A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume II, Part 47

Author: Orth, Samuel Peter, 1873-1922; Clarke, S.J., publishing company
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago-Cleveland : The S.J. Clarke Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1150

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the present time their assets amount to more than a million and a half dollars. Mr. Wilberding is likewise a director in the Realty Exchange & Rental Com- pany.

- In 1896 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Wilberding and Miss Josephine Butler, a native of Ohio. Their union has been blessed with a daughter, Flor- ence, who was born on the 21st of October, 1901.

At the polls Mr. Wilberding gives his allegiance to the men and measures of the republican party and formerly took an active part in politics. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in St. Agnes' church. He likewise belongs to the Knights of Columbus, the Chamber of Commerce and the Cleveland Ath- letic Club, The Gentlemen's Driving Club and Cleveland Real Estate Board. He has spent his entire life in this city and his circle of friends is a wide one, for he has ever displayed those traits of character which command confidence and esteem

JOHN MECKES.

Foremost among the leading merchants of his day in Cleveland, John Meckes was also one of the city's successful business men and representative residents- a self-made man in the fullest sense of that broad term-and his history furnishes additional evidence of the fact that integrity of purpose, when coupled with per- severance and assiduous labor, will overcome all the difficulties that may beset the path of a young man in America.

John Meckes was born in Maikammer, Bavaria, June 2, 1843. His father, Mathias Meckes, was a master tailor in that country and there married Margaret Goetz. They came to America about 1850, establishing their home in Cleveland, and John Meckes attended the English schools connected with St. Patrick's church. Later he was a pupil in the public schools to the age of thirteen years, when am- bition and necessity prompted him to make for himself a place in the business world. He secured a position in the dry-goods store of Freeman & Kellogg, at a salary of one dollar and a half per week. He was at all times actuated by the earnest desire to engage in business on his own account and in 1876, when he felt that his earnings justified the step, he laid the foundation for the present ex- tensive dry-goods establishment which is now conducted under the name of the John Meckes Sons Company. The initial enterprise, however, was small, for he first opened his stock of goods in a little room eighteen by fifty feet, which stood on the site of the present business block now owned by the firm. Some- thing of the rapid growth of the business is indicated by the fact that in 1876 there were but three employes, while in 1907 there were more than three hun- dred names upon the pay roll and the store is today the largest dry-goods es- tablishment on the west side and one of the most extensive in Cleveland, occupy- ing a frontage of one hundred and twenty-five feet on West Twenty-fifth street and a depth of two hundred and forty feet on Carroll street.

On the Ist of February, 1908, the style of the firm became the John Meckes Sons Company, a corporation, with E. A. Meckes as president, W. Meckes, sec- retary, and J. H. Meckes, treasurer.

On the 27th of May, 1869, Mr. Meckes was married to Miss Anna Pletscher, a daughter of Daniel and Mary (Krum) Pletscher, who came from Bavaria, Germany, to Cleveland with their parents in 1833. Later they removed to the country near Newburg, becoming farming people of that district. Daniel Plet- scher afterward conducted a meat market on the site of the Baltimore & Ohio depot in Cleveland. Four sons of that family were soldiers of the Civil war. Mrs. Meckes was born in Cleveland in 1844 and has always continued to reside here. Three sons and a daughter were born to Mr. and Mrs. Meckes: Edgar A., who wedded Amanda Dietz, by whom he has a daughter, Gene; Waldemar ; J. Horace; and Meta, the wife of A. H. Baehr.

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Mr. Meckes was one of the sturdy, industrious and frugal German citizens who through his untiring efforts, indefatigable energy and strong purpose, built up the mammoth establishment that bears his name. He was identified with many German organizations and became one of the founders of The United Banking & Savings Company, and of the Forest City Savings & Trust Company. At all times he was deeply interested in plans for the city's development and growth and to this end he held membership in the Chamber of Commerce and in the Chamber of Industry.

Early in 1907 Mr. and Mrs. Meckes left Cleveland for an extended tour abroad and while in Rome, Italy, he was taken ill, his death occurring in that city April 21, 1907. His remains were brought back to Cleveland for interment. Com- menting on his death, the Cleveland Plain Dealer said editorially: "When John Meckes died in Rome the other day, Cleveland lost a man and a merchant typical of those who constitute the backbone of a community, and who have given this city its civic and commercial importance. Coming to this country and city as a child, he grew from the humblest of beginnings to be one of the large factors in Cleveland's commercial life and its higher life as well. He owed that rise to his own unaided efforts and to his exemplification of the old fashioned private and business virtues. He will be missed by more than his family and personal friends. His death is an incident of which even a busy community does well to take note."

