USA > Ohio > Cuyahoga County > History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio > Part 88
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As a judge Mr. Griswold commanded the respect of all by his learning and impartiality, and as a lawyer he stands in the front rank of the profession: his ex- tensive reading, well-balanced judgment and logical reasoning making him a most reliable counselor and successful practitioner.
Mr. Griswold was married, in 1858, to Helen Luey Robinson of Westfield, New York. His wife died in 1871, since when he has remained unmarried.
EDWIN B. HALE.
The subject of this sketch, who is one of the most prominent and successful bankers and business men of the city, belongs to one of the oldest and best known families in England and the United States; and, although it would greatly transcend the limits allowed here to trace its history at length and mention all who have reflected eredit on their ancient and honorable name, yet a brief notice of a few points may not be inappropriate.
In the history and antiquities of the county of Essex, England, by Philip Mornant, London, 1268, we find numerous references to the family of Hales. As early as the thirteenth century the family name appears among the burgesses in parliament, and is re- ferred to in the history of the reigns of Richard the First, Edward the Third and their immediate successors. Many members of the family were called to offices of trust and position by the communities in
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which they lived, and the name is mentioned with honor in both civil and military annals-Sir Mat- thew Hale, the upright judge, being one of the most distinguished of the family. The office of high sheriff of the county was frequently filled by some one bear- ing the name of Hale, and the family has almost con- tinously had a representative in one or both houses of parliament.
Members of the family at an early dite settled in New England; the first settler of the name in Con- neeticut being Samuel Hale, (son of William Ilale, Esq., of Kings Walden, England, high sheriff of llert- fordshire in 1621, who married Rose, daughter of Sir George Bond, Knight Lord Mayor of London, in 1587.) who located in the neighborhood of Hartford about the year 1640. In the annals of Glastonbury, Connecticut, (so named from the famous old monastic town in England, which was distinguished as a seat of learning and where the first Christian church was erected about the year 600) we find the names of his descendants quite prominent; they being engaged in various wars of the oklen time-notably in King Phil- ip's war, the old French and Indian war and the war of the Revolution. In the war of the Revolution no less than sixteen able bodied men, heads of families, by the name of Hale, all from this small settlement of Glastonbury, attached themselves to the army as sol- diers and gave good evidence of their patriotism by risking their lives in their country's service.
Philo Ilale, the father of the subject of this sketch, was a man of remarkable energy and enterprise, and was the first who engaged in and established the business of ship building on the Connectient river, which he conducted successfully until the sudden outbreak of the war of 1812. The war ruined his business and involved him in serious loss. He afterwards traveled extensively abroad, but, finding no foreign country like his native land, came back, im- proved his broken fortunes and, attracted by the beauty of the prairie country, gave his means and ener- gies to the development of the interests of central Illi- nois, where he died in 1848, universally esteemed aud respected as a public-spirited citizen.
The son of whom we write was born in Brooklyn, Long Island. February 8, 1819. During his infancy his parents removed to Connectient, and gave him in early youth the advantages of the best schools. The death of his mother, two brothers and a sister, at an early period of life, prevented him from entering Yale College, and defeated all the family plans for his fur- ther education. The young boy then found himself dependent upon the sympathy of distant relatives. Ile came to Ohio, and entered Kenyon College in 1837. where he gave his entire attention to his studies and graduated with the honors of his class in 1841, having a personal friend in every member of the faculty and the kind regard of all his fellow students. Fond of letters, it was his intention to devote himself to the pursuts of literature, but after much discussion, and rather in deference to the wish of his father, he turned
his attention to the legal profession and entered the office of Goddard & Converse, attorneys at Zanesville, Ohio, and was admitted to the bar, after an examina- tion condueted by the llon. Joseph Root, in 1843. After this, business required his presence in Illinois, and absorbed his attention for several years.
