USA > Missouri > A history of northeast Missouri, Vol. 2 pt 2 > Part 109
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Joseph P. O'Hern was born in Hannibal. February 23, 1876, and his education was secured in the public and high schools. He then attended the parochial schools for several years, but finally decided to enter upon a business career and secured employment in the drug store conducted by W. W. White & Company, where he has continued ever since. After several years, or in 1895, Mr. O'Hern, having fully decided
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to remain in the same business, went to St. Louis and there entered the College of Pharmacy, receiving his diploma from the state board of examiners in 1898, after completing a two-year course. In the next year he was made a registered pharmacist and holds the degree of Ph. G. He then again entered Mr. White's establishment as clerk, but during the next year his employer died and Mr. O'Hern took charge of the estate, conducting the same with considerable success for the next eighteen months. In 1901 he purchased the business and by exercising the same conservative methods and good judgment has built up a busi- ness that continues to increase after a successful eleven years. He has a complete stock of the most modern pharmaceutical goods of all kinds, including toilet articles, candies, perfumes and cigars, and conducts his establishment in a courteous and genial manner that has won him many warm friends.
In 1900 Mr. O'Hern was united in marriage with Miss Henrietta Bowles, daughter of Henry and Martha Bowles, of Ralls county, Mis- souri, and they have two children: Alfred Edward, born February 26, 1902; and Joseph Frank, born May 31, 1909. In political matters Mr. O'Hern is a stanch Republican and supports that party's candi- dates and principles. He has taken an active part in politics for some time, and it is but natural that a man of his popularity and. ability should hold office. In 1908 he was made United States deputy marshal and has charge of the Hannibal court, which embraces the northern division of the eastern judicial district. He has likewise interested himself in work of a fraternal nature and holds membership in a num- ber of local lodges.
JOSEPH BASSEN. Like thousands of other young men of the Father- land, who could see no future ahead of them save many years of hard work with the final attainment of a position of only comparative medi- ocrity in their native land, Joseph Bassen, now one of the leading cit- izens of Hannibal, Missouri, came to the United States as a poor youth, confident that in the land of promise he could find a field where his efforts would be appreciated and his labors rewarded. In this he has not been disappointed, for his rise has been constant and steady, and at this time, as vice-president of the German-American Trust Company and sec- retary of the German-American Savings and Loan Association he holds a position that fully entitles him to be ranked with his community's most prominent men.
Joseph Bassen was born in Hanover, Germany, June 20, 1858, and there attended the public schools. When only fourteen years of age he secured the consent, but little money, of his parents, and with three other ambitious lads left the Fatherland and journeyed across the Atlantic to Baltimore, Maryland, whence he came directly to Hannibal, Mis- souri, two brothers having preceded him to this city. Here he learned the shoemaker's trade, being first employed on piece work and later on a regular salary, and subsequently spent a quarter of a century in the business, advancing from workman to small retail store owner, and then to a partnership in the large firm of Bassen Brothers, with which he was connected until 1891. In that year he sold his half interest to his brother and entered the employ of the Logan Shoe Company, and shortly thereafter assisted in the establishment of the Bluff City Shoe Company, with which he was connected until the spring of 1897. At that time Mr. Bassen entered the political field, being appointed city collector, an office in which he had served two years, and on the expiration of his term of office purchased a one-half interest in the real estate, fire insurance and loan business of the late John H. Franklin. This partnership continued
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successfully until the death of Mr. Franklin, in 1902, in the fall of which year he took into partnership R. A. Spencer. They succeeded in building up a large and lucrative business, under the firm name of Bassen & Spencer, but on July 1, 1912, sold out to the German-American Trust Company, a new organization which also bought out the German- American Bank, of which Mr. Bassen had been vice-president. He continued in this capacity with the new organization and still retains that position, being manager of the insurance and real estate depart- ments, where he has shown his real worth in building up a large busi- ness, principally in the western part of Hannibal. He is secretary of the German-American Savings & Loan Association, an enterprise which he helped to found in September, 1909, and has numerous other busi- ness interests, all of which serve to make his name widely known in real estate and financial fields.
