John Buckborough

 

     One of the leading citizens and representative farmers of Denver township, Isabella county, is John Buckborough.  His has been an eminently active and useful life, but the limited space at the disposal of the biographer forbids more than a casual mention of the leading events in his career, which, in our opinion, will suffice to show what earnest endeavor and honesty of purpose rightly applied and persistently followed will lead to --- ultimate success.  He is looked upon as a man thoroughly in sympathy with any movement looking to the betterment or advancement in any way of his community, where he has always been regarded as a man of sterling honesty and worthy of the utmost confidence and respect which his fellow citizens have been free to accord owing to his upright and industrious life.

    Mr. Buckborough was born on January 13, 1863, in Windham township, Norfolk county, Ontario.  He is the son of James C. and Rachael (Smith) Buckborough, the father born in 1824 at Beverly, Ontario, and the mother in Brant county, Ontario; they were married in Beverly, Ontario, in 1854 and there her death occurred in 1901; the father is still living on his farm of one hundred and fifty acres in that province, having devoted his life to farming.  The following children were born to them: Sarah, Phoebe, George, Amelia, John, of this review, Rachael, Sydney, Edward, Seigal and Laura.

     John Buckborough remained at his parental home in Canada until he was eighteen years of age, assisting with the work on the home farm and attending the district schools during the winter months.  He also worked in a cheese factory two years, during which time he learned the “ins and outs” of this business.  He came to Michigan in 1881 by way of Saginaw, which was at that time a great lumbering town; he came on through Midland to Wise township, Isabella county, where he bought eighty acres in Denver township which still forms a part of his farm and for which he paid the sum of six hundred and fifty dollars.  After remaining on the place about a month he went to Forest Hill, Gratiot county, and worked for J. W. Doan on his farm for about two months, then returned to Wise township, Isabella county, and worked in the lumber business, in the woods all winter and during a part of the following summer, only a small part of his work being on the river.  He remained there a year and a half, or until about 1884; he then came to his place, which he had neglected for the most part, and proceeded to clear it, remaining on it three years, living with a friend on an adjoining farm, doing work for the Chippewa Lumber Company, Chippewa Lake, Mecosta county, Michigan, remaining with them one year.  He took up blacksmithing there and worked mostly in the woods, then went to work in Clare county, doing blacksmithing and running a hoisting engine for the hoisting logs onto a train, following this in the summer and his trade in the winter.  He remained Clare county two years, then went to Lake Odessa, Ionia county, where he remained one year, working for his brother George as a blacksmith, then returned to Clare county and took up his former occupations, remaining there until August 17, 1893.

    While living there, he was married,, on October 16, 1891, to Ida Cramer, who was born in October, 1866, in Norfolk county, Ontario.  She came to Saginaw to work and there met Mr. Buckborough.  Finally moving to his present place Mr. Buckborough set to work and developed an excellent farm, first adding forty acres to his eight, making one hundred and twenty, having purchased this a year before he settled on his farm permanently.

He lived in a small house, twelve by sixteen feet, until 1901, when he built his present substantial, comfortable and beautiful residence; it is of cobble stones, the first of its kind to be built in the township, and is thirty by thirty feet; he also built a barn ninety-five by thirty-five, upright, and forty five by thirty wing, under which is a basement the same size as the barn.  He has cleared off the one hundred and twenty acres and about 1897 bought twenty acres adjoining.  He maintains a blacksmith shop on his place, but does his own work only.  He carries on general farming and keeps some good live stock, horses, cattle, sheep, etc.  He has been very successful in his farming operations and has developed one of the best farms in the township and he is deserving of a great deal of credit for what he has accomplished, for it has all been by hard work and honest effort.  He put up the first windmill in the township.  After he bought his first eighty acres and took the stage to Forest Hill, where he had secured employment, he had the sum of ten cents after paying his fare. Such a man, who is willing to work long and hard to accomplish his ambitions is worthy of success.  He is a Democrat and has held school offices.  He belongs to the Presbyterian church of Wise and is a member of the Grange, Lodge No. 1063 of Denver.