USA > Ohio > Hamilton County > Cincinnati > Centennial history of Cincinnati and representative citizens, Vol. II, Pt. 2 > Part 25
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On November 25, 1903, at Christ Church, the marriage of Mary Kil-
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gour Stone, daughter of our subject, and Percy Wyfold Stout was bril- liantly celebrated, being followed by a reception at the Stone residence; in Vernonville. Mr. and Mrs. Stout expect to live in Egypt.
The committee appointed by the Chamber of Commerce to prepare a memorial paper on the death of Captain Stone referred very feelingly to his many manly virtues, presenting a graceful tribute to his memory. We quote from the paper as follows :
"Born of the people, and a firm believer in the practical doctrines of equality, he had no undue regard for caste; to him there was but one law of inherited virtue, that of equal and exact justice to rich and poor, high and lowly; supported by an abiding regard for the distinction created by true merit alone. The pomp and glitter of amassed wealth never dazzled his clear vision, he only sought for means that would bring the largest happi- ness to the greatest number; hence he rejoiced whenever success crowned the right, no matter by whom achieved.
"Modest and unassuming, warm-hearted and companionable, he pos- sessed that rare faculty of handling public questions with that firmness and decision, which generally resulted in promoting the best interests of the city of his adoption without arousing petty jealousies or factious opposition.
"As a soldier he was patriotic, brave and efficient ; as a friend loyal, sincere and tolerant; as a business man just, honorable and true to every pledge. No woman was more gentle, kind and indulgent than he, until aroused by unjust criticism, when he defended his convictions with the courage of a lion.
"On Monday, March IIth, his bereaved family and personal friends, with sorrowful hearts, but quietly and unostentatiously, paid to his memory . their last sad tribute of respect by accompanying his remains to the quiet city of the dead-beautiful Spring Grove-where for years to come his grave will be bedewed with tears of genuine sorrow.
"While we shall never again feel the warm hand-grasp of our departed associate and friend, the sweet memories of his sunny smile and generous nature, will ever remain among the most pleasant recollections of one
We shall hope to meet and greet In Time's declining sun, When the bugle of God shall sound recall And the battle of life is won.
"While thus bowed in humble submission to the will of Divine Provi-
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dence, we tender to his bereaved wife and loving children that sympathy which those alone can feel who have shared his love, and beg them to accept with us that consolation which comes from a firm belief that such souls as his are born to a happy immortality."
A portrait of Captain Stone accompanies this sketch of his life, being presented on a foregoing page.
SOLOMON LANGDON.
SOLOMON LANGDON, son of Oliver Langdon and Nancy Brown, was born at Columbia, Ohio (which is now part of Cincinnati), April 27, 1812, his parents having settled in Columbia about 1810, thinking that would be where Cincinnati would be located.
ITe received his early education in the country school located at Red Bank, Ohio, an adjoining village. Before finishing his schooling, he accepted a position in the Cincinnati Post Office, which position he held for about 18 years, or until 1846. During that year, he, together with Stanley Hatch, formed the private banking firm of Hatch & Langdon, conducting what was known as the Central Bank, located in the old Court House Building, at the corner of Main and Court streets. They continued in the banking business until the great crash of 1857, when he became associated with Lyman Perin, in the commission, flour and grain business. Then in 1860 he became asso- ciated with Burbeck & Haight in the same line of business, and at the breaking out of the Civil War they began the baking for the army of what is com- monly known as "hard tack."
In 1865 he was associated with G. K. Withington in the baking of aerated bread. In 1874 he associated with him his son, Perin, under the firm name of Sol. Langdon & Son Company, and a general baking business was done until his death, January 15, 1887.
Solomon Langdon married Martha Perin, daughter of Samuel Perin, of Perin's Mills, Clermont County, Ohio, December 14, 1837; she was born February 10, 1817, and died July 26, 1891. They had To children, four of whom are now living, namely : Clara Langdon Bailey, widow of John Ward Bailey, deceased; Jennie Langdon Burton, wife of William T. Burton; Perin
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Langdon, whose wife is a daughter of Henry Franklin and Mary Frances (Erwin) West ; and Lillie Langdon Gates, wife of James H. Gates.
During his early married life, Mr. Langdon lived on the north side of Fourth street, two doors east of Vine, then moved to Court street, between Race and Elm, then to Seventh street, between Vine and Walnut, where he died, which house has been occupied by some members of the family for more than 50 years. He was an active member of the Chamber of Com- merce during his entire business career. He never held office of any kind, but devoted his time to the care of his. family.
