A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume III, Part 57

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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In 1907 Mr. Rust was united in marriage to Miss Irma L. Squire, a daughter of F. F. Squire. They hold membership in the Presbyterian church and Mr. Rust belongs to various social organizations, being prominent in the club life of the city as a member of the Union, Hermit, Country, Roadside and Quadrangle Clubs. His political allegiance is given to the republican party. He came to manhood well equipped by liberal education for the duties and responsibilities that have devolved upon him. To accumulate a fortune requires one kind of genius ; to retain a fortune already acquired, to add to its legitimate increment and to make such use of it that its possessors may derive therefrom the greatest enjoyment and the public the greatest benefit, requires another kind of genius. Mr. Rust belongs to that younger generation of business men in Cleveland who have been called upon to assume responsibilities materially different from those which devolved upon their predecessors. In a broader field of enterprise they find themselves obliged to deal with affairs of greater magnitude and to solve more difficult and complicated financial and economic problems. The subjective and objective forces in the life of John F. Rust are well balanced, making him cognizant of his own capabilities and powers, while at the same time he thor- oughly understands his opportunities and meets his obligations.

JOHN F. BELOW.

Cleveland is the home of branch establishments of some of the largest cor- porations in the country, it having been found necessary to maintain them in order to better handle the tremendous volume of trade which looks to this city for its source of supply. These branches are in the hands of sound and re- liable men who have been thoroughly tested before being advanced to their present positions. John F. Below, general manager of the Cleveland branch of Morris & Company, packers and provisioners, belongs to this class.

He was born in Cleveland, June 20, 1876, and is a son of Henry and Chris- tiana Below. 'After attending the public schools until he was seventeen years of age, Mr. Below spent two years at Çayton's Business College and was graduated from it, following which he obtained a position as timekeeper with the Buckeye Electric Company, and was later their shipping clerk, continuing with them for three years. At the end of that time he established a teaming business of his own and with twenty-eight horses did all the teaming for H. C. Christy & Com- pany, grocers, Radcliff & Gore, William Hoffman, Schener & Company, A. Dun-

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can, Jr., & Company, and other prominent houses. After he had built up an excellent business, Mr. Below sold it in 1904 and accepted a position as sales- man for Morris & Company. Recognizing his worth, this concern promoted him in 1907 to the position of general manager for the Cleveland branch. He has sixteen men under him and runs seven wagons, and since taking charge the sales have multiplied perceptably, while the affairs are in excellent condition.

On June 22, 1899, Mr. Below was married in Cleveland to Miss Margaret Miller, and they have one child, Helen, nine years old, who is attending the public schools. Mr. and Mrs. Below reside at No. 10827 Olivet avenue. He belongs to the Order of Eagles, and his political affiliations are with the repub- lican party, although he is not an office seeker. While not connected with any religious denomination, Mr. Below is a protestant in his beliefs. He belongs to the younger class of business men in Cleveland, who are demonstrating be- yond any question their ability to handle affairs, however weighty, that may be placed in their capable hands. Having been associated with the company for some years, he is thoroughly conversant with all its details and probably no better man could have been found for the position.

JOHN B. CORLETT.

There are few real-estate men of Cleveland whose operations have been so helpful in the improvement and expansion of the city, as John B. Corlett. He is improving his property along the most modern lines of city building and besides his large interests in Cleveland, in which he has consummated some of the most important real-estate deals here made, he has extensive holdings in Florida and elsewhere.

He was born in Warrensville, Ohio, March 15, 1846. His father, Phillip Cor- lett, was born on the Isle of Man in 1800 and came to the United States in 1822, making his way at once to Cleveland. He wedded Mary Ann Clayton, a native of this city and a daughter of William Clayton, a pioneer of Cleveland. They became the parents of two sons and six daughters, all of whom are now deceased with the exception of John B. Corlett and an elder sister, Mrs. Harvey Closs, who lives in Cleveland.

