Perkins, was born in Taylor county, Georgia, in 1843. In February, 1862, he enlisted in the Confederate Army as a private in Company H, First Alabama Infantry, and was later promoted to the rank of lieutenant of Company B, First Alabama Regiment. He served actively in the Confederate Army throughout the Civil war and was severely wounded in the battle of Peach Tree Creek, near Atlanta, in which engagement every man in his regiment was either killed or wounded. He married Miss Emma McCoy, then a young school teacher; she died in 1882. His demise occurred in Birmingham in 1907. Their son, George J. Perkins, was reared in Lee county, Alabama, and there attended the country schools. Subsequently he was for two years a student in the Saunders Academy at Notasulga, Alabama. At the age of nineteen he attended a business college at Columbus, Georgia. After leaving the business college he entered the employ of the Southern Railway and the Georgia and Alabama Railway at Columbus, Georgia, as stenographer, where he continued for two years. He moved from Georgia to Kansas, and during the next three years worked for various railroads in the middle west. In 1901 he resigned the position of chief clerk to the superintendent of the Choctaw, Oklahoma & Gulf Railroad and entered the employ of the Northern Pacific Railroad at Seattle. In May, 1902, he came to Portland as claim investigator for the Northern Pacific and was subsequently made chief clerk to the freight claim agent at Portland, which position he held until the latter part of 1905. While working in the freight claim office during the day he studied in the law department of the University of Oregon at night and was graduated from there in 1904. In the same year he was admitted to the Oregon bar. In the latter part of 1905 he entered upon the practice of his profession, becoming associated with the well known law firm of Platt & Platt of Portland and continued with that firm for five years. After leaving Platt & Platt he practiced alone until 1918, when he formed a partnership with John O. Bailey under the firm name of Perkins & Bailey, which association is still continued. Their high professional attainments have won for them the confidence of the public and the respect of the Oregon bar. They are now counsel for many large corporations, including the Peninsula National Bank, The Bank of Commerce, the Peninsula Security Company, The State Bank of Hubbard, the Portland Manufacturing Company and Eagle Flour Mills. Mr. Perkins is an able lawyer, logical in his deductions and persevering. On the 7th of April, 1908, in Portland, Mr. Perkins was united in marriage to Miss GERTRUDE MAY TIMMS, a daughter of the late Major Harvey M. Timms, a veteran of the Civil war on the Union side, he having fought against Mr. Perkins' father from Good Hope Church to Atlanta. The two children of this union are: George J. Perkins, Jr., who was born January 5, 1910; and Davis McCoy Perkins, born November 2, 1913. Mr. Perkins is registered as a republican but reserves the right to vote for the man he regards as best qualified for the office he seeks, without regard to party affiliation. He is an active? member of the Chamber of Commerce, giving his hearty support to all well devised plans and projects of that organization for the advancement of the city and the extension of its trade relations. During the World war he served as a member of the legal advisory and questionnaire boards and also was active in promoting all local bond drives, doing everything in his power to support the government in its time of need. He is a member of the County, State and American Bar Associations. He is a great admirer of the natural scenery of Oregon and owns an attractive country place of about ninety acres in the fork of the Sandy river and Beaver creek, fourteen miles from Portland, overlooking Sandy river and the famous Columbia River Highway on the one side and Beaver creek gorge on the other, on which he is developing a diversified orchard and a fish and swimming pond. The most of his leisure time is spent on his country property. Mr. Perkins is a man of most exemplary character, whose integrity and honesty have never been questioned and his life is an excellent illustration of what can be accomplished through individual effort. Working untiringly to gain a start he has steadily progressed in his professional career and his unwearied industry and perseverance have been the salient points in his continued success. He has attained high rank in his profession and Portland regards him as one of her representative and valued citizens.

