Biography: History of Branch County Michigan, pp. 281, 282:
In the year 1828 a vessel crossed the Atlantic, which brought from Glasgow to New York a Scotch emigrant named James Bennie. Upon landing in this country he at once went to Amsterdam, on the Mohawk River, in Central New York, and engaged in doing farm work. He remained there for about five years, and then, having accumulated a sufficient amount of money to pay the expenses of their passage, sent to Scotland for his mother and an unmarried sister, who, as soon as possible, joined him in Amsterdam, and then all came on to this State, where a married sister, Mrs. Jeanette McKinley, was then living, in the town of Gilead.
They arrived in this locality in 1833, and Mr. Bennie hired out to work for Bishop Chase, his mother and sister going to live with Mrs. McKinley. Mr. Bennie arrived in this vicinity without a dollar, having expended all his earnings to get here. He became quite an important member of the bishop's household, and was entrusted with the management of a large part of his business affairs. While Bennie lived with him, the bishop went on a visit to England, and during his absence the residence was destroyed by fire. A large part of the furniture and household effects were saved from the conflagration. The news went across the sea that Bishop Chase's mansion had been destroyed, and he was presented with large amounts of money (aggregating several thousand dollars) by his English friends and acquaintances, who seemed to have no definite knowledge of the intrinsic value of a mansion in the "wilds of Michigan." In this fire Mr. Bennie lost all the property he possessed except the clothes he was wearing. He continued working for the bishop till he had saved enough to purchase an eighty-acre lot of the government, and then, in June, 1836, he went to the land-office and entered the east half of the southeast quarter of section 31, and became a resident of Bethel, his unmarried sister Christiana keeping house for him. In 1852 he was married to Mrs. Susan Robinson, formerly of Syracuse, N. Y., who still survives him and resides on the homestead. He was a very industrious and energetic man, careful and thorough in business, kind and considerate to all with whom he came in contact, and benevolent to a fault. During his life he acquired a competency of worldly goods, and added to his landed possessions until he owned 160 acres of the choicest lands in this part of the county. He was often entrusted with the management of public business in the town, and discharged his duties with careful fidelity. While on a visit to relatives in Utah he was taken sick, and died there May 1, 1871.
In the year 1828 a vessel crossed the Atlantic, which brought from Glasgow to New York a Scotch emigrant named James Bennie. Upon landing in this country he at once went to Amsterdam, on the Mohawk River, in Central New York, and engaged in doing farm work. He remained there for about five years, and then, having accumulated a sufficient amount of money to pay the expenses of their passage, sent to Scotland for his mother and an unmarried sister, who, as soon as possible, joined him in Amsterdam, and then all came on to this State, where a married sister, Mrs. Jeanette McKinley, was then living, in the town of Gilead.
They arrived in this locality in 1833, and Mr. Bennie hired out to work for Bishop Chase, his mother and sister going to live with Mrs. McKinley. Mr. Bennie arrived in this vicinity without a dollar, having expended all his earnings to get here. He became quite an important member of the bishop's household, and was entrusted with the management of a large part of his business affairs. While Bennie lived with him, the bishop went on a visit to England, and during his absence the residence was destroyed by fire. A large part of the furniture and household effects were saved from the conflagration. The news went across the sea that Bishop Chase's mansion had been destroyed, and he was presented with large amounts of money (aggregating several thousand dollars) by his English friends and acquaintances, who seemed to have no definite knowledge of the intrinsic value of a mansion in the "wilds of Michigan." In this fire Mr. Bennie lost all the property he possessed except the clothes he was wearing. He continued working for the bishop till he had saved enough to purchase an eighty-acre lot of the government, and then, in June, 1836, he went to the land-office and entered the east half of the southeast quarter of section 31, and became a resident of Bethel, his unmarried sister Christiana keeping house for him. In 1852 he was married to Mrs. Susan Robinson, formerly of Syracuse, N. Y., who still survives him and resides on the homestead. He was a very industrious and energetic man, careful and thorough in business, kind and considerate to all with whom he came in contact, and benevolent to a fault. During his life he acquired a competency of worldly goods, and added to his landed possessions until he owned 160 acres of the choicest lands in this part of the county. He was often entrusted with the management of public business in the town, and discharged his duties with careful fidelity. While on a visit to relatives in Utah he was taken sick, and died there May 1, 1871.
