USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Cleveland > A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume III > Part 28
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).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109
Captain Mckay was mustered out of the service at the expiration of his second term of enlistment, July 6, 1864, although unable to walk on account of his wounds. When they were healed sufficiently so as to perform any work he
264
HISTORY OF CLEVELAND
reentered the service of the railways he had been employed with at the break- ing out of the war, and continued in their service, covering a period of nearly thirty years all told. Since March 5, 1890, he has been employed in the United States custom service.
On the 20th of December, 1865, he married Miss Margaret A. Creech. Five children were born to them, of whom three are living-Addison Hills, Edward Creighton and John Howard Mckay.
He was considered by his comrades as a thoroughly brave, energetic and capable officer and soldier. His promotions were all given for conspicuous bravery in the face of the enemy and meritorious service. Since the war he has shown great interest in the welfare of the widows and orphans of the soldiers and sailors of Cuyahoga county. He has been several times appointed president of the Memorial Day services in the city of Cleveland and has repeatedly served as commander and also as adjutant-general of the Memorial Day parades. There is nothing the old soldiers of Cuyahoga county would not do for him, as he is very much beloved by them.
W. WALLACE DILLE.
The Dille family is of Hugenot origin but has been distinctively American in its lineal and collateral branches for many generations. Two brothers of the name started from Scotland but one died at sea, while the other, David Dille, made his way to Kingston, Jamaica. His descendants came to America, settling in South Carolina. There were two sons, David and Ichabod, both of whom went to New Jersey. They became engaged in a controversy which led them to locate in different parts of the state and caused Ichabod to change the spelling of the name by adding "y." The elder, David Dille, had five sons and one daughter, namely : William, Israel, Aaron, David, Jr., Elizabeth and Asa. David, Jr. was the great- grandfather of W. Wallace Dille and was born in New Jersey in 1753. He re- moved from that state to western Pennsylvania, settling in Washington county, whence he afterward went to Belmont county, Ohio, sixteen miles below Wheeling. During his residence there he became an extensive landholder. He removed from that county to Cleveland to become a permanent resident in September, 1803, and six weeks later took up his abode in Euclid township, becoming the first actual settler in that township. There were but a few houses on the entire district now covered by the Forest city, and Ohio was then largely unsettled in every portion of the state, only a few white men having penetrated in its dense forest regions to improve its natural resources and utilize them for their individual benefit. He was previously engaged in the Indian warfare, which was so necessary as a protection of the white settlers against the red men, and was one of the number who participated in the expedition under Colonel Crawford when that commander was burned at the stake near Upper Sandusky, Ohio, in 1782. He had previously had military service in the Revolutionary war, enlisting in March, 1778, and doing duty for one year as a sergeant. In March, 1780, he again joined the army and for one year served as lieutenant, while the Ist of May, 1782, marked the beginning of his year service as a private. This David Dille was twice married. He first wedded Nancy Viers, and to them were born five sons and one daughter : Nehemiah, Lewis B., Calvin, Luther, Asa and Cassina Elizabeth. For his second wife the father chose Mary Sailor, and they had sixteen children. The death of the father occurred October 7, 1835. His brother Asa had settled in East Cleve- land township in 1804, so that the Dille family is one of the oldest in this part of the state, having for more than a century been connected with the substantial development of Cuyahoga county. Asa Dille had nine children.
Luther Dille, the grandfather of W. Wallace Dille, was born in Washington county, Pennsylvania, in 1785. He married Esther Hickox. He and two of his
W. WALLACE DILLE
267
HISTORY OF CLEVELAND
brothers served their country as soldiers in the war of 1812. Eri M. Dille, the father of our subject, was born in Euclid, Ohio, November 9, 1812, and was here reared amid the environment and conditions of pioneer life. He devoted his time and energies to the occupation of farming, thus providing for his family as the years went on. He married Emaline D. Randall, who was born in East Haddam, Connecticut, June 9, 1818, and the same year her parents, Joel and Phoebe (Payne) Randall, removed with their family to Ohio, settling in Cleveland, at what is now East Eightieth street and Euclid avenue.
