Lapeer-Oakland-Saginaw County MI Archives Biographies.....Pike, Orestus B. 1824 - 
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Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com December 26, 2006, 6:20 pm

Author: Chapman Bros. (1892)

ORESTUS B. PIKE. The owner of and resident upon the farm located on section 17,
Lapeer Township, is he whose name appears above. He is a son of David and Nancy
(Batherick) Pike, the former a native of Vermont and born in 1797. The latter, a
native of Connecticut, was born in 1799. David Pike had two brothers in the War
of 1812, one of whom served as a Captain and was taken prisoner at Detroit when
Hull surrendered. Our subject's grandfather, Moses Pike, was a farmer, carrying
on his tract in the old New England style. On the maternal side our subject's
grandfather was Stephen Batherick, who was a Revolutionary soldier.

  The parents of our subject were married in New York State and lived in Monroe
County for a number of years, thence removed to Lorain County, Ohio, and there
lived for five years, coming from that place to Michigan in 1855 and settling in
Elba Township, Lapeer County, upon a farm. It was a crude and unimproved tract
and he bent his efforts to making it productive, living there for five years. He
then removed to Calhoun County near Marshall and there resided for a few years,
thence coming to Grand Rapids where he retired from active agricultural life. He
died in 1874, his wife following him in 1881. They were the parents of six
children, three of whom now survive and whose names are Olladine Sholes, Mabel
Thomas and our subject.

  Our subject's mother was united in her religious faith with the Adventists.
The father was a Whig in the early days and later became a Republican. He was an
ardent advocate of temperance principles. Our subject was born March 16, 1824,
in Monroe County, N. Y., and in the township of Sweden, where he received a good
district-school education. He served a time in a steam sawmill and began to work
out at the age of thirteen years, receiving two shillings a day for his labor.
Later he was engaged with F. P. Root, of Monroe County for four years and then
spent one year with an uncle.

  In 1842 our subject came to Michigan, bringing with him a threshing machine
which was one of the first seen in the State. He spent that fall and winter in
Livingston County; then going to Genesee he took a contract of clearing
floodwood from the Flint River for $5,000. Thence he went to Saginaw and worked
for James Frazier for three years and thus variously engaged he succeeded in
laying up a comfortable sum that later served in establishing him well in
business and to provide for his domestic relations.

  May 17, 1846, our subject was married to Mary Ann Easton, a native of England,
who was born in 1827. She came to Michigan in 1845. After marriage our subject
and his bride returned to Monroe County, where they purchased a new farm and
spent five years in clearing it. Then they traded the farm for a steam sawmill
located five miles west of Oberlin and there spent five years. In 1856 they came
to Lapeer County and for eight years he worked the Turrill farm on shares, then
purchased his present place which was partially improved but bore no buildings.
He now has one hundred and eighty-five acres and has cleared and improved one
hundred and thirty acres, having done much tiling and fencing. He has a fine
orchard of four acres in which are set four hundred trees. He built his pleasant
residence, which is comfortable and attractive, four barns and a tool house,
also the residence and barn where his son now lives.

  Mr. Pike has a flock of Spanish Merino sheep, comprising one hundred head. He
also has other stock of good grade, Berkshire swine and Jersey cows. He and his
wife are the parents of seven children: Delbert, Arlett, Frances, Nancy,
Josephine, Clara and Bert. He is Treasurer of the School Board and has been for
the past twenty-two years. In politics he is a Republican and has been Highway
Commissioner for three years. He is a member of the Board of Review, but has no
ambition to fill public office.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

Portrait and Biographical Record of Genesee, Lapeer and Tuscola Counties,
Michigan, Containing Biographical Sketches of Prominent and Representative
Citizens, Together with Biographies of all the Governors of the State, and of
the Presidents of the United States

Chicago:
Chapman Bros.
1892


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