Biography: History of Branch County Michigan, pp. 281, 282:
In the year 1828 a vessel crossed the Atlantic, which brought from Glasgow to New York a Scotch emigrant named James Bennie. Upon landing in this country he at once went to Amsterdam, on the Mohawk River, in Central New York, and engaged in doing farm work. He remained there for about five years, and then, having accumulated a sufficient amount of money to pay the expenses of their passage, sent to Scotland for his mother and an unmarried sister, who, as soon as possible, joined him in Amsterdam, and then all came on to this State, where a married sister, Mrs. Jeanette McKinley, was then living, in the town of Gilead.
They arrived in this locality in 1833, and Mr. Bennie hired out to work for Bishop Chase, his mother and sister going to live with Mrs. McKinley. Mr. Bennie arrived in this vicinity without a dollar, having expended all his earnings to get here. He became quite an important member of the bishop's household, and was entrusted with the management of a large part of his business affairs. While Bennie lived with him, the bishop went on a visit to England, and during his absence the residence was destroyed by fire. A large part of the furniture and household effects were saved from the conflagration. The news went across the sea that Bishop Chase's mansion had been destroyed, and he was presented with large amounts of money (aggregating several thousand dollars) by his English friends and acquaintances, who seemed to have no definite knowledge of the intrinsic value of a mansion in the "wilds of Michigan." In this fire Mr. Bennie lost all the property he possessed except the clothes he was wearing. He continued working for the bishop till he had saved enough to purchase an eighty-acre lot of the government, and then, in June, 1836, he went to the land-office and entered the east half of the southeast quarter of section 31, and became a resident of Bethel, his unmarried sister Christiana keeping house for him. In 1852 he was married to Mrs. Susan Robinson, formerly of Syracuse, N. Y., who still survives him and resides on the homestead. He was a very industrious and energetic man, careful and thorough in business, kind and considerate to all with whom he came in contact, and benevolent to a fault. During his life he acquired a competency of worldly goods, and added to his landed possessions until he owned 160 acres of the choicest lands in this part of the county. He was often entrusted with the management of public business in the town, and discharged his duties with careful fidelity. While on a visit to relatives in Utah he was taken sick, and died there May 1, 1871.
In the year 1828 a vessel crossed the Atlantic, which brought from Glasgow to New York a Scotch emigrant named James Bennie. Upon landing in this country he at once went to Amsterdam, on the Mohawk River, in Central New York, and engaged in doing farm work. He remained there for about five years, and then, having accumulated a sufficient amount of money to pay the expenses of their passage, sent to Scotland for his mother and an unmarried sister, who, as soon as possible, joined him in Amsterdam, and then all came on to this State, where a married sister, Mrs. Jeanette McKinley, was then living, in the town of Gilead.
They arrived in this locality in 1833, and Mr. Bennie hired out to work for Bishop Chase, his mother and sister going to live with Mrs. McKinley. Mr. Bennie arrived in this vicinity without a dollar, having expended all his earnings to get here. He became quite an important member of the bishop's household, and was entrusted with the management of a large part of his business affairs. While Bennie lived with him, the bishop went on a visit to England, and during his absence the residence was destroyed by fire. A large part of the furniture and household effects were saved from the conflagration. The news went across the sea that Bishop Chase's mansion had been destroyed, and he was presented with large amounts of money (aggregating several thousand dollars) by his English friends and acquaintances, who seemed to have no definite knowledge of the intrinsic value of a mansion in the "wilds of Michigan." In this fire Mr. Bennie lost all the property he possessed except the clothes he was wearing. He continued working for the bishop till he had saved enough to purchase an eighty-acre lot of the government, and then, in June, 1836, he went to the land-office and entered the east half of the southeast quarter of section 31, and became a resident of Bethel, his unmarried sister Christiana keeping house for him. In 1852 he was married to Mrs. Susan Robinson, formerly of Syracuse, N. Y., who still survives him and resides on the homestead. He was a very industrious and energetic man, careful and thorough in business, kind and considerate to all with whom he came in contact, and benevolent to a fault. During his life he acquired a competency of worldly goods, and added to his landed possessions until he owned 160 acres of the choicest lands in this part of the county. He was often entrusted with the management of public business in the town, and discharged his duties with careful fidelity. While on a visit to relatives in Utah he was taken sick, and died there May 1, 1871.
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