USA > Michigan > Wayne County > Detroit > The city of Detroit, Michigan, 1701-1922, Vol. IV > Part 81
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JOHN H. MEYERING, who has developed exten- sive interests as a real estate dealer of Detroit, was born September 26, 1880, at Jamestown, Ottawa county, Michigan, his parents being Henry and Anna (Pickart)
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Meyering, both of whom are residents of Grand Rapids. The son obtained a public school education and started out in the business world when a youth of nineteen years as clerk in a bank, his fidelity and capability winning him promotion to the position of assistant cashier in that institution, which was the Zeeland State Bank of Zeeland, Michigan. There he continued for four years, after which he went to Kalamazoo and entered the office of Charles B. Hays, a real estate dealer, with whom he continued until 1905, receiving in that connection his initial experience in the business in which he is now active. In association with his brother, he came to Detroit in 1905 and established a brokerage business under the firm style of J. H. & J. R. Meyering. On the 22d of April, 1911, the Meyer- ing Land Company was organized as a general real estate company and incorporated under that name. The company deals in Grosse Pointe land exclusively and the Arcadia Land Company, the Meyercon Realty Company and the Lake Shore Gardens Company are affiliated companies of the Meyering interests. John H. Meyering also conducts his business operations in real estate in Grand Rapids under the name of the Suburban Realty Company and in Minneapolis, Min- nesota, under the name of the Park Manor Realty Company. Thus he has extended his activities in three cities, being recognized as a prominent figure in the real estate circles of each.
On the 1st of February, 1905, Mr. Meyering was married to Miss J. Ellen Maxwell of Grand Rapids, and they have become the parents of a daughter, Gladys Ellen, who is now fourteen years of age. Mr. Meyering is of the Presbyterian faith and his political support is given to the republican party. He is a member of the real estate boards of Detroit and of Minneapolis, and he belongs also to the Detroit Board of Commerce, to the Detroit Golf Club, the Oakland Hills Country Club, the Essex Golf Club and the Detroit Automobile Club, while his name is likewise on the membership roll of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. His has been a well rounded development, his constantly expanding powers bringing him into en- viable social as well as into prominent business con- nections.
JOSHUA GEORGE SPLANE. The qualities of busi- ness leadership are in a substantial degree the posses- sion of Joshua George Splane, whose progressive spirit and executive ability have led to his identification with many important industrial enterprises, and he is preeminently a business man whose record is written in terms of success. He figures conspicuously in com- mercial circles of this city as president of the Insula- ting Materials Company and vice president of the Detroit Insulated Wire Company and he also has exten- give business interests in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in which city his birth occurred. The family is an old and honored one of Pittsburgh, where its members have gained prominence as successful furniture manu- facturers and also in other branches of industry.
Mr. Splane began his business career in 1888, secur- ing the position of office boy with the Standard Oil Company, with which he was connected for a period of eighteen years. In 1903 he became president of the Pittsburgh & Allegheny Telephone Company, which was developed into one of the largest concerns of the kind in the country. Under his able management it enjoyed a remarkable era of prosperity, increasing the scope of its activities threefold, and it was capitalized at five million four hundred thousand dollars. Subse- quently it was sold to a group of financiers, who later became involved in business difficulties, and Mr. Splane was appointed receiver for the company, in which capacity he continued to serve for three and a half years. Many lines of endeavor have profited by his cooperation and clear insight into business situations and he is now serving as treasurer of the Pittsburgh Company, is a large stockholder in the Monongahela Tube Company, of which he is a director, while he is also a member of the directorates of the Davis-Cottrell Company, the Pittsburgh Silver Peak Gold Mining Company and the Pittsburgh and Allegheny Telephone Company. In 1903 he was one of the organizers of the Home Trust Company and served as its treasurer for one year. In 1914 he be- came president of the Insulating Materials Company and vice president of the Detroit Insulated Wire Com- pany. In cooperation with Mr. Hunter, its president, Mr. Splane has developed the business of the Detroit Insulated Wire Company to one of large extent and importance and it now ranks as one of the largest concerns of this character in the United States. The Insulating Materials Company manufactures every- thing along insulating lines.
