USA > Indiana > Vanderburgh County > Evansville > History of the city of Evansville and Vanderburg County, Indiana, Volume II > Part 34
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Mr. McNeely was married to Margaret Park, a daughter of the Hon. Elah Park, of Lorain county, Ohio, and to this union there were four children born, the only survivor being Mrs. Edward N. Hill.
While his duties in later years kept Mr. McNeely away from home it seemed that his interest in Evansville and her affairs was heightened, and again and again in his letters to the Journal-News he discussed city affairs and spoke of his longing to return to take part in the activities of Evans- ville. While he was not a member of any religious organization he believed in the teachings of Christianity and its beneficent influence on the world and said : "Religion, whatever any one may think of it, is the balance wheel of humanity. It saves the world from anarchy and without it we would all be barbarians. Chaos would reign." With Mr. McNeely friendship was inviolable and no service that he could perform for a friend was ever regarded as a burden. He lived beyond the allotted three score years and ten, nor did he live in vain, for his influence was at all times a potent ele-
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ment for progress, reform and improvement. He was a man of action rather than of theory and accomplished results while others were dreaming or laying their plans. In the consensus of public opinion he ranks high among those men whose lives have been an ornament and a blessing to the state.
JOHN GEORGE POTTS.
John George Potts, one of the best known farmers and citizens of Van- derburg county, was born October 14, 1824, and died November 12, 1908, having spent his entire life on the farm upon which he was born and which is known as the Plympton place. He was the son of George and Mary Ann (Maidlow) Potts. The father was a native of Lancashire, England, and in 1817 came to America, purchasing the homestead on which the son resides. In 1820 he wedded Mary Ann Maidlow, a lady of sterling char- acter. He was better known as Dr. Potts. In the early '20s he went to New Orleans. Knowing full well the dangers of the dreaded yellow fever, he provided himself with the necessary preventatives which, however, he gave to an afflicted comrade, whose life he thus saved but lost his own for lack of medicine.
John G. Potts was a man of most excellent character and habits, thor- oughly honest in every way and charitable in every good cause. He fully realized the benefits of education and frequently gave prizes to scholars in the schools of his township for excellence in their studies, thus stimulating them to earnest effort and close application in the work of the schoolroom. For more than twenty years he served as treasurer and trustee of the Erskine Benevolent Fund, was a director of the old State National Bank for almost a half century and served as township trustee for a number of terms. Being a self-educated man and of studious turn of mind, he read law and was admitted to the bar of Vanderburg county but never practiced.
Those who have not lived to advanced years can have no accurate con- ception of the changes witnessed by Mr. Potts. The state was in its in- fancy, the wilderness was almost unbroken, wild animals and game were abundant and the trail of the savage was still to be seen during his early youth here, but with the years there came roads, farms and better condi- tions. The home of Mr. Potts was one of the fine old places of the county where through his many years the simple life was lived and hospitality was generous and genuine but without ostentation. He was a very valuable citizen, never seeking the public eye nor the prizes of official life. He kept no inventory of his virtues but his life was the incarnation of personal in- tegrity. He was ever jealous of his country's honor.
In the fall of 1851 Mr. Potts was united in marriage to Susan Stephens, a daughter of Richard and Elizabeth Stephens. Mrs. Potts was born in
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Dartmouth, England, March 22, 1822, and with a brother emigrated to America in 1849, locating in this county where their uncle and aunt, James and Esther (Weeks) Causon, settled in 1818. The latter emigrated to America the year previous but were detained in Pennsylvania, being ice- bound during the winter of 1817-18. In the spring the ice broke up, de- stroying their boat and in consequence many of their effects were lost. A second boat was constructed and set afloat. In the same year they landed in Evansville and made their settlement in Scott township, where they continued for a number of years, remaining in this county until death. However, they made several removals and in later life visited their native England. A short time after Miss Stephens and her brother came to this country she was married to Mr. Potts. To them were born four children, Esther, Edith, John and Causon. Of these Edith and John died in infancy. Esther was married to William H. Gudger, attorney-at-law. Causon was born December 2, 1856, and died December 27, 1893. He was a graduate of De Pauw University and was married in 1878 to Jennie F. Hall. Of Mr. Potts it can be truthfully said :
None knew him but to love him,
None named him but to praise.
