USA > Indiana > A History of Indiana from its exploration to 1922 > Part 27
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five years. Not content with giving liberally to its support, he labored with hand and heart, in season and out of season, for its spiritual and temporal welfare. Largely through his instrumentality the church was relieved of debt only two weeks before his death. For many years he was a trustee of Wabash college, to which he left a bequest in aid of its library, and it was in accordance with the fitness of things that Dr. Tuttle, the venerable president of the college, officiated at his funeral on the 10th of February, 1882. His tribute was that of a good man to a good man whom he loved. A few sentences from Dr. Tut- tle's sermon may be quoted here: "He was a husband. And one who had leaned on him these many years finds her strong staff broken. He was a father. These children suddenly find the fatherly heart has ceased to beat, and the fatherly hand closed. He was a friend. Hund- reds outside his home called him their friend. They loved him. His presence was as sunlight to them. How much it meant when they said: 'He is our friend.' He was a philanthropist. Such were his varied relations to the suffering that he might have said: 'When the ear heard me, then it blessed me, because I delivered the poor and father- less, and him that had none to help him.'" The wife of his youth, who had been a loved companion for half a century, followed him to the tomb in a few months. A daughter and a son survive. Mrs. Samuel Bayard, wife of a prominent citizen of Evansville, whose biography is published in this volume, and James L. Orr, who succeeded to the business. One of the appropriate memorials erected by their children to commemorate the life and work of Samuel Orr and his good wife is the beautiful parsonage of the church in which they worshiped.
JOHN A. REITZ
John A. Reitz was born December 17, 1815, at Dorlar, Prussia, where his father, Francis Joseph Reitz, owned large estates. His childhood received careful training at home. When only twelve years of age he was sent to Esloh, one of the important educational centers of Prussia, where he pursued his studies four years under a capable tutor. The five years next succeeding were spent in work at home. On attaining his majority, inspired by a spirit of adventure and a de- sire to enjoy the blessings and opportunities afforded by a free popu- lar government, he turned his face westward and set sail for the United States. He was the first immigrant to leave his native village for America, and it required courage to break home ties and start alone on a voyage of nearly four thousand miles. The sturdy German races have long been noted for courage and determination, and he possessed the characteristics of his race. His ancestors were long lived. It is related that his grandmother lived to the age of one hundred and six- teen years, and, on the death of her husband at the age of eighty-one, managed successfully for nearly thirty years the business of manufact- uring salt, inaugurated by him. After a long voyage the young man landed at Baltimore, but in a short time crossed the Alleghanies and located in Louisville. Soon afterwards he was induced by a practical potter to establish a pottery in Evansville, where clays adapted to that
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industry had been discovered. The business proved to be unprofitable, for want of demand for the ware, and was abandoned after a few kilns had been burned. After spending a year in Louisville, he settled per- manently at Evansville, in 1838, taking employment in a saw and plan- ing mill owned by Judge Stephens, which was soon afterwards de- stroyed by fire. For several years after that he was employed in a saw mill, and then with his half-brother built a mill in that city. At the end of ten years his brother retired and the mill burned. It was rebuilt im- mediately, and in 1873 was again rebuilt and enlarged until it became one of the substantial and profitable manufactories of Evansville. Subsequently his sons were taken into partnership and the firm be- came John A. Reitz & Sons. This firm is probably the largest manu- facturer of hardwood lumber in the country. In 1857 he formed a partnership with John A. Haney, to operate a foundry, which was con- tinued with great success for a period of twenty-four years, and then sold to other parties. He assisted in organizing the Crescent City bank in 1856, and became one of its directors, subsequently filling the offices of vice-president and president. This institution was one of the solid banking organizations of the state and continued to transact busi- ness until the national bank law was enacted. It was then succeeded by the Merchants' National bank, of which Mr. Reitz was a director. Later on he transferred his interest to the German National bank, in which he held the position of director for several years, then was elected vice-president and afterwards president, holding the presidency at the time of his death, May 12, 1891. He was not only a successful manufacturer and banker, but was associated with other enterprises and organizations that promised remuneration to their founders and benefit to