USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > Centennial history of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio, Vol. I > Part 59
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It was in 1898 that Mr. Stephens became interested in suburban railway lines. He organized and aided in building the Columbus, New Albany & Johnstown Railroad and was elected secretary and general manager of the company, which position he still fills. The road was built in 1901 and consti- tutes one of the trade arteries of the city. He is also the president of the Columbus, Urbana & Western Railroad Company and second vice president of the Columbus Savings & Trust Company.
In 1878 Mr. Stephens was married to Miss Mary J. Rowland, a daughter of Thomas Rowland, one of the old settlers of this city. and they have one daughter, Bertha. a student at Wellesley College. Fraternally Mr. Stephens is connected with the Masons, the Odd Fellows and the Benevolent and Pro- tective Order of Elks. For forty-one years a resident of the capital, he is most widely known here and through his labors, which have been serviceable in promoting municipal progress and development as well as individual suc- cess, he is now accorded classification with the representative residents of Columbus.
FRANK E. WILDERMUTH.
Frank E. Wildermuth, who follows farming on one hundred and sixty acres of land in Madison township, is numbered among the substantial agri- culturists of this section of Franklin county. He is the youngest in a fam- ily of nine children born of the father's second marriage, his parents being William and Ruth (Allgire) Wildermuth, the former born in 1809 and the latter in 1820, while their marriage occurred August 11, 1839. The children are Phiette, Mary E., Rebecca Ann, Martin L., Eldora E., Isaac E., Milton D., Jessie L. and Frank E. The father, William Wildermuth, settled on the farm where his son, Isaac E., now resides, in 1854, and carried on general agricultural pursuits throughout his entire life, his death occurring when he was seventy-six years of age. More extended mention of him is made in connection with the sketch of I. E. Wildermuth, the brother of our subject.
Frank E. Wildermuth was born May 26, 1866, and was educated in the common schools. He was reared to the pursuits of farm labor, assisting in the work of the homestead property from the time of early spring planting until crops were harvested in the late autumn. He has made farming his life work and now operates one hundred and sixty acres of well improved land, located in Madison township. He is methodical and accurate as to the details of his work and his labors are resulting in gratifying success.
Mr. Wildermuth chose as a companion and helpmate for the journey of life Miss Cora E. Smith, their marriage being celebrated October 27, 1887.
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She was born June 18, 1866, and by her marriage has become the mother of four sons and three daughters namely: Clyde E., who was born June 18, 1888; Bert A., who was born May 14, 1890; Russell H., January 12, 1892; Daisy Ruth, born December 3, 1897; Mary J., May 10, 1899; Alice Rebecca, November 27, 1905; and Lester E,. born March 11, 1908. The two elder sons are graduates of the Groveport high school and are now engaged in teaching, while Russel H., the third son, will graduate from the high school in the class of 1909, and Mr. Wildermuth expects to afford to the other chil- dren equal educational advantages.
Mr. Wildermuth is a democrat in his political views and his religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Lutheran church. He has never been active in public life but has served as a member of the school board. He takes great pride in his home and family and is ever solicitous of their happiness and welfare. The people of Franklin county look upon him as an exemplary man and proud to call him their own.
GEORGE SANFORD SCHROCK.
On the farm on which he now lives in Sharon township, in a little log cabin, George Sanford Schrock was born, his natal day being August 16, 1865. His parents were William and Julia (Armstrong) Schrock. At an early period in the development of this county the family was established here. William Schrock was born in Blendon township, September 6, 1837, on a farm a mile south of Westerville, where his father, George W. Schrock, had settled on coming to Ohio. He was one of a family of seven sons and five daughters. Reared amid the environments of pioneer life, he shared with the family in the hardships incident of frontier experience and from his youth assisted in the labors of the home farm. All through his life he carried on general agricultural pursuits and became the owner of eighty- eight acres of good land, which he placed under the plow and improved after the modern methods of farming. His political allgeiance was given to the republican party and he stanchly supported its principles, although he never sought nor desired office. His religious faith was indicated by his member- ship in the Methodist church at Westerville. He married Julia Armstrong, who born in Renesselaer county, New York, March 4, 1840, and now re- sides with her son, George S. She was brought to Ohio when four years of age by her parents, Sanford and Louise (Kemp) Armstrong, natives of New York and Vermont respectively. After residing for a few years on a farm here they went to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, where their remaining days were passed. On Attaining womanhood their daughter gave her hand in mar- riage to William Schrock and unto them were born three children: George Sanford; Nettie L., the wife of E. W. Samuel, of Sharon township; and W. Ray, at home.
