USA > Indiana > Lake County > A standard history of Lake County, Indiana, and the Calumet region, Volume II > Part 14
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On September 24, 1878, at Crown Point, Mr. Eder married Miss Frances M. Scherer, a daughter of Peter and Catherine (Young) Scherer. Her father was for several years a blacksmith at Crown Point. To their marriage have been born seven children, most of whom have already taken independent positions in the world of affairs. They are: George J., Edward J., Clarence M., Louis G., Daniel E., Rose M., and Florence K. Edward J. lives in Crown Point and is a lawyer, while the others have their home in Hammond.
WILLIAM JACOB WHINERY. It is through his work as a successful lawyer that Mr. Whinery has proved his best usefulness in the com- munity of Hammond and the Calumet region, and any one at all familiar with the Lake County bar during the last ten or fifteen years will concede him an important place in its membership.
William Jacob Whinery was born in Warren, Indiana, and, like so many men who have honored the professions, his birthplace was a farm. His parents were Isaac P. and Elizabeth J. (Rudduck) Whinery. As a boy and young man he learned to work for the prizes of life, and prac- tically earned his way all through college and the preparatory period before getting established in the law. He attended the public schools and the United Brethren College at Hartsville, Indiana, also the Indiana Central Normal College, and was later a student in the Indiana State University, altogether spending five years in the different institutions of higher learning. Mr. Whinery was admitted to the bar in 1897, and at once opened an office for general practice at Hammond. While his work as a lawyer has been largely along general lines, he is also attorney for a number of corporations in Hammond, and his skillful work in this connection has entitled him to the confidence of every business firm that has retained his services.
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Mr. Whinery is a member and a former vice president of the Ham- mond Chamber of Commerce, belongs to the Hammond Country Club, and is affiliated with the Masonic order and the Knights of Pythias. By his marriage to Pearl I. Hinckley, a daughter of Thomas C. and Lydia Hinckley, of Oxford, Indiana, he has one child, Mildred Adele.
T. EDWIN BELL, D. D. S. The career of Doctor Bell has been iden- tified with Lake County for more than twenty-five years, and his work, whether in professional lines or in public affairs, has been sufficient to make his name one of the most familiar in the Calumet region. Practi- cally through all his residence in Lake County he has been prominently identified with republican politics, and a large number of citizens know him best as former Senator Bell.
Dr. T. Edwin Bell was born at Kingston, Ontario, Canada, September 23, 1864, a son of John and Helen (McKechnie) Bell. Grandfather John Bell was a native of England, immigrated to Canada, and spent the rest of his life as a farmer near Kingston, his death occurring when about eighty years of age, and his wife Ellen also reached advanced years. The maternal grandfather, William McKechnie, was a soldier in the English army during the war of 1812, and was a native of Scot- land, where he married and later immigrated to America. For many years he was a general merchant, and died at Kingston at the age of ninety-two, and his wife at the age of sixty-five. John Bell, the father of Doctor Bell, was likewise a Canadian farmer, and in his earlier years served with the rank of lieutenant in the English army. His wife died in February, 1901, and they were the parents of ten children, seven of whom grew to maturity.
T. Edwin Bell had a public school education as a boy, and prepared for the profession of dentistry in the Dental College of Philadelphia, graduating D. D. S. in 1888. In the same year he came to Hammond, reaching this city on March 7, and was one of the early dentists to locate in what was then a comparatively small town. His later activi- ties have brought him more into prominence in public affairs and busi- ness than along the lines of his profession. From 1893 to 1895 he served as coroner of Lake County. Doctor Bell was chairman of the Repub- lican County Central Committee in 1896, and in 1902 was elected to the state senate for the term of four years. In 1890 he was appointed deputy oil inspector, and filled that office a number of years. His busi- ness connections are of a varied and important nature, and he is a director of the Northern Trust & Savings Bank, is president of the Miller Land Company at Miller, and is treasurer of the Lake County Oil Company operating in the oil fields of Oklahoma.
