Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes, Part 48

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 48

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

HENRY W. LAWRENCE. Occupying a promi- nent place in the civic and business life of the Indiana metropolis, Henry W. Lawrence stands today as one of the representative hotel men of the Union, having been long prominently identified with this line of enter- prise and being at the present time president of the Indiana Hotel Company which owns and controls the splendid Claypool Hotel, which is essentially metropolitan in architec- tural design and equipment, and which is maintained at the highest standard. Nothing more clearly indicates the commercial, social and industrial status of a city than the char- acter of its leading hotels and in this respect

873

HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.

Indianapolis has just canse for pride in the Claypool Hotel which is excelled in no city of comparative size in the country. Mr. Lawrence is widely known to the traveling public and as a practical hotel man his suc- cess has been of the most unequivocal nature, the while he has shown distinctive initiative and administrative ability in connection with business affairs of wide scope and importance. He has been a resident of Indianapolis more than a score of years and has marked by defi- nite accomplishment the intervening period, standing exemplar of the highest civic loyalty and progressiveness and holding prestige as one of the popular and influential business men of the metropolis of the state. A man of fine intellectual gifts, urbane and gracious personality and intensive enterprise, he has done much for the promotion of the best in- terests of Indianapolis where he has made his influence felt for good in manifold ways and where today he holds a secure place in popular confidence and esteem.

Henry Wallace Lawrence claims the fine old Empire state as the place of his nativity, having been born at Duane, St. Lawrence County, New York, on the 15th of August, 1852, and being a son of James P. and Emily S. (Salls) Lawrence, both of whom were likewise born in that state. His paternal grandfather, Hiram Lawrence, was the first male child born in the town of Lisbon, New York, and was the brother of Captain James Lawrence, the "Commander of the Chesa- peake," who gained immortal fame through his gallant service as a member of the United States navy and whose dying command, "Don't give up the ship," shall be perpetu- ated for all time in American history. Hiram Lawrence was an active participant in the war of 1837 and after its close he attained to prominence and much success in a business way. He was the owner of lumber mills and extensive timber lands in the State of New York, where he continued to reside until his death. He was of English lineage and the family was founded in America in Colonial days. His wife, whose maiden name was Nancy Pitt and who was of English and Hol- land Dutch ancestry, attained to the vener- able age of ninety-two years, and her death was the result of an accident on the Grand Trunk Railroad. Daniel Salls, the maternal grandfather of Henry W. Lawrence, waa a native of Scotland and upon coming to America, he numbered himself among the first settlers of Stockholm, New York.

James Pitt Lawrence, father of him whose name initiates this review, was born in St. Lawrence County, New York, and the clos-

ing years of his life were passed in Clinton, that state, where he died in June, 1877, at the age of fifty-two years. His wife survived him by nearly a decade, having been sum- moned to the life eternal in 1884, at the age of fifty-seven years. They were devout mem- bers of the Presbyterian Church and both are held in affectionate memory by all who came within the sphere of their gracious in- fluence. They became the parents of five children, of whom the subject of this sketch is the only survivor. Practically the entire active career of James P. Lawrence was one of close identification with the hotel business and in this line he was. one of the pioneers in the exploitation of the attractions of the beautiful Adirondack Mountains as a place of resort during the summer seasons. He also operated hotels at Plattsburg, New York, and Cleveland, Ohio, in which latter city he remained for a number of years. He then removed to Plattsburg, New York, where he erected and conducted the Foquet House, in addition to which he built and conducted the popular Blue Mountain House in the Adiron- dacks.

Henry Wallace Lawrence gained his early educational discipline in the public schools of Plattsburg, New York, after which he con- tinued his studies in the Plattsburg Academy, in which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1874. He then became associated with his father in the hotel business and a few years later he initiated his independent career as a hotel man. For a number of years he conducted a hotel at Moore's Junc- tion, New York, and thereafter he was en- gaged in the hotel business in turn in Dallas, Texas; Denver, Colorado, and Palatka, Flor- ida, besides which he conducted hotels at other points.

