A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume II, Part 54

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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OTTO ZICKES.

Otto Zickes is a well known druggist of Cleveland, connected with several establishments of this department of merchandising in Cleveland. He was born in Bohemia, December 16, 1862, and is a son of Joseph and Anna (Sejner) Zickes, the former a cooper by trade. Following the emigration of the family to the new world and the establishment of the family home in Cleveland in 1867, he pursued his education in the public schools, wherein he passed through consecutive grades until he reached the age of fourteen. He then made his in- itial step in the business world as an employe in the drug store of Erasme E. Abt. There he remained for about a year and a half, after which he entered the employ of Ferdinand Geutsch, with whom he continued for two years. Sub- sequently he spent three years in the service of Arthur F. May and then started in business for himself, having carefully saved his earnings until his frugal ex-

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penditure and industry had brought him capital sufficient to enable him to pur- chase a stock of drugs. He began business in 1883 on Jennings avenue and there remained for nine years, after which he removed to his present location at Forty-sixth street and Clark avenue. He also has an interest in two other drug stores in Cleveland, being the senior partner of the firm of Zickes & Kuntz, having a store on Fulton road, and of Zickes & Bartelt, on St. Clair & Seventy-ninth streets. He is also one of the directors in the Clark Avenue Bank and is treasurer of the Cech Building and Loan Association. He has ever been watchful of opportunities pointing to success and as the years have gone by has made such wise use of his time and opportunities that he has gained a most creditable place among the substantial citizens of Cleveland.

On the 6th of June, 1894, Mr. Zickes was married to Miss Mary Sprosty, a daughter of James Sprosty, a merchant of Cleveland, and they have five chil- dren : Elmer J., Paul F., Edith M., John V., and Laura H. In his political views Mr. Zickes is a democrat, believing firmly in the principles of the party as being most efficacious in the promotion of good government. A Catholic in religious faith, he attends St. Prokop's church and for four years was its treas- urer. His attention is largely given to his business and without turning aside to other interests he utilizes his time and opportunities in such a way that he is now one of the substantial merchants of the city, his life record demonstrating what can be accomplished by strength of purpose intelligently directed, for Mr. Zickes is among the men who have started out in the business world empty handed.

EUGENE M. FISHELL.

As one by one the years roll on they chronicle the death of many whose in- terests and activities have constituted them important factors in the life of Cleveland and of Cuyahoga county. On this list appears the name of Eugene M. Fishell, who, when his life record covered almost a half century, passed on to "that undiscovered country from whose bourne no traveler e'er returns." He was born September 7, 1856, in Minerva, Stark county, Ohio, and died in Cleveland, November 26, 1905. He was a son of Alexander and Sarah L. (Hobbs) Fishell, whose ancestors removed from Maryland to Ohio, making that journey when the difficulties of travel were such that only a few miles could be covered each day. It was about 1780 and through the forests in places there were to be found roads that were scarcely better than an Indian trail. It was a difficult trip to cross the mountains to the regions further west, but at length the family completed their journey and settled near Wellsville, Ohio, where the father followed farming and carpentering. At the time of the war with Mexico he enlisted for active service at the front but as the company had its full quota when he reported he did not serve. He lived at Minerva, Ohio, and at Allegheny, Pennsylvania, for seventeen years, carrying on an extensive and successful contracting business at the latter place.

Eugene M. Fishell was only four years of age when his parents removed from Ohio to Allegheny and there he lived to the time he attained his majority. For seven or eight years of that time he was a pupil in the public schools but at an early age began providing for his own support, being a youth of but twelve or fourteen years when he entered a drug store, where he continued as clerk for seven years, learning the prescription business in that time. In 1877 he came to Cleveland and was employed for three or four years in the Brush Electric Works. In 1882 he entered the undertaking business with the firm of Black & Wright and so continued until 1891. He then traveled for two years for an un- dertaker's supply house and for a short time was a traveling representative of the National Carbon Company. He next accepted a position as superintendent in the battery department and thus continued up to the time of his death, enjoy-

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ing in full measure the confidence of those whom he represented, while his busi- ness capacity and energy enabled him to contribute to the success of the business.

