USA > Indiana > History of the Indiana democracy, 1816-1916 > Part 146
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In politics always looked to as one of the cleverest men in the Democratic party anywhere, though this came far from being in any sense his business. He liked politics, and it was always simply one of the things in which, as a man of large affairs, he found diversion and real pleasurable recreation.
Born in the city of Lawrenceburg, he always lived there. In his younger days he was editor of the Lawrenceburg Register, a Democratic newspaper that he made successful, as he always did all other things that came under his direction. He served for six years as secretary and fourteen years as chairman of the Democratic county central committee of Dearborn county. For the next six years he was the member of the Democratic state central committee from his district and for eight years was a member of the executive committee of the Democratic state central committee. He was also chair- man of the Democratic state central committee for six years, and in 1908 he served as treasurer of the Democratic national committee.
The people of Lawrenceburg made him mayor of the city, for in electing a man of his standing, while he was the Democratic candidate, the people did the work of providing the majority at election time. He also served his district as a member of the Indiana state senate, and for two terms he was auditor of state.
It was as auditor of state that William H. O'Brien became best known by. his good works to the people of the whole State of Indiana. He accomplished more for the good of all the people, for the State at large, than any other man who ever occupied any office under the dome of the Capitol building. If governors got the credit for much that he accomplished by his unusual ability as a financier and sound business man, William H. O'Brien was the one man who really did it. It is not detracting from what others did, then, to state the facts.
When William H. O'Brien took office as auditor of state and as the head of the financial affairs of Indiana no man ever met with a more deplorable condition. It was at the end of the first two years of the term that Thomas R. Marshall was governor. Republicans had for some years been in charge of the State finances. It was not because he was a Democrat that William H. O'Brien was able to take charge of the condition which existed and put things on a sound basis. It was because he was a man of unusual ability in the handling of such things, and it was because the Democratic party had the good judgment to name such a man for the important office that he had the chance to do what he did. .
The State was more than $3,000,000 in debt the day William H. O'Brien became auditor. The condition to the average politician of any party who might take charge under such circumstances would have not only appeared but would have been hopeless. On his desk were current bills amount- ing to about $300,000 and in the treasury was less than $10,000 with which to pay these bills and keep the state government going. The counties had all been drawn upon for all they could possibly raise for the State, and the State's resources of all kinds had been anticipated and spent for a year in advance.
The State was absolutely bankrupt, and the only thing that kept it out of the bankruptcy court was the fact that it was the State and not an ordinary business institution or corporation. Of course the first thing to do was to borrow some money to operate upon, and this was done, while the Repub- lican partisan press set up an awful howl that the "first thing Democrats do when they get into office is to borrow money." Never a word, of course, of why the borrowing was made necessary. Nothing to tell the public what the Republicans had been doing to make borrowing a thing unavoidable and the only business thing to do.
But William H. O'Brien had been too smart to listen to such things as attacks from the partisan press, or to try to answer them save to keep his course and let the results tell the story when it was all over. So he set about at the job. There were institutions to be built for the better care of the
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State's dependents. There were three such state institutions that must be looked after at once. These were of the charitable class. Most of the others had been allowed to deteriorate to such an extent that repairs almost amounted to rebuilding. The unfortunates in the charitable institutions and hospitals for the insane and others were not properly housed, clothed or fed.
The schools of the State were not cared for as they should be. The legislature had been called upon for so much for "general purposes," which meant "taking care of the boys" of the party in con- trol, that these more important things had been neglected.
One result had been that each time the legislature met the people of the State must witness the really disgraceful picture of the heads of the state educational institutions and the other boards and heads of the state charitable homes and hospitals pleading as lobbyists for some support. But these were no match for "the boys" who had made their living lobbying as politicians, and legitimate calls usually got what the politician machinists did not demand. In this Indiana was not different from other states.