In 1883 Mr. Bassen took an extended trip to Germany, to visit his mother and in 1885 was married to Miss Mary Schlobohm, at Quincy, Illinois, whom he had met in New York City on his return from the old country. Five children have been born to this union, namely: Mrs. Fannie Broemmer, who lives in Hannibal; Mrs. Anna Wichern, married in 1912 to Henry W. Wichern, a New York city business man; Mrs. Pearl Scheidker, of Hannibal, whose husband is representing the Trav- elers Life & Accident Insurance Company; Josephine, deceased; and Marie, born in 1901, who is attending school. Mr. Bassen has been active in the work of St. John's Lutheran church, of Hannibal, and is presi- dent of the congregation and has served about twelve years in that capacity. He has a wide acquaintance throughout this section and has made and retained many friends both in and outside of business.
JOHN G. CABLE. In none of the professions is more exhaustive preparation called for than in the law, and even when he has received his degree the applicant for legal honors has only begun his labors, for constant study and research are necessary to the ambitious legist who would win success during this day of constant and energetic competition. For all of these labors, however, the profession holds compensation, and extended honors await those who have mastered their vocation, in which connection it will not be inappropriate to briefly sketch the career of John G. Cable, of Hannibal, late city attorney and a lawyer who has already gained a reputation through his thorough knowledge of law and jurisprudence. Mr. Cable was born at Perry, Ralls county, Mis- souri, January 27, 1879, and is a son of John W. and Alberta B. Cable, both natives of Virginia. Five children were born to Mr. Cable's par- ents, all of whom reside in Hannibal, one of his brothers being employed in a large supply house.
John G. Cable was the second of his parents' children, and was a child of four years when brought to a farm near Hannibal. He secured his preliminary education in the country schools, following which he went to the Hannibal high school, and there graduated in 1899. Having determined upon entering the legal profession, he spent a short time in preparation and then entered the University of Missouri, at Columbia, attending the academic and law departments for three years, and grad- uating with the degree of LL. B. in 1902. In January of the following year he came to Hannibal and engaged in the practice of his profes- sion, a practice that has had a pleasing and steady increase to the pres- ent time. In 1906 he entered the public field as Democratic candidate for city attorney, an office which he held from that year until 1909, and dur- ing this time was influential in having changed the term of the city attorney's office from one to two years. He made an admirable execu-
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tive, being fearless in his prosecution of whatever he believed unjust or unlawful, and just as courageous in his defense of those principles which he considered right. His administration called forth the highest praise and caused him to become firmly established in the confidence and esteem of his fellow-townsmen. In his private practice Mr. Cable has demonstrated that he is a careful, capable and conscientious attorney, well versed in the laws of his state and country and at all times faith- ful in caring for his clients' interests. He has been connected with much important litigation, and his success in a number of well-known cases has made him well known to his fellow practitioners all over the state. Mr. Cable has engaged actively in fraternal work and is a popu- lar member of the local lodges of the Odd Fellows, the Knights of Pythias and the Modern Woodmen of America.
JAMES PEYTON HINTON is a native of Marion county, Missouri, and a Hannibalian in every sense. Every important event of Mr. Hinton's life originated in Hannibal. He was born in Hannibal, Missouri, No- vember 2, 1859, began his school career in Hannibal, commenced work as a bookkeeper in Hannibal, engaged in his first business enterprise in Hannibal, married in Hannibal and is recognized as one of Hannibal's progressive, public spirited citizens.
James P. Hinton is the son of William and Margaret Marsh Hinton, the former of whom was born on a farm in Scott county, Kentucky, and the latter in Miamisburg, Ohio. When the subject of this review was five years of age, his parents removed to Iowa where his father was engaged in coal mining. Two years later the family transferred their residence to Chicago and a couple of years later removed to Wyoming where his father had charge of the coal department of the Union Pacific Railroad, so that the boyhood and youth of James P. was not lacking in diversity of scene and incident. He whose name initiates this review attended the public schools in the various places in which the family resided. At the age of sixteen he returned to Hannibal where he con- tinued his higher academic studies for three years in the Hannibal Col- lege, thence going to Poughkeepsie, N. Y., where he attended school for two years. After completing his course at Poughkeepsie, he returned to his native city and accepted the position of bookkeeper in the office of his uncle, James P. Hinton, Sr., in whose honor he was named and who at that time conducted the only coal and wood business in Han- nibal. He remained in this position until 1884 when he was admitted into partnership and in 1888 disposed of his interest in the wood and coal business, formed a partnership with George W. Storrs and engaged in the wholesale coal and ice business under the firm name of Storrs & Hinton. The firm built three large ice houses in the northern part of the city and conducted a successful business from the beginning. Upon the death of Mr. Storrs in 1894 the business was incorporated as the Storrs-Hinton Ice & Coal Company, Mr. Hinton being its president and executive head from the date of incorporation until 1910 when he disposed of his stock and retired from the corporation. In 1898 Mr. Hinton was elected a director in the Bank of Hannibal and in 1900 was elected cashier of that institution and from the very beginning proved his efficiency as a financier in the administration of the affairs of the bank. In 1903 the Bank of Hannibal was changed to the Hannibal National Bank and at the present time this institution has the distinction of being the largest bank in Northeast Missouri, having the largest capi- tal and surplus and largest amount of deposits of any bank in this sec- tion of the state.
