A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume III, Part 4

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: 1106

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Mr. and Mrs. Barber became the parents of five children. Josiah, who died many years ago, was a member of the Ninety-fifth Ohio Regiment during the Civil war. He served throughout the struggle and rose to the rank of major on Colonel McMillen's staff. Later he was an enthusiastic member of the Army of the Tennessee until his death in 1884. Richard Lord, who enlisted in the Seventh Ohio Infantry and was in all the battles of that famous regiment, died in 1882 in Kansas. Epaphras Lord, who settled in Wauseon, Ohio, was also in the army, in which he served with the rank of colonel. One of the daughters was Mrs. A. M. McGregor, whose husband, a very prominent man, died in 1900. In 1906 she be-

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

came the wife of Dr. M. O. Terry, of Utica. Their home is in Mamaroneck, New York. In memory of her first husband she established a home for old people, called the A. M. McGregor Home, which now shelters a family of twenty-five. The other daughter is Mrs. McCrosky. She bore the maiden name of Sophia Lord Barber and she was married to James McCrosky in 1857. They lived in Rush- ville, Illinois, for a time but in 1865 returned to Cleveland. Mr. McCrosky then purchased a tract of land on Euclid avenue in East Cleveland and planted a large vineyard, where he was extensively engaged in the production of fine grapes. Their family numbers but one son, Frederick, who lives in California. In church and charitable work they are identified with the Presbyterian de- nomination and have been very active. Various benevolences have also re- ceived from them generous assistance, for it is the purpose of their lives to make their native talents subserve the demands which conditions of society im- pose at the present time.

GEORGE H. OLMSTED.

During a residence of more than forty-two years in Cleveland, George H. Olmsted has enjoyed in the fullest degree the confidence and good-will of his fellowmen by reason of his reliability in business, his loyalty in citizenship and his fidelity in social relations. He is prominently known to the business world as a leading representative of insurance interests, operating under the firm style of Olmsted Brothers & Company and also of George H. Olmsted & Company.

A native of Lagrange, Lorain county, Ohio, Mr. Olmsted was born Septem- ber 21, 1843, his parents being Jonathan and Harriet (Sheldon) Olmsted. In 1872 the parents became residents of Cleveland, where the father died in 1877 at the age of sixty-eight years. Previous to his removal to this city he had de- voted his life to general agricultural pursuits.

The youthful days of George H. Olmsted were passed in his native county and his education was there largely acquired, although he also pursued a course in the Eastman Business College at Poughkeepsie, New York. His occupation in early manhood was that of school teaching, to which he devoted three years, after which he became bookkeeper and salesman in a store at Grafton, Ohio, where he remained for a year. He was next occupied as agent with the intro- duction of a doorbell in Michigan. Since the spring of 1867 Mr. Olmsted has given his attention entirely to the insurance business, locating at that time in Cleveland as the representative of the Atlantic Mutual Life Insurance Company, of Albany, New York, with which he was associated for ten years, or until their retirement from business. During the last two years of that time he was super- intendent of agencies for the United States and Canada, for he had gradually worked his way upward and had given proof of his ability and keen insight in business affairs. For a year or two thereafter he traveled as special agent for the Brooklyn Life Insurance Company of New York and then resigned to be- come equal partner with S. S. Coe in an insurance agency, the relation between them being maintained until the death of Mr. Coe in 1883, although the business was conducted under the firm style of Coe & Olmsted until the death of Mrs. Coe in 1889. In that year Mr. Olmsted became sole proprietor of the business and organized the present firm of George H. Olmsted & Company and also the firm of Olmsted Brothers, being associated in the latter connection with O. N. Olmsted. Later E. B. Hamlin was admitted to the firm, which originally had taken the state agencies of both Ohio and Indiana for the National Life Insur- ance Company of Vermont. Today the firm of Olmstead Brothers & Company are conducting a business double in volume to that which was being conducted by the National Life Insurance Company in the entire United States at the time

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

Olmsted Brothers assumed the management in Ohio and Indiana. During the past ten years the firm of Olmsted Brothers & Company paid to Ohio and Indi- ana policy holders in death claims $1,130,422.57, in surrender values $595,116.31, in dividends, annuities and matured endowments $329,739.97-a total of $2,055,- 278.85. The firm of George H. Olmsted & Company conducts a general insur- ance business, while the firm of Olmsted Brothers & Company also represents the Standard Accident Insurance Company.

