Red Lodge daily news combined with Carbon County news., 1933-12-20
JOHN CHAPMAN
SuCCUMbS HERE
MONDAY NIGHT
Pioneer Stockman Aided In
Development of City
And County

AnOIner OF the early udy peopie
has gone. John w. Chapman, one
of the pioneer stockmen of Mon
tana and one of the most substan-
tial citizens of Carbon county
died at his home in Red Lodge al
1920 o'clock Monday night. In
his eighty-third year, he had beer
fighting an illness for almost q
year, and for the past several
months had been belfast.
Funeral services will be held at
the B. P. 0. Z. hall in Red Lodge.
Thursday afternoon at two o'clock
The Rev. H. w. Woods will con-
duct the service.
In 1851, with a caravan of emf
grants from Illinois to the Oregon
territory, John Chapman as an in
FAINT was brought west by his
mother, Artenicia (Riddle) Chap
man. He was born at Springfield,
ILL.,, June Is, 1850, the last des-
cendent of an English family who
have lived in America since colon
ial times. His father, William
Chapman, died six months after
Johns birth.
In Douglas county of the Ore
gon territory, John Chapman's
mother married William Harrison
Merriman. John remained in
Douglas county until he was 16
years old, when he became a cow
boy and hired out with cattle out
fits in the vicinity of Nevada City,
New. In Nevada he formed ac-
quaintances with many of the
frontier characters whose names
have since been written into the
history of the West.
He came into Montana in 1878,
and after investigating possibili-
ties in the Oklahoma territory, re-
turned and began to run cattle in
the Tongue river country. Going
back to Oregon, he married Alpha
Chapman, at Canyonville in 1881,
A native of the Oregon country,
Miss Chapman had the same name
as her husband, but was not re-
lated to him.
Their wedding journey was a
trip back to Montana, with John
Weaver, who later became a resi-
dent of eastern Montana. Weaver
and Chapman herded in a band OF
horses, and Mrs. Chapman fol-
lowed in a blackboard. They set
tied in the upper Clark's Fork
country, where the Chapman for
tune was founded on the Two Dot
ranch in Wyoming.
When the city of Red Lodge
was founded, Chapman was wei
on the way to becoming one of the
most prosperous stockgrowers II
the West. He took part in the
early development of Red Lodge
and in 1898 established his resi-
dence and business headquarters
in this city.
With his coming to Red Lodge
Mr.. Chapman became associated
with w. F. Meyer and Paul Bre'
tiche in founding the Meyer
Chapman and Bretiche bank here
Upon the death of MI. Meyer IL
1912, the bank was reorganizet
with Mr.. Chapman as presiden'
and the institution becoming
known as the Meyer and Chap
man State bank.
Paul Bretiche withdrew from
the private banking firm of Meyer
Chapman and Bretiche some tim'
before Mr.. Meyers death. Tit
bank was operated as the Meyei
and Chapman bank, a private in
stitution, and after Mr.. Meyers
death became the Meyer ant
Chapman State bank with MI
Chapman as president.
Mr.. Chapman leaves large grain
and stock holdings in Wyominl
and in Big Horn and Carbon coun
ties, Montana. He also owne'
ranch properties and grazing land
in Sweet Grass county, Montana
At the time of his death he wa
also president of the Bank of Bel
fry at Belfry, president of the Bi,
Horn State bank at Hardin; a di
rector in the Yellowstone bank a
Laurel; a director in the Park Cit
State bank at Park City; presiden
of the White Horse Canal com
pany, and president of the Inter
County Land company, and was
stakeholder in Citizens Bank an
Trust company at Big Timber.
Besides Mrs. Chapman and
nephew, Sharon Chapman Merr
man, a Red Lodge attorney, M.
Chapman is survived by a ha
brother, Mr.. William Merriman I