Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1904-01-12
DEATH OF 0RSON PHELPS.

=
I with all whom he came in contact. bu
not one enemy. 1t is a great record 70
. one who has passed the years of tire,
score and ten to have lived so that /
2 can be said that he had not one enemy
but such man was Orson Phelps
genial, even tempered, cool, and pos
sessed of good Judgment True, he wa.
not as successful in the race for richie,
I as were many of our pioneers, but il
was not because he was incapable, bur
because he was too confiding, too ten
der hearted and generous, but notwith
standing, he was alwa avs possessed Of
enough of the worlds goods to get
along comfortably, and what more does
any one need ? For the past four OF
hse years, deceased had been falling,
troubled with his heart and asthma
Sometimes he was not able to do much
and then the trouble would let up and
he would take fresh start in life.
About the first of December. 1903, MI
Phelps went out on the Eau Claire,
near the Dells, to look after the saw
mill and property of Lamar Sexmith
de was the only one about the place
but there was a farm house near by,
and the inmates could see Mr.. Phelps
every day as he walked about. There
came day and another when he was
not seen, and the farmers wife went
over to see if anything was the matter
and she found him very sick. He was
taken to the home and later to the hos
pltal in this city This time his old
trouble tghtened its grip rather than
loosened it and finally, on Thursday
night, January eth, 1904, at l / 80 O. clock,
he passed quietly away. Deceased pre-
ferred to live along the even tenor of
his way and cared nothing for motor
lety, however small, and therefore there
has never been scrap of his history
ever published, which is passing strange
when one considers that he has long
been in public life, holding positions of
honor and trust. Those of our old citi-
zens who had known him, even before
he came to Wausau, say that he was
born in Sycamore, H. At the River
side hospital, where he was registered,
when brought from the Eau Claire, he
gave his age as n years He came to
Wausau, as near as we are able to learn,
in 1856, and at once entered into the
numbering business; he became known
as one of the best pilots on the Wiscon-
sin river aud ran many fleet out to
market. In 1872 he was elected sheriff
of Marathon county and in 1876 was re-
elected, and made record Of which to
be proud, in fact SO able did he prove
himself 10 be in this line that he was in
duced to act as undersheriff and deputy
for number of years, and at all times
his work was well and carefully done
He remained single all his life and his
bachelor quarters were always open 10
his friends. He became associated with
the Masonic fraternity as early as 1863
and in his younger days was very activ,
and took much interest in the order
Probably there was no one in Wausau
who had known Mr. Phelps longer than
Hon. j G. Clarke, and of deceased Mr..
Clarke writes as follows:
Il, like many others, desire to speak
of our deceased fellow citizen, Orson
Phelps, as knew him since 1856 He
came to this plateiin 1856 with Orlando |
Dewitt Joslin, from Sycamore, DeKalb
Co, H., and went 10 work for d. A. A.
B. Barnes, who was from the same place
He work cd for him several years al the
lumber business and he became one of
the best and most reliable raft pilots on
the Wisconsin river. After Barnes lefC
here, Mr. Phelps worked for B. g
Plumer, numbering and running the
river. In the early 70's be had broth
erin-law, named Day" who came up
here and they went into partnership,
bought some pine land on the west side
of the river and logged the timber to
the Wausau mills, some 100000,
which they had sawed and run down
the river. In 1872 he was elected sheriff
for two years. The next two years he
was undersheriff for r. P. Manson. In
1876 he was again elected sheriff for two
years. Since then he has been more or
less connected with the sheriff S office
He was an honest, faithful and trusty
officer, never unnecessarily cruel, or
oppressive in his method of doing his
duty; as a friend and as citizen he
was man, honorable and fair in all
his dealings, and was much respected
How | came to know him so well was
through Mrs. John Burns "a sister of
my wife, She went to school with him
in Sycamore, before Mrs. Burns came
to live with us in 1856, and when he first
came to Wausau he used TO visit our
home frequently"
Deceased leaves one sister in Chicago,
and brother in the West.
The funeral services were held in
Masonic Temple al 2 O'clock D. M,
Sunday, and were very largely attend
ed. They were conducted by Worship
full Master Karl Mathe, assisted by
Rev. b. b. Gibbs and the officers of
Forest Lodge, and were very impress
i've. The singing was by a choir of
male voices, consisting of E. NJ. James
A. V Gearbart and Geo. Hart Hon
Neal Brown made brief address upon
the character and life of deceased,
whom he had known intimately for
many years He paid high tribute to
his worth as man and citizen The
pail bearers We're Walter Alexander
John Ringle, w. b Scholfield, A H
Grout, w. F Collins and E Thayer
The remains were laid to rest in the
Wausau cemetery and were followed to
the grounds by large concourse of sor-
rowing friends
BANK DIRECTORS,