the city. Realizing the value of transportation as a factor in the building up of a commercial centre, he became an active promoter of railroads, was one of the incorporators of the Evansville, Carmi and Paducah road and president of the company. It is now known as the St. Louis division of the Louisville and Nashville system. He was for years also a director of the Nashville division of the same system, from Evansville to Nashville, Tennessee. Mr. Reitz was charitable as well as public-spirited. He was liberal in the expenditure of his means to benefit the poor and the unfortunate. As a memorial to his daugh- ter Louise, who died some years ago in California, he built a commo- dious home for the aged poor on a site selected for its beauty and pleas- ant surroundings. This home he presented to the Little Sisters of the Poor, in order to insure the proper care of the inmates. The number cared for is about one hundred. He was a devout Roman Catholic in his religion and a member of the church of the Holy Trinity. No member was more generous in contributing to the erection of its build- ing and the maintenance of its worship. He built at his own expense the church of the Sacred Heart, and presented it to the bishop as a place of worship for the Irish Catholics. His liberality was character- ized by a catholicity not confined to the church of his own belief. Protestant churches received liberal contributions from his abundance. Every public enterprise that tended to advance the interest of Evans-
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ville or better the condition of mankind found in him an active sup- porter. His charity was as broad as humanity. There is no sectarian- ism in the home which he founded. The deserving poor, whose weight of years incapacitates them from earning a livelihood in the ordinary pursuits, are welcomed to its privileges, without regard to their creed or nationality. He contributed liberally to build and main- tain Evans Hall, dedicated solely to the cause of temperance. What- ever he undertook was prosperous, not through luck, but on account of prudence and foresight which determined the character of his under- takings. His real estate investments were immensely profitable. His sympathy for the unfortunate prompted the greatest liberality in their behalf, and sometimes prevented that careful investigation of the merits of an appeal which he would have given to a business proposi- tion ; hence he was frequently imposed upon by unscrupulous and de- signing men who took advantage of his generosity. When the town of Lamasco was incorporated in 1846 he became its chief executive of- ficer and managed its affairs with ability until it was consolidated with Evansville. He was largely instrumental while president of the board of trustees in advancing the interests of the Evansville and Crawfordsville (now the Evansville and Terre Haute) and the Straight Line railroads. He embarked in some very large real estate enterprises with the late Willard Carpenter, which proved to be very profitable. In 1862 Mr. Reitz was elected to the state legislature, as a joint representative from the counties of Vanderburgh and Posey, and served during the memorable session of 1863. He was also a member of the city council. He was very active in all public enterprises that had for their object the advancement of his city. While he always acted with the Democratic party, he did not allow his devotion to party politics to so control his actions that he could not support all measures which were for the general good of the community. He was not a partisan in any sense of the word. He never acted hastily in anything he undertook, but when he had reached a decision could not be swerved from his course. The relation between himself and his employes have always been cordial and sympathetic. Though a large number of men have been employed, the business, extending over a period of nearly fifty years, has never been interrupted by a strike. Mutual confidence between employer and employe is firmly established. This condition has always existed, not only when John A. Reitz conducted the busi- ness, but under the present management as well. The result of this humane treatment is that the men who have grown old in his service (and there are some who have been employed forty-one years) are not discharged by reason of their advancing years; but their names hold the same place on the payrolls at the same wages they received in their strength and vigor. Such a policy is creditable to the conscience and the sagacity of the successful man who inaugurates it. It makes friends of employes, and the increased interest which they take in their em- ployer's business no doubt insures better returns than if he exacted hard conditions. It is evidence of a high type of humanity and tends to mitigate the antagonism between capital and labor. Mr. Reitz was
