Notes for David S. Davis: Koontz, Benjamin Franklin Elizabeth J. Walling b. February 11, 1826 Deleware County, Indiana d.February 08, 1868 Clarks Creek, Baker County, Oregon
Children of JACOB KOONTZ and DEBORAH COMBS are: 25. i. MARY ANNE11 KOONTZ, d. Unknown. ii. ELIZA JANE KOONTZ, d. Unknown; m. WILLIAM HUNTINGTON; d. Unknown. iii. ADDISON KOONTZ, d. Unknown. 26. iv. LORENZO DOW KOONTZ, d. Unknown. v. JACOB HARVEY KOONTZ, d. Unknown. 27. vi. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN KOONTZ, b. February 11, 1826, Yorktown, IN; d. February 08, 1868, Clarks Creek, Baker, OR.
Descendants of Henchin (Johann) Cuntze Generation No. 11
25. MARY ANNE11 KOONTZ (JACOB10, JACOB9, ELDER JOHN8, JOHN (COUNTS) KOONTZ OR7 CUNTZ, JOST OR JOSEPH KUNTZE OR6 CUNTZE, JOHANNES KUNTZE OR5, GOTTHARD OR GODERT4 KUNTZE, JOHANNES3 CUNTZE, ARNOLD2, HENCHIN (JOHANN)1) died Unknown. She married JEFFERSON REED. He died Unknown.
Children of MARY KOONTZ and JEFFERSON REED are: i. COLLIER M.12 REED, d. Unknown. 38. ii. TABOR MCKEE REED, b. September 16, 1838; d. 1925.
26. LORENZO DOW11 KOONTZ (JACOB10, JACOB9, ELDER JOHN8, JOHN (COUNTS) KOONTZ OR7 CUNTZ, JOST OR JOSEPH KUNTZE OR6 CUNTZE, JOHANNES KUNTZE OR5, GOTTHARD OR GODERT4 KUNTZE, JOHANNES3 CUNTZE, ARNOLD2, HENCHIN (JOHANN)1) died Unknown. He married MATILDA GREEN. She died Unknown.
Child of LORENZO KOONTZ and MATILDA GREEN is: i. AMANDA V.12 KOONTZ, d. Unknown; m. (AMANDA KOONTZ'S HUSBAND) STEWART, 1889; d. Unknown.
27. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN11 KOONTZ (JACOB10, JACOB9, ELDER JOHN8, JOHN (COUNTS) KOONTZ OR7 CUNTZ, JOST OR JOSEPH KUNTZE OR6 CUNTZE, JOHANNES KUNTZE OR5, GOTTHARD OR GODERT4 KUNTZE, JOHANNES3 CUNTZE, ARNOLD2, HENCHIN (JOHANN)1) was born February 11, 1826 in Yorktown, IN, and died February 08, 1868 in Clarks Creek, Baker, OR. He married ELIZABETH JANE WALLING March 11, 1847. She was born November 05, 1833, and died April 20, 1874 in Clarks Creek, Baker, OR.
