Des Moines, the pioneer of municipal progress and reform of the middle West, together with the history of Polk County, Iowa, the largest, most populous and most prosperous county in the state of Iowa; Volume II, Part 72

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1464

USA > Iowa > Polk County > Des Moines > Des Moines, the pioneer of municipal progress and reform of the middle West, together with the history of Polk County, Iowa, the largest, most populous and most prosperous county in the state of Iowa; Volume II > Part 72

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Reuben Marks was educated in Vilkkosvishk, graduating from the Hebrew high school in 1875, following which he pursued a post-graduate course, special- izing in the Russian, German and Polish languages. At the age of twenty years he was considered to be fully qualified to begin his career and engaged in the lumber business in his native land. He continued to be identified with this en- terprise until 1884, at which time he decided that much better opportunities must await all ambitious and energetic young men in America than those afforded by the Russian empire, so he took passage for the United States.

Upon his arrival here he first located in Pennsylvania, spending several months in the various cities of that state, and then removed to Iowa, settling in Des Moines in 1885. Shortly after coming here he opened a general store in South Des Moines, where he remained for a brief period, then removed to Walnut street, continuing in the retail business for nine years. In 1894 he bought the business of the Capital City Hat Company, wholesale dealers in hats and caps, who were then located at the corner of Sixth and Locust streets in the Church block. The following year he moved to the corner of Third and Court avenue and in October, 1910, a building on Third street was purchased to accommodate the growing business and the firm name was changed to the Marks Hat Com- pany. He possesses all the initiative, perseverance and determination which char- acterizes his people, and by a judicious distribution of energy and zeal has suc- cessfully developed the business of this company until it is now recognized as one of the thriving enterprises of the city. He has not confined his abilities to the one channel, but has extended his activities until his interests are now repre- sented in eight of the leading states of the union. After his Des Moines business had become well organized he established a clothing factory in Chicago and from time to time has opened retail stores in the following cities: Little Rock and. Fort Smith, Arkansas; Lexington, Kentucky; Knoxville, Tennessee; Meridian and Jackson, Mississippi; Charleston, South Carolina; Chicago, Illinois; New- castle, Pennsylvania ; and Bay City and Saginaw, Michigan. His factory and retail stores are all conducted under the name of the Standard Woolen Company.

Mr. Marks was united in marriage to Miss Belle Jacobson, a daughter of Joshua and Miriam Jacobson, their union being solemnized in Kalvarie, Suvalky, Russian Poland, on the 3d of July, 1882. Three children have been born of this marriage : Moses, aged twenty-one, who is secretary and treasurer of the com- pany ; Anna and Harry, who are seventeen and fifteen years, respectively, and are living at home.

The family are affiliated with the Tiffereth Israel congregation in the work of which they take a zealous and helpful interest, Mr. Marks having been elected vice president of the organization in 1901, continuing in that office for two years, after which he was made president for a similar period. Fraternally he is identi- fied with the Masonic order, the B'nai, of which he was president in 1897, and the Modern Woodmen of America and the Brotherhood of American Yeo- men. He has always been actively associated with the various Hebrew charity organizations, not only of the city and state but of the nation, having been a director of the Jewish Home for Consumptives of Denver, Colorado, as well as a member of the National Home for Consumptives, which is located in the same place. He is also a director of the Cleveland Orphan Asylum, a member of the Marks Nathan Home for Orphans, located in Chicago, and a member of the Immigration Aid Society of New York, and for the past ten years he has been president and treasurer of the Removal Association, which is a free labor bureau, of Des Moines. He is also a member of the Des Moines Commercial Club and the Des Moines Credit Men's Association.

After granted the right of suffrage Mr. Marks first identified himself with the democratic party, having at one time been vice president of their club, but he has recently transferred his allegiance to the progressive faction of the repub- lican party, believing their principles are better adapted to protect the best in-

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terests of the public at large. He is a public-spirited man, progressive in his ideas, charitable in his views and of a helpful, sympathetic nature, ever gen- erously contributing toward the support of every worthy charity whether organ- ized for the aid of Hebrew or Gentile, and believing implicitly in the universal brotherhood of mankind.

HARRY D. BAGG.

