USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Cleveland > A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume II > Part 68
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Mr. Pennington was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Spear, who died in 1898. They were the parents of six children, four of whom are yet living. After the death of his first wife Mr. Pennington was married, in December, 1899, to Mrs. Minerva (Wheeler) Snelling, of Pennsylvania, the widow of John Snelling.
Mr. Pennington was a charter member and a very active worker in All Souls Universalist church on the corner of Fifty-fifth and Thackery streets. He served as one of the deacons and as a trustee in the church and was ever faithful to its best interests. He was also equally loyal in community affairs and did everything in his power to promote the growth and development of Cleveland, especially in that part of the city in which he made his home. In his fraternal relations he was a Mason, while his political allegiance was given to the democratic party. He was a man of high character and honor and his death, which occurred September 28, 1908, was the occasion of deep and widespread regret, for he had made for himself a creditable name as a business man and citizen and was known in the social circles in which he moved as a faithful and loyal friend. Perhaps no better indica- tion of his character and the place he filled in the community can be given than in the following :
A. W. PENNINGTON
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To the Board of Trustees of All Souls Universalist Church:
Your committee appointed to prepare resolutions of respect on the death of Brother A. W. Pennington beg to report as follows :
Brother Pennington, who died on the 28th day of September, 1908, was a charter member of All Souls church and a valued member of its board of trustees from its organization continuously until his death. As a member of the board he was regular in attendance at its meetings when his health permitted, though the long distance he was obliged to travel to the meeting place necessitated a consider- able sacrifice on his part in order to be present. Though a man of few words and one who did not obtrude his opinions on his associates, still he was a man of firm and well reasoned convictions. At the meetings of the board, discussions on mooted questions were usually conducted by others, but in the end Brother Penn- ington's opinion was always sought and respected, because all had long since come to know that his conclusions were the product of mature deliberation.
In church work he was always an optimist. He could see a bright future ahead and was always ready for greater achievements. In the infancy of the church, when it was without means and had but few members, he, like the other members of the board, unhesitatingly pledged his own credit for a large amount in order that the church might have a home. He could always be depended upon to do his part and a little more. Not only did he contribute to the utmost of his ability in a financial way, but was ever ready to devote his time and energy to the work of his church. It mattered not what department of the church's activities was in need of assistance, Brother Pennington could be counted upon to do the very best he could. What he undertook to do he always did and did it well. When he was appointed on a committee to make investigations and report, the trustees were sure a report would be forthcoming and it would be the result of careful attention and wholly reliable. In the church Brother Pennington was a valued member and faithful to its ministrations. He was seldom absent from the morning service and was invariably in his accustomed seat when the service opened. He attended church thus regularly because, as a member and believer in its teachings, he felt it his duty to do so, and because also he derived pleasure and benefit from being there. He enjoyed greeting his brethren after service and his hearty hand- shake will be remembered by all. He has been with us from the beginning and his departure leaves a vacancy that cannot be filled. Therefore be it
Resolved,-That in the death of Brother Pennington, All Souls church has lost a devoted member, an earnest worker in its various activities and one of its princi- pal supports. The board of trustees has lost a valued associate, whose faithful attendance at the meetings was an inspiration and a priceless example, whose words of counsel were golden and whose greatest joy was found in his labor for his church. That this community has lost a man of sterling character and high ability, who exemplified in his business and his daily walk all those qualities that are essential to an active, honorable and Christian life, and,
Resolved,-That this memorial be spread upon the records of the church and a copy thereof transmitted to the family of our late brother.
W. E. COLLINS, H. H. HENRY, Committee.
HARLEN ELMER SHIMMIN.
Among the architects whose ability contributes to the improvement and adorn- ment of Cleveland is numbered Harlen Elmer Shimmin, a native son of the city, who was born March 30, 1873. His paternal grandfather, John Shimmin, was a native of the Isle of Man, and became one of the early settlers of Warrensville, Ohio, where he held large property interests. His son, Henry Shimmin, was born in Warrensville, a suburb of Cleveland, and was one of the early representatives
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of transportation interests in this city. He owned and operated the steam road from Cleveland to Colmer, about ten miles in length, and became a prosperous and well known man. His death occurred in 1878. His widow, who bore the maiden name of Dora Harper, was born in Ohio and is still living. She is the daughter of Jacob Harper, one of the pioneer residents of Cleveland, who located on Lake street. He, too, was a native of Ohio and was a prominent and respected business man who during the period of the Civil war conducted a hotel.