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married in 1839 to Miss Gertrude Frisse, who came from a locality in Prussia not far from the place of his nativity. Ten children were born to them, all of whom are living but two-the daughter who died in California in 1886 and a son who was drowned in Colorado in 1892. The subject of this sketch was a man of strong convictions and char- acter. He was deliberate in forming his judgment and unyielding in his firmness when it was formed. He was ready to stand alone if necessary in defense of what he conceived to be right. He was a man of such wide experience in business and such excellent judgment that he was consulted freely regarding the management of large financial institutions and important enterprises. He was conservative and hon- est. It was the policy of his business life to owe no man. He kept free from debt and was able to devote all his thought and energy to the prosecution of his work without annoyance or embarrassment incident to debt. He never entered into a contract to pay without having the cash to meet the payment at once. The freedom from obligations due in the future contributed much to his success and infinitely more to his happiness. He was a man of fine physique, fond of outdoor exercise and manual labor. His family life made his best traits conspicuous. He was devoted to his wife and children, with affection that sought to provide for their comfort and happiness. Business affairs were not permitted to enter the precincts of home. His supremest enjoyment was around the hearthstone, as the central figure in a circle cemented by love and confidence. In that home circle, where the happiness of each was the desire of all, he found rest and recreation. His wife was helpful by her sympathy and advice. She was a charitable woman, con- tributing her full share to the support of the church and worthy benevolent objects in the community. She supplemented and made complete the home life of a happy family.
THOMAS E. GARVIN (A Contemporary Sketch)
Hon. Thomas Edgar Garvin has been a resident of Evansville for half a century: Of Scotch-Irish extraction, he was born at Gettys- burg, Pennsylvania, September 15, 1825. His parents were John and Providence Garvin, names that almost might identify them as Puri- tans. At the age of fourteen he entered Mount St. Mary's college at Emmettsburg, Maryland, from which he was graduated in 1844 on completion of the regular course of study. Impressed with the greater opportunities and superior advantages of a residence in the West, while yet a boy, he came to Indiana and located in Evansville, when nineteen years of age. He became not simply a spectator of the re- markable progress of his section of the state but thoroughly identified with it. He was not only a witness of the growth of Evansville from a straggling frontier town to the second city of the state, to population, commercial and industrial prosperity, but contributed largely to that growth and prosperity. He chose the profession of law early and en- tered upon a study of its text-books in the office of Conrad Baker, then a most capable lawyer, afterwards elected lieutenant-governor and governor of the state. Without an inheritance of wealth or the
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necessary means to pay expenses while pursuing his studies, he en- gaged to teach in the public schools. It is a historical fact that very many great men have made teaching a means to other ends. The emoluments of a Hoosier schoolmaster have enabled many a man to lay the foundation for success in law ; and the benefit derived is not limited by the salary paid for such employment. The preparation re- quired for teaching, the discipline incident to self-control, the. study of mental phenomena, the methodical presentation of the facts and principles of science, so that they may be grasped and comprehended by the youth-all contribute to the development of the teacher's facul- ties and enlarge his capacity for usefulness and achievement in other fields. Mr. Garvin is doubtless a better lawyer on account of his early experiences as a school-teacher. It is an epoch that contributes to the pleasures of memory and to the higher qualifications for success in any calling. He was admitted to practice in 1846, after examination by two circuit judges, James Lockhard and John Law. It was before the
era of the new constitution. Some other qualification was required for a lawyer besides good moral character. He at once formed a part- nership with Governor Baker, which was continued with pleasure and profit for a period of fourteen years. The firm of Baker and Garvin enjoyed a wide popularity and a lucrative practice. No firm in south- ern Indiana had employment in more important cases and none were more capable of protecting the interest of clients. In 1862 he was elected as a Democrat to represent Vanderburgh county in the legis- lature, and was a member during one of the most exciting and inter- esting sessions in the history of the state, serving his party with com- mendable zeal, his constituents with entire fidelity, according to his views of duty and obligation. He was one of the charter stockholders in the First National bank of Evansville, and has for many years been which had graduated hi mthirty years before, conferred upon him the director of the same institution. In 1876 Mount St. Mary's college, which had graduated him thirty years before conferred upon him the honorary degree of LL. D. It was an honor worthily bestowed because of his ability as a lawyer, his love of literature and his character