In 1889 Mr. Lawrence came to Indian- apolis and effected the lease of the Spencer House near the Union passenger station. He subsequently purchased the property and has made this one of the leading commercial hotels of the middle west. The house con- tains one hundred twenty-five rooms and caters to a large and appreciative patronage. In 1897 Mr. Lawrence became proprietor of the old Bates House, over which he remained in control until it was razed to give place to the magnificent Claypool Hotel, of which he has been the chief administrative officer from the time of its opening. This splendid and thoroughly metropolitan hostelry contains five hundred guest rooms and its appoint- ments are of the most luxurious and perfect type. The hotel, under the able management of Mr. Lawrence, has contributed not a little

HENRY SEVERIN, SR.

875

HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.

leading concerns of the kind in the capital city.

He is a member of the Columbia and Mar- ion clubs and was one of the early presidents of the latter organization.

On the 4th of June, 1902, Mr. Elliott was united in marriage to Miss Mary Fitch Sewall, daughter of Elmer E. and Lucy (Fitch) Sewall, of Indianapolis, and of the two children of this union the elder, George, died in infancy. The surviving son, Sewall, was born August 18, 1905.

HENRY SEVERIN is numbered among the alert and progressive business men who have given so distinctive impetus to the industrial advancement of Indianapolis, and the suc- cess and prestige which he has achieved is best evidenced in the scope and. importance of the enterprise at which head he stands. He is president of the corporation of Lewis Meier & Company, manufacturers of the "Auto Brand" working men's garments, and the concern is one of the largest of the .kind in the Union, controlling a substantial and widely disseminated trade. The products of the finely equipped establishment include overalls, pants, shirts and fine corduroys, and the enterprise dates its inception back to the year 1883. The company utilizes a large and substantial building at 1002-8 Central avenue, and the aggregate floor space is fully 70,000 square feet. All products are turned out by union labor and employment is af- forded to an average force of four hundred persons.

Henry Severin is a native son of the Indi- ana capital and is a scion of one of its old and honored families, his father having been Jong and prominently identified with local commercial interests and having been influen- tial in connection with civie and business af- fairs, contributing his quota to the progress and upbuilding of the city. Henry Severin was born in Indianapolis on the 9th of April, 1870, and is a son of Henry and Augusta (Rentsch) Severin, both of whom were born and reared in Germany. Their marriage was solemnized in Indianapolis. where the father died at the age of seventy-three years, and where the widowed mother still maintains her home. Of the four children, the subject of this review is the youngest and the only one living.

Henry Severin, Sr., severed the ties that bound him to home and fatherland and im- migrated to the United States in 1849, mak- ing the voyage on a sailing vessel of the primitive type and in due time landing in the port of New York City. From the national metropolis he soon made his way westward,

and for two years he was employed in a wholesale grocery establishment in the city of Cincinnati, Ohio. At the expiration of this period he returned to Germany, where he passed about one year, and he then came again to America, locating in Louisville, Kentucky, where he remained for a short interval, at the expiration of which, in 1853, he took up his residence in Indianapolis, where he en- gaged in the retail grocery business. His was then the only grocery north of Wash- ington street, North street then representing the city limits to the north. His place of business was on Fort Wayne avenue, where he continued in the retail grocery trade un- til 1866, and after passing two yeara in his old home in Germany he returned to Indian- apolis in 1868 and established himself in the wholesale grocery business, in which he be- came associated with Henry Schnull and Bergen Applegate, under the firm name of Severin, Schnull & Company. In 1872 Mr. Schnull retired from the firm and Frederick Ostermeyer entered the firm. Mr. Severin continued to be identified with the business, which grew to be one of wide scope, until his death, which occurred in April, 1899, and the enterprise was continued under the title of Severin & Co. until 1901. In the retail grocery business Mr. Severin had as his able and honored associate for many years, the late William Buschmann, and in this con- nection it is interesting to record that the sons of these worthy pioneer business men are now associated in the business conducted under the title of Lewis Meier & Company, of which the subject of this sketch is presi- dent and Charles L. Buschmann, vice-presi- dent and general manager. Of Mr. Busch- mann individual mention is made in an ar- ticle that follows the present sketch. Henry Severin, Sr., was a man of sterling character and marked pragmatic ability, and he filled a large place in the business affairs of In- dianapolis for many years, while he was known as a loyal and liberal citizen. His po- litical support was given to the Republican party and his religious faith was that of the Lutheran Church, of which his wife also is a devoted member.