The William H. O'Brien plan eliminated the necessity for the heads of all these institutions to be- come lobbyists. He calculated their needs and with the co-operation of other Democratic state offi- cials, when he showed the way, ample provision was made for them all. It was done because it was right, because it was good business, because it was humane, because it was economical, because it was using the money of the taxpayers for the things for which it had always been intended, and to which it had not in the past been applied.
With the elimination of this lobby it might also be stated, incidentally, that the next Democratie legislature eliminated the other lobbyists also, in the same year when the national congress under Woodrow Wilson drove them from Washington.
Under the William H. O'Brien financial plans the institutions that were needed were built. The others were rebuilt or repaired and put in habitable shape. The State's dependents were properly housed and amply clothed and fed. The educational institutions were provided with the funds neces- sary to place them in a position in the nation second to none. The public schools of the State, so far as the State's end of the work was concerned, never lagged. In all these things, ascribed to the ad- ministrations of Governors Marshall and Ralston, the financial and business head and hard work of William H. O'Brien deserves all the credit, save what the others did by way of co-operation. The pur- pose of any history is to tell the facts, and this is the record here recorded.
But the conclusion of the whole matter. The result of the William H. O'Brien policy in its working out. He spent four years in the office of auditor of state. At the end of his second year, which was the end of his first term, he insisted upon the Democratic platform promising the accomplishment of cer- tain results during the next two years. The planks upon which he insisted went into the platform. The people supported the platform and men. The governor and the members of the legislature kept the pledges and passed the laws making the redemption of the promise possible.
The one result which embraces all the others was the exhibit on the day when Governor Ralston left office and turned over the state government and finances to his successor. All the State institu- tions that had to be repaired, as already described, had been repaired or rebuilt. All the new institu- tions had been built and were occupied. The original debt of more than three millions of dollars had been fully paid. The State had ceased to anticipate and spend its resources a year or more in advance. There was no longer any talk of the State being bankrupt, for on the day when the Democratic gov- ernor stepped out of office there was in the treasury in round figures about five millions of dollars, with not a bill, not a debt, not a claim of even a penny against the State anywhere.
This is the record of the holding of one office by William H. O'Brien. His whole business life was shaped in the same sane and thorough fashion. Whatever he undertook he finished. He undertook nothing that was not worth finishing. He never quit till he got to the end of the job, and he traveled by the most direct, practical route.
From politics and business to domestic affairs. Mr. and Mrs. William H. O'Brien reared one of the finest families on earth. It was the model to which the people of Lawrenceburg, or anywhere else where they were known, referred to as exceptional. Three sons and three daughters. Cornelius O'Brien. associated with his father in business in Lawrenceburg. Major Robert E. O'Brien of the United States Army, in the war with Germany. Lieutenant-Commander William H. O'Brien of the United States Navy, in the war with Germany. Captain Calvin W. Verity, United States Army, a son-in- law, in the war with Germany. Lieutenant Daniel R. Ingwersen, Aviation Section, Signal Corps, United States Army, another son-in-law, in the war with Germany. The other daughter is Frances O'Brien.
The story of William H. O'Brien as a business man, as a politician, as a public official, as an
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individual, as the head of a family, all these are fairly illustrated in the few things that have been recited. Many others might be told, but they would be only repetitions of the same general principles, only differing in details. What is told serves only to show, in so far as recital can convey it, why his reputation for all that is good and right and substantial in the world of men and affairs has been on the good side of the ledger.
CORNELIUS O'BRIEN
Closely identified with the political, business and financial life of the place, Cornelius O'Brien is well known in his home city, Lawrenceburg, and throughout Dearborn county. He is a native of Indiana, born on the 12th day of February, 1883, and received the foundation of his education in the public schools of Lawrenceburg. Following this he attended Moores Hill College for two years and later spent one year in Purdue University. Since attaining his majority and casting his first vote, he has been a member of the Democratic county central committee, and is at present treasurer of that body. In business he is associated with A. D. Cook, manufacturer cf deep well pumps, and is assistant cashier and director of the Peoples' National Bank, and a member of the Indiana State Board of Agriculture. On the 14th of April, 1909, he was united in marriage to Miss Anna Belle Cook, and to them has been born one daugh- ter. Mr. O'Brien is past master of Lawrenceburg Lodge No. 4, F. & A. M., and past chancellor of Dearborn Lodge No. 49, K. of P .; member of Indiana Delta Chapter of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity.