Harry D. Bagg. an enterprising and successful representative of mercantile interests in Des Moines, is a member of the well known grocery firm of Bagg Brothers, conducting an extensive establishment at the corner of Park avenue and South Ninth street. His birth occurred on the 19th of June, 1870, in Polk county, Iowa, and a sketch of his parents appears on another page of this work. He attended the grammar and high schools of Des Moines in the acquirement of an education and after putting aside his text-books entered the employ of the Jewett Typewriter Company of this city. remaining in the factory for four years. On the expiration of that period, in 1894, he purchased a half interest in the grocery establishment of his brother, C. P. Bagg, which at that time was but a very small enterprise as compared to the large general store into which it has since developed. The brothers are widely recognized as reliable, enter- prising and up-to-date merchants and are accorded a liberal patronage.

On the 13th of April. 1893, in Des Moines, Mr. Bagg was united in mar- riage to Miss Nellie F. Farr, a daughter of Stephen and Addie M. (Goodhue) Farr and a representative of a very old family of Polk county. Five children have been born unto them: Harriet, sixteen years of age, who is a high school student ; Faye, who died at the age of ten years; Gerald, Roland and Geneva, who are thirteen, eleven and eight years of age respectively and are all attend- ing school. '

In politics Mr. Bagg is independent, supporting men and measures rather than party. Believing that the liquor traffic is one of the worst evils with which our country has to contend, he favors and advocates prohibition. He is a devoted and consistent member of the Church of Christ on Park avenue and also be- longs to the Brotherhood of American Yeomen. Mr. Bagg has a wide acquaint- ance in Des Moines and his social, genial nature has gained for him an exten- sive circle of friends. His business ability is recognized by all with whom he has trade relations and his keen discernment and carefully managed affairs have placed him in a most comfortable financial position.

SOL WOLK,

One of the younger commercial enterprises of Des Moines which have caused this city to become recognized as a wholesale center of the middle west is the clothing house founded in 1903 by Sol Wolk. He was born in Suvalky, Poland. on the 17th of November, 1873, being a son of Isaac H. and Esther Wolk, who were also natives of Poland, the father passing away there on the 22d of Feb- ruary, 1907, but the mother still survives and makes her home on the family estate. Mr. Wolk, who was a prominent merchant as well as a wealthy and in- fluential landowner, was a son of Moses and Bessie Wolk, who were born in 1817 and 1820, respectively. The paternal grandmother passed away in 1891, but her husband lived to the venerable age of eighty-nine years, his demise oc- curring in 1906.

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Owing to the fact of his parents being people of means Sol Wolk acquired his education under the direction and supervision of a private tutor, until he had attained the age of fifteen years, at which time he laid aside his text-books. Being anxious to see the world his parents granted him permission in 1889 to come to the United States. Landing in New York he spent a brief period in that city and then went to Pittsburg, where he obtained employment at various occupations until he felt he had acquired sufficient knowledge of the language as well as business methods and customs of the country to go into business for himself. His first venture was the establishing of a retail dry-goods emporium, which he most successfully conducted for five years. Disposing of his inter- ests at the expiration of that period he returned to New York, where he ob- tained a position as the traveling representative of one of the large wholesale clothing houses, his territory covering a large number of the western states and including the state of Iowa.

Mr. Wolk's prescience, as well as keen powers of intuition and rare business sagacity made him quickly recognize the promising commercial future of Des Moines, so returning to New York he made preparations to establish a whole- sale business in this city. He arrived here on the IIth of September, 1903, and has ever since been actively identified with the commercial interests of the city. The rapid and extensive development of his business during the eight years he has been a resident of the city pays rare tribute to the judgment he exhibited in the establishment of a wholesale clothing store. His success has doubtless equaled or exceeded his wildest expectations, as he has several times been com- pelled to enlarge his quarters and his trade is constantly increasing. Mr. Wolk has recently purchased a beautiful home at Seventh and Franklin streets, which is another evidence that in his business life he is most successful: He possesses the business acumen, enterprise and diligence which have ever characterized his people and made them dominate the world of finance and commerce.

Mr. Wolk married Miss Rose R. Cohen on the 15th of August, 1905. Mrs. Wolk is a daughter of N. B. and Sarah Cohen, who are old and well known residents of this city. One child has been born of this marriage: Louisa, who is a very pretty and interesting child of two years, her birth occurring on the 16th of March, 1909. Mr. and Mrs. Wolk affiliate with the congregation of Tiffereth Israel temple and he is fraternally identified with the Masonic order through the medium of Capital Lodge, No. 110, A. F. & A. M., and the Elks.

Ever since granted the full rights of citizenship Mr. Wolk has given his political allegiance to the candidates of the republican party. Although he takes an active interest in civic affairs, never having been an aspirant to official honors, he does not prominently participate in governmental matters. During the long period of his residence in the United States Mr. Wolk has never felt he had cause to regret the transference of his allegiance, as he has been most success- ful in his undertakings here and enjoys the liberty and freedom universally ac- corded all.