On the 18th of September, 1884, Mr. Fishell was married to Miss Mary Col- lister, a daughter of William and Rebecca (Wilson) Collister. Her father came to Cleveland from the Isle of Man in 1826, accompanying his parents who made a settlement at Newburg. Mr. Collister was at that time ten years of age. He afterward became a well known and prominent contractor and planing-mill owner and deserves mention upon the pages of Cuyahoga's history from the fact that he was one of the early pioneers as well as one of the successful and enter- prising business men. He retired in 1881 and for twenty-two years thereafter lived to enjoy the fruits of his former toil, his death occurring in 1903. His daughter, Mrs. Fishell, was born and reared in Cleveland and belongs to the Early Settlers' Association. By her marriage she became the mother of three sons and two daughters : William A., Harriet E., George Edward, Lawrence E. and Elizabeth M.

Mr. Fishell exercised his right of franchise in support of the men and meas- ures of the republican party, believing in the efficacy of republican principles as factors in good government. He did not seek nor desire office for himself, how- ever, preferring to hold himself free from the entangling influences of politics. He attended the Presbyterian church, was for many years a member of the Knights of Pythias Lodge, and held membership in Forest City Lodge, F. & A. M. He died November 26, 1905, at the comparatively early age of forty-nine years. Among his friends-those who came closest to him in social relations and understood most fully his nature and his interests, he was recognized as a man of upright principle, of business integrity and of loyalty in citizenship. Indeed his salient qualities were such as the world recognizes as most worthy and his family therefore cherish with reverence the honored name which he left to them.

MICHAEL A. CIARLO.

Since an Italian made the discovery of the American continent the sons of sunny Italy and their descendants have proven important factors in various walks of life in the new world. It is true that other countries have sent a larger per- centage of citizens to the United States, but as a class none have furnished more worthy representatives of substantial and progressive citizenship than has the land from which Columbus came more than four centuries ago. Michael A. Ciarlo, of Italian parentage, was born in Cincinnati, August 9, 1863. His father, Joseph J. Ciarlo, was born in Geneva, Italy, and on coming to this country set- tled in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was a man of superior education and opened a school for teaching foreign languages, but the time was not yet ripe for a profit- able institution of that character in Cincinnati and he removed to Cleveland, where he turned his attention to commercial pursuits, opening and conducting a fruit store here. Later he went to Europe, where his death occurred. His widow still survives and makes her home with her two daughters in Cleveland. In the family were five children: Angelo, deceased; Joseph J .; Michael A., of this review; Julia E .; and Miss May Ciarlo, who pursued her education in the schools of Cleveland and in Cincinnati and is widely and popularly known in the social cir- cles of the former city.

Michael A. Ciarlo pursued his education in Cincinnati and was eighteen years of age when the removal was made to Cleveland. In 1889 he established a hand laundry at No. 180 Prospect street, which he called the Public Hand Laundry. Under his careful guidance the business soon developed, its growth exceeding his expectations. In 1893, therefore, he purchased the land at the corner of Prospect and Fourteenth streets and erected the building in which the business is still carried on. It was through his efforts alone that the enterprise was built

M. A. CIARLO

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up from a small undertaking. At first a hand laundry, it was soon developed in accordance with modern ideas of business of that character, the latest improved machinery was installed and at the time of his death he was employing fifty people and was utilizing six wagons for collection and delivery. As he prospered in his undertakings he made further investment in property, purchasing the property opposite on Prospect and East Fourteenth streets and also property on Euclid avenue and in other districts. From these investments he secured a good finan- cial return and was very successful. Although he was never a robust man and in fact suffered considerably from ill health from his boyhood, he was yet very ac- tive, ambitious and energetic and deserved much credit for what he accomplished, for he started out in life empty-handed and worked his way upward until he was at the head of an extensive and profitable business.

