Album of genealogy and biograghy, Cook County, Illinois, 10th ed., Part 83

Author: Calumet Book & Engraving Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: Chicago, Calumet book & engraving co
Number of Pages: 916

USA > Illinois > Cook County > Album of genealogy and biograghy, Cook County, Illinois, 10th ed. > Part 83

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In his political affiliations, in early life, Mr. Carrington was a Whig, and since the organiza- tion of the Republican party has been one of its stanch supporters. He has been honored with

some public offices, has served as Commissioner, for the past twelve years has filled the office of Justice of the Peace, and is the present incum- bent. The best interests of the community have ever found in him a friend. His co-operation and support are given to worthy enterprises, and all that is calculated to benefit the community re- ceives his assistance. The history of Cook County is well known to him, for since its early days he has watched its growth and advance- ment. He may truly be classed among the hon- ored pioneers, and it is with pleasure that we pre- sent to our readers the sketch of this worthy gen- tleman.

WESLEY POLK.

ESLEY POLK was a native of Kentucky. He was born in Jefferson County, on the 4th of November, 1818, and was one of six children whose parents were Edmund and Mar- garet Polk. Their children were H. H., James, William, Wesley and Wilson, but Henry H. is the only one now living.

Our subject was born and reared upon the home farm in Kentucky, and acquired the greater part of his education outside the school-room. He began life for himself when a young man, and was afterward dependent upon his own resources. In 1831 he left the State of his nativity and re- moved to Indiana, where he made his home un- til 1833, when he came to Illinois, making the journey by wagon. He located in Lyons Town- ship, where he purchased a tract of wild, uncul- tivated land on section 21, upon which a log cabin was built. He was accompanied by his parents and family, and they experienced all the hard- ships and trials of life on the frontier. The In- dians were still numerous in the settlement, and Chicago was the trading-point of the pioneers.

Mr. Polk grew to manhood upon the new farm, and there made his home until 1849, when, in

connection with his brother H. H., and three other young men, they started with pack mules for California. They walked much of the dis- tance, but at length after traveling for several months reached their destination. There Mr. Polk engaged in prospecting and mining from 1849 until 1851. His trip proved quite a success- ful one, and he returned home by way of New York City and the water route. He then came back to the farm, and to agricultural pursuits de- voted his energies until the breaking out of the war, when, in 1861, prompted by patriotic im- pulses, he responded to the country's call for troops. He enlisted as a private, was assigned to Company H, One Hundred and Twenty-seventh Illinois Infantry, and was mustered into service in Chicago. He faithfully followed the Old Flag for three years, and during that time was never either wounded or taken prisoner, but was always found at his post of duty, participating in all the engage- ments in which the regiment took part, a faithful and valiant defender of the Union. When mus- tered out he held the rank of Corporal.

When the war was over, Mr. Polk returned to the old farm, where he lived until 1881. He then

563

C. H. HARRISON, JR.

purchased the farını now owned by the family. It comprised one hundred and ninety acres of ricli and valuable land, under a high state of cultiva- tion and well improved with all the accessories and conveniences of a model farm. Mr. Polk be- gan life a poor boy, but his career was a success- ful one, for he was diligent and enterprising and possessed good business ability.

In 1860 Mr. Polk was united in marriage with Miss Mary J. Bielby. Her birthplace was near Utica, N. Y. They had only one child, Edmund R., who was born March 7, 1866. He attended the public schools and was graduated from the Metropolitan Business College of Chicago. On the 14th of January, 1891, he married Miss Agnes Little, and they have become the parents of one son, Wesley W. Edmund now carries on the

home farmı and is a wide-awake and enterprising agriculturist.

The father was called to his final rest May 23, 1893, and his remains are interred in Lyonsville Cemetery. He had the respect of all who knew him and his death was deeply mourned. In poli- tics, he was a stalwart advocate of the Republican party and its principles, and did all in his power to insure its success. For fourteen successive years he creditably and ably filled the office of Justice of the Peace, was Township Collector, and also served as Supervisor. Socially, he was a member of the Grand Army post, and in religious belief he was a Congregationalist. Alike true in public and private life, and faithful to every trust, he had the confidence and regard of all with whom business or social relations brought him in contact.

CARTER H. HARRISON, JR.