WILLIAM N. HEATON, D. D. S.

The progress of any community, regardless of its natural resources, is de- pendent upon the disinterested, public spirit of its citizens, who in the develop- ment of their private affairs do not neglect their civic duties. Des Moines has been particularly fortunate in this respect counting among her inhabitants many such, and among them must be numbered Dr. William N. Heaton, who for nearly forty years has been closely and prominently identified with the professional, social and political interests of the city. His birth occurred in Millsboro, Washington county, Pennsylvania, on the 31st of October. 1847 his parents be-

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ing Weaver and Rebecca Naylor (Sharp) Heaton, both natives of the Keystone state. The Heaton family is one of the oldest in America. The first to arrive here emigrated from England to the colony of Pennsylvania and bought land of William Penn. On the maternal side the Sharps were of Welsh extraction and first located in Virginia. A granduncle of Dr. Heaton, John Sharp, came to Iowa in 1853, settling in Appanoose county.

Dr. Heaton had the advantages of a better education than was possible to the average youth of his period, having the opportunity to attend school until he was twenty-three years of age. His fundamental studies were pursued in the common schools of Greenfield, Pennsylvania, following which he enrolled at Mount Union College, Alliance, Ohio, with which institution he was indenti- fied until 1870. After leaving school he decided to study medicine, so entered the office of his elder brother, Dr. James G. Heaton, but dentistry began to come rapidly to the fore about that time and his strong inclination for mechanics made the latter science the more attractive, so he adopted it for his life vocation. That his decision was in accordance with his natural qualifications is borne out by the marked success with which Dr. Heaton has met during the long period of his practice. He is one of the oldest and ablest dentists of the city, his mechanical skill and close study having enabled him to keep abreast with the rapid advance of the science. He has maintained an office in Des Moines con- tinuously since 1875, having numbered among his patients some of the most prominent citizens of the town.

During the long period of his professional activity Dr. Heaton has devoted his spare time to perfecting various mechanical devices, the best known of which is probably Heaton's humane shaft loop. This is one of the most humane devices placed upon the market within recent years, removing all unnecessary friction upon the horse caused by the jerking back and forth of the shaft. Al- though it has been upon the market but two years it has proven to be a most profitable venture and is netting gratifying returns. At the present time Dr. Heaton is concentrating his attention upon the perfection of a furnace attach- ment, whereby he hopes to simplify the present heating system and also greatly reduce the coal consumption. If his theory proves feasible, as he has every reason to feel convinced it will, the result will be a better and more uniform heat at an almost incredibly minimized cost. Dr. Heaton has not been the only member of his family possessing unusual mechanical skill as his great-grand- father, Bowen Heaton was the inventor of the first iron mold plow in this coun- try, known as the bull plow, which was manufactured in Millsboro, Pennsylvania, and his father was a millwright.

Dr. Heaton married Miss Lucinda S. Willis, a daughter of Harvey and Eliza J. Willis, on the 12th of November, 1876. Mrs. Heaton is a native of Indiana but removed to Iowa with her parents when a child of three years, locating in Dallas county. Her father took an active interest in the development of that section of the state. At one time he and his brother, John, owned the land on which the town of Perry is now located, and it was mainly because of his efforts that the Des Moines & Fort Dodge Railroad was built through that section, he giving the land for the right of way and the station at Perry. He took the contract to erect the first bridge across the Des Moines river at Walnut street, Des Moines. No railroad had yet reached the city but one had been built as far as the Des Moines river, and the construction timbers for the bridge were rafted at that point and floated to Des Moines.

Two sons have been born to the Doctor and his wife: Arthur Duane and Hal N. The religious views of the family are manifested through their mem- bership in the Unitarian church, while fraternally Dr. Heaton affiliates with the Ancient Order of United Workmen. He is also a member of the Sons of the American Revolution, this being awarded him because of his grandfather, Jacob Heaton, having participated in the struggle for independence. For twenty-

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eight years he has been identified with the Friday Club, the oldest social organi- zation in the city.

During the long period of his residence Dr. Heaton has been prominently identified with various civic interests. He was at one time a member of the executive board of the public library and was chairman of the building committee at the time of the erection of the present library. While a member of the board he gave much time to the interest of the public inaugurating several notable reforms. He was also a member of the school board for several years, and at one time represented Polk county in the state assembly, receiving the largest vote ever cast for any candidate. His political support he has ever given to the republican party, his fealty being rewarded by his constituency honoring him with the appointment of president of the Polk County Republican League in the campaign of 1896, in which capacity he attended the national convention held at Milwaukee. He is one of the citizens whose support can always be counted upon for the adoption of any measure which will tend to improve conditions in the community.