On the 12th of February, 1901, Mr. Splane was united in marriage to Miss Henrietta Hurd and they now have a son, Lambert Hurd, the family residence being at No. 218 East Kirby street. Mr. Splane is a stanch republican in his political views and he has ever taken a deep and helpful interest in public affairs, serving as a member of the city council of Pittsburgh, to which office he was elected in 1900. He is a member of the Western Pennsylvania Historical Association and is a thirty-second degree Mason, his affiliations with that order being at Pittsburgh. He is a prominent clubman, belonging to the Detroit, Detroit Athletic, Bloomfield Hills Country, The Country, and Detroit Automobile Country Clubs, and to the Duquesne Club, the leading social organization of Pittsburgh, while he is likewise a member of the Revel's Island Club of Virginia, also the Americus and Tariff Clubs of Pitts- burgh. His operations have covered a broad scope and in every sphere of life in which he has acted he has left an indelible impress through the force of his per- sonality, his notable ability and his tireless energy, which never falls short of the attainment of its pur- pose. He is a big man-big in that power which understands conditions, grasps situations and molds
JOSHUA G. SPLANE
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opportunities into tangible assets, and Detroit accounts him a valued addition to its citizenship.
J. P. McLAREN. One might analyze the career of J. P. McLaren by saying that his business is of absorbing interest to him and that as secretary of the Brown-McLaren Manufacturing Company he has contributed in notable measure to its success. He comes to Detroit from New England, his birth having occurred iu Providence, Rhode Island, his parents being John and Mary (Petrie) McLaren, both of whom were natives of Scotland. In the acquirement of his education, after completing a high school course, he attended the School of Design in Providence, and then became connected with the firm of Brown & Sharpe of that city, with whom he remained for twelve years. This is one of the largest firms of the country, making all kinds of machinery of the highest quality. He passed through the various de- partments of their plant, winning promotion and transferral from one department to another as he mastered the various phases of the business. He spent much time in the drawing-room and his twelve years' experience with that company made him an expert.
Mr. MeLaren then came to Detroit and had charge of the drawing of cams and tools of the Burroughs Adding Machine Company for six years. He was ambitious to engage in business on his own account, however, and eagerly embraced every opportunity that led him in that direction. In 1915 he started in business with Frank Boyer of the Boyer-Campbell Corporation, and they organized the Brown-McLaren Manufacturing Company, of which Mr. McLaren has since been the secretary. They manufacture all kinds of fusilage parts for automobiles and supply many large corporations with their products, including the Cadillac Motor Company of Detroit and the Dayton Recording Company of Dayton, Ohio. Something of the substantial and continuous growth of their business is indicated in the fact that they began with five ma- chines and are now operating more than one hundred. Mr. McLaren attacks everything with a contagious enthusiasm and finds the keenest pleasure and joy in successfully solving intricate and involved business problems. He is familiar with every part of operation of the plant and is able to direct the efforts of every employe.
In 1882 Mr. McLaren was united in marriage to Miss Vera Workman and they have one daughter, Dorothy. He finds his chief recreation and diversion in fishing, yet there is comparatively little leisure in his life to indulge in the sport because of the de- mands made upon him by his constantly growing busi- ness. He is a Mason of high rank, belonging to Pales- tine Lodge, A. F. & A. M .; King Cyrus Chapter, R. A. M .; Detroit Commandery, K. T .; and Moslem Tem- ple, A. A. O. N. M. S. He is also well known as a member of the Wilderness, Detroit Anglers and Miami
Anglers Clubs and his interest in community affairs is shown in his connection with the Detroit Board of Commerce. There is much of inspirational value in his life record, for it indicates the value of thorough- ness in education and that indefatigable industry and unfaltering perseverance are indispensable elements in the attainment of success. Moreover, in all business affairs he readily discriminates between the essential and the non-essential and his powers of organization have led to the development of a plant and of a working force that spells success in his every endeavor.