Harlen E. Shimmin was born on Lake street in this city and pursued his educa- tion in the public schools and in a business college. He later pursued a course in engineering under private tutors and on completing his studies entered the office of Charles W. Hopkinson, an architect. After completing the term of his ap- prenticeship he was rapidly promoted and took charge of the office, being associated with Mr. Hopkinson for thirteen years. In 1904 he began the active practice of his profession for himself and his success from the beginning was immediate and rapid. He has been largely engaged in making the plans for fine residences and designed the palatial home of Lyman Lawrence, of Paul Lawrence, D. E. Tare, E. G. Fisher, E. E. Allyne, F. G. Comer, A. G. McKee and George Nicholson. These are among the notable examples of fine architecture in this city, and Mr. Shimmin has been the recipient of many congratulatory letters and expressions concerning their beauty of design and originality. He possesses a natural artistic taste and mechanical turn of mind, qualities which are evidenced in the success which has constituted the logical sequence of his efforts. He is a member of the Colonial Club, the Cleveland Athletic Club and is a thirty-second degree Mason of the Scottish Rite and a member of Al Koran Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He is fond of motoring and of fishing and he spends his leisure hours in the enjoyment of those sports, but gives his time and attention primarily to his business along lines that have constituted the basis of his continuous promotion.
ARTHUR K. LIEBICH.
While of foreign birth, Arthur K. Liebich spent the greater part of his life in Cleveland and was identified in many ways with its interests, never failing to give hearty cooperation to any project in which the welfare of the city was involved. He was born in the principality of Gera, near Saxony, Germany, September 10, 1854. His parents were Moritz E. and Alline (Gerlach) Liebich, of Gera. The father was an artist of renown in his native country and a wealthy business man. He attended court there and bore a title, but during the Civil war in America he lost his fortune. In the year 1859 he crossed the Atlantic to America and for a brief time lived in Bucyrus, Ohio, but when the family came the following year he removed to Cleveland. He was for many years a portrait painter here for Mr. North and in 1879 he established a photograph gallery in connection with his son, Arthur K. and was widely known in Cleveland as a prominent representative of art life.
Arthur K. Liebich was only about six years of age when the mother brought her children to the new world and here joined the husband and father. He was sent as a pupil to the public schools, wherein he continued his education for a num- ber of years, and after leaving school he spent two or three years in Illinois and in Columbus, Ohio. In 1879, when twenty-five years of age, he joined his father in the establishment of a photograph gallery. He had inherited his father's artistic ability and became one of the leading photographers of the city, having a well equipped and tastefully appointed studio, from which was turned out some of the finest work ever done in this city. He kept abreast at all times with the improvements made in the process of modern photography and was a leader, not a follower, in that line.
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On the 16th of May, 1881, Mr. Liebich was married to Miss Alice A. Lacy, a daughter of George B. and Lucy A. (Foote) Lacy. The father came from Con- necticut to the Western Reserve with his parents at an early period in the coloniza- tion and development of Ohio and was one of the pioneers here. He. made his home at Aurora, Portage county, where he carried on the occupation of farming.
In his political views Mr. Liebich was an earnest republican, giving to the party his stalwart support from the time when age conferred upon him the right of franchise. At local elections, however, where no issue was involved, he cast an independent ballot. Fraternally he was associated with Concordia Lodge, F. & A. M .; Webb Chapter, R. A. M .; Cleveland Council, R. & S. M .; Holyrood Com- mandery, K. T., and reached the thirty-second degree. He was also a member of Criterion Lodge, K. P., and he had a creditable military record. For two years he was a commissioned officer in the Ohio National Guard, later was appointed regimental quartermaster and afterward became major of the Fifth Regiment. When the organization offered its services during the Spanish-American war Major Liebich was one of the hardest workers in placing the command on a war footing. He was alive at all times to the vital questions of the day, whether bear- ing upon the political or military history, the business development or the munici- pal affairs of Cleveland, and stood at all times for progress, which might be termed the watchword of his career. He died November 7, 1905, at the compara- tively early age of fifty-one years, and Cleveland lost from her ranks one whom she had come to regard as a worthy and valued citizen.