Doctor Bell is a life member and was the first exalted ruler of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Hammond, and is a mem- ber of the building committee which is preparing for the erection of a handsome club house, to be constructed during 1915. Other fraternal and social connections include the Masonic Order, the Knight Templar, Commandery and the Mystic Shrine, the Knights of Pythias, the Illi- nois Athletic Club of Chicago, the Hammond Country Club, and mem- bership in the Hammond Chamber of Commerce. Doctor Bell owns a summer home at Winnebago Lake. On June 2, 1891, Doctor Bell was married in Hammond to Lena Hohman, a member of the prominent Hohman family of that city.
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ALVA A. YOUNG, M. D. A physician and surgeon whose work and abilities have commended him to the confidence of the people of Ham- mond and vicinity, and who in seven years has securely established his reputation and already enjoys a large practice, is Dr. Alva A. Young, who is well known both in the line of his profession and in social and fraternal affairs.
Dr. Alva A. Young was born in Hamilton County, Indiana, Decem- ber 18, 1881, a son of Richard N. and Emma J. Manford. His father in early life was a teacher, and subsequently was a contractor in the building of pipe lines and highways. Doctor Young attended the coun- try schools for some years, and subsequently the high school at Indian- apolis, and in 1905 was graduated M. D. from the Central College of Physicians and Surgeons at Indianapolis. His first experience in individual practice was in Indianapolis, where he remained until May, 1907, since which date Hammond has been his home. In January, 1908, Doctor Young was appointed township. physician for North Town- ship, and still looks after the public duties of that position. In 1912 he was nominated for the office of county coroner, and lacked only 131 votes of election. Doctor Young is examiner for the United States Marine Corps.
In July, 1906, occurred his marriage to Lillian N. Fallowes, who was born in England, but lived in Chicago previous to her marriage. The doctor has a number of fraternal relations, has taken the Lodge, Council and Chapter degrees of Masonry, belongs to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the L. O. O. M., the Fraternal Order of Eagles, the North American Union, the Tribe of Ben Hur and the Court of Honor.
HERMAN HOLTZ. Identified with the citizenship of Hammond for a quarter of a century, Herman Holtz best known for his large floral establishment, a business which he founded fifteen years ago and which is one of the largest of its kind in the Calumet region. Mr. Holtz learned his profession in Germany and has made a success in life by concentra- tion of effort, by thorough knowledge of his business, and by steadily furnishing a service which has come to be appreciated by hundreds of regular patrons.
Born in Germany in 1856, IIerman Holtz was reared and educated in his native land and learned his profession there. Coming to America. in 1883, in 1889 he established his home at Hammond, and was for several years connected with the Hammond Packing Company, and also served as florist for the late M. M. Towle. In 1898 he took up business for himself, and has developed extensive greenhouses and large general trade at his plant at 57 Sheffield Avenue. His place is known as the Hammond Greenhouses, and he has ten thousand square feet under glass.
Mr. Holtz was married to Matilda Lindke, of Germany. Their four children are: Hattie, wife of Emil Gluth, of Hammond; Selma, now Mrs. Thomas Jenkins; Rudolph, associated with his father in busi- ness, and who married Anna Scharloch of Hammond; Anna, who lives at home. The family are members of the German Evangelical Church, while Mr. Holtz has taken the Knight Templar Commandery degrees of the Masonic Order and is also affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Rebekahs. He is interested in social and civic activities and is a member of the Hammond Saengerbund.
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ERIE G. SPROAT. While one of the junior members of the Lake County Bar, Erie G. Sproat at the end of five years in practice at Hammond is regarded as an attorney with exceptional qualifications and a record of substantial success in the varied business which he has hand- led since he took his first fee.
Mr. Sproat was born in Covington, Ohio, February 5, 1883, a son of William F. and Mary A. (Mack) Sproat. His father is a contractor and builder and his home is now in Dayton, Ohio. Erie G. Sproat after attending the public schools was a student in the Miami University at Oxford, Ohio, and before gaining admission to the bar did considerable practical work in educational fields, having taught from 1902 to 1906. That work furnished him the means to finish his law studies, and he graduated LL. B. from Valparaiso University Law Department in June, 1908. Since then he has been engaged in a general practice in Hammond. Mr. Sproat is secretary of the Lake County Bar Associa- tion and has been for the past two years, and has membership in the Indiana State and the American Bar Association. Fraternally his con- nections are with the Masonic order, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Fraternal Order of Eagles, of which he is past worthy president, and the Tribe of Ben Hur. On November 12, 1913, Mr. Sprout married Lillian R. Varges, of Chicago.
