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| P. BLACKMAR, of the firm of Paul Blackmar & Co., dealers and manufacturers of lumber, shingles and lath, and pine-land dealers at Big Rapids, was born at Detroit, Aug. 27, 1855. He is a son of Thomas S. and Mary E. (Williams) Blackmar. His father was a prominent attorney of Detroit, where he located about 1850 and opened a law office with wm. A. Moore, now an eminent member of the Michigan bar. The senior Blackmar was Circuit Court Commissioner a long term of years, and died at Detroit in the fall of 1869. The mother was a daughter of Prof. Geo. P. Williams, of Michigan University, where he held the first chair of Mathematics and Metaphysics, which he retained a long period, and was finally retird on half-pay. Mrs. Blackmar died at Detroit, in 1864. Mr. P. Blackmar obtained his elementary education at the public schools, cheifly at the Cass union school under Prof. Nicholas. After the demise of his father, he went to Leavenworth, Kasn., and there studied and taught school. He went thence to Mount Lincoln, Gray's Peak, and to the vicinity of Leadville, and was there engaged as a miner and in other occupations four years. He returned to Detroit and entered the office of T. W. Palmer, and about the year 1878 had charge of the entire business of that gentleman, representing at that time one and a half million dollars. The manufacturing firm of McGraft & Montgomery at Muskegon dissolved July 1, 1882. Mr. Blackmar bought an interest in the concern Jan. 1, 1881 and on the dissolution named, in connection with Martin Kelly of Grand Rapids, he commenced the purchase and sale of timber on the branches of the Musjegon. T. W. Palmer, of Detroit, became interested in the enterprise in the fall of 1882, and during the ensuing winter the firm purchased and put in the river about twelve million feet of logs, a large proportion of which is beign sawed ar the old Tioga Mills, bought by Thomas S. Twe, of Hood, Gale & Co. In the summer of 1883 Mr. Blackmar purchased the claim of Mr. Kelly and is now managing the business alone: is also operating in the interest of Mr. Palmer. The latter has, on the Muskegon and its tributaries near this point, sixty million feet of standing timber (pine). The amount handled the current season will be twenty million feet of lumber, from ten to fifteen million feet of shingles and a large amount of lath. Mr. Blackmar was married at Detroit, Sept. 9, 1879, to Georgia A., daughter of George and Ellen Rice, born Aug 18, 1855. Mr. and Mrs. Blackmar have two sons, - Thomas P, born at Detroit, July 8, 1880, and William E., born at Muskegon, Jan 12, 1882. |