When thirteen years of age Mr. Meckes was confirmed in St. Patrick's church and was a liberal contributor to religious institutions of all denominations. For more than a half century he resided in Cleveland and became widely known here. His friends rejoiced in what he accomplished as they witnessed the development of his mercantile interests from a humble beginning to an enterprise of large pro- portion. Not only was he progressive and successful in business but was also a factor in the public life of the community, supporting many public movements and taking a commendable interest in all those things which are a matter of civic virtue and civic pride. His example may well serve to encourage and inspire others, for it indicates what may be accomplished by determined and persistent purpose. He knew that labor is the basis of all success and his close application and sound judgment advanced him to a prominent place among the merchants of his adopted city.

For almost twenty-five years the family residence has been at what is now 2905 Franklin avenue, where the widow resides. Mrs. Meckes has for many years been active in charitable work. She possesses a benevolent, kindly spirit that delights in doing good for others and her unfailing tact, understanding and courtesy enable her not only to see the needs of others but also to meet them in such a manner that the recipient is never made to feel that he is an object of charity but rather a fellow traveler with her on life's journey, her efforts being an indirect influence of an untoward fate. Thus she adds much to the comfort and pleasure of others and for years to come will be held in grateful remem- brance by those who have benefited by her bounty and her kindliness. Her charity is never actuated by a sense of duty but rather by that deep personal interest which arises from a recognition of the brotherhood of mankind.

CLIFFORD W. FULLER.

Clifford W. Fuller was born in Garrettsville, Ohio, February 6, 1864, obtain- ing his education in the public schools of his native place and afterward at Alle- gheny College, Meadville, Pennsylvania. From the latter he was graduated in 1886 with the degree of B. A. and later he pursued post-graduate courses, win- ning the degrees of M. A. and Ph. D. pro merito.

CLIFFORD W. FULLER

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Taking up the profession of teaching, his first occupation after graduation from college was that of principal of the high school of Garrettsville, Ohio, and afterward he was superintendent of schools of Chardon, Ohio. It was while thus engaged that Mr. Fuller devoted his leisure hours to the study of law, and was admitted to the bar by the supreme court of Ohio in 1890, commencing the prac- tice of his chosen profession in March of the following year in Cleveland, Ohio, as the partner of Hon. Henry C. Ranney. This firm continuing at the present writing have as their special line of law, corporation work, fire insurance law and the management of estates, Mr. Fuller now being the leading fire insurance attor- ney in Cleveland.

The determination and unfaltering energy which he displayed in fitting him- self for the profession, have also constituted salient elements in his notable suc- cess, which has followed as the logical result of those characteristics, combined with his comprehensive knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence bearing upon the fields of his specialty.

His political allegiance is given to the republican party. Mr. Fuller is director and also secretary of the Royal Tourist Car Company, and secretary of the fol- lowing institutions : the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust, the John Huntington Benevolent Trust, the Cleveland Museum of Art and a member of the building committee, and a director of the Cleveland Athletic Club Company. He is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, is commander of the Ohio Com- mandery of the Military Order of Foreign Wars, and also a member of the Naval & Military Order of United States. He served in the Hispano-American war as captain of Company I, Tenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. As a club man, Mr. Fuller is very prominent, being a member of the University Club, the Rowfant Club, the Hermit Club and the Cleveland Athletic Club and the Phi Gamma Delta Club of New York. He is strongly literary in his tastes. The character of the various organizations with which he is associated indicates the broad nature of his interests other than his profession.

WILLIAM L. FOSTER.

Honored and respected by all, William L. Foster occupies an enviable posi- tion in commercial circles in Cleveland as the secretary of the Higbee Company, owners of one of the most extensive and finest dry-goods stores not only of this city but of this section of the country. A son of Hezekiah and Mary (Carson) Foster of New York state, he was born November 6, 1860, at Hudson, Michigan, where his parents were then residing.