VICTOR OBERTING
To the citizens of Dearborn county the name of Victor Oberting is a familiar one, as he has for a number of years been closely identified with the business, political and social life of the city of Lawrenceburg.
Mr. Oberting was born in the state of Indiana on the 2nd day of February, 1858, and most of his life has been spent in the home of his childhood, Lawrenceburg, and here his inter- ests are centered. He attended its schools, and at the age of twenty-three years his name was linked with that of one of the leading families of the city, for on the 2nd day of Aug- ust, 1881, was solemnized his marriage to Miss Anna Garnier, the daughter of John B. Garnier, the founder of the Garnier brewery. At this time Mr. Oberting was a trusted employe of this great plant, and for a number of years was book- keeper for Mr. Garnier. Following the death of this gentle- man, Mr. Oberting assumed the management of the institu- tion, and under his direction the business of the concern has tripled itself since the year 1897, truly a remarkable record. Shortly after he assumed control of the business, the manu- facture of ice was added to their activities, and much valu- able machinery was installed in both departments. An ice plant of 20 tons daily capacity at Aurora, Ind., was also added to their holdings, and the business has continued to expand and improve each year to the present time.
However, Mr. Oberting is not a man of but a single talent, but has developed capabilities in vari- ous directions. He has, throughout his career, taken an active interest in political affairs, being a stanch adherent of the Democratic party; and in the year 1905 he served as representative in the gen- eral assembly of the State for Dearborn county, being returned also in 1907 to 1909.
Mr. Oberting has also given freely of his time and money for the furtherance of the cause of De- mocracy, and has held a position of influence in the councils of the party.
His business activities have reached out in various directions, and his investments in real estate in Lawrenceburg and surrounding territory have been unusually successful and heavy. He is a stock- holder in three banks, a director of a gas plant and of the county fair association, a member of the
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cemetery board and interested in a thriving carriage factory. In all of these undertakings he has proved himself a leader, a good commander and director and fearless in his transactions, evincing a progressive spirit and aggressive methods, which, combined with unflagging energy, inevitably make for success.
He has taken a deep interest in the various movements for the betterment of the community, and has taken an active interest in civil and municipal affairs, serving at the present time as chief of the fire department. He is also a liberal contributor to religious and charitable institutions and move- ments.
Mr. Oberting has traveled very extensively, both in his home country and abroad, having visited the chief places of interest in the United States and taken four extensive tours through the various countries of Europe. He is, as a result, cosmopolitan in his acquaintance, cultivated in his tastes and broad-minded in his judgments of others and in his dealings with his fellow men.
To the home of Mr. and Mrs. Oberting have come two sons and a daughter, aged respectively thirty-one, twenty-two and sixteen years, and the charm of youth, together with unbounded hospi- tality, has brought to their fireside a host of friends.
J. C. ODELL
John C. Odell was born in Carroll county, Indiana, December 6, 1838. He was the oldest son of the Hon. James Odell, who was one of the earliest pio- neer settlers of Carroll county, and who, during a period of sixty years, was called to fill public office as follows: County commissioner, representative in the general assembly in 1848, state senator from Carroll and Clinton counties in 1860, and clerk of the Carroll circuit court from 1871 to 1879. He cast his first vote for General Jackson for his second term for President, and was a consistent Democrat all his life. His death occurred June 4, 1891.