HON. JOHN SHERMAN.
The name of this late distinguished statesman reflects a luster upon the State of Ohio which will grow brighter and brighter as the calm judgment of the future careful historian places his great services to his country in the proper light. The city of Cincinnati also lays claim to this eminent states- man on account of the interest he always displayed in the prosperity of his State's metropolis, his furthering of her enterprises and the location of dis- tinguished members of his family.
It would be impossible in the limits of a biography of the present scope to do more than touch upon the leading events in the history of so promi- nent a citizen not only of Ohio, but of the United States. John Sherman was born March 10, 1823, at Lancaster, Ohio, and was a son of Hon. Charles R. Sherman, judge of the Supreme Court of Ohio. The parental family con- sisted of six children, of whom all are now deceased. The youngest son, Maj. Hoyt Sherman, was the last to be called to his reward ; he died Janu- ary 25, 1904, aged 76 years, at his home in Des Moines, Iowa, where he had lived and been identified with the interests of the section since 1848. Of the five children born to Maj. Hoyt Sherman and wife, four survive, among these Mrs. Frank B. Wiborg, of Cincinnati, whose husband is vice-president and secretary of The Ault & Wiborg Company, manufacturers of printing inks and fine dry colors. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, whose services to the North in the Civil War were incalculable, was a brother of John and Hoyt Sherman.
At the age of 14 years John Sherman began the study of civil engineer-
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ing, two years later entering the law office of his brother, the late Charles T. Sherman, of Mansfield, Ohio. Three years later he was admitted to the bar, engaged in partnership with his brother in the practice of the law, and entered actively into political life and in 1848 and again in 1852 was selected a delegate to the National Whig Convention of which he was secretary in the latter year. By 1854 he had become known over the State for his active opposition to the extension of slave territory and was elected a member of the 34th Congress. He served four terms in Congress with the greatest distinction. As chairman of the ways and means committee, he became the leader in the House of Representatives. His foresight pre- dicted the Civil War, in which his distinguished brother, William Tecum- seh, became the people's idol, and when President Lincoln advanced Senator Salmon P. Chase, another of Ohio's sons, to the office of Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. . Sherman was immediately sent by Ohio to the United States Senate. The great work he performed for his country in this position, in the trying period between 1861 and 1877, is a matter of national history. In March of the latter year he was called to the cabinet of President Hayes as Secretary of the Treasury, in which position it will be recalled he directed the course of the bill for the resumption of the payment of specie, one of the greatest financial moves of the Congress of 1876, guiding the country into the honorable paths of financial integrity and strengthening the government at home and abroad. In 1897 he became Secretary of State in the cabinet of President William Mckinley, but did not live to complete four years of service in that position, dying October 22, 1900. Looking over the public life and services of this departed statesman, it is a matter of wonder that his years could have covered so much and have contained such great achieve- ments.
As a public man Mr. Sherman was more than respected,-he was ad- mired and venerated. He was devoted to the Republican party which he had helped to organize in 1855, and was always an indefatigable worker for its success. The highest office in the land was more than once within his grasp, but personal as well as political integrity, also, on more than one occasion, caused him to step aside. Mr. Sherman will be recalled as one of the greatest men of his time, one whose wisdom and firmness of purpose strengthened his country's credit during her time of storm and stress, and one who deserved the gratitude of his fellow citizens.
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In 1883 Mr. Sherman was elected as an honorary member of the Cin- cinnati Chamber of Commerce, and on various occasions during his visits to the city was pleased to address the association with words of encouragement . and approbation. Mr. Sherman married Cecilia Stewart.
BRIGGS SWIFT.
BRIGGS SWIFT, for many years .one of the prominent, successful and representative citizens of Cincinnati, died at the beautiful home of his daughter, Mrs. H. L. Breneman, on Reading road, October 28, 1890, very near the spot where he was born March 18, 1811. He was a son of Jedediah B. and Eunice (Chase) Swift, who came to Ohio from Wareham, Massa- chusetts. The elder Mr. Swift was a farmer and his son was reared to agri- cultural pursuits.