Such is the ancestry from which W. Wallace Dille springs-a family that through succeeding generations has been loyal in citizenship, progressive in public affairs and active, diligent and reliable in business. He whose name initiates this review was born in Euclid, Ohio, March 1I, 1838, the place of his birth being now in Nottingham, a suburb of Cleveland. In the "little red schoolhouse" of Euclid he pursued his education until fifteen years of age, when he received the benefit of two years' instruction in Hiram College. He then returned home and again attended the "little school" around which clustered pleasant memories of his early boyhood. At the age of nineteen years he again entered Hiram for one - term and afterward spent nineteen weeks as a pupil in Shaw's Academy. For one term he engaged in teaching school and then devoted his attention to the work of the home farm, continuing to assist his father until gradually he as- sumed the entire management and control of the property, owing to the ad- vanced age of his father, who passed away in 1904. The mother had died in 1899, and after the death of the father a part of the farm was sold and since that time W. Wallace Dille has lived a retired life, his property interests being sufficient to give to him an income that supplies him with all of the necessities and comforts and some of the luxuries of life. His education being far in advance of that of the average farmer of the day, he became recognized as an expert agriculturist, horticulturist and stockman, his opinions on such subjects being largely regarded as authority throughout the community.
On the 19th of September, 1860, Mr. Dille was united in marriage, in Cleve- land, to Miss Mina T. Gilbert, a daughter of Francis and Emily (Geer) Gilbert, who removed from the state of New York to Cleveland in 1849. Mr. and Mrs. Dille have an adopted son, C. W. Dille, a prominent lawyer of Cleveland. Mr. Dille descends from a family that gave stalwart allegiance to the whig party for many years and in his boyhood he was trained in that political school. He came to his majority soon after the organization of the republican party and has since been one of its stalwart supporters, casting his first presidential ballot for Abraham Lincoln. His life record has been characterized by all that constitutes manliness, probity and public-spirited citizenship.
WILLIAM A. MARBACH.
William A. Marbach, the president of the Cleveland Metal Stamping Company, which he organized in 1901, was born in Cleveland on the Ist of August, 1872, his parents being Robert and Charlotte Marbach. He pursued his education in the public schools and when fourteen years of age put aside his text-books to enter the employ of the Cleveland Hardware Company, working as an apprentice for four years. Subsequently he spent four years in the employ of the Rogers Typograph Company and then went to Lorain, Ohio, and became superintendent of the Aurora Vapor Stove Company, in which position he likewise remained for four years. He next had charge of a department of the National Vapor Stove Company for three years and on the expiration of that period organized the Cleve- land Metal Stamping Company, of which he has been president to the present time. The concern was engaged in the manufacture of builders' hardware until 1907, since which time they have made a specialty of sheet metal stamping and also do
268
HISTORY OF CLEVELAND
fine die and tool work. The business has had a rapid and substantial growth and, though they are now employing men both day and night, they are still unable to keep up with their orders. Mr. Marbach has earned for himself an enviable repu- tation as a careful man of business, and in his dealings is known for his prompt and honorable methods, which have won him the deserved and unbounded confidence of his fellowmen.
On the 25th of December, 1895, in Cleveland, Mr. Marbach was united in marriage to Miss Augusta Noville. They have a daughter, Helen, who is now twelve years of age and attends the public schools. The family residence is at No. 10834 Hathaway avenue. Fraternally Mr. Marback is identified with the Masons and the Knights of the Maccabees and is a worthy exemplar of the beneficent teachings of those orders. He has gained many stanch friends in both social and business life and his record is a creditable one, inasmuch as his success is attributable to his own labors.
CAPTAIN JAMES HENRY PELLETT.
Captain James H. Pellett, who is remembered as a representative of trans- portation interests in Cleveland through a long period, came to this city when but eight years of age. At that time his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Timothy Pellett, removed from Lowville, New York. The father was a baker by trade and con- tinued in the same line of business after his arrival in Cleveland. He con- tinued his residence here until his death, which occurred in 1872. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Eliza Broadbridge, was a native of England, so there was a strong strain of English blood in the veins of Captain Pellett.