In the public schools John B. Corlett mastered the elementary branches of learning, continuing his studies through grade after grade until he was gradu- ated from the Warrensville high school, while commercial training was received in the Eastman Business College at Poughkeepsie, New York, of which he is an alumnus of 1868. After leaving school he became a stock drover, buying stock in the western states and making shipments to the east. He became an expert judge of cattle and was so engaged in business for eighteen years, during which time his financial resources gradually increased, enabling him with a substantial capital to turn his attention to the lumber and real-estate business. In the for- mer field he makes a specialty of supplying ties for city street railroads. He is perhaps best known by reason of his important real-estate operations, having allotments on Miles avenue, Rice avenue and Mars Hill. In this connection he is engaged in speculative building, erecting modern homes for sale. His largest allotment is Corlett village, which is just being developed and is laid out along attractive lines, with broad streets and every modern improvement.

In 1870 Mr. Corlett was united in marriage to Miss Ella S. Leonard, a na- tive of Cleveland, and unto them have been born three daughters. Ethel L., a graduate of the South high school and the Cleveland Normal, was a teacher in the public schools for many years and is now living in this city. Tressa, a graduate of the South high school is the wife of Judge Dellenbaugh. Eloise, the youngest, is five years of age.

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Mr. Corlett is a member of Newburg Lodge, No. 369, F. & A. M., and for thirty-eight years has been its treasurer-a state record in that capacity. He also affiliates with Baker Chapter, No. 139, R. A. M., of which he was high priest for two terms; Holyrood Commandery, No. 32, K. T .; and Al Koran Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S. He is in thorough sympathy with the purposes of the craft, taking an active interest in its work and exemplifying in his life its beneficent purposes.

For a number of terms Mr. Corlett has been a member of the Newburg school board and the cause of education finds in him a stalwart champion. His political allegiance is given to the republican party for he is a firm believer in its principles. The greater part of his life has been passed in this city and as a child he remembers celebrating the 4th of July of 1850 in the old courthouse on the square. He has watched with interest the gradual growth and devel- opment as the small town of a half century ago has become the metropolis of the state, and in recent years he has taken a very helpful and important part in the work which keeps Cleveland abreast with other cities in the lines of its material upbuilding, improvement and adornment.

SOLON L. SEVERANCE.

Solon L. Severance, for many years prominent in financial and commercial circles, was born in Cleveland, September 8, 1834. His father, Solomon Lewis Severance, coming as a young man from Shelburne, Massachusetts, in 1830, he- came one of Cleveland's earliest dry-goods merchants. His mother before her marriage was Miss Mary H. Long, only daughter of Dr. David Long, Cleveland's pioneer physician, who settled here in 1810 and married a daughter of Judge John Walworth. Mr. Severance's father died in 1838, leaving two sons, Solon L. and Louis H .. and the mother, who lived to be eighty-six years of age, passed away October 1. 1902.

The son Solon L. Severance was educated in the district and private schools of those early days. Commencing as an office boy at the age of fourteen, he worked his way upward in the banking business until, with others, he organized the Euclid Avenue National Bank, being its first cashier and last president, before its absorption into the Euclid Park and later the First National Bank. Mr. Sev- erance is still identified with banking interests, being a director of the First Na- tional, the largest bank in the state of Ohio.

On October 10, 1860, Mr. Severance was married to Miss Emily C. Allen, a native of Kinsman, Trumbull county, Ohio, where her father and grandfather were noted surgeons. Three children have been born to them: Julia, a graduate of Wells College. is the wife of Dr. B. L. Millikin, of this city. Professor Allen D. Severance. a graduate of Amherst College, class of 1889, a student at Oberlin and Hartford Theological Seminaries and the Universities of Halle, Berlin and Paris, has been identified for ten years with Adelbert College and the College for Women of Western Reserve University, where he is at present associate profes- sor of church history and instructor in historical bibliography. The youngest daughter, Mary, resides with her parents.

Mr. Severance is a member of the Union Club and the Chamber of Commerce. He has been prominent in religious and philanthropic work. Having been con- nected from boyhood with the Second Presbyterian church, he became later a charter member of the Woodland Avenue church, in which he served as an elder and Sunday school superintendent for many years. Mr. Severance has been some- thing of a traveler. He began his experiences as such on the notable voyage of the steamer Quaker City, the pioneer of tourist craft in eastern waters. This was a wooden ship of sixteen hundred tons burden, and the story of its cruise has been most entertainingly told by Mark Twain in his "Innocents Abroad." In his later

S. T .. SEVERANCE

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years, among other journeys, Mr. Severance has twice visited China and Japan and made the voyage around the world. These journeys and interests he has shared with friends and a wide public, giving many addresses illustrated by ster- eopticon, and striving to enlist their sympathy and cooperation in the cause of Christian missions.