It was the wish of the father that the youth should continue to till the broad acres and succeed to the homestead farm; but as the latter advanced to early manhood he began to feel the restrictions of rural life and to fret against the limited opportunities for development. His ambitions were en- couraged by his mother, and through her assistance he left the farm at the age of 16 years and journeyed to Cincinnati, beginning his business career as inker in the press room of the Cincinnati Gazette. His further duties in- cluded the carrying of the papers through what was then known as the "bot- tom route," which covered all the territory below Third street. Mr. Swift was one of the first carriers of the daily issue of the paper, and continued with the paper until he went to the Chronicle of which Benjamin Drake was then editor. Later he finished his apprenticeship with the firm of Whetstone & Buckstone. When Mr. Whetstone formed a partnership with the noted poet and author, George D. Prentice, and established the Louisville Journal, Mr. Swift worked with that paper for a year. Later he went to New Orleans, having been previously connected with the Methodist Book Concern. At that time New Orleans was paying better wages than any other city in the country and as Mr. Swift was a most capable workman, he earned $40 per week, which gave him a chance to accumulate enough to enable him to return to Cincinnati, and here, in partnership with a Mr. Merick, to embark in a flat- boat business on the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. This proved a successful
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venture. At a later date, with two of his brothers, he built a flouring mill at Murry's Lock, about 16 miles from Cincinnati. When he sold that plant to his brothers some years later, he went into a commission business with Jason Evans, and subsequently began the packing of pork. Later he became presi- dent of the Fidelity Bank.
On September 17, 1846, Mr. Swift was married to Martha P. Hubbell, who was a daughter of Gabriel Hubbell, a well known citizen of Cincinnati. Mrs. Swift died July 25, 1854, leaving two daughters, Mrs. Joseph Clark Thoms and Mrs. Herbert L. Breneman. Mr. and Mrs. Thoms have one daughter, Eunice Swift, who married Robert L. Resor, a son of William and Isabella Livingston ( Brown) Resor,-one son, Joseph Thoms, has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Resor. Mr. and Mrs. Breneman have two daughters: Martha Swift, who married John Moore Richardson of Glendale, Ohio; and Helen. Mr. and Mrs. Breneman reside at the beautiful old Swift homestead, known as "Swifton," a charming estate at Bond Hill, Ohio.
Mr. Swift was a man of most remarkable business ability, almost all of his enterprises proving successful. He possessed unusual vitality, and until he was accidentally shot in 1884, on the day after the Court House riot, he gave no indication of any pressing weight of years. He was always active in cooperating with his fellow citizens in benefiting the city, and, while alert and careful of his own interests, he was generous to the poor and kind to the afflicted. His personality was such as to make him much beloved in his own family.
PEIRCE JONAH CADWALADER.
PEIRCE JONAH CADWALADER, an attorney-at-law of Cincinnati, was born in Warren County, Ohio, December 27, 1853, and is of Friends ancestry, the family having been members of the Society of Friends since the time of George Fox. His people came to this country with William Penn, and first settled in Philadelphia. Many meetings of the Society were held at their residences, and Friends schools established by them, which were also con- ducted by them and held at their residences. Some of them went to Vir- ginia near Lynchburg, where they remained for two generations, thence com- ing to Ohio. .
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He is a son of Andrew Whitacre and Esther ( Peirce) Cadwalader and a grandson of Jonah Cadwalader and Richard Peirce.
Jonah Cadwalader came to Cincinnati from Virginia in 1812, on horse- back, and was one of the original subscribers for the purchase of a lot and the erection of a Friends Meeting House, which was formerly owned and occupied by the Society of Friends on Fifth street, west of Central avenue.
The great-grandfather of our subject, Robert Whitacre, was one of the original committee selected by. Miami Quarterly Meeting in 1813, to establish a Friends Meeting in Cincinnati. Jonah Cadwalader, after engag- ing in business in Cincinnati for a time, moved to Warren County, Ohio, where he purchased several sections of land and engaged in farming, and married Priscilla Whitacre. His residence, in which one of his sons now resides, was the first brick house erected in that part of the country.
Andrew Whitacre Cadwalader was a farmer and wool merchant in War- ren County, Ohio, for many years. He now resides in Cincinnati, with his wife. He married Esther Peirce, a daughter of Richard Peirce, who came to Cincinnati from Delaware in 1812, coming down the Ohio River from Pittsburg on a flat-boat. He remained in Cincinati for a short time, and then moved to Clinton County, Ohio, where he engaged sucessfully in the manufacture of fur hats, and married Mary Fallis.
