USA > California > Los Angeles County > Los Angeles > A history of California and an extended history of Los Angeles and environs, Biographical, Volume III > Part 16
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From November of 1893 to the present time General Jones has engaged in the practice of law in Los Angeles. During the more than two decades of identification with public af- fairs in this city he has wielded a large influ- ence not only in his political party, but among all who labor for the permanent upbuilding of the community. During 1896 he was de- feated by Hon. R. N. Bulla, Republican, for state senator from the thirty-seventh sena- torial district. January 1, 1899, he was ap- pointed assistant district attorney by James C. Rieves. At the opening of the war with Spain he promptly raised a regiment of twelve hundred men from Los Angeles, Pasadena,
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Los Nietos valley, Norwalk, Whittier, Santa Ana and San Bernardino, and tendered their services to the president and governor, but the quota being filled from eastern regiments, his troops were not called to the front. Whether in war or in peace, General Jones has been loyal to the convictions he believed to be right and has sturdily espoused what- ever cause appealed to his intelligence and judgment. In California, as in the southeast, he has wielded a wide influence and has proved a liberal and earnest citizen, looking toward the general welfare rather than per- sonal advancement, and being in every respect worthy of his distinguished lineage.
WILLIAM WALES MINES. As president of the Los Angeles Realty Board, to which honor he was elected in May, 1914, and also vice- president of the National Association of Real Estate Exchanges, to which position he was elected in July, 1914, William Wales Mines is to- day one of the most prominent figures in the real estate interests in the nation. He has represented Los Angeles at several conventions of prominence since his election, and has been brought into direct contact with the leading real estate men and in- vestors of the country, and also has been the host to any number of visiting celebrities. He came to Los Angeles in 1896, and in 1901 started in the real estate brokerage business under the firm name of Mines & Farish. This partnership was dis- solved in 1911, and since that time the firm has been known as W. W. Mines & Co., real estate brokers. This firm is one of the best known in the state and does a vast amount of business of a very high order, and Mr. Mines is now the owner of some of the most valuable property in the city and vicinity.
A native of Canada, Mr. Mines was born at Massawippi, province of Quebec, May 30, 1876, being a son of the late Dr. William Wales Mines, of Montreal, Quebec, and his wife, Amelia Mines. Dr. Mines was a graduate of the McGill Uni- versity Medical College, class of 1874. The son was educated at St. Francis College, Richmond, Canada, and afterwards became associated with the Montreal Gas Company, and with W. T. Benton & Co., of Montreal. Since coming to Cali- fornia he has assumed a prominent place in the
financial life of Los Angeles city and county, and is today recognized as one of the most prominent and influential men of the state. He is a Repub- lican in his political associations, and stands high in the confidence of his party, being especially active in all local municipal issues, and standing at all times firmly for progress and general im- provement along permanent lines. He has given much aid to such movements as the good roads movement, and is a prominent member of the local Chamber of Commerce and other civic and municipal organizations.
The marriage of Mr. Mines and Miss Pearl Vollmer, daughter of H. F. Vollmer, was solem- nized in Los Angeles, September 29, 1908, and they have one child, a daughter, Patricia, born April 9, 1911. Both Mr. and Mrs. Mines are well known socially, and are members of the Episcopal Church. Mr. Mines is also a member of several well known social clubs, among which may be mentioned the California Club, Midwick Country Club, Los Angeles Country Club, Los Angeles Athletic Club, and the Bohemian Club, of San Francisco. He is also a thirty-second degree Mason.
ERASTUS JAMES STANTON. For twenty years a resident of Los Angeles and a pioneer in many phases of the lumber business of California, Erastus James Stanton was a man of great ability and sterling worth, and his death in 1913 deprived the city of his adoption of one of her foremost citizens. His achievements in the lumber busi- ness were almost phenomenal, his many years of experience making him especially proficient in every detail of that industry, while his splendid foresight and business acumen enabled him to swing large deals with ease and safety. As presi- dent of various companies interested in lumber- ing industries Mr. Stanton is well known through- out the coast, as is also his son, Leroy H. Stanton, who has succeeded his distinguished father as head of the firm of E. J. Stanton & Son, dealers in wholesale and retail lumber.
