Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes, Part 103

Author: Dunn, Jacob Piatt, 1855-1924. cn
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 972


USA > Indiana > Marion County > Indianapolis > Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes > Part 103


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HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.


and painters' supplies, and on one of these visits, in the spring of 1876, he discussed with the jobbing druggists of that market the de- sirability of forming some organization for ad- vaneing the mutual interests of the wholesale druggists and correcting the evils so prevalent in the trade at that time. Among those with whom he thus consulted were J. & C. Reakirt, James Burdsall, Allen & Company, William S. Merrell & Company and Messrs. Merriam & Potts. He found them all ready to join in a conference looking toward the formation of such an organization. At this conference, which was held the following day, a call was issued for all jobbing druggists west of the Alleghenies to meet at Indianapolis. Mr. Kiefer and Daniel Stewart gave their personal supervision to the reception and organization of this meeting, which was attended by more than one hundred representatives of the job- bing drug trade and on this occasion was or- ganized the Western Whole Druggists' Associa- tion. For years Mr. Kiefer was one of the most active workers in the hearty support of both this and the National Wholesale Drug- gists' Association, which succeeded the one previously mentioned.


In the year 1861 was solemnized the mar- riage of Mr. Kiefer to Miss Martha Shipp, the daughter of the Rev. Joseph and Martha Shipp, of Frankfort, Indiana, who was born February 14, 1837, and whose death occurred December 26, 1907. Her father was a clergyman of the Methodist Church. Four children were born to this union, namely: Charles, who was born in 1862 and died in infancy ; Edmund Mooney, who was born in 1866 and died in 1878; Martha Theodora, who was born in 1882 and who died in 1908; she married G. Barret Mox- ley, of Shelhyville, Kentucky, who is now presi- dent of the A. Kiefer Drug Company ; Jose- phine, born October 13, 1863, who is the wife of Charles Maver, of Indianapolis, and who has three children-Charles Junior, A. Kiefer and Edward L.


In conclusion of this brief memoir is en- tered the folowing extract from an article that appeared in an Indianapolis paper at the time of his death:


"In the death of Mr. Kiefer, Indianapolis loses one of its best known and most honored pioneer citizens, the wholesale and retail drug trade one of its best members and the officers and employes of the A. Kiefer Drug Company, one of their most loval and faithful friends, a wise counselor, a considerate, thoughtful and sympathetic employer. No one with whom he was associated felt any hesitancy in going to him for either counsel or advice, and by his patience, courtesy and kindly feeling, he en-


deared himself to those who were associated with him in his business. Next to his devo- tion to his family came his loyalty to his em- ployes. Mr. Kiefer . attributed his success in business very largely to his close application and his careful attention thereto. From a very modest beginning in a retail way, his business grew until he became one of the largest drug jobbers in the central west. He had no outside financial interests, confining his entire atten- tion to his jobbing drug business.


"The obligation which he felt to his em- ployes can best be illustrated by his determina- tion to resume business the day after his entire stock and building had been destroyed by fire in February, 1905. He, least of all, con- sidered discontinuing business, but stating 'that he owed it to his boys and girls to stay in business,' he immediately gave word to find a new location and purchase a new stoek of goods."


HON. DAVID MACY was the last of an old- time cirele of brilliant men who made the laws and set the pace for progress in the early days of the Commonwealth of Indiana. A lawyer by profession, he devoted all his time to legal work during the early part of his career, and was in successful practice in several locations. Before his removal to In- dianapolis he had sat in the General Assem- bly five terms, three from one distriet and two from another, and won notable honors as a statesman in the public service. Thus he was well known in the state as a legislator and professional man before his affairs took him into business life, in which he found his previous experience invaluable. It may be that he is best remembered by the present generation as the promoter and organizer of railroad companies, and as one of the ablest financiers of his time in the state, but never- theless his way to success as such was paved by the evidences of reliable ability he had given in the discharge of every previous trust. A brief history of his early life and associations will be interesting as showing the possibilities open to the ambitious man, even in what may seem to be the most un- promising circumstances. Mr. Maey lived in the days when Indiana was coming out of pioneer obscurity to the advanced position her awakening industries and developing re- sources entitled her, and his enterprise broadened with the spirit of the times, keep- ing pace with the leading progressive move- ments of importance.