At the usual age he entered the public schools, continuing his course until he became a high school student, while later he qualified for the business world by a course of study in the Spencerian Business College. At sixteen years of age he went to Whitewater, Wisconsin, working for his father, who was a building con- tractor. There he learned the trade and remained for three years, but think- ing to find commercial pursuits more congenial than the trade which he had mastered, he turned his attention to the dry-goods business in Hillsdale, Mich- igan, as an employe of W. B. Childs & Company. He continued with that house for three years and then came to Cleveland, where for eight months he was em- ployed as salesman by E. M. McGillen & Company. He was next with the firm of Hower & Higbee and was promoted from the position of salesman to that of buyer of dress goods, and later ladies' ready-to-wear garments. He has since been in charge of the buying for those departments and added to his duties in that connection have been those of secretary, in which official capacity he is now serving.

The present company was organized in 1884 and the name was changed from Hower & Higbee to the Higbce Company, at the time Mr. Foster was

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elected secretary. He is also one of the stockholders of the company and his business enterprise, his initiative spirit and his unabating energy are vital elements in the success and growth of the business. The company has occupied its present quarters for many years, but is now erecting one of the largest steel and concrete dry-goods stores in the country, thoroughly modern in every particular and equipped with every facility and accessory that will promote the trade interests, facilitate prompt delivery of goods to patrons or enhance the attractive appear- ance of their establishment. The company has ever held to a high standard in its personnel, in the line of goods carried and in the service given to the pub- lic. It has been the policy of the house to expect of its employes the best pos- sible service and to reward this by promotion as opportunity has offered. It demands courteous treatment of patrons on the part of all employes and the busi- ness policy has at all times been such as recommends the house to the support of the general public.

In 1883 Mr. Foster was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Fowle, a daugh- ter of Charles Fowle of Hillsdale, Michigan, and they have one daughter, Marie, who is now the wife of Eugene C. Wamelink, of Cleveland. Mr. and Mrs. Fos- ter hold membership with the Euclid Avenue Congregational church and his political faith is that of the republican party. He enjoys association with his fel- low members of the Colonial and Cleveland Athletic Clubs and is an exemplary representative of Woodward Lodge, A. F. & A. M. Interested in Cleveland's welfare he works for the interests of the city, giving his cooperation to many movements for the general good and finding his reward therefor not in any office but in the conscience of having done his full duty in public service. Since his advent in commercial circles his progress has been continuous and yet there has been no esoteric phase in his career, his advancement being due to the possession of qualities which any may emulate-perseverance and close study of every pos- sibility that it may be used to the utmost, being the salient features in his record.

EDWIN D. CHILDS.

Edwin D. Childs, well known in manufacturing circles of Cleveland as the secretary and treasurer of the Kilby Manufacturing Company, was born in this city on the 27th of April, 1839, his parents being Herrick and Selena (Bucking- ham) Childs. Following his graduation from the Central high school, at the age of sixteen years, he secured a position as a clerk in a bank and for a period of twelve years worked in a similar capacity for different financial institutions of the city. In 1867 he was elected secretary and treasurer of the Northern Trans- portation Company, in which official capacity he ably represented the corporation for seven years or until 1874, when he embarked in the wholesale grocery busi- ness as a partner of Mr. Fisher.

The firm of Fisher & Childs conducted business until 1884, when the junior partner sold out in order that he might devote his entire attention to the dis- charge of the important duties devolving upon him as secretary and treasurer of the Cummer Engine Company, to which positions he had been elected in 1884. In 1888 the Cummer Engine Company was succeeded by the Kilby Manufac- turing Company and Mr. Childs retained the offices of secretary and treasurer, having thus served continuously to the present time. His alert and enterprising spirit has been manifest throughout the years of his connection with this concern and has worked for the advancement of its interests as well as to his own in- dividual prosperity. The Kilby Manufacturing Company employs a force of five hundred men for the manufacture of cane and beet sugar machinery, rolling mill, wire and nail machinery and all classes of heavy machine, foundry and boiler work.

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On the 17th of June, 1862, in Cleveland, Mr. Childs was united in marriage to Miss Lucy E. Chamberlin, a daughter of Philo and Emily F. (Pelton) Cham- berlin. They reside at No. 7601 Euclid avenue and are well known and highly esteemed in the social circles of the city. Mr. Childs gives his political support to the republican party, believing that its principles are most conducive to good government. He has been a resident of Cleveland from his birth to the present time, covering a period of seventy years, and that his career has ever been up- right and honorable is indicated by the fact that the associates of his boyhood and youth are still numbered among his stanchest friends.

WILLIAM C. TIMM.

