USA > Nebraska > Douglas County > Omaha > Omaha: the Gate city, and Douglas County, Nebraska, a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume II > Part 13
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JOHN A. McSHANE
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McShane Oil Company of Omaha, owning oil lands in Texas, and is the president of the South. Omaha Land Company and of the Columbian Investment Company of Omaha. His business interests have thus covered a wide scope but his powers have proved adequate to every demand made upon him. Alert and energetic, he has improved every opportunity which has come to him in the course of his long business career and in matters of judgment has been seldom if ever at fault. Such is his sagacity that he has avoided all business connections in which one inight encounter unwarranted risks and has concentrated his efforts and attention along those lines where fruition is certain.
In the midst of a most active business career Mr. McShane has never been neglectful of public obligations or responsibilities and has ever met the duties as well as enjoyed the privileges of citizenship. His study of political conditions up to the time that he attained his majority led him to cast his first presidential vote for the nominees of the democratic party. Since that time he has never seen occasion to change his opinions regarding the political policy of the country and has long been a recognized leader in democratic circles in Nebraska. In 1880 he was chosen to represent his district in the state legislature, serving in the lower house for two years, and then in 1882 he was chosen a member of the senate for a two years' term. In 1886 he was elected to represent his district in congress and in the following year he was the unsuccessful candidate for governor. His opinions have for many years carried weight in the councils of his party through- out Nebraska and he also has a wide acquaintance among prominent political leaders of the country, who appreciate the soundness of his opinions and his keen insight.
In 1876, in Omaha, Mr. McShane was united in marriage to Miss Mary M. Lee, who died in 1894, leaving two children: Edward L., who was born in 1878 and passed away in Omaha, May 7, 1916; and Mary Lee, now the wife of Willard D. Hosford. Mr. McShane was again married in Chicago, Kathryn A. Lonergan becoming his wife.
Their religious faith is that of the Catholic church and Mr. McShane is connected with the Knights of Columbus. He belongs also to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and he is a member of the Commercial Club, the Omaha Club and the Country Club. Ask anyone concerning Omaha's leading citizens and they will name John A. McShane among the number, such being the prominent position to which he has attained in business and political circles. He is also most prominent in the affairs of the Catholic church. The records indicate that he has reached the age of sixty-six but his appearance belies his years as he possesses the physical and mental alertness of a man many years his junior. In a word he is yet a dominant factor in the public life of the com- munity-dominant by reason of his marked ability and enterprising spirit. He has exerted an immeasurable influence on the city of his residence; in business life as a financier and promoter of extensive commercial enterprises; in politics by reason of his public spirit and devotion to the general good as well as his comprehensive understanding of the questions affecting the state and national welfare; in benevolent circles by reason of his liberality in ameliorating the hard conditions of life for the unfortunate and in social circles by reason of a charm- ing personality and unfeigned cordiality.
EDGAR H. ALLEN.
Important business interests felt the stimulus and profited by the cooperation and ability of Edgar H. Allen, who became a resident of Omaha in 1880, remov- ing to this city from St. Paul, Indiana. He was born in Stephensport, Ken- tucky, February 18, 1856, but removed to St. Paul, Indiana, and there acquired his education as a public school pupil. He afterward learned telegraphy and later Vol. II-6
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was employed by the Big Four Railway under the presidency of M. E. Ingalls. It was as a representative of the Western Union Telegraph Company that he came to Omaha in 1880. Soon afterward he was sent to Plum Creek, now Lexington, Nebraska, at a period when there were wild times in that district, the lawlessness of frontier life being manifested. After a few months, how- ever, he was returned to Omaha in the spring of 1881 and in March of that year his mother and family came to Omaha. It was then that the three brothers, Arthur, Oscar and Edgar H. Allen, embarked in the retail grocery business at Fifteenth street, near Farnam, under the firm style of Allen Brothers. The undertaking prospered from the beginning and their trade grew and developed rapidly, enabling them in 1883 to establish a wholesale grocery business, in con- junction with which they became tea and coffee importers. Edgar H. Allen continued at the head of this company which became a corporation, throughout his remaining days and under the style of the Allen Brothers Company they built up a most extensive trade as wholesale grocers, their ramifying commer- cial connections covering a broad territory and reaching out into many sections of the country. Recognizing an opportunity along other lines, they began operating in real estate and formed the Allen Brothers Realty Company, of which Edgar H. Allen was also the president. This company was formed to take charge of the property which they had acquired, for in the early days as well as at a later period they improved their opportunities for judicious investment and with the passing years their property interests grew largely in volume and contributed in substantial measure to their prosperity. Their wholesale grocery house was located at the corner of Tenth and Farnam streets, where they remodeled the building, and also made additions thereto. Edgar H. Allen also became interested in business projects in Washington, Utah and Wyoming which led to the substantial development and upbuilding of those states and he was likewise one of the large stockholders in a canning factory at Forest City, Missouri. He had framed and hung in his office the motto:
"Pluck wins! It always wins Though days be slow And nights be dark 'twixt days which come and go, Still pluck will win, its average is sure. He gains the prize who can the most endure ; Who faces issues, he who never shirks, Who waits and watches and who always works."