The Missouri bankers recognizing Mr. Hinton's abilities as a banker,
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unanimously elected him treasurer of the Missouri Bankers Association in 1908, in 1909 he was elected vice-president of the organization and in 1910 became its president. During his administration the Missouri Bankers Association had the distinction of becoming the only bank asso- ciation in America with a solid membership, every bank and trust com- pany in the state being a member of the Missouri Bankers Association.
Mr. Hinton is and has been for many years, president of the Han- nibal Mutual Loan and Building Association, which is the most exten- sive concern of its kind in Northeast Missouri and which has the further distinction of being the oldest building association in the state. He is also vice-president of the International Life Insurance Company of Mis- souri, Missouri's largest life insurance company, with headquarters in St. Louis. He is also president of the board of public works, having been a member of the board since its organization and has the gratifica- tion of being one of the members of what is conceded to be the best man- aged mnuicipal electric light plants in the United States, in fact, it is generally conceded by electric experts that there are but two really suc- cessfully managed municipal electric light plants in the country. Mr. Hinton is also president of Riverside Cemetery Association, and a di- rector and treasurer of the board of control of Riverview park ; treasurer of the Home for the Friendless and director and chairman of the finance committee of the Y. M. C. A. of Hannibal, and chairman of the executive committee of the Y. M. C. A. of Missouri.
In politics Mr. Hinton has always been Republican but has never had the desire for public office, although he has filled the office of city treasurer for two terms. He was chairman of the committee which brought about the re-organization of the Hannibal commercial club which since that time has steadily gone forward and today exerts a potent influence not alone in the upbuilding of the civic, industrial and com- mercial advancement of Hannibal, but its influence is felt throughout the entire state. During Mr. Hinton's administration as president, $77,000 was raised by the commercial club for the erection of a local Y. M. C. A. building and many civic improvements inaugurated. Mr. Hinton was a director and treasurer of the Bluff City Telephone Com- pany from the date of its organization until the plant was absorbed by the Bell Telephone Company in 1911. He assisted in organizing and incorporating the Hannibal Country Club and personally purchased the present attractive club house and grounds which he later turned over to the club. Mr. Hinton is a member of the Fifth Street Baptist church and is one of its trustees. For twenty-one years he acted as treasurer of the church, retiring from that office in January, 1912. He is a mem- ber of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Benevolent and Pro- tective Order of Elks, a member of the Country Club, Labinnah Club, Sni E'Carte Hunting and Fishing Club, and Broad Apron Hunting and Fishing Club. Mr. Hinton is an ardent sportsman, getting great enjoy- ment out of outdoor life. On several occasions he has hunted large game in the Rockies and has a number of wild animal heads as trophies.
The following editorial from the Hannibal Courier-Post of Jannary 28, 1909, shows the position occupied by Mr. Hinton among the folks who know him best :
"In selecting James P. Hinton, cashier of the Hannibal National Bank of Hannibal, as president, the directors of the Hannibal Commer- cial Club displayed splendid judgment. There are times when condi- tions so shape themselves as to cluster around an individual making him pre-eminently the man for a certain position. This fact has been thoroughly demonstrated in the case of Mr. Hinton. While there were numbers of men in Hannibal eminently qualified for the position of
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president of the Commercial Club, it seemed as if the members of the club, of the board of directors and the citizens, as well, had but one choice and that was James P. Hinton.
"The eyes of the citizens were turned to him to carry out the work set going by him last fall, when the 'Booster Committee' was appointed by President Robinson to devise ways and means for effecting a more active and beneficial commercial club. No doubt his successful business career, his manly traits of character, and, especially, the successful management of the board of public works, of which he is president, had much to do with focusing public attention on him as the man for the position at this particular time.