William C. Timm, in partnership with C. A. Schlup, is successfully engaged in the conduct of the Merwin Iron & Metal Company at No. 1722 Merwin avenue in Cleveland. His birth occurred in this city on the 17th of December, 1875, his parents being Charles and Mary Timm. He pursued his education in the public schools until thirteen years of age and then secured a position with A. I. Sanger and Harris Brothers, dealers in scrap iron, having charge of the yard for a period of sixteen years. Subsequently he organized the Merwin Iron & Metal Com- pany in partnership with C. A. Schlup and they have since conducted a success- ful and constantly growing business, handling a general line of scrap iron and steel. Their employes are eight in number.

On the 2d of June, 1898, in Cleveland, Mr. Timm was united in marriage to Miss Helene Boldt, by whom he has three children, namely : Helene, who is eleven years of age and attends the public schools; Gertrude, a little maiden of six, who is also a public-school student; and William, who is four years old. The family residence is at No. 1635 Brainard avenue.

Mr. Timm is independent in his political views and in religious faith is a Protestant. He has made his home in Cleveland throughout his entire life and that his career has ever been upright and honorable is indicated by the high re- gard and esteem in which he is so uniformly held.

EUGENE M. CARLETON.

Eugene M. Carleton, vice president of The Mills-Carleton Lumber Company, the successor of the oldest firm of its kind in Cleveland, was born in St. Clair, Michigan, January 1, 1864. Through education and inheritance he has always been identified with the lumber business for his father, George W. Carleton, who was a native of the state of New York, was one of the prominent lumbermen of Michigan. He died in 1904. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Emeline P. Smith, was born in Massachusetts and is still living.

Eugene M. Carleton attended the district schools of St. Clair county, Michi- gan, later entering the St. Clair high school, from which he was graduated in 1881. Upon the completion of his education he spent two winters in the woods on the Au Sable river and then one winter at Allegan, cutting timber and getting it from the forests to the mills. In 1885 Mr. Carleton came to Cleveland as an employe of N. Mills & Company, working his way up in the firm until, in 1891, the name of the concern was changed to the Mills-Carleton Company. In 1897 it was incorporated as The Mills-Gray-Carleton Company as the interests of the Pack-Gray Company had been united with the other and then later, when the Gray interests were bought, it was reincorporated as Mills, Carleton & Company, of which Mr. Carleton was made general manager. In 1903 the name was again changed to The Mills-Carleton Company as at present and two years later, in

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1905, Mr. Carleton was elected vice president of the concern. It handles all kinds of lumber, doing an extensive business, both wholesale and retail. It is one of the most flourishing industries in Cleveland, as well as the successor of the oldest firm in its line here, and the record of Mr. Carleton's association with it points to his efficiency as a business man and the sterling worth of his char- acter.

On the 27th of November, 1888, Mr. Carleton was united in marriage to Miss Alberta Bunce, a daughter of Horace E. Bunce, a lumberman of Michigan, but she died in June, 1907. Mr. Carleton is a member of the Colonial and Clifton Clubs, finding in their meetings relaxation from his daily occupation. While he is deeply concerned for the advancement of the firm of which he is vice pres- ident he is also interested in allied industries, namely, in the boat and vessel bus- iness and the Fir Timber Company, of which he is a director.

FREDERICK W. BRUCH.

Frederick W. Bruch, president of the Acme Machinery Company of Cleve- land and a man of many varied and important business interests, is a native of Rhine-Bavaria, Germany, and a son of Karl F. and Sophia (Zepp) Bruch. The father was a blacksmith by trade, following that pursuit in his native land until 1854, when he sailed with his family for the new world, spending his remaining days in Cleveland. He was born in 1806 and lived to the advanced age of eighty- eight years.

Frederick W. Bruch was but two years of age at the time of emigration to America, his birth having occurred on the 22d of February, 1852. He is in- debted to the system of public instruction for the advantages which he acquired and when his school days were over he began learning the machinist's trade, which he continuously followed until 1880, when, owing to his prudent and care- ful expenditure, he felt justified in making investment in an independent bus- iness. In this venture he was associated with Claus Greve and Daniel Luchers, and they established the Acme Machinery Company on the site of the present establishment on St. Clair avenue. The business was conducted as a partnership affair until 1892, when it was incorporated as the Acme Machinery Company, Mr. Bruch becoming its president, in which capacity he has since remained. The establishment ranks among the most prosperous enterprises of the kind in this city and employment is furnished to four hundred and fifty people. The plant is well equipped and the output, by reason of its excellence, finds a ready sale on the markets of the world, while the business methods of the house are in close conformity with a high standard of commercial ethics. Mr. Bruch is also the president of the Kraus Furniture Company ; was one of the organizers and a director of the Cleveland Machinery Company; is president and was one of the organizers of the Adams Realty Company; is a director of the State Banking & Trust Company ; is vice president of the Standard Fullers Earth Company of America, at Mobile, Alabama ; and is interested in various other corporations. In business matters his discernment is keen and his judgment accurate, while his enterprising spirit does not fear to venture where favoring opportunity points the way.