Mr. Stanton was a native of New York state, born at Angelica, in 1856. His father, Erastus H. Stanton, was born in New York in 1816, and was the son of a pioneer of that state, who served in the War of 1812. Mr. Stanton's father removed to Rockton, Ill., when a young man and there
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became heavily interested in land. Later he also became a banker and merchant in the Illinois- Wisconsin country, and in 1868 moved to Ionia, Mich., where he engaged in the mercantile busi- ness and also had large interests in the lumbering business at Sheridan and Stanton, Mich., this latter town being named for him. He also took a prominent part in the political affairs of the state, and was several times elected a senator to the state legislature from Ionia and Montcalm counties. Mr. Stanton's mother was born in Greene county, N. Y., in 1820. She was a member of a very distinguished family, one of her brothers being Lyman Sanford, a justice of the Supreme Court of New York, and another, Truman S. Sanford, was attorney general.
The boyhood days of Mr. Stanton were passed at Ionia, Mich., where he attended the public schools until he was sixteen, and then became associated with his father in the lumber business, being in a position of responsibility and trust when the business was closed in 1880. In 1884 he went to Saginaw, Mich., then the largest lum- ber center in the world, where he took charge of the sales department for the Saginaw Lumber and Salt Company, then one of Michigan's largest con- cerns. Up to that time most of the lumber was transported by water, being handled principally at the docks. This year Mr. Stanton sorted the lumber for commercial uses and shipped it by rail. Failing health compelled him to seek change of climate in 1893, and he went to Williams, Ariz., where he assisted with the development of the properties of the Saginaw Lumber Company at that point. There was but one sawmill in Ari- zona at that time, and Mr. Stanton shipped the first lumber to California and the coast, having secured competitive rates from the Santa Fe Railroad. He organized the sales department of this company and developed the first box busi- ness in Arizona, shipping into Southern Cali- fornia, and establishing an extensive trade with this state and Mexico. This is now one of the chief industries of Flagstaff and Williams.
It was in 1894 that Mr. Stanton finally came to California, locating in Los Angeles, where he made his home until his death, January 24, 1913. Upon coming here he engaged in the box and lum- ber business and began the use of California products for the making of fruit boxes, using the native woods, sugar and white pine. He was one of the prime movers in the organization of the California Pine Box Company in 1897, an
association of mills formed for the purpose of promoting the box business for the absorption of the inferior grade lumber and the manufacture of fruit boxes on a uniform basis. This industry has now grown to enormous proportions and is one of the largest in the state, utilizing millions of feet of lumber yearly and giving employment to thousands of men.
The California Sugar and White Pine Agency was formed in 1900 for the grading of lumber for the eastern and foreign trade. Most of the large mills were in the association, and through their combined efforts many millions of feet of Cali- fornia lumber were exported and sold to the eastern states. Mr. Stanton was one of the or- ganizers of this company and the agent for the southern territory. In 1896 yards were started in Los Angeles, which was then a city of some sixty-five thousand inhabitants. This pioneer yard is the largest and most complete in the west and its exports and imports are very heavy.
Mr. Stanton was a man of more than ordinary ability, and although the business established by him grew very rapidly, he continued to handle it exclusively until in 1912, when he took into partnership his son, Leroy H. Stanton, the firm becoming known as E. J. Stanton & Son. They handled a wide variety of products, but made a specialty of maple, birch, beech, mahogany and other woods of a superior grade, their stock being the best on the coast. They also are heavy im- porters of foreign cabinet woods, including Afri- can walnut, mahogany and rosewood, these com- ing largely from the Philippine Islands, Peru, Santo Domingo, Mexico and Africa. Mr. Stan- ton was accredited as the best informed man in the details of the lumber business, both domestic and foreign, in the country, and as a natural result the service he was able to render was of a high grade. Among the well known structures with the building of which this company was con- cerned may be mentioned the Potter Hotel, at Santa Barbara, Cal .; Lankershim Hotel, Los Angeles ; Hotel Wentworth, Pasadena; Spreckels Theater, San Diego, and many others equally well known. Mr. Stanton was associated with various companies at the time of his death, among which were the Klamath River Lumber Company, of which he was a director; and the California Sugar and White Pine Agency, of which he was agent for the southwestern territory.