This motto was commented on most favorably by journals all over the country and the spirit of the words constituted a dominating element in the life work of Mr. Allen.
It was on the 17th of September, 1885, at North Bend, Ohio, that Mr. Allen was united in marriage to Miss Bertha Devin, of that place, and theirs was a most happy married life characterized by the closest community of interests. On the 22d of December, 1912, at Omaha, Mr. Allen passed away and in his death the community in which he lived and the many organizations to which he belonged suffered a great loss. He was a thirty-second degree Mason and mem- ber of the Mystic Shrine and also a member of the Knights of Pythias. He was also an honorary member of the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben, of which he was a gov- ernor, and he belonged to the Commercial Club, and for one term was president and held many other offices therein, his service in that connection being most highly complimented and commended. He likewise belonged to the Telegraphers' Union, to the Omaha Club and to the Country and Field Clubs. He was an active member of the Missouri River Grocers' Association and he also belonged to the Trans-Mississippi Waterway Association, in the work of which he took a most active and helpful interest. His charitable nature found expression in gen- erous gifts to the poor and needy and to benevolent institutions and yet his
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charity was most unostentatious. He loved Omaha and its interests were dear to his heart, so that he cooperated in many plans and measures for the general good. He attended the Methodist Episcopal church and his entire life was guided by high and honorable principles that made his career one worthy of emulation.
ELMER E. THOMAS.
Elmer E. Thomas, engaged in the practice of law in Omaha, was born in Ironton, Ohio, July 2, 1864, a son of John Notley Thomas and a grandson of Benjamin Thomas. The immigrant ancestor of the family came from Wales about the same time that Lord Baltimore settled Maryland. Benjamin Thomas was a native of Frederick, Maryland, and devoted his life to the occupation of farming. He served as a soldier in the War of 1812 and participated in the battle of Bladensburg, Maryland. His son, John Notley Thomas, who was born in Monroe county, Ohio, in 1828, was a soldier of the Civil war, enlisting in the One Hundred and Seventy-second Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He participated in many engagements in Tennessee, including the battle of Franklin. He was married in Lawrence county, Ohio, to Hannah Hull, who was born in Columbiana county, that state. He passed away in 1906, having for two decades survived his wife, whose death occurred in 1886.
Elmer E. Thomas, after attending the schools of Ironton, continued his edu- cation in the National Normal University at Lebanon, Ohio, from which he was graduated with the class of 1887. Later he entered the Yale University Law School and is numbered among its alumni of 1889. Having by thorough train- ing prepared for a professional career, he at once came to Omaha and opened an office, since which time he has practiced his profession.
On the 14th of June, 1893, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Mr. Thomas was joined in wedlock to Miss Mary Irwin Williamson, by whom he has five children, namely : Lyman Hueston, Philip Hull, Mary Louise, Elmer E., Jr., and John Martin.