Henry Severin, Jr., to whom this article is dedicated, is indebted to the public schools of Indianapolis for his early educational dis- cipline, and in 1890, at the age of twenty years, he initiated his association with the wholesale grocery business in which his fa- ther was an interested principal. Soon aft- erward he was admitted to partnership in the business, with which he continued to be ac- tively identified until 1901, when he disposed

876

HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.

of his interest in the same and purchased the interest of the late Lewis Meier in the firm of Lewis Meier & Company, manufacturers of working men's garments. A reorganiza- tion of the business took place under the new regime, and the same was incorporated under the original title, becoming a stock company. Of the company Mr. Severin has since been the president, and he has proved an aggres- sive and versatile executive officer. Growth, progress and success have been the concomi- tants of the industry of the company of which Mr. Severin is president, and the ad- vanced policy and the absolute reliability of products insures a consecutive expansion in the business each successive year, as the goods turned out constitute their own best adver- tising. All kinds of overalls are manufac- tured, as well as service coats of denim, cot- tonade, canvas, and corduroy, and a specialty is made of the corduroy products. Particu- lar study is given to insuring economy in production and in conserving the highest pos- sible quality in the output. The company has established a reputation for fair and honor- able dealings and in this line has maintained the prestige held by the concern under the old regime. Since the reorganization of the business its trade has been extended into thir- ty different states, and the progressive policy of the present principals of the company is shown in no one particular with more of clarity and emphasis than in the fact that when they assumed control the trade terri- tory comprised only five states. At the pres- ent time a corps of twelve traveling sales- men is retained and an agency is established in the city of San Francisco. Through the same the trade of the company has been wide- ly extended through the northwest and in Alaska, while an excellent trade is also being built up in the Canadian provinces. In 1909 the company erected a large and substantial building of brick and stone, the structure having four stories and basement and being one hundred by one hundred and sixty-eight feet in lateral dimensions. The mechanical equipment and other requisite accessories are of the most modern type and under the pres- ent management the capacity of the plant has been greatly increased. It is gratifying to note the upbuilding of so prosperous an in- dustry-one based on honor and conducted on the plan of giving full value received in every transaction. Mr. Severin is also a stock- holder and director of the American National Bank. with which he has been thus identified from the founding of the institution.

Loyal and public-spirited and taking a live- ly interest in all that concerns the advance-

ment and civic and material welfare of his native city, Mr. Severin well merits consid- eration in this publication as one of the rep- resentative business men of "Greater In- dianapolis", and is a citizen to whom is ac- corded unequivocal confidence and esteem in the city that has ever been his home. In poli- tics he is aligned as a stalwart supporter of the cause of the Republican party ; he holds membership in the Columbia and Commercial Clubs and the German House.

On the 15th of September, 1898. was sol- emnized the marriage of Mr. Severin to Miss Edna Smither, who was born and reared in Indianapolis, and who is a daughter of Theo- dore and Elizabeth (Weaver) Smither, the former a native of Indiana and the latter of Illinois. Mr. Smither became a prominent contractor of Indianapolis, where he also con- trolled a large business as a dealer in build- ing supplies. He attained to the thirty-sec- ond degree in Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite Masonry, was identified with Murat Temple, Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. and was a stanch Re- publican in politics: He was a representa- tive business man and honored citizen of the Indiana capital and metropolis, where he continued to reside until his death, which oc- curred in 1908, and where his widow still maintains her home. Of their two children Mrs. Severin is the younger, and Ida is the wife of Fred J. Wright, of Indianapolis. Mr. and Mrs. Severin have three sons-Henry, Theodore and Rudolph.