JOSEPH TRISTAN HUTTON. In Hammond and almost the entire Calu- met region the standing of Joseph T. Hutton as an architect is clear and distinctive, and it is only necessary to point to examples of his profes- sional skill, which can be seen in almost every part of the larger cities, to indicate what he has done and what his abilities represent. Mr. Hutton is one of the oldest architects in Northern Indiana and one of the leaders of his profession in the entire state.
From an early youth spent in Canada his experience and inclinations have all been in the direction of technical and building work. As a boy in Canada he had the superintendence of government lighthouse work for a time. Joseph T. Hutton was born in Dunville, Canada, June 20, 1861, a son of Richard and Margaret (Tristan) Hutton. His father was in the government service, and the son was given an unusually liberal education, finishing in St. Catherine's College, at St. Catherine's, Canada, graduating in 1883. He had specialized in polytechnical courses, and after a preliminary experience in his native country went to Chicago in 1884, was employed by several different firms of architects. Later he was at work in his profession in Rochester, Michigan City, and South Bend, all in Indiana, and in 1897 opened his office in Hammond.
Practically all the large public schools of Hammond and many in other parts of the Calumet district have had the services of Mr. Hutton as architect. The Lafayette school, the United States postoffice, the public library, the Superior courthouse, the Irving, the Wallace, the Robertsville schools and the Methodist Episcopal church are all examples of his work in Hammond. He also was architect for most of the schools in East Chicago and Indiana Harbor, including the Mckinley, the Washington, the James Whitcomb Riley and the James A. Garfield schools. At Gary he drew the plans for the Gary building and many residences and business blocks. One of the finest courthouses in the state is that at Lebanon, Indiana, and Mr. Hutton's name appears on the corner-stone as architect. He was also architect for the courthouse
SNutter
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at Kentland, in this state, the high school at Michigan City, and one of the large school buildings of South Bend.
Mr. Hutton is vice president of the Hammond Pure Ice Company. He has been a director since its organization of the Masonic Building Asso- ciation, is a member of the Commercial Club, the Hammond Country Club, and has many prominent relations both fraternally and profession- ally. He has been honored with the thirty-third and highest degree in Scottish Rite Masonry and is a life member of the Consistory Club of Masons at South Bend. He is a member of the Indiana Chapter of the Association of American Architects, and belongs to the Architects' Club of South Bend.
At Rochester, Indiana, January 7, 1888, Mr. Hutton married Bertha Sturgeon, daughter of Enoch and Anna M. Sturgeon, her father an attorney at law. Their three children are: Frances, the wife of Alex- ander A. Stoikowitz, a mechanical engineer at Montreal, Canada ; William Sturgeon, who is an architect associated with his father; and Joseph Wallace, who is a machinist and lives at Hammond. The family worship in the Methodist Episcopal church.
JOHN L. ROHDE. The career of John L. Rohde for a number of years has been a vital part of the life and progress of his home city of Hammond. Mr. Rohde's has been a typical American success, hav- ing its beginning as a poor boy and continuing with steady but hard won advancement until he has found a place among the foremost busi- ness men of the Calumet district. Successful in business, he has with exceptional public spirit given the influence of his character and his means for the upbuilding of his home town, and this community has been in many ways advanced to prosperity through the presence in its citizenship of John L. Rohde.
A native of Chicago, John L. Rohde was born January 27, 1864, a son of Fred J. and Elizabeth (Grabupp) Rohde. Both parents were natives of Germany, left that country in 1863, and settled in Chicago, and in 1876 the family moved to Jasper County, Indiana, and settled on a farm. John L. Rohde acquired his education partly in the publie schools of Chicago and with some attendance after moving to Jasper County. His early experience were those of a farm boy and in 1891 he moved to Chicago, but in 1893 returned to Hammond and engaged in the flour and feed business, which under his capable direction has grown to be a flourishing enterprise. It is now conducted under the name of John L. Rohde & Sons, his sons Edward H. and Fred A. being his partners. Mr. Rohde is also vice president of the Hammond Build- ing and Loan Association, and a director of the Home Building & Loan Association.