D ARTER H. HARRISON, JR., the editor of the Chic go Times, the leading Democratic newspaper of the city, has spent his entire life here, with the exception of three years spent in Germany and the time passed in college. The Harrison family has been prominently connected witli the city's interests since an early day, and the ancestors of our subject were among those who aided in achieving the independence of this country. The family originated in England, and some of its members came from that country to the United States in the seventeenth century, lo- cating in Virginia. It had several representatives in the Colonial army during the Revolutionary War, and Gen. William Russell, one of the ma- ternal ancestors of our subject, won his title during that eight-years struggle. Benjamin Harrison, who first came to America, was a man of promi- nence in Virginia, and served as Colonial Gov- ernor. For three generations after him the blood was transmitted through a Benjamin Harrison.

The fourth Benjamin had two sons, Benjamin and Carter. In direct line the descendants of tlie former are William Henry, Scott H. and Benja- min. Of the latter they are Robert Carter, Carter H., Carter H. (the late Mayor of the city), Carter H., Jr., of this sketch, and liis little son, who also bears the name of Carter H.

The gentleman whose name heads this record was born in Chicago, on tlie 23d of April, 1860. His father had located here several years previ- ous, and from that time until his death was ac- tively connected with the welfare of the city. The son was educated in private schools until 1873, when he went to Germany. In 1876, he attended college in New York, and later was graduated from1 St. Ignatius' College, of Chicago. He afterwards entered Yale College, and com- pleted the law course in that renowned institution in the Class of '83.

Returning to his home, Mr. Harrison then em- barked in the real-estate business, and carried on

564

CHRISTIAN THIELE.

operations along that line for a number of years, when, in 1891, in connection with his father, he bought out the Chicago Times, and assumed charge of the editorial department of the paper. The Times is too well known to need mention here. It is an old paper, yet its success and high reputation have been greatly increased since Mr. Harrison's connection with it.

In the year 1887, our subject was united in marriage with Miss Editlı Ogden, daughter of Rob- ert N. Ogden, of New Orleans, La., and to them has been born a son, who was named for his father and grandfather. Mr. Harrison holds member- ship with the University Club and the Chicago

Athletic Club. His connection with the Times at once indicates his political views to be Democratic. He is well known in his native city, his father's prominence having brought him a wide acquaint- ance among leading people, while his own qualities have gained for him their high regard and es- teem. He possesses the same attractive manner for which the Harrison family is noted. Although yet a young man, he is recognized as one of the leading and influential citizens of the second city in the Union, and whether he should continue in newspaper work or leave the journalistic field he is sure to occupy a position of importance.

CHRISTIAN THIELE.

& HRISTIAN THIELE, a well-known citizen of Proviso Township, this county, is a native of Germany, his birth having occurred in Hanover, on the 19th of January, 1834. His boy- hood and youth were quietly passed; the common schools afforded him his educational privileges, and in his native land he learned the carpenter's trade. Thinking to better his financial condition by emigrating to the New World, in 1850 he sailed for America, and after a voyage of nine weeks landed in New York City. During the trip across the water he served as the ship's car- penter. He left home with a capital of $50, which his father gave him, and with this he started out in life in the United States, a stranger in a strange land. After remaining in New York City for a short time, he took an emigrant train to Chicago.

On reaching that place, Mr. Thiele found that his money was exhausted, but he soon secured employment as a carpenter, and thus worked for about eighteen months. He then went to what is now Addison, and worked at his chosen trade, building houses for the farmers of that locality for a period of about nine years. With the capi-

tal thus acquired, he purchased a ten-acre tract of land where the village of Proviso now stands, and has here made his home continuously since. He rented an additional tract, and turned his atten- tion to farming, which he carries on in connection with the hay business.

In 1857, Mr. Thiele was joined in marriage with Miss Minnie Summerman, of Cook County, and unto them were born two children: Henry, who is now carrying on a grocery on Madison Street, in Oak Park, Chicago; and Sophia, wife of William Ruchty, a resident of Fullersburg. In the year 1872, the mother of this family was called to her final rest, and in 1874 Mr. Thiele was again married, his second union being with Miss Margaret Bernard, by whom he has two children, a son and daughter, Arno and Lizzie, both at home.

Mr. Thiele is now the owner of one hundred and sixty acres of valuable land in Cook County, together with a handsome brick residence, store and saloon, which are valued at $23,000. He also has a granary worth $6,000. Everything that he now possesses has been acquired through his own efforts. When he reached Chicago, he

565

A. F. WEBB.

slept for two nights in the depot, for lie had not money enough to pay for lodging. Undaunted, however, by the difficulties in his path, he soon secured work, and as he was enabled to save something from his earnings, he made judicious investments of his capital, and is now numbered

among thie substantial citizens of this community. He may be truly called a self-made man. In liis political views, Mr. Thiele is a Republican, and has served his township as Highway Commis- sioner.

ALBERT F. WEBB.