CHARLES L. BUSCHMANN. It is one of the principal functions of this publication to ac- cord recognition to those representative bnsi- ness men who have aided in the advancement of Indianapolis to a position of eminence in the industrial world and who are contributing at the present time to her commercial sn- premacy. Based upon such premises. there is definite propriety in according consideration to the progressive business man and public- spirited citizen whose name heads this article and who is vice-president and general mana- ger of the corporation conducting business under the title of Lewis Meier & Company. As there is given ample information concern- ing the company in the preceding sketch of the career of its president. it is not necessary to again review the data in the present arti- cle, but it is pleasing to again give promi- nence to the fact that the president and vice- president of this substantial concern are not more closely associated in their business in- terests than were their honored fathers many years ago. as is noted in the foregoing arti- cle. Henry Severin is president of the com-

Um Buschmann.

C. L. Buschmann

877

HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.

pany and the third member of the executive corps is Theodore H. Seuel, who is secretary.

Charles L. Buschmann was born in Indian- apolis, on the 5th of September, 1867, and is a son of William and Caroline (Froelking) Buschmann. The father was born at Bielers- field, Germany, in 1824, and died in Indian- apolis in 1893; the mother was a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, and died in 1880, at the age of thirty-six years. Their marriage was solemnized in Indianapolis and they became the parents of six sons and one daughter, of whom five are now living, including the daughter. The subject of this sketch was the third in order of birth. William Busch- mann was reared to maturity in his native land and in 1851, when twenty-seven years of age, he came to America, landing in New York City, and thence making his way to Indianapolis within a short time after his arrival in the new world. Here he became as- sociated with Henry Severin, Sr., in the re- tail grocery business, on North street, whence removal was later made to Fort Wayne ave- nue, as is noted in the preceding article. Mr. Buschmann . became one of the well known, successful and highly honored merchants of the capital city, where he continued actively identified with the retail grocery business un- til 1893, when he sold his store to his son, William F. Buschmann, after which he lived retired until his death, which occurred only a year later. He continued to be associated with Henry Severin, Sr., in his business oper- ations for half a century, and their mutual confidence and esteem are perpetuated in the pleasing business alliance of their sons, who are well upholding the prestige of names honored in the business history of Indianap- olis. William Buschmann was a man of ma- ture judgment and marked civic loyalty, and while he never had aught of desire for the honors or emoluments of public office he was known as a stalwart supporter of the prin- ciples and policies for which the Republican party stands sponsor. Both he and his wife were members of the Zion's Church. It should be noted that prior to his immigra- tion to America he had rendered effective service as a soldier in the German army, in which connection he assisted in the suppres- sion of the rebellion of 1848.

Charles L. Buschmann gained his early education in the public schools of Indianap- olis, after which he continued his studies for one year in the Capital University at Colum- bus, Ohio. In 1885 he returned to his home city and after completing a course in the In- dianapolis Business College he became book- keeper in the office of the firm of William

Buschmann & Company, of which his father was the senior member. He retained .this in- cumbency for two years, at the expiration of which he entered the employ of Lewis Meier & Company, in which his brother, Louis Buschmann, was an interested principal, be- ing therein associated with Lewis Meier, the founder of the business. Through effective service Mr. Buschmann won rapid promotion, familiarizing himself with all details of the business and in 1901 becoming vice-president and general manager of the company, which was organized at that time as a stock cor- poration. Louis Buschmann died in 1898, and Lewis Meier passed away in 1901, in which latter year Henry Severin, Jr., pur- chased the Meier interest in the business and Mr. Buschmann secured the remaining in- terest. The original title has been retained and the business has been pushed forward with marked success, as is duly noted in the preceding review of the career of Mr. Sev- erin. Mr. Buschmann has been vice-president and general manager of the company from the time of its incorporation, and to his thorough knowledge of the practical details and working methods of the enterprise has been in large measure due its splendid ad- vancement under the present control.

