The H600 Project Genealogy DB

Edward Wellington Backus

Male 1860 - 1934  (73 years)


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  • Name Edward Wellington Backus 
    Born 1 Dec 1860  Jamestown, Chautauqua Co, New York, USA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    Died 29 Oct 1934  New York, USA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I12527  A00 Hoar and Horr Families North America
    Last Modified 19 Dec 2015 

    Father Abel Backus 
    Mother Anna Anderson 
    Family ID F558  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family Elizabeth Horr,   b. Abt 1862, Maine, USA Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 24 Nov 1956, Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 94 years) 
    Married Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
     1. Edward Raymond Backus,   b. Abt 1891,   d. 26 Aug 1912, International Falls, Koochiching Co, Minnesota, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 21 years)
     2. Seymour Wellington Backus,   b. 1 Oct 1895, Minneapolis, Hennepin Co, Minnesota, USA Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 30 Jun 1936, Miami Beach, Dade Co, Florida, USA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 40 years)
    Last Modified 22 Mar 2009 
    Family ID F5642  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsDied - 29 Oct 1934 - New York, USA Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth 

  • Notes 
    • Courtesy of the Fort Frances Museum
      Obituary:
      Edward Wellington Backus
      Born 1861
      Married Elizabeth Horr Backus Died October 29th, 1934
      Mr. Edward Wellington Backus, of Minneapolis was noted as a modern Napolean of finance, diplomacy and astuteness. Backus was among the leaders in the newsprint and timber industry. An empire builder he envisioned the possibilities of power, timber and natural resources. He was the first capitalist to show his faith in the industrial future of Fort Frances by putting up his money and every dollar he could get from outside resources to develop water power.
      In 1882 Backus began his lumbering career at the age of 21 with the Lee and McCullock company, buying out the interest of the junior partner the following year. The firm of Lee and Backus was succeeded in 1885 and in 1899 changed to the Backus-Brooks Company.
      In 1892, with a timber cruiser, Backus walked 200 miles through deep snow to arrive shortly after midnight at a Huddon's Bay company Post, now Fort Frances. In the crisp clear moonlight he viewed the majestic Falls and envisioned the future of power developments, paper mills and sawmills, staff support in the existence of two large towns, with footpaths being supplanted with railroads.
      Mr. Backus was noted as "a man of splendid physique... he had the head of statesman and shoulders of a gladiator. His beaming eyes denoted his keen intellect and his retentitive memory... Or commanding appearance, he was a man of note whether in village circles or in the financial centers of the east... He devoted his time and energies to the development of his industrial enterprise."
      Mr. Backus, like many other financiers over-extended his activities during the prosperous period following World War I. Suffering severe losses, his endeavors to recoup his losses and advanced aged were factors in his death in 1934 when he succumbed to a heart attack in New York.

      See also:
      http://www.angelfire.com/mn/thursdaynighthikes/lakeisles_arch1.html