Source: History of Oregon Illustrated, Vol. 3 - by: Charles H. Carney - The Pioneer Historical Publishing Company - Chicago - Portland 1922


GEORGE PERKINS, a well known and industrious agriculturist of Mount Hood, OR, was born in Gloucestershire, England, on December 14th, 1841. His parents were John and Sarah (Gibbs) Perkins, natives of the same place and now deceased. Until 1882, our subject labored in his native land and then went direct from England to New Zealand and after one year in that country, came to San Francisco, whence he made his way to Oregon and settled in the Antelope valley for one year. After that, he resided in the Hood River country and remained there a short time, near where the town of Hood River is now located. After that, he spent a little while at Mosier, MN, then came to the place where we now find him. The land was in dispute between the government and the railroad and he settled on a quarter section which reverted to the government and upon which proved up. Mr. Perkins took out his citizenship papers at The Dalles one year after arriving here. He has bestowed his labors upon the farm since settlement and has now a good portion under cultivation and owns eighty acres, having sold eighty. He is a man of good standing in the community, industrious and enterprising and has many friends. On March 1st, 1895, at Mount Hood, MN . Mr. Perkins married Mrs. ANN DEMMIC, a sister of the well known pioneer, David R. Cooper. By her former marriage, Mrs. Perkins has the following named children;  Joseph Demmic ; George Demmic; John Demmic; Zibe Demmic; James Demmic and Belle Demmic, the wife of Charles Schmidt. Mrs. Perkins was born in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on March 3rd, 1839. She came to Oregon in May, 1860, she remained in Umpqua valley until June, 1862, when she came thence to The Dalles. In 1860 she married Hezekiah Russel Demmic. She remained in The Dalles until 1884, when she came to Mt. Hood, MN. Mr. Perkins has a fine apple orchard of four and one half acres, all bearing, and an acre and one-half of prunes. He also has five acres of clover, and cultivates fifteen acres. His place is well improved with house and barn, and so forth. He took nearly five hundred boxes of apples from his orchard and cut fifty-eight tons of clover from the five acres.

Source: An Illustrated History of Central Oregon - Embracing Wasco, Sherman, Gilliam, Wheeler, Crook, Lake and Klamath Counties - State of Oregon - Western Historical Publishing CO. - Spokane, WA - 1905 


ALONZO PERKINS, In one of the parades which were a feature of the Rose festival of Portland, OR of 1910 no carriage attracted greater attention or awakened more enthusiasm than that which contained the three Mexican war veterans, of whom Alonzo Perkins was one. Portland numbers him among her venerable and honorable citizens. He has now attained the age of eighty-four years, his birth having occurred in Waterloo, Seneca county, New York, on the 17th of August, 1826. His parents, Jencks and Levina (Clark) Perkins, both born in this country but were of English descent. Their son Alonzo acquired his education in the districts schools of his native town and in his youthful days he worked with his father at the millwright's trade, becoming an expert in that line. On account of the large family, the support of which was difficult task for the father, Alonzo Perkins left home at an early age to provide for his own maintenance. Thinking that he would have better opportunities in the middle west, when a youth of eighteen years, he made his way to Illinois, where lived one of his brothers, who was also a millwright. Mr. Perkins worked with his brother for a time and later took over the business, which he carried on for himself. Two years were devoted to business activities in Illinois and then he put aside all such cares and personal considerations in order to espouse the cause of his country, then engaged in war with Mexico. In 1846, the opening year of hostilities he enlisted as a member of Company I, First Illinois Volunteer Infantry, joining the regiment at Alton, IL. He served for one year, during which time he participated in the battle of Buena Vista and saw much hard campaigning. Following the cessation of hostilities he returned to Illinois and was a resident of LaSalle county, IL until 1856, when, tiring of the millwright business, became it required his absence from home so much, he went to Nebraska with a portable sawmill and located at Fort Calhoun. He was married then and had two children. The winter of 1857 was a very hard one and money was extremely scarce. There was no work in his line to be obtained and the family subsisted largely on corn. Owing to the financial depression which was felt throughout the country, it was very hard to obtain employment, but, Mr. Perkins succeeded in getting the position of engineer in the flour mill on the Pawnee Indian reservation. He remained there for about two years and then resigned. In 1863 he went to Omaha, Nebraska, where he purchased a hotel, which he conducted for about a year and then sold out. He then went to live upon a farm which he had previously purchased and devoted his time and energies to the cultivation of his fields for about two years. On the expiration of that period he was elected county judge and removed to Blair, the county seat of Washington county, Nebraska, where he continued to live until 1900, when he became a resident of Portland, OR. He also held other offices in Nebraska, serving as postmaster at Fontanelle, NE and while upon the farm he was also deputy United States marshal and county commissioner. He discharged the duties of these offices with promptness and fidelity and his record won him high commendation. Since coming to Portland, OR he has lived retired. It was on the 22nd of September, 1849, that Mr. Perkins was united in marriage to Miss SAMANTHA JENKINS. She was born in Hadley, New York, October 17th, 1830, and is a daughter of Gordon and Louisa (Harwood) Jenkins. The wedding was celebrated at Lowell, Illinois, and the marriage has been blessed with eight children, of whom two died in infancy. Dudley Perkins, the oldest of the surviving sons and a resident of Yamhill county, OR, married Mattie Davis and had three children: Mrs. May (Perkins) Wright; Lillian Perkins and Roy Perkins. Charles Perkins, a resident of Kansas, married Hattie Whittier and had two children; Mrs. Grace (Perkins) Shemelfenig; and Gertrude Perkins, who is deceased. After losing his first wife, Charles Perkins married again and had several children by that union. Ellen N. Perkins is the wife of Allen Rogers, of Portland, OR, and they have one child; Katie Rogers. Fred Perkins and Frank Perkins have both passed away. Fannie Perkins is now the wife of James Leonard Slipp, of Portland, OR, and has three children: Pearl P. Slipp; Ruth G. Slipp and Helen Slipp.  Mr. Perkins is a member of the Knights of the Pythias lodge at Blair, Nebraska. While he has now passed the eighty-fourth milestone on life's journey, his interests do not all lie in the past nor is he occupied entirely with reminiscences of the earlier days. He keeps in touch with what is being accomplished at the present and throughout his life has been interested in the progress of the world. The fact that he consented to take part in the Rose festival parade of 1910 shows his interest in modern things and especially in Portland, the city of his adoption.

