USA > Indiana > Marion County > Indianapolis > Greater Indianapolis : the history, the industries, the institutions, and the people of a city of homes > Part 63
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109 | Part 110 | Part 111 | Part 112 | Part 113 | Part 114 | Part 115 | Part 116 | Part 117 | Part 118 | Part 119 | Part 120 | Part 121 | Part 122 | Part 123 | Part 124 | Part 125 | Part 126 | Part 127 | Part 128 | Part 129 | Part 130 | Part 131 | Part 132 | Part 133 | Part 134 | Part 135
Dr. Cook was born on the homestead farm of his father, near Noblestown, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, and the date of his nativity was February 12, 1844. He is a son of John and Mary (Kelso) Cook. His father was born in or near the City of Belfast, Ire- land, and there he was reared and educated. As a young man John Cook, in company with his brothers, Jameson and Robert, immigrated to America, and all of them took up their abode in the western part of Pennsylvania, where John and Jameson established perma- nent homes, but Robert finally went west and was never again heard from by his brothers. John Cook became the owner of a good farm about twelve miles west of the City of Pitts- burg, where he passed the residue of his life and where his death occurred in the year 1863. There was solemnized his marriage to Mary Kelso, a daughter of John Kelso, who was a patriot soldier in the War of the Revolution, and they hecame the parents of three sons and three daughters, of whom the doctor was the youngest in order of birth, and of the number two daughters are now living. The parents were devont members of the Presbyterian church, and the father, a man of superior in- tellectual force and marked individuality, gave his political allegiance to the Democratic party. Dr. Cook was reared to the sturdy discipline
George & book
949
HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.
of the farm and imbibed deep draughts of in- spiration and self-reliance while thus living close to nature in "her visible forms". He at- . tended the district schools during the winter terms and contributed his quota to the work of the farm during the summer seasons. Con- cerning this period of his life the following pertinent statements have been written: "Like many a man successful in later years, he laid the foundation for a strong constitution and rugged health in this outdoor work, which de- veloped his physical strength. But the intel- lectual side of his nature was not neglected, and. having inherited mental qualities of a high order, he naturally improved every oppor- tunity for broadening his education. Dr. Cook has always been characterized specially by his practical and unassuming disposition, and this was no less apparent in his young manhood than now. Without any ostentation or any flourishes he has pursued his way quietly and evenly, letting his work speak for itself".
Dr. Cook was seventeen years of age at the time of his father's death, and after complet- ing the curriculum of the common schools he removed to Ohio, where he continued his studies for two years in Vermillion Institute, in the town of Hayesville. He began reading medicine under effective preceptorship in 1864, and in 1866 he was graduated in the Kentucky School of Medicine, in the City of Louisville, receiving from this well ordered institution his coveted degree of Doctor of Medicine. Im- mediately after his graduation he was ap- pointed demonstrator of anatomy in his alma mater. and this preferment indicated the of- ficial appreciation of his special ability and his effective work while an undergraduate. He continued a member of the faculty of the Kentucky School of Medicine until 1882, and in the meanwhile he had built up a large and representative private practice in the City of Louisville. "He had been advanced to the chair of professor of anatomy in the college, and he resigned this position in the year men- tioned. He then removed to Indianapolis, where he has since maintained his residence and professional headquarters and where he has added materially to his precedence in his profession. He forthwith began practice as a specialist in the surgical treatment of gastro- intestinal and rectal disorders, and he has be- come in this field one of the most widely known specialists in the United States, while his name is also familiar to the members of his profes- sion in foreign countries. After serving two years as lecturer in the Indiana Medical. Col- lege he was advanced to the professorship of gastro-intestinal and rectal surgery. in which position he has since continued as the able
and popular incumbent. In 1908, by a merg- ing of the interests of the different state med- ical schools, the title of the Indiana University College of Medicine was adopted, and the school is now the official medical department of the state university. Dr. Cook continues to hold his original chair and is a valued mem- her of the faculty of the newly constituted in- stitution, which holds rank among the best in the middle west. He was secretary of the In- diana Medical College from 1896 to 1905, and as an educator in connection with his profes- sion his success has been of the most unequivo- cal order.
