Bio - Mansir Stewart, Mesa County, Colorado

Taken from the book:
"Progressive Men of Western Colorado",
published by A.H. Bowen and Co., 1905.

Transcribed by:
Claire Edrich (jaedrich@rmi.net)
2 Jan 1999

"In war and peace the subject of this sketch has been faithful to 
duty and exemplified the best attributes of American citizenship.  He 
was born in Rensselaer county, New York, on June 4, 1841, and is the 
son of Eliphalet and Lucy (Tilley) Stewart, also natives of New York, 
where the mother died in August, 1854.  The father moved to Kansas in 
1864 and some time later to Indian Territory, where he died.  He was 
a law student in early life and lived to be ninety-seven years old.  

There were seven children in the family, and six are living.  Mansir 
was the fourth born.  He grew to the age of fifteen in his native 
state and there received a district school education.  He started in 
life for himself when but a boy, going to New Boston, Illinois, for 
two years and from there at the end of that period to Kansas in 1857.  
His arrival in that turbulent region was in time for him to witness 
and participate in the border troubles then prevalent in Kansas, as 
not resident of the section was allowed to remain neutral.  After 
spending a few years on the plains, he enlisted in the Union army in 
August, 1862, as a member of Company E, Thirteenth Kansas Infantry, 
under command of Col. Thomas M. Bowen, later United States senator 
from Colorado, and was assigned with his regiment to the Army of the 
West.  He was in the service eight months, nearly half of the time in 
the hospital at Springfield, Missouri.  The field service in which he 
was placed took him into a number of skirmishes and battles.  At 
Prairie Grove he received a gunshot wound in his left limb which, 
with other injuries, sent him to the hospital, he having been 
reported mortally wounded. 

After being discharged from the service, in March, 1863, he returned 
to Kansas, and locating in Marshall county, engaged in farming and 
raising stock, and also in merchandising and the real estate business 
at Irving, where he improved several farms, remaining there eight 
years and carrying on a successful business.  At the end of the 
period named, he sold out and moved to Butler county, Kansas, where 
he engaged in the real estate business and merchandising until 1879.  
He then moved to Colorado Springs, this state, were he built several 
houses for himself, living there until 1883, when he moved to Grand 
Junction,  after which he made his home there for a number of years.  
There he bought real estate and improved it, building several 
residence properties which he afterward sold.  In 1895 he took up his 
residence at Fruita, buying land adjoining the town and a ranch on 
the river.

On February 23, 1864, he was married to Miss Julia A. Vaughn, a 
native of Randolph county, Indiana. They had nine children, sever of 
whom are living, Mary, Lucy, Greg, Clair, Dick, Earl, and Geneva.  
Those deceased are Jennie I. and Ray, the latter dying in Alaska, 
being buried at Forth Mile.  Their mother died on April 9, 1897.  
Greg and Clair went to Alaska in the spring of 1894, and in 1896 
Clair returned home and Greg went to the interior of Alaska, where he 
built the first cabin put up on Bonanaza Creek.  They were successful 
in their search for gold, Clair returning to Alaska in 1897, and some 
time later Dick, Earl, and Ray followed then to that far-away 
country, where they were also fairly successful, Earl being one of 
the pioneers to the famous "Camp Fairbanks" on the Tanawa River.  In 
making a return trip once three of the boys, Greg, Clair, and Dick, 
were on a ship which lost her rudder and drifted for nineteen days, 
on the trip from Cape Nome to Seattle, those on board living mostly 
on hard tack.

Mr. Stewart is a Silver Republican in politics, but he never held 
office except in the army, or aspired to public office.  He has 
subscribed to no creed, but is ever ready to assist and encourage 
every worth enterprise and is an advocate of morality and justice."

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