George S. Schrock was reared upon the old homestead farm where he has always lived. He attended the common schools until he mastered the
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branches of learning therein taught and afterward became a student in Otter- bein University where, he spent two years. Owing to his father's death he did not complete his college course but returned and took charge of the old homestead farm, being the eldest child. He has since increased the acreage of the place until it is now a valuable property of one hundred and fifty- eight acres, which he devotes to general farming and sock-raising. He also makes dairying a special feature of his work and raises shorthorn cattle. He now has good buildings upon the place and well kept fences, while the care- fully tilled fields indicate his supervision and thorough, systematic work. He is diligent and persevering and now has one of the good farm properties in this part of the county.
On the 26th of February, 1891, Mr. Schrock was married to Miss Anna M. Samuel, who was born near Hilliards, Franklin county, February 14, 1868, a daughter of William and Jane (Thomas) Samuel. The father is now deceased, while the mother resides near Westerville. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Schrock have been born seven children: Fred S., Julia, Clarence W., Donald H., Frank E., Eunice L. and Robert Thomas.
Mr. Schrock exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party and is now serving for the second term as township trustee. He was first elected in 1904, receiving the largest vote ever given a township official-a fact which indicates his personal popularity and the trust reposed in him by his fellow townsmen. He is a member of Blendon Grange, No. 708, at Westerville, Westerville Lodge, No. 243, K. P .; and Blendon Lodge, No. 339, A. F. & A. M. He has many friends in these or- ganizations and is well and favorably known in his part of the county, being thoroughly respected for his genuine worth and his freedom from all osten- tation or display. He belongs to the progressive type of agriculturists who are accomplishing substantial results and displaying the same spirit of enter- prise which is manifest in commercial and industrial circles in the city.
CHARLES J. PRETZMAN.
Charles J. Pretzman, a member of the Columbus bar, was born in Springfield, this state, on the 4th of August, 1867. His preliminary educa- tion was supplemented by study in the Wittenberg College of his native city and in order to acquire more advanced education he went abroad in 1886 and attended the universities in Goettingens, Berlin and Paris. Travel abroad is also the means of liberal education and after about eighteen months spent in Europe Mr. Pretzman returned to Columbus, Ohio, where he entered upon the study of law in the office of Powell, Ricketts & Black, well known at- torneys of this city. He was admitted to the bar in 1899 and began practice in Columbus where he has since remained. He is accorded a good clientage and his practice is constantly increasing in volume and importance. In 1897, 1898 and 1899 he was assistant director of law under Judge Selwyn N. Owen and is now attorney for the Builders and Traders' Exchange. He
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is also connected with much important litigation tried in the courts of the dis- rict and is devotedly attached to his profession. He throws himself easily and naturally into the argument and manifests a self-possession and a deliber- ation which indicates no straining after effect; on the contrary there is a precision and clearness in his argument which speaks a mind trained in the severest school of investigation and to which close reasoning has become habitual.
In 1892 Mr. Pretzman was married to Miss Clara McGuier, of Colum- bus and they have two sons: Allen and Lawrence. Mr. and Mrs. Pretzman are faithful members of the Presbyterian church and Mr. Pretzman belongs to the Ohio Club and to the Masonic fraternity in which he has taken the degrees of the Scottish Rite. Along more specifically professional lines he is connected with the Franklin County Bar Association and the Ohio State Bar Association.
HON. JOHN C. BROWN.