WILLIAM R. CREER.
William R. Creer, who in 1893 became a resident of Cleveland, was in 1896 active in the organization of the business which is now successfully conducted under the name of the Cleveland Savings & Loan Company, of which he is the secretary. He was born on the Isle of Man, January 17, 1861. His father, Robert Creer, also a native of that island, was born April 21, 1834, and was a son of Rob- ert and Margaret Creer. Robert Creer, Jr., wedded Eleanor Craine, a daughter of Philip and Catherine Craine and a native of the Isle of Man, born October 10, 1834. In the year 1867 Robert Creer and his family came to the United States, settling first in New Jersey but subsequently removing to Vermont, where he became connected with mining interests. He died November 21, 1878, and is still survived by his wife, who now resides in Proctor, Vermont.
William R. Creer was a lad of seven years at the time the family crossed the Atlantic to the new world. He pursued his education in the public schools to the age of eleven and then started out to earn his own living, working first as engine boy in the iron mines. A year later he became office boy with the Bethle- hem Iron Company, with which he remained until fifteen years of age, when he accepted a clerkship in a general store. Each change was a promotion and bringing into play his different native faculties, increased his strength and devel- oped his efficiency in business lines. In 1877 he went with his parents to Ely, Vermont, where he accepted a position with the Copper Mining Company in con- nection with the office and general store. He was first employed as clerk, later became bookkeeper and was soon afterward promoted to the position of secre- tary to the general mangaer. This connection continued until 1883, when he withdrew from that position to become cashier of the Lawyers Cooperative Pub- lishing Company, of Rochester, New York. He remained with that company for three years and next engaged in merchandising on his own account in Rhode Isl- and for six years. At the end of that period he became associated with the Ver- mont Marble Company and in 1893 came to Cleveland as cashier and credit man for the local branch of the company. He remained in that connection until April, 1896, when he organized the Cleveland Savings & Loan Company and became its
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first secretary and treasurer, acting in that capacity to the present time. Under his capable control and as the result of his keen business discernment, ready sa- gacity and recognition of opportunities, he has built up a very successful financial enterprise-one of the largest in its line in the city. He is also president of the Land Title Abstract Company and is largely interested in real estate. He is now the secretary and treasurer of the West Madison Realty Company, which he organized in 1905, and is a director of the Federal Union Insurance Company of Chicago.
Mr. Creer is also associated with organizations for the benefit and promotion of business interests and is now serving on the executive council of the American Bankers Association. He is a member of the Chamber of Commerce, the poten- tiality of which is widely recognized in connection with the substantial develop- ment of Cleveland. He also belongs to the Cleveland Advertising Club Com- pany, of which he is treasurer and one of the directors, and in more strictly social lines he is connected with the Hermit Club. His political endorsement is not given uniformly to any party, for he is rather independent in his views concerning questions of municipal or general government. From 1894 to 1902 he was presi- dent of the Mona's Relief Society of Cleveland.
On the 6th of September, 1879, Mr. Creer was married to Miss Anna Frances Burnham, a daughter of Carlton O. and Theresa L. (Blodgett) Burnham, of West Fairlee, Vermont. Mrs. Creer is a representative of a very old New Eng- land family, belonging to the seventh generation in America. Her ancestors in both the Blodgett and Burnham lines took active part in the Revolutionary war. Mr. and Mrs. Creer have become the parents of two children. Burnham Robert, who was educated in the public schools, the Central high school, the Spencerian Business College and Baldwin University, is now with the Nickel Plate Railroad Company. He married Margaret Phillips. William Rhea, a graduate of the East high school and of the Case School of Applied Science of the class of 1908, is now a civil engineer with the Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company. He mar- ried Ethel Marie Miller. Mr. and Mrs. William R. Creer reside at No. 7102 Linwood avenue.