A LBERT F. WEBB, superintendent of the Stinson Stock Farm at Thornton, was born in Chicago, on the Ist of March, 1863, and is a son of Francis and Amelia (Wheeler) Webb.

The father was a native of England, born near London. In 1861, he took up his residence near Thornton, having that year crossed the Atlantic to America, and upon the farm where he located he made his home until his death, which occurred in 1881, at the age of fifty-one years. His widow still resides on the old homestead. She was born in Oxford, England, and came to America in 1862. Mr. and Mrs. Webb had a family of four children, but two of the number died in child- hood. Albert F. and Bessie are the survivors. The father of this family was a well-known citi- zen of Thornton and vicinity for some years. For a long time he carried on a general store in the village of Thornton and did a good business in that way. At the same time he operated his farm, and it also yielded him a good income. He was not a member of any church, but was an hon- orable, upright man, and for several years was superintendent of a union Sabbath-school in Thornton, and was always recognized as one of the most useful and esteemed citizens of the place.

Albert F. Webb attended the public schools, where he acquired a fair English education, and at the age of sixteen years he began clerking in a grocery store in Chicago. Thus he started out in life for himself and since that time he lias made

his own way in the world. For a year he con- tinued to serve as a salesman, and then began learning the carpenter's trade, which he followed for nine years. On the expiration of that period, in the spring of 1890, he became the superintend- ent of the Stinson Stock Farm at Thornton, which position he yet fills. This farm com- prises about seven hundred acres of land and is devoted to the breeding of trotting horses and Jersey cattle. About two hundred and fifty thoroughbred trotters are kept on the farm, most of them bred under the management of Mr. Webb. His stables are extensive, are well lighted and ventilated and are models of conven- ience in all particulars. They were built under the personal supervision of Mr. Webb and indi- cate his thorough knowledge of the needs and care of horses. The farm is now a first-class stock-breeding establishment. About thirty mien are employed upon the place, including several expert trainers, and altogether it is considered one of the best stock farms in the State. Since locating here Mr. Webb has also superintended the establishment of another stock farm on a similar plan at Highlands, Indiana.

In 1882, was celebrated the marriage of tlie subject of this sketch and Miss Winnie Wendt, daughter of Frederick Wendt, of Homewood. Slie was born in Germany, and came with her par- ents to Cook County when four years of age. Two children were born of their union, but the

566

E. P. FATCH.

son, George, died at the age of ten years. The daughter, Amy, is still with her parents.

Mr. Webb is a member of the Masonic frater- nity and of the Independent Order of Foresters. In politics, he has been a life-long Republican, and is a warm advocate of the principles of his party. He served for two terms as School Direc-

tor of Thornton. His position as Superintendent of the Stinson Stock Farm he has filled for four years, and in its management has given entire satisfaction. He is a systematic farmer and busi- ness man, a practical and enthusiastic stockman, and a public-spirited citizen.

EDWARD P. FATCH.

DWARD PATRICK FATCH, Clerk of the village of Wilmette, is a native of Cook County who reflects credit upon the place of his nativity. He was born in Chicago, on Saint Patrick's Day, 1867, and is a son of Theodore J. and Rose (Cassidy) Fatch, the former a native of Albany, New York, and the latter of Ireland.

T. J. Fatch is still a resident of Chicago, where he located in 1844, settling on the West Side, and has ever since been engaged in the dray and ex- press business. He has built up a large business, and employs a number of men and teams. His father was a native of Germany, the name being originally spelled Fach. Mrs. Fatch came to Amer- ica in 1851, and after living five years in Brook- lyn, came to Chicago. Her father, Edward Cassidy, was a Captain in the British army, and lost his life at the battle of Waterloo. His widow, Bridget Cassidy, died in Chicago, at the age of ninety-eight years. Mr. Fatch was born in 1855, and his wife two years later.

Edward P. Fatch was educated at the school attached to the Church of the Holy Family, at Twelfth and Morgan Streets, completing the course before he was eighteen years old. He im- mediately entered the employ of the North Amer- ican Accident Insurance Company, and continued one year. For the past nine years he has been

with the Standard Life and Accident Insurance Company, for the last five years in the capacity of manager of its general agency at Chicago. He has supervision of the business of the company all over the West, which is chiefly transacted with railroad employes. His long continuance and steady progress with his present employers attest his faithfulness and business ability.

In 1890 Mr. Fatch took up his residence at Wil- mette, where he built a handsome home, and in April, 1895, he was elected Clerk of the village. Since August, 1894, he has been the Wilmette correspondent of the North Shore News. He is a progressive, public-spirited citizen, and takes an intelligent interest in the affairs of his native country. He keeps thoroughly informed on all questions of the day, and adheres to the Republi- can party in matters of public policy, because its principles and practice exemplify his ideas of good government. He is a member of Ouilmette Council of the Royal Arcanum.