An appreciative estimate of the work of Dr. Cook appeared in a recent publication and is well worthy of reproduction in this volume, but slight change being made in the subject mat- ter as here offered: "Dr. Cook has done a surprising amount of work, and that he has no superior in his specialty in the state and stands second to none in the United States is due directly to years of untiring devotion to his chosen calling. While his duties as col- lege professor and general practitioner would have occupied the entire attention of one less enthusiastic and indefatigable, he has found time for study and investigation that have brought him to the forefront. His analytical 'and well trained mind, supported by a physique of unusual endurance, has enabled him to give to his work a steady attention. In his care- ful and thorough labors as an investigator Dr. Cook has perhaps done his best permanent work. Naturally of an .. inquiring turn of mind, he has continued his search for knowl- edge mainly along original lines, not disdain- ing precedent but following it only when it has seemed the part of wisdom so to do. Dr. Cook was one of the first surgeons in the United States to go deeply into the subject of gastro-intestinal and rectal surgery, and among his own profession he has won a reputation that extends all over the world. He has been active in every branch of the particular line to which he has devoted himself, being an in- vestigator, an instructor, a practitioner, the in- ventor of various devices for insuring the suc- cess of operations in his special line, and a con- tributor of valuable material to medical lit- erature, both standard and periodical. With all his success he retains a modest exterior, having none of the pomp and aggressive in- dependence that mark so many men who have attained to high place and who never fail to manifest subjective appreciation of the fact".
From an authoritative source, that of Dr. Alembert Winthrop Brayton, of Indianapolis, comes the following commendation : "Dr. George J. Cook has practiced gastro-intestinal
950
HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.
surgery and medicine in Indianapolis for twenty years. He was the second to devote himself to this specialty in the United States, Dr. Joseph M. Mathews, of Louisville, being the first. Dr. Cook has been professor of this specialty in the Medical College of Indiana for fifteen years. He haa devised a number of clamps, speculums and rectal dilators, widely used by the profession. Dr. Cook is regarded as a leader in Indiana in surgery of the bowels and in appendicitis. He is one of the charter members of the American Proctologie Society, and has great influence in a large circle of friends in the local state and national societies of his profession".
Dr. Cook holda membership in the Indian- apolis Medical Society; the Indiana State Medical Society, of, which he was president in 1906-7; the Mississippi Valley Medical So- ciety, of which he is a former president; the American Medical Association, and the Amer- ican Proctologie Society.
It can not be malapropos to mention briefly the more intimate or personal characteristics of Dr. Cook. He is essentially human, if the expression may be used, and his sympathy and tolerance are of the most insistent type. Know- ing the well springs of thought and action, he places true valuations upon men and has shown an intensive desire to be helpful to his fellow men. In his profession his sympathy tran- scends mere sentiment to become an actuating motive for helpfulness, and many are the deeds of unostentatious benevolence that stand to his credit as a physician and as a man. He is held in unqualified esteem by his professional confreres and his circle of friends outside the profession is coincident with that of his ac- quaintances. He has never been active in po- litical affairs, but gives his allegiance to the Democratic party.
In June, 1892, Dr. Cook was united in mar- riage to Miss Ella Henderson, of Martinsville, Indiana, and she was summoned to eternal rest in June, 1896, leaving no children. She was a daughter of Ebenezer Henderson, a well known and influential citizen of Indiana and a former incumbent of the office of state auditor.
THOMAS C. WHALLON. Judge Whallon, who retired from the bench of the police court of the city of Indianapolis in January, 1910, has presided over this important mu- nicipal tribunal for nearly seven years and his course on the bench has been marked by great discrimination, fidelity and judicial acumen, so that his official record stands to his perpetual credit and becomes a worthy part of the judicial history of the capital city. He is recognized as one of the ably equipped
and thoroughly representative members of the bar of the state and since his retirement from the bench is giving his undivided at- tention to the work of his profession.