Source: Portland, Oregon, Its History and Builders: In Connection with the ..., Volume 2 -  By Joseph Gaston (1911)


RICHARD PERKINS. To those familiar with the history of the northwest, the name of Richard S. Perkins calls to mind extensive like-stock interests which he conducted and also the fact that he was the builder of the Perkins Hotel of Portland, OR. His business undertakings on the whole were of a character that contributed to the up building and welfare of this section of the country, with the interests of which he became identified in 1852, when Portland was a town of only about one thousand inhabitants. For seventy-nine years he trod life's pathway and then passed on to that undiscovered country from those bourn no traveler returns. A native of Bristol, England, he was born August 23rd, 1823, and in 1851, when twenty-eight years of age, crossed the Atlantic to the new world, settling first in Cleveland, Ohio, where he entered the employ of Steadman Brothers. In the fall of that year he went to Toledo, Ohio, and through the packing season was employed by the firm of Howard & Walker. The theme of general interest at that time throughout the east and the Mississippi valley was the opportunities of the "golden west". While it was known that all who sought fortunes in the mines had not been successful, those who went to the coast recognized the fact that there were many other natural resources that could be utilized in legitimate business ventures for the attainment of success, and the favorable reports which Mr. Perkins heard determined him to establish his home in Oregon. He, therefore, crossed the plains with Robert Perry, driving four yoke of oxen, and in November, 1852, reached the Dalles. From that point he proceeded to the Cascades and toward the latter end of the month arrived in Portland, OR. For half a century thereafter Richard S. Perkins was a resident of the northwest and contributed his full share toward its up building and progress. His initial effort here was made as an employee of Albright & White, butches of Portland, OR, with whom he remained for a few weeks, when he entered partnership with A. H. Johnson and established a butchering business on the site of the First National Bank building, under the firm name of Johnson & Perkins. From the beginning the new enterprise prospered and was successfully conducted for ten years. Mr. Perkins then became a drover, buying cattle throughout the Willamette valley and driving them across the plains to Idaho. In 1864 he went to Montana and soon afterward returned to Portland. In 1869 he started for California with forty-four hundred sheep but sold them on the road, and after making the sale, went to Texas, where he secured four thousand cattle which he brought to Oregon. He herded his cattle upon the plains of Idaho, selling a part of the number during the next two years, and in the spring of 1871 he returned to Oregon with the number that remained. Securing a farm in Washington county, he there cultivated his fields and cared for his stock until 1872, in which year he bought a herd of eight hundred cattle, which he took to Umatilla county. His Beaverton farm was a most valuable one. He continuously developed his stock-raising business, increasing his herd of cattle  to five thousand, and also secured about five hundred horses. He was one of the most extensive stock-raisers and dealers on the Pacific coast and continued in the business until 1886, when he sold it at a handsome profit and returned to Portland. On again locating in this city, Mr. Perkins became connected with hotel interests, rending and conducting the Holton House for five years. In 1890 he began the erection of a hotel on the lot at the northeast corner of Fifth and Washington streets, the building being one hundred by one thousand feet. It is said that at that time he refused an offer of two hundred thousand dollars for the land. The hotel, a six story structure, was opened for business on the 4th of