USA > Illinois > Biographical and memorial edition of the Historical encyclopedia of Illinois > Part 81
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91
In 1858, Henry Holmes Belfield graduated from Iowa College. being awarded the valedic- tory, and two gold medals; and he was ap- pointed a tutor in the college the same day. The following year he was appointed principal of the Fifth Ward school in Dubuque, and a few months later was made superintendent of the city schools, although then only twenty- one years old. After the Civil war began. he resigned his school office, and participated in raising a regiment which was mustered into the government service as the Eighth Iowa Cavalry. In this regiment he served as adjutant, being detached at various times to the staff's
of Gens. McCook and Thomas. The regiment was in continuous active service as a part of the army of the Tennessee and Cumberland ; a part of it, including Mr. Belfield, was captured in July, 1864. Ile was a prisoner of war at Macon and at Charleston until exchanged in Septem- ber. At the battle of Nashville, December 15 and 16, 1864, he was severely injured when his horse fell upon him, but remained with his regi- meut until it was mustered out August 27, 1865. Hle then returned to Dubuque, becoming princi- pal of the Third Ward school. A year later he was appointed principal of the Jones school in Chicago, where he served until transferred to become principal of the new and commodious . Dore school in 1868. The summer vacation of 1867 he devoted to a visit to Europe.
In 1869 he married a teacher in the Dore school, Miss Anne W. Miller. She belonged to a family of Scotch-Irish ancestry ; her father, An- drew Miller, was born in Londonerry County, Ireland, and did not emigrate to the United States until he was abont twenty-one years old. Ile worked with his uncle, a ship-builder at Oswego, N. Y., where he married Margaret Wal- Jace, by whom he had three children : Anne, Mary, and Andrew. Mr. and Mrs. Belfield be- came the parents of six children: Clara Anne, Ada Marshall, Andrew Miller, Henry Holmes, Henry William, and Margaret Wallace.
In 1$76, Mr. Belfield was appointed principal of the new North Division High school. In this capacity he became impressed with the advan- tages that would result from training a boy's mind through his hands as well as from books; of directing the average boy's natural in- stinct for bodily activity into constructive and instructive channels. Mr. Belfeld became one of the pioneer advocates of manual train- ing in high schools, and a factor in the or- ganization of the Chicago Manual Training School, of which he was appointed director in 1$$3, and which was opened under his control in 1954. This school, the first independent Manmal Training School in the country, located at Michigan avenue and Twelfth street was built, equipped, and maintained by the Com- mercial Club of Chicago, as a publie benefaction. So brilliant was its success, so far in excess of
1235
HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
its accommodations were the applicants for ad- mission, that the Chicago city schools soon in- stalled mannal training in their curriculum.
In 1891 Mr. Belfield was sent by the United States government, at the instigation of Mr. Car- roll D. Wright, then Commissioner of Labor, to investigate technical schools in Europe.
In 1807, the Chicago Manual Training School was amalgamated with the University of Chi- cago, finally receiving the name, Uinversity High School. In 1905 accompanied by his wife and one daughter he spent eight months in Europe, traveling and studying. Mr. Belfield continned. to direct the work of the school until he retired from active duty in September, 1908.
Mr. Belfield was an active member of the Loyal Legion, which he served as senior vice commander. In 1910 he took his wife and two daughters to Europe for an indefinite residence. Returning in May, 1912, a visit was made at the home of a daughter, Mrs. H. M. Bates, at Ann Arbor, Michigan, and there Mr. Belfield died, June 5th, 1912.
In appreciation of his pioneer work in the conception and evolution of manual training as an educational method, the trustees of the Uni-
versity of Chicago designated the new building erected for manual training, the "Henry Holmes Belfield Hall." A year after his death, the new manual training building which bears his name was dedicated; and in it was placed a bronze tablet suitably inscribed, the gift of his early pupils in the Chicago Manual Training School.
