USA > Indiana > Lake County > A standard history of Lake County, Indiana, and the Calumet region, Volume II > Part 38
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B. G. Thompson was born at Waverly, Iowa, November 20, 1871. His father, who lives at Hobart with the son, is now eighty-six years of age. When he was an infant his parents moved to Muskegon, Michigan, where he attended the grammar schools a short time, and while still a boy went to London, Ontario, and was bound out under the old English laws as an apprentice to a candy manufacturer. With three years of service in that trade, he started out on his own account, and first located at Olympia, Washington, where he was employed under a brother in a grocery store. Mr. Thompson has the distinction of having estab- lished the first candy factory on the Puget Sound, and after developing a good business sold out and returned East. He was in the candy business at Menominee, Michigan, for three years, and then established himself in Chicago, where he remained until coming to Hobart. Mr. Thompson in the various localities of his residence was engaged in business on his own account. At Chicago, where he took up his home in 1900, he was elected a constable, and held the office for ten years, during which time he was also in the real estate business. After the organization of the Municipal Court system of Chicago he was appointed United States commissioner.
On coming to Hobart, Mr. Thompson engaged in business under the corporate name of the Thompson Company on May 1, 1911. In one small room he opened a stock of goods as a 5 and 10 cent store. Some of the most notable mercantile successes in the country have been devel- oped through this method of handling goods in small quantities and at minimum and regular prices. From the opening of his store his trade prospered, and he has subsequently opened stores at Crown Point and Valparaiso. Mr. Thompson is secretary and manager of the Thompson Company. He effected one improvement on the old 5 and 10 cent idea when, in April, 1913, he added a line of groceries to the Hobart establishment, and so far as known was the first man to put up gro- ceries in small lots at these prices. His Hobart store now has a floor space 50x80 feet, with a basement, and its stock is always kept up equal to the demands of the trade, and probably no merchant in Lake County turns over his goods more frequently than Mr. Thompson.
His aggressive methods as a merchant have various other illustra- tions. He is known throughout the state as a publisher in connection with his business of a trade journal known as The Dime. His paper has been commended in many letters as one of the brightest trade jour- nals in the state. Mr. Thompson publishes and edits the paper him- self, and it was established about a year ago, and is distributed free.
On November 2, 1889, Mr. Thompson married Bertha Kohn, of Gil- lett, Wisconsin. She was born in Oconto County, Wisconsin, February 25, 1868. They are the parents of two sons and one daughter-Phillip E., Burt G., Jr., and Eloise L. Phillip is now assistant superintendent for the Willard Sons & Bell Forge Works in Chicago; Burt, Jr., is in business with his father, while Eloise is in the eighth grade of the Hobart public schools and specializing in the study of music.
Mr. Thompson is prominent in Masonry, with membership in both the lodge and chapter. He belongs to the Commercial Club of Hobart and to the Crown Point Chamber of Commerce. His work as a citizen
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has been directed for the general upbuilding and welfare of both town and county, and he lends his vigorous support to the improvements which help the community as a whole rather than the individual. His politics is republican. An enthusiastic sportsman, he and his son gen- erally get away for a fishing trip, and his love of outdoor life has had much to do with his regular continuance in business. Mr. Thompson regards Hobart as one of the best towns in Northern Indiana, and believes that with the continued development of the surrounding terri- tory its importance as a trade center will materially increase.
REV. WILLIAM HOFF. Numbered among the representative members of the priesthood of the Catholic Church in Lake County, Father Hoff is now in pastoral charge of the Parish of St. Bridget's at Hobart, and is laboring with the consecrated zeal and devotion that have character- ized him since he entered upon his holy calling. A man of deep human sympathy and of genial personality, Father Hoff gains friends in all classes, and has not only built up the spiritual and temporal prosperity of St. Bridget's Church, but has concerned himself closely with the social and civic welfare of his community at large.