There are few better known insurance men in the middle west than George H. Olmsted and there is probably nothing more suggestive of his standing and ability in insurance circles than the fact that he was elected a director of one of the most conservative life insurance companies in the United States-the National of Vermont. This is a position occupied by but one other agent of any prom- inent company in the United States and Mr. Olmsted is the only member of the directorate living west of New York. He has extensive business interests aside from those already mentioned. He has served as treasurer of the National Safe & Lock Company of Cleveland since the year after its organization, is president of the Life Insurance Managers Exchange; president of the National Land Com- pany ; vice president of the Bankers Surety Company; treasurer of the Union Savings & Loan Company ; a director of the Woodland Avenue Savings & Trust Company ; a director of the Cleveland Trunk Company; a director of the Cen- tral National Bank; a director of the Land Title Abstract Company ; a director of the Cleveland Homeopathic Medical College, and a member of the board of fire underwriters and the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce.

In 1872, at Saybrook, Ohio, Mr. Olmsted was married to Miss Ella Kelley, to which union were born two children: Grace, who died on the 11th of Decem- ber, 1904; and Howard. Mr. Olmsted's residence is on Willson avenue and the family are members of the Willson Avenue Baptist church, with which Mr. Olm- sted has been prominently identified since 1872 and is now serving as senior deacon. He is chairman of the apportionment committee of the Northern Bap- tist Convention, having charge of apportioning among the Baptist churches of the state the desired contributions to the different missionary organizations of the denomination, and for many years he was also a member of the board of the Ohio Baptist Convention. In the work of the Young Men's Christian Associa- tion he has taken a keen interest. He stands as a high type of the American bus- iness man and citizen, alert and energetic, watchful not only of his own interests but also of the welfare and progress of the community.

ANTHONY VAN ROOY.

The most admirable feature of life in the United States is the possibility offered all of its young to attain to any position within their wishes for here no man is handicapped by reason of poverty or lack of early opportunities. Some of the most prosperous merchants and financiers of Cleveland began their busi- ness training at the bottom of the ladder, climbing towards its top step by step. One of those who have won their present prosperity through personal effort is Anthony Van Rooy, of the firm of Van Rooy Brothers, tea and coffee brokerage merchants. Mr. Van Rooy is a son of William Van Rooy, who was born in 1835 in Holland and came to the United States when about thirty years old. While living in Holland he was a salesman but after coming here he settled in the vicinity of Cleveland, later removing to this city. His wife was Wilhelmina Hoyting, who was also born in Holland, where they were married, coming here together. Mr. Van Rooy died in 1895, his widow surviving until 1900.

Anthony Van Rooy was born in Cleveland, November 8, 1877, and after attending the public and parochial schools, he early began earning his own liv- ing as a messenger boy. Soon afterward the lad's bright manner and courteous

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

ways secured him employment with E. V. Jewel brokerage firm as an office boy. For nine years he remained with them, rising gradually through sheer perse- verance and ability to be one of their street salesmen. By this time he was pre- pared to go into business for himself and so with their goodwill and regret at losing him, Mr. Van Rooy established his tea and coffee brokerage house in 1900. He has built up a very good trade, confining his efforts to Cleveland and vicinity for the most part.

In 1901 Mr. Van Rooy married Agnes Boehmer, who was born in Germany, being brought here in childhood. Mr. and Mrs. Van Rooy are the parents of three children: Agnes, Evelyn and John.

In the very prime of life, Mr. Van Rooy has many years of useful activity stretching out before him and it is safe to say that he has not finished his work for there is much for him yet to do. Men of his caliber do not stand still. With the same spirit that prompted the little office boy of nearly twenty years ago to do more than his appointed tasks and to ever reach out for more knowledge, Mr. Van Rooy is advancing steadily and carrying with him the good wishes of those who have watched his progress with such interest for a decade or two and re- spected his pluck and perseverance.

JOHN G. W. COWLES.