After the removal of the family to Cleveland Captain Pellett, then a young lad. entered the public schools and continued his education through successive grades until he became a high school student. When a young man he began sailing on the lakes and by hard work and faithfulness made his way upward until he became master of several vessels. For twelve years he was captain of the steamer, S. E. Sheldon, and also commanded other craft sailing on the Great Lakes. He formed a wide acquaintance in navigation circles and among those whose business connected them with shipping interests, but in 1883 he retired from the lake and turned his attention to commercial pursuits, forming a partnership under the firm style of Wing & Pellett, wholesale and retail dealers in lime. He continued successfully in that business for three years, after which he accepted the position of superintendent of the Kelly Island department of the Kelly Island Lime & Transportation Company. For twenty-one years he was identified with that company, but two months prior to his death retired and returned to his old home in Lakewood. There his death occurred November 5, 1907.
Captain Pellett was married in 1864 to Miss Eliza West, who came to Cleveland with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas West, when a little maiden of six summers. They were natives of England and the father died shortly after his arrival in this city. The mother, however, long survived, continuing a resi- dent of Cleveland until 1895. Unto Captain and Mrs. Pellett were born four children : Fanny, now the wife of W. G. Radcliff ; William W., who is connected with the firm of M. A. Hanna & Company ; Jessie, deceased; and Florence, who is attending the Western Reserve Woman's College.
Captain Pellett possessed many attractive social qualities and was a most hospitable, kindly and generous host. He was ever loyal to his friends and his associates in business knew him to be a man of many sterling qualities. He was a man of powerful build and constitution, enabling him to withstand the rigor- ous experiences and hardships of life on the Great Lakes during the twenty- eight years of his service as a navigator. He belonged to the Independent Order
269
HISTORY OF CLEVELAND
of Odd Fellows and was a public-spirited citizen who sought the general wel- fare along lines of substantial and continuous progress. His political views were in accord with the principles of the republican party. He always did his share of the world's work and reached the allotted age of three score years and ten.
FRANK R. SAXTON.
Frank R. Saxton, a man of numerous friends in Cleveland, his native city, was born September 28, 1878, and is a son of Edward Harvey and Sarah (Harris) Saxton. The father engaged in the undertaking business in Cleveland in 1871 and for over a quarter of a century was one of the leading undertakers on the west side. He was also well known in fraternal circles, being identified with the Knights of Pythias, the Maccabees and the Odd Fellows.
Reared under the parental roof, Frank R. Saxton was a public school student in Cleveland until he had mastered the elementary branches of learning, while later he attended the Michigan Military Academy. He was graduated from that institution in 1897 and immediately afterward returned to Cleveland, since which time he has been engaged in the undertaking business. Upon his father's death in 1898 he assumed the management of the business and has carried on a leading establishment of this character in Cleveland, utilizing all the latest inventions and improvements for the burial of the dead. He carries a large line of undertaking goods and his moderate prices and straightforward dealing commend him to the confidence and support of the general public.
Mr. Saxton was married eight years ago to Miss Eva Coe, a daughter of Arthur D. Coe, one of the pioneer piano dealers of this city. Their marriage has been blessed with one son, Edward Harvey Saxton, born March 3, 1906, now an interesting little lad of four years.
In his political views Mr. Saxton is a republican whose opinions are based upon a thorough understanding of party principles. He belongs to all branches of Masonry, having attained the Knight Templar degree in the York Rite and the thirty-second degree in the Scottish Rite. He also has crossed the sands of the desert with the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine and has most pleasant associations with his brethren of the craft. He is fond of motoring and appreciative of the interests promoted by social intercourse and, yet, with him attention to business is always paramount and has been the secret of his success.
AUGUSTUS FREDERICK HARTZ.
Augustus Frederick Hartz, known familiarly as Gus Hartz by the theater- going people of Cleveland and particularly the patrons of the Euclid Avenue Opera House, of which he has been lessee and manager for over a quarter of a century, was born in Liverpool, England, September 8, 1844. At ten years of age he left home to join his brother, Joseph Michael Hartz, who was the great magician of his day and whose annual engagement at the old Egyptian Hall in London was one of the affairs of the year. He took his younger brother in hand when ten years of age and made him his chief assistant, and in 1855 he appeared as a performer in London theatres. He afterward visited all the great cities of continental Europe and later made tours of practically every country of the civilized world.