WILLIAM CLARKE.
For more than a quarter of a century William Clarke has been con- nected with the house of Ragon Brothers, of which he is now secretary. Individual business ability and laudable ambition have brought him to his present enviable position, and he deserves much credit for what he has accomplished. He was born in County Cork in the south of Ireland, a son of William and Mary (Bateman) Clarke. The mother died during the childhood of her son William and the father, who for many years was engaged in the shoe business, passed away in 1869.
In the common schools of his native land the subject of this review pursued his education and in 1869, following his father's death, he crossed the 'Atlantic to the new world and resided with his brother in Cincinnati for a short time. Coming to Evansville he secured the position of book- keeper for the firm of Vickery Brothers, with whom he remained for thir- teen years, representing that house for a part of the time at its branch in Vincennes. In 1884 he became a representative of the wholesale grocery firm of Ragon Brothers, being appointed bookkeeper, in which capacity he displayed such capability, industry and fidelity that promotion followed and advancement has now brought him to the position of secretary of what is one of the most important commercial concerns of Evansville. One of his salient characteristics is the thoroughness with which he mas- ters every duty that devolves upon him and as he has advanced in his busi-
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ness career, each forward step has brought him a broader outlook and wider opportunities. In his present position he has bent his energies to administrative direction and executive control and in constructive work is proving an element in the upbuilding of the house and the extension of its trade relations.
In 1873 Mr. Clarke was united in marriage to Miss Rebecca Dunkel of Vincennes, Indiana, who died in 1906. They were the parents of four sons and a daughter. The four sons have all died, one in infancy, but the other three grew to manhood. They were educated in the public schools of Evansville and were filling responsible and lucrative positions at the time of their death. Samuel K. was assistant cashier with the Pennsylvania Rail- road Co., at Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, at the time of his death in January, 1903. Will F., the eldest, died at home in 1907, and George, the youngest, died at Denver, Colorado, in 1908, and was buried in Evansville. Fannie, the daughter, is now living at home. The family residence is at No. 1117 Washington avenue.
Mr. Clarke is a member of the Masonic fraternity, with which he has been identified from the age of twenty-one years, and is a past master of the blue lodge. He belongs to Trinity Methodist Episcopal church and guides his life by its teachings. His has been an honorable record, char- acterized by fidelity to duty in every relation. In his business affairs he has never regarded any position as final but rather as the starting point for further achievement. Thus gradually he has progressed until he today occupies a prominent position in commercial circles, being active in the affairs of one of the leading commercial enterprises of Evansville.
ALBERT J. ROSECRANS.
Albert J. Rosecrans, who has devoted his entire life to farming, is now engaged in the cultivation of a tract of two hundred and thirty acres in Union township. He was born in Perry county, Indiana, on the 17th of October, 1870, and his parents, Adam Francis and Elizabeth (Wheatly) Rosecrans, were also natives of the same locality, where much of their lives was passed. Both are now deceased, the father having been called to his final rest in 1894, while the mother's death occurred in August, 1891. Mr. Rosecrans had followed farming throughout his entire life save for the period of his service in the Civil war. In response to the country's call for troops his patriotism prompted his enlistment and he joined Company K of the Eighty-first Indiana Volunteer Infantry, doing active duty at the front until wounded at the battle of Chickamauga.
Albert J. Rosecrans acquired his early education in the schools of Ken- tucky and afterward attended the schools of Perry county, Indiana. He was reared to farm life and early became familiar with the best methods of
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cultivating the soil and caring for the crops. His attention has been given to farm work from early boyhood and after his marriage he began farming on his own account. He now! rents and cultivates two hundred and thirty acres of land, which he has brought under a high state of improvement. His methods are practical, his industry unfaltering and his well directed labors have brought him substantial returns.
On the 7th of October, 1897, at Rockport, Spencer county, Indiana, Mr. Rosecrans was united in marriage to Miss Ida M. Stevens, a daughter of Edward and Sarah (Butt) Stevens. The father, a native of Kentucky, is still living but the mother has passed away. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Rosecrans have been born three children, two daughters and a son: Blanch, eleven years of age; Hazel, a little maiden of ten summers; and Albert J., five years of age. The family have lived in Vanderburg county since 1898 and are well known in this community where they have a large circle of warm friends.