THOMAS E. NEWTON, identified with the meat packing business in Detroit as president of the New- ton Packing Company, was born in Livonia township, Wayne county, Michigan, March 15, 1866. His father, Melvin Newton, is a native of the state of New York but was brought by his parents to Michigan when a little lad of but six years and later in life took up the live stock business, which he followed for many years. He removed from Michigan to Kansas, set- tling near Coffeyville, that state, and is still living there at the advanced age of eighty-three years. In early manhood he wedded Mary Newington, who was born in Michigan and who passed away in Wayne county in 1875. They were the parents of five chil- dren, of whom three are living: Burt; Alva, now the wife of William Vaughn, of Port Townsend, Wash- ington; and Thomas E.
In his boyhood days Thomas E. Newton attended the public schools of Detroit, pursuing his studies to the age of fourteen years, when he left school and started out to provide for his own support by accept- ing a business position. He first worked on the Joy farm and in 1886 he turned his attention to the live stock business on his own account. He soon developed this into a meat business and from a modest start has built up a business of extensive and gratifying proportions. Today he has a large packing plant which covers more than a city block and has gained a place among the prominent wholesale meat packers of the city. His interests were incorporated in 1901 under the name of the Newton Beef Company, of which he became president and treasurer, and today the business is carried on under the name of the Newton Packing Company, with Mr. Newton as pres- ident and general manager. He has also at different times been connected with other business interests of the city. He is a member of the board of managers of the Michigan State Fair Association by appoint- ment of Governor Groesbeck. He likewise was a director of the N. Rassel Sons Company of Toledo, Ohio.
Mr. Newton has been married twice. He first wedded Ellen Ida Weeks of Philadelphia, Pennsyl- vania, who has passed away. Mr. Newton was mar- ried a second time on the 28th of December, 1910, when Miss Charlotte Bernstin of New York city became his wife. One son, Thomas A., was born to the first
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marriage in 1893. He was educated in the Detroit public schools and in the Taft school at Watertown, Connecticut. He is now purchasing agent and assist- ant to the president of the Newton Packing Company. He is identified with the Michigan National Guard as a captain of the infantry division and is also captain of infantry, United States Reserve Corps. He entered the service of his country on April 11, 1917, and was in the engagement of the Argonne Forest and the Meuse offensive, where he was wounded. He was discharged from service in April, 1919. On May 15, 1920, he was married to Esther Verle Mart- solf. Thomas A. Newton is a member of Ionic Lodge, F. & A. M., the Detroit Athletic Club, the Detroit Tennis Club and the Detroit Boat Chib.
Mr. Newton has always given his political allegiance to the republican party since age conferred upon him the right of franchise, has taken an active in- terest in party work and has served as chairman of the Wayne county republican central committee. He also belongs to the Detroit Athletic Club, was form- erly a director of the Detroit Driving Club and is a member of the Detroit Audubon Society. He is like- wise a member of the Detroit Board of Commerce and there is no phase of the city's welfare in which he is not deeply interested, lending his aid and sup- port at all times to those measures which make for material progress and for the maintenance of high civic standards.
WILLIAM WASHINGTON HANNAN. It is fre- quently the case that the life story which has reached its completion leaves a greater impress than that which is being enacted day by day. In a story that is fully told and which is viewed in its entirety one may thread those elements which stand out as domi- nant characteristics and have led to the building of success and the attainment of prominence. The re- view of such a life as that of William Washington Hannan cannot fail to leave its impress upon the readers, for he posessed many sterling qualities and marked capability and his record demonstrates what may be accomplished when the individual makes proper and adequate use of his time, talents and op- portunities. Mr. Hannan was born in Rochester, New York, July 4, 1854. When he was about two years of age his parents took up their residence in Dowagiac, Michigan, and there during his childhood days he at- tended the public schools, being graduated from the high school with the class of 1873. In 1876 he pur- sued a preparatory course in Oberlin College and later entered the literary department of the Uni- versity of Michigan, in which he was graduated as one of the alumni of 1880, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts. Following the completion of his academic course he entered the law department of the university and in 1883 was graduated with the B. L. degree. While attending college he organized excur- sions to various summer resorts in the state and by
this means he realized a considerable profit, using his funds to continue his education. He was very promi- nent in collegiate athletics and made an especially good record as a sprinter.