Mr. Thomas gives his political allegiance to the democratic party and the only office which he has ever sought or desired was in the strict path of his pro- fession-that of deputy county attorney of Douglas county, in which capacity he served from 1899 until 1902. He is a member of the Happy Hollow Club and of the Commercial Club and he is an active member and elder in the Dundee Presbyterian church. He is much interested in the cause of prohibition and in matters of civic reform and feels the most hearty concern for the public wel- fare, taking a helpful part in bringing about those purifying and wholesome reforms which have been gradually growing up in the political, municipal and social life of the city. He belongs to that class of men who wield a power which is all the more potent from the fact that it is moral rather than political and is exercised for the public good rather than for personal ends.
FRANK WILCOX.
Frank Wilcox, a well known figure in insurance circles in Omaha, handling all lines was born at Bellevue, Sarpy county, Nebraska, August 30, 1859. His father, Newell Reuben Wilcox, was born in Cattaraugus county, New York, May 15, 1833, and was married in Berrien county, Michigan, in 1855, to Miss Amanda M. Bennett. They immediately afterward removed to Sarpy county, Nebraska, where he homesteaded one hundred and sixty acres of land. In 1857 they estab- lished their home in Bellevue, where they resided for more than four decades
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and in 1900 came to Omaha. At the time of the Civil war Mr. Wilcox was a noncommissioned officer of Company D, Second Nebraska Volunteer Cavalry, which was raised for the purpose of protecting the western border from the Sioux Indians, enlisting on the 15th of October, 1862, and serving until mustered out on the 18th of September, 1863. He was on active duty in connection with the Indian campaigns in the west. Following the close of his military service he was for two terms sheriff of Sarpy county and after the war he engaged in the hotel business in that county throughout the remainder of his active business life. On his retirement he took up his abode in Omaha, where he made his home until called to his final rest in 1910, his widow surviving until 1913.
Frank Wilcox, attending the public schools of Bellevue, completed the high school course there in 1875 and afterward devoted two years to teaching in Sarpy county. Later he clerked in a shoe store in Omaha for ten years and in 1885 embarked in the shoe business on his own account as a partner of Thomas B. Norris under the firm style of Norris & Wilcox. That relation was maintained for eleven years or until 1896, when Mr. Wilcox sold out. During the succeed- ing decade he managed a shoe store in Omaha and in 1906 he entered the general insurance business, in which he has since successfully continued, handling every- thing in the insurance line, and few men are better informed upon every phase of the insurance business than he.
On the 3d of October, 1882, in Bellevue, Nebraska, Mr. Wilcox was united in marriage to Miss Kate M. Myers, her father being Henry Myers, a retired farmer of Bellevue, who was born in 1826. Our subject and his wife have five children, as follows: Mabel Claire, the wife of Frank B. Hadley, of Denver, Colorado; Mildred; Margaret, who gave her hand in marriage to George W. Tiller, of Guam, Marietta islands; Catherine M .; and Paul.
Politically Mr. Wilcox is a republican and fraternally is a prominent Mason. He has filled all the chairs in Nebraska Lodge, A. F. & A. M., of Omaha and was its worshipful master in 1911 and 1912. In 1913 he was elected secretary of the lodge, which position he now fills, and he is justly regarded as a most exemplary representative of the craft, thoroughly loyal to its teachings concerning the brotherhood of mankind.
JOSEPH H. SCHMIDT.
Along the legitimate lines of trade, with thorough college training as a basis for success, Joseph H. Schmidt built up a business that made him one of the foremost merchants of Omaha and as chemist and pharmacist he ranked with the ablest representatives in that line. A native of Illinois, Mr. Schmidt was born in Lockport on the 22d of January, 1863, and in the acquirement of his education completed a high school course there, after which he entered the University of Illinois for the study of chemistry and pharmacy. He was graduated on the completion of his university course in 1884 and then went to Chicago, where he remained until his removal to Omaha in May, 1886. Here he became connected with W. J. Hughes, at the corner of Sixteenth and Webster streets, under the firm style of Hughes & Schmidt. That relation was maintained until the follow- ing January, when Mr. Schmidt removed to the corner of Twenty-fourth and Cuming streets, there establishing what became well known as the J. H. Schmidt drug store. He remained at that location until his death and built up a very extensive and profitable trade. At one time he was also, for a few months, associated with C. A. Melcher in the ownership of a drug store at Seventeenth and Farnam streets and in July, 1915, he established a fine store at Thirty-third and Cuming streets, of which he remained proprietor until his death. He was a very progressive business man, thoroughly understanding every phase of the drug trade, and his establishments largely set the standard for activity along that
Mechanical
THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
ASTOR, LENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS
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line in Omaha. His opinions were considered authority upon many subjects relat- ing to the business and he bore the reputation of being one of the best pharmacists in the state. He wrote many interesting and instructive articles for drug journals of the country and in fact he stood prominently in the lead in his line in the mid- dle west. He was honored with the presidency of the State Druggists' Associa- tion and for five years he was a member of the state board of pharmacy.