Notes for BENJAMIN FRANKLIN KOONTZ: Scotch-Irish and German parentage-- Benjamin's grandfather, Jacob Koontz, Sr., came from Germany to America during the 18th century. Jacob settled in Virginia, married and reared his family there. His youngest son, Jacob Koontz, Jr., grew up, married Deborah Combs, about 1816 in Virginia, then moved to Brownsville, Ohio and then eventually moved to Indiana where Benjamin Franklin Koontz was born, grew up and married. Benjamin, being a daring and venturesome youth, at the early age of 23, became interested in the discovery of gold in California. In 1849, he persuaded his brother-in-law, William Huntington, to accompany him to California. The two men were so industrious and diligent that by the following summer they had accumulated sizeable fortunes and decided to return East for their families. By the early spring of 1851, they had gotten together and organized a huge ox-drawn wagon train which they financed largely themselves. BRINGS FAMILY WEST Although on the way West they did not encounter any Indians, actually on the warpath, they were followed, harassed and delayed by them and kept in a continual state of unrest. The wagon train was often held up by sickness and death. That dread disease; Cholera, struck and took its toll. In 1852, the William Huntington family lost two daughters. The sorrowing mother tore up her wedding gown from which she made burial dresses for the children. At last the Rockies were reached but not without many hardships. William Huntington, being a minister and having had a years experience in a mining camp, had decided along with his wife before starting on their long westward journey, they would not bring up their family in a mining district, but would instead join his brother living in the agricultural district of southwestern Washington. When the wagon train reached southern Idaho, in spite of much fruitless persuasion, they continued their journey on the Old Oregon Trail while the Koontz portion, with its followers, turned slightly to the south toward northern California, which they reached late in the fall. They remained in the vicinity of Sacramento for 12 years where Benjamin Franklin added to his already considerable fortune by engaging in the mercantile business, mining and other lines. During the spring of 1860, the Koontz party was joined by his sister Eliza Jane and William Huntington's family, Sarah and Jack Guthries family and Tabor Reed, his young nephew. The party having come from the East coast by ocean steamer by way of the Isthmus of Panama. OREGON IN UNION Oregon was admitted to the union on St. Valentine's Day of 1859 while the eastern part of the state was still a wilderness, the only white settlement was the Indian Mission at The Dalles. During the winter of 1862, the whole country was electrified with the surprising news that on October 24, 1861, a party of men under the leadership of Dave Littlefield were searching for the "Lost Blue Bucket Mine". While prospecting, one of the men in the party discovered gold in good paying quantities at a place a few mile southwest of the present Baker, Oregon. In honor of its discoverer, Henry Griffin, the place was named Griffin's Gulch. The men having only prospector's tools, a gold pan, pick and shovel, plunged into work. Later that winter, needing food and gum boots, they make their way to Walla Walla, WA , where they paid for their purchases in gold dust and nuggets. The news spread fast and the country went wild with excitement. NEWS OF GOLD STRIKE The news of the rich gold strike in eastern Oregon soon reached the Koontz party in northern California and they quickly prepared to answer the call of gold. It would take a year for Benjamin Franklin to dispose of his interest there but he promptly went to work and by the spring of 1863 embarked from San Francisco for Portland, Oregon. Here they purchased covered wagon outfits, this time horse-drawn and set out for eastern Oregon by way of the Old Oregon Trail. They arrived in due time at what is now Baker Valley and from there went on to the gold fields of Auburn. It was there they found the country overrun with gold seekers and no room for newcomers. Hence, learning of the rich strike on Clarke's Creek in the Burnt River country, they decided to go there. Unbelievable as it may sound, there being as yet no road into this region, the camp had been established by moving in whole families, household good and mining equipment with pack horses. What had been done could be done again, so Benjamin took his party in by this primitive method. They found a few long houses had been put up in this busy little mining camp, and many others were living in tents and lean-to shelters. FIRST SAWMILL Benjamin Koontz saw immediately the compulsory need of lumber. He was a man who had always considered the need of his community before his own personal needs. Following this principle, he began searching for a suitable stand of timer as nearby as possible. He found such a place a few miles above the settlement, a branch coming into the main creek from the West, with considerable timber on it. At this point, he