The community of Hobart has had Catholic services more or less continuously for nearly sixty years. In 1855 Rev. Paul Gillen, C. S. C., came from Michigan City and celebrated mass in the home of John Mellane, near Hobart. During 1858-59 Rev. John Force, of Valparaiso, said mass in the same house, and later John Ormond's home was used for service when Rev. Alexius Botti came from Valparaiso. In 1871 Rev. Michael O'Reilly, of Valparaiso, had charge of the mission at Hobart, and used the home of John O'Doyle as a church. In 1873 Father O'Reilly bought the first lot included in the present parish property, and continued to give his services to Hobart until 1875. After him came Rev. F. X. Baumgartner, who came from the church at Turkey Creek from 1875 until 1881. Rev. H. M. Roth, also of Turkey Creek, visited Hobart between 1881 to May, 1883, after which Father Baum- gartner was the local pastor until 1885. Rev. Joseph Flach held services from February, 1885, to July, 1888, and from the latter date until February 27, 1903, the local pastor was Rev. Charles V. Stetter. Rev. Thomas F. Jansen, now in charge of one of the large parishes of Gary, came as resident priest on July 27, 1903, and about that time Turkey Creek was made a mission, supplied from Hobart. Succeeding Father Jansen came Father Hoff on July 3, 1908.
On the three lots bought by Father O'Reilly in 1873 stood an old picture gallery which was converted into a church building, and is still standing as a landmark of the parish, and is now used as a club room for young men. That old building was a church until May 30, 1912, when the present edifice was dedicated. The original property cost $1,100, and forty years ago the parish had about one hundred souls. During the administration of Father Jansen he bought the priest's house now used, together with an acre of land, costing $6,200. That purchase was made in August, 1903. He also added about $1,000 in improvements on the old church building. During the pastorate of Father Jansen, Lake Station was a mission supplied from Hobart.
Many changes have been made since Father Hoff came to St. Bridget's six years ago. Early in 1911 he called a meeting of the men of his parish for the purpose of building a new church and school. With the substantial support of the men of his church, he went ahead
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with the undertaking, and on August 7, 1911, the old church was moved from its foundation and work begun on the new edifice, the funds for which were raised by private subscription and by church entertain- ments. The cornerstone was laid by Father Hoff on October 15, 1911, an occasion at which practically the entire population of the town was represented. The dedication of the building on May 30, 1912, was a notable event, when the bishop of the diocese and thirty-five priests assisted in the dedicatory ceremony. The St. Bridget's Church stands on a foundation 82x35 feet, with a wing 40x25 feet, and comprises the basement and two stories. The second floor is used as the church auditorium, while the lower floor has three classrooms. The wing is the sisters' quarters. The cost of the building itself was $15,000, while some of the individual items of expense were the altar and communion rail, costing $680, and the pews cost $500. St. Bridget's Parish now has sixty-eight families, numbering 350 souls. The school is planned to be opened in September, 1915. The property valuation amounts to about $35,000. The grounds have a frontage of about one hundred and ten feet on Main Street, one hundred and sixty feet on Center Street, and one hundred and eighty feet on Front Street. This is both the religious and the social center for the Catholic people of Hobart and vicinity. The chief societies are the Married Men's Society, of thirty members; St. Ann's Married Women's Sodality, of sixty-one members; the Guardian Angel's Children's Society, of twenty-three members; St. Agnes Young Ladies' Sodality, of nineteen members ; and St. Aloysius Young Men's Society, of twenty-five members. Plans are now under way for the organization of a dramatic society. The young men of the church use the old building as a clubroom, and have made it a popu- lar organization. The funds to begin with were only ninety dollars, but the young men took hold with such vigor as to insure the success of the society, and now meet once a month for a formal social and busi- ness gathering, while the clubhouse is open for all informal purposes.
Rev. William Hoff was born in Chicago, March 3, 1878. His parents, Martin and Johanna (Guthaus) Hoff are still living in that city, the father aged sixty-four and the mother fifty-seven. Both were natives of Germany, and came to the United States in 1871. Martin Hoff is a veteran of the Franco-Prussian war of 1870, participated in eleven battles, without wound, and was one of the victorious forces that entered Paris after the fall of that city. Besides William there are three sons and two daughters living in Chicago, the sons being engaged in business.