May 27, 1889, he was married to Miss Lavinia M. Bruno, and they are the parents of one child, Rose Louise, aged five years. Mrs. Fatch is a native of Geneva, Illinois, and is a daughter of John and Louise M. Bruno. Her father died from wounds received in the service of the United States during the Civil War.

567

HENRY GREENEBAUM.

ENRY GREENEBAUM, a well-known bus- iness man of Chicago of long years' stand- ing, is descended from very ancient and hon- orable families. His grandfather, Elias Greene- baum, was an iron merchant at Reipolskirchen, in Rhenish Bavaria. It is notable that this line of mercantile industry has been continued to the present, one of the leading iron houses of Chicago having been until recently conducted by great- grandsons of Elias Greenebaum. Being a Jew, the last-named was at a great social disadvantage in Germany, yet such were his energy, capability and integrity, that he was appointed Treasurer of his county. This position involved great re- sponsibility at that time, owing to the existence in the neighborhood of a powerful bandit, who com- manded a strong organization of followers, whom he ruled with despotic power. He was known by the nickname of "Schinderhannes," and acted much upon the plan of the Robin Hood of Eng- lish history, who took from the rich and gave largely to the poor. For many years he was a terror to the people and officers of the region where he flourished, but was finally captured and beheaded at Mainz. During his term of official life Elias Greenebaum was compelled to maintain a strong guard about his premises continually to protect the public funds, as well as his own, from attacks of the robber king.

Jacob Greenebaum and Sarah Herz, parents of the subject of this biography, were cousins, and grandchildren of "Jakob," of Rathiskirchen, who was born in the early part of the eight- eenth century, and whose descendants have been

active and prominent citizens in many lands. One of his sons, Herz Felsenthal, was a delegate to the synod held in Paris in 1806, by decree of Napoleon I. It was during this time that the Jews in Germany took surnames, and this family assumed that of Felsenthal. Among Jakob's great-grandchildren were Dr. Felsenthal, an emi- nent physician of Darmstadt, who died in 1885, and Dr. Greenebaum, who was Rabbi emeritus at Landau, Bavaria, and died in 1893. Dr. B. Fel- senthal, of Chicago, now in his seventy-fifth year, and long known here as a man of science and pub- lic spirit, is one of the great-great-grandchildren; so also is August Blum, Cashier of the Union Na- tional Bank of Chicago; Eli B. Felsenthal, an at- torney-at-law, and a Trustee of the Chicago Uni- versity; also Mrs. Hannah Greenebaum Solomon, President of the National Council of Jewish Women of America. A niece of Mrs. Solomon, and representing the sixth generation from Jakob, was married in San Diego, California, at the home of her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Max Lesem, in 1894.

Jacob Greenebaum was born at Reipolskirchen, and lost his father by death wlien lie was six years old. He was brought up to commercial pursuits, having the advantage of a thorough ed- ucation in the German, French and Hebrew lan- guages, and became a merchant at Eppelsheim, in the Grand Duchy of Darmstadt. He possessed a taste for agriculture, and gradually came into possession of land in the Commune of Eppelsheini and adjoining territory, until he owned and man- aged a large estate. His wife, of sacred memory,

568

HENRY GREENEBAUM.

was a daughter of Michael and Jetta (Felsen- thal) Herz, of Eppelsheim, where Mr. Herz was a veterinary surgeon and a livestock dealer. They were able to give their children the benefit of the best schools, and did not fail to thus perform their duty in preparing them for the stations for which they were fitted by birth and capability. In 1852 Mr. Greenebaum sold his possessions and came to Chicago to be near his sons, three of whom had preceded him by several years. He did not engage in active business after coming here, but made real-estate purchases and built a number of houses for rent. He died in 1870, at the age of seventy-three years, and was followed to the grave by a very large concourse of people, the large courthouse bell being tolled as the pro- cession moved, May 11, 1870. His wife survived him thirteen years, reaching the age of eighty- seven years. Eight of their thirteen children came to America, the others having died before the removal of their parents from Eppelsheim, several of them in infancy. Elias, the eldest, is a prominent banker in Chicago. Michael, the second, was an iron merchant, and did an exten- sive business in Chicago, where he died in 1894, leaving a widow and a large and interesting fam- ily of sons and daughters. He came to America in 1846, and to Chicago the next year. Jacob, the third, died here in 1871, and Isaac in 1885. The latter was a hardware merchant, and later in life became a broker in Chicago. Henry is the next in order of birth. Hannah died while the wife of Gerhard Foreman, an old-time banker of this city. Barbara is the wife of A. Wise, of Chicago; and David S., the youngest of the fam- ily, is engaged in the banking business in the same city. Elias, Michael and Henry preceded the rest of the family to Chicago.