From 1881 until 1883 Mr. Hannan served as engross- ing clerk of the house of representatives of the state legislature. In the latter year, prior to his graduation from the law department of the State University, he was admitted to the bar upon examination before the Washtenaw circuit court. After the close of the legis- lative session of that year he came to Detroit and established himself in the practice of law, becoming the associate of Judge William L. Carpenter under the firm name of Carpenter & Hannan. This partner- ship continued for a year, at the expiration of which time Mr. Hannan virtually withdrew from the work of his profession to enter the real estate field, in which he later attained notable success and precedence. In 1883 he founded the Hannan Real Estate Exchange, to which he gave his attention for a number of years, principally to the handling of subdivision properties. This concern grew to be the most important of its kind in the state and its operations have been ampli- fied to include a general fire insurance and loan busi- ness. Mr. Hannan continued as the head of the Hannan Real Estate Exchange, ordered its affairs with consummate discrimination and ability and was recognized as an authority on real estate values in Detroit and its environs. He was instrumental in organizing the National Real Estate Board and when he passed away the National Real Estate Journal pub- lished the following tribute in its issue of February, 1918:
"William Washington Hannan, preferably known as W. W., died recently in Detroit. In the death of this man the National Association of Real Estate Boards especially loses a valuable member and friend. In the story of Mr. Hannan's life there is much of benefit and inspiration to those who follow the same line of endeavor that was his through thirty years. The story deals with the practical-Mr. Hannan would have it so.
"W. W. Hannan was one of the organizers of the National Association of Real Estate Boards and its president the first year of its organization. The prin- cipal characteristics manifested through his adminis- tration of board affairs in the year 1909-10 were the true reflection of fundamentals underlying his whole business career. Upon assuming the presidency, Mr. Hannan sounded the keynote of his policies in the first issue of the National Real Estate Journal, March 15, 1910, when he said: 'Permit me to say further that organized forces no longer seek to assimilate all the beneficial results from such organization but it has in this day become the aim and the purpose of organ- ized bodies to extend their influence for good to others.' And the National Association has been builded on this platform. Mr. Hannan in the same article minutely described the necessity for organization among real
WILLIAM W. HANNAN
Vol. IV-45
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estate men throughout the country. His statements were a defense of the purposes of the organization. His work was that of a pioneer because there were many who bucked the original organization idea. He was a prime mover in creating the present National Real Estate Journal.
"Having achieved the sucecss of his preliminary aims in the organization, it can readily be understood by analyzing the above quotation, that he intended to establish a foundation for the association's work which would be perpetuated, which would be founded upon unselfishness, upon service. This alone testifies to the foresightedness of this organizer, of his true ability as a leader, as one who could foretell the requirements that must be mustered to insure the fife of that association which he had been designated to lead. And these are the fundamentals for which realtors today must be appreciative when they think of the National Association. Probably that phase of Mr. Hannan's life containing most interest to realtors is that relating to his activities in the real estate business. In this connection the most dominant char- acteristic attributable to him was that of being a hard worker. He started with almost nothing in a financial way and when he died an estate estimated at over four million was left. To do this he had to be a tireless worker. He might have made more, or he might have made less from his work, but the fact most interesting is that he did things which seem almost incredible from a business standpoint. He pro- moted some of the biggest real estate projects in the history of middle western states and did it with practically no capital of his own. He borrowed hun- dreds of thousands of dollars from exacting eastern bankers and posted as security his own reputation and character. He did this with absolute strangers, many times, perhaps not on such large amounts, but in an important way nevertheless. His personality was magnetic. His reputation that of a shrewd business man, a man capable of conceiving broad and practical promotion ideas and possessing the undaunted spirit and physical strength to put them through to a suc- cessful conclusion. Perhaps the nature of his nation- ality provided the essentials. He was Scotch and Irish and his life was true to the business and political traditions of this racial combination. He possessed the essential points of a successful politician and a successful business man. His record shows that he was both.