as a man. For the past ten years his chief legal employment has been in matters pertaining to real estate, and he has established a high reputa- tion as a title lawyer. His certificate as to the correctness of an ab- stract is accepted as an absolute guarantee of title. He was one of the original board of trustees of the Willard library and has continuously manifested a lively interest in its affairs. As an officer he has been active in extending its benefits in the community. During his profes- sional engagements and business pursuits he has found time for the gratification of a literary taste. His researches along the lines of nat- ural history especially have been extended and thorough. He was married November 11, 1849, at Penn Yan, New York, to Miss Cor- nelia Morris, a worthy descendant of the Morristown, New Jersey, family of that name noted in the annals of the revolution. Judge Gar- vin is a remarkable man. Having attained the mature age of three- score and ten years he is hale and strong, with the promise of many
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years of useful activity. His physical strength is equaled by his in- tellectual vigor, and neither of these excels the keenness of his com- mercial acumen. His memory is marvelously retentive and serviceable, holding in store available for immediate use a vast fund of informa- tion, statistical and otherwise, for which other men would be obliged to search the records. His knowledge is full and accurate as to the transfers of property and the financial condition, resources and sol- vency of nearly all the individuals, firms and corporations of the county. In strength and quality of intellect, knowledge of the classics, breadth of acquired information, comprehensive acquaintance with lit- erature and knowledge of jurisprudence, he is not only fully equipped for the practice of law, but also admirably qualified for the duties of a college president. He is an omnivorous reader of historical and sci- entific works, as well as current literature and newspapers. He is also a concise, forceful, entertaining writer. He was a commissioner for the state of Indiana at the Centennial exposition in 1876, and one of the national commissioners to the World's Columbian exposition in 1893. He performed much of the necessary work in connection with the creditable exhibits from his state. He is modest, rather inclined to disparage himself than to speak his own praise or mention his own achievements. Mr. Garvin is the oldest lawyer in continuous practice at the Evansville bar. In his person the old and the new are united. He has not forgotten the deferential politeness of the old school, with its high sense of professional honor and punctilious methods ; though he is well up in the more strictly business methods and commercial practice that prevails at the present time. He has long been regarded a safe counselor as well as an able advocate. His ability and con- scientiousness in the law have secured and held the respect of the pro- fession. His general information, progressive ideas and character for integrity make him a useful citizen and a successful political leader. His modest bearing and genuine worth have won a retinue of devoted friends and determined his status as one of the first men in the com- munity.
SAMUEL BAYARD (A Contemporary Sketch)
Samuel Bayard, president of the Old National Bank of Evansville, was born at Vincennes, Indiana. His parents were John F. Bayard, a native of France, who immigrated to Indiana at an early day, and Mary Ann Boneau, a native of Vincennes, the oldest town within the borders of the state, whose first white settlers were French. His edu- cation was the best that could be obtained in the public and private schools of that educational town. His first employment for wages was in the capacity of deputy in the office of clerk of the circuit court, a position which he filled acceptably for three years. He resigned to accept a clerkship in the Evansville branch of the State Bank of Indi- ana in 1851. He soon developed a genius for banking and a remark- able aptitude for the details of the business. Two months after his first connection with the institution he was promoted to the more re- sponsible position of teller, and discharged the duties connected with that office until the affairs of the bank were closed in 1857, by a
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change of the banking system of the state. It was succeeded by the branch at Evansville of the Bank of the State of Indiana. Upon the organization of this bank Mr. Bayard was appointed cashier, and oc- cupied the position continuously until the law of congress enacted during the war ushered in the era of national banking, when the state institution was succeeded by the Evansville National Bank, of which he was chosen cashier. After two years' service he was elected vice- president, in 1867, and in that position really had the executive man- agement of the bank. In 1876 he was elected president, and has held the presidency of that bank and its successor, the "Old National," which he organized, down to the present time. The bank has long been one of the soundest and most successful fiscal institutions in the state, a condition due