USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Cleveland > A history of Catholicity in northern Ohio and in the diocese of Cleveland from 1749 to December 31, 1900, Volume II, pt1 > Part 12
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ing can be said of the qualities of the individual members of a family so young, but it can be assumed that, owing to the appre- ciation and affluence of their parents, no advantage for educa- tion, social position, or business will be denied them.
Mr. Cronin is a man who takes a broad, practical view of things. He does not underestimate the value of education, or of those agencies that make for the formation of character. His judg- ment is that while money is power and is always a great conveni- ence, yet it is not the highest good, not even when rightly used. At best it is but an agent, a means that may not always be prop- erly and wisely employed. He would place conscience, intellect, and character highest, and to illuminate, brighten, and develop these he would bend his energies and expend his wealth.
Convictions and sentiments such as these are the index to his own character and scope of mind. His temperament disposes him to thoughtfulness and to not a little philosophizing. He thinks much but speaks seldom. As might be expected he is of a modest and retiring disposition, is anything but impetuous, and he crowns his numerous good qualities by trying to be just in his estimates of, and in his dealings with, his fellow men. With limited education outside of his particular vocation it is most cred- itable to him to have attained to such excellence of judgment,. height of character and affluence. It is also to his credit that at no time has he been lacking in devotion to the Catholic Church.
The setting forth of these facts and deductions may mean little to the thoughtless and the unambitious, but to those who observe and weigh matters they mean much in the lesson which they teach and in the inspiration which they afford to those who have placed their mark high upon the wall of business success and social and religious standing. Especially do these considerations appeal to the young and to those who have the desire to get along in the world; for they, too, may reasonably conclude that what some have accomplished is not in the way of the impossible for them.
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MR. JAMES A. DAILEY.
Mr. James A. Dailey, of St. Francis de Sales' parish, Toledo, Ohio, was born in the city of Dunkirk, New York, February 12, 1856. His father was James Dailey, who died there April 27, 1890. The maiden name of his mother was Hannah Hallanan. She also died in Dunkirk, January 1, 1885. Both were natives of Ireland. Young Dailey was trained both secularly and religiously in the . parochial schools of his native city. Completing his preparatory education, he entered the Dunkirk Academy, from which he graduated in the commercial course, in 1873. Being then only seventeen years of age it was much to his credit that he was esteemed as quite competent in the science of accounts.
Immediately following his graduation he removed to Toledo to take the position of assistant cashier in the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway offices in that city. He held that important position until 1895, a period of over twenty years, when he was elected supreme secretary of the Catholic Knights of Ohio. The duties of that office required his undivided attention and time, and in order to the full and satisfactory discharge of his obligations as such officer, he resigned his position with the railway company. Enjoying a wide personal acquaintance in Toledo, and having the confidence of the community, his friends induced him, since he had to open up an office, to conduct through assistants the business of real estate and general insurance also. He did so, and he yet continues in it as his regular calling.
Mr. Dailey was married February 8, 1882, in his native city, Dunkirk, to Miss Mary Toomey, also of that city, a most excellent lady whom he had known from childhood. They have since made the city of Toledo their permanent home, where eight children have been born to them, two of whom have passed away. The six living are : Mary Florence, Margaret Teresa, Grace Cecelia, Helen Anastasia, Regena Loyola, and one son, who is named Paul. Mrs. Dailey is a noted organizer of Catholic societies. She is the president and also the spirit and life of the local Ladies' Catholic Benevolent Association, and was its delegate to the National Con- vention at Asbury Park, in 1899, and at Detroit, in 1901. She has two sisters who are nuns.
The death of their little son Joseph, May 21, 1899. on the very
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day he was to have made his first Holy Communion, was the sorest trial of the family; but since on the day preceding he made that Communion, for which he was so well prepared, and to which he looked forward so longingly, he must have, in the language of his pastor, witnessed greater things than would have greeted his mortal eyes had he been spared to be present with his class in the church. He was the best beloved boy in St. Francis' school, inheriting the temperament and traits of his father, whose many natural and supernatural virtues mark him as a typical Catholic father and gentleman.
