Wyandotte Kansas

Biographical Sketch of Henry McGrew

Henry McGrew, a son of the late Governor James McGrew and his wife Mary (Doggett) McGrew, has spent practically all his life in Kansas City, Kansas, was formerly prominent as a member of the bar of that city, and is still one of the leading business men. He was born at Lancaster, Keokuk County, Iowa, April 18, 1857, the same year that his father came as a pioneer to Wyandotte, Kansas. He grew up at Wyandotte, attended the public schools, and had all the advantages that a young man of ambition would crave as a preparation for a career. Determining … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Samuel D. Lecompte

Samuel D. Lecompte, first chief justice of the Territory of Kansas and afterward prominent on the bench of Leavenworth County, and a representative in both houses of the Legislature, was born in Dorchester County, Maryland, December 13, 1814. After graduating from Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, he studied law in Maryland and, upon being admitted to the bar, began practice in Carroll County, that state. He had served one term in the Maryland Legislature and become quite prominent politically, when he moved to Baltimore in 1854. In October, 1854, President Pierce appointed Mr. Lecompte chief justice of the Territory of Kansas, which … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Dr. Joseph P. Root

Dr. Joseph P. Root, who was one of the early physicians of Wyandotte, then a part of Leavenworth County, was born at Greenwich, Massachusetts, April 23, 1826, and died at Kansas City, Kansas, July 20, 1885. He was a member of the Connecticut-Kansas Colony, better known as the Beccher Bible and Bifle Company, which settled at Wahaunsee. He organized free-state forces and in every way identified himself with the early history of the torritory. As chairman of the Free-State Executive Committee, he located the road from Topeka to Nebraska City, thereby securing a safe route of travel for free-state immigrants. … Read more

Biography of Byron Judd, Hon.

Hon. Byron Judd was a pioneer of Wyandotte County. He established his home in the village of Wyandotte in November, 1857, when Kansas was still a territory. He lived in the village, his capacities expanding with the growth of the community, and his personal position and influence rising as Wyandotte County grew and prospered, and at his death on July 27, 1909, it was generally recognized and appreciated that he was one of the men who had left a permanent impress for good upon Kansas City, Kansas, a great city of which his old home village of Wyandotte had in … Read more

Biography of William Beggs

William Beggs, now county clerk of Wyandotte County, and with a long and honorable record of public service, has been a resident of Kansas City, Kansas, since early boyhood and found his work for many years in connection with some of the packing industries of the city. There is hardly a better known citizen of the city or county, and his ability to do things and get things done and his personal integrity have long made him a man of mark. He was born in the northern part of Ireland May 27, 1867, the oldest of seven children of Richard … Read more

Biography of Henry L. Alden

Henry L. Alden arrived in the old village of Wyandotte on Thanksgiving Day morning in November, 1867, and from that time until his death November 21, 1913, he continued a resident of Wyandotte and of Kansas City, Kansas. He was one of the most distinguished lawyers Kansas ever had. The many public honors that came to him, almost entirely within the scope of his profession, were a tribute to his power as a lawyer and his integrity of character. He was not yet twenty-one years of age when he came to Kansas. He was born on a farm near Greenwich … Read more

Biography of Charles Snyder

Charles Snyder is the proprietor of the Juliaetta Hotel, and is practically one of the founders of the town, having secured the establishment of the post-office, and also promoted many of the leading enterprises of the place. His labors have been most effective in its upbuilding, and his name is therefore inseparably connected with its history. Mr. Snyder is of German birth. He first opened his eyes to the light of day on the 8th of November 1827, and is of honorable German ancestry. He was educated in his native land, learned the cabinet-maker’s trade, and in 1850 bade adieu … Read more

Biographical Sketch of Otis B. Gunn

Otis B. Gunn was a native of Massachusetts, born at Montague, October 27, 1828, and before he came west as a railroad engineer, had served as rodman on the Hoosac Tunnel Railroad and superintendent of the construction work of the line between Rochester and Niagara Falls. In 1853 he was appointed division engineer in the building of the Toledo, Wabash and Western, and followed railroad construction westward until he settled at Wyandotte, Kansas, in 1857. He was a member of the 1861 State Senate, and while thus serving was appointed major of the Fourth Kansas, later the Tenth Kansas Infantry. … Read more

Biography of Theodore F. Ismert

Theodore F. Ismert, president of the Ismert-Hincke Milling Company of Kansas City, Kansas, is a director and controlling factor in the great milling industries of the Missouri Valley. He and his family have been prominently identified with flour milling in this and other states of the Middle West for over half a century. The Ismerts are of French lineage. Theodore F. Ismert was born at his father’s home in Lebanon, Illinois, February 10, 1866, the oldest of five children. Only two are now living, his sister being Mrs. Hincke. Their parents were John and Amelia (Berrard) Ismert, both natives of … Read more

Biography of Maurice L. Alden

Maurice L. Alden, a son of the late Judge Henry L. Alden, had since his admission to the bar in 1898 become a prominent member of the Kansas City legal profession, and inherits many of the enviable qualities that distinguished his father. He was born in old Wyandotte, now Kansas City, Kansas, October 10, 1873, was educated in the public schools, graduating from the Kansas City Kansas High School in 1891 and from the Kansas State University in 1895. At the age of twenty-one he became secretary to Congressman O. L. Miller, who represented the Second Congressional District of Kansas … Read more