February, 1891, and in an appropriate location on the top floor he placed a golden steer, indicative of the fact that he had made his money in the cattle business. When the widespread financial disaster of 1893-94 caught many prominent and hitherto successful business men throughout the country, Mr. Perkins became involved in financial difficulties and was compelled to part with his hotel in 1896. At that time he and his family took up their residence on Flanders street. It was in 1857 that Mr. Perkins was married to Miss ELIZABETH EAST, a daughter of John N. and Elizabeth East, of Polk county. Mrs. Perkins was born in Kentucky, where her father was engaged in the surveying business until 1841, when, with his family, he crossed the plains with an ox team. They were the second party to make the trip over the plains, and on reaching this district settled near Oregon City. They were about eight months on the trip and after securing a claim in Polk county, Mr. East there build a log house and began the development of a farm, which he continued to be his home throughout his remaining days. He was born in Virginia and died in 1876 at the age of sixty-two years. He held membership in the Presbyterian church and was a strong democrat in his political views. He and his family experienced all the hardships and privations of pioneer life because of their removal from districts where the comforts and advantages of an older civilization could be secured. Mrs. East was born in Kentucky and died in 1887, when seventy-three years of age. Their daughter, Mrs. Perkins, is a member of the Pioneer Society and is a most highly esteemed lady, honored by all who know her. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Perkins were born eleven children: Hannah H. Perkins, the wife of Clarence Brown of Portland, OR; Robert Sitton Perkins; Richard Andrew Perkins; John Arthur Perkins, deceased; Charles Henry Perkins; George H. Perkins; Jane Perkins; Charlotte Perkins, the wife of C. A. Malbouf; May Perkins; Daisy Perkins, the wife of Irving H. Pratt, of Seattle, WA ; and Elizabeth Perkins, the deceased wife of Albert Mendenhal.  Mr. Perkins was prominent in the Masonic fraternity with which he held membership for over half a century. A contemporary writer was side of him: "He was a man of rugged personality, and during his long business career exerted that personal courage and ability of enduring fatigue, honesty and love of adventure which have done so much to build up the Pacific northwest.". His experiences as he traveled over the plains with herds of cattle would often constitute a story more thrilling than any romantic tale. He died April 29th, 1902, and thus was closed a life record that has distinct value for the northwest. He recognized business opportunities and operated on an extensive scale in harmony with the spirit that has ever been dominant in the up building of this section of the country. Much of his life covered that picturesque period ere the division of the land into small farms, when men, owning immense tracts of land, herded hundreds and hundreds of cattle on the plains and hillsides. They were forerunners of the present day civilization and progress and the work which they did should never be forgotten.

Source: Portland, Oregon, Its History and Builders: In Connection with the ..., Volume 2 -  By Joseph Gaston (1911)

**Also see: Source: History of the state of Nebraska : Containing A full account of its growth from an uninhabited territory to a wealthy and important state; of its early settlements; its rapid increased in population, and the marvelous development of its great natural resources. Also an extended description of its COUNTIES, CITIES, TOWNS AND VILLAGES, Their advantages, industries, manufactures and commerce; Biographical sketches, portraits of prominent men and Early Settlers; Views of residents and business Blocks, Cities and Towns; p.585. Chicago: The Western Historical Company; A. T. Andreas, Proprietor, 1882.