On the 17th of October, 1888, in Omaha, Mr. Schmidt was united in marriage to Miss Anna Marie Paul, who came to this city in 1872 with her father, George P. Paul, who removed from Peoria, Illinois, to Omaha and was here connected with the Union Pacific Railroad Company the remainder of his life, spending thirty-two years in all in the car department of that company. He was born in Alsace-Lorraine, Germany, and as a young man came to the new world. He learned his trade in this country, working in New Orleans and Peoria before com- ing to Omaha. He married Anna M. Metzger and they became the parents of five children : George J. A., who was manager of the Mahoning and Shenango Railway and Light Company and died in Youngstown, Ohio, in 1915; Maude G .; John Wellington, living in Chicago; William J., a resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania ; and Mrs. Schmidt. The father passed away March 30, 1900, when seventy-two years of age. That he had enjoyed the full confidence of the com- pany which he represented is indicated in his long retention in that service-a fact which is furthermore indicative of his absolute fidelity and capability.
Mr. and Mrs. Schmidt became the parents of seven children: Paul J .; Marie G., now Mrs. Charles S. Hoffert, living in St. Joseph, Missouri; Joseph H .; Florence A .; Maude H .; Lillian F .; and Frederick Charles.
Mr. Schmidt passed away on the 9th of September, 1915. He was at one time a member of the Ak-Sar-Ben and at all times he was deeply interested in the welfare and progress of his city, contributing in substantial measure to its upbuilding by his hearty cooperation with all movements seeking to advance the general welfare. He belonged to St. Cecelia's Catholic church and was an active member in the Knights of Columbus. His political allegiance was given to the democratic party and he was twice a candidate for the office of city treasurer. He concentrated the greater part of his thought, energy and attention, however, upon his business interests and his capability in that direction was manifest in the continued growth of the trade, which made him one of the prosperous mer- chants of Omaha and enabled him to leave his family in very comfortable financial circumstances. This was the chief end and aim of his life, for his interests cen- tered in his home and he put forth every effort that would promote the welfare and happiness of his wife and children.
HOWARD BIRCHARD SMITH.
Howard Birchard Smith, actively engaged in the practice of law in Omaha, is a native of Detroit, Michigan, and traces his ancestry in direct line back to Henry Smith, who came from England in 1635. His great-grandfather was Eli Smith and his grandfather was Joseph Smith, who was born in the state of Vermont in 1782 and passed away in 1863. Joseph Smith was the father of Rol- lin C. Smith, who was born in Shoreham, Vermont, in 1809 and following his removal to Detroit engaged in banking and the lumber business. Later he brought his family to Omaha, where he engaged in the real estate business. In Shoreham, Vermont, he wedded Mary A. Birchard and it was in 1868 that they became residents of Omaha, where the father died in 1873, while the mother. surviving for many years, passed away in 1900.
Howard B. Smith was graduated from the University of Michigan with the class of 1876, after which he returned to Omaha and entered upon the study of law in the office and under the direction of the late Judge Eleazer Wakeley. He
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returned to Michigan University for further study and was graduated from its law department with the class of 1878. He then opened an office in Omaha, where he has since been engaged in the general practice of his profession. In June, 1881, he was appointed to the position of county judge of Douglas county to fill a vacancy and served upon the bench until the following September, when he resigned. In 1887 he received a two years' appointment to the board of fire and police commissioners of Omaha by Governor Thayer and was reappointed to that position for a four years' term and still later was again appointed for a four years' term by Governor Crounse. He continued to serve until 1895, when he resigned to concentrate his undivided attention upon his law practice. An excellent presence, an earnest manner, marked strength of character, a thorough grasp of the law and the ability to accurately apply its principles make him an effective and successful advocate and he has won prestige at a bar which has numbered many distinguished members.
