USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > Cleveland > A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume III > Part 53
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Since coming to Cleveland in 1891 Mr. Ambler has been engaged in the real- estate business and as secretary and treasurer of the Curtiss-Ambler Realty Com- pany has been connected with extended activity in this line, for the firm is very prominent in real-estate circles. He is also the vice president of the Cuyahoga Building & Loan Company and few men are so well informed concerning realty values and the possibilities of their rise or diminution as is Mr. Ambler.
On the 25th of December, 1871, in Lyons, Michigan, Mr. Ambler was mar- ried to Miss Flora E. Lewis, a daughter of Charles E. and Ann (Tufts) Lewis. They have become parents of two sons and two daughters. Jay C. the eldest,
W. E. AMBLER
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now of Manchester, Tennessee, is a graduate of Hillsdale College, of Hillsdale, Michigan, and is engaged in the ranch business. Angell was educated at the Women's College of the Western Reserve University and following her gradua- tion entered the Teachers' College, of New York, where she completed the course. She is now the wife of Dr. S. M. Weaver, a well known dentist of Cleveland, and has two children, William Ambler and Marshall. William, the younger son of W. E. Ambler, was graduated from the Case School of Applied Science in Cleveland and also completed the literary course in Hillsdale College, of Michigan, and the electrical course in Cornell University. He was for two years instructor in electricity at Cornell and for two years assistant professor of electricity in the Case School of Cleveland. He then left the educational field to go into business for himself as a real-estate dealer. He has become a well known citizen of Cleveland and is now vice president of the Colonial Club. Marguerite Faye is a graduate of Miss Middelberger's school in Cleveland and the National Park Seminary in Washington, D. C. In 1909 Mr. Ambler erected a modern residence at No. 1696 Magnolia Drive, near Wade park, which is the family home. The political allegiance of Mr. Ambler has always been stanchly given to the republican party and since coming to Cleveland he has been a valued and popular member of the Colonial Club, of which he has been a director. He possesses one of the largest collections of autographs and auto- graph letters and manuscripts in this country, having a large library of autograph books. Those who know him socially entertain for him the warm regard which is always given genuine worth when free from ostentation, while those who meet him in business circles recognize in him a reliable man of marked enterprise and progressive spirit.
CHESTER J. WADSWORTH.
Chester J. Wadsworth, the proprietor of C. J. Wadsworth Clothing Cab- inet Company at No. 5806 Euclid avenue in Cleveland, was born in Otsego county, New York, on the 16th of December, 1866, his parents being Chester and Cynthia Wadsworth. The father, whose birth occurred in Cherry Valley, New York, in 1830, followed the profession of dentistry throughout his entire life. He was called to his final rest in July, 1903.
In the acquirement of an education Chester J. Wadsworth attended the pub- lic schools until fourteen years of age, when he put aside his text-books to enter upon a clerkship in the dry goods store of J. F. Ruestle, being thus em- ployed for two years. He then spent a similar period in travel, selling a patent article, and subsequently went to Utica, New York, where for two years he remained in the employ of Martin B. De Long, a furniture and mantel manu- facturer. On the expiration of that period he came to Cleveland and for a month acted as salesman for Michael Moriarty, a furniture dealer. During the fol- lowing nine months he served as salesman and stock keeper for the Herrenden Furniture Company, which was then succeeded by the firm of Conger & Collings, with whom Mr. Wadsworth continued for eight years, having charge of the mantel department. He then embarked in business on his own account at No. 5300 Euclid avenue, where he remained for two years ere removing to his present location. In 1900 he began the manufacture of mantels and special cabinet work and since 1904 has also made clothing store fixtures, on which he has a patent. In May, 1909, he erected a large plant at Painesville, Ohio, in order to reduce the cost of manufacture as well as to obtain better railroad facilities. The output of his factory is shipped to all parts of the United States and he furnishes employment to a force of forty-five men. Mr. Wads- worth's practical knowledge of the business enables him to determine the value of the labor of his workmen and to judge correctly of the worth of the manu-
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factured product. He has studied closely the trade, recognizing the demands in his line and has therefore met the needs of the public in mantels and clothing store fixtures of all kinds.
