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The Edgerton Database |
Erastus Douglas Edgerton, son of Thomas H. and Lois Jernetta (Pixley) Edgerton.
Kathryn Goff Durland, daughter of Charles Mortimer and Frances (Goff) Durland.
Children:
The household of Erastus D. Edgerton was recorded in the 1880 Federal
Census of
Passaic, Passaic County, New Jersey (pg. 273; dwelling #418; family #463;
enum. June 16, 1880), as follows:
The household of Mrs. Katherine D. Edgerton was recorded in the 1900 Federal Census of Minneapolis (Ward 4), Hennepin County, Minnesota (pg. 183; dwelling #245; family #251; enum. June 13, 1900), as follows:
According to the above census record, Katherine was the mother of one child. She was listed as a “house wife”, and Erastus R. was listed as an “express agent”. The following biography of Erastus Douglas Edgerton is extracted from An Illustrated History of the State of Montana (Joaquin Miller; Chicago, Illinois: The Lewis Publishing Co.; 1894; pp. 93-94). “Erastus D. Edgerton, president of the Helena National Bank, of Helena, Montana, is a native of the State of Pennsylvania, born in Wayne county, December 9, 1852. He traces his ancestry back to the English who landed from the first ship following the Mayflower. They became active factors in the settlement of the country and have always ranked as men of sound sense and good business judgment. His father, T. H. Edgerton, born in Delaware county, in 1819, married Miss Louisa J. Pixley of Puritan stock flowing from Scotch ancestry. She was in many ways a remarkable woman, with great industry and perseverance. His father left merchandising and purchased a large tract of pine-timber land on the Delaware river, which with a small farm provided a comfortable income. He had three children living at tlie time of his death in 1879. Mr. Edgerton, the subject of this sketch, the eldest of the children, had only a common-school education, helped somewhat by a private instructor in the person of a Presbyterian clergyman. He read law in the office of Judge D. D. McKoon at Middletown, Orange county. New York and on June 17, 1877, was admitted to practice at Poughkeepsie, by Justice Joseph Burmond. Soon afterward he removed to New York city, and entered the law firm of McKoon, Edgerton & Hartwell. While in New York he took a full course of law lectures at Columbia College, removing to Montana and settling at Helena in the early spring of 1883. He commenced the practice of his profession in August of the same year; he organized and took the presidency of the Second National Bank, which position he retained until 1893. On August 3d, 1893, he was elected president of the Helena National Bank, this being just six days after the closing of the doors of the two largest national banks in the town, representing about sixty per cent, of the entire banking capital and surplus of the city. He remained president of lioth banks until October 3, of the same year, when the two banks were consolidated. Soon after coming to Montana, Mr. Edgerton turned his attention to the subject of mining and mining enterprises. He soon acquired sufficient knowledge to enable him to make safe investments in mines, both for himself and for others, and he has thus been a "success" in bringing a large amount of capital to Montana to develop and work her mines, and develop her mineral resources. To him mining has been an exhilarating and inexhaustible study. He has been a hard student and great worker, and in that show a yellow ripple or ribbon in the sand. Men believed that by digging they could find great nuggets, naturally thinking that the heavy gold was deep in the sand, only the lightest and least important being on the surface. But not so: this gold, tine as the finest flour, was all on the surface and in sight, as a rule. But to proceed toward Montana. In 1852, gold was known to exist on the Santiam lies the secret of his success. Accurate knowledge is a great power in everything, emphatically so in mining; by it absolute certainty is obtained. Mr. Edgerton is now largely interested in various companies and enterprises, among which is the Confederate Gulch Mining Land & Irrigating Company, in Meagher county. From one bar in this property a million and a quarter of gold was taken out in ninety days. The capital stock of this company is $600,000. He is also interested in the Basin Mining & Concentrating Company, which has a capitalization of $500,000, and is producing $1,000 per day; and in the Boulder Smelting Company, in Jeflferson county, which has a capital stock equal to that of the company just named. Mr. Edgerton is also interested in a company that owns large gold mines recently discovered near the National Park, said company having a capitalization of $1,000,000; and also mining interests on Bear creek. Crevasse and Emigrant Gulch, in Park county and in Washington Bar, Madison county. He is a large stockholder in the Helena Land & Improvement company, and is interested in various other companies and land investments, owning 800 acres of land adjoining the city of Helena, and has participated in enterprises which have given to the city of Helena her electric and gas light and her street railways. Banking, mining and deals in real estate now claim the whole of his attention, for several years past he having altogether abandoned the practice of his profession. Mr. Edgerton is in politics an uncompromising Democrat. He has served four years as one of the county commissioners of Lewis and Clarke county, a position for which his financial ability and incessant industry particularly fitted him. He has connected himself with various other organizations. He is a member of the I. O. O. P., the Masonic fraternity and the Episcopal Church, and is trustee of St. Peter's Hospital.” Original Source Documents: 1880 Federal
Census – household of Erastus Douglas Edgerton; Passaic, Passaic Co., NJ. 1900 Federal Census – household of Mrs. Kathryn Goff (Durland) Edgerton; Minneapolis (Ward 4), Hennepin Co., MN. Obituary –
Erastus Douglas Edgerton; The New York
Times – Sunday, February 15, 1903. Obituary – Erastus Douglas Edgerton; The Sun (New York, New York)– Tuesday, February 10, 1903. |
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