Thomas C. Whallon is a native son of the state of Indiana, having been born in the village of Liberty, Union County, on the 12th of August, 1876, and being a son of Rev. Edward P. Whallon, D. D., and Margaret E. (Kitchel) Whallon, the former of whom was born in Tipton and the latter in Union Coun- ty, Indiana. The genealogy of the Whallon family is traced back to stanch Scotch-Irish origin and the name has been identified with the annals of American history for several generations. Rev. Thomas Whallon, grand- father of him whose name initiates this arti- cle, was born near the city of Cincinnati, Ohio, and was one of the able and honored clergymen of the Presbyterian Church in In- diana in the pioneer epoch. He was grad- uated in Miami University, and among his principal pastoral charges in Indiana were those at Richmond, Tipton, Rensselaer, Lex- ington and Vevay, besides which he was for some time, pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Hamilton, Ohio, when a young man. He passed the golden evening of his long and useful life at Oak Park, Illinois, a beautiful suburb of the City of Chicago, where he died in 1891, at the age of seventy-eight years. It was his to render to the nation the loyal and faithful service of a true patriot at the time of the Civil War, in which he served as chaplain of the One Hundred and First In- diana Volunteer Infantry. His widow, whose maiden name was Harriet S. Bickle, died in August, 1908. She was born in Virginia, whence the family came to Indiana in the pioneer days, making the trip by wagon, then the only means of transportation, and the pioneer home was established in Wayne County, this state, where the name has since been one of prominence in civic and business affairs. The Bickle family is of French- Huguenot descent and was early founded in the Old Dominion commonwealth of Virginia. Mrs. Whallon was a sister of the late Judge William A. Bickle, of Richmond, Indiana, who was one of the representative jurists and legists of the state.
Rev. Edward P. Whallon, D. D., father of Judge Whallon is distinguished as a clergy- man of the Presbyterian Church and has also attained prominence and great influence in connection with the publishing of religious papers, being one of the leading editors of the Presbyterian Church in the United States and being known as a man of high intellec- tual attainments as well as of consecrated de-
951
HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.
votion to the cause of human uplift. For more than a decade and a half he has been the editor of the Herald and Presbyter, pub- lished in the City of Cincinnati, Ohio, and prior to assuming his present work he had been .editor and publisher of the Church at Work, which he conducted as the organ of the Presbyterian Church in the state of In- diana. This paper was merged with the Herald and Presbyter at the time when he assumed the editorial charge of the latter. Dr. Whallon was graduated in Hanover Col- lege as a member of the class of 1868, re- ceived his degree of Doctor of Divinity in 1892, and is a man of recondite knowledge- one who has made a magnificent record in the ministry and as an editor. He is a forceful and eloquent public speaker and is one of the leading pulpit orators of his church in the middle west. For several years he main- tained his home in Indianapolis, having served as pastor of the East Washington Street Presbyterian Church and later of the Fourth Presbyterian Church. His wife, a woman of gracious personality and devoted zeal, is a daughter of Jacob Kitchel, who was born in the state of Ohio and died at Lib- erty, Indiana, January 21, 1908, having at- tained to venerable age. He has long been identified with the great basic art of agricul- ture and at the time of his death owned a fine landed estate in Union County, where he took up his residence in the pioneer days. He first married Miss Rebecca E. Bennett, and they became the parents of three daugh- ters. She was a sister of General Thomas Bennett, who was a distinguished officer in the Union army in the Civil War, in which he went forth as a member of an Indiana regi- ment, and who was an intimate friend of Oliver P. Morton, the "war governor" of In- diana. General Bennett also represented this state in Congress, and was mayor of the city of Richmond, Indiana, for some time, and later became territorial governor of the present State of Idaho. For his second wife Mr. Kitchel married Miss Caroline Allen, and they became the parents of three sons. The lineage is traced back to Robert Kitchel, the stanch and historic Puritan, who was a friend and associate of Oliver Cromwell, and who was one of the founders of New Haven, Con- necticut, in 1639; later he also became one of the founders of Newark, New Jersey. Rev. Dr. Edward P. and Margaret E. (Kitchel) Whallon became the parents of five children, concerning whom the following brief data are entered : Philip S. died in infancy; Thomas C. is the immediate subject of this review; Walter L. is a resident of Altoona, Pennsyl-
vania; Albert K. maintains his home at Wyo- ming, Ohio; and Arthur J. is a resident of the same Ohio town.
When Judge Thomas C. Whallon was a child of two years his parents removed from his native town of Liberty, Indiana, to the historic old city of Vincennes, in whose pub- lic schools he gained his early educational dis- cipline. At the age of twelve years he came with his parents to Indianapolis, and after completing the curriculum of the Shortridge high school he was matriculated in his fa- ther's alma mater, Hanover College, Indiana, in which institution he was graduated as a member of the class of 1898, duly receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts. In 1901 this institution also conferred upon him the de- gree of Master of Arts. In the meanwhile Judge Whallon has been matriculated in the Indianapolis Law School, in which he com- pleted the prescribed technical course and was graduated as a member of the class of 1900. He received his well earned degree of Bache- lor of Laws, but prior to this, in June, 1899, he had secured admission to the bar, so that he was able to devote his attention to the ac- tive practice of his profession during his senior year in the law school.