CATHERINE (COCHRAN) PERKINS. Was born on a claim almost within sight of Cottage Grove, OR, October 25th, 1855. John Cochran, the father of Mrs. Perkins, was born in Kentucky, and from his native state removed to Missouri, from where he brought his family across the plains in 1850. In his young manhood he married Lettie Kelly, a native of Tennessee, and who born him seven children, two of whom were sons, and five of whom accompanied their parents on the westward trip. Mr. Cochran selected Lane county as a desirable and promising farming community, and near Cottage Grove took up a donation claim of a quarter of a section, where he farmed and raised stock with considerable success. While attending court in Eugene as a juryman, he contracted a fever from which he died in 1858, at the early age of forty-one years. The wife, who survived him, and who eventually died in Cottage Grove, married for her second husband Samuel Dillard. Educated in the public schools of this county, Mrs. Perkins developed a charming personality, and at seventeen years of age she became engaged to M. C. Connelly, a railroad employee and a young man of excellent character and business ability. Mr. Connelly was born in Liverpool, England, and came to the United States, settling in the west, where he was engaged principally as superintendent of grading for the Oregon & California, now the Southern Pacific Railroad. His married life was short-lived, for he was killed by the explosion of giant powder on a boat while blasting rock five miles above Umatilla, on the Columbia river, in 1876, at the age of thirty-one years. At the time he had advanced to the position of superintendent of construction, and his career contained great promise. He left one son, Arthur V. Connelly, who is living in Cottage Grove, but who is employed as brakeman on the Oregon & Southeastern Railroad. In 1877, Mrs. Connelly was united in marriage with JOSEPH H. PERKINS, a native of Missouri, and who came across the plains with his parents in 1864, settling first in Baker and afterward in Lane county. Mr. Perkins father, Joseph D. Perkins, was born in Kentucky, and from there removed to Missouri, living there on a farm for several years, or until coming to the west. The some came into the possession of a farm upon a portion of which the town of Cottage Grove has since been built, and where he conducted a thriving general farming business for many years, later running a dairy. Besides the town site of Cottage Grove he disposed of considerable more of his land, retaining for his personal use one hundred and fifty acres on the east. His death occurred March 4th, 1902, at the age of fifty years, and he left behind him the legacy of a good name, and of a life well and profitably spent. He was a Democrat in politics, and was fraternally a member of the Masonic order. With his wife he attended the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. A few years before his death Mr. Perkins erected the commodious residence in Cottage Grove now occupied by his widow. She still owns and rents one hundred and thirty acres of the property, to the improvement of which her husband devoted his mature and most worthy energies. Two daughters contributed to the happiness of her life, of whom Neva Perkins, the oldest, is a student in the junior class at the state university at Eugene, and Leah Perkins is living at home. Mrs. Perkins still retains the vivacity and mental charm which rendered her girlhood an interesting one, and she has many friends throughout the town and county.

Source: Portrait and Biographical Record of the Willamette Valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present. Chapman Brothers Publishing Co. - v. 2 (1903)