John C. Odell was educated in the common schools, one year at the Bat- tle Ground Collegiate Institute and two years at Asbury University (now DePauw). In 1863 and 1864 he published the Delphi Times, the Democratic organ of the county. He was engaged for several years in teaching public schools, and in 1871 entered the clerk's office as deputy under his father, serving two terms, after which he was admitted to the bar, and has ever since been actively engaged in the practice of law. In 1896 he was elected prosecuting attorney for Carroll and White counties, and since has served as deputy prosecuting at- torney for ten years for Carroll county. In 1915 he published a new history of Carroll county, embrac- ing the entire civil history for 91 years, and the history of the early settlements. As a Democrat he rendered service to his party as a campaigner and writer.
He was married to Miss Elizabeth R. Noland of Loudon county, Virginia, September 11, 1873, and has one son and a daughter.
BERNARD E. O'CONNOR
Prominently identified with the business interests of Indianapolis for many years, and having since his boyhood taken an active part in political affairs in Indianapolis, the name of Bernard E. O'Connor is familiar to the citizens of Indianapolis and vicinity.
Mr. O'Connor is a native Hoosier, born in Indianapolis, Indiana, on the 24th day of April, 1876. He attended St. Joseph's School of Indianapolis, and later pursued his studies at St. Viateur's College, Kankakee, Illinois.
On the 22nd day of April, 1908, his marriage to Miss Clementine Martha Cazeneuve, of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, was solemnized and their home es- tablished in Indianapolis. Here they have gathered about them a wide circle of friends to whom the hospitality of their home has been extended by its charming mistress.
Mr. O'Connor is an enthusiastic adherent to the principles of true De- mocracy. He was one of the organizers of the Wilson-Bryan League of Indiana and when the league was organized at Indianapolis, December 30,
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1913, he was unanimously chosen as secretary and executive officer, which position he still holds. This league led by Mr. O'Connor and other Democrats was the powerful force behind the Jones direct pri- mary election bill which became a law in the general assembly of 1915. Probably without the active work of the league the primary bill would never have become a law.
Some of the most important work has been done by Mr. O'Connor in Marion county and Indian- apolis. He was a member of the grand jury which indicted fifteen Progressives and Democrats for fraud in connection with the primaries that nominated the Democratic county ticket which was de- feated in the last election. It was due to the active work and investigation of Mr. O'Connor that this clean-up in Marion county was started, it being his position that political corruption should be up- rooted, no matter in what party it existed, and that the best thing to do for his own party would be to make it clean.
This investigation, started in Marion county, resulted in a clean-up movement which extended to all parts of Indiana. Within about one year from the time the ball was set rolling by Mr. O'Connor in Marion county 116 political corruptionists of Vigo county, including the mayor of Terre Haute, had either pleaded guilty to crooked election work or had been found guilty in the federal court. Also in- vestigations of a similar kind had been started in many other cities in the State.
Mr. O'Connor is secretary-treasurer of the wholesale grocery firm of M. O'Connor & Co., a leading concern of the wholesale district of Indianapolis.
JOHN T. OLIPHANT
John T. Oliphant. a leading citizen of the city of Vin- cennes, is also well known throughout the state as a suc- cessful, aggressive man, one of influence in the business and political world.
Mr. Oliphant is a native of this state, his birth having occurred in Monroe county on the 10th day of February, 1867. He attended the public schools of his home district and was graduated from the high school. Later his studies were continued at the Central Normal College of Danville, which he attended for a term of three years, following which he entered the educational field and taught school for three terms, one of which was at Cadiz, Indiana. He later made his home at Vincennes, where his business interests have since been centered, his friendships have been formed and his permanent home established. On July 7, 1892, he was united in marriage to Miss Etta R. Newby of Newcastle, Indiana.
Throughout his life, Mr. Oliphant has been an energetic worker, bringing to his business affairs a definiteness of purpose, combined with aggressive methods, which have made for unusual success. As president of the Vincennes Bridge Co., the Wasson Coal Co. and the Oliphant-Wasson Coal Co., he has been an active force in bringing these con- cerns to their present standard of efficiency in administration; and the characteristics which have accomplished so much in the management of these institutions have placed him in the directorate of the Second National Bank of Vincennes. He is a stockholder in several other large financial in- stitutions, located in Chicago, Illinois, Bruceville and Vincennes, Indiana. He also is deeply inter- ested in agriculture and is a heavy investor in farm lands, as well as having heavy holdings in the oil fields near Sullivan, Indiana, and in the state of Oklahoma.