The marriage of Mr. Stanton took place in Albion, Mich., in October, 1880, uniting him with
Philip Gingembre Hubert-
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Miss Fannie Boynton. Of their marriage were born five children, three of whom, Leroy, Lillian and Adelaide, are living, while Dede and Helen are deceased. Mr. Stanton took a prominent part in civic affairs in Los Angeles during his resi- dence here, and was closely identified with the best interests of the city, working at all times for its development and upbuilding. He was a mem- ber of the Union League, Los Angeles Athletic, Jonathan and Los Angeles Country Clubs ; of the Chamber of Commerce, Chamber of Mines, and of the Los Angeles Commandery No. 9, K. T., Los Angeles Consistory No. 3, thirty-second de- gree Masons, Al Malaikah Shrine, and Lodge No. 99, B. P. O. E.
Leroy H. Stanton, who has succeeded his father in the management of their large interests, is a native of Michigan, born in St. Louis, Decem- ber 7, 1889. He came to Los Angeles when he was a lad of some five years, and grew to ma- turity here. He attended the public schools and Harvard Military Academy until he was nineteen, and then entered Stanford University, remaining for two years. When he reached his majority he returned and entered the lumber business with his father, learning the business from the bottom. In January, 1913, he was taken into a full part- nership in the business, and upon his father's death that year he incorporated the business and was elected president, which position he con- tinues to occupy. He is developing the business along the line followed by his father and is meet- ing with much success. In addition to the lines of lumber carried for many years, there has been recently added a flooring mill at Vernon, which employs from fifty to one hundred men, for the manufacture of a high grade of oak flooring.
The marriage of Leroy H. Stanton and Miss Florence I. Smith took place in Los Angeles, De- cember 7, 1911. Both Mr. and Mrs. Stanton are well-known members of the younger set, and are deservedly popular. Mr. Stanton is a Scottish Rite Mason, and a member of the Jonathan Club, Los Angeles Athletic Club, and the Sigma Alpha Epsilon. In his political preference he is a Re- publican, and is keenly alive to all that stands for the best interests of the city, supporting pro- gressive measures at all times.
PHILIP GENGEMBRE HUBERT. The death of this well-known and honored writer, edu- cator and unequalled architect, which occurred November 15, 1911, removed one whose achieve- ments had compelled the admiration of all and whose deep, unswerving interest in humanity, whose generous attitude toward those with whom he came in contact, and whose conscientious exe- cution of duty won him confidence and esteem. In the resolutions drawn up by the Southern Cali- fornia Chapter of the American Institute of Architects they designate Mr. Hubert the pioneer in his profession in the United States. His career is a long and splendid one, the monuments to his industry, the many beautiful and costly homes in New York City, evidencing the exceptional worth of the man, while many clever and interesting literary works show his facility with the pen. When we add to these accomplishments a number of inventions which he had patented we begin to realize that the man was a valued citizen indeed.
Mr. Hubert was born in Paris, France, August 30, 1830, the son of Charles Colomb and Marianne (Farey) Gengembre, but owing to the difficulty in the pronunciation of his surname in this coun- try, he and his brother added the name of their English grandmother, Hubert, some years after coming to America. The father was an archi- tect and civil engineer. He was superintending the construction of the grand canals of the Seine when interrupted by the revolution of 1830, in which fray he was wounded and suffered financial ruin. His father, and the grandfather of Philip, was Philippe Guillaume Gengembre, a man of remarkable genius, who was in high favor with King Louis Philippe, and was director of the gov- ernment works at Indret, which he established and where he constructed the first steam warship for the French navy. Mons. Philippe Gengembre made many valuable inventions, and was so far in advance of his day that his house in Paris was looked upon as dangerous ground by his more conservative friends, it being the first to be heated by a furnace and lighted by gas.