His entrance to public affairs began with his election to the city council in 1898, with service of four years. In 1906 the mayor appointed him chairman of the board of public works, and he was again appointed to that important local office in 1911. He is now serving as president of the board. Mr. Rohde has been very active in the city's affairs. and during the last ten or fifteen years scareely any improvement or forward movement have been undertaken without his aid and eapable influence. He is a member and director of the Chamber of Commerce and belongs to the Country Club.
In 1886 Mr. Rohde married Emma Hasselbring, who was born on a farm in Lake County, a daughter of Frederick and Dorothy Hassel-
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bring. To this union have been born four children: Edward H., Fred- eriek, Laura A. and Elizabeth Dorothy. The family worship in the German Lutheran Church of Hammond. On February 28, 1914, Mrs. Rohde died, and was buried in Concordia cemetery at Hammond.
CYRUS HAYDEN. Crown Point counts among its best known and representative business men Cyrus Hayden, who is a native of Lake County and belongs to one of the older families, and after a number of years spent in farming came to Crown Point in 1908 and has since conducted a livery stable and automobile headquarters.
Cyrus Hayden was born in West Creek Township of Lake County June 2, 1864, a son of Lewis and Almeda (Kneisley) Hayden. His father was a farmer, and the son grew up on a farm, and after his train- ing in the sehools took up agriculture as his regular vocation. In 1891 he moved out to Iowa, was one of the substantial agriculturists of Adair County, and in 1908 returned from Iowa and opened a livery and sales stable and automobile livery at Crown Point.
For two terms during his residence in Iowa Mr. Hayden served as township assessor, and in 1913 was a member of the Crown Point city council. Fraternally his affiliations are with the Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen of the World, and his church is the Presbyterian.
In 1886 Mr. Hayden married Eliza Ferris, of Yellow Head Town- ship in Kankakee County, Illinois. To their marriage have been born three children: Benjamin, who is now in charge of a mail route out of Crown Point, married Edith MeKay of Lake County, and has two children Margaret and Robert. Ina, the second child, is now Mrs. Burdet Lee, farming people of West Creek Township, and they have one child, Irma. George, the youngest, is associated with his father in the livery and automobile business.
JOHN C. ENDRESS. The Endress family were established in Lake County fully fifty years ago, and Mr. John C. Endress is a representa- tive of the third generation in this county, and though a young man still under thirty years of age has already placed himself in a business way, and is one of the leading merchants of Crown Point.
John C. Endress was born in Lake County, October 31, 1886, a son of Henry J. and Mary E. (Cress) Endress. Grandfather Endress eame to Lake County in 1854, and was one of the men who helped to clear up the county and develop its farm lands. The father was born in this county and his career has been that of a substantial farmer. John C. Endress attended the high school at Crown Point, and served his apprenticeship in a drug store in that city. After the usual examination he was made a registered pharmaeist in 1909, and after several years of experience in the employment of others engaged in the drug busi- ness for himself in 1913, and now has a first-class establishment, con- ducted along progressive lines.
On June 8, 1909, Mr. Endress married Addie Westbay of Lake County, a daughter of James W. and Bertha Westbay. Her father is a farmer of Porter County, and formerly was engaged in educational work. To their marriage have been born two children: John W. and Margaret Blanche. Mr. Endress eo-operates with his fellow business men in everything that will advance the welfare of Crown Point, and is a charter member of its Chamber of Commerce.
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EDWARD SIMON. The popular and efficient county auditor of Lake County hardly needs an introduction to the people of this section. The fact that his fellow citizens have honored him with one of the most im- portant county offices is sufficient indication of his standing both as a business man and citizen. Mr. Simon has been a successful business man in Lake County, has developed a prosperous factory for the making of a popular brand of cigars, has for a number of years been prominent in the democratic party, and since taking his present office has made a record that vindicates the confidence placed in him by the people of the county.
Edward Simon is a native of Buffalo, New York, born March 16, 1873, and his father, Christian Simon was a tanner by trade. Edu- cated in the public schools and in St. Joseph's College at Buffalo, he early learned the trade of cigar maker, and on coming to Lake County in 1890 established a small shop at Liverpool. He made goods of excel- lent quality, and as the sale rapidly increased and was distributed over a widening territory, he moved his business first to Hobart and in 1907 to Hammond, in order to have a more central location and larger facilities. He now employs forty people in the business. The leading brand manufactured by him is known as "La Vendor," and the factory is the La Vendor Cigar Factory the business having been incorporated in January, 1914, as the La Vendor Cigar Company, with a capital of $15,000. Mr. Simon is president of the company.