James A. Dailey is intensely Catholic. During all his life he has been devoted to the furtherance of Catholic interests, notably in the line of education. On this account he was beloved by the late Rev. Dr. P. F. Quigley, pastor of St. Francis de Sales' Church, Toledo. He was for years, and continued as such until the death of that priest, his confident and bosom friend. He served ten years as a member of the councilmanic board of the congregation, acting at the same time as its secretary.
What he has been in devotedness and zeal in parish work he is also in the work of Catholic organizations. He. is a member of the Catholic Knights of Ohio, the Knights of Columbus, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, and also of other societies. He has always represented in the capacity of delegate one or the other of these orders in their conventions, and has succeeded, by his courage and wise counsel, in effecting such legislation as befitted the occasion and the society. Being a gentleman of information, carnestness, and evenness of temperament, he often accomplishes without friction what on trying occasions others could not bring about without leaving behind the sting of harshness or of sore disappointment. His methods and manner have always com- manded both endorsement and respect, and facts will verify the averment that he is among the most highly respected and best beloved of the Catholic laity of Toledo.
We can fancy Mr. Dailey saying with Charlotte Bronte: "The longer I live, the more plainly I see that gentle must be the strain on human nature : it will not bear much."
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MR. CHARLES A. DAINZ.
Mr. Charles A. Dainz, founder and head of the Dainz Electric Company, of Cleveland, Ohio, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsyl- vania, May 9, 1850. He is the only son-the only child-born to Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Dainz, who were natives of Germany.
When he was only three years old his parents removed to . Juniata county, Pennsylvania, where they engaged in farming. The local schools afforded young Dainz the only education he received, and carpentry, as practiced in the neighboring towns, appeared to offer the most promising field for his budding mechani- cal genius. He, therefore, learned the trade, and followed it there until 1867, when he removed to Akron, Ohio. In 1869 he took unto himself a wife at that place, and then went east, to Ogdens- burg, New York, where he remained two years.
Ohio at that time was regarded as a western state by the easterners, and the "star of empire" wooed many, among them Mr. and Mrs. Charles A. Dainz, to seek prosperity in the direc- tion of the setting sun. Accordingly they removed, in 1872, to Cleveland, Ohio, then a city of much promise, and there they have since continued to abide. During the succeeding four years Mr. Dainz followed his trade. He then connected himself with the Telegraph Supply and Manufacturing Company, out of which grew the Brush Electric Company. He remained with the latter company until 1880, at which time he embarked in the business on his own account.
Mr. Dainz modestly admits that while connected with the enterprises referred to, partly as a student of the electrical busi- ness and partly as a worker, he knew nearly as much about it as he does now, even 'though the experience of twenty additional years has been his portion. It would certainly be pardonable to mildly gainsay this in view of his reputation as an electrical constructor, and also because of the character and amount of business which he controls. The most prominent churches, public buildings and residences, not alone in Cleveland but in northeastern Ohio, have been electrically fitted out by him, and in each instance unqualified approval of his work has been unstintingly expressed. In fact his
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professional knowledge and record, backed by his honesty, are guarantees that appear to be satisfactory to all concerned.
It is true he may not now know any more about the nature of that imponderable force called electricity than he did twenty years ago when he was a tyro in harnessing it; but who does? Does Mr. Edison? But he does know more about its habits and the phenomena caused by it. He does know more about how to deal with it, more about the laws that regulate its action when static or dynamic, than he did, and the proof is in his success.
Mr. Dainz is descended of Lutheran ancestors, and he knew no other form of Christian practice until he married Miss Susie A. McCann, a Catholic young lady, of Akron, Ohio, formerly of Ogdensburg, New York. He learned from her, and also by attend- ing the Catholic Church with her, that that Church is the mother of all churches, the True Church. He made his profession of faith at Ogdensburg, New York, in 1871, and was then and there bap- tized into the Catholic Church. His six children have been reared in the faith, and are practical Catholics. Eva, the first-born, is Mrs. Joseph Naftel. Her promising little son, Joseph Dainz Naftel, has added the proud title of grandfather to the endearing names by which the subject of this sketch is known. The others are Lucy, who is Mrs. George Pinard; Mazie, who is Mrs. Robert A. McCann; and the Misses Lottie, Edna, and Ella, who are a unit with their excellent mother in the work of keeping the Dainz home a model in all respects-the dearest, sweetest place on earth to members of the family.
