A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume II, Part 95

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

USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Cleveland > A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume II > Part 95

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

After pursuing a course in the public schools F. S. Harmon became a stu- dent in the Spencerian College, of Cleveland, from which he was graduated in 1875. A young man of eighteen, he then turned his attention to general mer- chandising in Burton, Ohio, and was a leading representative of its commer- cial interests from 1877 until 1889. He then engaged with The Weideman Company as traveling salesman, making his home from that time until 1900 in Akron, Ohio, after which he removed to Cleveland and here took charge of one of the departments of the company. He is also one of the stockholders in the business, with which his previous experience as traveling salesman made him familiar, so that he is now well qualified for the duties that devolve upon him.

Mr. Harmon was married in October, 1884, to Miss Lucy Noble, of Akron, Ohio, and they have two daughters: Pauline, who is now a student in Lake Erie College; and Dorothy, who is attending the public schools. Mrs. Harmon

941

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

holds membership in the local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revo- lution. Mr. Harmon is prominent in various local connections. He is a mem- ber of the Chamber of Commerce, and of the Colonial Club, of which he was formerly a director, for two years serving as treasurer. He is a member of the auxiliary board of the Guardian Savings & Trust Company. He is likewise a director of the Masonic Temple association and is very prominent in Masonic circles, holding membership in Emanuel Lodge, No. 605, F. & A. M .; Washing- ton Chapter, No. 83, R. A. M .; Coeur de Lion Commandery, No. 64, K. T .; Eliadah Lodge of Perfection; Ariel Council, Princes of Jerusalem; Bahurim Chapter, Rose Croix; and Lake Erie Consistory, S. P. R. S. He is also an active member of The Supreme Council, S. G. I. G. N. M. J., U. S. A., thirty- third and last degree. He is likewise a member of the Royal Order of Scotland, is past grand master of Ohio grand lodge, and is the present eminent com- mander of Coeur de Lion Commandery of Cleveland. He is likewise a member of the committee of constitution and laws of the Supreme Council of the Scottish Rite. His activity in Masonry has made him widely known throughout the state and he is very prominent and popular among his brethren of the craft.

WILLIAM JAMIESON ABBOTT, M. D.

Dr. William Jamieson Abbott, whose name is on the roll of successful physi- cians of Cleveland, was born in Brockville, Ontario, Canada, August 11, 1874, and was the second in order of birth in a family of three children, whose par- ents were Albert and Elizabeth B. (Jamieson) Abbott, who are still residents of Canada, where the father has made farming his life work. Their elder son, Albert H. Abbott, is now associate professor of philosophy at the Uni- versity of Toronto, while the daughter, Margaret S., is at home.

Dr. Abbott was a public-school student in Brockville until he had completed the high-school course with the class of 1892. He afterward entered the Uni- versity of Toronto, pursued a classical course and was graduated with the Bach- elor of Arts degree in 1897. Determining upon a professional career he next entered the medical department of the University of Toronto, from which he was graduated with the M. B. degree in 1901. Later he went abroad and en- tered the Royal London Ophthalmic Hospital, otherwise known as "Moorfields" in London, England. He spent five months there and received his certificate,

after which he devoted three months to study in Middlesex Hospital, receiv- ing practical training under the direction of Dr. Stephen Paget, the noted ear specialist and a son of Sir James Paget. During that period Dr. Abbott gave his attention to the study of diseases of the ear and on his return to the new world he accepted a position on the staff of the medical department of Cornell University, as demonstrator of anatomy, which chair he held until April, 1903. He then came to Cleveland and accepted the position of interne on the gynecologi- cal staff of the Lakeside Hospital and acted in that capacity until October 1, 1904. He next entered upon private practice in the treatment of diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat and on the Ist of October, 1904, was appointed assistant surgeon in diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat, at the Lakeside Hospital Dispensary, which position he still holds. While he was a student in the liter- ary department of the University of Toronto, he was obliged to discontinue his studies for one year on account of illness, during which time he was attended by Dr. James D. Thorburn, nose, throat and ear specialist, who became inter- ested in him and attracted his attention to this special field of medical prac- tice and was thus in a measure responsible for Dr. Abbott's adopting it as a profession. He was associated with Dr. Thorburn more or less in his practice from that time until the completion of his medical course and he feels that he owes much to Dr. Thorburn's interest in him. His work and his investigations

942

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

have been careful and have made for him an enviable place in the medical profession of Cleveland.