David Maey was born December 25, 1810, in Randolph County, North Carolina, son of Albert and Nancy (Wall) Macy. Though of southern birth he was of New England an-


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cestry, being a direct descendant of Thomas Macy, who lived in the parish of Chilmark, near Salisbury, Wiltshire, England, until his emigration to America, in about 1635. He was living near Newbury, Massachusetts, in 1659, when driven from his home charged with providing shelter and comfort to Quak- ers, who were obliged to flee for their lives from the persecutions of the Puritans. Un- able to live in peace in Massachusetts Colony, Thomas Macy and nine others negotiated with the Indians and effected the purchase of the whole island of Nantucket, which has afforded a home for his posterity through all the in- tervening generations to the present, many of the name living there yet.


Joseph Macy, a direct descendant of Thomas and the grandfather of Hon. David Macy, married Mary Starbuck, of Massa- chusetts, and lived in Nantucket until he was thirty years old, at that time moving South with his young family. They settled at Guil- ford Court House, North Carolina.


Albert Macy, a son of Joseph, was born in Nantucket, Massachusetts, in 1774, and was only a boy when the family went south. He married Nancy Wall, of Virginia, and they had a family of eight children, four sons and four daughters, David being the fourth in order of birth. He was only ten years of age when his father moved out to the then fron- tier region in the new state of Indiana, set- tling in Randolph county. His youth and early manhood were passed there and in the two adjoining counties of Wayne and Henry.


Thus David Macy received his early im- pressions in the two localities as distinct in elements and influence as might be found. His boyhood and youth were about evenly divided between his native state and that of his adoption, and his personality never lost the softening effects of the one nor the rug- gedness of the other. His father was con- fronted with the customary work of the pioneer in those days, that of clearing a farm from the heavy forests which then covered the region, and the sons were obliged to take their share of the hard labor incidental to such an undertaking, David working with the rest. Felling trees, building log cabins, put- ting up fences, and performing the numerous other tasks necessary to transform the wilder- ness from its natural state to a cultivated condition, hardened his museles and tough- ened his sinews, and taught him lessons of self-reliance and economy. When he was eighteen he went to learn the trade of mill- wright with his brother Hiram, but after an apprenticeship of three years he concluded that professional life appealed more strongly


to him and he determined to devote his ener- gies to work of his choice. Though his train- ing in manual labor had been thorough and comprehensive he had received meager scholastic training. having been dependent therefor on the unpretentious district schools deemed sufficient by most of the backwoods- men. But he had been a close observer, and had shown practical appreciation of the op- portunities at hand, and accordingly he en- tered upon the study of law, at Centerville, Wayne County, with a due sense of the im- portance of steady application and the prac- tical mind which was characteristic. of the times. Lack of means and the consequent economy in physical matters produced a similar tendency with regard to the mental acquirements of the young men of those days -they cared little for knowledge that could not be directly applied. The same feeling, in a broader sense, possessed David Macy, and his eminently practical character made him a real student of law, not merely a reader of text-books. It was of no use to him except as it could be turned to account in the business or legislative affairs of the day and place, and he found meaning in every para- graph. By hard study he had fitted himself for admission to the bar by the end of two years, passing a rigid examination, conducted by two of the prominent Circuit judges, Hon. Charles H. Test, and Hon. Mr. Eggleston. It was under the old regime, when other quali- fications besides good moral character and the ordinary course of study were required of men who expected to be active practitioners of one of the most learned and honorable of the professions. Moreover, the bar of Wayne County, to which he was admitted, was com- posed of an unusually strong and able set of men, association with whom was in itself an opportunity and a privilege, as well as a challenge to the best that was in a man to manifest itself. That he not only retained his place among these men, but gained hon- orable standing. speaks well for both his character and his ability. Mr. Macy first lo- cated for practice. however, at Newcastle, the county seat of Henry County, which ad- joins Wayne on the west, moving thither from Wayne County in 1832, almost imme- diately after qualifying. After one year at the bar he obtained his license to appear be- fore the judges of the Supreme Court in the argument of cases appealed. He was one of the early attorneys at Newcastle, and his strength received quick appreciation from his fellow-citizens. for he was soon given a fore- most place in the public life of the town. In 1835 he was sent to the legislature, and