Dr. Heaton has met with success in his profession and the development of the various enterprises in which he is engaged, and in addition to his interests in this city has extensive realty holdings in North Dakota. He is highly regarded by his many acquaintances, the majority of whom are accorded the more intimate term of friend, as they recognize his full worth as a man and citizen.

FRANK W. McCANON, M. D.

The name of McCanon has long been connected with the practice of medicine in Des Moines, for long before Dr. Frank W. McCanon, now a well known physician of this city, took up the active work of the profession here his father was one of the teachers in Drake University as well as a practitioner. Frank W. McCanon is well qualified for his chosen life work and in his specialty is meet- ing with excellent success.

He was born in Vinton, Benton county, Iowa, June 15, 1860, his parents being Wallace C. and Martha (Bivens) McCanon, the former a native of New York and the latter of Erie county, Pennsylvania. The family name was origi- nally Cannon but on account of the number of Cannons residing in his neigh- borhood and the confusion caused in the delivery of mails and other incon- veniences in those early days the grandfather petitioned the New York legisla- ture to grant him the legal right to change his name to McCanon. He was a na- tive of Ireland and came from the same ancestry to which Hon. Joseph Can- non of Illinois traces his lineage. The maternal grandfather of Frank W. Mc- Canon was Welsh and wedded Miss Mary Livingston, a native of England.

Wallace C. McCanon in early manhood prepared for the practice of medicine and is still an active member of the profession. In 1869 he removed to Des Moines from Iowa City -and turned his attention to the retail grocery business, in connection with G. W. Kinney, their store being located at the northeast corner of Sixth and Walnut streets, on the present site of the Citizens National Bank. The building was later destroyed by fire and as the firm carried no in- surance Mr. McCanon was left in bad shape financially, forcing him to seek employment in other directions. He secured a position with a Mr. Howe, who was then conducting a retail grocery at the corner of Seventh and Locust streets. which district at that time was considered "out of town." The family residence. too, was at Seventh and Locust streets-far removed from the center of the city. Mr. McCanon managed and conducted the store for Mr. Howe for several years and is remembered by many of the older residents of Des Moines as an enter- prising merchant and reliable business man. Subsequently-in 1871-he went

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to Chicago, Illinois, and became a student in the Bennett Medical College, from which he was graduated with the M. D. degree. He followed his profession for several years and in 1882 returned to Des Moines, becoming one of the profes- sors in Drake University, giving instruction in materia medica and therapeutics. He also practiced in Des Moines and Polk county until 1898, when he removed to Alabama. He and his wife are now residents of Moline, Illinois.

Frank W. McCanon in his boyhood days accompanied his parents on their removal from Iowa city to Des Moines, where he pursued his education in the public schools. Determining to follow in the professional footsteps of his father, his interest in the practice of medicine being early aroused, he attended medical lectures in Iowa City, later became a student in the Keokuk (Iowa) Medical College, from which he was graduated in February, 1883, and later from Drake University with the M. D. degree in June, 1883. Immediately thereafter he entered upon the active practice of his profession, which he fol- lowed in various sections of this state, but took up his permanent home in Des Moines in 1906. Here he has since made a specialty of the treatment of ruptures and chronic diseases. He does an exclusive office practice, which has steadily grown in extent and importance. While a student in Drake University Dr. Mc- Canon was demonstrator in anatomy for the class. He did post-graduate work in the Metropolitan School of Osteopathy in Chicago in 1900, and also post- graduate work in the American Medical Association of Orificial Surgeons in Chicago in 1899. The same year he was a post-graduate student of medical electricity and in 1902 graduated in optics in the Jackson Optical School, and in various lines he has promoted his efficiency through private reading and practice, being today regarded as one of the able physicians of Des Moines.

On the 16th of October, 1882, in Iowa City, Dr. McCanon was married to. Miss Alice Smith, a daughter of Isaac Smith and a native of Johnson county. Iowa. They had four children but lost one by death. The others are: Elva L., who was born December 16, 1885, at Jewell Junction, Iowa; Byard E., born at Jewell Junction, in March, 1889; and Matie F., born in Calhoun county, Iowa, in November, 1890.