The specific and distinctive office of biography is not to give voice to a man's modest estimate of himself and his accomplishments but rather to leave the per- petual record establishing his character by the consensus of opinion on the part of his fellowmen. Throughout Cleveland Mr. Cowles is spoken of in terms of admiration and respect. His life has been so varied in its activity, so honorable in its purposes, so far-reaching and beneficial in its effects that it has become an integral part of the history of the city and has also left an impress upon the an- nals of the state. In no sense a man in public life, he has nevertheless exerted an immeasureable influence on the city of his residence : in business life as a financier and promoter of extensive business enterprises ; in social circles by reason of a charming personality and unfeigned cordiality ; in politics by reason of his public spirit and devotion to the general good as well as his comprehensive understand- ing of the questions affecting state and national welfare; and in those depart- ments of activity which ameliorate hard conditions of life for the unfortunate by his benevolence and his liberality.

Further investigation into the history of John Guiteau Welch Cowles indicates the fact that he comes of an ancestry honorable and distinguished. The Cowles family is of English lineage and was founded in America by John Cowles, who in 1635 left England, his native land, and became a resident of Massachusetts, whence he later removed to Hartford, Connecticut. His descendants are now numerous and included the late Edwin Cowles of the Cleveland Leader. The father of J. G. W. Cowles was the Rev. Henry Cowles, D. D., who left the im- press of his individuality and activity upon the religious and educational devel- opment of northern Ohio through a period of many years. He was born in Nor- folk, Connecticut, April 24, 1803, of the marriage of Samuel and Olive (Phelps) Cowles. Determining to devote his life to the work of the church, he became a clergyman of the Congregational faith and in 1828 was ordained as a missionary to the Western Reserve. He graduated at Yale in 1826 and Yale Theological School in 1828. For a time he engaged in preaching the gospel in Ashtabula and afterward in Sandusky, Ohio, while subsequently he became pastor of the Congregational church of Austinburg. There he remained for five years and in 1835 he allied his interests with the Oberlin movement, which had been originated two years before and which has resulted in the development of one of the strong- est denominational schools of the country. He was elected professor of Greek

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J. G. W. COWLES

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

and Latin and for a period of forty-six years continued in active connection with this school in different capacities, his labors constituting a strong and forceful element in the growth of the college and the extension of its usefulness.

Rev. Henry Cowles was married in 1830 to Miss Alice Welch, whose parents were Dr. Benjamin and Louisa (Guiteau) Welch of Norfolk, Connecticut. The maternal ancestry was French Hugenot, representatives of the Guiteau family fleeing to America at the time of the religious persecution of the Hugenots in France. Dr. Ephraim Guiteau, the maternal great-grandfather of John G. W. Cowles, was a physician, under whose direction Dr. Welch, later his son-in- law, studied for some time. Following their marriage the Rev. and Mrs. Henry Cowles came at once to Ohio and Mrs. Cowles proved her great usefulness as principal of the ladies' department of Oberlin College. Her pleasing personality and culture made her a favorite in the social circles there and her influence was a dominating factor for development in intellectual and moral lines.

It was in the classic atmosphere of Oberlin that J. G. W. Cowles spent his youthful days. He was there born March 14, 1836, and after pursuing his studies in the public schools of the town pursued a preparatory course and in 1852 was matriculated in the college, being at that time but sixteen years of age. He was graduated in 1856, at the age of twenty years, and soon afterward en- tered upon preparation for the ministry. It had been his original purpose to become a member of the bar but his plans of life changed in his senior year and he took up his theological studies, depending, while pursuing that course, as he had while pursuing his classical studies, upon his own labors for the money necessary to meet his college expenses. The vacation periods were devoted to teaching and in later years he also had charge of classes in the academic or pre- paratory departments of the school, his special branch being elocution. While pursuing the work of the senior year in the theological school he began to preach as a licentiate, filling the pulpit of the Congregational church at Bellevue, Ohio, in the fall of 1858. The following spring he was graduated and at that time not only entered the ministry but also laid the foundation for a happy home life in his marriage to Miss Lois M. Church, of Vermontville, Michigan, who had also graduated from Oberlin in 1858. Accepting a regular call from the Belle- vue church, Mr. Cowles continued his work there until 1861, when he offered his services to the government, then engaged in the Civil war, that he might carry religious messages and ministrations to the boys in blue in the field. He was elected chaplain of the Fifty-fifth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which had been raised among his old neighbors in Huron, Erie, Sandusky and adjoining coun- ties and was commanded by Colonel John C. Lee, afterward lieutenant gov- ernor of Ohio.