Mr. Ciarlo belonged to the Catholic church, attending services at the cathedral. He was a most public-spirited citizen, always ready to do his part for the devel- opment of Cleveland and politically he was an earnest republican, giving stalwart allegiance to the party. In his disposition he was charitable, ever ready to aid a fellow traveler on the journey of life and his own early struggles developed in him keen sympathy for others who were attempting to make their way upward unaided. He died in Cleveland November 16, 1906, and thus closed a life of activity and of usefulness.

GEORGE J. SIEBOLD.

George J. Siebold, a member of the firm of Siebold Brothers, owning an ex- tensive meat market at No. 8601 Hough avenue and also a branch at No. 13552 Euclid avenue, belongs to that class of men who have been both the architect and builder of their own fortunes. From the time when he entered business circles he has been dependent entirely upon his own resources and ability. He was born in Oberriden, Germany, May 28, 1868. His father, George C. Siebold, on coming to America settled in Cleveland, where he spent his remaining days, his death occurring September 14, 1893. He married Martha Hinske, a native of Germany, who died in that country September 14, 1887.

George J. Siebold acquired his education in the public schools of his native town and when a youth of fourteen came alone to the new world, arriving in Cleveland on the 3d of June, 1882. He was influenced to this step by the fact that his uncle, John Hinske, resided here. He entered the employ of his uncle, who conducted a meat market at Sterling and Garden streets, now Thirtieth and Central, there remaining for about two years, after which he entered the employ of Wilson Brothers, who were engaged in the same line of business at Fifty-fifth street and Euclid avenue. In 1886 he went to Chicago, where he was employed in meat markets until December 1, 1891, when he returned to Cleveland and en- tered the employ of W. H. Seager, with whom he continued until he engaged in business for himself September 1, 1895, establishing a market at No. 532 Broad- way. After a year he went to Pittsburg and Irving streets, where he remained two years and in July, 1896, he purchased his present business and established a market at 8601 Hough avenue. On the Ist of January, 1898, he admitted his brother, H. J. Siebold, to a partnership under the present style of Siebold Broth- ers and with the growth of the business they established a branch market at No. 13552 Euclid avenue, in East Cleveland, where they are conducting a large re- tail business. George J. Siebold is also vice president of the J. H. Peck Com- pany, which he organized and of which he was president for five years.

On the 2d of September, 1890, Mr. Siebold was married in Cleveland to Miss Carrie M. Noville, a daughter of Otto Noville, formerly a business man of this city. They have seven children: George, eighteen years of age; Chester Noville, seventeen years of age; Wilbur P., aged fourteen; Ralph, twelve; Al-

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fred, ten; Carl, who died December 24, 1893, when but five months old; and Gertrude Caroline Minnie, who is a little maiden of three summers. The family residence is at No. 8800 Meridian avenue. Mr. Siebold has been a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows for the past fifteen years and also holds membership with the Retail Butchers' Association. He has built up an extensive business and well merits the success which is his.

DAVID OTIS SUMMERS.

David Otis Summers is the president and treasurer of the D. O. Summers Cleaning Company, which is the leading establishment of its kind in Cleveland and one which was founded and developed to its present proportions by the man whose name it bears and who well deserves classification with the representative business men of the city. A native of Orange township, Ashland county, Ohio, he is-a son of Daniel and Mary (Wherry) Summers. His paternal grandfather was a native of Pennsylvania and in 1817 settled in Ashland county, Ohio, spend- ing his remaining days there upon a farm.

It was upon the old homestead farm in Ashland county that Daniel Summers was born and reared. In early life he began teaching school, while subsequently he engaged in farming at Charlotte, Michigan, where he resided for many years. Finally he removed to Cleveland, where the later years of his life were passed and where he lived until called to the home beyond. His widow is now a resident of California.