Henry Greenebaum was born at Eppelsheim, Germany, June 18, 1833. He received his prim- ary education in the public schools, where he early attracted the favorable notice of the teachers and school officers. He then took up the classics at Alzey and Kaiserslautern, and only left off his literary researches when he started for Amer- ica. He arrived in Chicago October 25, 1848, and at once took employment as a hardware sales-

man in the establishment of W. F. Dominick, who conducted a strictly cash and one-price busi- ness. Young Greenebaum found this employ- ment congenial, especially as its conduct harmon- ized with his ideas of integrity and sound financial management. After two years of service, in which he did not fail to improve his opportunities, he engaged as clerk in the banking house of General R. K. Swift. Here he met many prom- inent citizens of the state, and his intercourse with them enhanced his knowledge of men and affairs. He was inspired with a laudable ambition to be- come a man of business, and he so applied him- self as to be thoroughly conversant with banking in the course of four years, during which time he made a trip to Europe and formed business con- nections for his employer.

At the end of this period, in connection with his elder brother, Elias, a clerk in the same bank, he opened a similar business on his own account. In fact, all of the Greenebaumn brothers, except Jacob, became at one time or another bankers, though not in the same bank. The subject of this sketch did not follow the limited lines of nationality or religious affiliation, but fraternized with New Englanders and Southerners, as well as the natives of the Fatherland. He was a reader and lover of books, and joined the Young Men's Library Association, in whose affairs he was an active officer, with Robert Collyer and others, until the Great Fire. He was among the early officers of the Athenæum, another literary institution after the fire, and was among the promoters of the City Library. As a member of the commit- tee of which the late Thomas Hoyne was Chair- man, he went to Springfield and aided in securing the permanent establishment of this great institu- tion, which has grown to be one of the most im- portant and valuable establishments of the city of his home.

He became President of the German-National Bank, which was compelled by the panic of 1877 to close its doors after a long-continued run, in which it paid eighty per cent. of its liabilities in cash, and within a comparatively short time paid the balance, with interest. The German Sav- ings Bank, of which he was also President, had

569

HENRY GREENEBAUM.

a similar experience at the same time, and inet its liabilities in the same lionorable manner. The aggregate deposits of these banks in the time of their highest prosperity approximated five mill- ions of dollars.

In his social and benevolent activities Mr. Greenebaum has accomplished a stupendous work, the simple enumeration of which almost exceeds the capacity of this article. His great heart and wide popularity are evidenced by the mere mention of these associations. He is a life member of the Chicago Historical Society, the Academy of Sciences, the Astronomical Society, and of several kindred associations. Through secret and benevolent societies he has been per- mitted to do more for his fellows than often falls in the way of a single man. All Jewish interests, congregational, charitable and educational, owe a heavy debt to the tireless energy and enthusiasm of Mr. Greenebaum. In 1855, at Cleveland, Ohio, he joined the nearest lodge of the Independent Order of B'nai B'rith, and two years later took a card of withdrawal in order to assist in institut- ing Rammah Lodge Number 33, of that frater- nity, in Chicago. He was an active member of District Lodge Number 2 for ten years, and one of the founders of the Cleveland Orphan Asy- lum, of whose Board of Trustees he is still a member. At the convention of the order in 1868, at New York, as a member of the Committee on Constitution, he was largely instrumental in plac- ing the entire body upon a Democratic basis, es- tablishing the sovereignty of lodges. At that convention a charter was granted to District Grand Lodge Number 6, of which he became the first Grand President by unanimous choice, and twice succeeded himself. His usefulness in these and other matters is well known to the great body of the Jewish people in Chicago, and has become almost as well established in foreign lands. In June, 1885, he assisted Julius Bien, President of this order, in instituting District Grand Lodge Number 8 at Berlin, Germany. Five years later he was in attendance at the convention of the order at Richmond, Virginia, representing the Berlin District Grand Lodge, and in May, 1895, repre- sented District No. 9, Roumania, at tlie conven-

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Album of genealogy and biograghy, Cook County, Illinois, 10th ed., Part 83

Author: Calumet Book & Engraving Company, Chicago, pub Publication date: 1898 Publisher: Chicago, Calumet book & engraving co Number of Pages: 916

Author: Calumet Book & Engraving Company, Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: Chicago, Calumet book & engraving co
Number of Pages: 916