In 1852. after the death of his father, he removed to Cleveland, attracted thither by its beautiful situa- tion, its elimate, the enterprise of its citizens, and its educational and other advantages. Ile there com- menced business as a private banker and is still so engaged. Mr. Hale is a strictly conscientious and conservative man, cantions and considerate, thought- ful and well balanced. In his business relations he is highly respected, and his counsel is freely and fre- quently sought. In his immediate social circle genial and pleasant, he is cherished and beloved. As a citizen he is quiet and unostentations, but always interested in every measure for the public good, and the poor have ever found in him a true and sympathetic friend.
In 1846 he was married to the danghter of S. N. Høyt, Esq., of Chardon, Ohio, and now has three sons and fonr daughters living, some of whom are married and reside in the immediate neighborhood of their father's residence.
TRUMAN P. HANDY.
Truman P. Handy was born in Paris, Oneida coun- ty, New York, on the 17th day of January, 1802. He received a good education at an academy and made preparations for entering college, but at the age of eighteen he accepted a clerksluip in the Bank of Geneva, in Ontario county in that State. Five years later he resigned and removed to Buffalo, to assist in the organization of the Bank of Buffalo, in which he held the position of teller for one year.
En 1832 he removed to Cleveland, having been in- vited there for the purpose of resuscitating the Com- mercial Bank of Lake Erie, established in 1816, the charter of which had been purchased by Hon. George Bancroft. of Massachusetts. Mr. Handy accepted the post of cashier and reorganized the bank, which prospered until 1842, when its charter expired and a renewal was refused by the legislature. In the finan- cial crash of 1831 it had been compelled to accept real estate in settlement of the estate of its involved enstomers, and thus became one of the largest land- holders in the city. When its business was closed Mr. Handy was appointed trustee to divide this p op- erty among the stockholders. This task he completed in 1845.
Meanwhile he had, in 1843, established a private banking house under the firm name of T. P. Handy & Co., in conducting the business of which he met with his accustomed success. In 1845 Mr. Ilandy organized the Commercial Branch Bank, under the aet of legislature of that year authorizing the estab- lishment of the State Bank of Ohio. He assumed the cashiership and was also the acting manager. The
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success of his management of its affairs may be in- ferred from the fact that the stockholders realized an average of twenty per cent. on their investments for a period of twenty years, until the termination of the charter in 1865.
In 1861 Mr. Handy was called upon to revive the credit of another important institution, which had been serionsly crippled by the failure of the Ohio Life and Trust Company. He accepted the presidency of the establishment in question (the Merchants' Branch of the State Bank of Ohio), and under his manage- ment it rapidly recovered its lost ground. In Febru- ary, 1865, it was reorganized as the Merchants' Na- tional Bank nuder the United States banking law, with a capital of one million dollars, six hundred thousand of which were paid in. Mr. Handy was elected president of the reorganized institution, and conducted its affairs with great success.
From 1850 to 1860 he also served as treasurer of the Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati railroad company, and managed its finances with sagacity and skill. This position he resigned in 1860, but has ever since been a director of the company.
Mr. Ilandy was also among the first to demonstrate the practicability of establishing a profitable commerce with Europe, direct from the lake ports. In 1858 he despatched three of a fleet of ten merchant vessels, mostly laden with lumber and staves, which left Cleveland for English ports, and since that time there has been more or less direct trade maintained between Europe and the ports of the American lakes.
Mr. Ilandy never sought nor held positions of polit- ical prominence. Few, however, have taken so deep an interest in educational and philanthropie causes, or labored so earnestly for their success. He served as a member of the board of education with Charles Bradburn, and was one of that gentleman's ablest coadjutors in the arduons task of reorganizing and improving the school system of Cleveland. In the Sunday-schools he was for more than forty years a constant worker both as superintendent and teacher, taking an active part in all measures calculated to extend their field of usefulness. For twenty-one years he was president of the Industrial Home and Children's Aid Society, of which he has ever been one of the most liberal supporters.