David Otis Summers started upon the journey of life on the 14th of June, 1860, and attended the public schools of Charlotte, Michigan. After coming to Cleveland he completed his education by attending the night school of the Spen- cerian Business College, during which time he worked during the day, being employed by Davidson & House, who conducted a lumber and planing mill. For two years while in their employ Mr. Summers was in charge of the mill and had a force of twenty men under him, although he was scarcely of age at the time. He remained with that concern until 1882, when he became associated with Sterling, Welch & Company as a mechanic, remaining with that firm until 1887, when he established a carpet-cleaning business. At that time there were four other similar establishments in the city. Mr. Summers borrowed the necessary capital and began business in an upstair room on East Prospect street. Beside the carpet-cleaning business the concern also rented awnings for parties and wed- dings. The business enjoyed a steady growth and in 1896 the scope of the trade was extended by the establishment of a rug manufactory, which is today an im- portant part of the business. About this time Mr. Summers adopted the plan of cleaning carpets with compressed air, having the first establishment of the kind that used that process. The growth of the business has since been very rapid and its yearly income is now represented by many figures. Mr. Summers has ad- vanced a number of ideas in connection with the application of compressed air which are in general use today. Since 1902 a department of dry cleaning and lace cleaning has been added and the quarters of the growing business have been enlarged from time to time, while in 1905 the present modern building was com- pleted and occupied. The same year the business was incorporated as the D. O. Summers Cleaning Company, Mr. Summers becoming president and treasurer. He is also the vice president of the Big Lake Land & Lumber Company, an Ohio corporation, owning lands in Arkansas, and is a director of the Hough Bank & Trust Company.

Mr. Summers was married in Cleveland to Miss Josephine Kaighin, a native of New York city and a daughter of Philip Kaighin. Their children are: Bessie O., the wife of John H. Marshall, of Cleveland, by whom she has one son, John Stanley ; Otis Delos, who attended East high school and for one year was a

D. O. SUMMERS

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student in Ohio Wesleyan University, while at the present time he is manager of a department and one of the directors of the D. O. Summers Company ; Harry K., who has charge of the machinery and oversees all of the changes connected therewith for the D. O. Summers Cleaning Company, and Ruth.

Mr. Summers' Cleveland residence is on Harkness Road while his summer home is on Orange Hill at Chagrin Falls, Ohio. He is a member of the Hough Avenue Congregational church and at one time served for three years as chairman of the board of trustees. He was also a member of the building committee when the present house of worship was erected. Fraternally he is connected with Woodward Lodge, No. 508, A. F. & A. M .; Cleveland Chapter, R. A. M .; Cleve- land Council, R. & S. M .; Holyrood Commandery, K. T .; and Al Koran Temple of the Mystic Shrine. Mr. Summers is recognized as a forceful, enterprising man, public opinion being united on the fact that he is one of the representative citizens of Cleveland, his activity and alertness being important elements in his success. While he made a humble start in the business world, he is now at the head of a profitable and continually growing enterprise, the cleaning establishment being a plant which represents a large investment and is a visible proof of marked business ability and energy. His record is an indication that success is ambition's answer.

CHARLES HOLDEN PRESCOTT, JR.

Charles Holden Prescott, Jr., who is prominent in the lumber interests of Cleveland, was born of parents who traced their ancestry back to colonial times and were of the sturdy and progressive type which as history and tradi- tion demonstrate was characteristic of the successful early American. His father, Charles Holden Prescott, is also a conspicuous figure in the lumbering interests of the country. He began that business in the wilderness of Maine in his early manhood and later moved to Reynoldsville, Pennsylvania, where he continued this pursuit and married, his wife having been Miss Sarah Barnard, of Connecticut birth. In the white pine woods of the Keystone state he oper- ated for the next twenty-five years, manufacturing principally square timbers, which he rafted down the Sandy Lick to the Allegheny and Ohio rivers. The increased importance of the white pine fields of Michigan, however, finally proved attractive and in 1876 he became interested in the lumbering in that state. Two years later he removed his family to Bay City, Michigan, and began active operations near Tawas City. The business was conducted by Mr. Pres- cott at first under his own name but as his sons grew up and became identified with it the firm title was changed to C. H. Prescott & Son and later to C. H. Prescott & Sons in order to include the several members of the family. The concern has always remained a family partnership and has been an important factor in the history of the Michigan white pine industry. In connection with his manufacturing at Tawas Mr. Prescott purchased the Cameron mill at that city, which was operated until it was destroyed by fire in 1900. In 1878 Mr. Prescott, Sr., became interested in a narrow gauge railroad known as the Detroit, Bay City & Alpena Railroad. When it became financially involved it was taken over entirely by Mr. Prescott, who operated it individually for about three years as an adjunct to his lumber business. During that period he was also pleased to say that no accident occurred. Finally it was sold to Alger, Smith & Company, changed to standard gauge and became part of what is now the Detroit & Mackinac Railroad.

