USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > Centennial history of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio, Vol. I > Part 51
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In this city, in 1887, Mr. Huston was married to Miss Julia Samuel, a daughter of Samuel Edmond Samuel, the first jobbing druggist of Columbus, now deceased. Mrs. Huston is deeply interested in charities and has done much important work in that connection. By her marriage she has become the mother of two children: Florence L. and Archibald C.
As the years have passed Mr. Huston has become associated with various interests of a public character that have been important factors in the growth and progress of the city, and has contributed either directly or indirectely to individual enterprise. He is a member of the Columbus Board of Trade, of the executive committee of the Ohio Shippers Association, the executive com- mittee of the Columbus Traffic Bureau and is the first vice president of the Columbus Good Roads Federation. He is also chairman of the executive com- mittee of the Columbus Vehicle Owners Association. In thorough sympathy with the beneficent spirit and purposes of Masonry, he is connected with var- ious departments of the craft, including the Mount Vernon Commandery, K. T., while in the spring of 1908 he was president of the Scottish Rite class. In more specifically social lines he is connected with the Columbus Automo- bile Club, the Columbus Country Club and the Ohio Club. It was truly through his efforts that the Ohio Good Roads Federation was organized in January, 1909, his associate in this work being George W. Lattimer. To furthering the object of the organization he has given much time for the past
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two years. He believes thoroughly in good roads and civic improvements, and his influence and efforts have been very effective in these lines. He is now chairman of a joint committee from the Columbus Board of Trade and the . Columbus Traffic Bureau to investigate the advisability of building a belt line around Columbus, and doubtless their efforts will produce the desired results in the near future.
His political allegiance is given to the republican party, where national issues are involved, but at local elections he casts an independent ballot, nor has he ever sought or desired political preferment. He is a lover of outdoor sports, especially hunting and horseback riding, and has made many trips for big game. Such, in brief, is the history of Mr. Huston. The distinctive office of biography, however, is not to give voice to a man's modest estimate of him- self and his accomplishments, but rather to leave the perpetual record of establishing his position by the consensus of public opinion. Throughout Columbus Mr. Huston is spoken of in terms of admiration and respect. His life has been so varied in its activity, so honorable in its purposes and 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 annals of the state. In no sense a man in public life he has nevertheless exerted an immeasurable influence on the city of his residence through the promotion of business enter- prises, through his devotion to the public good, and in social circles by reason of a charming personality and unfeigned cordiality.
CLAYTON A. McCLEARY.
Clayton A. McCleary, a successful lawyer of the Columbus bar, is making steady progression in a calling where advancement must depend entirely upon individual merit resulting from strong mentality and the ability to recognize the relation of cause and effect and to bring into a unified harmony facts which at first glance seem to have no connection. Mr. McCleary is a native of Harrisville, Ohio, born September 24, 1875, his parents being Clayton A. and Henrietta (Holmes) McCleary. His father was admitted to the bar, but never practiced to any extent, giving his attention and sympathies to dealing in live- stock. He was also known in financial circles as one of the directors in a Cadiz (Ohio) bank.
Clayton A. McCleary was but four years of age at the time of his father's death, in 1879. He was reared on the old home farm and in early boyhood attended the district school, while later he pursued a course in Franklin Col- lege, graduating in 1897, with the degree of P.H.M. He then took up the study of law in the Ohio State University and was graduated in 1900, with the degree of LL. B. In June of that year he was admitted to the bar and entered upon the practice of his profession in Columbus, spending one year in the office of his uncle, Colonel J. T. Holmes. On the completion of the New Hay- den building in the spring of 1902 he became one of its first tenants, and has
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since occupied the same office here, doing the arduous office work which must always precede the forceful presentation of a case in the courts.
On the 3d of January, 1906, Mr. McCleary was married to Miss Maybell Crawford, a daughter of Mrs. Sarah M. Crawford, of Columbus. They are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and are highly esteemed by many friends. Mr. McCleary is a member of the State Bar Association and enjoys the respect and good will of his professional brethren. He belongs to the var- ious Masonic bodies, including the Columbus blue lodge, No. 30, and he has also taken the degree of the Scottish Rite, while with the Nobles of Aladdin Temple of the Mystic Shrine he has crossed the sands of the desert. Inter- ested in politics, he is a member of the democratic county central committee and the county executive committee, and does all in his power to further the interests of the party which he supports. He is always fearless in defense of his honest convictions and his position, therefore, is an unequivocal one. AII who know him respect him for his genuine worth, and his friends rejoice in the success that he has achieved as a member of the Columbus bar.
JOSEPH STEVENSON RALSTON.
Choosing at the outset of his career as a rule of life a maxim which con- tains essential elements of success, Joseph Stevenson Ralston has, in spite of the difficulties and obstacles which constantly bar the path of progress, made substantial advance in business circles until he today occupies a prominent position as the president of the Ralston Steel Company. He is thus connected with one of the most important industries of the city, his course winning him the admiration of his contemporaries and the respect of his colleagues.
Mr. Ralston, a native of Canada, is a son of Robert and Sarah (Springer) Ralston. The father, a broker, was born in Ballyshannon, Ireland, while the mother's birth occurred in Hamilton, Ontario. Representatives of the Springer family settled in Pennsylvania and Delaware in 1680, but at the time of the Revolutionary war the branch of the family to which Joseph Stevenson Ralston belongs migrated to Canada. In the public schools of Hamilton the subject of this review laid the foundation for his education, which was continued through study in the Rockwood Academy of Ontario. As an apprentice for a term of four years he sailed on the ship City of Calcutta of Glasgow, Scotland, and on the expiration of his term of indenture again took up his abode in Canada. Soon afterward, however, he secured a position in a lumber camp in Michigan, where he remained for a year, and during the succeeding year became a news- paper reporter. For several years he engaged in the real-estate business and during that period his ambitious nature found expression in his attendance at the night sessions of a law school. While he has not practiced law as a life work, his knowledge thereof has been of pronounced benefit to him in his later successful business career. Turning his attention to the car busi- ness his gradual progress has brought him to the position of president of the Ralston Steel Company. Early in life he adopted the axiom "Honesty,
RALSTON STEEL CAR COMPANY.
J. S. RALSTON
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sobriety and strict regard for one's word" as his rule of life. His close ad- herence to this constitutes one of the strongest elements in his substantial and creditable business development. His persistency and steadfastness of purpose, his thorough mastery of any task assigned him and his utilization of any opportunity as every forward step has brought him a broader outlook, are the qualities which have carried him into important relations with the industrial interests of the capital city. It is to the honest enterprise and lofty business ideals of men like Mr. Ralston that Columbus, in the past as well as in the present, owes its wonderful progress and the solid foundation upon which it today rests.
At Caledonia, Ontario, Mr. Ralston was married to Miss Anna Mar of that village, whose father, a farmer still living in that locality, is descended directly from the historical Mar Family of Scotland, celebrated in both song and story. They have three children living: Florence A., Benjamin R. and Joseph V., while a fourth child is deceased.
Upon attaining his majority Mr. Ralston became a member of the Masonic fraternity, while his trend of religious faith and belief led him into the Methodist church, of which he has since been a member. His political views accord with the principles of democracy but he has never been an aspirant for office. In business circles he has held the highest esteem and receives the same warm regard from those who daily come more intimately in contact with him.
THOMAS M. VARLEY.
Thomas M. Varley, who has charge of the real-estate department of the Columbus Savings & Trust Company, is a prominent and respected repre- sentative of business interests in this city. He was born in Jackson county, Ohio, on the 26th of February, 1865, his parents being Michael and Julia (Kerrigan) Varley, both natives of County Mayo, Ireland. Emigrating to the United States when a young man, the father assisted in the building of the Marietta & Cincinnati Railroad about 1850, and in the development of the comparatively unsettled territory traversed by it. His demise occurred in Clay, Jackson county, Ohio, in 1870, at the comparatively early age of thirty-nine years.
Thomas M. Varley attended the district schools of Jackson county and later the schools of Portsmouth and Circleville in the acquirement of an edu- cation, but, owing to the early death of his father, was compelled to earn his own livlihood when still very young. He was an ambitious, industrious boy, and these salient characteristics proved the basis of the splendid success which has since attended his efforts. He first went to work in a coal mine, but subse-' quently entered the office of the Jackson Standard in 1880. Commencing at the lowest rung of the ladder, he closely applied himself to his work and soon gained a thorough and comprehensive knowledge of the newspaper business. After eight and a half years he severed his connection with the Standard and
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came to Columbus to fill a position in the office of the secretary of state, which he held during two administrations. He had charge of the publication of laws, indexing, proof reading, etc., and made a most creditable and highly com- mendable record, originating a time-saving method of indexing which has been much appreciated by lawyers and judges. He also had charge of a thor- ough verification of the Revised Statutes of Ohio, and introduced several original and practical ideas in connection with election laws. In 1902 he became identified with the Columbus Savings & Trust Company, taking charge of its real-estate department, in which position he has since been the capable and efficient incumbent. A man of excellent business ability and keen dis- crimination, his cooperation has been sought in the control and management of various concerns, and he is now vice president of the Columbian Printing & Publishing Company and a director in the Union Building & Savings Com- pany. He likewise has extensive real-estate interests and is widely recognized as a most substantial, public-spirited and enterprising resident of Columbus.
In 1894 Mr. Varley was united in marriage to Miss Agnes J. McNamar, a native of Newark, Ohio, by whom he has six living children: Mary, An- toinette, Katherine, Margaret, John and Alfred. One son, Joseph, passed away in infancy. Mr. Varley is a member of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, of which he was one of the organizers. In manner he is one of the most genial, affable and cordial of men, always having a hearty greeting and pleasant smile for those with whom he comes in contact, few men being so uniformly popular.
EUGENE MORGAN.
Eugene Morgan, secretary and attorney for the Humane Society of Colum- bus, brings to bear in the discharge of his duties excellent executive ability and forceful management, and added to this is a broad humanitarian spirit without which his attention and activities would never have been directed into this channel. Ohio numbers him among her native sons, his birth having occurred in Porterville, Morgan county, June 9, 1870. His parents were Sam- uel H. and Mary A. (Trout) Morgan, the former a native of Fairfield county and the latter of Perry county, Ohio.
Samuel H. Morgan was a carriage manufacturer and conducted that busi- ness for a number of years in Morgan county at a time when all of the work was done by hand. Later he removed to Perry county and carried on business at New Lexington for a number of years, displaying much skill and mechani- cal ability in the' work which he did and which was executed in his shops. He is now living retired in Zanesville. The well-merited rest which has come to him is the direct result of his earnest efforts. Both the paternal and maternal ancestors of Eugene Morgan settled in Ohio in pioneer times. His grand- father, Daniel Morgan, was a pioneer of Morgan county and followed the shoe- maker's trade for the support of his family. The maternal grandfather, George Trout, located in Perry county when it was almost an unbroken wil- dernesss and there followed the occupation of farming. Both the paternal
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grandparents and the maternal grandfather of Eugene Morgan were natives of Loudoun county, Virginia, and came to Ohio when quite young.
Eugene Morgan was educated in the public schools of New Lexington and in the Ohio Normal University at Ada, thus seeking a thorough literary knowledge to serve as a foundation upon which to rear the superstructure of his professional learing. He was graduated from the law department of the Ohio State University in the class of 1898, and in the meantime taught school for six years in Perry county, Ohio. For two years he taught the grade of Grammar A at New Lexington, and proved a capable instructor, imparting readily and clearly to others the knowledge that he had obtained. For four years he filled the office of deputy county treasurer of Perry county under Asbury Garlinger, and on the 11th of June, 1898, was admitted to the bar, entering upon active practice in Columbus the same year. He has always been alone in the work of the profession and early in his practice gave proof of his ability to cope with intricate legal problems. In December, 1905, Mr. Morgan was elected by the Humane Society to the position of secretary and attorney, which office he still holds, having been reelected three times by the society, and in addition he conducts a general law practice.
On the 23d of December, 1903, Mr. Morgan was married to Miss Osee B. Johnson of Springfield, Ohio, and they reside at No. 89 North Ohio avenue. Mr. Morgan is a member of the Franklin County Bar Association, and in fraternal lines is connected with the Masons and the Maccabees. His political preference is indicated by his membership in the Buckeye Republican Club, and his religious faith is shown in his connection with the Eastwood Congre- gational church. In hearty sympathy with the great work that is being done by the Humane Society, in the position of secretary he has carefully systema- tized its interests and as attorney is bringing to justice many of those who seem to have no knowledge of the law of human kindness. In his own life he has always endeavored to exemplify in his daily concourse with his fellow- men the principles of universal brotherhood.
HARRY WESLEY LUM.
Harry Wesley Lum, a well known and successful architect of Columbus, was born in this city on the 23d of August, 1866. His father, William Henry Lum, whose birth occurred December 28, 1840, served in the Union army as a member of the Fifth Maryland Regiment, but wounds which he received in the battle of Antietam ended his career as a soldier. In 1864 he left Maryland and came to Columbus, being a prominent representative of business interests as a boot and shoe merchant for many years. In 1906 he retired from active life and has since enjoyed the fruits of his well-directed labor and enterprise in former years. He belongs to Wells Post, G. A. R., while his religious faith is indicated by his membership in the First Methodist Episcopal church. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Smith, was born in Wales in 1844. and in 1855 accompanied her parents on their emigration to the new
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world. She still survives and has the following children: William T., who is a window-screen manufacturer of Columbus; Charles N., a traveling sales- man; and Harry Wesley, of this review.
The last-named acquired his education in this city, being graduated from the high school in 1884. He then entered upon his apprenticeship as an architect in the office of J. W. Yost, with whom he remained for ten years. Subsequently he was connected with the firm of Yost & Packard for two years and was afterward with F. L. Packard for one year. The year 1900 witnessed his entrance into business circles on his own account, while two years later he formed a partnership with Mr. Stribling under the firm style of Stribling & Lum. They are the architects of the residences of Foster Copeland, Frank Stallman and C. A. Armstrong, the Beggs building, the temporary postoffice, the Green-Joyce Company building, B'Nai Israel Temple and numerous other structures. Mr. Lum is a member of the Board of Trade, the Columbus Society of Architects, the American Society of Architects and an honorary member of the Builders' Exchange. His work as an architect has met with cordial and general appreciation, and he is widely recognized as a most substantial and public-spirited resident of his native city.
On the 10th of October, 1889, Mr. Lum was united in marriage to Miss Ida Mullineaux, a daughter of William and Nannie Mullineaux, of Des Moines, Iowa. They have two children, namely: Easton H., sixteen years of age, who is a junior in the high school; and Robert K., who at the age of fourteen years is a grammar school student.
In his political views Mr. Lum is a stanch republican, while fraternally he is connected with the Odd Fellows. He belongs to the First Methodist Episcopal church, in which he takes an active and helpful interest, serving as steward and as a member of various committees. His wife is also active in church work and a member of the Young Women's Christian Association. Mr. Lum is likewise one of the directors of Erie Beach Park, where he owns a summer home, while his residence in Columbus, which is situated at No. 143 South Monroe avenue, is one of the fine dwellings in that part of the city. He is very fond of literature and outdoor sports, which furnish him respite amid the cares of a constantly increasing business. He has spent his entire life in Columbus, and that his career has ever been an upright and honorable one is indicated by the fact that the associates of his boyhood and youth are still numbered among his stanch friends and admirers.
LOUIS PHILIP ECKER.