On the IIth of April, 1906, Dr. Abbott was married to Miss Mary Crozier, a native of Ayr, Ontario, Canada, a daughter of John and Janet ( Wells) Crozier, who reside at Gault, Ontario. Dr. and Mrs. Abbott have a daughter, Jane Eliza- beth, born August 3, 1909.

They reside at No. 1729 East Ninetieth street and are members of the Cal- vary Presbyterian church. Dr. Abbott belongs to the Nu Sigma Nu and to several professional societies, including the Cleveland Academy of Medicine, the Cleveland Medical Library Association and the Ohio State Medical So- ciety. He is medical examiner for the Prudential Life Insurance Company and the Protected Home Circle and in addition thereto has an extensive and growing private practice, to which his ability well entitles him. Moreover he is conscientious in the performance of all his professional duties and his success is the direct outcome of his energy and thorough equipment.

ALVA J. SMITH.

While fate at times seems to favor certain individuals careful analysis of the life record and of the conditions and environment which bear upon it will show that in almost every instance progress resulted from certain inherent qual- ities of strength in the individual, from his adaptibility, his concentration and determined purpose. These characteristics advanced Alva J. Smith from a sub- ordinate position in the business world to that of general passenger and ticket agent of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad Company.

The numerous representatives of the name in America would almost seem to preclude the possibility of determining the ancestral line of any one who bears the name of Smith, yet authentic records give the fact that Alva J. Smith was descended from Lieutenant Samuel Smith, who emigrated from England in the ship Elizabeth, of Ipswich, on the 30th of April, 1634. He is supposed to have died in 1680. His son, Philip Smith, became one of the leading men of his com- munity and won the title of lieutenant, probably from service in the Indian wars of New England. He represented his townspeople in some of their deliberative bodies and held the office of deacon in his church. He was murdered in accor- dance with the decree of Cotton Mather, about 1685, his death being one of the deplorable results of the belief in witchcraft which was then extant. His wife, Rebecca, was a daughter of Nathaniel Foote.

Jonathan Smith, of the next generation, a son of Philip Smith, married Abi- gail, a daughter of Joseph Kellogg. He died in Whately, Massachusetts, in 1734. His son, Benjamin, married Sarah Field and the children of Benjamin Smith were : Philip, who wedded Eliza Graves ; Rev. Paul Smith, who married Elizabeth Smith ; Silas, who married Lavina Houghton; Elisha, who married and left New England for the west; Jonathan, who married Elizabeth Chauncey; and Gad, who married Irene Waite.

Roswell Smith, also a son of Benjamin Smith, wedded Mary Craft and they were the parents of six sons: Elijah, who married Miriam Morton; Isaac, who wedded Roxa Morton; Bezalul, who married Lavina Munson; Asa, who was joined in wedlock to Judith Graves; Adna, who married Keziah Humes; and Rufus.

The last named was the grandfather of Alva J. Smith. He married Anna Munson and their son, Ashley Smith, was the father of Alva J. Smith. His birth occurred in Massachusetts in 1796 and on the 25th of November, 1819, he married Miriam Russel, a daughter of Elihu and Miriam (Sanderson) Russell and a granddaughter of Thomas Sanderson. In that line the ancestry is traced back to Joseph Sanderson, who came from Norfolk county, England, in 1637 and

----- ---- ----

---------

A. J. SMITH

945

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

was master of the mint at Boston in 1652. He it was who made the celebrated pine tree shillings which are now very rare, only a few of the coins being still in ex- istence. Joseph Sanderson was born August 30, 1714, and died March 20, 1772. Through him the line of descent is traced down. Thomas Sanderson, his son, was born in 1746 and was the father of Miriam Sanderson, who became the wife of Elihu Russell. The children of that marriage were: Polixena, Lucy, Betsy, Delia, Miriam, Levi, Elihu, William S., Austin, Wellington, Emery, Esteven, Sumner, Ashley, and Mary.

