Chapter XXII: Men of Seattle: James Murray Colman

Title

Chapter XXII: Men of Seattle: James Murray Colman

Subject

Newspapers

Description

James Colman was born in Scotland, and then emigrated to the United States. Although successfully employed as the superintendent of a large machine shop in Milwaukee, the newly-married James Colman migrated west at the beginning of the Civil War (1861).

In this volume, in which political action is such a part of everyday, manly activity, it is striking that absolutely nothing is said of Colman's political convictions. No man who backed newspapers lacked for conviction.

Biographer Grant comments on his “invincible modesty and characteristic reticence” about his civic accomplishments, but such extreme privacy may have involved actual secrecy, in the opinion of this reader. He had “a profound distaste for newspaper commendation or any notoriety attending his business affairs or public work.” He helped to establish newspapers, but “frequently asked as a personal favor that under no circumstances should his name appear, even in the most commonplace way, [in those newspapers]."

Excerpt is incomplete because remaining pages are unrelated to this project:, though pertinent to the Reconstruction-era development of Washington Territory - railroads (1873-1890).

People described: James Murray Colman (1832-1906), Agnes (Henderson) Colman, William Renton (1818-1891), Capt. Daniel S. Howard, Hanson & Ackerman

Abstract

Describes Colman’s prominent position in Seattle in 1890, then his migration from Scotland to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, then Seattle. He provided little-known public services for the city of Seattle. This biographical sketch written by Beriah Brown.

Creator

Grant, Frederic James (1862-1894), ed.

Source

History of Seattle, Washington: with illustrations and biographical
sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers.

Publisher

New York: American Publishing
and Engraving Co.

Date Issued

1891

Contributor

Beriah Brown

Medium

Web

Type

history

Identifier

US 37391 5.10

Spatial Coverage

Seattle; King

Temporal Coverage

1861-1872

Provenance

Google Books

URL

https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=YK3yZNFmdbUC&printsec=frontcover&output=reader&authuser=0&hl=en&pg=GBS.PA439

Start Page

439

End Page

440

Geolocation