The subject of this sketch, who today is considered one of the solid men of Baker County, and who possesses the well-merited confidence and esteem of its citizens was born in White Hall, New York, in 1857. At the age of 2l he moved to Baker City and until 1884 clerked for several different mercantile firms here. He then opened a harness shop, and from time to time has added new lines until today he is carrying line of the largest stocks in the state While his success in a measure may be due to the settling up of the surrounding country, it is still more attributable to the manner in which he has conducted his business. Starting out on the live and let live principle, he has by courteous and fair treatment built up a trade that is a credit to his judgment. He has always been the originator of low prices, and the large trade he enjoys is but the natural result. His stock from a careful inspection seems complete in every wary. To enumerate the various articles carried would take more space than we have in this volume, but we can condense it by truthfully saying that the intending purchaser can find there anything from a needle to a threshing machine. In clothing, boots and slices, dry goods and furnishing goods we find his stock to be one of unusual merit, and in groceries his line is not even second to that of an exclusive grocery house. Every thing is arranged in departments, each one virtually a store by itself. The stock is well displayed on shelves and tables and though its prodigality is such as to consume most of the floor space, there is room enough for the most searching inspection. In harness and saddles, he carries an unusually heavy stock, this department being under the management of M. W. Ryland, an experienced mechanic. He is sole agent for the celebrated Studebaker wagon, the name of which speaks for itself. He is a very heavy buyer and shipper of grain, which he stores in his warehouse, and also handles from two to four thousand cords of wood a year. That Mr. Griswold is a man of enterprise and has faith in the future of our town is shown in the fact of his haying lately erected the Sagamore hotel, which is considered one of the leading hotels it Eastern Oregon.