F. W. COEN.

Few things are more gratifying in the world of business than a continuous advance that comes in recognition of a man's diligence and ability. F. W. Coen, who is the vice president and general manager of the Lake Shore Elec- tric Railway Company, exemplifies in the record of his life that there is- always opportunity for the man of parts who can prove himself worthy of responsi- bilities. He was born in Rensselaer, Indiana, June 15, 1872, a son of W. S. and Caroline Coen. The father is still living at Rensselaer, having retired to that town about fifteen years ago after a life devoted to agriculture.

F. W. Coen received his education in the public schools of Rensselaer and after graduating from the high school in 1890 taught in the country for one year. Then he became connected as a clerk with the Columbia National Bank for a short time and then went to Vermilion, Ohio, in the employ of The Erie County Banking Company as bookkeeper, remaining with them for two years and a half. In 1893 he became associated with the Sandusky, Milan & Nor- walk Electric Railway Company, being cashier. Next, in 1895, he became as- sistant secretary of the Lorain & Cleveland Railway, the firm name of which was changed in 1901 to the Lake Shore Electric Railway Company. In January, 1906, he became secretary and treasurer; in October of the following year was made treasurer and general manager; and in January, 1908, was made vice president and general manager. This rapid promotion indicates the esteem in which he is held. Although so prominent and influential a member of this concern Mr. Coen is also connected with others of almost equal importance. He is a director in the Sandusky Gas & Electric Company at Sandusky; is vice president and general manager of the Sandusky, Fremont & Southern Railway Company and of the Lorain Street Railway Company. He was also elected a director in the Electric Depot Company of Cleveland.

In 1898 Mr. Coen. wedded Miss Marion D. Rae, of Vermilion, Ohio, and unto them have been born three children: Marion, who is nine years of age; Helen, who is seven; and Douglas, who is five. The family occupies a fine residence in Lakewood, where a generous hospitality is extended to friends. Politically Mr. Coen has consistently espoused the cause of the republican party, although he has not devoted any time to municipal affairs. He has still the best years of his life before him and, judging from the record of the past, there is every reason that he should anticipate a larger sphere of usefulness that would make possible even more conspicuous advance.

ALVA R. DITTRICK.

Alva R. Dittrick, who for the past twelve years has successfully conducted business as a dealer in electrical supplies and is also engaged in the repair busi- ness at N. 8700 Lorain avenue, is the senior partner of the Dittrick & Jordan Electric Company. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on the 8th of April, 1872, a son of Roscoe and Fanny Dittrick. The paternal grandfather, Alva Dit- trick, a native of St. Catherines, Canada, was actively engaged as a paving con-

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tractor with his two sons Roscoe and Alonzo throughout his entire business career.

Alva R. Dittrick attended the public schools until fourteen years of age and then spent one year as a student in the Ohio Business College. Subsequently he worked in various capacities for the old West Side Line Railroad during a period of two years and afterward was employed as a machinist by the Wrought Iron Bridge Company at Canton, Ohio, there remaining for three years. Re- turning to Cleveland, he again entered the service of the West Side Line Rail- road and for four years had charge of the electrical department of the company. After severing his connection therewith he started out in the electric repairing business on his own account at No. 8700 Lorian avenue and in the intervening nine years has built up an extensive and profitable enterprise. The Dittrick & Jordan Electric Company now has representatives in all parts of the United States and the business has grown so rapidly that it has been found necessary to build three additions to the factory.

On the 10th of December, 1896, Mr. Dittrick was joined in wedlock to Miss Hattie Nevill. Their union has been blessed with three children, namely: Fanny and Jannette, who are attending the public schools; and Alva.