Mr. Charles A. Dainz is prominent in Catholic associations, such as the Knights of St. John, the Knights of Columbus, the Catholic Mutual Benefit Association, the Catholic Benevolent Legion, and others. He is active besides in practical parish work. For six years he was councilman of St. Bridget's Church, when he resided in that parish; and now that his home is in South Cleveland (South Brooklyn) he is one of the councilmen of the Church of the Sacred Heart of Mary, which is the parish church there. He is a citizen of unquestioned integrity, a Catholic whose daily life is along correct lines, and a neighbor who rejoices the community in which he lives.
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MR. PETER DALY.
The late Mr. Peter Daly, of the Cathedral parish, Cleveland, was a very unassuming, charitable, liberal, and successful man. Notwithstanding his retiring disposition, he was prominent among the carly Catholics who attended old St. Mary's, the first Catholic . Church in Cleveland, and later among those attending St. John's Cathedral, which edifice he helped to build.
He was born in the county of Cavan, Ireland, and when a youth of eighteen, in 1848, he came to the United States and selected Cleveland as his home. He began in an humble way to earn a livelihood. Experiencing the need of an education, he attended the night sessions of the Rockwell street school in his adopted city, and also the day sessions during the winter months. From being employed by others to do teaming and care for horses he soon became ambitious enough to engage in a small way in the hauling business for himself. He was employed by the old firm of Stone, Chisholm & Jones, better known later as the Cleveland Rolling Mill Company. He had the implicit confidence of Mr. Chisholm and was given the contracts for unloading the company's vessels and railroad cars, carrying iron ore, coal and coke to the furnaces. He continued in the contracting business, took stock in the vessels, invested in real estate, and became prosperous.
Mr. Peter Daly was married, in 1854, to Miss Margaret McManus, a native of the county of Cavan, Ireland. Their nuptials were among the first solemnized in St. John's Cathedral by Bishop Rappe. Four children were born to them, all of whom are residents of Cleveland, where each received a good education in the Catholic schools and convents. The oldest daughter, Ellen. became Mrs. Hugh C. Quigley ; Rose, Mrs. David J. Champion ; and Mary, Mrs. Anthony Carlin. Peter J., the fourth of the family, is the only son. Mrs. Daly was an exemplary woman of good common sense. She knew the art of good housekeeping and taught her daughters to practice and prize it. She was very kind- hearted. She passed away December 7, 1888. only to be followed by her husband November 17, 1894. They were happy in their
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home life, and in their charity and kindness they gave liberally that others might be happy also. Representatives of religion and friends of the orphans calling at the home of the Dalys were never allowed to go away empty-handed or unrewarded. Many priests and members of religious orders have borne testimony to the generosity, liberality, and kindness of heart of both Mr. and Mrs. Daly.
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Mr. Peter Daly was remarkable for his simple, abiding faith, his unassuming manner, and for those characteristics of his Celtic nature which rendered him respected and loved by all who knew him. Although not a total abstainer from intoxicants he never tasted wine or liquor of any kind in a saloon or drinking place. Notwithstanding the fact that he was liberal, he yet was what some called "stingy to himself" --- self-denying. He gave to everyone who asked, his liberality evidencing the generosity of his heart. He lent to struggling families to pay for their homes and received the money back in small amounts without interest. He kept no record of such things. Since his death not a few have paid to his executors money borrowed from him, and of which debts there was no record. He did not know how to refuse. From this may be inferred the fact that having been promiscuously liberal he was specially so in aid of the Church. Many instances could be cited where his check for a considerable sum would be sent to some priest even without being solicited.
While the sphere of his influence was not very large nor his horizon very extensive, yet in his humble way he made others feel the measure of his many good qualities. His example bore fruit. and today his memory is cherished not only by his children and their marital relations, but also by a considerable number of Cleve- land's citizens who knew him intimately, and who were cognizant of his natural virtues and merits. He excelled in simplicity, generosity, and candor.