Mr. Simon was elected county chairman of the Democratic Central Committee of Lake County in 1904, in 1906 and 1908. In 1906 his first important public office came in his election to the legislature, in which he served one term. In 1912 the people of Lake County chose him for the office of county auditor for a term of four years. Fraternally his affiliations are with the Independent Order of Foresters, the Knights of Columbus, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and the Fraternal Order of Eagles and the L. O. O. M. He is a member of the Hammond Chamber of Commerce and of the similar organization at Crown Point, and of the Hammond Country Club. In 1894 Mr. Simon married Jessie Flaherty, of Liverpool, Indiana. She is a daughter of Ellen and Daniel Flaherty, her father being a railroad man.
HERBERT LESLIE WHEATON. The man who helps himself is always an object of admiration, and his success should be estimated in accord- ance with the difficulties which have to be overcome. Of self-made men in the best sense of the term now living in Lake County, Herbert Leslie Wheaton is an interesting example. When he was in the fifth grade of public schools, it became necessary for him to leave his books in order to contribute his youthful strength and labors to the support of the family. When four years later it was possible for him to enter school again, he supported himself by doing janitor work, and in that way and by recourse to other means not only secured a fairly liberal education, but prepared himself for a career as a teacher.
Herbert Leslie Wheaton was born at Greenwood, Illinois. February 16, 1877, but his home has been in Lake County since 1879. His parents were V. B. and Johanna Wheaton, and the mother died when the son was eight years of age and the family was never in affluent cir- cumstances. Mr. Wheaton was educated in Crown Point, learned the trade of lather, and that was his source of livelihood during vacation periods for a number of years. For ten years Mr. Wheaton taught
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school in Lake County, and was one of the most successful in his call- ing in the local schools. He finally resigned his school work in March, 1908, to accept the position of deputy county clerk, and has been one of the popular officials at the courthouse ever since.
Mr. Wheaton is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, and is prominent in fraternal circles. He is a member of Lake Lodge No. 157, F. & A. M., of which he was secretary for five years, belongs to Lincoln Chapter No. 53, R. A. M .; is past grand in Lodge No. 195, I. O. O. F .; belongs to Lodge No. 314 of the Knights of Pythias, to Gary Lodge No. 1152 of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and also affiliates with the Moose at East Chicago.
Mr. Wheaton was married July 29, 1906, to Jessie J. Ross, daughter of David and Phoebe Ross of Crown Point. They are the parents of one son, Roland L., born May 15, 1908.
JOHN A. GAVIT. One of the best known and most successful lawyers of Hammond is John A. Gavit, former city attorney and one of the leaders in Lake County democracy. Mr. Gavit entered his profession twenty-five years ago, practiced in Michigan until 1896, and during his career at Hammond has represented important public and corporate interests as a lawyer, and has won a reputation for his fidelity to his ideals and to the trusts which the people and his clients have reposed in him. He is a man well known for his integrity and honesty, and these two characteristics have done much toward gaining for him the large private practice which he enjoys.
John A. Gavit was born in Walsingham, Canada, August 19, 1861, a son of Albert N. and Bridget (Highland) Gavit. His father was a native of Connecticut and the son of a Connecticut farmer, while the mother was born in Ireland. From Canada the family moved to Michi- gan and lived on a farm near Saginaw, where John A. Gavit, who was one of seven children, was reared. His education was acquired in the public schools at Pontiac, and in 1886 he graduated from the Normal College at Flint. After reading law in private offices, he was admitted to the Michigan bar in 1888, and was engaged in a successful practice at Saginaw until 1896. During his residence in Michigan Mr. Gavit took an active part in democratic politics, served as justice of the peace in Saginaw for three years, was elected prosecuting attorney and held that office two years. In 1908 he was appointed city attorney of Ham- mond, and again in 1909 by Judge Lawrence Becker, then mayor of the city. During the last two campaigns Mr. Gavit has been chairman of the Lake County Democratic Central Committee. Much of his practice is devoted to his duties as attorney in Lake and Porter counties for the New York Central Lines.
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