Both Mr. and Mrs. Rosecrans attend the Methodist Episcopal church and are loyal to its teachings and generous in its support. His political views accord with the principles of the republican party but he has neither sought nor desired office, preferring to concentrate his energies upon his business interests. Whatever success he has achieved is due to his own labors for he has had no assistance from others depending entirely upon his industry and capable management for the attainment of prosperity.
WILLIAM B. LE MASTERS.
William B. Le Masters has been a member of the Vanderburg bar since June, 1905. He was born at Boonville, Cooper county, Missouri, November 27, 1879. He is the son of Christopher C. and Sarah Le Masters and a grandson of Benjamin, a French pioneer of the Northwest Territory. The father is a native of Pike county, Indiana, while the mother's birth occurred in Pulaski county, Kentucky. In 1870 they removed to Kansas City, Mis- souri, where the father was engaged in business, while later they removed to Boonville, Missouri, where Lee, as he is familiarly known, was born. In 1882, the father's health becoming bad, they removed to the father's old homestead in Pike county.
In 1890 our subject removed with his parents to Evansville, where he has since resided, having been educated in the city schools. When the Spanish-American war broke out he was a student in the Evansville high school. His patriotic spirit aroused, he responded to the country's call for troops, enlisting for service in Company E, One Hundred and Fifty-ninth Indiana Volunteer Infantry. Near the close of the war he was furloughed on account of illness, never rejoining his command. The four years fol- lowing the war with Spain he spent in the west. Since his marriage in
W. B. LE MASTERS
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June, 1904, to Miss Lena W. Cuny, he has resided continuously in Evansville.
On the Ist of January, 1908, he was appointed deputy prosecuting at- torney for the first judicial circuit. At the expiration of his term (January I, 1912,) he will have served four years as assistant to Hon. O. R. Luhring. He is appreciative of the duties as well as of the privileges of citizenship and his cooperation can be counted upon as a factor in promoting projects and measures destined to improve and upbuild the city and county.
GUS KANZLER.
The business development of Evansville is attributable to the efforts of such enterprising men as Gus Kanzler, the secretary and treasurer of the Mechanics Planing Mill and also a partner in the contracting business con- ducted under the name of C. Kanzler & Son. He is numbered among those men who in the rapid and marvelous development and growth of the city have come to the front because of their recognition and utilization of oppor- tunities which have arisen in connection with the substantial expansion of industrial, commercial and financial interests here. The impossibility of placing fictitious values upon industry, determination and perseverance at once proves the worth of the individual who must base his rise upon these qualities. These elements have constituted the salient features in the ad- vancement of Mr. Kanzler, whose experience has been of wide range as he has advanced from the outset of his business career to his present credi- table position.
A native of this city, he was born October 5, 1876, and is a son of Christ and Margaret Kanzler. He was a pupil in the public schools to the age of seventeen years and afterward attended the Evansville Commercial College for a year and a half. He then engaged with his father in learning the building contracting business and in 1903 was admitted to a partnership under the name of C. Kanzler & Son. They have been very successful, doing a general line of building contracting, erecting the Hercules buggy works, the Lincoln cotton mills, the Louisville & Nashville railroad station, the Southern Stove Works and the fine residences of William Cook and Edward Keichle. They now have in course of construction a one hundred thousand dollar courthouse at Spencer, Indiana. They have recently com- pleted a five-stall roundhouse, boiler and engine room for the Cairo & Thebes Railroad at Cairo, Illinois, and are engaged on the construction of a sixty thousand dollar postoffice building at Jefferson, Indiana. In 1905 Mr. Kanzler was elected secretary and treasurer of the Mechanics Planing Mill and is thus closely associated with the industrial activities of this city.
On the 18th of October, 1899, Mr. Kanzler was married in Evansville to Miss Lilly Yost. They are members of St. John's Evangelical church
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and Mr. Kanzler belongs to Reed Lodge, No. 316, A. F. & A. M., the Elks, Red Men, the Liederkranz and Turner societies. His political allegiance is given to the republican party and, as every true American citizen should do, he keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day, but aside from that takes no active part in politics, feeling that his business affairs make full demand upon his time and energies. He is alert to the oppor- tunities offered in the fields in which he is operating and as the years have gone by he has achieved substantial success therein.