"The directors can rest assured that no better selection could pos- sibly have been made. Mr. Hinton possesses in every way qualifications that eminently fit him for the position he has been called upon by his associate directors, backed by the voice of the members of the commer- cial club and of the citizens generally, to fill. He is a man of experience in the business world, correct in his methods and liberal in his judg- ment. He possesses that strong personality and firmness in decision that are absolutely essential in the head of any commercial club. No man is more thoroughly allied with Hannibal and Hannibal's interests than is James P. Hinton. He has always been found in the forefront, battling for the growth and development of the city. His services and his money have always been given to every worthy cause. His extensive acquaintance with business men throughout the Mississippi valley will serve as a strong factor in making him an ideal head for the Commercial Club. He is recognized as one of the ablest bankers in the state and is at present vice-president of the Missouri Bankers Association."
On August 7, 1883, Mr. Hinton was married to Miss Martha B. Hawkins, who was born and reared in Hannibal and who was a grand- daughter of Moses D. Bates, the honored founder of this city. She was a daughter of Dr. Edwin J. and Martha Bates Hawkins, both of whom are now deceased, her father having been for many years one of the leading physicians and honored and influential citizens of Hannibal. Mrs. Hinton died March 14, 1912. Mr. and Mrs. Hinton had two chil- dren Martha Eleanor who on March 20, 1913, was married to Mr. John B. Powell, instructor in journalism in the state university at Columbia, and William Storrs Hinton, now a student in the University of Missouri.
WILLIAM B. JONES. One of the native sons of the fine old city of Hannibal who has here gained distinctive prestige as an enterprising and progressive business man and public-spirited citizen is Mr. Jones, who is executive head of the retail grocery firm of W. B. Jones & Com- pany, in which the silent partner is his wife, though it is to be presumed that in other relations of life Mrs. Jones exercises a woman's natural prerogative in forfending too great "silence." Mr. Jones has worked his way from small beginning to a secure place among the representative merchants of the metropolis of Marion county, and his career has been marked by energy, ambition, self-reliance and inflexible integrity of purpose, so that he well merits the high esteem in which he is held by all who know him.
Mr. Jones was born in Hannibal on the 7th of August, 1871, and is a son of William and Martha F. (Owen) Jones, the former of whom was born in West Virginia and the latter in Lewis county, Missouri, their marriage having been solemnized in Hannibal, where they still maintain their home and where the father has been long and success- fully engaged in business as a contracting plasterer. He whose name initiates this review is indebted to the public schools of Hannibal for
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his early educational discipline and he continued to reside at the par- ental home until he had attained to the age of twenty-six years, his mar- riage having taken place in the following year, 1899. Shortly after this important and gracious event in his career Mr. Jones went with his young wife to the city of St. Louis, where he assumed a clerical position in the offices of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. He was thus engaged for two years and then returned to Hannibal, where he was appointed station agent for the St. Louis & Hannibal Railroad, his advancement having come as a just recognition of ability and efficient service. After retaining this position for six years Mr. Jones went to Cheyenne, Wyoming, to assume the position of chief clerk to the audi- tor of the Union Pacific Coal Company, which was then one of the largest concerns of the kind in the northwest. Mr. Jones continued his residence in Wyoming until 1909, when he returned to his native city and engaged in the retail grocery business under the present firm title of W. B. Jones & Company, his devoted wife having been his coadjutor from the beginning. He has given most scrupulous attention to the upbuilding of the enterprise thus initiated and now has one of the fine grocery establishments of Hannibal. The business has expanded fully two-thirds within the past three years and is constantly increasing in scope and importance, the while it has a representative and appreciative popular support, based upon effective service and fair and honorable dealings. All lines of staple and fancy groceries are handled and an adequate corps of assistants is retained in carrying on the enterprise, all details of which are under the careful supervision of Mr. Jones. He brings to bear progressive ideas and is at all times watchful for oppor- tunities to cater even more effectively to the demands of his trade. His establishment is located in eligible quarters at 1200 Broadway and is essentially metropolitan in its equipment and its presentation of stock in all lines.
In politics, though never an aspirant for official preferment, Mr. Jones accords a staunch allegiance to the Republican party, and he is affiliated with the local organizations of the Knights of Pythias, the In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Modern Woodmen of Amer- ica. Both he and his wife are members of the First Christian church. They are popular in the social circles of their home city and it is a matter of gratification to them that they were enabled to establish their permanent residence in Hannibal.