Modest, refined, Mr. Beltield never fully ap- preciated himself, ter realized his powerful in- fluence for good upon all with whom he came in contact. An educator of unusual ability, he stiove to import knowledge, to stimulate ambi- tion, and above all, to mould character. On the memorial tablet presented to the University by his former pupils, he is called "Educator, Sol- dier. Citizen." These in truth he was; yet these vocations were but phases of an idealism which made Henry lohues Bolfield, by precept and example, a builder of character. This, his loy- alty to ideais, it is, that abides in the hearts of his pupils long after the technical instruction of the class-room is forgotten; and this loyalty to ideals it was, that made him a brave soldier, an earnest educator, a good citizen, in every capacity an inspiration to righteousness.
ROBERT M. EASTMAN.
It is not only as president of the W. F. Hall Printing Company that Robert M. Eastman has demonstrated his worth as a man, for he is justly numbered among the progressive citizens of Chicago who have the best interests of the city at heart. He was born at Anoka, Minn., December 1, 1869, a son of Job and Kate M. (Kimball) Eastman, natives of Maine.
Robert M. Eastman received his educational training in the public and high schools of Anoka, and came to Chicago when seventeen years old to work at the printing trade the rudiments of which he had already learned. Advancing in his trade, he became foreman and superintendent of the National Journalist Print- ing Company, and in 1593 became associated with the W. F. Hall Printing Company, which he has since continued. In August, 190$. he and Edwin M. Colvin purchased the capital stock of this company. Mr. Hall having died. From the time that Mr. Eastman entered the employ of the company, of which he is now exeentive head, its advancement has been steady. and the plant today is recognized to be one of the largest and best equipped in the United States,
the coannodious building at Kingsbury and Su- perior streets having been erected by Mr. East- man and Mr. Colvin.
On January 24, 1594, Robert M. Eastman married Carrie Evers, a daughter of William Evers, and they have two children, William Evers and Eunice. Mr. Eastman is a Republi- can, politically, and fraternally is very promi- nent in Masonry, being a Knight Templar and thirty-second degree Mason, and is also a Shriner. Socially, he belongs to the Chicago Athletic, South Shore Country and City clubs.
Possessed of a close and intimate knowledge of his calling, coupled with excellent judgment and a knowledge of men, Mr. Eastman has been able to advance the interests of his company. and to give to his business patrons a service and a quality of work not ordinarily found. While his business cares absorb much of his time, he is interested in matters pertaining to the development of the city, and any measure looking towards the securing of better condi- tions here is sure of his hearty support.
1236
HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
WILLIAM AMES HEATH.
For more than three decades. William Ames Heath, president of the Live Stock Exchange National Bank, of Chicago, has figured in bank- ing and financial circles in Illinois, and has maintained throughout his entire career a high standard of business principles, his life story being that of laudable ambition, unfaltering de- termination and earnest endeavor to reach a high place in the line of activity to which he has devoted his talents; and, that the qualities chosen as chief factors in his career are result- ant, is evidenced through many years of suc cessful operations in the world of finance. He is an exemplification of the alert, self-reliant, progressive citizen, whose record is a demon- stration of the supreme powers of energy, thrift and foresight. Like many of his fellow Illinois bankers, who have left their impress upon the financial development of the state, he has risen to his present high position through the ranks, having started to assimilate knowledge in his chosen field in the humblest capacity. A review of the salient points of his carer will show that it has been one of constant advancement. ad- vancement all the more creditable in that it has been self-secured.
Mr. Ileath is a native of the Hoosier State. having been born in Sullivan County. Ind., June 20, 1862, a son of the Rev. Nathaniel F. and Cynthia (Burnett) Heath. The father was a noted Methodist minister, who, while still resid- ing in Chicago founded the Wabash Avenue Methodist Church and was its first pastor. He was a writer of grace and force and an orator whose eloquence never failed to move his hear- ers, was beloved by his several congregations, and was accounted as one of the leading divines of the Methodist denomination in Illinois through- out the period of his lifetime. William Amnes Heath received his early literary training in the public schools, and, after passing through the consecutive grades to his graduation from the high school, he matriculated in the University of Illinois, in which he took a thorough course and graduated from that institution in 18 3. He had early determined upon a career as a banker, and accordingly, in the same year that be finished his studies, secured employment in the prosperous Champaign (Illinois) Bank. where his first duties were those of messenger. He remained with this institution until 1902. and it needs no particular power of discern- ment to recognize the fact that his diligence.
