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Subject: Beatty
Date: Wed, 18 Aug 2004 14:35:13 EDT

Bio of William Beaty, Mich, PA, NY, NJ


From "Portrait and Biographical Album of Oakland County, Michigan" pages
617-618 [available on Ancestry.com]

William BEATY. This venerable man is widely and favorably known, as he has
been identified with the interests of this county since 1836 and has been a
potent factor in bringing its agricultural affairs to their present point.
He has not devoted his time entirely to farm work but that has been his
chief occupation, and he is the more deserving of representation in a
biographical album on account of the success, finan­cial and moral, that has
attended him. He began the battle of life without other equipment than his
natural strength of mind and body and the limited education obtained in a
village school. He is now one of the wealthiest men in Waterford Township,
and, better than all else, he can look back over a life that has been passed
in usefulness and well doing, as he has never been a slave to a single vice
and has always dealt fairly with his fellowmen. A portrait of this respected
pioneer accompanies this brief record of his life.
Mr. Beaty was born in Bucks County, Pa., March 5, 1808, and is one of the
six children that made up the family of Isaiah and Mary (Coder) Beaty. Four
of the family circle are still living. The father was born in New Jersey but
went to the Keystone State when quite young and made that his home many
years. He subsequently lived with our subject in New York several years, and
still later came to this State, where he died. His widow survived him a few
years and each was more than fourscore years old when called hence. Mrs.
Beaty was born in Germany and came to America with her parents. The son of
whom we write was reared on a farm, and attended school in the village of
Quakertown. When he was eighteen years of age he went to Cayuga County, N.
Y., and became a weaver.
After several years of residence in New York Mr. Beaty set out for Michigan
in 1835. He lived in Adrian a year, then came to this county and bought land
near Strait's Lake. There he built a log house and cleared and improved a
farm. During early years he did his marketing in Detroit, making the trip to
and fro with ox teams. He was quite fond of hunting and also fished a good
deal. About 1860 he removed to Pontiac, where he lived ten years engaged in
various occupations. During his residence there he held the important office
of Street Commissioner. In 1870 he bought a fine farm on section 36,
Waterford Township, and located thereon. .The property borders on Otter and
Timber Lakes, among the most beautiful sheets of water in the State, and the
elegant modern resi­dence built by Mr. Beaty in 1881 occupies a spot of
ground from which the blue waters may plainly be seen. Many marked
improvements have been made upon the farm since Mr. Beaty took posses­sion
of it, and the evidences of refined taste are manifest.
In 1833 Mr. Beaty and Miss Furna Wheeler were joined in wedlock, and for
more than fifty years they shared life's blessings. Mrs. Beaty exchanged
time for eternity in 1884. The only child of the union died in infancy. In
1886 Mr. Beaty made a second marriage, wedding Mrs. Eliza Mack, an estimable
lady, who presides with gracious dignity and cordial hospitality in the
beautiful home. By her former marriage she has one daughter: Carrie M., who
has been legally adopted by our subject. In an early day Mr. Beaty became
the owner of eight hundred acres of fine land in Montcalm County, which he
held several years and sold at a large advance on its original cost. For
over twenty years he was Postmaster at Strait's Lake. He has been a stanch
Republican since the party was or­ganized, and he has a broad knowledge of
party policy and public affairs on which to base his polit­ical faith. He
has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Pontiac for many
years, and he has an excellent reputation far and wide. He built the gravel
road running from Pontiac to Orchard Lake, and has in every way possible
aided the development of this section of the country.

Laurel Baty, L252



Nancy
<A HREF="http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~buckscounty">http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~buckscounty</A>;

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