"Speaking of some of his promotions: He success- fully erected the Madison, Lenox and Pasadena apart- ment hotels in Detroit, his home city. He determined to finance the last two similar structures, only on a larger and finer scale. He had little capital to start with. He succeeded. How he did it no one of his closest associates seem thoroughly to understand, but all agree that it was due principally to very high loan- ing values of his reputation and personality, as well as his tireless will to do. One of these hotels had
barely been completed to the third floor, when Mr. Hannan had all of the completed apartments rented and a cafe going full blast on the first floor. He then weut to New York and borrowed about two hundred thousand dollars to complete both projects, having pre- viously mortgaged everything in his possession to the limit and far beyond. Personality did it. As each floor was completed it was occupied. That is one reason why Mr. Haunan has been known as Detroit's champion reuter. His heart was set on these two ven- tures. In fact he put his heart into every action and didn't know what the word 'quit' meant. His motto was 'work' and he did. Where other men would halt to devise a method of borrowing money he would grind right along and get it. He never stopped. He determined to set these two projects as monuments to his name in Detroit and he did it. He had a host of friends and he believed in making new ones right along. He didn't believe in enslaving himself to anyone, or a few money lending agencies. He liked to tackle strangers. If he made a friend he generally made a lender of the same man. He believed that if a man thought enough of him to be his friend he should have enough confidence to invest his money with him. Several of the richest men in Detroit have been known to send Mr. Hannan a check following solicitation to a new proposition over the telephone, never asking questions or demanding the usual col- lateral. What did it? Personality, generally, as that is the true reflection of character and all good busi- ness is based on character in one sense or another.
"Mr. Hannan thought so much of his city and its future that hardly would one project be completed, a large revenue derived, before another venture would be under way. He went to the fringe of the city and prepared subdivisions that would accommodate the city of the future. In this respect he was a very extensive operator. He also sold the sites for some of the biggest office buildings in the city and helped promote them. He believed people should protect what they own, so he developed an extensive insurance business. Through it all his own personality domi- nated. He was the leader in his own organization, its vitalizing director. Perhaps the most that could be said against him from a business standpoint is that he worked too hard and didn't put enough on the shoulders of others. So engrossed was he in his busi- ness and so greatly did he obligate himself by assum- ing added responsibilities that he had but little time for anything aside from his business, at least through the early years of his life. His only public office in Detroit was that of member of the board of estimators for two terms of four years each. Here he rendered the city invaluable service.
"Politically his work was done mostly as citizen Hannan and not as an office holder. His personality and constructive organizing ability were manifested in a quiet way, albeit in an important way. He pos- sessed marked legal ability, having graduated in law
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from Michigan University in 1883, during which period he was also enrolling clerk in the state legis- lature. He also completed a course in literature. Com- ing to Detroit he first tried practicing law but gradu- ally drifted into business lines and in 1885 founded the Hannan Real Estate Exchange. He has occu- pied the one office for twenty-four years, using an entire floor. He believed in advertising and extended his advertising into national mediums of circulation. Mr. Hannan was one of the organizers of the Detroit Real Estate Board and gave great service to that or- ganization through most of the important offices that could be tendered an honored member. Here he also was content to perform most of his services in a quiet manner, behind the scenes, as it were. All the years of his life Mr. Hannan was a mighty busy man. Two-thirds of his estate goes to Detroit charities, the largest bequest recorded in recent years. In 1881 Mr. Hannan was married to Luella Greene Beaman and she received a large residue from the estate. A brother, Frank E. Hannan, and a nephew of Mrs. Hannan, Guy W. Greene, both received large bequests. Mr. Greene remains in control of the business. The remarkable part of the will is that part which states that all the residue of the estate after the legacies are paid, is to go to Detroit charities to be named by the widow. His wish being that Mrs. Hannan would specify how the estate shall be distributed so that it could be accomplished while she is living. If she fails to do so, the residue is to be credited to the Children's Aid Society of Detroit at her death and the trust estate ends at that time. Mr. Hannan's name will remain as a cherished memory to those who knew him. His life stands as a monument to the characteristics of ambi- tion, perseverance and honesty."
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