With the regiment Mr. Cowles went to West Virginia and saw service under General Robert C. Schenck, General Milroy and General John C. Fremont in the active campaigns of 1861-2. In the spring of the latter year he was with Fremont in his famous pursuit of Stonewall Jackson up the valley of the Shen- andoah and was with the Fifty-fifth Ohio at the battle of Cross Keys in June, 1862. In the fall of that year he resigned as chaplain to accept the pastorate of the Congregational church in Mansfield, Ohio, where he continued his ministerial labors until the spring of 1865. In that year he became pastor of the Congrega- tional church at East Saginaw, Michigan, and during the six years which he there spent not only greatly increased the spiritual strength of the people but also was instrumental in erecting a fine church at a cost of sixty-five thousand dollars. For a year while at East Saginaw ill health prevented his public speaking and during that period he was editorially connected with the Saginaw Daily Enter- prise, a republican paper. Owing to continued physical disability that pre- vented his preaching, he accepted a position as associate editor of the Cleve- land Leader, then owned and managed by Edwin Cowles. In January. 1871, therefore, he came to this city and for about three years wrote the leading edi- torials for that paper. He possessed superior literary style and his writings

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

also indicated a thorough understanding of the questions which he discussed as well as a spirit of patriotism and devotion to the general good. From this time forward he was no longer active in church work as a minister but his interest in re- ligious progress has never ceased and in the communities where he formerly labored there is yet entertained for him the warmest friendship. Ties then formed have never been broken and frequently he has been called to return to the scenes of his ministerial labors to take part in some occasion of rejoicing or sorrow or in some public affair.

During the years of his residence in Cleveland, Mr. Cowles has made steady progress in business life, bending his efforts to the successful accomplishment of everything that he has undertaken. Gradually he drifted into the field of real estate, largely through the desire of friends outside the city who wished him to make investments for them. He also began buying property on his own account and in 1873 his operations in the real-estate field had become so important and extensive as to necessitate the severance of his connection with journalism. He has long been recognized as one of the prominent representatives of real-estate interests in Cleveland and his course has been marked by the most honorable methods, his irreproachable probity being especially evidenced in the course which he pursued following the widespread financial disasters of 1873. In that year Cleveland property was selling at a good rate and the city was en- joying rapid but healthful growth. The widespread financial panic, however, had immediate effect here, as it did in hundreds of other cities, operations prac- tically ceasing in the real-estate field, while values were greatly reduced. How- ever, Mr. Cowles had taken up real estate as a life work and he continued in that field, facing the disasters of the situation, which occasioned him heavy losses. He was forced to incur a great indebtedness and during the ensuing eighteen years he bent his energies toward discharging his financial obligations. A rigorous self sacrifice was practiced and in due course of time every financial obligation was discharged. He was frequently advised to take advantage of the national bankruptcy law then in force but he replied that if life and strength were left him he would redeem every pledge that stood in his name and pay to every creditor that which was his due. This herculean task he accomplished and no stain of dishonor has ever rested on his name. As years passed and financial affairs returned to the normal his business increased and in later years he has had charge of important real-estate interests for different corporations and in- dividuals. He has purchased much property for others, especially for railroad and manufacturing corporations or for capitalists who desire investments of a specific character. He also sells property for others and in fact is controlling an extensive real-estate business, not only in the outright sale or purchase but also in negotiating leaseholds, especially of down-town business property on some of the principal thoroughfares of the city. He has conducted the nego- tiations whereby leases have been secured on the land on which a number of the most important office and modern business buildings are erected. There is another department of Mr. Cowles' business that is profitable and extensive as well. This is the negotiating of loans upon mortgage security, in which connec- tion he represents eastern corporations having abundant supplies of funds avail- able. Another branch of his business is the care of property for non-resident owners or for resident capitalists who wish to be free from the care of their own property or estates. Mr. Cowles' activity, enterprise and business discernment has thus carried him into important relations with the public and he today figures as one of the most prominent and successful real-estate men of Cleveland. On the organization of the Cleveland Trust Company in 1894, capitalized for six hundred thousand dollars, he was elected president and so continued for eight years or until the consolidation of the Cleveland Trust Company with the Western Reserve Trust Company, when he became chairman of the board. In 1876 Mr. Cowles took entire charge of the real-estate interests of J. D. Rocke- feller in Cleveland and since 1880 he has likewise had charge of the interests of