On the 13th of October, 1903, in Cleveland Mr. Wadsworth was united in marriage to Miss Lillian Howland, of Newcastle, Pennsylvania. Their children are three in number, namely: Chester Gordan, who is five years of age; Cynthia, two years old; and Donald, who is in his first year. The family residence is at No. II Bender avenue, East Cleveland.
At the polls Mr. Wadsworth exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party, believing that its principles are most conducive to good government. In religious faith he is a Methodist. He is fond of fishing and motoring as a means of recreation but finds his greatest delight at his own fireside in the companionship of his wife and children. He is a man of undoubted integrity in business, of progressive spirit and marked enterprise, whose popularity and prosperity have been won through his many good qualities and his well directed effort.
CHARLES A. KLAUER.
Charles A. Klauer, general manager of the Cleveland branch of the Schwarzs- child & Sulzberger Beef Company, has been connected with this line of busi- ness all of his life and is therefore thoroughly conversant with all its details. He was born in New York city, November II, 1861, a son of Charles and Mary Klauer. Until he was fourteen years of age he had the advantages offered by the New York public schools, but at that early age he began working for his father in a retail meat market, continuing there until he was eighteen years old. Feeling that his four years of experience with the business justified his action, he opened a retail market of his own at the corner of Sixty-ninth street and Columbus avenue, New York city, and conducted it for fourteen years.
At this time he received a flattering offer from the Schwarzschild & Sulz- berger Beef Company, and, going to Wilmington, Delaware, was their general manager at that point for nine years. He was then transferred to the Cleve- land branch, where he has since continued as general manager, having under him seventeen men. During his administration of affairs here he has brought the business into a fine condition and greatly increased the volume of trade.
Mr. Klauer was married in New York city, May 10, 1890, to Frances S. Quigg, and they have two children : C. Frank, eighteen years old, who is a clerk for the Lake Shore Railroad; and Joseph A., seven years old, who attends the St. Agnes school. The family have a pleasant home at No. 9118 Wade Park. Mr. Klauer belongs to the Elks and is interested in fraternal matters. Politi- cally he is not affiliated with any party but casts his vote as his conscience dic- tates. His religious connection is with the Catholic church. Long association with the meat industry has given Mr. Klauer a close insight into it and singularly fitted him for the position he occupies.
MILTON W. HASENPFLUG.
Milton W. Hasenpflug, conducting a large undertaking establishment at No. 2126 East Fifty-fifth street in Cleveland, was born in Huron, Ohio, on the 25th of March, 1876, his parents being the Rev. George and Elizabeth Hasenpflug. The father, whose birth occurred in Germany in 1833, crossed the Atlantic to the United States in the year 1846 and took up his abode at Brownhelm, Ohio. There he preached the gospel as a minister of the German Evangelical church
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and subsequently went to Huron, Ohio, where he followed his holy calling until 1880. He then came to Cleveland as the pastor of the Salem Evangelical church and was thus engaged for four years, on the expiration of which period he en- tered business circles as a manufacturer of hardware, organizing the Champion Lock Company. The concern is now doing business at Geneva, Ohio. The Rev. Hasenpflug was made president of the company, in which official connection he ably directed its affairs until the time of his demise in 1896.
Milton W. Hasenpflug supplemented his preliminary education by a course in the Central high school of Cleveland, where he continued his studies until eighteen years of age. On putting aside his text-books he entered the employ of the undertaking firm of Hogan & Sharer, with whom he remained for a period of four years, doing all their embalming. After severing his connection with that concern he embarked in the undertaking business on his own account, opening an establishment of this character at the corner of Cedar avenue and Ninety- seventh street. In 1896 he admitted Mr. Jennings to a partnership and the firm style of Jennings & Hasenpflug was adopted. In 1900 he removed to the corner of Hough avenue and Fifty-fifth street, where the business was successfully conducted until September, 1907, when they dissolved partnership. Since that time he has been the sole proprietor of an undertaking establishment at No. 2126 East Fifty-fifth street and is widely recognized as one of the prosperous and representative business men of the city.