Ashley Smith, the father of Alva J. Smith, became a millwright and during the second war with England served as a Federal soldier from Massachusetts. In 1822 he removed westward to Churchville, Monroe county, New York, where he died in 1854 at the age of fifty-eight years, having for three years survived his wife, who died at the age of fifty-one years. Their children were: Francis, who died in 1887 at the age of sixty-eight years; Charles Augustus, a farmer who died at Merrill Wisconsin, in 1894, at the age of seventy-two years ; Levi L., living at Maple Rapids, Michigan; Fidelia M., now the wife of Ben T. Rich- mond, of Grand Rapids, Michigan; Austin R., who died in Cleveland in 1881, at the age of forty-seven years, after serving for some time as ticket agent at the Union station ; George W., a farmer near Grand Rapids, Michigan ; and Alva J., of this review.

The last named was born at Churchville, New York, September 30, 1840, and pursued his education in the schools there until thirteen years of age, when he was left homeless and penniless by the death of his father and went to Wiscon- sin, where he resided on a farm with his brother for a time. The following year, however, he returned to New York and clerked in a brother's store in Church- ville until the spring of 1858, when he became a salesman in a store at Albion, New York, where he remained until hostilities between the north and the south were inaugurated and the country was precipitated into civil war. Mr. Smith had watched with growing interest the unrest and dissatisfaction in the south, noted the threatening attitude of the southern states and had resolved that if an attack was made upon the Federal government he would stand loyally in its de- fense. Accordingly on the 13th of April, 1861, the day following that on which the first gun was fired on Fort Sumter, he joined a company of young men who offered their services as Union soldiers. This company was disbanded, however, after a short period of drill but in the following spring, at Rochester, New York, Mr. Smith enlisted in the Fourth New York Artillery, being ordered to report at Washington, where the regiment was stationed during the summer. It was on the 29th of July, 1862, that he enlisted in Company C as a private, was pro- moted corporal September 1, 1862, and was in the service in the defense of Wash- ington until 1863 with Abercrombie's Division of the Twenty-second Corps. He was commissioned second lieutenant in the Eleventh New York Volunteer Ar- tillery, June 21, 1863, and was engaged in the organization of a regiment at Roch- ester until the 16th of October of the same year, when he was transferred to the Fourth New York Volunteer Artillery and was in defense of the capital until April, 1864, in De Russey's Division of the Twenty-second Corps. He participated in the battle of the Wilderness and in the engagements at Corbin's Bridge, Spottsylvania, Nye River, Poe River, North Anna, Tolopotomy, Cold Harbor, the movement before Petersburg, the battle of Weldon Railroad, Deep Bottoms, the Mine Explosion, the battle of Strawberry Plains, White Oak Swamp, Poplar Springs Church and Boydton Road. In the meantime, while engaged in the battle of Deep Bottoms, he had been promoted first lieutenant, July 27, 1864, and on the 5th of November following was commissioned captain. Following the engagement at Hatcher's Run he was assigned to duty as aid on the staff of the Fourth Brigade, First Division of the Second Corps, on the 25th of Decem- ber, 1864, and was relieved in February, 1865, at Dabney's Mills. Later he was acting brigade inspector of the Fourth Brigade, First Division, Second Corps, from February until April, 1865. He was present at the engagement at Preble's

946

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

Farm, March 25, 1865, at Hatcher's Run on the 29th of March, 1865; at Boyd- ton Road during the two succeeding days; at White Oak Road on the 31st of March; at Sutherland Station, April 2d; and at the fall of Petersburg, April 3d. He afterward took part in the different engagements which marked the closing campaign of the war. He was present at Appomattox Courthouse when the surrender of Lee virtually put an end to all strife. He then participated in the grand review at Washington on the 23d of May, 1865, and was acting ordnance officer of the First Division of the Second Corps from June 23 until June 26. He was mustered out of service September 26, 1865, and brevetted major of the United States Volunteers on the 13th of March for gallant and meritorious con- duct during the war. He retained his interest in military affairs throughout his entire life and on the 4th of August, 1877, was appointed aid-de-camp on the staff of Governor Thomas L. Young with the rank of colonel, a title by which he was familiarly known.