Pleasantly situated in his home life, Mr. Bruch was married September 29, 1888, in Cleveland, to Miss Emma Mohrman, a native of this city. They have become parents of four children: Alfred E., who completed his education at the University School and is connected with the Acme Machinery Company; Karl F., who was graduated from the University School with the class of 1909; Ethel S., who is attending school in the east; and Edward P. The family residence is at No. 11130 Euclid avenue. Mr. Bruch is interested in fraternal organizations and that for which they stand, and is regarded as a valued and exemplary mem-

F. W. BRUCH

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ber of Forest City Lodge, No. 388, F. & A. M .; Webb Chapter, R. A. M .; Cleve- land Council, R. & S. M .; Oriental Commandery, K. T .; and Al Koran Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S. He is now a veteran member of the lodge, council and chap- ter. He belongs also to the Colonial Club, while his political allegiance is given to the republican party. A self-made man, possessing now a handsome compe- tence, he has attained to his present position in the business world through his own efforts. His early training made him a capable mechanic and his thorough knowledge of machinery, together with his rare business talent and boundless energy have earned for him a place among the substantial men of the city in which almost his entire life has been passed.

JAY M. PICKANDS.

Jay M. Pickands, a member of the well known firm of Pickands, Mather & Company, is a son of the late Colonel James Pickands, one of the founders of the business establishment with which the subject of this sketch is connected. Jay M. Pickands was born in Marquette, Michigan, February 21, 1880, and prepared for college at the University School, from which he was graduated in 1898. He entered Yale the same year, taking the academic course and graduating in 1902.

He immediately became connected with Pickands, Mather & Company and has since been salesman for the pig iron department. He is prominent socially and is a member of the Union, Country and Tavern Clubs. At Yale he became a mem- ber of the Alpha Delta Phi, and the Scroll and Key fraternities. He is a director of the Ingersoll Amusement Company and for several years he has been secretary of the Cleveland branch of the Red Cross Society. Politically he is a stanch re- publican.

On January 7, 1903, in Marquette, Michigan, Mr. Pickands was married to Miss Alice M. Reynolds, of that city, and they have one daughter, Jean. Mr. Pickands is a resident of Bratenahl.

BRYANT FREEMAN WHITMAN.

The uniform expression of heartfelt regret when one passes from life is something that any might covet, for back of it, as the source of this general feeling, has been a record of honorable manhood, of upright purpose and of wide usefulness. While Bryant Freeman Whitman was a man of splendid business capacity whose labors were attended with excellent results, he was never neg- lectful of his obligations and his duty to his fellowmen, and sought at all times to place the weight of his influence on the side of justice, truth and righteous- ness. He was born on the Ist of December, 1846, on St. Clair avenue near the entrance to Gordon Park, in Cleveland. His father, Freeman Whit- man, was also a native of this city, where he was well known for some years in business circles as a builder of vaults, monuments, etc. Bryant F. Whitman from the age of eleven years was self-dependent, owing to his father's death. He at once started out to earn his own living and at different times in his endeavor to provide for his own support and make a start in life he was located in Nebraska, in Cummington, Massachusetts, in Chester, Ohio, and Kenosha, Wisconsin. In 1866 he secured a position under his brother-in- law, Justus L. Cozad, as an employe of the Bellefontaine Railway Company. His position was a humble one, but ability soon wins recognition and he was advanced from time to time, being given a position in the general office, where he applied himself closely to the mastery of every task assigned him. His diligence, apti- tude and reliability were noted and appreciated by the company and when this

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A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume II, Part 47

Author: Orth, Samuel Peter, 1873-1922; Clarke, S.J., publishing company Publication date: 1910 Publisher: Chicago-Cleveland : The S.J. Clarke Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1150

Author: Orth, Samuel Peter, 1873-1922; Clarke, S.J., publishing company
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago-Cleveland : The S.J. Clarke Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1150