FRANK P. CONN.
Frank P. Conn, devoting his time and energies to general farming in Perry township, was born in Wheeling, West Virginia, on the 12th of May, 1844. His father, Dr. Isaac T. Conn, was a native of Beaver, Pennsylvania, who, after mastering the branches of learning, took up the study of medi- cine with Dr. Barker of Beaver as his preceptor. Later he was graduated from the Virginia Medical College, after which he continued in active practice until the outbreak of the Civil war, when he offered his services to the government as a surgeon and went to the front with the First Indiana Heavy Artillery. Dr. Conn, however, was engaged in active hospital ser- vice most of the time and after the close of the war returned to Evansville, where he continued in practice until his death in 1873. He wedded Miss Mary Jane Porter, of Beaver, Pennsylvania, who, surviving him for almost twenty years, passed away in 1892.
Frank P. Conn of this review was a youth of fifteen when his parents removed from his native city to Evansville. His education, begun in the public schools of Wheeling, was continued in this city. Later he engaged in teaching school in Vanderburg and Posey counties for a number of years, proving a capable educator whose labors were an important element in ad- vancing the educational interests of the state. For a time he occupied the position of deputy in the office of the state superintendent of schools. In 1874 Mr. Conn was elected county superintendent of schools in Vanderburg county, filling the position for eight years, during which period he insti- tuted many needed reforms and progressive measures. His labors were at all times practical and produced satisfactory results. He was reporter on the Courier for some time and also a contributor on educational and politi- ical topics. In 1886 Mr. Conn took up a tract of unimproved land in Perry township, four miles west of Evansville, and by patient industry cleared it and erected a comfortable home thereon. This place, on the Red bank, (then an unfrequented road) is one of the most eligible and attractive situations about Evansville-a city noted for many lovely sites among the hills north and westward.
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In September, 1877, in Evansville, Mr. Conn was united in marriage to Miss Anna Burbank, a daughter of Bradford Burbank, a native of Hart- ford, Connecticut. Her father was engaged in the wholesale mercantile business in Evansville and was a prominent figure in commercial circles. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Conn have been born two sons and two daughters: Charles B., now a resident of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania; Virginia, at home; Isaac P., also in Pittsburg; and Helen M., at home.
The family attend the Christian church. Mr. Conn gives active political support to the democratic party. He has been a cooperant factor in many progressive measures for the general good, has been active in extending the city limits of Evansville on the Perry township side and his labors have at all times been of a helpful and valuable character. He is widely known and his sterling qualities have gained him high regard.
JACOB H. WEBER.
Among the young men who are forging their way to the front in busi- ness circles of Evansville, winning a creditable place and name through energy, ability and determination, Jacob H. Weber is numbered. He is now the secretary of the Forest Product Manufacturing Company, to which position he was chosen December 29, 1909. He was born in Evansville, July 22, 1883, his parents being Fred W. and Catharine Weber. Like a large majority of the citizens who came to Evansville in the middle of the nineteenth century, he was of German birth, his natal day being August I, 1854. He arrived in Evansville in 1866 and afterward established a beer bottling business, the first of the kind in the city. In this he continued suc- cessfully until 1889, when he turned his capital into other channels and became foreman of the Evansville Hoop Company, with which he was as- sociated until 1907. In that year he became one of the organizers of the Forest Product Company, of which he was elected treasurer and is still active in the management and conduct of that business, being a worthy representative of the German-American citizens who have been the up- builders and promoters of Evansville's business development.
Jacob H. Weber attended the Catholic parochial schools until fourteen years of age, at which time he became a pupil in the Spencerian Business College, where he continued his studies for two years, thus qualifying by thorough training for the duties which come as one commences business life. He then accepted a clerical position in the local freight office of the Evansville & Terre Haute Railroad Company, with which he was con- nected for seven years, his long continuance in the position proving his capability, efficiency and faithfulness. At the end of that time he became a salesman for the Evansville Hoop & Stave Company, with which he was associated until December, 1909, when he was elected secretary of the Forest
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Product Company. This has been very successful from the beginning, the trade growing along substantial and healthful lines, bringing a good return for the capital invested and for the industry put forth.
