Blainej

Transcribed from "History of North Washington, an illustrated history of Stevens, Ferry, Okanogan and Chelan counties", published by Western Historical Publishing Co., 1904.

     MAJOR JAMES P. BLAINE is better known as "Apache Jim" in Crowford's poems. He figured quite extensively in the trouble with the Indians in the southwestern part of the United States. Mr. Blaine is at present doing a fine business in assaying   at Chesaw, Washington, where he has been engaged for some time and where he is well known through out this section, not only as a first class assayer but also as an expert and skillful mining man.
     James P. Blaine was born in Franklin county, New York, on January 18, 1853, the son of Robert E. and Agnes (Harvey) Blaine, natives of Franklin county also. The father was of Scotch descent, and his father, the grandfather of our subject, located the old homestead in New York, where his son, Robert E., resided until his death, and where the brother of our subject, Alexander D., now resides. The father died in 1887, aged seventy-six. The grandfather fought in the Revolution. The mother died six years ago in her eighty-ninth year. Her father, John Harvey, was in the war of 1812, and her grandfather fought for American Independence in the Revolution.
     James P. is one of six children named as follows: Alexander W., John H., George, deceased, Mrs. Agnes Mitchell, Mrs. Jeanette Kent and our subject. He left home at the age of thirteen, and lived with his brother, Alexander, of Marshall, Michigan. He was fairly well educated, and at the age of twenty went to Hillsborough, New Mexico and took up mining and assaying, having become skilled in that art during his days of study. He was superintendent of the Chloride Mining and Reduction Company and led the party who made the locations for this company. He was quite successful in his work, then lost all. Later he made more money and on November 20, 1886, at Chloride, he married Miss Jennie C. Hart, who was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, August 24, 1854. Her parents were Nathaniel and S. (Coz) Hart, natives of New Jersey. The father was a civil engineer and held a first lieutenancy in the Civil War in which he was killed. In 1895, Mr. Blaine started from Chloride with his wife and five children in a wagon, determined to make his way to the north country. He had an assaying outfit with him and did work from New Mexico to Lake Chelan, taking two years to make the trip. He resided at Lake Chelan for a year doing assaying, and in the spring of 1898, came to Chesaw. Two years later he brought his family here to reside. The first assaying done in this section of the country was by Mr. Blaine, on April 10, 1898. He now owns a good residence, office, and other town property, and is doing a good business. He is superintendent of the Opan Gold Mining Company and owns a large share of the stock. The company has fine property, and has done about ten thousand dollars worth of development work, which shows a large ledge of good gold value. They have a large amount of ore on the dump and will soon begin shipping. Mr. Blaine also owns an interest in the Ben Harrison Mining Company, besides other mining property.
     Fraternally, he is associated with the Eagles. He is an active Republican in politics and was county commissioner in New Mexico, and justice of the peace at Lakeside. He has always labored for better educational facilities and is a progressive man. To Mr. and Mrs. Blaine have been born these children, Georgia E., Agnes J., Albert C., Anna H. and Mabel M.
     In the Apache wars in the southwest, Mr. Blaine enlisted as Captain in the Third New Mexico regiment. He was soon promoted as major of the regiment. They chased the Indians and fought all through New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and Old Mexico. Previous to this enlistment he was a scout under General Buell, and was associated with the noted scout poet, Captain Jack Crawford, and here is where he received his soubriquet, "Apache Jim," and was known as a very successful and daring man. One day while sitting on a ledge with Mr. Crawford and others in the Black range discussing the proposition of sinking a shaft, Mr. Blaine jumped to his feet and assuming a dramatic posture cried, "to sink or not to sink, that is the question," which so impressed Mr. Crawford that be composed a poem known as "The Prospector's Soliloquy. In this he refers to Mr. Blaine as a warm personal friend and the one largely responsible for the production. Mr. Blaine is a man of practical experience and has shown himself to be progressive and public minded.

BACK