On the 24th of October, 1899, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Jones to Miss Helen Mounce, who was born at Paris, Monroe county, this state, and who was seven years of age at the time of the family removal to Hannibal, Her father, John W. Mounce, is vice-president of the Hannibal National Bank and secretary and treasurer of the North Missouri Lumber Company. Mr. and Mrs. Jones have a winsome little daughter, Dorothy, who was born at Cheyenne, Wyoming, on the 22nd of September, 1908.
REV. JAMES S. DINGLE. As an educator of marked ability and prom- inence and as one of the representative members of the clergy of the Baptist church in Missouri, Mr. Dingle is widely known and held in the highest honor, and he still continues to devote more or less attention to pastoral work of a somewhat supernumerary order, his impaired health having compelled him to retire from regular service in the high calling to which he long gave himself with all of consecrated zeal and devotion. He is now associated with J. Q. A. Metcalf in the ownership and opera- tion of the People's mills, at Palmyra, and this is one of the most ex- tensive and prosperous concerns of the kind in Marion county. The
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career of Mr. Dingle has been one of indefatigable application, and his angle of influence has been wide and benignant. He is a man of fine intellectuality and both as a teacher and a clergyman he has done much to aid and uplift his fellow men, the while his generous and kindly nature has gained and retained to him the affectionate regard of those with whom he has come in contact in the varied relations of life.
Mr. Dingle was born on a farm in Fabius township, Marion county, about three and one-half miles distant from Palmyra, the judicial center of Marion county, and the date of his nativity was November 11, 1848. He is a son of Colonel William C. and Mary A. (Shannon) Dingle, both of whom were born and reared in Kentucky, where the respective fam- ilies were founded in the pioneer days. Colonel Dingle gained his mili- tary title as commander of Missouri militia and he was numbered among the pioneers of Marion county, Missouri, where he established his home in 1835 and where he purchased land which he reclaimed to cultivation. He was long numbered among the representative agriculturists and hon- ored and influential citizens of Marion county, and here he continued to reside until his death, which occurred on the 31st of August, 1889, his cherished and devoted wife being summoned to the life eternal on the 5th of July of the following year and both having been zealous and consistent members of the Baptist church. Of their children, three sons and two daughters are now living.
Rev. James S. Dingle passed his boyhood and youth on the homestead farm, which was the place of his birth, and his rudimentary education was obtained in the common schools of the locality and period. He con- tinued his studies in the industrial school at Bethel, and in St. Paul's College at Palmyra, and La Grange College at La Grange, in which lat- ter institution he was graduated, with the degree of bachelor of arts, as a member of the class of 1871. In 1874 this college conferred upon him the honorary degree of master of arts, in recognition of his effective services in the educational field. After his graduation Mr. Dingle turned his attention to the pedagogic profession and for one year he was prin- cipal of the public schools of Shelbina, Shelby county. He held the chair of mathematics in Stephens College, at Columbia, Missouri, for a year, and for an equal period was a member of the faculty of Concord College, at New Liberty, Kentucky, He gave special attention to the teaching of mathematics and gained high reputation in this department of educational work. In the meantime Mr. Dingle had determined to enter the ministry of the Baptist church and with this end in view he entered the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, at Greenville, South Carolina, where he pursued philosophical and theological studies for two years, conditions being such that he was not able to complete the full course. He was ordained to the ministry at Bethel church, in Marion county, Missouri, 1872, and in the spring of 1876 he assumed pastoral charge of the Baptist church at Macon, the capital of Macon county, Missouri. About eighteen months later he accepted the pastorate of the Baptist church at Shelbina, Shelby county, and later he became pastor of the rural church at Bethel, Marion county, not far distant from his old home. He retained these two pastoral charges for seven years, within which he did much to further the spiritual and temporal prosperity of the two parishes, in each of which he gained a largely in- creased attendance at the church services. From 1880 to 1884 Mr. Dingle, while still continuing his ministerial labors, served as principal of Palmyra Seminary, which is now known as Centenary Academy and which is maintained under the auspices of the Methodist Episcopal church, South. In 1884 he assumed the position of principal of the Monroe Institute, at Monroe City, this state, an incumbency which he Vol. III-47
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