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HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.


was re-elected in 1836 and again in 1837, his services in that body reflecting honor on his district. At that time there was an ambitious movement on foot in Indiana which had the double purpose of promoting internal im- provements on a very large scale and bringing the state much needed revenues. The scheme was to construct turnpikes and canals, open highways across the state, and even railroads, which were then only remote possibilities, at the expense of the state, as the development of its resources seemed to be retarded by the lack of proper transportation facilities. The interior towns, with all their possibilities, were still regarded as frontier posts, and were like- ly to remain so, and leaders in the Assembly saw an opportunity to mend this condition of affairs and at the same time improve the fiscal condition of the state. A bill authoriz- ing the loan of $10,000,000 for the purpose of carrying out these plans was introduced into the Assembly, and Mr. Macy was one of its active advocates. The interest in transporta- tion thus aroused undoubtedly awakened the commercial instincts in his nature which eventually caused him to give almost his whole attention to the railroad business.


In 1838, at the close of his experience as a legislator from Henry County, Mr. Macy was retained.in the public service by being elect- ed prosecuting attorney of the Sixth Judicial District, which included Henry County, and in 1840, on the expiration of his term as such, he removed to the eastern edge of the state, settling in Lawrenceburg, Dearborn County. There he remained for twelve years, active in the practice of his profession, and quite naturally, as in his former home, taking an important part in public affairs. He served two terms as mayor of the city, being the first incumbent of that position, giving an able administration, as had been expected of him, and in 1845, and in 1846, he repre- sented the district in the legislature. In 1852 he removed to Indianapolis, with which city he was afterward identified to the close of his life. He formed a partnership with David McDonald, but except for the legal work which his financial interests required he was not active in his profession from this time. It was the threshold of the great era of rail- road building in the state. and as an organizer and promoter of railroads he proved second to none in his day. He had positive genius for the successful promotion of this particular utility, a genius which went beyond the in- ceptive stages and made him successful as manager and financier also.


In 1855, Mr. Macy was elected president of what was then known as the Peru & Indian-


apolis Railroad Company, which had the seventy-five miles of railroad between those two points, now a part of the Lake Erie & Western system. He held the position for a quarter of a century . almost continuously- the exceptions being one or two short inter- vals-voluntarily retiring from active rail- road management in 1880, and during that period the office became vastly more import- ant with the extension of the road, a line being built from Michigan City to Laporte and the control of a line already constructed, between Peru and Laporte, being acquired. These beneficial changes were all made under Mr. Macy's management and by his advice. He recognized the fact that the road was the principal means of transporting lumber from the lake ports to the interior of the state, and ice from the small lakes of northern In- diana to points in the southern part. His first accomplishment was to put the short line which was the nucleus of this system upon a paying basis, and then, as opportunity offered and patronage demanded, his policy was to increase the same by judicious pur- chase and carefully considered additions, un- til the company had a through line from Indianapolis to Lake Michigan, known as the Indianapolis, Peru & Chicago road. Per- haps his judgment was never better shown than in his selection of his assistants in this work, for he rarely made a mistake in esti- mating a man's capabilities, and he relied upon the men he chose for the successful ma- turing of his plans. Neither was he slow to give them credit, and as a consequence he had the affectionate esteem of his subordinates to an unusual degree. They considered him their friend, and he repaid their confidence in kind. He was never arrogant in his posi- tion, nor indifferent to theirs, and he was always approachable and invariably kind. He had enough of the old-fashioned pride in their welfare to make it the object of an almost paternal solicitude, and men who had griev- ances, real or fancied, were sure of a recep- tion from him devoid of ceremony or for- mality that awed or of conditions that humil- iated and affronted their self-respect. He did not believe in imposing conditions or as- signing a man duties that would involve the sacrifice of his manhood, nor did he ask for service without just compensation. And his employes, recognizing these traits, did their work with a readiness and efficiency which made his executive ability the more effective.


