October 1, 2025
IT'S NEWS TO TEN EYKE.
If He Has Fallen Heir to Western
Union Telegraph Building.
Rumor has it that James M. Piper, who died suddenly Monday afternoon, had left that part of his estate which comprises the building now occupied by the Western Union Telegraph Company, Seventh and Main streets, James F. TenEyke, the engineer and janitor of the building. Mr. TenEyke has heard nothing which would lead him to believe that such is the case, and Mrs. Piper stated that, though the will of her husband had not been opened, she had been given to understand that all of his property had been left to her.
Mr. TenEyke has been the engineer at the Western Union building for twenty years. He and his employer were always close friends, TenEyke having made a lasting impression upon Mr. Piper at the time he was being employed to take charge of the machinery. A sort of brotherly affection grew up between the men, and the were together much of the time.
Last night Mr. TenEyke said that if it were true that Mr. Piper had given him the Western Union building, it would make no change in his plans for the future. He will continue in his work at the building and still live in the flat of two rooms at 608 Holmes street, alone.
In the early '70s Mr. TenEyke served as a government scout in the wild Western country. He continued in that service until three months after the Custer massacre, when he took up engineering. He was then employed by the old steamboat company whose ships piled up and down the Missouri.
Labels: death, Holmes street, Main street, probate, Seventh street