Though he has borne such heavy responsibilities in a business way, Mr. Oliphant has main- tained the deepest interest in municipal affairs and all movements touching the progress and de- velopment of the city and the moral uplift of the community at large. He is on the directorate of all the commercial bodies of Vincennes and has been an enthusiastic worker in the interest of the . Y. M. C. A., contributing in a large way of his means as well as his time to make possible the erec- tion of the building now occupied by this organization. He has also for a number of years served as trustee of Vincennes University, and has for many years been deeply interested in the financial affairs of that institution. He has also for some time held a position on the official board of the Methodist church, of which he is an active member.
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Fraternally, Mr. Oliphant is allied with Vincennes Lodge No. 1, Free and Accepted Masons; the Chapter, the Knights Templar Commandery and the B. P. O. Elks.
Since attaining his majority Mr. Oliphant has been a loyal and conscientious worker for the cause of Democracy and has been a delegate to a number of state conventions. In the local organiza- tions his influence has been weighty and he has lost no opportunity to assist in promulgating the principles of Jefferson.
OSCAR OLIVER
For many years the name of Oscar Oliver has been a familiar one in the business circles of Jefferson county and his activities in the ranks of the Democratic organization have contributed in no small measure to its success in that section of the state.
Mr. Oliver is a native of Jefferson county, his birth having occurred on the 15th day of April, 1860. His education was received in the schools of the county, and in the year 1880, on the 16th day of November, he was united in marriage to Miss Fannie Armstrong and their home was estab- lished in the city of Madison. In the fall of 1913 he was elected to the position of city councilman and assumed his duties with that body on the first day of the following January, his term of office to expire with the close of 1917. For a number of years Mr. Oliver has been engaged in the pro- duce business under the firm name of O. Oliver & Son. At one time he was candidate for trustee of Milton township, but, though he led his ticket, no Democrat was that year elected in the county, so he was defeated.
DENNIS O'RILEY
The name of Dennis O'Riley is a familiar one in every household in the town of Remington, for he has been prominently identified with the business and political interests of the place for nearly a quarter of a century.
Mr. O'Riley is a native of the state of Ohio, his birth having occurred on the 15th day of Feb- ruary, 1868. He attended the public schools of Van Wert, Ohio, in which town his youth was spent; but in the year 1889 he moved to Frankfort, Indiana, where he remained until 1893, at which time he settled in Jasper county. Two years later he was united in marriage to Miss Janie Shearer, and she has since been a large factor in his success.
Immediately after his arrival in Jasper county Mr. O'Riley engaged in the bakery and restau- rant business in Remington, and conducted the business until the year 1912, when he disposed of the concern. He has taken an active interest in party and municipal affairs, having served as city councilman for a term of twelve years, retiring on January 1, 1914. Three months later he was appointed postmaster of Remington, which position he still holds. In the year 1914 he served as chairman of the south precinct Democratic committee.
JUDGE CHARLES J. ORBISON
He was Judge Charles J. Orbison, sitting on the superior court bench at Indianapolis at thirty-six. He might have led political preferment at an earlier period, but he chose to confine himself to building his personal law practice.
Born in Indianapolis, September 28, 1874, the "age of discretion" found him gaining the principles of Democracy, and his regret was that he had to wait until he was twenty-one to vote the Democratic ticket.
When he consented to become the candidate of his party for superior court judge of Marion county, in 1910, he was elected and served four years. He had graduated from the Indianapolis high school in 1893 and from the Indiana Law School, which was a part of the University, in 1896. Before he was judge of the superior court he had been named a mem- ber of the Indiana state board of charities, a position which he held under several reappointments.
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