In politics Dr. McCanon is a republican with independent tendencies. He served as coroner of Hamilton county, Iowa, from 1886 until 1889 inclusive, but has never been a politician in the sense of office seeking, preferring to concen- trate his energies upon his professional duties, which are discharged with a sense of conscientious obligation. He holds to highest standards of service in his profession, is very careful in the diagnosis of his cases and practices along modern scientific lines.

FRANK C. WATERBURY.

Frank C. Waterbury, president of the Waterbury Chemical Company of Des Moines, stands at the head of one of the productive industries of the capital city whose ramifying trade interests have reached out not only to all parts of America but also to all sections of the world. The growth of the business and the extension of the trade are due largely to the recognition and utilization of opportunity and to the initiative spirit and carefully executed plans of Frank C. Waterbury who, however, finds in his business associates men of marked force and commercial weight, capable of successfully directing important manufactur- ing and commercial interests.

Frank C. Waterbury was born in Freeport, Illinois, April 16, 1866, his parents being Stephen and Lydia E. (Overman) Waterbury. The Mayflower on its second voyage to the new world brought among its passengers the ances- tors of the Waterbury family, who settled in New York. On the paternal side

FRANK C. WATERBURY

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there are Scotch and German ancestry. The Overmans were early residents of Iowa, J. M. Overman, the father of Mrs. Lydia E. Waterbury, having been one of the pioneers of Black Hawk county and the first mayor of Muscatine. He and his three brothers married the four nieces of Isaac Cooper who was a nephew of James Fenimore Cooper. J. M. Overman came to Iowa in 1842 and when gold was discovered upon the Pacific coast he was among the California argo- nauts who went in search of the golden fleece. The death of Stephen Water- bury occurred April 14, 1881, while his wife survived until September 20, 1901. In their family were five children: Frank C., the president of the Waterbury Chemical Company ; M. O .; Eugene W., secretary and treasurer of the Water- bury Chemical Company ; Fannie J., who became the wife of Clark Hoagland ; and Addie, the wife of Merton H. Wick.

While born in Illinois Frank C. Waterbury spent much of his life in Iowa and his education was largely acquired in the public schools. After putting aside his text-books he began the study of pharmacy and at the age of nineteen was employed as a traveling salesman of pharmaceutical products.

After the Spanish-American war Frank C. Waterbury was joined by his brother, Eugene W. Waterbury, in organizing and conducting the interests of the Waterbury Chemical Company, in which connection his efforts have brought substantial and gratifying success. The business of the house now extends to nearly every country on the face of the globe and represents the latest scien- tific achievement in pharmaceutical manufacture. Today the head works and main offices are located in Des Moines and there are also branch offices in New York; Toronto, Canada; London, England; Hong Kong, China; and Sydney, Australia ; while the goods of the company are handled in every important city and in many of the smaller towns of the world. The company is represented on the road by a large and efficient corps of traveling salesmen, while many people are employed in the laboratory and works in Des Moines in the manu- facture, preparation and shipment of the products of the company. One of their chief products is cod liver oil compound, whereby cod liver oil is converted by a method resembling the necessary process of digestion into a product which re- sembles that to which oil has been converted before it passes into chyle. The manufacture was at first begun only for the local trade but the demand for the product has steadily increased until now they ship three carloads each month to their foreign branches. Their preparation of cod liver oil is the only one of its kind in the world. Every new product placed upon the market brings forth the opposition of those whose trade will probably be effected thereby. The pro- ducts of the Waterbury Company, however, have survived the harshest criti- cisms and indeed have welcomed all investigation. Analysis has but confirmed the claims which they make and their output is a credit to the scientific pro- fessions of pharmacy and medicine. Their preparation is and always has been maintained as a strictly ethical pharmaceutical product for the exclusive use of physicians and has stood the test of the most careful and thorough analysis. receiving the indorsement of many of the most eminent members of the medical profession throughout the entire country. Their laboratories and factories pre- sent the appearance of careful systematization in the conduct of a business with a most thorough regard to sanitation in every form. Aside from his manu- facturing interests Frank C. Waterbury is a director of the Mechanics Savings Bank and an incorporator and director of the Des Moines Trust Company.

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Des Moines, the pioneer of municipal progress and reform of the middle West, together with the history of Polk County, Iowa, the largest, most populous and most prosperous county in the state of Iowa; Volume II, Part 72

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub Publication date: 1911 Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company Number of Pages: 1464

Author: Brigham, Johnson, 1846-1936; Clarke (S.J.) Publishing Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: Chicago, The S. J. Clarke publishing company
Number of Pages: 1464