Since age conferred upon him the right of franchise Mr. Dittrick has given his political allegiance to the republican party, believing that its principles are most conducive to good government. In religious faith he is a Congregationalist and fraternally is identified with the Knights of Pythias. Although his advan- tages were very few in early life, he has eagerly embraced every opportunity for advancement and his laudable ambition, close application and recognized ability have gained him a place among the substantial and representative busi- ness men of his native city.

JOHN HARROW SMART.

John Harrow Smart was born in Willoughby, Ohio, October 3, 1872. His father, Samuel Welch Smart, a native of London, England, was born January 26, 1830. During his infancy he was brought by his parents to the United States and, reared in a family resembling the New England type in its simple democratic tastes and habits of religion, his years unfolded with a security and a simplicity that later ones enriched without disturbing. With the exception of a few years spent in Cleveland, he passed his life in Willoughby, where he was prominently connected, as a merchant and banker and where he died August 20, 1904. He married 'Apphia Gray Harrow, who was born in Winchester, Kentucky, October 25, 1836, and died in Willoughby, March 4, 1909. To this union, there were born two sons, John and James. The paternal grandfather, Samuel Smart, was born in Devizes, England, in 1800. He settled in Cleveland in 1830 and established one of the early commercial interests of the city, at the corner of Superior street and the Public Square. Later, he moved to and became one of the foremost citizens of Willoughby, where he died in 1882.

The subject of this sketch entered and graduated from the Willoughby pub- lic schools in 1892. In 1895 he graduated from Trinity College, Hartford, Con- necticut, and received the degree of B. S. While at Trinity College he became a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He studied law at Harvard University, receiving the degree of LL. B. in 1898, since which time he has been engaged in the general practice of law in Cleveland.

Mr. Smart is a member of the University Club, the Nisi Prius Club and of the Chamber of Commerce. His religious belief is indicated by his membership in the Protestant Episcopal church and his political faith in his support of the democratic party. In 1908 he received the party nomination for the gen- eral assembly of the state but was defeated largely through the influence of

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municipal questions which arose at that time to defeat the democratic ticket. During the first nine years of his professional career, Mr. Smart made no alliance with other members of his profession, but early in 1909 he formed a partnership with Francis R. Marvin and C. B. Ford, and is now practicing un- der the firm name of Smart, Marvin & Ford.

GEORGE M. PINKETT.

The Cleveland branch of Armour & Company has for the past five years been under the management of George M. Pinkett and in his hands has enjoyed remarkable prosperity. Though of English extraction, he was born in Elyria, Ohio, September 6, 1857, his parents being Samuel and Maria Pinkett. His maternal grandfather, William Morris, was an Englishman who met with suc- cess as a wholesale butcher and died in 1903. His paternal grandfather, Walter Pinkett, died in 1869. His father was born in Somersetshire, England, Decem- ber 1, 1826, and in early life learned the butcher's trade. He came to the United States in 1855 and located in Elyria, Ohio, but in 1863 removed to Franklin, Pennsylvania, where for four years he engaged successfully in the wholesale meat business. He made his way ultimately to Cleveland, where he again en- gaged in the meat business, which has ever been a popular one in the family, and he died here, August 1, 1880.

Leaving school at the age of fourteen years, George M. Pinkett secured a position with James Gibbon & Company, dealers in meats and provisions, and so valuable were his services and so well did he succeed in winning the confidence of his employers that he remained with them from 1874 until 1891, a period of seventeen years, and he finally became secretary and manager of the concern. When, in 1903, 'Armour & Company bought out the wholesale department Mr. Pinkett became their Cleveland manager. He was also intrusted with the open- ing of branch houses at Akron, Canton, Youngstown, Sandusky, Findlay and Lorain, Ohio. His success has been undoubted. Another business association is that of directorship in the Gibbon & Pinkett Company.

Miss M. Caloo, of Cleveland, became the wife of Mr. Pinkett, January I, 1883, and they are the parents of two sons, George, fifteen years old, and Jo- seph, thirteen years old, both of whom are pupils in the Catholic schools. The Pinkett home is at 1901 East Fortieth street.

Mr. Pinkett holds membership in the Elks and the Eagles and gives loyal support to the republican party. By the exercise of intelligent industry and the employment of progressive ideas he has carved for himself a secure niche in the world of affairs, and in his social relations is quite as successful.