Father Hoff attended the public schools of Chicago four years, for a similar time was in the St. Aloysius parochial school, and at the age of fourteen entered the pontifical school at Columbus, Ohio, that being the only pontifical college in the United States. He remained there with his studies until finishing six years in the classics, two years in philosophy and four years in theology. On April 8, 1905, Father Hoff was ordained in the seminary chapel at Columbus, Ohio, and said his first mass on April 30 in the same year at St. Aloysius Church in Chicago. His first regular appointment was as assistant in St. Joseph's Church at Logansport, beginning his duties there on May 11, 1905, and remaining until July 13, 1907. After about a year at the Cathedral in Fort Wayne, he received his appointment on July 3, 1908, as pastor at Hobart.
Father Hoff is an active member of the Commercial Club, and has done much to bring the vigor of the man as well as the priest into his
Frank & Mc Michael
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work. He has a great fondness for all outdoor sports, and took a very active part in the organization of the Hobart baseball team, having served on the committee and done much towards organizing the team.
O. E. MEEK. As to the means and methods of building up a sub- stantial business in a thriving city, the experience of O. E. Meek con- stitutes him an authority of information as to his particular line, the laundry business. On February 12, 1900, he and his wife opened a small shop for laundry and at first did all the work themselves. Out of it has grown the Whiting Laundry, with a trade drawn from Whiting and vicinity and even from Hammond and Gary. Its first location was at 213 One Hundred and Nineteen Street, but after eight years of steadily increasing business and prosperity, Mr. Meek built a structure specially designed and equipped for his business, a one-story building, 50x100 feet, at 509-511 Indiana Boulevard. The laundry now employs twenty-eight people, and runs four collection and delivery wagons, with automobiles for the service of Gary and Hammond trade.
In 1896 Mr. Meek married Blanch Sheldon, of Marcellus, Michigan. Their four children are Blaneh, Sheldon, Thelma and O. E., the last being deceased. Mr. Meek is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, is a democrat in politics, and his wife is a member of the Congregational Church.
FRANK J. McMICHAEL, M. D. The professional work of Dr. Frank J. McMichael began at Tolleston-Gary in the fall of 1908, and has since brought him many of the best rewards and the opportunities for able service in his vocation. Like many of his contemporaries, Doctor McMichael is a young man, and in his profession and in his citizen- ship exemplifies the new and progressive spirit of the Calumet region. .
Frank J. McMichael is a native of Michigan, born in the Village of Plainwell, May 23, 1884. His parents were John H. and Mary A. McMichael, his father a carpenter and builder. Doctor McMichael was educated in the public schools, in 1907 took his degree in medicine from the University of Michigan and during the following year was physician for the Calumet & Hecla Mining Company at Calumet, Michigan, the great copper mining district. This was followed by a long trip through Wyoming and the Yellowstone Park as physician in charge of the Charles C. Moore camping party. With this preliminary experience and with his otherwise excellent qualifieations Doctor McMichael located for practice at Tolleston in the fall of 1908, and now has a general prac- tice covering all parts of Gary. He has membership in the Gary and Lake County Medical societies and the Indiana State Medieal Assoeia- tion.
Doctor McMichael has taken the Knight Templar degrees in Masonry, belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. the Univer- sity Club of Gary, and the University of Michigan Alumni Association. In politics his support is given to the republican party.
EDGAR A. RIDGELY. The successful progress of Mr. Ridgely as a Gary merchant is probably familiar to a large proportion of the citizens. During less than five years of residence he has become the proprietor of two flourishing drug stores, and has identified himself with one of the large real estate companies and has done much to develop the city in Vol TI-18
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that line. Mr. Ridgely is a young man in business, has prospered, is proud of the prosperity and prestige of his home city, and whenever possible is willing to lend a hand to increase its greatness and power.
Edgar A. Ridgely was born in Richland County, Illinois, July 19, 1879, a son of G. A. and Martha (Madding) Ridgely. It was on a farm that Mr. Ridgely spent his early days, and the wholesome environment and training of the country have not been without beneficial effects in his business life. The Olney High School supplied him his early advantages, continued by attendance at the Normal School in Albion, and in 1902 he graduated from the Valparaiso College of Pharmacy. After several years of experience in the drug trade Mr. Ridgely, in the spring of 1906, bought a store at East St. Louis, which was his location until the summer of 1909. In October of the latter year he bought a Gary drug store from Harry Stringfellow at the corner of 6th and Broadway. That has since been his chief location, and his trade has grown in proportion to the development of the city around him. In 1912 he bought a drug store in Tolleston from the Meyer Drug Company.