efficiency and fidelity were strongly manifested, else he would not have won continuous promo- tion through the mineteen years of his connec- tion with that enterprise. Passing through the intermediate positions, he eventually reached that of cashier, and the prominence he had at- tained in banking circles during the time he occupied that office led to his appointment to the position of State bank examiner for Illinois, in 1902. He continued to act in that capacity until 1001, when he was made vice-president of the Ilibernian Banking Association of Chicago, and has since figured actively in banking circles of the Illinois metropolis. In January, 1910, Mr. Heath was called to the presidency of the Live Stock Exchange National Bank, located at the Onion Stock Yards, Chicago, and has since acted as the directing head of this institution. Mr. Heath's progressive policy in the manage- ment of the bank, which is recognized as one of the strongest financial institutions of the West, is tempered by a safe conservatism that indicates the careful leadership of one who brings to the discharge of his duties keen dis- cernment, unfaltering purpose and high ideals -- his long experience and natural adaptability in the banking business eminently qualifying him for the responsible office which he now fills. Mr. Heath was also called upon to manage financial interests for the city of Champaign, Ill., as its treasurer, and in addition filled the position of school treasurer. He has likewise received other evidences of public confidence and trust when solicited to manage or control interests of general importance. In 1901 he was made a member of the Illinois State Com- mission of the Pan-American Exposition, held in Buffalo. N. Y., a commission to which repre- sentative citizens were chosen that the inter- ests of the state might be carefully guarded and promoted.
Mr. Heath was married June 17, 1890, to Miss Clara Owens, who passed away December 10. 1904. having been the mother of two sons and a daughter: Nathaniel P., William O. and Florence B.
In his political proclivities, Mr. Heath is a Republican and has always taken an active in- terest in the success of his party, although he has never been an aspirant for publie prefer- ment. He is a valued member of the Union League, the Midlothian Country and the Univer- sity clubs, and is a Knight Templar Mason, be-
D. F: Hough Champaign Illinois -
1237
HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
ing connected with Champaign Commandery, at Champaign, Ill. He is likewise a member of the Indiana Society of Chicago. He is inter- ested in all that pertains to modern progress and improvement along material, intellectual and moral lines. He has always found time for
studying and fostering movements which aim to improve the publie weal and his charities ex- tend to all worthy enterprises. Personally a man of genial and courteous manner, the num- bor of his friends is limited only to the num- ber of his acquaintances.
CHARLES F. HOUGH.
Rarely enough is it true that an abundant success in business, instead of engendering en. pidity, is viewed by its recipient as a key to added opportunities of widening his sphere of useful- ness. On a firm foundation of accurate medical knowledge administered with conscientiousness and discernment, the late Dr. Hough of Cham- paign built a splendid practice. He did not, however, beyond providing an ample income for himself and family, strive to amass a large fortune. Instead, he lent the freedom he gained from the worry and the heart-breaking struggle of making a living, to the interests of his fel- low townspeople and to the mitigation of trou- bles oppressing those less fortunate than he.
Charles F. Hough was born at Martinsburg, N. Y., of sturdy New England stock, and his ideas of right and wrong and of true justice were instilled in him from his earliest years, by his parents. His first work was in a dry goods establishment owned by his father, but as this proved less to his taste than the promises of professional life, he was sent to Cleveland, Ohio, and was later enrolled as a student in the Hahnemann Medical College, from which he graduated with highest honors. With this preparation, Dr. Hough located at Atlanta, Ill., and after some years of successful practice there, removed to Champaign, where a larger field was offered for his labors. Here his ability and his personality were soon recognized as being of the requisite high quality, and his prac- tice soon assumed proportions rivaling that of any practitioner in entire Champaign County. His duties necessarily engrossed much of his time, but no case is on record when he failed to show equal solicitude for rich or poor patient, or to give equally of his services or advice, re- gardless of remuneration. It was this sort of whole-souled consideration that made Dr. Hough so widely esteemed and respected. In recogni- tion of the position he held among the men of the medical profession, he was elected president of the Central Illinois Homeopathic Association, and at the time of his demise, he headed the Mississippi Valley Improvement Association, a
pewty-formed organization which purposed to end the suffering caused by the annual overflow of the Mississippi River, and which owed its origin largely to the Doctor's efforts. He was thoroughly conversant with the work of the last named body, for he was the owner of several large plantations in the South and had suffered from the river s devastation.