Hon. John C. Brown, whose unimpeachable record as state treasurer entitles him to mention as one of Ohio's honored dead, figured for many years in public life and over the record of his official career there falls no shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil. He regarded a public office as a public trust and in the discharge of his duties manifested a loyal spirit of American patriotism, combined with the most businesslike and sysematic dispatch of the work that was entrusted to him in his official capacity.
Mr. Brown was a native of Jefferson county, Ohio, born in 1844. His father, George Brown, was one of the early residents of that county, where he owned and cultivated a tract of land, devoting his entire life to farming. He married Isabel Cunningham and under the parental roof John C. Brown was trained to those habits of life which work for honorable, upright man- hood. He had no special pecuniary or educational advantages, attending only the common schools. In 1862 he responded to the country's call for troops, enlisting in the Ffty-second Ohio Infantry, with which he saw active duty at the front. He participated in a number of hotly contested battles, in which he proved his valor and unfaltering allegiance to the Union. In the battle of Peach Tree Creek in 1864 he lost his right leg and was thus incapacitated for further field duty. He watched with interest, however, the progress of the war to its close, when victory perched upon the northern banners and the preservation of the Union became an assured fact.
Returning to the north, Mr. Brown entered upon a life of usefulness and activity and in public office made an unassailable record. In 1867 he was elected treasurer of Jefferson county and filled the position so acceptably that he was reelected for a second term. At the close of that time he retired but after an interval of four years was again elected, and in 1875 was chosen for the fourth term. The most businesslike dispatch characterized his admin- istration of the office and his creditable record led to his selection for the
JOHN C. BROWN
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nomination for state treasurer in 1883. He ran far ahead of his ticket and in fact the other candidates of the republican party were defeated in that year. Again in 1885 he was chosen, also in 1887 and in 1889, and in almost every instance he received the highest vote of any candidate on the ticket. Few state treasurers in the entire country can parallel this record for length of service or for unquestioned fidelity to duty. The opposition as well as his own party acknowledged his worth, ability and unquestioned loyalty, and his record stands as an example which if followed would place the political his- tory of the country above the attacks which are too often justly made upon it.
In 1885 Mr. Brown was married in Jefferson county to Miss Malona Glover, a daughter of Josiah Glover, a farmer of that locality, and they be- came parents of two children, Mary F. and John G., both of whom are at home with their mother.
Mr. Brown was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and the First Methodist Episcopal church and his life was in consistent harmony therewith. Entirely free from ostentation or display there was never about him the least shadow of mock modesty. He believed it was the duty of every individual to use his talents to the best advantage and in most capable man- ner in whatever situation of life he found himself and this is what Mr. Brown did. He was worthy the respect and unqualified confidence every- where accorded him, and when he passed away the news of his demise was received with a feeling of deepest sorrow and regret on the part of many men eminent in state and national affairs as well as by his fellow townsmen.
WILLIAM J. TRESSELT.
In many lines of business time must test the value of the service rendered, but in the work to which William J. Tresselt devotes his attention the value and attractiveness are at once evident. He who wins success therein must possess not only broad knowledge of the scientific principles which underlie his work but a practical understanding of building operations as well, together with an originality that enables him to bring forward new and attractive ideas in building lines. Possessing all of the requisite qual- ities of a successful architect, William J. Tresselt has gradually worked his way upward until his position is a prominent one.
He was born January 2, 1873, in the city where he still resides. His father, Ferdinand Tresselt was a native of Germany, born on the 15th of May, 1827. The favorable reports which he heard concerning America and her opportunities led him to seek a home in the new world and he crossed the Atlantic and located in Columbus, where he followed the trade of a mason, which he had learned in his native country. For a long period he was thus identified with building operations but retired about 1885 to enjoy in well earned rest the fruits of his former toil. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Dorothea Link, was also of German parentage and passed away in 1906 at the age of seventy-three years.
