It has come to my attention (thanks opinionmill) that the guy in the book is not the same as the guy in the funny hat:
Might not be the same guy, unfortunately. Charles T. Russell was born May 17, 1853, at Grand Ledge, Eaton county, Michigan. Ol' Taze was born a year earlier in Allegheny, Pennsylvania.
Source: Past and Present of Isabella County, Michigan
I stand by the funny hat statement.