His real estate operations have been conducted through the Ridge- more Real Estate Company, of which he is president. This company has put on the market Ridgemore Subdivision, located at 25th and Chicago Avenue, comprising 923 lots.
Mr. Ridgely, in November, 1905, married Iva Blanch Huddleston of Valparaiso, Indiana. Their two daughters are Bonnie May and Martha. Mr. Ridgely affiliates with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, belongs to the Gary Commercial Club, the University Club, is chairman of the board of trustees of the Christian Church, and is a progressive republican in politics.
EDWIN A. SALISBURY. A resident of Gary since 1910, Edwin A. Salisbury has been actively identified with business affairs, and is by profession a mechanical engineer, a vocation which called him to a number of responsible positions in the vicinity of the Great Lakes for thirty or forty years.
Edwin A. Salisbury was born in Genesee County, New York, March 28, 1856, a son of Henry and Phoebe Sophie Salisbury. His father was a substantial New York State farmer. Starting life with a common school education, Edwin A. Salisbury soon took up the line for which he had the greatest inclination, mechanical engineering, and while doing practical work perfected his knowledge and skill by a course in the International Correspondence School, from which he holds diplomas in both the mechanical and electrical engineering courses. For seven years he was chief engineer for the Cuyahoga Building Company of Cleveland, for a similar time chief engineer of the Electric Building Company in the same city, and then for three years was chief engineer with the N. Y., P. & O. Dock Company. Mr. Salisbury spent fourteen years as chief engineer on lake steamers, and in the course of his profession has been up and down the Great Lakes from end to end and has a large acquaintance among the lake marine. Mr. Salisbury has lived in Gary since May, 1910.
In 1879 he married Ella May Griswold of New York State. Their two children are: Viola, wife of P. L. Fener of Gary; and Louise at
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home. Mr. Salisbury is a member of the Masonic Lodge and Royal Arch Chapter, of the Loyal Order of Moose, and professionally has mem- bership in the Universal Crafts and Council of Engineers. Politically he is identified with the progressive republican party.
HENRY A. VOSSLER. Since he opened an office in the real estate business at Gary, on January 1, 1908, Mr. Vossler's activities and operations have been of a large and varied character and perhaps no other individual has handled more Gary real estate than Mr. Vossler. Among his associates he is regarded as a man of the keenest judgment in all realty matters, and his shrewdness and foresight have made him very successful.
In 1908 Mr. Vossler put on what is known as the East Gary Sub- division comprising 644 lots and situated a mile east of Broadway. This tract was sold to one man and was never utilized for residence lots. Also, in 1908, Mr. Vossler assisted in organizing the Gary Home and Improvement Company, of which he is still president, and this company put on sale 246 lots in that portion of Gary known as Tolleston. In 1909 Mr. Vossler opened and was an interested principal in the Broadway Realty and Investment Company's Addition of 384 lots on Broadway and 45th Avenue. In 1910 Vossler's First, Second and Third additions, comprising 284 lots in Tolleston, were put on the market and in 1912 were followed by Vossler's Fourth Addition of 138 lots in Tolleston. Mr. Vossler, with his partner, Mr. Young, built the first two theaters in Gary, the Majestic and the Orpheum, and also erected a number of residences which were sold for cash or terms to local people.
Henry A. Vossler was born at Ogden, Boone County, Iowa, September 19, 1876, a son of E. G. and Anna C. (Nickel) Vossler. The father was a farmer in Iowa, but in 1881 moved east and located in Grant County. West Virginia, where he engaged in merchandising in that locality. Henry Vossler was the second in a family of six children, three sons and three daughters, the others mentioned as follows: Edward A. E., who is in the wholesale hardware business at Wheeling, West Virginia : Emily, the deceased wife of Charles A. Welzel, of Pennsylvania ; Eleanor. who lives at Wheeling; Frank A. L., who is an officer in the United States Navy ; and Anna, who lives at Wheeling.