While directing his railroad interests Mr. Macy also became engaged in banking, and in 1876 he was elected president of the Meridian National Bank, continuing in that office by


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annual re-election until 1889, when he de- clined, wishing to retire to rest in the enjoy- ment of the ample fortune which he had ac- quired. In this as in every other line which he entered, Mr. Macy was highly successful. During his young manhood and middle age Indiana was passing through the most im- portant stage of its development, a time when men of breadth and action were needed to lay the foundations of a prosperous common- wealth, and he had the faculty of penetration to an extent possessed by few, and the ability to grasp his opportunities, with the force to pursue them to successful issue. All his prin- cipal interests were centered in projects that benefited his fellow-citizens generally, and his personal affairs prospered accordingly. His tireless energy and large capacity were backed by an integrity that gained him uni- versal confidence, which was in itself an in- centive to right-doing. It is said that every one of his investments yielded large profits, every important work he undertook was ac- complished. The causes are as simple as the hare statement. He was a close observer of the principles that govern material things, and in business affairs manifested one of his physical characteristics that was noteworthy in a man of affairs-he was never in a hurry. He moved with precision at the proper time, and so he acted in business matters. Every detail was attended to, every precaution taken, and then he was content to wait for the maturing of his plans with the wisdom of those who know that forced growth is not generally healthy growth.


Mr. Macy's winning personality and high character reflected both the unassailable in- tegrity of his New England ancestors and the graces of his southern birth and infin- ences. The granite was there, but its hard exterior was made beautiful by all the courtly dignity of the old-school gentleman, and an unstudied charm of manner which made him welcome socially wherever he went, in high circles or among the humblest. His manners were easy, but not suggestive of any lack of strength. An acute sense of justice. and a tendency to deep thinking which grew with his years, made him known as a man of rather few words and a good listener more than a talker. "He gave his ear to all men, his tongue to few", though he was naturally frank, and his reserve was cultivated of neces- sity. As "words half reveal, and half con- ceal, the soul within". so he comprehended more than he disclosed.


On January 19. 1837. while attending a session of the legislature, Mr. Macy was mar- ried to Miss Mary Ann Patterson, and they


had a happy wedded life of over fifty-five years. Their only daughter, Caroline, is the wife of Volney T. Malott, a leading banker and wealthy citizen of Indianapolis. The family home in Indianapolis is a spacious and well built residence, and Mr. Macy was par- ticularly blessed in his home life, which was marked by a rare depth of affection, gentle- ness and evenness of disposition, and gener- ous hospitality, which endured until his death, on Sunday morning, May 29, 1892. He peace- fully passed to rest at his home, surrounded by his devoted family, the last of the "old guard", the pioneer Indiana lawmakers of a former generation. Of his colleagues during his first term in the Indiana legislature- 1835-Col. Richard W. Thompson alone sur- vives. Mr. Macy was a professor of Chris- tianity, a communicant of St. Paul's Epis- copal Church, and gave liberal support to that body and to objects of charity.


WILLIAM HARRISON BASS. The proprietor of the W. H. Bass Photo Co. is a native of Indiana, born near Columbus, January 20, 1851, son of Thomas W. Bass and Mary J. (Crane) Bass. His father, who was a pio- neer settler, was engaged in farming, and William was started in the same line. But he had a natural taste for mechanical work, and at the age of seventeen began learning the miller's trade, at which he worked for six years. Feeling the desire for more educa- tion, he entered the Indiana State Normal School in 1874, and, after a course there, was employed as a teacher in the Indianapolis public schools, and continued in this occupa- tion until 1901. On October 1, 1879, Mr. Bass was married to Jane McCormick Wood, one of the leading teachers in the public schools.


The last cleven years of his teaching were devoted to manual training work, in which he took a deep interest. He was selected to establish the manual training work in the Shortridge High School in 1889, which was its first introduction not only in the public schools of Indianapolis, but also in any pub- lic school in the West. His success with this. and his advocacy of its extension were so in- fluential with the school authorities that, at the dedication of the present Manual Train- ing High School the president of the school board said: "The existence of this school is due to the efforts of W. H. Bass more than to any other one man."