HISTORY OF CLEVELAND

Charles F. Brush. These duties alone would make him a busy man and yet, as is indicated, various other duties and interests have claimed his attention. In April of 1896 he was chosen president of the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce and thus became the foremost official representative of the commercial and busi- ness interests of this city.

As the years passed on there came to the home of Mr. and Mrs. Cowles four children : Alice Welch, now the wife of the Rev. John Doane, pastor of the Congregational church of Greeley, Colorado; Mary Flagler; Edward Church, who died in infancy ; and Leroy Hervey, who died in 1887 at the age of fourteen years. The wife and mother passed away in 1903 and Mr. Cowles afterward wedded Miss Beatrice Walker, of Brantford, Canada. They have one daughter, Beatrice Jeannette, born in 1905.

It is not alone by reason of the extent and importance of his business affairs that Mr. Cowles has become widely known. He has been a cooperant factor in many measures for the public good, is interested in all matters of civic virtue and civic pride and has been a leader in many movements which have reflected credit and honor upon the municipal spirit of Cleveland. On the 22d of July, 1896, when a mass meeting was held to celebrate the centennial of the arrival of Moses Cleaveland on the site of the present city, Mr. Cowles there for the first time made public announcement of the magnificent addition to the public park department of the city, made possible by the generosity of John D. Rocke- feller, who gave to Cleveland lands and money to the extent of six hundred thou- sand dollars, afterward augmented by three hundred thousand more. Mr. Cowles was actively concerned in this gift in that he purchased for Mr. Rockefeller substantially all the land taken for park purposes south from Euclid avenue, along the valley of Doan Brook to the Shaker Heights land, a distance of a mile and a half. In the year 1900 he was president of the board of park com- missioners. Mr. Cowles also figured prominently in the centennial celebration of 1896, laboring earnestly and effectively to make this occasion a memorable success. He was made chairman of the section of religion for the historical representation of the century and, with a committee which he appointed, ar- ranged for and presided over the first meeting of the celebration, held Sunday afternoon, July 19, 1896, upon which occasion he spoke in eloquent terms to the people concerning the occasion and what it indicated. On Woman's Day, as president of the Chamber of Commerce, he also delivered a brief address. He was called upon to deliver the address at the dedication of the new Chamber of Commerce building in 1899 and has served on various important committees which have been formed to further the public welfare. Never ceasing to feel a deep interest in his alma mater, he has acted as a trustee of Oberlin College since 1874. That college conferred upon him the LL. D. degree in 1898 and he is its oldest trustee in the length of continued service. He is also widely known in military circles as a member of the Ohio Commandery of the Loyal Legion and of the Army and Navy Post, G. A. R. Religiously he is connected with the Plymouth Congregational church and has taken a helpful part in its various activities, serving for many years as one of its deacons. His political allegiance is given to the republican party and though he has never held an elective office, he has nevertheless exerted an influence in politics inasmuch as he has always stood for good government and for anything that opposes mis- rule in municipal or national affairs. He is a member of the Cleveland real- estate board, of which he has been president, and since 1884 he has been connected with the Cleveland Board of Trade and its successor, the Chamber of Com- merce, in which connection he has labored earnestly toward promoting the commercial and industrial development of the city. In 1894 he became chair- man of its legislative committee and the following year was elected a director and first vice president, followed by his election to the presidency in 1896. The public work that he has done has brought no pecuniary reward and yet has made extensive demand upon his time, his thought and his energies. Opportunities

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A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume III, Part 4

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: 1106

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: 1106