A life-long and sincere member of the Presbyterian church, he is singularly free from " isms " of any de- scription, and at all times advocated their exclusion from moral or politieal theories or questions. Ile is broad and liberal in his views, generous and just in his acts, universally esteemed and particularly beloved by children. lle is one of the few citizens to be found in any community whose effective labors for the relief of the poor and helpless, and the rescue of the ignorant and vicious, justly entitle them to the name of philanthropists. Ile made three extended visits to Europe, chiefly for the purpose of investigating the financial, religious and educational systems of the old
world, and Cleveland was equally benefited with him- self by the valuable knowledge he there gained.
In March, 1832, Mr. Handy was married to Miss Harriet N. Hall of Geneva, New York, by whom he has one daughter, who married Hon. John S. Newber- ry, of Detroit, Michigan.
BENJAMIN HARRINGTON.
Benjamin Harrington was born in Shelburn, Ver- mont, on the 4th of February, 1806. His father, Captain Benjamin Harrington, was a native of Con- neetient, and in early life had been a sea captain, but left the sea and settled in Shelburn, where for a num- ber of years he was a leading merchant and promi- bent business man. He built a church, and built and owned a store, a hotel and six or more dwelling houses, in that village.
The subject of this notice was the fifth of a family of seven children. His father died when he was quite young, and he was thus thrown upon his own resources at an early age. When fifteen years old he went to Canada, where he remained several years, and then moved to Buffalo, New York. He returned to Canada at the expiration of two years, and thence moved to Cleveland in November, 1835, one year he- fore it was incorporated as a city. Ile first leased, and kept for several years, the old Franklin House. In 1838 he was elected alderman, and served in that capacity one year. In 1841 he was chosen council- man, and the following year was again elected alder- man and made president of the city council.
Mr. Harrington retired from the city government in 1843, and did not again enter it. From that time until 1858 he devoted his time and energy to the management of his business, which he began to increase by purchasing land and erecting business blocks.
lle was appointed to several positions of public trust. Among others he was postmaster under President Buchanan from 1858 to 1860, and was made a State commissioner to close up the affairs of the old Commercial Bank of Lake Erie. Ile was one of the six who formed the banking firm of S. W. Crittenden & Co., which was afterwards transformed into the First National Bank. The application to be thus organized was the first on record in the United States, and one of the first acted upon.
After his retirement from active business life, Mr. ITarrington devoted his attention to the supervision of his property and to works of charity. He gave liberally to numerous benevolent objects, but his charity was always governed by a wise discrimination. In later life he took but little interest in polities. Ile was a man of most generous impulses, large hearted, and universally popular among all classes of people; noted for his strict integrity and honor in all business transactions, and a self-made man in the highest sense. In every position of trust which he held he enjoyed the complete confidence of those whom he
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represented, and displayed upon all occasions his abil- ity to perform the duties devolving upon him. He was a sagacious business man, a kind employer and in every respect a good citizen.
Although not a member of any church organization, he was a liberal contributor to the cause of Christian- ity and a constant attendant upon divine service. For many years he was a vestryman of Trinity ( Episcopal) church. He died on the 30th of January, 1878, be- ing just five days less than seventy-two years of age.
Mr. Harrington was married on the 12th day of January. 1832, to Chloe W. Prentiss, daughter of Samuel Prentiss of Rutland, Vermont. Mrs. Har- rington died several years before her husband. They left no family, but are mourned by the many friends to whom they were endeared by their noble qualities of mind and heart.
HENRY J. HERRICK.