Colonel Smith arrived in Ohio in 1866 and in the summer of that year entered upon his successful railroad career in the general ticket office of the Bee line at Cleveland. Promotions followed rapidly in recognition of his ability. He was made chief clerk of the office the following year and so continued until August, 1874, when the office of assistant general ticket agent was created for him in recognition of his faithful and efficient service. Five years later he was tendered and accepted the position of general passenger agent and upon the consolidation of the passenger departments of the Cleveland, Columbus & Cincinnati Railroad, in January, 1881, his jurisdiction was extended over that line. He was appointed general passenger agent of the Dayton & Union Railroad, January 2, 1882, and when the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton was made a part of the Bee line, Colonel Smith was designated as the general passenger agent of that line also, filling the office from December 31, 1881, until May, 1882, when the departments were again made separate. On the Ist of March, 1887, Colonel Smith severed his long con- nection with the Bee line and became chief of the passenger and ticket department of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad Company. In the intervening years he became recognized as one of the leading representatives of railway in- terests in the central states, his promotions following as the logical sequence of his ability, executive force, keen discrimination and unfaltering loyalty to the interests entrusted to his care. He was a leading member of the Association of General Passenger & Ticket Agents and served for twenty-seven consecutive years as its secretary, beginning in 1879 and being reelected annually until his death in July, 1906. Had he lived until the following October he would have been made president of the organization he had served so faithfully. Throughout his connection with railroad interests he made close study of the demands of the traveling public and of the conditions existing in railway circles, and promoted the equipment of the lines over which he had control until they were equal to any and superior to many.

On the 7th of September, 1865, Colonel Smith was married in Warsaw, New York, to Miss Harriet L. Cornwell, a daughter of Zelotes Cornwell. Mrs. Smith is a descendant of Susanna Robinson, who came to America in the Mayflower. One of her grandchildren by the name of Chapman became Mrs. Cornwell, the mother of Zelotes Cornwell. The last named was born in Massachusetts, devoted his life to agricultural pursuits, and died in 1866 at the age of sixty-eight years, while his wife passed away in 1857 at the age of fifty-two years. Their children were: Darius; William; Anna Elizabeth, now the wife of John W. Richmond; George, who died in 1888 at the age of fifty-two years ; Zelotes ; Charles, who died in 1891 at the age of fifty years; Hiram; and Harriet Louisa.

The marriage of Colonel and Mrs. Smith was blessed with three children, Amy E., Miriam C., and Alva C., of Cleveland. The first named was formerly an art teacher in Oberlin College and is now the wife of W. F. Pelham, of Il- linois.

---

947

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

Colonel Smith was a valued member of the Loyal Legion and of the Grand Army of the Republic. He also belonged to Woodward Lodge, A. F. & A. M., of Cleveland, was a trustee of the Euclid Avenue Congregational church, and gave his political allegiance to the republican party. In municipal affairs he was deeply and helpfully interested and when he passed away on the 26th of July, 1906, Cleve- land felt that she had lost one of her valued citizens. In his business career he had manifested much of the spirit of generalship in that he had marshaled all of the forces at his command for winning the victory which he set out to achieve.

HENRY B. VOTTELER.

Henry B. Votteler as president of the Votteler & Hettche Pipe Organ Com- pany is at the head of one of the large industrial concerns of Cleveland that has enjoyed remarkable development during the past few years. To the effort of Mr. Votteler the business largely owes its present extensive proportions. He was born in Cleveland, June 23, 1849, a son of Gottlieb Votteler, a native of Reutlingen, Wittenburg, Germany. The father was engaged in the piano busi- ness in his native land and after coming to the United States turned his at- tention to the manufacture of pipe organs, in 1855, establishing the first fac- tory of this kind in Cleveland and becoming, moreover, one of the pioneers in this line of business in the country. He continued actively engaged in the build- ing of pipe organs until his death, which occurred May 12, 1894. He married Margaret Schwartz, who was born in Germany and sailed for New York when about twenty years of age. Her death occurred in 1865, at Tiffin, Ohio, where the family lived for a few years. Adolph Votteler, a brother of Henry B. Vot- teler, is now a resident of Waukesha, Wisconsin. An uncle, Lieutenant Henry J. Votteler, enlisted in 1861 in the Union army, serving for three years in the Thirty-seventh Ohio Regiment, which was composed of German citizens of Cleveland.

Henry B. Votteler was educated in the Cleveland schools and learned the trade of cabinet making with a Mr. Koepler. He afterward spent a few years in New York city, where he learned the business of pipe-organ building in prin- ciple and detail. Returning to Cleveland he was associated with his father 1111til the latter's death, after which he incorporated the business under the style of the Votteler & Hettche Pipe Organ Company. The enterprise has continu- ally expanded, owing to the progressive methods of Mr. Votteler, until the business is one of the foremost among the productive industries of Cleveland. The company manufacture church organs exclusively and their output is shipped to all parts of the country. The magnificent organ of the E:iclid Avenue Metho- dist church was built by them and they have also built many other pipe organs used in the city churches.