On the 16th of January, 1907, Mr. Weber was married in this city to Miss Minnie Boyer, and they have one child, Mary Denis, now a year old. Mr. Weber is a Catholic in religious faith and holds membership with the Knights of Columbus. In political thought he is independent, nor holds to the leading of any party but casts his ballot as his judgment dictates. He is a young man well known in Evansville and has many friends with whom he has been acquainted from his boyhood days.
JOHN F. GILMAN.
Seventy years ago John F. Gilman, who is a well known real-estate man and builder of Evansville, first saw the light of day. He was born in this city in a house that stood at the corner of Main and Second streets in 1840. Few men now living are better acquainted with the development of the city and the wonderful changes which have taken place on the Ohio river, which was formerly the great artery over which floated the products of the early factories and mills on their way to market at St. Louis, New Orleans and the intervening cities. Over this route, in boats which they had built with their own hands, came thousands of settlers who established homes along the water courses or at the edge of the prairie in Indiana and Illinois, many pushing their way westward until they found a resting place on the shores of the Pacific. Mr. Gilman has watched Evans- ville grow from a village to a thriving city and has seen the rude log cabin of the pioneer transformed into a modern dwelling with all the comforts and elegancies that appeal to the cultivated taste of the present day. He saw the steamboat superseded by the locomotive, the prairie schooner by the Pullman palace car and the hand sickle and cradle, so common in the harvest fields of the pioneer period, succeeded by the wonderful reapers and binders that have assisted so materially in making scientific farming a reality and have marked a new era in the peaceful achievements of men. Here as a young man he saw the soldiers going to fight for the Union; he saw them return and resume the vocations of peace that have changed a vast, un- developed country into the most flourishing portion of the globe. Through all this experience has he lived and in the same degree has he been of it a part.
The parents of our subject, John and Mary Gilman, came to Evansville in 1832. They gave their son the advantages of an education in the public schools and later he became a student in a business college where he was inducted into subjects of practical application in his future career. After leaving school he became self-supporting as a clerk and bookkeeper, but for
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many years he has been engaged in handling real estate and also as a build- ing contractor. By diligence and good judgment he acquired a com- petence and he is now enjoying the fruits which are usually the results of conscientious application.
In 1864 Mr. Gilman was married, the lady of his choice being Miss Alice Spencer, a daughter of Hon. Charles Spencer, of Memphis, Tennessee. Before her marriage she was principal of one of the public schools of Mem- phis. Two daughters were born of the union: Ursula and Theo.
Mr. Gilman is recognized as a substantial representative citizen by those with whom he has long been associated and one who has always been deeply interested in the material, mental and moral welfare of the community. By his integrity and honesty in all business dealings he attained a standing which is to any man of inestimable value and in the long run is worth much more than all the honors that could be purchased by the use of money.
GAINES A. CONDIT.
Gaines A. Condit, vice president and general manager of the Central Mutual Insurance Company, was born in Boonville, Indiana, December 17, 1864, his parents being Rev. Byram E. L. and Asenath Condit. The father was born in 1832 upon a farm at Livermore, Kentucky. He was sixteen years of age when his parents died. He then went to the home of an uncle at Millersburg, Indiana, and afterward served as mail carrier on the old canal. His education was largely acquired through his own efforts with- out the assistance of others. While acting as mail carrier he took up the study of theology, for he had determined to devote his life to the work of the Christian ministry, and in 1862 he was ordained in the Baptist church. On the 3d of August, 1851, he had married Asenath Osborn, who was born near Boonville, Indiana, in 1833. His ancestors came to this country about 1678, settling first at what is now Newark, New Jersey, while later representatives of the family went to Ohio and afterward others went to Kentucky. Both the Rev. B. E. L. Condit and his wife are still living, and in many places where they have resided their labors have proven a most potent element in moral development and progress. For many years the father officiated as minister of the Pleasant Ridge Baptist church near Boonville, Indiana.
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