ERNST KONIGSLOW.

Ernst Konigslow, the proprietor of the E. Konigslow Stamping & Tool Works of Cleveland, was born in this city on the 18th of January, 1852, a son of Herman and Charlotte Konigslow. The father, whose birth occurred in Hamburg, Germany, on the 10th of February, 1823, made the voyage to this country in 1849, taking up his abode in Cleveland, Ohio, where he is now living retired. Throughout his active life he was successfully engaged in the machin- ery business.

Ernst Konigslow attended the public schools of his native city until eight years of age and then went to Hamburg, Germany, where he continued his studies until he had attained the age of eighteen. On returning to Cleveland he entered the employ of A. & G. Rettberg, wholesale and retail dealers in fancy goods,

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serving as bookkeeper. At the end of seven years he severed his connection with that concern and started out in business on his own account as a partner of his brother Otto, opening a factory on Prospect avenue for the manufacture of novelty and specialty machinery. In 1890 he sold out his interest in the enterprise and the following year established the E. Konigslow Stamping & Tool Works at Nos. 323 to 327 Champlain avenue, where he has since con- ducted a most successful and constantly growing business. Punching dies, form- ing dies, special machinery, experimental and model work, novelties and patented articles are manufactured by contract, and the company also does elec- troplating in nickel, copper, brass and bronze.

In his political views Mr. Konigslow is independent, while fraternally he is identified with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He resides at No. 5901 Detroit avenue. With the exception of the period of ten years which he spent in Germany, he has always made his home in this city and therefore has a very wide and favorable acquaintance here. His entire business career has been marked by steady advancement and in industrial circles he has maintained an unassailable reputation for business integrity as well as enterprise.

HARRIS GRAY SHERMAN, M. D.

Dr. Harris Gray Sherman, who in his practice specializes in the treatment of diseases of the eye and ear, was born in Garrettsville, Portage county, Ohio, June 6, 1856. His father, Dr. A. M. Sherman, a native of Massachusetts, ar- rived in Ohio in 1832, making the journey westward with his parents, who settled in Portage county. His preparation for a professional career was completed by his graduation from the medical department of the Western Reserve Uni- versity in the class of 1851, and he then located for practice in Kent, Ohio, where he remained for forty-five years. He is now living retired and resides in Pasadena, California, where he is president of the Ohio Society of that place. Although now in his eighty-fourth year he still possesses wonderful physical and mental vigor and perfect health. He was for many years very active in both professional and church circles of this state and was a stanch advocate of progress and improvement. He served as president of the Alumni Association of the Western Reserve Medical College, was president of the Northeast Ohio Medical Society and three times was president of the Ohio State Universalists Association. His father was Captain Harris Sherman, and the more remote ancestral history shows Dr. Sherman to be a direct descend- ant of Captain John Sherman, who arrived at Salem, Massachusetts, in 1630, from Dedham, England. He is a member of the Sons of The American Revolu- tion. Dr. A. M. Sherman wedded Harriet Adelia Gray, who was born in Ohio of Scotch parentage and died in 1904 at the age of sixty-seven years.

Dr. Harris Gray Sherman, an only child, spent his boyhood in Kent and was graduated from the public schools there at the age of seventeen years. He afterward entered Buchtel College, where he continued until the close of the junior year, after which he devoted one year to an elective course in the Uni- versity of Michigan. On the expiration of that period he took up the study of medicine in the office of Doctors Scott, Bennett and Everett. and subse- quently matriculated in the College of Physicians and Surgeons of New York, the medical department of Columbia University, from which he received his degree in 1880. He then spent two years in London, Berlin, Vienna and Paris, and upon his return after pursuing his researches and studies under some of the eminent authorities of the old world he entered upon active practice in Cleve- land, in July, 1882. He has confined his attention to diseases of the eye and ear and in his specialty has won much more than local note, his fellow mem-

DR. 11. G. SHERMAN

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bers of the profession as well as the laity attesting to the high skill which he displays in this field of practice.

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A history of Cleveland, Ohio, Volume III, Part 57

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