in a very large degree to the judicious and able man- agement of its chief executive officer. Its capital and surplus ex- ceed a million dollars. Mr. Bayard's activity was not exhausted by a single enterprise or expended in one bank. His knowledge of finance was broad enough to warrant his official connection with other institu- tions and banks in which he made investments. In 1864 he assisted in organizing the firm of W. J. Lowry & Co., for the banking business, and retained an interest in the firm, which had very high standing and credit for many years. He aided materially in organizing the German National Bank of Evansville, was one of its stockholders and a member of its board of directors. His advice was invaluable during the pre- liminary stages of organization until it was firmly established. He was elected a director of the Evansville, Carmi and Paducah railroad company in 1870, a corporation which was afterwards consolidated with the St. Louis and Southwestern and became part of the Louisville and Nashville system. While serving on the directory he was a mem- ber of the executive committee, which was really a board of control charged with the management of the company's business. He was a stockholder, one of six holding a controlling interest in the Evansville and Terre Haute railroad, and served, on its board of directors. He was one of a number of enterprising citizens that formed the Evans- ville Library Association, and contributed liberally of his means to the support of a circulating library. He was active in promoting the inter- ests of the association, was its first treasurer, and afterwards presi- dent. He was entrusted with the important commission of selecting the first collection of books for the library, and went to Cincinnati in person to make the purchases. A man of his energy and activity could not be a "dead-head" in any enterprise with which his name was con- nected. He is a working member of decided influence in all the cor- porations selected for his investments and organized by his assistance. His advice is sought and his judgment regarded by his colleagues. His long experience and successful management of financial corpora- tions, his carefulness as to all details ; his prudence and conservatism lend unusual weight to his counsel in all monetary affairs. His capac- ity for work appears to be unlimited, as the hours devoted daily to his enterprises are scarcely shorter now than they were forty years ago when he was employed to work for others. For twenty-five years he
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has been a stockholder of the Evansville gas company, now the Evans- ville gas and electric light company, of which he is treasurer and the largest stockholder. The qualities of mind and personal character- istics that have contributed to his remarkable success are a taste for financial affairs, which amounts to instinct or genius, capacity for or- ganizing and keeping track of details. These are supplemented by any agreeable manner and high commercial integrity. He is eminently practical, rather than fond of display. He is regarded by able critics, familiar with his methods and his successes, as one of the foremost financiers of this country, a man fitted for the exalted position of sec- retary of the treasury of the United States. His activities have been exerted in business rather than politics, though he takes an interest in public affairs and espouses the principles of the Republican party. The Old National bank, of which he is president, and which he reorganized as the successor of the Evansville National bank, has a history running back more than half a century. It is the outgrowth of a little bank organized as one of the beneficient forces in the business of that sec- tion of the state and country. By the consummate skill exhibited in the management of financial institutions with which he has been offi- cially connected he has naturally acquired a large fortune. His judg- ment may safely be trusted in matters of investment. He is called by men who know him "a born banker," and "ideal banker," one who can say "no" to his best friend asking for support of a scheme not fully approved by his practical judgment. When not occupied with his per- sonal business and that of the several corporations with which he is connected Mr. Bayard finds delightful recreation among his books. He has perhaps the largest private library in the state, containing a large number of rare and valuable books, whose systematic collection has occupied many years. Additions are made to the library from time to time of such volumes as are suggested by his reading and study. He was married March 6, 1867, to Miss Mattie J. Orr, daughter of the late Samuel Orr, a prominent and influential citizen of Evansville. She is a lady of the highest character, regarded for the estimable qualities of her mind and heart. She is active in charitable work and a member of the Presbyterian church. Mr. Bayard is an attendant upon its services, and therefore a member of the congregation, but not a communicant of the church. He entertains a high regard for chris- tianity and the organized agencies for its maintenance and propagation.
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