Henry A. Vossler had a public schooling, and got his early business training under his father's direction in West Virginia. After master- ing most of the details of the retail trade, he went on the road as a salesman and sold goods until 1907. A visit to Gary in that year convinced him of the opportunities awaiting a man of his enterprise. and in January, 1908, he returned and opened his real estate office in partnership with Verner U. Young. This partnership was dissolved on July 1, 1910, and Mr. Vossler has since operated alone. The largest sale which he has ever promoted and effected was a tract of 1.285 lots, owned by Earle Bros. and which Mr. Vossler sold to the Great Gary Realty Company of Cleveland, Ohio. Mr. Vossler affiliates with the Masonic Order and is a charter member of the local lodge, and also a charter member and trustee of the lodge of Elks in Gary. In politics he is a republican.
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HARVEY J. CURTIS. While Mr. Curtis has been actively identified with the practice of law at Gary since 1909, his services have also been largely drawn upon in the practical field of business, and he has pro- fessional and financial relations with several of the well known business corporations of Gary. His ability and success as a lawyer were proved before he came to Gary, and he has been in active practice for more than ten years.
The Town of Argos, Indiana, is claimed by Mr. Curtis as his birth- place, where he was born January 20, 1876, a son of Richard and Jane (Davis) Curtis. His father was a substantial farmer of that vicinity and the son grew up in the country, attended the local schools, later a high school and began the study of law in the office of Charles P. Drummond, in the latter's office at Plymouth, Indiana. Following that he became a student in the law department of the University of Michi- gan at Ann Arbor, and was graduated LL. B. in 1903. Mr. Curtis won his first cases and gained considerable reputation as a lawyer during four years of practice at South Bend, from 1903 to 1907, and then came to Gary, had an office for independent practice until June, 1909, after which he was a member of the firm of Bomberger, Sawyer & Curtis, and now of the firm of Bomberger, Curtis, Starr & Peters.
In November, 1909, Mr. Curtis was elected city attorney of Gary, and served until early in 1914. He is a director of the Southside Trust & Savings Bank, a director of the Ridgemore Real Estate Company, a director of the Gary Home & Improvement Company, director of the Oakwood Realty Company, and is also attorney for the South Side Trust & Savings Bank. In 1904 Mr. Curtis married Bessie Johnson of Walkerton. Of their three children one is now deceased. His fraternal affiliations include membership in the Masonic Order, the Knights of Pythias and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and also the Eastern Star. Ile is one of the active members of the Gary Commercial Club, the University Club, is a democrat in politics and a member of the Episcopal Church.
DR. CARL BOARDMAN. In his special practice at Gary in the treat- ment of eye, ear, nose and throat, Doctor Boardman has brought to that city the best training and experience acquired in a long course of study and clinical observation in the East, and represents the highest ability and best personal qualities. of the medical profession. Ilis practice in his special line now absorbs all his time and energy, and his standing among the medical men of Gary is well indicated by the fact that he recently filled the office of president of the Gary Medical Society.
Dr. Carl Boardman is a native of Minneapolis, born April 24, 1879, a son of A. J. and Sarah (Twogood) Boardman. ITis father is now living a retired attorney in Los Angeles, California. Reared in Minne- apolis, where he finished the high school course and attended the University of Minnesota, in 1900 Doctor Boardman entered the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania, and graduated M. D. in 1904. Instead of taking up practice and establishing himself after the manner of most young medieal graduates, Doctor Boardman remained in Philadelphia and had a varied hospital and post-graduate experience of 41% years, including interne work in several of the Philadelphia hospitals and service as an assistant on the staff of the Post-Graduate Hospital, during all of which time he directed special study to the
Edward . P. Weiss
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diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. With this unusual prepara- tion he came to Gary in November, 1908, and has since conhned his practice entirely to his specialties. In 1911 he once more took post- graduate work.
Doctor Boardman was married in September, 1913, to Leone Fulton of Michigan. He has membership in the college fraternity, Psi Upsilon, in the Gary University Club, is progressive in his political views, and one of the hardest working and most earnest members of the medical fraternity in the Calumet region. In 1910 he served as vice president of the Gary Medical Society and in 1913 was honored with eleetion as its president.
EDWARD P. WISE. The transactions of Edward P. Wise in the real estate field have made his name familiar throughout the City of Gary, and he has handled property both in large and small tracts in all parts of the city. Mr. Wise has been interested in the real estate business at Gary for the past six years, and has had his home and headquarters there since 1910. Previous to coming west he was in the real estate business in Eastern Ohio, and was at one time a successful coal operator.
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