Mr. Buschmann is a citizen of utmost loy- alty and 'no measure or enterprise tending to promote the welfare of his native city has failed to receive his encouragement and his support when such were possible for him to render. In politics he accords an unswerving allegiance to the Republican party, and he and his wife hold membership in the Taber- nacle Presbyterian Church. In the Masonic fraternity he is affiliated with Oriental Lodge, No. 500, Free & Accepted Masons; in the An- cient Accepted Seottish Rite; and Murat Temple, Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of the Commercial Club, the Marion Club and the German House. He has other interests aside from those pertaining to the business of Lewis Meicr & Company, and among the more noteworthy of these it may be stated that he is vice-president and treasurer of the Com- mercial Life Insurance Company, of Indian- apolis.

Mr. Buschmann was united in marriage to Miss Grace Clay Hooker, who was born in the City of Terre Haute, this state, on the 21st of November, 1879, and who is a daugh- ter of James and Mary J. Hooker, who now reside at Meridian Heights, an attractive sub- urb of Indianapolis. Mr. and Mrs. Busch- mann have two children-Severin and

Charles E.

878

HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.

JOHN C. STEPHENSON, M. D. A popular and representative physician and surgeon of Indianapolis is a member of one of the hon- ored families of Indiana, which has been his home from the time of his nativity. John Clement Stephenson was born on the pa- rental farmstead, in Union Township, Boone County, Indiana, on the 2nd of May, 1863, and is a son of .John F. and Elizabeth Ann (Stephenson) Stephenson, the former of whom was born in Butler County, Ohio, on the 27th of July, 1826, and the latter of whom was a native of the same state, where she was born on the 26th of October, 1829, her death occurring on July 29, 1880. The venerable father is now residing on his fine homestead farm in Boone County, Indiana, where he has maintained his abode for the greater portion of his life and where he is an honored and influential citizen. He is a son of Henry Stephenson, who was born and reared in the village of Melrose, Scotland, whence he came to America when a young man, after having learned the weaver's trade in his native land. He located in Butler County, Ohio, where he resided for a number of years, and, in order to afford his sons bet- ter opportunities for eventually independent effort, he finally turned his attention to agri- cultural pursuits. Upon coming to Indiana he first located in Rush County, whence he later removed to Union Township, Boone County, where he secured a tract of govern- ment land and instituted the development of a farm. Upon this homestead he continued to reside until his death, at the age of fifty- three years. His wife survived him by a num- ber of years and with the aid of her sons continued the improvement of the farm, which represented her home until she too was summoned to the life eternal. Of the seven sons and two daughters three sons are now living. The youngest, William, is liv- ing in Carthage, Missouri, and George and John are now living in Union Township, Boone County, Indiana. The parents were devout members of the Presbyterian Church and in politics the father was a stanch ad- herent of the Democratic party.

John Foote Stephenson, the father of Dr. Stephenson. was reared to manhood on the home farm and his educational advantages were those afforded in the common schools of the pioneer days in Indiana. He learned the trade of carpenter in his youth and fol- lowed the same, in addition to farming, up to the time of his marriage, which was sol- emnized in the city of Indianapolis. Since that important event in his career he has been identified with the great basic industry of

agriculture in Union Township, Boone Coun- ty, where he is the owner of a well improved farm and where he is now living virtually re- tired, being eighty-three years of age at the time of this writing and being well preserved in both mental and physical powers. He is one of the highly honored pioneer citizens of Boone County, where he has maintained his home for three-fourths of a century and where he has ever commanded the unquali- fied confidence and esteem of its people. He served for a number of years as school trus- tee and also held the office of justice of the peace for many terms. He is a stanch Dem- ocrat in his political proclivities, is a member of the Presbyterian Church, as was also his cherished and devoted wife, and he has the distinction of being the oldest member of Rosston Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, with which he has long been actively affil- iated. Of his four children two are now liv- ing-Minnie J., who is the wife of George L. Jones, of Joplin, Missouri; and Dr. John C., who is the immediate subject of this sketch ; Iona V., who was the wife of Lycurgus C. Conrad, residing near Big Spring, Boone County, Indiana, met a sudden death by the electric cars near Zionsville, Indiana, on Aug- gust 22, 1909.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes, Part 48

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

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