It was with this grandfather that Philip Gen- gembre Hubert lived during the first nine years of his life, in the old castle of Indret, and from whom he inherited his talents of architecture and invention, and was imbued with his philanthropic desires to better the conditions of the working classes. Upon his grandfather's death in 1839 he returned to his parents' home, but at the age of
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fourteen went back to Indret and began earning his own living in the work his grandfather had founded. Always ambitious to learn he contrived to continue his studies under a kind and scholarly priest, Abbé Coquet, so that when sixteen he was able to pass the necessary examinations to enter the government service as clerk in Nantes, and later as a commissioned officer in the army. At nineteen he rejoined his father, who had decided to bring his family to America with the expecta- tion of finding a wider field in his profession. The family settled in Cincinnati, Ohio, where Mr. Hubert first studied architecture under his father. Mons. Colomb Gengembre was disappointed in the lack of demand for architectural skill, and in order to eke out the family expenses Philip had recourse to his pen. His mother was an English woman and he had always been familiar with that language, though he never quite overcame his French accent. Nevertheless he wrote fluently in English and created a reputation by his con- tributions to the newspapers and magazines. His literary work led to teaching and he formed classes in French, introducing his own original methods, and at the age of twenty-three he re- ceived the appointment of professor of French, Spanish and History in Girard College, Phila- delphia, where he proposed the introduction of manual training. This being the first time such a suggestion had been made in college work, it was coldly received, but Mr. Hubert lived to see Girard College equipped with an almost unequalled man- ual training department.
In 1860 Mr. Hubert removed to Boston, where his continued success, both as a teacher and a writer, was so great that he refused an assistant professorship at Harvard rather than give up his classes, some of which numbered five hundred pu- pils. At the same time he was winning such a place for himself as a magazine contributor of both short and serial stories that there is no doubt but that had he continued in this line he would have been known today as a writer instead of an architect. It is characteristic of Mr. Hubert's modesty regarding his achievements, that all his literary work was published under va- rious pen-names. It would have been a surprise, even to many of his friends, had they known that he was a playwright and that the "Philip Hamilton" who figured on the programs as co- author of "The Witch," one of his plays, which enjoyed a prosperous run in the '90s of over two
years from ocean to ocean, was Mr. Hubert. Even when his play received enthusiastic praise from the leading New York critics he maintained his incognito. Notwithstanding his facility with his pen he disliked the idea of writing as a pro- fession, and when still in his twenties he made an invention, which was sold outright for $120,000, the first self-fastening button, he preferred to give up both writing and teaching and return to his chosen study of architecture. After some time spent abroad Mr. Hubert began his career as an architect in New York in 1870, forming a part- nership with James L. Pirsson, under the firm name of Hubert & Pirsson. The former "St. Luke's Home" and the adjoining church of The Beloved Disciple were the first large buildings erected by this firm. But although the designer of many public buildings and beautiful homes, it is as the pioneer architect of the sky-scraping apart- ment houses that Mr. Hubert is best known. It has been said of him as of Sir Christopher Wren, "Seekest thou his monument? Look around." Foreseeing that the narrow shape of New York city would soon make the problem of providing space for homes for the rapidly increasing popu- lation a serious one, he solved this difficulty by building skyward. At first people were afraid to live above the fifth story, but soon the many advantages to be gained in homes high above the dust and noise of the streets became apparent, and the upper stories were soon more in demand than the lower. These twelve-storied dwellings be- came more and more popular, because Mr. Hu- bert's inventions in fireproofing eliminated danger, experience proving them to be not nominally but practically fireproof. The concrete floors, plaster blocks, minimum of wood trim around windows, doors and sub-bases are a few of his original de- vices. It is to Mr. Hubert, therefore, more than to any other, that thanks are due from thousands who are enabled to live today, at moderate prices, in the city, yet above it, within easy access of business and amusements, yet free from the dust and turmoil of the great city.