During the time of these various business enterprises Charles Holden Pres- cott, Jr., was as a boy diligently assisting his father in various ways. He had been born in Pennsylvania, November 3, 1864, during the stirring times of the Civil war and was the second son in the family. His early education he obtained in the place of his birth, but later attended the Bay City high school and the Uni-

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versity of Michigan. The period of his youth, however, was not wholly devoted to study for he came in contact with all the trying duties imposed upon a boy about the logging camp or mill, learning even the smallest details as well as the principal features of the business. In fact, his experience was such that later, when the opportunity came, he was able, though but a youth of twenty-one years, to enter into a most important position and to maintain and improve con- tinually that which was put under his care.

For some time the C. H. Prescott Company had viewed the Cleveland market with their usual business acumen, coming to the decision that it was an ideal and logical point for the distribution of their product. Accordingly, in 1884, they purchased the plant which George N. Fletcher & Sons of Alpena had been conducting in Cleveland under the name of the Saginaw Bay Lumber Company, retaining as agent S. H. Sheldon, who had formerly been superin- tendent. In the summer of that year Mr. Sheldon died and in the fall of 1885 C. H. Prescott, Jr., just out of college, was sent to take charge of the yard, then located at 143 Columbus street. This was the beginning of the large concern which has grown up in the last twenty-five years, its development having been the life work of Mr. Prescott, and the history of the enterprise is also his own story. Soon after coming to Cleveland he mastered all the details of the busi- ness and the company started upon its period of advancement. In May, 1887, it sold its first yard to George Norris & Company and moved to 55 Stones levee, a site formerly occupied by N. Mills & Company. In the following year the adjoining yard of T. Emerson & Company was annexed and in 1889 still another contiguous yard, that of Haywood, Burry & Company, was added. Here Mr. Prescott, Jr., continued to manage the interests of the firm with which he was connected, pushing it to a prominent position and gaining for himself an enviable reputation as a business man. The next addition was that of the yard of F. R. Gilchrist & Company on Carter street, which was conducted con- jointly with the previous yard until June, 1901, when they were consolidated and the business moved to its present location on West Third street and the Cuyahoga river. The plant today is most complete, with a dock frontage on the river of twelve hundred feet and having besides modern mills and other equipments, ample facilities for piling and storing a large stock of rough and dressed lumber. The company handles about thirty-five million feet annually so that it is a large factor in the wholesale lumber market of Cleveland and this section of the country.

Besides conducting the business of the Saginaw Bay Company Mr. Prescott, together with his brothers W. H. and O. W., is actively engaged in the manage- ment of several relative concerns. He is president of the Saginaw Bay Transit Company, which operates two steamers and two consorts with a total carrying capacity of about two million, five hundred thousand feet, while it also conducts a flourishing business at South Brooklyn, Ohio, and has the controlling interest of the Cleveland Lumber Company. The Southern Lumber Company, whole- sale dealers in yellow pine, and the Saginaw Bay Box Company are also allied institutions. Mr. Prescott has been a member of the National Wholesale Lum- ber Dealers Association since its organization, and has been a member of the executive committee. He was elected successively second and first vice presi- dent and then at the meeting in March, 1908, was made president. Also he is one of the vice presidents of the Ohio Shippers Association, is a member of the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce and the Builders Exchange, and is one of the original underwriters of the Lumber Underwriters of New York. He has held the office of president of the Cleveland Board of Lumber Dealers several times. and has been active in many useful capacities in the organization as well as in other local lumber and municipal institutions.

On the 10th of November, 1892, Mr. Prescott was united in marriage to Miss Mary Dunham, a daughter of one of Cleveland's early prosperous busi- ness men. Five children have been born unto the couple, two daughters and

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A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume II, Part 54

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