Although success and a measure of contentment were his to enjoy in life, he ever remembered the truthful statement that "Life is so constructed that the event does not, will not, match the expectation."
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MR. JOSEPH DANGEL.
The superintendent of the Akron, Ohio, branch of the American Hard Rubber Company is Mr. Joseph Dangel, who is here mentioned to the credit of St. Mary's parish and the Catholic community of Akron. He is a man of excellent character and marked mechanical skill. His directive capacity is implied by the position he holds, for the large factory in which he is a stockholder, and of which he is the active head, employs over five hundred persons and is one of the most important hard rubber plants in the country. By his unaided efforts Mr. Dangel has advanced to his present important position and high standing.
Joseph Dangel was born in Germany, December 19, 1860. He cmigrated to the United States, in 1881, locating at Butler. New Jersey, where for two years, as an ambitious and observing young man, he had his first experience in hard rubber manufactur- ing. He next spent a year at Hoboken in the same business. In 1SS3, he removed to Morrisville, Pennsylvania, where he continued in his calling until 1887, when he went to Akron, to become fore- man for The Goodrich Hard Rubber Company previous to its absorption by the amalgamated rubber interests. From 1894 until 1895 he was assistant superintendent, and in the latter mentioned year was made superintendent.
In 1887, in New York, he was married to Miss Amelia Schafer, who, like himself, is a native of Germany. A bright family of five has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Dangel. The names of the children are as follows: Anna Emily, Carolina Teresa, Maria Ludowicka. Rosa Matilda, and Franz Joseph Dangel. The home life of the family is what Catholic teaching and practice would be expected to make it-a life redolent of the virtues, with parental and filial affection ever to the fore. The characteristics of Joseph Dangel are faithfulness to duty, capacity to compass situations, keenness of observation, and ability to accomplish what he undertakes. What he knows he has acquired by experience and study, and what he possesses he has honestly earned. He is generous to worthy causes, and always supports religious and educational work by contributions and personal efforts. He rented the first pew in the present St. Mary's Church, and has been
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councilman and secretary of the congregation since 1887. He is a member of the Young People's Union of the parish, was financial secretary of the Catholic Mutual Benefit Association, and presi- dent of the Catholic Central Association of Akron.
If Mr. Dangel is intensely earnest in anything it is in his deep solicitude and untiring efforts for the advancement of the Christian and practical education of the rising generation. He judges the needs of the day and of the future from his own experience, and he is pained beyond measure when, through neglect or indifference, he sees these needs unmet. His watchwords are, Christianize ! Educate! for he is convinced that the Church and the school are the salvation of the race, and the stay of the nation.
He is respected by all who know him as a good citizen. a good neighbor and friend, and as a consistent Christian gentleman. It can be truthfully said of him that he is the architect of his own fortune, a man who, by his own efforts, has advanced himself from the level of a poor emigrant boy to his present high standing, both in business and social life. He sees more the need young men have of encouragement than he feels the satisfaction which his own success affords him. Having experienced, in his own days · of sore trial, the deadening effect of a drooping heart, he can the more readily sympathize with those who are victims of despon- dency. He knows well what it means, and he can forecast its dire effects. But if an emigrant boy, having to learn a strange lan- guage and sustain himself, can get along and even daily advance in knowledge, business, and character building, surely those not emigrant strangers, with the language of the country native to them, ought to be able to progress and ultimately attain success.
It has been Mr. Dangel's experience that "Reflection is the result of feeling ; from compassion for one's self springs a deeper sympathy for others, and from a sense of our own weakness arises a disposition to be indulgent, to forbear, and to forgive-or at least it ought to be so." He judges the condition of others from what his own has been, and in thus sympathetically interesting himself in his fellow men he exhibits both his nature and his ster- ling character.
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MR. BENEDICT DANNEMILLER.
The late Mr. Benedict Dannemiller, of Canton, Ohio, was not only among the most prominent Catholics in that city and Stark county, but he was also one of the leading business men of his day in that section of the state. He was an active and exemplary member of St. Peter's, his parish church, and was the founder and developer of various enterprises, including the large wholesale grocery business now conducted by his sons.