Mr. Hubert was the architect of the Navarro apartments on Seventh avenue, between Fifty- eighth and Fifty-ninth streets. At the time of their erection in 1882 these were by far the largest apartment houses in the world, and still hold their place in the front rank for solid grandeur and for the spaciousness and delightful arrangement of the apartments. Mr. Hubert was the patentee for
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the "Duplex" and "Triplex" apartments, intro- duced in these buildings. The subway court for delivery wagons and many other features adding to the comfort and elegance of the apartment house home, were originated by Mr. Hubert and first seen in this magnificent group of buildings. In The Sevillia, on Fifty-eighth street, he intro- duced many new features, including the first use of stone floors throughout an apartment house. Mr. Hubert also originated, in 1880, the co-opera- tive apartment house, in which the apartments are owned individually by the stockholders. They were known as "The Hubert Home Clubs," and the first one-erected by a club of artists-was "The Rembrandt" on West Fifty-seventh street. This proved so successful that he built many others ; among the most imposing are "The Chel- sea," on West Twenty-third street; "The Haw- thorne," and "The Hubert," both on Fifty-ninth street facing the park; No. 80 Madison avenue and No. 121 Madison avenue. The old Lyceum Theatre on Fourth avenue and Twenty-fourtli street was originally built by Mr. Hubert as a co- operative club theatre, intended for the use of the members in the evening for amateur theatricals, and in the daytime as a home for a dramatic school. This was the beginning of the Lyceum School, which under the able management of Franklin H. Sargent, developed into the present Academy of Dramatic Arts.
Mr. Hubert was the inventor of the method of storing furniture and goods in fireproof vans which are transferred directly to the compart- ments provided for them in the storage houses and remain there undisturbed until sent for, thus doing away with the damage from several handlings and risk of theft. Although such an ardent advocate for shortening the laboring hours of the working people, Mr. Hubert himself worked incessantly early and late, and at eighty- one years of age was superintending the making of models for inventions in Los Angeles, from half past eight in the morning until five in the after- noon, often doing with his own hands what his workmen failed to execute. His chief purpose in this strenuous work of his later years, since retir- ing from his architectural profession in 1893, was to invent, and supply at a trifling expense, contri- vances to facilitate domestic work, that he might in- this way ease the burden of the overtaxed women who do their own work-the young clerk's wife and the poor laundry woman alike. It seems
singular that a man who himself overworked all his life from choice should feel so much pity for those other workers who had no time for play or rest. Several patents were pending at the time of Mr. Hubert's death. Few men retain such vigor, mental and physical, into their eighties as did Mr. Hubert. It might be well to note here that he was a great advocate for simplicity and moderation in food, and would personally have preferred a purely vegetarian diet. He never used tobacco in any form and seldom touched wine. Holding over sixty-five patents for useful inven- tions, having won a place as a writer, an educator and philanthropist, and as an architect having been the pioneer in transforming the city of New York from the town of rows of small brownstone dwellings, which it used to be, into the marvelous city of magnificent apartment houses which it is today, Mr. Hubert might well claim distinction for many achievements; but the title given him some years ago, at a public dinner, was the one which pleased him more than any other and the one by which he would best like to be remembered -that of "The Home-maker."
WILLIAM B. SCOTT was born in War- rensburg, Johnson county, Mo., November 15, 1868. In 1875 his parents, William T. and Vir- ginia L. Scott, removed with their family to California, and settled in Santa Paula, Ventura county, where the son attended the public schools until the age of sixteen, when he began to learn the carpenter trade. Coming to Los Angeles in June, 1894, he went into the business of drilling oil wells. Mr. Scott was married in June, 1896, to Luna M. Hardison, in Los Angeles, and they are the parents of two children, Josephine and W. K. Scott, who are both pupils in the public schools of Los Angeles.
WILL E. KELLER. To have seen a business grow from a small one employing fifteen men to a large one using four hundred employes, its starting capital of $15,000 mounting to $3,300,000, its factories counted in six cities and its elevators in two, must indeed be a source of tremendous satisfaction to a man who has been a leader in such great business and financial progress. Such
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an honor is enjoyed today by Will E. Keller, president of the Globe Grain and Milling Com- pany, to which position he was elected in 1902.
Born in Woodville, Miss., January 30, 1868, Will E. Keller is the son of Charles E. and Agnes ( Phares) Keller. He received his early educa- tion in Dallas, Texas, attending the public schools there until the age of fourteen. He was first employed in the teaming business, which he fol- lowed for two years, being engaged later as a railway postal clerk for a year. Following the line of interests pursued by his father, Mr. Keller went into street paving and grading con- tracting in Dallas and Waco, Texas, which he forsook in 1888 to come to San Diego. Septem- ber, 1889, saw his return to Dallas, where he then found occupation in the banking business as book- keeper for a year and teller for two years.
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