On the 22d of May, 1879, in Chillicothe, Ohio, Mr. Smith was united in mar- riage to Miss Eliza Cook McKell, her father being the late William McKell, for years president of the First National Bank in Chillicothe. They have a daugh- ter, Phoebe Cook, the wife of Henry W. Pierpont, of Omaha, by whom she has two sons, Howard W. and Henry B.
Judge and Mrs. Smith attend the Congregational church and he belongs to the University Club. In politics he is a republican but has never been an aspirant for office and the only positions he has filled are those already mentioned. He has always preferred to concentrate his attention upon his professional duties and his devotion to his clients' interests has become proverbial. His contempo- raries and colleagues have always entertained a high opinion concerning his powers as an advocate and counselor and his close conformity to the ethical stand- ards of the profession.
CHARLES SELLECK.
Charles Selleck, now living retired in Omaha, first located in the city six decades ago. He was born in Norwalk, Fairfield county, Connecticut, November 2, 1829, and in his boyhood days went to sea, spending his time upon the water until 1851, when he went to California by way of the Isthmus route, having in the meantime visited almost every section of the globe. He made two trips to and from California, spending about four years in that way, and from that state he returned to New York city and thence came to Omaha, driving from Davenport, Iowa, to his destination. In fact he has traveled all over this section of the state when it was a wild and unsettled district. He visited Colorado in 1859 during the mining excitement there and engaged in prospecting. He made several trips to that region and to Montana, spending seven or eight years in all in that way. He would return to Omaha for the winter and would haul freight out in the spring. In his freighting operations he was a partner of John Lutz, who owned a quarter section and had a stone quarry in what is now the center of the city of Omaha. In 1861 he prospected from Denver to the south fork of the Salmon river and during that long trip never saw an Indian. He discovered gold about twenty-five miles north of the Bannock gulch diggings and worked his claim for six weeks, taking out the first gold that was ever sold in Montana, the purchaser being Ed Creighton, of Salt Lake City, where Mr. Selleck spent the winter seasons. In the spring he would return to Montana and thus carried on mining until 1866, when Mr. Selleck again came to Omaha. For years he remained in this city. He furnished the capital with which to con- duct the Farnam Hotel, the hostelry being at that time the leading one in Omaha. Mr. Selleck afterward removed to Washington county and settled on land which he preempted at an early day. He remained there for several years but in 1910
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returned to Omaha, where he now lives retired. His has been an active life in which sound business judgment and indefatigable energy have won substantial success.
In Omaha, in 1868, Mr. Selleck was united in marriage to Miss Mary L. Pashley, of Wisconsin, who came from that state in 1867. Her father, John Pashley, was a mechanic and builder connected with the Union Pacific Railroad for a time. To Mr. and Mrs. Selleck were born three children, of whom one is now living, Gertrude, the wife of O. E. Berg, of the Berg Clothing Company.
Fraternally Mr. Selleck is connected with the Elks. In politics he has always been a stalwart republican since the organization of the party and he has also been very active in support of many measures which have contributed to the material progress and upbuilding of his city and state and other sections of the west. There is no phase of western pioneer life with which he is not familiar and he was with the vanguard who carried the seeds of civilization to the frontier.
ARTHUR L. BARR, M. D.
Dr. Arthur L. Barr, who has but recently started upon his professional career but already is gaining a creditable practice and one which promises steady growth, owing to his laudable ambition and close application, was born in Ashland, Nebraska, in 1892, a son of Wesley J. and Elizabeth (Laughlin) Barr. The father was born in Montana in 1867 and died in the year 1906, while his widow still makes her home in Ashland.
It was in his native city that Dr. Barr pursued his public school education and after reviewing the broad field of business in its various agricultural, commer- cial, industrial and professional connections he decided to make the practice of medicine his life work. With that end in view he entered the Creighton University as a medical student and was graduated therefrom in 1915. He then located for practice in Omaha and his patronage has been steadily developing through the intervening months. He is instructor in clinical microscopy in the Creighton College of Medicine.
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