He was born in Alsace, France, December 22, 1813, and was the second child and oldest son of Benedict and Magdalena (Bechel) Dannemiller. When sixteen years old, he emigrated to the United States, and located in Canton, November 28, 1830. His parents and their entire family of seven children emigrated to this country eight years later and settled on a farm in the vicinity of Canton. Having learned the trade of a blacksmith, he embarked in the business for himself, and continued it from 1834 until 1855. Subsequently he engaged in the grain trade, meeting with good success.
The best and most fortunate undertaking of his life was his marriage to Miss Barbara Scheiber, in Canton, December 31, 1838. They lived in happy wedlock for forty-eight years, or until Mrs. Dannemiller's death, July 31, 1886, when she was sixty-nine years old. Mr. Dannemiller was himself called to his reward, April 24, 1897, when he was aged eighty-three years. To their union were born ten children, eight of whom survive. They are named: Clara, who is the wife of Joseph Deville, of Canton ; William; Helen, the wife of Martin Neuhausel, of Toledo: Augustus, Rose, Edward, Julius, and Mary, who is the wife of WV. A. McCrea, of Canton.
In 1869, the elder Dannemiller bought the wholesale grocery house of Thomas Kimball & Brother, of Canton. Ilis two sons William and Augustus were with him in conducting the enterprise. In 1887, he retired and divided his property among his children. Since then his four sons have continued the grocery business, which at this writing (1900) exceeds a million dollars annually. This figure does not include their large coffee interests, which Mr. Edward Dannemiller, now residing in New York City, is conduct-
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ing there. That department alone exceeds three quarters of a million dollars annually.
The large estate accumulated by Mr. Benedict Dannemiller. and now being maintained and added to by his heirs, is as much the evidence of their as of his industry and business ability, for. "When a thing does not waste, it gathers; and there is one thing more important than action, and that is growth." While he accumulated a large property, he was generous not only in support of the Church, but also in aid of public enterprises. He was honest in his dealings, faithful to his word, and at all times intent in setting a good example for his children. They have benefited by his methods, for today, in Canton and elsewhere, the name Danne- miller is respected by all, and those who bear it have maintained it in honor and influence.
MR. TIMOTHY H. DEASY.
A gentleman in whom devotion to religion and education abounds; whose patriotism was tried during the Nation's peril. 1861-65; and whose worth as a citizen has been known and appre- ciated both in Cleveland, Ohio, and elsewhere, is selected in the person of Mr. Timothy H. Deasy as the subject of this biographical mention. For nearly a third of a century he was a skilled workman and operator of blast furnaces, his practical knowledge serving as the forerunner of the present chemical and mechanical advance- ment so essential to iron making. From 1872 till 1895 he was in charge of the Cleveland Rolling Mill Company's blast furnaces; and since his retirement from that responsible position he has been postmaster of the South Cleveland sub-station.
His parents, James and Ellen (Scannel) Deasy, were natives of the county of Cork, Ireland. In 1836, they emigrated to Quebec, Canada. Two years later they left that city for the United States, locating in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. It was there that Timothy H. Deasy was born on the Gregorian intercalary day, February 29, 1840, an incident as to modern calendar time which allows him but occasional returns of his natal , day. He had a birthday as late as 1896, but will not have another till 1904. Later returns need not be discussed.
Having spent twenty-two years in Pennsylvania, where the
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elder Deasy died in 1850, the orphaned family removed to Mineral Ridge, Mahoning county, Ohio, where Timothy, then a young man, entered the employ of the Warner Furnace Company and took his first lessons in the blast furnace business. He continued there only a short time, or until the breaking out of the war of 1861-65. He tried to join the 8th Ohio regiment, but, every company having its full quota, he was refused. He enlisted in his twenty-first year, April 25, 1861, in the Carroll Guards at Youngs- town, Ohio, taking the three months' service. Being a dashing young fellow and an apt student of military affairs, he attracted attention both by his progress and bearing. On the expiration of his term of service, he at once enlisted for three years as a member of Company G, 26th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, was with the Army of the Cumberland most of the time, and was made corporal, on account of merit, in 1863.
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