History of Saginaw county, Michigan; together with ... portraits ... and biographies ... History of Michigan ...

SAGINAW CITY. 695
elected in 1870 to the Board of Education and re-elected in
June, 1881.
Amasa Rust is a native of Wells, Rutland Co., Vt., and was
born May 27, 1823. In June, 1837, he emigrated with his parents
to the village of Newport (now Marine City), St. Clair Co., Mich.,
where, from 1841 to 1848, he engaged in ship-building and sailing on the lakes. In 1850 he engaged in the lumbering business,
which he has followed ever since, and he is now a member of the
firms of Butman & Rust, D. W. Rust & Co., A. Rust & Bros.
and Rust, Eaton & Co.; also dealing largely in pine lands. Ie
came to Saginaw in 1855. Mr. Rustwas married in August, 1849,
to Miss Marietta A. Grout, by whom he has had 5 children; of
these, 3 are living-Charles A., Ezra G. and Ida G.
Ezra Rust, of the firm of Rust, Eaton & Co., was born in the
town of Wells, Rutland Co., Vt., Sept. 23, 1832, and is a son of
Amasa Rust (dec.), who came with his family to Marine (then
Newport) City, Mich., in 1837. Mr. R. resided on his father's
farm until 13 years old; he then worked for his brothers, A. and
D. W. Rust, in their saw-mill, for three years. At the age of 16
he became second engineer of the steamer " Pacific," and such
was his skill and ability, that in his 17th year he was promoted to
the position of first engineer of the same steamer, which plied on
the waters of the great lakes. During the three following years he
held the same position on the'steamer " Arctic." In 1854 he was
transferred to the 'E. K. Collins," and was first engineer of that
ill-fated steamer when she was burned near Malden, in the same
year. For the three following years he engaged in manufacturing
lumber for his brothers, at their mill in Newport. In the summer
of 1858, his health failing, he went to Cuba, where he remained
nearly a year, employed as engineer upon Aldama's sugar estate,
" Santa Rosa." Upon his return, in 1859, he went into partnership with James Hay, under the firm name of Rust & Hay, in the
business of lumbering upon the tributaries of the Saginaw river,
and since that time has resided in Saginaw. In 1862, he, in company with others, sunk a salt-well and constructed works for the
manufacture of salt, which business he carried on successfully for
the two years following. In 1865 the firm of Rust, Eaton & Co.
was formed, with Mr. Rust at its head, and he has until the present time continued to manage the extensive business of that firm,
as well as that of Rust & Hay, with unvarying success. He was
married Nov. 25, 1857, to Miss Emma B. Mather, a native of St.
Clair, Mich. They had 2 children, both deceased. Mr. Rust's
mill is at Zilwaukee, on the Saginaw river. It was erected about
the year 1848, by Daniel Johnson and others. It passed through
several hands, and- finally into the hands of the present company
in 1865, who rebuilt and remodeled it, putting in new machinery
throughout. The first salt well at this mill site was bored in 1862.
They now have two wells. In the mill are five large boilers which
supply the machinery with the motive power. The main saws consist of a 38-inch gang and a large circular saw. Capacity of the
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