Peirce Jonah Cadwalader spent his boyhood days on a farm in War- ren County, and attended the district schools. In 1870 he came to Cincinnati and four years later was graduated from the Chickering Institute with the honors of his class. He then began preparation for the legal profession in the office of Lincoln, Smith & Stephens, and attended the Cincinnati Law School, from which he was graduated in 1878. He has since been engaged in the practice of the law in Cincinnati, and enjoys the confidence and esteem of his fellow attorneys.
Mr. Cadwalader was married January 26, 1882, to Ella L. Bacon, a daughter of Richard Seely Bacon, founder of Bacon's Business College in Cincinnati, and of Bacon's Business College in Madison, Wisconsin. Her mother was a daughter of Thomas Hartley Johnson, who came to Cincin- nati in 1829, and for a long time was one of the city's prominent and suc- cessful shoe merchants. The great-grandfather of our subject's wife was Robert Reiley, who came to Hamilton County before the then village of Cin-
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cinnati had received its name. He was a contracting builder and erected many of the buildings in the town of Cincinnati, several of which are still standing, in a good state of preservation; among them may be mentioned the Kilgour residence, now the United States Marine Hospital. He had the contract for laying the first water mains in Cincinnati, which were constructed of logs, having a three-inch hole bored through their center. Her great- great-grandfather, John Reiley, when a very young man, enlisted in the Con- tinental Army and served for three years, when he was disabled by a rifle ball, and was then honorably discharged. He was at Valley Forge, and fought at Trenton and Saratoga. Mr. and Mrs. Cadwalader and children, -- Richard Bacon and Louise,-reside on Mount Auburn.
GEORGE SLIMER.
During the last decade, the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce has parted with many of its useful and prominent members, and few have been more sincerely mourned than the late George Slimer, whose death occurred May 17, 1893.
Mr. Slimer was of French extraction, born May 6, 1820, in Alsace, France, and was 10 years of age when he first became a resident of the city of Cincinnati. Early engaging in butchering, he built up a prosperous business, and by energy and industry accumulated means which gave him a fair start in life, his business faculty and shrewd judgment thus enforced placing him later in the forefront of a number of successful commercial organizations. For over 12 years he was largely engaged in pork pack- ing, and he was one of the founders of that great enterprise: The Cincin- nati Union Stock Yards. The demands created by the Civil War gave him an opportunity to test his business ability and from 1861 to 1863 he failfully fulfilled an important contract with the United States government. During 15 years he was a member of the firm of Slimer & Dater, known far beyond the State as leading pork packers of Cincinnati. Although he was interested in many other lines of activity which were always prosperous, he devoted his energies exclusively to Cincinnati, his investments in this city giving rich returns and enabling him to build up a large fortune. Perhaps no better idea of the estimate of the late Mr. Slimer can be given than the
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record furnished by the Chamber of Commerce, in which organization he had so long been a leading factor :
"George Slimer was a good citizen, honest and upright in all his deal- ings, and his word was as good as his bond. For 30 years he was a mem- ber of the Chamber of Commerce, and his familiar figure was almost daily seen on 'Change, where he was ever warmly welcomed. Mr. Slimer was a true type of that generation which is fast passing away-men of rugged character, unflinching courage and indefatigable industry. His place will be hard to fill in this community, and the memory of 'Uncle' George Slimer will long be kept green in the minds and hearts of his friends." This beauti- ful tribute was signed by the well known names of Michael Ryan, J. D. Par- ker, F. A. Laidley, Warren Rawson, and F. A. Rothier, members of the Chamber of Commerce committee.
On February 3, 1861, George Slimer was married to Louisa Kuhn, the only daughter of the late Michael Kuhn, born April 3, 1834, and deceased September 5, 1902. The children of this union were: Ellen, who married . Henry Muhlhauser, Jr., treasurer of The Windisch-Muhlhauser Brewing Company ; George, who succeeded his father in the stock yard interests ; Will- iam C., deceased; Amelia, who married Joseph Adams who is connected with The Post-Glover Electric Company of this city; and Amanda, who married Frederick Koehler, Jr., of Cincinnati, the family being thus connected with some of the largest industries of the city. Mr. Slimer and wife reared their children in the German Protestant Church to which he was always a most liberal contributor.