The initial movement along this line was made in Champaign, Ill., at the instigation of Dr. Hough and other holders of land in the dis- tressed district. which movement led to the organization of the Mississippi Valley Improve- ment Association of Illinois, on August 20, 1912, in Chicago. At the meeting which led to the organization of the association, Dr. Hough was placed in the presidential chair. Under him the meeting progressed in a morning and afternoon session and resolutions were passed to the ef- fect "That it is the opinion of the members of the association here assembled that the Gov- ernment of the United States should promptly and energetically assume control of the entire problem of the prevention of the overflows on the lower Mississippi River, and by gravity drainage, reclaim the rich lands subject to over- tiow, and this, on plans broad and comprehen- sive enough to make. the lands available for the production of food for the millions of people they are capable of supporting." This meeting bore a nation wide interest, and the Illinois association, headed by Dr. Hough, though not at present affiliated with similar organizations for the same purpose, commends the subject to the Nation for serious consideration, and makes its plea for government control of the project, look- ing forward to the coalition of all persons inter- ested both for national and personal welfare, to assure a prompt and effective consummation. The work Dr. Hough did toward furthering the interests of the Mississippi Valley Improvement Association, during the congress of its members at the initial meeting, involved the last public acts to be recorded in his life.
Dr. Hough was intimately connected with the fraternal and social life of Champaign, being a
1238
HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
Knight Templar Mason, and an enthusiastic and loyal Elk, and, until very recently, a mem- ber of the Country Club. Ile was one of the attending physicians at the Julia F. Burnham Hospital. While deeply interested in politica! issues from the standpoint of civic welfare, , he never chose to use the prestige he had attained as a means of securing public recognition.
On September 9, 1912, Dr. Hough was suddenly called from life, dying from a sudden attack of heart failure. He is survived by his wife and
three children: Holen, Charles and Warren. Ilis passing was a blow to the entire town, for his life bad been intimately interwoven with the growth and prosperity the city has enjoyed ; and no more striking tribute could have been paid him than the expressions of deep sorrow voiced by all who knew huis, when his death was announced. His burial service was held under the direction of the Masonic fraternity, the local chapter having charge.
CALLISTUS SEXTON ENNIS.
The building of railroads, the establishment of huge industrial concerns, the founding and maintenance of sound financial institutions all play a large part in the growth and develop- ment of any city, but back of all this effort lies the service rendered by the men who have been wise and progressive enough to realize the pos- sibilities of a community, and put them before an investing public. To the realty men of any section, the municipality owes much. Few con :- munities can attain to greatness or national prominence within themselves. It is necessary to infuse a little new blood, to interest outside capital, and prove to keen business men the desirability of transplanting their interests. Such work comes into the sphere of those men who devote their energies to the handling of real estate, and in Chicago, especially, they have done nobly. Among the truly great meu of this metropolis, are numbered the names of many whose efforts have been directed along this line, and one well known is that of Callis- tus Sexton Ennis, founder and president of the firm of. Callistus S. Ennis & Company, real es- tate investments and mortgages.
The birth of Callistus Sexton Ennis took place at Chicago, October 14, 1863, a son of James and Mary A. (Sexton) Ennis. After attending the grammar and High schools of Chicago, in December, 1879, he began the study of law, but realizing that he had no aptitude for that pro- fession, he turned his attention to commercial pursuits. In 1800, he formed a connection with Dunlap Smith in a real estate business, and continued it until the death of Mr. Smith, when in 1902, he became a member of the firm of George W. Cobb & Company. This association continued for two years, and then in 1904, Mr. Ennis founded his present firm and has since
continued its executive head. His firm handles some very important Chicago vealty and execute aud negotiate important loans on real estate. The business of the firia is of the highest class, and numbers among its clients many of the leading; investors of the city. Through his long association with this line of endeavor here, Mr. Enbis has come to know it in all its details and is regarded as one of the leading authorities on realty values.