The history of Mr. Creer is that of a man who finds genuine delight in busi- ness, not only because of what he can attain in a financial way but also for the genuine pleasure which he derives in the solution of an intricate or involved busi- ness problem. Close application and energy, however, are bringing him sub- stantial success, making him well known as a representative of financial circles in this city.
LOUIS SEELBACH.
Louis Seelbach, who was well known to the leading German-American citizens of Cleveland, was a native of this city, where his father, Charles Seelbach, settled on coming from Germany to the new world about 1848. Here the father engaged in coopering, which trade he had learned in the old country. He continued a resi- dent of Cleveland throughout his remaining days and was greatly esteemed by all who knew him.
Louis Seelbach acquired his education in the Cleveland schools and when a young man began learning the confectioner's trade but did not find that pursuit congenial and afterwards tried several other lines of business before he entered into connection with brewing interests. At length he accepted the position of col- lector with the Leisey Brewing Company and worked his way upward with that concern until he was regarded as a most indispensable factor in the successful man- agement of their interests, serving in different responsible capacities until his death.
Mr. Seelbach was married in Cleveland, February 22, 1887, to Miss Katy Schmidt, a daughter of Paul Schmidt, who came to this city from Germany in 1848.
LOUIS SEELBACH
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Here he engaged in business as a wholesale wine merchant. He bought a tract of land on Noble road and set out a vineyard there and in this beautiful home, stand- ing on a fine bluff overlooking the city, his daughter, Mrs. Seelbach, still resides. His wife bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Goetz. Mr. Schmidt was a very active and enterprising man, whose capable direction of his business affairs won him substantial success. He died October 5, 1903, and the community mourned the loss of one of its representative German-American citizens. In his family were five children, of whom four are yet living : Herman Schmidt, Mrs. F. B. Switzer, Mrs. F. P. Mueller and Mrs. Seelbach. The mother passed away in March, 1902.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Seelbach were born four children: Walter, Elinor, Kurt and Katherine, all yet at home.
Mr. Seelbach was a very public-spirited man and his interest in matters of gen- eral improvement was manifested in many tangible ways. He was a member of the Masonic fraternity, the Knights of Pythias and the Elks and enjoyed the high- est esteem, friendship and good will of his brethren of those fraternities. More- over he was in sympathy with their benevolent purposes, for he was a charitable man with a heart that responded readily to any tale of sorrow and distress, while his hand was quick to relieve all want. Socially he was connected with the Locust Point Shooting Club and with several German societies, while politically his al- legiance was given to the democracy. He died October 5, 1904, and those to whom he was joined by the warm ties of friendship and kindly regard sincerely and deeply mourned his loss.
VACLAV SNAJDR.
Vaclav Snajdr, who has acted as president of the Pilsener Brewing Company of Cleveland since 1903, is also the proprietor of the Dennice Novoveku or Morn- ing Star, a weekly newspaper published at No. 4130 Broadway, which he estab- lished in October, 1877. His birth occurred in the northeastern part of Bohemia on the 25th of September, 1847, his parents being John and Appolonia Snajdr. The father, who was born in Bohemia on the 24th of June, 1817, was actively identified with business interests as a shoe manufacturer until the time of his re- tirement in 1880. He passed away in the year 1883.