set up a hand or whipsaw mill and began to turn out the much needed commodity to help solve the housing problem. The lumber was eagerly snatched up by waiting men with families. Long before spring, Benjamin saw that he could not supply the country with its ever-growing settlements by this primitive method. What the country needed and demanded was a sawmill that could turn out lumber in large quantities. What the country demanded must be provided. Therefore, leaving his little mill in the hands of workers, he went up Burnt River looking for a possible location for a sawmill. He found what he wanted, a place about eight miles up Burnt River from the Clark's Creek camp near plenty of timber and a good location for a sawmill to be run by water power. This could be provided by running a ditch out of Burnt River some two or three miles above the spot he had chosen for a mill site. The next thing needed was a machinery for the mill. This was immediately ordered from the nearest point, San Francisco. It would take some time for this to reach eastern Oregon but time was valuable. Men were put to work at once, digging the mill ditch. The biggest problem yet remained to be solved. There was no road leading into the Burnt River country from Baker Valley. In order to get the mill machinery to its destination, a route to the river would literally have to be found over very rough terrain. Impossible? Not to Benjamin Koontz. For him, if a thing needed to be done, he went to work. A few years before this, the government had started building a road known as the Creighton Road which would leave the Old Oregon Trail at a point about five mile northeast of the present location of Baker. It was finished only to the summit of the mountains between Power River and Burnt River. Eventually, it would continue south to the Piute Indian Reservation, located in the extreme south eastern part of what is now Malheur County. Benjamin went to work and literally looked out for a route which with some grading could be used. This route would leave the Creighton Road and follow along the summit for several miles in an easterly direction, almost to what is today known as Old Baldy at the head of Pine Creek. Here, as if left the summit, it turned south and some grading was required. He followed the west ridge of Pine Creek all the way to Burnt River which reached about one quarter mile west of the mouth of Pine Creek. Having reached the river, the problem would be easier. It would follow the north side of the river ditch where the valley narrowed into a canyon and there they crossed to the south side where the ditch workers already had a passable road. The road problem was solved. The mill machinery arrived in Baker Valley on time and was safely transported across the mountain and laid down at the mill site. It was soon in place and ready to go. How eager the waiting men must have been to see the great wheels turn. They did...slowly at first, then faster and faster. Great pine logs were soon transformed into piles of sweet smelling lumber to be loaded onto waiting wagons for homes, bridges and flumes waiting to be built. Both the Eldorado or the Burnt River ditch and the Bucklin or Clark's Creek ditches, had been surveyed and started, with full faith in Benjamin's enterprise. The whole progress of the country continued. They were not bothered by the Indians but to make it safer in case of an attack, a way was provided. A tunnel opening into the cellar of the mill home and leading to the mill beneath had been dug, so that should the Indians attack at the home they could escape, by way of the mill or should an attack be make at the mill, there would still be a way of escape through the tunnel leading to the home. So far, as we have been able to learn, there was never an Indian attack at the mill but the fact they did have a possible way of escape in case of an attack must have given everyone a feeling of security. Life, as it always is in a new country, was hard, but there was always the comforting knowledge of the worth of the great contribution they were making toward the development of the new country. Progress was rapid; more people came in; the mines continued to pour out their gold; the new country was forging ahead. BENJAMIN'S FINAL JOURNEY In February, 1868, Benjamin made a business trip to Auburn and while there was taken sick with something that resembled brain fever. After several weeks of sickness and feeling some better, he decided, in spite of the earnest protest of his friends in Auburn, to return home. He set out on snowshoes. Soon after his departure, a heavy snow storm, which soon turned into a violent blizzard, set in. We can only draw on our imagination for what then took place. He must have become bewildered and lost in the blinding snow storm; then found his way again and struggled on. However, two days later in the afternoon his family and mill workers heard strange sounds which resembled some what the howling or helping of coyotes. The sounds continued and later in the evening Benjamin's wife, Elizabeth, insisting that the sounds resembled a human voice, said the men must