After several of these world tours the brothers returned to England, the elder brother retiring and the younger taking over the business and continuing in it until 1879, when he came to Cleveland to visit Dr. Salisbury of "beefsteak cure" fame. He liked the city and concluded to remain. He first turned his at-
270
HISTORY OF CLEVELAND
tention to the real-estate business, but in 1882 the Wicks built the Park theater, of which he assumed management. After eleven weeks, however, this house was destroyed by fire. The following day he was offered the management of the Opera House by the late Marcus A. Hanna and at once undertook the task, which he has never since relinquished, of furnishing Cleveland with first-class theatrical attractions. His success is attested by the long list of famous stars of the past two generations who have appeared in his house. All of these played for Gus Hartz. He was their friend and often their adviser. Many have grown old, many are dead; some are rich, others died in poverty. His unusual success is probably due to the minute study he has always made of the public taste. To him the public is a creature and to please its whims and fancies has been his constant aim. He is known as one of the country's most successful managers and many stars have importuned him to assume the responsibilities of their professional careers. He was agreeable to this proposition in only one instance, however, when he took charge of the affairs of Richard Mansfield, in whom he recognized a coming light of the dramatic stage. Mr. Hartz has always been keenly responsive to a mark of ability in young men and to his training is due the success of some of the most able and prominent theatrical men of the country. A number of his staff have been with him constantly since he first took charge of the Opera House, finding him always a loyal friend. He has conducted the theatre as a business enterprise, has reaped a gratifying financial reward and in the course of years has become identified with numerous other enterprises. He is a stockholder in the State Banking & Trust Company, a director of the Majestic Oil Company and a director of the Trenton Rock Oil & Gas Company.
Mr. Hartz has been married twice. In Cleveland, about thirty-three years ago, he wedded his first wife, who died about fourteen years later. She was the mother of four children, two of whom are living. The elder daughter is the wife of Dr. M. G. Selig, a prominent surgeon of St. Louis, Missouri, and the younger daughter, Fannie, is upon the stage. In the short time she has devoted to the work she has given every indication of a brilliant future, having achieved a dis- tinct success as leading lady of a stock company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In 1894 Mr. Hartz married his present wife. He is a prominent Mason and a member of Excelsior Club. Sociable, genial and unostentatious and unspoiled by success, his personal qualities are most attractive, winning him friends among all with whom he comes in contact. His town home is at No. 1724 East One Hundred and Fifteenth street, while his winter vacations are usually spent in Florida.
GEORGE BRITTON DURELL.
George Britton Durell, president of the National Handle Company of Cleve- land, is a man whose mind readily appreciates the opportunities for the establish- ment and conduct of vast enterprises, while his executive ability makes of him a splendid organizer and promoter, so that he has been connected with some of the leading houses in his line in the country. He was born in New Jersey, September 27, 1861, a son of Edward Hicks and Hannah A. Woodward. The former was born in Florence, New Jersey, in 1829, and still survives, but his wife, also a native of New Jersey, passed away in 1873. Both were representatives of old families of that state. The father was a clergyman of the Methodist church and after thirty years devoted to the ministry he resigned to engage in the cultivation of cranberries and is still conducting that business at Woodbury, New Jersey.
George B. Durell, after completing a public-school course, entered Princeton University, from which he was graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He took the experimental science fellowship, which required an extra year of study at Princeton. He afterward engaged in teaching for two years at Chester, Pennsylvania, but the business world rather than the schoolroom seemed logically
GEORGE B. DURELL
273
HISTORY OF CLEVELAND
his field of labor because of his ability to plan and to perform, to organize and coordinate forces. Removing to Chattanooga, Tennessee, he there began the manufacture of hoes, forks and rakes under the style of the Chattanooga Tool Company, of which he was first treasurer and later manager. After three years he went to Harriman, Tennessee, where he organized the Harriman Hoe & Tool Company, of which he became president and manager. During his residence in Harriman he was also for six years president of the Manu- facturers National Bank and was also vice president of the Handly-Goodman Wholesale Grocery Company. He continued in Harriman, profitably conducting his business interests, until 1903, when in search of a wider field of labor he came to Cleveland and was chosen treasurer of the American Fork & Hoe Company. Ever watchful of opportunities, in 1907 he assisted in organizing the National Handle Company and is its president, his long experience in this line making him eminently fitted to take charge of the vast affairs of this concern, its trade extending all over the United States. There are branch factories and depots at different points and the remarkable growth of the business is due to the intelligent efforts of Mr. Durell and the men he has chosen to fill important positions under him. He is also a director of the American Fork & Hoe Company and a member of its executive committee ; is vice president, treasurer and manager of the Union Fork & Hoe Company of Columbus, Ohio; is president and treasurer of the Eagle Coal Company of Kentucky ; a director of the Roane Iron Company of Chattanooga, Tennessee ; and vice president of the United States Handle Com- pany of Piqua, Ohio.