On the 8th of April, 1909, in Cleveland, Mr. Hasenpflug was joined in wed- lock to Miss Mary Jane Jones. His political allegiance is given to the republican party, and in religious faith he is a Protestant. His fraternal relations are with the Royal Arcanum, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Foresters of America and the Knights of Pythias. He is a young man of enterprise, of manly conduct, of sincere purposes and high ideals.
GEORGE D. KOCH.
George D. Koch, the senior partner of the firm of Koch &, Henke, handling a high grade of furniture, carpets and draperies, was born in Wurtemberg, Ger- many, on the 23d of December, 1850. He was brought to the United States when three and one-half years old and obtained his education in the public schools of Cleveland, putting aside his text-books when he had attained the age of thirteen years. Subsequently he secured a position as furniture finisher in the employ of J. A. Vincent, a furniture dealer, and later became foreman of the shop, serving in that capacity until 1870. During the following two years he worked as a furniture finisher in the Kraus Furniture Store and then embarked in business as a furniture dealer in company with R. Fleming, opening an establishment of this character at the corner of Lorain and Penn streets in February, 1872. In 1873 they admitted D. Tonne to a partnership and the business was conducted under the firm style of Fleming, Koch & Company. Subsequently they opened another store on Detroit avenue and in 1874 consolidated both enterprises in one, removing to the corner of Pearl street and Lorain avenue, where they occupied the greater part of the building. In 1875 the firm was dissolved. Afterward Mr. Koch formed a partnership with F. H. Henke and they began business in a store at the corner of Lorain and Penn streets but in a few years outgrew the premises. Mr. Henke then erected a large brick building at the corner of Lorain avenue and Jersey (now West Thirtieth) street, occupying the greater part of it until the extent of their business made larger quarters necessary and additions were made to the structure. Mr. Henke retired in 1897 and passed away ten years later. His son, H. A. Henke, is now in partnership with Mr. Koch and they handle a general line of medium and high grade furniture as well as carpets and draperies. The business has had a steady growth and they now furnish
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employment to a large force of people and utilize the entire building at the corner of Lorain avenue and West Thirtieth street. Mr. Koch is a man of un- questioned integrity and reliability in business affairs and well merits the success which he now enjoys and which entitles him to recognition among the prosperous and enterprising representatives of mercantile interests in Cleveland.
On the Ist of December, 1875, in this city, Mr. Koch was united in marriage to Miss Bertha Berno. Their children are four in number, namely: George B., who is thirty-three years of age and is associated with his father in business; Charles C., a young man of thirty, who is a furniture manufacturers' agent in Cleveland ; Viola, the wife of George Muth, of this city ; and Estelle, who still resides under the parental roof and is interested in music. The family residence is at Detroit and Mars avenues in Lakewood.
MR. and Mrs. F. J. LANGER.
In a history of the successful mercantile interests of Cleveland it is imperative that mention be made, if the record be complete, of Fred J. and Mary E. Langer, who have directed their business ability and artistic perceptions into a channel which has brought them success, for the Langer millinery establishment is widely known throughout the country and is recognized by connoisseurs of fashion and art to be unexcelled. This enterprise was a success from its inception and has enjoyed a continually growing patronage. It was the first store to open in the Colonial arcade, where since February, 1898, they have been located.
Mrs. Langer is the eldest of six sisters and one brother and is the only one of a family in whom business qualities were developed. Her father, Adam Eyer- dam, following the death of the only son, Adam, Jr., wished that his daughter Mary should become the business head of the family and to this end gave her such training and instruction as should develop in her executive force and commercial qualities. The father was born in Germany in 1848 and after coming to the United States wedded Miss Mary Richner. He met with a substantial measure of suc- cess during his residence in Cleveland, becoming the owner of a beautiful apart- ment building in the east end and other interests. As is too frequent the case, when the time came that he might enjoy the fruits of his labors and the companion- ship of a happy family, he was called to the home beyond, passing away on the 26th of June, 1908. He left his widow lonely but well provided for. His daugh- ter Mary, whom he had trained in many of the ways of business, was only fif- teen years of age when she became connected with the millinery trade in the employ of Mrs. Shaw. She has been continuously engaged in the millinery busi- ness since that time and is not only one of the most popular representatives of the trade in the city but has the reputation of carrying the most artistic, beautiful and attractive line of goods in Cleveland. Her patrons include not only the best families of this city but of the state as well. Her conscientious methods of con- ducting business, as well as her skill in introducing artistic millinery ideas, have won for her a fame and reputation second to none in this line. At times an occasional customer, in order to avoid a three or four hours' wait, has drifted away but only to return to her establishment in order to find just that production in millinery which is most to be desired, and it is seldom, if ever, that a customer once secured does not remain as a patron always.