On the 14th of May, 1876, Mr. Votteler was married to Miss Catherine Kolb, a native of New Jersey. She has two brothers: Charles F. Kolb, of Cleveland; and Augustus C. Kolb, of Hillsboro, Wisconsin. The former has served for fifteen years as United States gauger in the internal revenue de- partment of the eighteenth district of Ohio. Mr. and Mrs. Votteler have one son, George H., who was born July 5, 1883, and is a civil engineer of Cleveland. They also lost two daughters: Margaret, who was born December 14, 1877, and died January 12, 1883; and Louise, who was born January 15, 1879, and died January 18, 1883. They were laid to rest in the Monroe Street cemetery. Mr. Votteler is a member of Concordia Lodge, No. 345, F. & A. M., and of Hillman Chapter, R. A. M. He is also connected with the Socialer Turn Verein and for the past twenty-five or thirty years has been director of the Socialer Turner Maennerchor, a section of that society, the chorus of which takes part in various musical events. He is an active democrat and for four years was first deputy

948

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

in the internal revenue department of this city uinder President Cleveland. He is still an active worker in the party and gives to its candidates his hearty sup- port. He ranks with the progressive business men of the city and his love of music prompts him to take great pride in building none but the very highest class of pipe organs. From the establishment of the business the house has been characterized not only for its reliable methods but for the perfection of its product, and, while entering upon a business already established, Mr. Votteler has greatly enlarged it, its expanding interest making him one of the prominent representatives of industrial life in Cleveland.

WILLIAM NAHUM GATES.

William Nahum Gates is a man who has taken advantage of the remarkable growth and development of the advertising business and is now one of the old- est newspaper and magazine advertising agents in the country. He was born in Elyria, Ohio, October 17, 1857. His family is an old and honored one in the east, his ancestor having come from England here in 1634. Members of the family have been closely associated with the history of the country ever since. They have belonged to the army, the navy, all the professions and many lines of business, and have always been men of honor, who were interested in promot- ing the welfare of their several communities.

Nahum Ball Gates, the father of our subject, was born September 28, 1812, in St. Albans. Vermont, but came to the Western Reserve in 1834 and settled in Cleveland. A year later he removed to what is now Lorain, where he lived until elected sheriff of Lorain county in 1838, and then located in Elyria, where he resided until his death December 9, 1890. For eighteen years he was mayor of Elyria ; was treasurer of the county for one term; president of the board of education for twenty-five years; and filled many of the lesser offices, being a very prominent man and stanch republican. In 1841, while living in Elyria, he mar- ried Sarah Montieth, who was born in Clinton, New York, May 9, 1823, a daugh- ter of Rev. John Montieth, first president of Ann Arbor University and professor of ancient languages at Hamilton College, Clinton, New York.

William N. Gates was educated in the public schools of Elyria and in Ober- lin College, where he attended two years. Upon leaving school he began busi- ness as a bookkeeper with Russell & Company, of Massillon, Ohio, manufac- turers of agricultural implements, remaining with them for two and one-half years. In 1880 he came to Cleveland and became associated with the advertising agency of N. Harrison. When this firm failed in 1881, Mr. Gates organized a new company under the title of W. N. Gates & Company and has continued in the business ever since. His business has been one of steady growth and has spread over the entire country, with branches in New York and Chicago. He carries on general advertising in magazines and newspapers, and has been the prime factor in the company since its organization. In addition to his connection with this company, Mr. Gates is a director of the Cleveland Trust Company, the Eastern Ohio Traction Company, the Maple Leaf Land Company, the Elec- tric Terminal Depot Company, the Elyria Savings Deposit Bank and the Country club of Elyria. He is a trustee of Oberlin College and of the Elyria Memorial Hospital. Mr. Gates is also a member of the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce, and president of the Elyria Chamber of Commerce. In club life he has been very active, belonging to the Union, the Euclid, the Cleveland Auto, and Elyria Auto and Country Clubs, and a member of the Sons of the American Rev- olution. He is a republican in politics, and was recently elected to the Elyria board of education, giving it the benefit of his wide reading and broad-gauged policies. For many years he has been a member of the First Congregational church of Elyria and is president of the Men's Club of that denomination. He

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume II, Part 95

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