The life history of a man like Mr. Slimer, with early disadvantages and discouragements, should be an inspiration to others, thrown as he was, in childhood, upon his own resources, for it shows what can be accomplished by industry, perseverance and integrity of aim.
CHARLES MANFRED THOMPSON.
CHARLES MANFRED THOMPSON was born December 7, 1857, in But- ler County, Ohio, on the line between that county and Warren. He is the son of James Milton Thompson and Charlotte Voorhis, his wife. When he was about a year old, his parents moved their residence a few hundred
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JOHN B. MORRIS.
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feet, which brought the homestead into Warren County, in which county they have resided since that date. He was educated in the common schools of Warren County until he had attained the age of 16 years, at which time he entered the National Normal University at Lebanon where he graduated in 1877, taking the degree of Bachelor of Arts. Immediately thereafter, he entered the law school of the Universty of Michigan, at Ann Arbor. After studying there for a year, he entered the senior class of the law school of the Cincinnati College, where he graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Laws in the class of 1879. He immediately entered upon the practice of the law at Lebanon in Warren County, and shortly afterwards entered into partnership with W. F. Eltzroth, under the firm name of Eltzroth & Thompson. This partnership continued until 1886, when he formed a partnership with Frank M. Gorman of Cincinnati, under the firm name of Gorman & Thompson. He retained his residence in Lebanon until 1892, at which time he moved to Lockland in Hamilton County, where he has resided since that date. The partnership association with Mr. Gorman was dissolved in 1902.
Mr. Thompson was married July 2, 1879, to Emma O. Harper, by whom he has one daughter. After the death of his first wife he was married on November 26, 1903, to Wilhelmina Bauer of Cincinnati. He is a mem- ber of the Literary Club of Cincinnati and The Cincinnati Bar Associa- tion.
JOHN B. MORRIS.
JOHN B. MORRIS, president of The John B. Morris Foundry Company and a leading citizen of Cincinnati, whose portrait appears on the opposite page, died at his home at No. 2298 Harrison avenue, on February 6, 1903, the immediate cause of death being pneumonia, which resisted the skill of the most eminent physicians.
Mr. Morris was born in 1836 in Tralee, Ireland, of Welsh and English parents. He was a son of John and Ann (Parker) Morris, and grandson of John Morris. He was six years of age when he came with his parents to Cincinnati, which city was the scene of his entire business career. He en- gaged in the business life of the community when quite young in years, serving an apprenticeship at the jeweler's trade under Henry Clayton, at
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that time a well known jeweler of the city, and afterward succeeding hin. He followed his trade until 1876 when he engaged in the hardware business, taking as a partner Thomas S. Ireland. He next engaged in the foundry business at Court and Harriet streets, becoming president of The John B. Mor- ris Foundry Company. This business was first established on its present site as early as 1832 by Miles Greenwood. It was reestablished by Mr. Morris in 1886, and in 1890 was incorporated with a capital stock of $100,000. The plant occupies a half block, and in it are employed a force of 165 men. Since the death of our subject, its officers have been: George McG. Morris, president and treasurer, and S. M. Blackburn, secretary. Mr. Morris was interested in other business enterprises and was also prominent in public affairs. At the time of his death he was president of the Board of Equal- ization.
Mr. Morris was the oldest Mason of Lafayette Lodge, No. 81, and was also a member of Douglass Lodge, No. 21, Knights of Pythias He was an Episcopalian, and in political affiliations was a Republican. In the death of Mr. Morris, Cincinnati lost a citizen of sterling worth. In many ways he was a representative of its best life, and he will be recalled as a man of business integrity and of public spirit.
JAMES McFARLAN.
JAMES McFARLAN, deceased, was for almost a half century identified with the business interests of Cincinnati and became well and widely known in the wholesale grocery trade all over the country. He was born in Lon- don, England, in 1818, and was a son of James and Anna (Becroft) Mc- Farlan.
Mr. McFarlan first made his home in Cincinnati in 1833, II years later entering upon what proved a remarkably successful business career. He bought out Levi Coffin and opened a grocery store in a modest way, which in six months had expanded into a business which required the assistance of a partner and Richard Gaines was admitted, the firm name becoming Mc- Farlan & Gaines. Two years later Mr. Gaines retired and some years later Mr. McFarlan became associated with Cyrus Cheney, still remaining the leading member of the firm, which continued until the death of Mr. Cheney.
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