LAWRENCE S. PERKINS. The well equipped drug store of Lawrence S. Perkins in Monmouth pursues the even tenor of its way minus competition, for it is the only place in the town where a full line of drugs may be purchased. This advantage, however, does not influence the genial proprietor in the conduct of his business, for he has an up to date and reliable enterprise, similar to those in larger and older centers of activity. Besides a general supply of patent and general drugs he carries a stock of stationery and small notions, his thoughtful appreciation of the needs of his many patrons resulting in a continually increasing trade. Mr. Perkins comes from farming ancestors, and he himself gained his first impressions of life from early rising and a by no means indolent life on the farm in Keokuk county, eastern Iowa, where he was born July 6th, 1862. His father, Hiram P. Perkins, was born in Vermont, and from his native state removed to Ohio, locating near Mount Vernon. In 1840 he settled on a farm in Keokuk county, Iowa, and after living there for seventeen years located in Benton county, MO, in 1867. Although possessing but a small farm of thirty acres, he did fairly well, but was not destined to long enjoy the advantages of his adopted state, for his death occurred soon after reaching there at the age of sixty-one. He had married Annise Runnels, a native of Vermont, and whose father, Samuel Runnels, was an early settler of Iowa to which he came in 1853. Of the four sons born into the Perkins home all had rugged constitutions, and all were endowed with ability and progressiveness. The youngest of his father's family, the druggist of Monmouth attended the public schools with his brothers in Iowa, Missouri and Oregon, and at the age of fourteen embarked upon a career of self-support. For some time he worked on various farms in his neighborhood, and after coming to Oregon in 1885 embarked immediately in the drug business in which he is still engaged. In Yamhill county, this state, he was united in marriage with EMMA PARSONS, a native of Yamhill county. Mr. Perkins is a Republican identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Woodmen of the World.  Thus is told all too briefly the life story so far of one of the vast army of the northwest who started out in life with physical rather than financial assets, and who, from brain and muscle and common sense have worked out their career along useful and creditable lines.

Source: Portrait and Biographical Record of the Willamette Valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present. Chapman Brothers Publishing Co. - v. 2 (1903)


A. G. (ALONZO GIBSON) PERKINS. From a Revolutionary ancestry, A. G. Perkins inherits the stable traits of character which are so well appreciated by his fellow townsmen in Marion county. He was born in Bangor, ME, June 16th, 1831, and is a son of Nathaniel and Olive G. (Patton) Perkins, both natives of Maine, the former born in Old Town, ME in 1804. They lived on a farm in Maine, and there reared their nine children, the father dying at the age of seventy-eight, and the mother at the age of seventy-five. The ancestors on both sides of the family were Universalist. Ordinary educational facilities were at the disposal of A. G. Perkins, and at a comparatively early age of twenty-two he removed from his home in Maine to Minnesota, where he engaged in the lumber business and lived until 1860. Having outfitted for crossing the plains he tarried in Colorado for a couple of years, and there mined and prospected, but, not realizing his expectations, he again started west with ox teams, eventually arriving in Baker City, Oregon, where he mined with varying success until the spring of 1863. Upon the discovery of gold at Boise City, Mr. Perkins endeavored to make a fortune in Idaho, and after nearly two years of experiment located in Salem, Marion county, Oregon, in 1864. Shortly after his arrival he purchased the old Lewis Pettijohn claim, twelve miles south of Salem, and hither brought his wife, formerly HANNAH BARCAW, whom he had married in February, 1863. The young couple located on a farm of five hundred acres six miles north of Salem, where they lived until purchasing a farm adjoining their present home, six miles north of Salem, on the old Salem and Oregon City road. The present Perkins home was purchased in 1892, and consists of four hundred acres, all in one body. Mr. Perkins is a practical and enterprising farmer, and all manner of modern improvements are to be found on his property. He is engaged in farming, principally making a specialty of Jersey cattle and Cotswold sheep. Mr. Perkins is a Republican in politics, but he has never cared to work for or hold public office. In his family have been born thirteen children, of whom the first six, Thomas Perkins; Ada Perkins; Ella Perkins; Willard W. Perkins; Julia Perkins, and Vina Perkins, as well as the eight, Clyde Perkins, are deceased, while Edna Perkins is the wife of Elton Shaw of Salem, OR; Iva Perkins is the wife of Elam Shaw, of Salem, OR; and Ray Perkins and Rex Perkins, twins, and Floyd Perkins and Alonzo Perkins, are living at home. For several years the family has lived in the town of Salem, OR, the object being to give the children better educational advantaged. Mr. Perkins is one of the most substantial and honored farmer of Marion County, his approachable and genial nature, and thoroughly reliable business methods, commanding the lasting regard of all who know him.

Source: Portrait and Biographical Record of the Willamette Valley, Oregon, containing original sketches of many well known citizens of the past and present. Chapman Brothers Publishing Co. - v.1 (1903)


 

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