Biographies from The History of Columbia County,
Wisconsin, 1880 


Contributed by Carol carolann612@charter.net
Copyright.  All rights reserved.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm


From The History of Columbia County, Wisconsin, 1880,
publ. by Western Historical Company, Chicago, Page
960-961

HORACE C. COOPER, Columbus; was born in Onondaga Co.,
N.Y., in 1815, and is the son of Chauncy COOPER and
Annie CANDEE; his grandfather, Daniel CANDEE,
emigrated from New Haven, Conn, to Onondaga Co., N.Y.,
as an early settler; his father was a native of New
Haven, Conn., also, and after marriage removed to
Onondaga Co., N.Y., where he and his wife both
afterward died; Mr. COOPER is the oldest son of a
family of four children, two sons and two daughters,
two of whom now live in Wisconsin, oldest son of a
family of four children, two sons and two daughters,
two of whom now live in Wisconsin.  He began the trade
of a cabinet-maker at Manlius, Onondaga Co., when
quite young, and continued the same there till 20
years of age; in the autumn of 1836, he emigrated to
Detroit, Mich., where he worked at his trade during
the winter; in the spring of 1837, he entered a farm
in Macomb Co., Mich., but spent his summer at Rome in
the grocery trade, and in the fall of that year he
entered some land near Grand Rapids, and spent the
winter at his trade in Kalamazoo, and the summer of
1838 was spent at his trade in Niles, going to La
Porte, Ind., in the latter part of 1838; in 1839,
induced by a friend to go to peddling; this he
continued for several years through Indiana, Illinois
and Wisconsin, dealing largely in furs; in 1841, he
opened a store at Aztalan, Jefferson Co., Wis., though
he continued his peddling wagon, and in the spring of
1843, he built and opened a store at Lake Mills,
Jefferson Co., to where he afterward removed, located
and built a hotel; passing through Columbus, Wis., in
the autumn of 1849, he made a trade with Mr. EATON, a
dry-goods merchant, and exchanged his hotel at the
Lake Mills for a store and dwelling in Columbus; he
soon removed to Columbus and began merchandising,
which he continued here till 1865, and was in the
trade elsewhere till 1872, since which time he has
been proprietor of the Cooper House of Columbus.  He
was married in 1845 to Miss Julia, a daughter of James
WILLIAMS, of Le Roy, N.Y.; their children are Horace
C., William (now a merchant at Streator, Ill.),
Charles F. (now at Chicago), Alice C., (now the wife
of C. F. ROGERS, of Lake City, Minn.), Etta C. (now
the wife of Willard SCOTT, Jr., of Naperville, Ill.),
Helen (now the wife of H. M. BROWN, of this city),
Julia A. (now the wife of H. C. WILLIAMS, of Chicago).

Page 961

O. E. CORNWELL, station agent for the C. M. & St. P.
R.R. Co., Columbus; was born in the State of New York
in 1840; he came to Wisconsin with his parents in
1848, and located at Oconomowoc, Waukesha Co.; in
1863, he was employed by the N.W. R.R. Co., and
stationed at Watertown for two years; he was employed
by the C. M. & St. P. R.R. Co. in 1865 and stationed
at Columbus, where he has since remained.  Mr.
CORNWELL was elected Mayor of this city (Columbus) in
1877, re-elected in 1878, 79 and 80.  He was married
in 1865 to Miss Katie ATKINS, a native of Maine; their
children are Ada B., Ella M. and Bessie D.  They
attend the Congregational Church.  Mr. CORNWELL is a
member of the Masonic Fraternity.

LEONARD G. CROSWELL, farmer, Sec. 36; P. O Columbus;
is the son of Harman and Louisa CROSWELL; born in
Livingston Co. in 1835, and lived with his parents on
a farm in that county, till his marriage, in 1860, to
Miss Delia, daughter of William and Percilla
ROSENKRANS, of Wayland, Steuben Co., N.Y.; in 1861,
they emigrated to Wisconsin, and located on his
present farm of 124 acres, on Sec. 36, town of
Columbus, Columbia Co., 80 acres of which he bought in
1861.  Mr. C. was a member of the Town Board in 1877. 
Their children are Irene, Emily, Delia and Lois.  Mr.
and Mrs. C. and two daughters are members of the
Congregational Church.

JOHN CROUMBIE, farmer, Secs. 5 and 6, town of York,
Dane Co., and Secs. 31 and 32, town of Columbus,
Columbia Co.; P. O. Columbus; was born in County
Westmeath, Ireland, in 1813, and is the son of William
and Esther CROUMBIE, with whom he spent much of his
early life on a farm.  At the age of 17, he began the
stonemason's trade, and continued the same there till
his emigration to America in 1847; he worked at his
trade on Staten Island for two years, and in June
1849, came to Dane Co., Wis., bought a far of 80 acres
on Secs. 5 and 6, town of York; he devoted most of his
time to his trade for the first eight or ten years
after his settlement in Wisconsin, but since that time
has strictly adhered to farming and stock-raising; he
now owns 160 acres of land in Secs. 5 and 6, town of
York, Dane Co., upon which his residence is built, and
240 on Secs. 31 and 32, town of Columbus, Columbia Co.
He was married in 1842 to Miss Esther, daughter of
James and Mary ROONEY, of County Westmeath; their
children are William, now a resident of the town of
Columbus; James, now in Topeka, Kan.; John and Mary,
at home.  They are members of St. Jerome's Catholic
Church.

Submitted by Carol