Judge Whallon soon gained recognition as one of the ambitious, versatile and admirably fortified younger members of the Indianap- olis bar, and on the 10th of October, 1901, he received appointment to the office of deputy city attorney, of which position he continued incumbent until March 23, 1903, when he re- signed the same to accept the appointment of the city or police court, to fill out an un- expired term. This preferment was conferred upon him by Governor Durbin. Three days after receiving the appointment he was nom- inated by the Republican city convention to succeed himself, and was elected on the 13th of October, 1903. He had the distinction of being the only candidate on the ticket to be elected, with the exception of certain mem- bers of the city board of aldermen. On the 30th of June, 1905, the Republican city con- vention unanimously endorsed the candidacy of Judge Whallon as his own successor, and on the 7th of the following November he was re-elected for a four-years' term, receiving a gratifying majority at the polls. He con- tinued on the bench of the municipal court until January 1, 1910, when he retired, with an unblemished record for able and faithful service, through which the cause of justice had been signally upheld. Since his retire- ment, as already noted, he has resumed the active practice of his profession, and such is his reputation and prestige that his clientage
952
HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.
is certain to be cumulative in scope and ım- portance. The judge accords an unqualified allegiance to the Republican party and has rendered yoemen service in the promotion of its cause. He is identified with several busi- nes enterprises in his home city and as a eiti- zen he is essentially loyal, progressive and public-spirited.
The fraternal affiliations of Judge Whallon are here briefly noted: Mystic Tie Lodge, No. 398, Free and Accepted Masons; Keystone Chapter, No. 6, Royal Arch Masons; Raper Commandery, No. 1, Knights Templar; Con- sistory of the Valley of Indianapolis, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite; Murat Temple, An- cient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mys- tic Shrine; Indianapolis Lodge, No. 56, Knights of Pythias; Indianapolis Lodge, No. 13, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; the Phi Delta Theta college fraternity; and the Indiana Society of the Sons of the Ameri- can Revolution. His eligibility for member- ship in the last mentioned organization has ample basis, as five of his ancestors were en- rolled as patriot soldiers in the Continental line in the great struggle through which our nation hurled oppression back and gained the boon of liberty. Both paternal and maternal ancestors were thus represented in the War of the Revolution. Judge Whallon is iden- tified with the Columbia and Marion clubs and other representative civic organizations, and both he and his wife are members of the Second Presbyterian Church, in whose work they take a deep interest. Mrs. Whallon is contralto soloist of the choir of this church and is known as one of the leading contral- tos of the city, being prominent in musical and social affairs and enjoying marked pop- ularity
On the 3rd of September, 1902, was sol- emnized the marriage of Judge Whallon to Mrs. Alice (Fleming) Evans, who was born and reared in the state of Indiana and who is a daughter of John C. and Harriet (Schaeffer) Fleming, both of whom were born in Frederick County, Maryland. Judge and Mrs. Whallon have one son, Thomas C., Jr.
ANDREW STEFFEN. In the business circles of Indianapolis is found ample evidence of the loyalty of native sons of Indiana to the state, for here are found many representa- tive citizens whose entire lives have been passed within the borders of the fine old Hoosier commonwealth. In this category Mr. Steffen finds classification, and he has been identified with the business activities of the capital city for nearly forty years. as a man- nfacturer of and dealer in cigars. Through his
own energies and well directed endeavors he has built up a large and prosperous enter- prise and his finely equipped establishment, devoted to the manufacturing of and whole- sale and retail dealing in cigars, represents one of the leading concerns of its kind in the citv.
Mr. 'Steffen was born in Madison, Jefferson County, Indiana, on the 4th of March, 1850, and is a son of Andrew and Katherine (Klein) Steffen, both of whom were born and reared in Germany, where their marriage was solemnized. In 1846 they emigrated to America, landing in the City of New Orleans and thence coming up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to Indiana. They settled in the village of Madison, where the father engaged in the work of his trade, that of stone mason, to which he devoted his attention during his entire active career. His wife died in Madi- son, at the age of sixty-eight years, and he there continued to maintain his home, an honored pioneer citizen, until his death, at the venerable age of eighty-eight years. Both he and his wife were devout members of the Catholic Church. They became the parents of fourteen children, of whom nine attained to years of maturity and of whom the sub- ject of this review was the fourth in order of birth.