Vaclav Snajdr obtained his education in the land of his nativity and when fourteen years of age left the high school to enter college at Neuhaus, Bohemia, where he continued his studies until sixteen years of age. Subsequently he spent nearly five years in Prague, Bohemia, and then went to Berlin, Germany, as editor of the Blanik, a Bohemian paper published by J. V. Fric, who also pub- lished a French and German paper. After remaining in Berlin for a year Mr. Snajdr was sent to America by Mr. Fric to collect some money for his newspapers, and on landing in this country the former made his way from New York to Ra- cine, Wisconsin, accomplishing his mission in a very short time. He did not re- turn to Germany, however, but remained in Racine for three years, there be- coming the editor of a Bohemian paper called Slavie, one of the oldest of its kind in America. Afterward he took up his abode in Omaha, Nebraska, where for one year he edited a Bohemian paper called the Pokrok Zapadu, or Progress of the West, which was owned by Edward Rosewater. His next removal brought him to Cleveland, Ohio, and here he was employed on the staff of a Bohemian paper called The Progress, acting in an editorial capacity for a period of three years. In October, 1877, he established the Dennice Novoveku, opening a news- paper office at the corner of Croton avenue and Thirty-fourth street, where he pub- lished the paper for six months. At the end of that time he removed to Cham- plain avenue, where he remained for ten years and then came to his present lo- cation at No. 4130 Broadway. The paper has a large subscription list as well as extensive advertising patronage and Mr. Snajdr has been a prominent representa-
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tive of journalistic interests in this city for almost a third of a century. He is also a well known and influential factor in business circles, having since 1903 acted as the president of the Pilsener Brewing Company.
In December, 1873, in Cleveland, Mr. Snajdr was united in marriage to Miss Cilie Korizek, of Racine, Wisconsin. Her father, Frank Korizek, was the founder of the Slavie, the first Bohemian paper published in the United States. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Snajdr have been born six children : Slavie, who is at home and has displayed considerable talent in painting ; Mila, who is also still under the parental roof; Robert G., twenty-one years of age, who is attending the University of Michigan; Cilie, a young lady likewise at home and greatly interested in music ; Lada, who is fourteen years old and is a pupil in the Technical high school ; and Charles, a lad of ten, who attends the public schools. The family residence is at No. 7505 Lawnview avenue.
In his political views Mr. Snajdr is a stalwart advocate of the democracy and has capably served as a member of the school board. He has been president of the Grand lodge Cesko Slovenske Podpurne Spolky and also belongs to the Knights of Pythias, the Ancient Order of Foresters, the Sanctuary Zaboj and the Bohemian Turners, being a charter member of the last named. His well spent life, characterized by all that is honorable in business and straightforward in his relations with his fellowmen, has brought him the uniform respect of all with whom he has come in contact.
WILLIAM J. TOWNSEND.
William J. Townsend, secretary and treasurer of the Robinson Manufactur- ing Company, is one of the native sons of Cleveland, who more than a half cen- tury ago first opened his eyes to the light of day here. His birth occurred March 29, 1857, and his parents were D. J. and Mary (Mason) Townsend. His father was of English birth and was brought to the United States when four years of age by his father, John Townsend, who made his way into the interior of the country and secured a farm of a hundred acres bordering what is now Union street in Cleveland. From pioneer times, therefore, the family has been closely asso- ciated with the development and progress of the city. During its pioneer epoch the grandfather and father took an active part in promoting the material wel- fare of Cleveland as progressive civilization converted the once wild western wil- derness into a rich and populous district. D. J. Townsend was here reared and after arriving at years of maturity wedded Mary Mason, who was born on Ninth street in Cleveland, about where the Gillsy Hotel now stands. Her father was a carpenter and contractor and his handiwork was seen in most of the old churches of Cleveland.
W. J. Townsend pursued his early education in the public schools and after- ward attended the Spencerian Business College. His education completed, at the age of twenty years he secured employment in the Union Iron Works, where he remained for three years. Subsequently he entered the Union Rolling Mills, where he has been employed for the past twenty-eight years. He is recognized as one of its most trusted employes. He is a director in the Provident Building & Loan Company and is also interested as a stockholder in several manufacturing concerns. .
On the 5th of November, 1885, Mr. Townsend was married to Miss Jeanie Dean, a daughter of Edward L. Dean, a carriage manufacturer and a son of David Dean, a pioneer carriage maker of Cleveland. They have two children: Olive, nineteen years of age, who is a graduate of the Glenville high school; and Helen, sixteen years of age, who is attending the Glenville high school.
Fraternally Mr. Townsend is a Mason, prominent in the order. He has served as high priest of Baker Chapter, No. 139, R. A. M., has attained the thirty-second
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