investigate. They did so and some distance above the mill they found Benjamin badly frozen and only partly conscious. He was hurriedly taken home where a further examination showed both feet were so badly frozen they would have to be amputated. Unfortunately, there was no surgeon closer than Boise, Idaho and no through stage line there. To get help in time looked almost impossible, but his nephew, Tabor Reed, volunteered to make the trip for the uncle he loved so dearly and who had been the cause and the means of his coming West. The trip over a strange road would be a difficult one, but he did not hesitate. It was growing dark and snowing heavily when Tabor set out on snowshoes. The best and most feasible route would be by way of Malheur City, a new little mining camp about 15 miles southeast of the mill. This route would take him to the crossing of the Snake River at Farewell Bend where he would pick up the Old Oregon Trail. At first he made good time, then many miles beyond Malheur City the snow storm changed to a Chinook rain which made slush out of the snow. Tabor struggled on for some distance but was soon compelled to throw aside his snowshoes and continue on foot. The going got rougher; there were places where he had to drop to his hands and knees and crawl. He was exhausted when he reached the the Snake River crossing. Luckily he found the ferryman at his post and Tabor was soon on the Idaho side of the River. Late that evening he was picked up by stage bound for Boise which they reached the following day. At this point, Tabor learned there were two surgeons. However, upon looking them up and explaining his mission, they both flatly refused to undertake such a long and difficult trip in such uncertain weather. Tabor was in despair until he was advised, by a man he talked with on the street, to see the Govenor. He did and received quick action. The surgeons were told in no uncertain terms one of them would return with the young man or both would face loss of their license to practice. It worked. One of the surgeons agreed to set out at once with Tabor on the return trip. They took the doctor's light horse-drawn wagon which made the trip a comparatively easy one. When they reached Malheur City, they were met by a messenger who told them Benjamin Koontz had already passed away. BENJAMIN KOONTZ BURIED Benjamin Franklin Koontz was laid to rest near his mill home where a few years later, his wife was laid beside him. Then his son, Henry, who had shot himself accidentally while hunting, was laid by his parents. Then the two children of Amelia Koontz and Samuel Lurchin were buried there and in 1900, Amelia was laid to rest in the little pioneer cemetery, which is cared for today by descendants and other relatives of the family. To Benjamin Franklin Koontz and Elizabeth Jane Walling eight children who grew up to adulthood were born as follows: Mary Koontz Boswell, Amelia Koontz Lurchin, who were born in Indiana, Chester Koontz, Cordelia Koontz Good, Henry Koontz, Emma Koontz McLoughlin, who were born in California, Alice Koontz Moffit and Minnie Koontz Nibler, who were born at the mill home on Burnt River. Once each year, the descendants and other relatives of Benjamin meet at some chosen spot for a family reunion. The reunions keep green in their minds the memory of difficulties and happiness through which the family has passed. Many stories are told and retold...some of them relating the dangers through which their ancestors have come, others, perhaps verging on some funny event that has taken place in the history of the family. There have been three runaway marriages in the family; perhaps those show the Koontz determination to choose for themselves just who their future husbands should be. Finally, Benjamin Franklin and Elizabeth Jane Koontz's daughter, Cordelia Ardilla Koontz, married Albert Good. They had a son Grover Raymond Good. Thus beginning the Good family. (The above information was based on the story by Tabor's daughter, L. Belle Reed and Ernie Bowers.)
More About BENJAMIN FRANKLIN KOONTZ: Fact 1: NEAR HIS HOME, BURNT RIVER, OR
Children of BENJAMIN KOONTZ and ELIZABETH WALLING are: i. ELLEN12 KOONTZ, d. Unknown. More About ELLEN KOONTZ: Fact 5: B.F.K.'S DAUGHTER
ii. ALBERT KOONTZ, d. Unknown. iii. MINNIE EVELYN KOONTZ, d. Unknown; m. JACOB NIVLER; d. Unknown. iv. ALICE KOONTZ, d. Unknown; m. (ALICE'S HUSBAND) MOFFITT; d. Unknown. v. EMMA KOONTZ, d. Unknown; m. (EMMA KOONTZ'S HUSBAND) MCLOUGHLIN; d. Unknown. vi. CHESTER ORLANDO KOONTZ, d. Unknown; m. ELLEN FLEETWOOD; d. Unknown. vii. MARY ELIZABETH KOONTZ, d. Unknown; m. CHARLES BOSWELL; d. Unknown. viii. AMELIA KOONTZ, b. 1848, IN; d. 1900; m. SAMUEL A. LURCHIN; d. Unknown. ix. HENRY KOONTZ, b. 1861, Texas Springs, CA/California; d. July 03, 1885; m. ETTA SISLEY; d. Unknown. 39. x. CORDELIA ARDILLA KOONTZ, b. September 02, 1855, Shasta County, CA; d. January 31, 1923, La Grande, Union, OR.
More About David S. Davis and Michelle R. Simonski: Marriage: July 14, 1990, Baker City, OR.
Children of David S. Davis and Michelle R. Simonski are:
David S. Davis (b. June 23, 1960)
Notes for David S. Davis: