USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > Centennial history of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio, Vol. I > Part 53
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Major Neil was married June 4, 1863, to Miss Julia Stone, a daughter of Dwight Stone, a prominent citizen of Columbus. They became parents of one son and six daughters; William, who married Miss Abbie Tillinghast, of Worthington, Massachusetts, and is a trustee of the Neil House; Olive, deceased; Hannah, the wife of Guy W. Mallon, who is a member of the legis- lature from Cincinnati; Miss Fay Stone; Alice Josephine, who is the wife of the Rev. A. N. Slayton, of Newton Highlands, Massachusetts; Florence, the wife of Colonel B. L. Bargar, of the Fourth Ohio National Guard; and Julia Stone, the wife of Alfred H. Chapin, of Springfield, Massachusetts. There are now seventeen grandchildren, so that various descendants represent the Neil family, although but one bears the family name.
Colonel Neil has always maintained the deepest interest in military affairs and is most widely known in military circles. He is a member of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee, of the Army of the Ohio, of the Army and Navy Officers of Cincinnati, of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of Ohio, and is an ex-president of the Soldiers & Sailors Association of Frank- lin, this state. He likewise belongs to the Grand Army of the Republic and is a past commander of the J. C. McCoy Post. While the single instance of Colonel Neil's high sense of honor, as manifest in his military experience, has been given, many others might be mentioned with equal appropriateness. He has ever stood as a splendid representative of a prominent pioneer family and his own life has been one of signal usefulness and benefit to his city and country. Free from ostentation and display, he never forgets the friends of his youth, while the years have brought him a constantly expanding circle of friends as the circle of his acquaintance has been extended.
ERVIN MOORE.
Ervin Moore has long since passed the allotted age of three score years and ten, but although he has reached the eighty-second milestone on life's journey, in spirit and interests seems yet in his prime. Canal Winchester, his present place of residence, was also his birthplace, his natal year being 1826. In the decades which have since been added to the cycle of the centuries he has been found as a progressive and representative citizen here
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and one whose influence has always been on the side of advancement and improvement. In the year 1799 his father, Levi Moore, made his way from Allegany county, Maryland, to Ohio and settled near the present site of Lancaster. He made the trip in company with Abraham and Major Bright and married a sister of the former. A part of the company traveled west- ward by boat and others made the journey with horses. Those who traveled by the water route descended the Ohio river to the mouth of the Hockhock- ing and thence made their way up the latter in canoes to the mouth of Rush creek. As the country between Wheeling and Hockhocking at that time was a wilderness, they were obliged to continue their journey by means of the streams as best they could. Levi Moore settled three miles below Lan- caster, becoming one of the pioneers of the country. In 1811 he took up the homestead which is still in possession of his son, Ervin Moore, his deed to the property being signed by James Madison as president of the United States and James Monroe as secretary of state. Thus for almost a century the Moore family has figured as prominent factors in the devlopment and progress of this section of Ohio.
Ervin Moore was reared amid the wild scenes and environments of pioneer life, when Ohio was largely an unbroken wilderness, comparatively few having penetrated into its dense forest regions or reclaimed its rich land for the purposes of civilization. He was educated in the common schools and was reared to farm life, living with his parents until they reached the age of retirement, when the position was changed and they came to live with him. continuing as members of his household until they were called to their final rest.
In the year 1845 Ervin Moore was united in marriage to Miss Mary Kramer, who was born in Canal Winchester in 1824. They became parents of a daughter, Mrs. Elmina Sarber, and two sons, John L. and Clement V. For many years after his marriage Mr. Moore devoted his attention to gen- eral agricultural pursuits, carefully conducting the farm work, so that his labors and management resulted in the aquirement of a good annual income derived from the sale of the large crops which came as the reward for the work bestowed upon the fields. He still owns the old homestead which was entered as a claim by his father in 1811, but is now living retired from active life, enjoying good health at the age of eighty-two years. This farm comprises one hundred and sixty acres of land and there he resided until 1888, when he romoved to Canal Winchester. In that year he purchased an interest in the Canal Winchester Bank, a private institution, in the owner- ship of which he is now associated with his son, Clement V. Moore, and E. B. Woods. There is a paid up capital and individual liability of one hun- dred and fifty thousand dollars and the bank is regarded as one of the safest financial institutions of the state.
In his political views Mr. Moore has always been a stalwart democrat, devoted to the interests and success of his party, yet ready to assist locally in the elections of his honest and well qualified friends. For two terms he served as commissioner of Fairfield county but has never been a politician in the sense of office seeking, preferring to concentrate his time and energies
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upon business and individual affairs. He has, however, never been neglect- ful of the duties of citizenship but on the contrary has given stalwart sup- port to all measures for the public good. His entire life has been passed in Canal Winchester or vicinity and events which are to others matters of history have been to him matters of observation and experience. Few men are so thoroughly informed concerning the history of the country or have been more intimately associated wih the steady advancement which has brought it to its present state of improvement and prosperity.
Mr. Moore's son and business associate, Clement V. Moore, was born and reared on the old family homestead, where he remained with his parents until their removal to Canal Winchester in 1888. He supplemented his early education by study in the high school of Canal Winchester and was a mem- ber of the first graduating class-in 1886. He afterward completed his edu- cation at Ada, Ohio. In 1888 he became a partner in the Canal Winchester Bank, of which he is now the president, with E. B. Woods as cashier. This bank was established February 22, 1887, and at present is the largest bank in a town of the size of Canal Winchester in the state of Ohio. It carries four hundred and forty thousand dollars on deposit, a fact which speaks for itself. Indeed the history of the bank is the best proof of the success which has attended Mr. Moore during his connection with financial circles in this county.
In 1891 Mr. Moore was united in marriage to Miss Anna May Lehman and unto them were born three children: Lawrence L., Warren J. and Esther L. In his political views Clement V. Moore is a stalwart democrat, active in the work of the party and for six years filled the position of town treasurer. He was also a delegate to the state convention when General Powell was nominated for governor of Ohio. His religious faith is indi- cated in his membership in the United Brethren church, while socially he is connected with the Knights of Pythias, the Grangers and the Masons- organizations which find him an exemplary and valued member. He is a worthy representative of a prominent pioneer family but has never rested on the laurels of an honored ancestry, having on the contrary made for him- self a place in the business world that is most creditable.
CARL J. HOSTER.
Carl J. Hoster, president of the Hoster Columbus Associated Breweries and a well known business man and popular citizen of Columbus, was born in this city on the 23d of June, 1873. His grandfather, Louis Hoster, was a native of Germany, where his birth occurred September 6, 1807. George J. Hoster, the father of our subject, is also a native of Columbus, his natal day being February 27, 1844.
Carl J. Hoster acquired his preliminary education in the public schools, subsequently became a student in the Ohio State University and in 1894, on the completion of a scientific course, was graduated from Cornell University.
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Since entering business circles he has connected himself with many different enterprises and is now vice president of the Ohio Trust Company, a director in the Hayden Clinton National Bank and also a director in the Columbus Railway & Light Company. A man of keen discrimination and sound judg- ment, his advice and counsel has proven no inconsiderable factor in the suc- cess of the institutions with which he is connected.
On the 23d of November, 1897, Mr. Hoster was joined in wedlock to Miss Mary Sheldon, a daughter of Robert E. and Mary Sheldon, of Colum- bus, the former being president of the Street Railway Company and also of the Citizens Savings Bank. Mrs. Hoster, who is a graduate of the Misses Ely's school of New York, is a member of the board of Columbus Kinder- garten Association. By her marriage she has become the mother of two chil- dren, Katherine and George.
In his political views Mr. Hoster is independent, while fraternally he is connected with the Masons and the Elks. In Masonry he has attained the thirty-second degree and is a member of the Mystic Shrine. His club rela- tions are extensive, for he belongs to the Ohio, the Columbus, the Arlington and the Columbus Country Clubs, the Queen City Club of Cincinnati, the Dayton Club of Dayton and the Tavern Club of Cleveland. For five years he served as president of the Columbus Driving Club. He finds rest and recreation in automobiling and golf, and resides with his family in an at- tractive home at Arlington Heights. His genial manner, kindly disposition and deference for the opinions of others have made him well liked wherever known and the circle of his friends is almost coextensive with the circle of his acquaintances.
JOHN F. O'CONNOR.
On the roster of public officials of Columbus appears the name of John F. O'Connor, chief of police, whose advancement to his present position has been through the steps of an orderly progression, resulting from ability and faithfulness which he has displayed as a custodian of law and order. He was born in the city of Cork, Ireland, June 10, 1864, a son of James O'Con- nor, who came to America in 1894, settling in Boston, Massachusetts. He had followed the profession of farming in his native country but lived re- tired in the new world and spent his last days in Boston, where he died in 1905. His wife, Mrs. Ellen O'Connor, passed away in the Emerald isle in 1893.
John F. O'Connor was educated in the public schools of his native city, and in the spring of 1884, when twenty years of age, sailed for America, landing in Boston. For a short time he engaged in driving a team, but after- ward traveled through the different western cities, various business interests claiming his attention. Eventually he made his way back to Chicago in 1890, and there joined the United States army, being sent to the Columbus barracks, where he served for three years, when he was honorably discharged and entered the service of the Pennsylvania Railway Company as a private
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detective. In 1895 he became connected with the police department in the capacity of patrolman, working his way upward through the ranks, until March, 1904, when he was appointed chief of police by Mayor Robert H. Jeffrey. Mr. O'Connor has advanced in this country in spite of hardships, privations and difficulties which he has encountered, and at length has reached a position of trust and responsibility, meriting his promotions by the strict attention which he has given to his business and his promptness and faithfulness in their discharge. Under his control the police depart- ment has been well organized and is doing efficient work.
Mr. O'Connor was married on the 26th of April, 1893, to Miss Mary Lyons, a native of Ireland, and they have seven children: Francis, John, Mary Ellen, Eunice, William, James M., and Edward M. The parents are members of the Catholic church, and fraternally Mr. O'Connor is connected with the Modern Woodmen. He has never had occasion to regret his de- termination to come to the new world, for though he has worked hard in various lines he has also gained the reward of earnest labor, and is now oc- cupying a position of trust and importance, his fellow citizens recognizing the fact that he is most faithful thereto.
COLONEL ADAM R. INNIS.
Colonel Adam R. Innis, living retired in Columbus, derives his income from valuable farming property which he owns in Clinton township. His landed possessions at one time comprised five hundred acres of rich and arable land, to the cultivation and development of which he gave his per- sonal supervision, but the prosperity which he won in former years enables him to rest from further labor, and in the evening of life he is most com- fortably situated in a pleasant home in the capital city.
Mr. Innis was born in Clinton township, December 27, 1835, and is a son of Henry Innis, who cast in his lot with the earliest settlers of this locality. He had been married on the 10th of June, 1813, to Isabel Clifford Pegg, a daughter of Elias and Elizabeth (Ansettler) Pegg. Near the close of the war of 1812 her father received a good offer for his farm in Jeffer- son county, and on selling his property proposed that his sons-in-law, Henry Innis and Ephraim Fisher, should accompany him to Franklin county, Ohio. They journeyed westward on horseback, it requiring an entire week to make the trip, and in 1817 they removed their families to this locality. At that time Mr. Innis established a little tavern, or hotel, on the west side of Broad street, almost directly opposite from the site of the old county courthouse then at Franklinton. He also opened a blacksmith shop and worked at his smithy for four years, while at the same time conducting the hotel. Later he removed from Franklinton to his farm in Clinton township, taking up his abode thereon in 1820. He had few white neighbors, but Indians visited the locality and the wolves frequently made the night hideous with their howling. Other wild animals were to be seen, and deer and much
A. R. INNIS
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smaller game were to be had in abundance. Most of the settlers lived in log cabins, which were heated by fireplaces and lighted by candles. There were few, if any, luxuries in those days, and even many of the comforts of life were denied the early settlers, but Henry M. Innis and other of his as- sociates were determined, resolute men, and as the years passed they con- verted this wild district into an attractive center of civilization. The first school of the neighborhood was established in a little one-room cabin on land belonging to Rev. Matthews, and Lura Matthews became the first teacher there.
In one of the early select schools of the county Colonel A. R. Innis pur- sued his early education and after spending some time as a student at West- 'erville he entered the Capital University at Columbus. When he had made considerable progress along educational lines he engaged in teaching school and followed that profession up to the time of his marriage, which was cele- brated April 3, 1855, when he was in his twenty-first year, the lady of his choice being Miss Mary F. Fulcher, of Pickaway county. She was a daughter of James and Lucy (Durrett) Fulcher, who were farming people at Com- mercial Point.
Colonel and Mrs. Innis began their domestic life upon a farm, and he continued to engage in general agricultural pursuits until 1870, the only interruption to his labors coming at the time of the Civil war, when in re- sponse to the country's call for aid he joined the One Hundred and Thirty- Third Ohio Infantry, and was commissary sergeant at Camp Chase before starting out. During the engagement along the Weldon Railroad between Richmond and Petersburg, he was accidently shot, June 16, 1864, by the bursting of a shell after the battle was over. He made for himself a cred- itable military record, for he bravely faced all the exigencies of war with its attendant dangers and horrors.
When honorably discharged, August 20, 1864, Colonel Innis returned to his family in the north and resumed the occupation of farming, at one time owning and cultivating about five hundred acres of land in Clinton township. He still possesses one hundred and fifteen acres of the old home place, which he improved so thoroughly. He cleared much of this land him- self, cutting down the trees, grubbing up the stumps and bringing the fields under cultivation, while in all his farm work he employed the most modern improved machinery. At length when his well directed labors had brought him a handsome competence he put aside further business cares and came to Columbus, where he has since made his home. For two years after his arrival here he was engaged in the produce business on Broadway, but since 1872 has conducted no active business.
Unto Mr. and Mrs. Innis have been born five children, but only two reached adult age and one of these, Henry C., is now deceased. The sur- viving son is Herman L. Innis. Colonel Innis erected a pleasant home on Summit street in 1882. A tract of ground of two acres which he purchased he has platted and laid out, and has engaged in selling lots, which have brought to him a good profit. In earlier life he assisted his brother in sur- veying for twelve or fifteen years and to some extent does work of this char-
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acter at the present day. He is considered an authority on boundary lines and corner marks, and few men have more knowledge of property in this way than has Colonel Innis.
In his political views he has always been a stalwart republican from the organization of the party. He served as president of the school board for a number of years and the cause of education has found in him a warm friend. From the age of nine years he was a member of the Methodist church until 1872. He still retains pleasant associations with his old army comrades and a deep interest in military affairs. For twenty-four years he has been a member of McCoy's Post, is one of the Grand Army drill corps, and is No. 1 in the Old Guards of the organization, serving as sergeant for four years. At the present he is president of the Soldiers and Sailors Asso- ciation.
Colonel Innis belongs to one of the prominent pioneer families of the county, a family of whose members have been loyal in matters of public progress and who have at all time cooperated in measures for the general good. He, too, has stood for advancement, for justice, truth and right, and his honorable life has won him a high place in the regard of those with whom he has been associated.
J. HARVEY ZINN.
J. Harvey Zinn, engaged in the lumber business in Columbus, his native city, was born October 1, 1871, and is a representative of one of the old, honored and prominent families of the capital city, connected therewith from the period of its earliest development. His great-grandfather was a native of Massachusetts and arrived in Franklin county about 1812. He bought the farm which included the present site of the Ohio State University. He was at one time a partner of William Neil in the ownership of stage coaches which operated out of Columbus before the building of the railroads. A well known, sturdy pioneer and man of great strength of character he ex- erted marked and beneficial influence on the early history of the city and aided in laying the foundation upon which has been builded its later pros- perity. The grandfather, Adam Zinn, was a leading character here in the early days and lived on the present site of the university grounds from early youth. He was born in 1812 and died in 1881. His son, James H. Zinn, father of our subject, was born on Spring street in Columbus in 1844 and was reared and educated in this city. For many years he engaged in the sawmill and lumber business but at length retired from active service in 1901. He is a veteran of the Civil war and is most favorably known in the capital city, where he has always resided. He married Elizabeth Curry, who was likewise born in Columbus, while her parents were natives of Pennsyl- vania. Mrs. Zinn also survives and they are among the most highly esteemed of the old residents of the city.
At the usual age J. Harvey Zinn was sent to the public schools, where he continued his education until he was graduated from the high school with
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the class of 1899. He afterward attended a business college, and thus well equipped for life's practical and responsible duties he entered the employ of the Coe & Spencer Company in 1890 as bookkeeper, continuing there until 1892. He then entered into partnership with a Mr. Coe, who was a brother of the senior partner in the Coe & Spencer Company. The new firm was organized under the firm style of Coe & Zinn and at No. 2556 North High street they established a planing mill and retail lumberyards. In 1896 Mr. Zinn purchased Mr. Coe's interest and since that time has continued alone. The business has shown a remarkable increase every year since its inception and he now has many patrons among the best class of the citizens of Colum- bus. Moreover he has extended his efforts to other lines, which have profited by his cooperation and business enterprise. He is the vice president and director of the Northern Savings Bank Company, of which he was one of the organizers and which is today one of the prosperous and healthy bank- ing concerns of the city. He is likewise the president of the Olentangy Realty Company and has various other interests.
In 1895 Mr. Zinn was married to Miss Emma Legg, of this city, and they have two children: Clyde, born in 1895; and Lillian. Mr. Zinn be- longs to the Maynard Club and is an active and helpful member of the North Methodist Episcopal church, serving now as chairman of its finance com- mittee. He is fond of outdoor sports, particularly fishing and hunting and he travels extensively, interested in the various modes of life as seen in different parts of the world as well as in the points of historic and scenic interest. His life, however, has been preeminently that of an energetic, de- termined business man-a man with a purpose and his thorough knowl- edge of the lumber trade, combined with his concentration, has constituted the salient feature in his prosperity.
FREDERICK A. MILLER.
The subject of college education as a preparation for a successful business career has been widely discussed, but the facts bear out the statement that, other things being equal, the college-bred man has greater opportunities and produces more substantial results than he whose knowledge and experience are more limited. It is a well known fact that mental force become more active through use, and this is an age in which alert mentality is a positive essential. Liberally educated Frederick A. Miller entered upon life's duties well equipped for the mastery of intricate business problems, and that he has secured a successful solution of the questions that have confronted him is indicated by his continued promotion until he now occupies the position of general manager and director of the H.C. Godman Company.
A native of Columbus, Mr. Miller was born October 14, 1879, his parents being William A. and Mary (Halbedal) Miller, the former a native of Lan- caster and the latter of Marion, Ohio. The schools of the capital city afforded Frederick A. Miller his early educational privileges and he continued the
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course until his graduation from the high school with the class of 1897. He then entered the Ohio State University, and after pursuing a course of arts and philosophy was graduated with the Bachelor of Philosophy degree in 1901. In 1903 he received a membership and key in the Phi Beta Kappa- an honor for distinction in scholarship.
On completing his college course Mr. Miller in November, 1901, entered the services of the H. C. Godman Company, and was variously employed until 1903, when he became local superintendent of the Columbus plant on Broad street. In 1905 he became general manager of all the factories at Lancaster, Ohio, and Columbus, and is today one of the directors of the com- pany, although he entered its services in an humble capacity less than eight years ago. His advancement has been rapid and yet it has followed as a logical sequence of his capability and thorough understanding of the busi- ness. He is recognized as a young man of the keenest discrimination who readily determines the possible relations of business opportunities and their adjuncts, and combines what often appears to be dissimilar elements into a harmoniously working whole. His judgment and cooperation have thus been sought by other concerns, although he is perhaps best known in connection with the shoe trade, for the H. C. Godman Company is the largest concern in Ohio in the manufacture of shoes, and one of the largest in the United States. Aside from this, however, Mr. Miller is vice president of the Kinnear Manufacturing Company, vice president and director of the Columbus Forge & Anvil Company, a director of the Guarantee Title & Trust Company and president of the Lancaster Leather Company. Analyzing his career, it is found that one element in his success has been the thoroughness with which he has done everything that has come to his hand, permitting him to overlook no de- tail if it has borne in any way upon the outcome of the business. At the same time he has given due relative prominence to the principle points of business and has added to his wide understanding an indefatigable energy. He knows .the pleasures of success-not the success that is counted in dollars and cents but the success of accomplishing what he undertakes.
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