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William J. Tresselt was educated in the public schools. At the age of eighteen years he entered as apprentice in the office of Joseph Dauben, an architect, with whom he remained for six years, becoming an expert in that line of activity. He then embarked in business on his own account and after three years alone entered the firm of Maetzel & Company in 1892 as its junior member, now Maetzel, Tresselt & Bassett. In this connection they have made the plans for and superintended the erection of a large number of residences, also the Home brewery and the plant of the Crystal Ice Company. They have rebuilt nearly all of the Columbus breweries, also erected the Central National Bank building and a large warehouse in New Yory city. The plant of the Kinnear Manufacturing Company and other local manu- facturing plants also stand as monuments of their enterprise and business skill, and Mr. Tresselt is recognized today as one of the prominent architects of the city, having made constant progress in his profession as his experience and study have promoted his skill and efficiency. He is an honorary member of the Builders Exchange and a member of the Columbus Society of Archi- tects.
On the 29th of October, 1892, Mr. Tresselt was married to Miss Emma Catherine Kientz, a daughter of John and Sarah Kientz of this city. They have one son, Arthur Herman, four years of age, who is the light and life of their home. They have many warm friends in this city.
Mr. Tresselt belongs to the Bismark Club and to the German Inde- pendent Protestant church. He is allied with no political organization, casting his ballot for the man whom he thinks best qualified for office. He is interested in all athletic sports, is particularly fond of bowling and fish- ing, owns a fine library and is an accomplished musician. His friends find him a most entertaining and congenial companion and in business circles he is regarded as one of the leading young men of the profession who is gradually winning a prominent place among the architects of the city.
HORACE JEFFERSON MAYNARD.
The years have chronicled the business progress and have made register of the commercial activity and enterprise of Horace Jefferson Maynard, the president of the Maynard Coal Company, today operating extensively in the rich coal fields of Ohio, steadily increasing its business in the number of mines owned and the extent of shipments made. Mr Maynard who is associated with his brother in this enterprise, has manifested in its control the qualities of indomitable energy and unflagging perserverance. He was born at Republic, Ohio, in 1848, and comes of English lineage. His grand- father, Stephen Maynard, removed from Pennsylvania to Ohio at an early period in the eighteenth century, casting in his lot among the pioneer settlers of Franklin county. His son, Jefferson P. Maynard, was born near Worth- ington in this county, and became a plow and rake manufacturer. Early in his business career, however, he conducted mercantile interests at Galena,
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Delaware county, Ohio, and subsequently established a plow manufacturing enterprise, conducting the business with gratifying success until 1886. His gratifying financial achievement enabled him then to put aside business cares, and removing to Columbus he lived retired in the enjoyment of well- earned rest until his death which occurred in 1898. The republican party received from him stalwart support, and his fellow townsmen, with apprecia- tion of his worth, fidelity and ability, frequently called him to local offices. No trust reposed in him was ever betrayed in the slightest degree and he won honor and respect as an official as well as a business man. He married Fidelia Thrall, a native of Delaware county, Ohio, related to the famous Thrall family of that locality. She survived her husband for a few years and passed away in 1902.
Horace Jefferson Maynard was a public-school pupil in Galena, Ohio, and after putting aside his text-books he came to Columbus in 1864 and accepted a clerkship in the dry-goods store of Osborn & Kershaw, at a salary of twenty dollars per month. He slept on the counter during the early days of his connection with the store, but gradually he advanced as the firm recognized his ability and worth. For six years he remained, being pro- moted from time to time with proportionately increasing salary, until he was receiving one thousand dollars per year, this being a very large remu- neration for such work in those days. He afterward returned to Galena, Ohio, where he purchased an interest in a general store, becoming junior partner of the firm of Hoover & Maynard.