On March 11, 1890, Mr. Ennis was married to Miss Clara F. Ceperly and they have three chil- dren, namely : Callistus James, Esther Frances and Paul. The family reside at No. 1437 Pratt avenue, Rogers Park. Mr. Ennis belongs to the Chicago Athletic Club. His political affiliations are with the Democratic party.
For five years Mr. Ennis served in the First Regiment, I. N. G., and afterwards for seven years in the Veteran Corps of the First Regi- ment. Ile is a member of the Chicago Associa- tion of Commerce, the Building Men's Associa- tion and the Chicago Real Estate Board, serving as president of the latter in 1913. It would be difficult to find any man of his age and business connections who has done more to advance the interests of Chicago. A man of sound principles, he has never been willing to countenance any measure that he did not believe praiseworthy, and more than once his stand upon matters re- lating to the promotion of certain ventures, has saved a loss to the city and individuals of con- siderable moment. His social connections are of a nature to promote his enjoyment of life, and in his home circle he is the ideal husband and father. It is such men as Mr. Ennis that form the backbone of Americanismo, and set an example for others to follow.
1239
HISTORICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ILLINOIS.
JOHN ERWOOD.
Inventive genius leads a man into a life filled with constant striving to better existing condi- tions. His is the task to add to, not take from the civilization of his age, and although some- times he does not live to reap the full benefit of his labors, the world is made a better place for others because of his efforts. Without the inventor, present civilization would be impos- sible. To those whose brains were above the average, and whose genius conceived and brought forth machinery and appliances of every kind. is due the credit for the emergence of the world from the age of the cave man to the civilization of today. As soon as the cave man sought to improve his condition, he raised himself above his fellows, and entered upon a new era. No one man stands alone, and in nothing is this more true than in the work of the inventor. While his inventions may be epoch making, he profits by what has been done by those who have come before him, and in the same measure will his products aid generations to come in effecting further improvements. One of the men who bore well his part in the in- ventive history of his times, was John Erwood, formerly a resident of Chicago.
John Erwood was born in London, England, September 13, 1859, a son of Joseph and Char- lotte (Jones) Erwood, natives of Cheshire and London, England, the former of whom is a re- tired decorator. After a boyhood spent in at- tending school. at the age of twenty years, John Erwood came to the United States, and for a year was connected with an engineering firm of New York City. At night he attended school. and tried his skill at contriving appliances and learning the fundamental principles of engineer- ing. At the expiration of a year, he came to Chicago and for a time worked for several steam and gas fitting concerns until he was engaged to operate a stationary cugine, operated by steam. His chief aim was to secure greater
efficiency in his work, and in time he attracted the attention of Maxwell Bros., who secured his services as a stationary engineer, he remaining with this concern until ISS5, when he opened an office of his own at No. 66 Clinton street, as'a consulting civil engineer, later moving it to C'anal street. In this capacity he was connected with the erection of the Kimball Piano Co. building, the George P. Bent Piano works, the Hill Coffin works, and a number of other struc- tures. When the Thomas B. Jeffery Co., of Kenosha, was organized for the purpose of man- ufacturing automobiles, Mr. Erwood was made the consulting engineer of that organization and so continued until his death April 14, 1914. However, it is as an inventor that Mr. Erwood rendered the greatest service to his age, and among other appliances which he patented may be mentioned : the Excelsior atmospheric back- pressure valve ; blow-off valve; double acting non-returning valve; the corrugated (rolling shuttle) warehouse door, and another door for warehouse work.
On September 13, 1887, John Erwood was married at Chicago, to Miss Elizabeth P. Jones. of Vanwert, Ohio, a daughter of Thomas and Margaret (Parry) Jones. Mr. Jones is an ex- tensive agriculturalist of Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Erwood became the parents of the following children : Charlotte Ann, who is at home ; Eliza- beth, who is Mrs. Charles E. Beck of Chicago: and John E., Joseph and Mary who are all at home. The religious sentiments of Mr. Erwood made him a Christian Scientist and he took a great deal of comfort in his connections with this organization. For a number of years he was a member of the Engineers Association. . 1 man of great energy, and remarkable genius. he was able to turn his knowledge to practical purposes, and left the world much the richer for his inventions.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.