As Columbus is headquarters for various railway lines, its citizenship includes a number of prominent railway officials and representatives. Of this class Louis Philip Ecker is a member, for he is now occupying the responsible position of auditor of the Hocking Valley Railway. His birth occurred in New York City, July 19, 1848, and he comes of French ancestry in the pater- nal line. His grandfather, Philip Ecker, was a soldier under the great Napo-
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leon, and came to America about 1824, spending his last days in New York. His son, Philip Ecker, was born April 26, 1818, and was about six years of age when he accompanied his parents to America. The family home was established in New York, and for many years he was a well-known manufac- turer of that city. He made the journey to California in 1848, attracted by the discovery of gold on the Pacific coast, and after spending four years in that state returned in 1852 to New York, where his remaining days were passed. He married Catherine Diehl, a native of Alsace-Lorraine, who died in 1898, at the age of seventy-five years.
At the usual age Louis Philip Ecker entered the public schools and passed through consecutive grades until he became a high-school student. He after- ward attended the New York College, now the University of New York, from which he was graduated with the class of 1867. When his college course was finished he entered a law office, reading law for a year, but, abandoning the idea of becoming a member of that profession, he became traveling representa- tive for the J. Russell Cutlery Company, with which he was associated for eight years. On the expiration of that period he entered upon the work of account- ant with the firm of Barrow & Woodward, with whom he continued for three years. In 1875 Mr. Ecker became identified with the railway interests, in the treasurer's office of the Erie Railroad Company. His duties were of varied character, but he soon demonstrated his ability and found that he was in the line of promotion, being sent from the treasurer's office to the accounting department, where with increasing responsibilities and duties he remained until November, 1878. He then became connected with the Richmond & Alle- gheny Railroad Company as general bookkeeper at Richmond, Virginia, and in 1884 was made auditor of that system, remaining in that connection until it was merged with the Chesapeake & Ohio in 1889. With the latter railroad he was connected as assistant auditor until the 28th of February, 1899, when he came to Columbus as auditor for the Hocking Valley Railway. To his close application may be accredited his success. He has always been most loyal to the interests entrusted to him and his ability and diligence have led to successive promotions until he has reached his present position.
Mr. Ecker is also prominent in social and fraternal circles. He has attained the thirty-second degree in Masonry, and at Richmond, Virginia, was grand captain general of the Grand Commandery, Kt. T. He has also held office in the Imperial Council of the Shrine. He belongs to the Royal Arcanum and is also a member of the Ohio Club, while his religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Broad Street Presbyterian church. He takes an active interest in the church work, contributes generously to its sup- port and has served as a member of the executive committee of the Men's Club of that church.
On the 9th of November, 1871, Mr. Ecker was married to Miss Sarah Arabella Tryner, a daughter of James P. Tryner, a prominent mineral water manufacturer of New York. Their children are: Elmer Scott, thirty-five years of age, who is now traveling auditor of the Hocking Valley Railway Company; and Harrison Grant, twenty-eight years of age, who is with the Consolidation Coal Company of New York. He is a graduate of the Virginia
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Military Institute and the Ohio State University, and is a member of the Alpha Tau Omega and the Delta Kappa fraternities. He was manager of the baseball team at the Virginia Military Institute and was also prominent in athletics while a student in the Ohio State University. Mrs. Ecker takes an active and helpful part in church work, in home mission work and in the social interests of the church. The family is a prominent one here, its mem- bers occupying an enviable position in social circles. Both Mr. and Mrs. Ecker enjoy the unqualified regard of those with whom they have come in contact and their circle of friends is constantly increasing.
HENRY A. MITHOFF.
In a history of pioneer business development in Columbus the name of Henry A. Mithoff figures prominently for he became one of the early re- tail hardware merchants of the city and remained for many years as a pro- gressive business man, standing as a high type of that class of citizens who are the real promoters and upbuilders of the city's greatness. Not upon the form of government or even upon the men who fill the offices does the growth of the city depend but upon those who are in control of its com- mercial and industrial interests who stand for law and order and always uphold the legal and political status: Such a one was Henry A. Mithoff, who as the years passed was recognized as a dependable man-one in whom public confidence could be placed with absolute assurance that any obliga- tion would be fully met.
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