lumberman, b. Elmira, N.Y. He moved with his family to the present site of Fort Madison, Iowa, about 1833. He spent one year at Yale College (1845), and in 1846 with William Wilson journeyed to the site of Menomonie, Wis., where they purchased an interest in a sawmill on the Red Cedar River. The firm was soon known as Knapp, Wilson and Co., and eventually Andrew Tainter and Henry Stout of Dubuque, Iowa, joined the firm. For a number of years it was known as Knapp, Stout and Co., and in 1879 the business was incorporated as Knapp, Stout and Lumber Co. For a time this organization was reputed to be the largest lumbering concern in the world; it owned thousands of acres of timberland in the Red Cedar and Chippewa valleys, operated a light and waterworks system in Menomonie, and also built its own steamboats and carried on a private banking business. Knapp headed the company's office in Menomonie, spent much of his time traveling on the Mississippi, and was president of the firm for several years. Henry Stout maintained his office in Dubuque. G. Forrester, ed., Hist. and Biog. Album of the Chippewa Valley (Chicago, 1891-1892); J. G. Gregory, ed., W. Central Wis. (4 vols., Indianapolis, 1933); Wis. Mag. Hist., 2; WPA MS; J. H. Knapp Papers.

The Wisconsin Historical Society has manuscripts related to this topic. See the catalog description of the Knapp, Stout & Co., Company Records for details.

View newspaper clippings at Wisconsin Local History and Biography Articles.

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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]