Mr. Maynard now felt that his business justified his establishing a home of his own, and in 1872 he wedded Miss Margaret P. Patterson, of Columbus, and they have one daughter, Florence, now the wife of J. E. Bulen of this city. Mr. Maynard continued to conduct his mercantile interests until 1874 when he sold out and returned to the capital. Here he engaged in the grocery business as a member of the firm of Maynard Brothers at the corner of Rich and Fourth streets for four years, and from there moved to 115 South High street and continued until 1884. Their store became a popular enterprise of this character and was accorded a liberal and gratifying patronage. But as he gained success H. J. Maynard sought out other and more important fields, turning his attention to the wholesale commission business in which he con- tinued under the firm style of Maynard Brothers until 1887. In that year they became connected with the coal trade as operators, purchasing a mine in Muskingum county, Ohio. Their business has developed along sub- stantial lines, and to meet the demands of their patrons they have from time to time added other mines and purchased coal lands. In July, 1907, the business was incorporated under the firm name of Maynard Coal Company and they are now doing a strictly wholesale business as miners and shippers. Their largest mine is located on the Ohio river in Meigs county, employment being there given to two hundred men. They also own mines in Perry and Muskingum counties and are conducting an extensive business, while their sales are made throughout Michigan, Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio. Mr. Maynard likewise has many and varied interests. He has been one of the extensive investors in real estate and he and his brother now own forty-five
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residences in Columbus which return to them a gratifying rental. He has done considerable speculative building, erecting dwellings which he leases to tenants, and is the owner of much valuable real estate, both improved and unimproved. He and his brother likewise have a two hundred acre farm on Olentangy and wherever he puts forth his efforts the result is one of stimu- lation and enterprise that brings success. In all of his business career he has displayed judgment that is rarely, if ever, at fault, having early learned to differentiate between that which is important and that which counts for little real value upon his business operations. He is modestly inclined but a man at once thoroughly progressive in business, never regarding any posi- tion as a final one, but rather viewing it as a step upward, enabling him to climb to still higher levels. He is quick, positive, exacting and compre- hensive of every detail of affairs that come within the scope of his action, and as a business man he has talent for leading, which is one of the highest attributes of men-a necessity in the business world in these days of close competition.
But while business interests have made a demand upon his time and energies, calling forth his latent powers and talents, until he is today one of the most forceful factors in business life, Mr. Maynard is nevertheless a man of broad sympathy, of generous spirit, of high principles, who meets all men on an equal footing in his courtesy and shows no distinction between the man, highest or lowest, in the scale of human effort. He measures the in- dividual not by his wealth but by worth, and on many occasions he utilizes his opportunities for doing good for those with whom he comes in contact. Many have benefited by his liberality and he is now serving as a trustee of the Protestant Hospital, is one of the directors of the Young Women's Christian Association, and is a member of the official board of the First Methodist Episcopal church. He travels broadly and finds interest in view- ing the scenes of modern, historical or scenic interests. In former years he had little leisure, but as he has prospered he now finds that he has oppor- tunity for the cultivation of those graces of character for which all mankind have appreciation and which add so much to the sum total of human hap- piness.
A. G. HELMICK, M. D.
Dr. A. G. Helmick, chief physician of the Ohio penitentiary at Colum- bus, was born in Pickaway county, this state, October 2, 1879. His father, S. C. Helmick, is a native of Zanesville, and a practicing physician who has followed his profession in Pickaway county for many years. The family has numbered many followers of this calling for Dr. S. C. Helmick had six uncles, five of whom were physicians, while many of their sons also became medical practitioners. One of the number, Dr. Luke Helmick was the first physician of Franklinton. Many of the name became prominent as medi- cal practitioners, including Dr. Joseph Helmick of Harrisburg, who was a
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man of great repute. Environment and an inherited tendency probably had something to do with shaping the career of him whose name indorses this record. His mother, Margaret (Chenoweth) Helmick, was born in Franklin county, Ohio, a daughter of Elijah Chenoweth, a well-known res- ident of this locality. The family is of German and Scotch descent.
Dr. A. G. Helmick pursued his education in the schools of Commercial Point, Ohio, being graduated from the high school there, after which he took up the study of medicine in the Starling Medical College completing the course with the class of 1902. For one year he was house surgeon at Mount Carmel Hospital, after which he was appointed on the staff of the Ohio State Hospital for epileptics continuing in that position for three years. He was next appointed night physician at the penitentiary, and while thus serving also engaged in the general practice of medicine. On the 9th of July, 1908, he was appointed chief physician of the penitentiary and is occupying the position at the present time, having become well qualified for the onerous duties that devolve upon him by previous extended hospital work.
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