Mr. Bass left school work to engage' in commercial photography, for which he saw an opening in Indianapolis, and which by energy and conscientious application he has developed from a modest beginning to an ex- tensive industry. The W. H. Bass Photo Co.


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HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.


prepared the photographs for the half-tones for this work, and their excellence is the high- est commendation that could be given.


ORESTES C. LUKENBILL, M. D. A native son of the fine old Hoosier state and a scion of one of its honored pioneer families, it has here been the portion of Dr. Lukenbill to at- tain marked success and prestige in his exact- ing profession and he is now numbered among the representative physicians and sur- geons of Indianapolis, having his office at 2219 East Washington street and his resi- dence at 1902 that street.


Dr. Lukenbill was born on the old home- stead farın of the family, near Gosport, Owen County, Indiana, on the 14th of August, 1867, and is the fifth in order of birth of the six children born to Barnabas and Mary A. (Alverson) Lukenbill, both of whom were likewise born in Owen County, where the re- spective families were established in the early pioneer epoch. David Lukenbill, grandfather of the doctor, was a native of Germany and was a boy at the time of the family immigra- tion to America. He resided for a number of years in North Carolina, whence he came to Indiana and settled in Owen County, where he secured a tract of wild land and de- veloped a good farm, being one of the hon- ored pioneers of that section of the state, where he continued to reside until his death. The Alverson family is of remote Scotch an- cestry and its original representatives in In- diana came hither from the State of Ken- tucky, the name having been identified with the pioneer annals of both of these states.


Barnabas Lukenbill was reared to man- hood in Owen County, where his educational advantages were those afforded in the pioneer schools. was a soldier in the Mexican War, and in due time he became one of the success- ful farmers and millers of that county. and died February 8. 1908. in the village of Gos- port. having attained to the venerable age of eighty-two years. He made his life count for good in all its relations and was one of the highly esteemed pioneer citizens of his native county. He was a Republican in poli- ties and was a consistent member of the Methodist Church. of which his wife also was a devont adherent. Mrs. Lnkenbill was summoned to the life eternal at the age of sixty-two years. Of the six children two are deceased : Wesley Ellsworth. the fourth in order of birth, was accidentally killed while on a hunting trip. and was about thirty years of age at the time of his death : David A., the sixth child, died in infancy : William Thomas. who is one of the representative farmers of Owen County, resides in Gosport and is the


father of one son; Paris E. has a ranch near Pueblo, Colorado, and has two children; Dru is the wife of Dr. Oscar Chrisman, of Athens, Ohio; and Orestes C., subject of this sketch, was the fifth in order of birth, as has al- ready been stated.


Dr. Lukenbill was not denied a due quota of youthful experience in connection with the work of the home farm, and his early educational discipline was secured in the pub- lic schools. After his graduation in the Gos- port high school he continued his academic course of study for one year in the University of Indiana. In 1890 he was matriculated in the medical department of the University of Louisville, Kentucky; he was graduated as a member of the class of 1892 of the Medical College of Indiana, from which he received his degree of Doctor of Medicine. In 1892, immediately after his graduation, Dr. Luken- bill took up his residence in Indianapolis, opening the office which he still occupies and here engaging in the active work of his pro- fession, in which his success has been of the most unequivocal order, involving the build- ing up of a large and substantial practice and the retention of a most appreciative clien- tele. The doctor has been unflagging in his devotion to his profession and has continued a close student of both medicine and surgery, so that he has kept well in touch with the advances made in both departments of his exacting vocation. In 1908 he attended the Medical Graduate College and Polyclinic in London and other clinics in Europe. He is identified with the American Medical Asso- ciation, the Indiana State Medical Society, and the Indianapolis Medical Society. In a social as well as professional way he enjoys unalloyed popularity in his home city, and here he is known as a loyal and progressive citizen. In politics he accords a stanch al- legiance to the Republican party, and in the Masonic fraternity he has attained to the thirty-second degree of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, in which he is affiliated with Indiana Sovereign Consistory. Snblime Princes of the Royal Secret. His ancient- craft affiliation is with Center Lodge No. 23, Free and Accepted Masons. He also holds membership in Murat Temple, Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. and Indianapolis Lodge No. 56, Knights of Pythias.




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