SHEBOYGAN HISTORY

U. J. Tibbitts, Page 543

U. J. TIBBITTS is the efficient photographer of Hingham, Wis., and is therefore well acquainted with the citizens of the central part of Sheboygan County.  He is a rising young man in his profession, full of energy, and every thing points to his still greater success in the future.

    A native of this county, Mr. Tibbitts was born June 28, 1864, and is the only son of Lemuel and Sarah (Dunn) Tibbitts, prominent citizens of Lima Township, whose biography may be found in another part of this volume.  Our subject was reared to manhood in this county, and received a liberal education in the public schools of Hingham, and the High School at De Pere, Wis.  He is a graduate of the Chicago Ophthalmic College, of Chicago, Ill., having completed his studies in 1892, being one in a class of twenty.  He is a finished artist and photographer, having mastered all the details pertaining thereto.  When he first took up this work he was for two years under the instruction of Prof. W. M. Lockwood, of Ripon, Wis.  During this time he spent one summer at Green Lake in taking views.  he next went to Oshkosh, Wis., where he remained only a short time, and then permanently located at Hingham, where he has a well-equipped studio.  His lenses are of the best finish, being the work of Voigtlander & Sohn, of Wien, Germany, and are fitted in Anthony's Climax Imperial Camera.  Any one who is an adept in the art of photography will speedily recognize from these facts that Mr. Tibbitts spares neither pains nor money in accumulating the best and most modern appliances of his art.  He is an expert in fitting glasses, and as an optician has laid the foundation for a large and lucrative practice.  His case is a valuable one, and is well fitted out with all kinds and styles of fine lenses.

    The marriage of Mr. Tibbitts and Miss Lizzie C. Rhodes was celebrated September 16, 1890.  She is the daughter of Henry and Deborah (McConkey) Rhodes, and was born May 26, 1867, in Sheboygan County.  To this happy union have been born a little son and daughter; Armand R., aged two years, and Ellen.  The mother passed her girlhood in Holland Township, and acquired her education in the Hingham schools, after which she became a teacher and met with good success.  Her father was a native of England, and was born in March, 1825.  In early life he sailed the high seas, but after his marriage, in 1844, settled down on the farm, and became one of the leading agriculturists of Holland Township.  He left his native land at the age of nineteen years, having been liberally educated, and he came to a strange land without any means, but by industry acquired a competency.  His wife is still living on the old homestead.  He died in July, 1891.

    The right of franchise is exercised by Mr. Tibbitts in favor of the Republican party, and he cast his first Presidential vote for Benjamin Harrison.  His wife is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and though not belonging to any religious organization, our subject is a respecter of all religious teachings.  They are young people prominent in social circles, and we are glad to place their life records in the annals of Sheboygan County.