In 1893 Mr. Durell married Genevieve Hill, who was born in New York, and they have three children: George Edward, Gladys and Kathryn. The family residence is beautifully located at No. 8308 Euclid avenue and is one of Cleveland's hospitable homes. In his political views Mr. Durell is a stalwart republican and while residing at Harriman he served as mayor of that city, his administration being particularly businesslike and progressive. Socially he is connected with the Union and Euclid Clubs. The energy he has displayed in the accomplishment of the tasks which he has undertaken and the execution of the plans which he has formulated is a keynote to his character, and by reason of his forcefulness and resourcefulness he has accomplished large results, placing him in an enviable commercial position while hardly yet in the prime of life.
ARTHUR L. JOHNSON.
Arthur L. Johnson, now deceased, was for many years a prominent factor in the business circles of Cleveland as a member of the wholesale millinery firm of Comey & Johnson. In his commercial relations he was ever recognized as an honest and upright as well as self-made man, whose methods were progres- sive and the result of his labors satisfactory. His birth occurred in Grafton, Massachusetts, on the 18th of August, 1858, his parents being Mr. and Mrs. U. B. Johnson, of Grafton, Massachusetts. The father is now deceased but the mother is still living and makes her home in Massachusetts.
Arthur L. Johnson obtained his education in the public schools of his native city and after putting aside his text-books entered the employ of William Knowlton & Sons at Upton, Massachusetts, being thus engaged for several years. In 1881 he went to Boston, Massachusetts, but the following year came to Cleveland, Ohio, and was made superintendent of the J. C. Pettee Company, of which his future partner, George P. Comey, was a member. In 1885, in association with Mr. Comey, he organized the firm of Comey & Johnson. They engaged in the manufacture of ladies' hats and straw goods and conducted a wholesale trade in millinery, each year witnessing a remarkable increase in their patronage until the enterprise became one of extensive proportions. Mr. Johnson,
274
HISTORY OF CLEVELAND
who was widely recognized as one of the most successful salesmen in his line, owed his prosperity entirely to his own industry and unfaltering energy and was a splendid example of the self-made man. His unfailing courtesy and un- feigned cordiality won him many friends and he possessed moreover the happy faculty of retaining them. The humblest employe in his service received his kindly consideration and there was no trace of the overbearing taskmaster in him. The remark, "I tell you that Mr. Johnson is a fine man," which was heard in the Cable building, from the lips of a boy who was sent on an er- rand to the New York office of the firm, expressed the sentiment of all who knew him. He met with a tragic death in the railroad accident which occurred at Mentor, Ohio, on the 21st of June, 1906, in which nineteen persons were killed, including a number of Cleveland's prominent citizens.
On the 20th of November, 1882, Mr. Johnson was united in marriage to Miss Ella Prouty, of Worcester, Massachusetts, and unto them were born three children : Louise, who died at the age of two years; Harry, whose death oc- curred when eight years of age; and Marie, who is now twenty years of age. Mr. Johnson was devoted to the welfare of his family and his pleasure in his success came largely from the fact that it enabled him to provide generously for them. In his political views he was an earnest republican but the honors and emoluments of office had no attraction for him. His manner was cordial, genial and characterized by absolute sincerity. His social qualities, as well as his business integrity, made him well liked by all. In his commercial relations he was the soul of honor and the success he achieved was attributable entirely to his intelligently directed effort. The circle of his acquaintances constantly broadened and each year added to the number of his friends, for he had the happy faculty of winning the warm and kindly regard of the great majority of those with whom he came in contact.
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.