Andrew Steffen, Jr., to whom this sketch is dedicated, was reared to manhood in his native town, where his early educational training was secured in the common schools. He was but nine years of age, however, when he initiated his efforts as one of the world's workers, and it is interesting to note the fact that during his long and successful busi- ness career he has been consecutively iden- tified with the line of enterprise to which he directed his attention as a boy. While still attending school he entered upon an appren- ticeship at the trade of cigarmaking, begin- ning his efforts as a tobacco-striper when but nine years of age, as already intimated. When but fourteen years of age, at the time of the Civil War, he was found engaged in business for himself as a manufacturer of cigars, and from the modest little enterprise thus established he has built up his present large and flourishing business, making ad- vancement by conservative and legitimate de- grees and never being deflected along specu- lative or unfamiliar lines. He has exempli- fied fully the truth of the statement that skilled hands and industry constitute the mas- ter-key of success, and his entire career has been marked by sturdy integrity of purpose and by utmost fairness and loyalty in his re- lations with his fellow men.
953
HISTORY OF GREATER INDIANAPOLIS.
In June, 1870, Mr. Steffen was married, and on the same day he came with his bride to Indianapolis, which city has been his home during the long intervening years. Here he was identified with the cigar business in the employ of others until March 22, 1875, when he initiated business upon his own account, having but limited capital and thus finding it expedient, if not imperative, to begin oper- ations on a small scale. The story of his ad- vancement and success is one unmarked by spectacular phases but is one which tells of the earnest application of individual ener- gies and abilities along well defined lines. The result has been the upbuilding of a busi- ness which has long ranked among the fore- most of its kind in the capital city, where today Mr. Steffen has a large and well equip- ped establishment in which is conducted his well ordered manufacturing and wholesale business, besides which he has long controlled a representative retail business. In 1898 he erected, at the corner of East Washington and New Jersey streets, his substantial and attractive brick and stone business block, which is three stories in height and thirty- four by one hundred and ninety-five feet in lateral dimensions, and the entire building is utilized by his business.
As a citizen, though never an aspirant for public office, Mr. Steffen has ever been loyal and progressive, and he is found aligned as a stanch supporter of the principles and poli- cies for which the Democratic party stands sponsor. He is a member of the Indiana Dem- ocratic Club and takes a lively interest in the party cause. He also holds membership in that representative civic organization, the Commercial Club, and he and his family are communicants of St. Mary's Catholic Church. He is essentially and primarily a business man, and his devotion to his chosen vocation has brought to him a well merited measure of success.
On the 14th of June, 1870, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Steffen to Miss Barbara Pfau, who was born and reared in Madison, Indiana, and who is a daughter of Sylvester and Charlotte (Nodler) Pfau. both natives of Germany. In conclusion of this brief sketch is entered record concerning the children of Mr. and Mrs. Steffen : Charitas is the wife of Edward A. Rink, a representative business man of Indianapolis; Miss Mary A. remains at the parental home; Charles L. is engaged in the manufacturing of cigars in Indian- apolis; George S. is deceased; and Elmer A. is in the employ of the Eli Lilly Company, manufacturing chemists and pharmacists in Indianapolis.
ELIZA G. BROWNING. To few of us is it given to come within sight of the gracious castles of our dreams, but there can be no measure of doubt that to Miss Eliza G. Browning, the able and honored librarian of the Indianapolis Public Library, has been granted a tangible realization of many of her ideals, which have been crystallized into worthy accomplishment in connection with the affairs of a work-a-day world. A woman of gracious presence and intellectual attain- ments, she is eminently qualified for the re- sponsible position of which she is incum- bent. Concerning her the following pertinent words have been written: "Undoubtedly Miss Browning's mental qualities are inherited from a long line of intellectual ancestors- men and women who have been leaders of thought and progressive movements in their day. They were Americans of the highest type-persons characterized by strength of mind, breadth of view, high-minded patriot- ism and distinguished public services. Miss Browning's immediate ancestors, both pa- ternal and maternal, have been notable men in public life in Indiana, identified with po- litical. civic and literary interests in the City of Indianapolis and throughout the state."
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.