Mr. Langer was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1868, and is a son of Franz Lan- ger, who was a successful manufacturer of that country. To fulfill a promise made to his wife when she was upon her death bed he brought his family to America in order that the sons might avoid compulsory military service and have a chance in this new and free country to develop their latent talents in the field of industrial, commercial or professional activity. True to his promise Mr. Langer sacrificed his business interests, although this was to his disadvantage
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FRED J. LANGER
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financially, and came to the United States, settling in Cleveland in 1872. He brought with him his two sons, Frank and Fred J., and two daughters, Mary and Frances, the last named being now the wife of Anton Doering, of this city. In spite of his father's efforts Frank Langer, the elder son, enlisted in the regular United States Army soon after his arrival in the new world. He served faith- fully and bravely and after three years was honorably discharged and given transportation home, but when upon his homeward journey was drowned in the Missouri river at Yankton, South Dakota, and his remains were never recovered. The father, distracted by his son's death, never afterward engaged in active busi- ness and, heartbroken, passed away in 1883.
Fred J. Langer attended the common schools of Cleveland and afterward worked his way through the Cleveland Spencerian College. He entered the busi- ness world in connection with the wholesale millinery house of the Reed Brothers Company and there remained for twenty years, working his way steadily upward until successive promotions brought him to a prominent position in the business world. In 1896 he was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Eyerdam and in 1898 they established their millinery business in the Colonial arcade. Mrs. Langer has charge of the sales and trimming departments, while Mr. Langer gives his super- vision to the business management, their carefully devised and executed plans bringing them gratifying and substantial success. Their establishment is today unexcelled in Cleveland and, in fact, largely sets the standard for millinery pro- duction in this city. Mr. Langer is the inventor of Langer's dyerown outfit. It is designed for quickly tinting, dyeing, gilding or decorating soiled, old or even new flowers, foliage, wings, quills, wires, thread, fancy ornaments, etc., also black- ing straw hats and freshening up straw or felt hats, dyeing edges of same when cut and numerous other valuable everyday uses. He has also invented a "steamer" that steams, irons and renovates all at the same time.
Mr. Langer is well known in Masonic circles, belonging to Forest City Lodge, No. 388, F. & A. M .; Cleveland Chapter, R. A. M .; Holyrood Commandery, K. T .; and Al Koran Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He also has membership re- lations with the Commercial Travelers.
HARRISON ROMANSO NEWCOMB.
Learning the lessons of life which each experience brings and applying his knowledge correctly to the solution of the various business problems which have arisen, Harrison Romanso Newcomb, now deceased, made consecutive progress down through all the years to the time when as a retired banker he was known as one of the most astute and capable financiers of the city. Starting upon his business career as a bookkeeper and cashier of a prominent retail store of Cleve- land, he became one of the leading representatives of financial interests in the city, widely known as the president of the Citizens Savings & Trust Company. He was born in Parkman, Geauga county, Ohio, March 3, 1842, a son of Orris P. and Cordelia T. Newcomb. The father was a farmer and carpenter in early life, while in later years he became weil known as a wholesale lumber dealer. The ancestry in the paternal line is traced back to Captain Andrew Newcomb, one of the early American pioneers emigrating to this country from England Both parents descended from Connecticut families that were established in Ohie nearly a century ago.
