Clark, Robert Carlton, Ph.D. "History of the Willamette Valley Oregon."  Vol. 3.
Chicago: Chapman Publishing Company, 1927. p. 160.

E. J. HORTON

     Among the enterprising, farsighted business men to whom the Willamette
Valley is indebted for its development, none is better known than E. J. Horton,
one of the successful lumbermen of Lane county and for many years a dominant
figure in industrial circles of Junction City. A native of Minnesota, he was
born in Rochester in 1858 and about 1875 his parents, S. H. and Agnes Horton,
came to Oregon, His father followed the occupation of a butcher and later
operated a sawmill in Benton county, this state.
     E. J. Horton was educated in Minnesota and in 1877, when a young man of
nineteen, came to Oregon. He worked for the Oregon Railroad & Navigation Company
for some time and during 1880-81 was in the employ of the Southern Pacific,
filling the positions of brakeman and conductor. He was engaged in rail- road
work until 1900, when he joined his brothers, S. M. and J. C. Horton, and took
charge of the sawmill at Horton. The retail yard was opened in that year and in
1903 the Horton Lumber & Timber Company was formed with a capitalization of four
hundred thousand dollars. It was organized with the main object of constructing
and operating an auto rail from Horton to Junction City. This line represents an
entirely new system of transportation, the track being constructed of wooden
rails and the equipment consisting of specially built locomotives and cars with
rubber tired wheels. A. W. Arnold, of Portland, Oregon, is the inventor of this
sysrem of transportation and at the time of its organization the company
acquired the exclusive rights from Mr. Arnold to use this invention in a
territory comprising ten townships in Lane county, between Junction City and the
Pacific ocean. Horton, the western terminal of the line, is at the head of the
Lake Creek valley on the western slope of the coast range of mountains. It is
conservatively estimated that there is two billion feet of fir and cedar timber
tributary to Horton and the E. J. Horton Lumber Company has operated in this
territory for a period of twenty-three years. The development of this section
has been retarded on account of lack of transportation facilities and the
company now has about six and one-half miles of this road built and operating
over the heaviest part of the mountain. The E. J. Horton Company employs about
forty men and owns and operates a sawmill, a planing mill and a shingle mill.
The firm cuts about seven million feet of lumber per year and its shingle mill
has a daily capacity of forty thousand. When the auto rail line is completed the
company will operate its mills throughout the year and intends to haul lumber
and logs on contract for other mills, while arrangements have likewise been made
to transport agricultural and dairy products from Lake Creek valley to the
railroad. The lumber cut in the mill is in great demand because of its excellent
quality and the output comprises molding and builders' supplies. The Horton
Lumber & Timber Company was incorporated in September, 1926, and its officers
are: Emil Koppe, president, a well known woolen manufacturer of Eugene; E. J.
Horton, vice president and general manager; Stephen Morgensen, treasurer, who
occupies an enviable position in financial circles of Junction City; and Senator
Edward F. Bailey, secretary and counsel. The directorate includes J. P. Newell,
consulting engineer, and Samuel John and E. A. Horton, lumbermen of wide
experience and high standing. The vice president of the company has a highly
specialized knowledge of the lumber industry, which is supplemented by marked
executive ability, and under his wise management the success of the business is
assured.
     In 1888 E. J. Horton married Miss Mary Strickland, who died in 1896, and in
1899 he wedded Miss Eva Baker, who was born in Vancouver, Washington, and died
in 1908. In 1910 he married Miss Edith Buendegard, who died in 1912. She was the
mother of one child, Elaine E., who was born in Junction City and is a high
school pupil. In 1913 Mr. Horton was united in marriage to Miss Emma Kaping, a
daughter of L. C. and Caroline (Frick) Kaping, who came to this section of the
state in 1910.
     Mrs. Horton is connected with the Daughters of Rebekah and the Women of
Woodcraft and her husband belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He is
a stanch republican and while a resident of Umatilla county, Oregon, worked for
Governor Pierce during his first campaign, aiding in securing his election. Mr.
Horton served as clerk of Umatilla county and has always manifested a deep
interest in public affairs. He typifies the progressive spirit of the west and
is a man of substantial worth, honor and integrity being the keynote of his
character.
     
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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in April 2011 by Diana Smith.  Submitter
has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.