Harrison Romanso Newcomb pursued his education in district schools and in the Hiram Eclectic Institute. He was reared as a farmer boy and in his youth became a teacher in the district schools. He afterward attended a com mercial college, thinking to prepare for a life of activity in the field of com merce, and when his course was finished secured the position of bookkeeper and cashier in a leading retail store in Cleveland. During the progress of the Civi
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war he served in the United States navy as paymaster's clerk for about a year and a half and after the close of the war became superintendent of the West Side Street Railway Company of Cleveland, in which position he continued for about three years. He afterward engaged in the wholesale lumber business with his father and another partner and his next advance step was made in the field of banking, with which he was connected until his recent retirement from the position of bank president. He was one of the organizers of the Savings & Trust Company, which commenced business May 8, 1883, and was the first trust com- pany established in Ohio. He was chosen as secretary and treasurer and eighteen years later became vice president and afterward was chosen to the presidency. At the time of the consolidation of the Savings & Trust Company, the Citizens Savings & Loan Association and the American Trust Company in 1903, under the name of the Citizens Savings & Trust Company, Mr. Newcomb was elected the head of the combined institutions and occupied that position until the Ist of January, 1910, giving the bank his undivided attention. The safe and conser- vative policy instituted at its inception has always been maintained and the financial records of the city indicate the high standing of the institution, the suc- cess of which is attributable in no small measure to the executive ability, keen discrimination and carefully formulated plans of Harrison R. Newcomb.
Perhaps the one thing that brought Mr. Newcomb more prominently before the public than any other occurred in January, 1902, when the Everett-Moore syndicate became financially embarrassed and a committee of bankers was or- ganized to direct liquidation of the securities owned by the syndicate and pay- ment of the indebtedness of the individual members and the corporations con- trolled by them. Mr. Newcomb was elected chairman of the bankers' commit- tee and for several months devoted his entire time to unraveling the syndicate's affairs. The amount involved was over eighteen million dollars and through careful handling under the personal direction of Mr. Newcomb, all of the cred- itors, secured and unsecured alike, received every dollar of principal and inter- est due them without resorting to the courts. Because of the condition of his health Mr. Newcomb felt that he could not, in justice to the institution and him- self, serve longer as president of the Citizens Savings & Trust Company and on the Ist of January, 1910, tendered his resignation, his successor being elected on that date. His resignation was accepted with the deepest regret on the part of the officials and directors of the bank. He thus brought financial activities to a close save for the management of his private interests. In a review of his financial record it is impossible to find an esoteric phase. He was ever recog- nized as a man of unimpeachable business integrity and in addition to the keen sagacity which enabled him to understand every phase of a business proposition and therefore utilize the opportunities to the best advantage, he employed only constructive measures, never sacrificing the interests of others in the establish- ment and upbuilding of his own. He therefore won and enjoyed the high honor of his fellow citizens and long occupied a notable position as one of the foremost representatives of financial affairs in Cleveland.
On the 10th of April, 1866, Mr. Newcomb was married in. Cleveland, Ohio, to Miss Mary M. Nickerson. They had one daughter, Ellen Cordelia, now the wife of Alfred William Ruple. The death of Mrs. Newcomb occurred in 1906. The whole life of Mr. Newcomb was given to active work. He took his first real vacation only a few years prior to his demise, when he made a European tour for the benefit of his wife's health. He gave his political allegiance to the republican party and was well known in various fraternal and social organiza- tions. He attained the Knight Templar degree in Masonry and was also a mem- ber of the Mystic Shrine. He belonged to the Union Club and the Clifton Park Club of Cleveland, was a member of the Christian church and a trustee of Hiram College, an educational institution of that denomination. Never unmind- ful of the responsibilities of life, the attainment of success was for him but a means to an end, for it is well known that his prosperity enabled him to become
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a generous donor to many charitable and benevolent institutions and projects. In editorial comment following the passing of Harrison R. Newcomb one of the local papers said: "His death takes away from the business world of this city a man who will long be remembered as a perfect type of the banker who is always safe, always conservative, always ready to do his part in public service of the kind which is more solid than showy, more a matter of quiet strength and absolute trustworthiness than of outward show and spectacular deeds of any kind. Mr. Newcomb was an admirable example for the younger financial leaders of the city, and the good effects of his career will long be felt in this part of Ohio. He succeeded largely and in a lasting, growing way, by the sound-
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