Dr. Henry J. Herrick, one of Ohio's native sons, who has for several years occupied a conspicuous place among the physicians and surgeons of Cleveland, was born at Aurora, Portage county, on the 20th day of January, 1833. His parents came of New England stock, his father being a native of Massachusetts, and his mother of Connecticut. Early in life they set their faces toward the west, and located in Ohio, where, with the energy and faith necessary on the part of all good pioneers, they bravely began the battle for existence. Beneath the watchful care of the father, the sons and daughters were taught valu- able lessons in the lore which leads to success; while within the sacred domain of a Christian mother's in- fluence they drank the inspiration of her pious teach- ings, and ever sought to honor her precepts by lifting their lives to the elevated moral standard which she had set up before them.
When Henry was but a lad, his father removed with his family to Twinsburg in Summit county, where the youth divided his time between occasional attend- ance at a public school and hard labor upon his father's farm and in his saw-mill. Thus passed his years upon the "even tenor of their way " until he reached the age of eighteen, when an offer made by his father aroused his latent ambition, and gave shape to his whole future career. Of all the seven sons of his father, he alone accepted the offer made by the latter; which was that he would aid in providing a liberal education for that son who would agree to forego all claim to receive an "outfit " at his majority.
Henry joyfully embraced the opportunity, and without delay began preparing for college at the Twinsburg academy, under the capable instruction of Rev. Samuel Bissell-still working on the farm dnr- ing his vacation. Being duly prepared at the age of twenty-one, he entered Williams College, at Williams- town, Massachusetts, where he spent four years in ardnous study-during which he passed his vacations profitably in barrel-making, lumbering, and school
teaching-the latter occupation also requiring his at- tention during two winters. He was then graduated with high honors, finding himself endowed with not only the learning of the schools, but with a good deal of practical experience and no little mechanical skill. One of his comrades at Williams was James A. Gar- field, since so celebrated as a soldier and statesman, and these two, from their large, powerful forms, were known as the " Ohio tiiants."
Greatly to the disappointment of his father, who hoped to see him embrace the ministry, young Her- rick decided to enter the medical professon, and, dur- ing one of his vacations, he attended a partial course of lectures at the Berkshire Medical College, Pitts- field, Massachusetts. Returning to Ohio in 1858, he at once went to work for his uncle, who was a farmer. In the fall of that year, having saved twenty-nine dollars, he set out, with his father's consent, for Cleveland, where he hoped by some means to make his way through a course at the medical college. Means he had none, save his twenty-nine dollars, and he was, moreover, "a stranger in a strange land," but he had a stout heart, and he never doubted that he would accomplish his desire. Hle sought employ- ment as a teacher, that he might earn money to pay for his tuition, but in vain. By a lucky chance he was directed to Dr. M. L. Brooks, in whose office he became a student, and whom he compensated partly with office labor, and partly with the gams derived from teaching in one of the city evening schools. By the aid of the means thus acquired he also managed to attend lectures at the Cleveland Medical College.
After teaching school subsequently (in 1859 and 1860) at Geanga Seminary, in Geauga county, and still later in Solon, Cuyahoga county, he went to Chicago in the summer of 1860, where he resumed his medical studies with Dr. Daniel Brainard, and through the influence of that eminent surgeon he was appointed house physician at the United States marine hospital in Chicago. Entering Rush Medical College also, he graduated from that institution in the spring of 1861 with the degree of M. D., and about that time received likewise from Williams College the degree of A. M.
Returning shortly afterwards to Cleveland, he was employed as one of Dr. Brooks' assistants at the United States marine hospital, and in February, 1862, entered the army as assistant surgeon of the Seven- teenth Ohio Infantry. During a portion of his ser- vice he was in charge of General Hospital, No. 13, at Nashville, Tennessee. He received a commission as surgeon in December, 1862, and at the battle of Chickamauga, where he was in charge of the hospitals of his division, he was captured by the enemy; being conveyed thence to Libby prison, at Richmond. At the expiration of two months he was exchanged, when he returned to Cleveland on a twenty days' furlough. and was there married (December 8, 1863,) to Miss Mary, daughter of Dr. M. L. Brooks, his old patron and friend.
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Rejoining his regiment at Chattanooga, he accom- panied Sherman's army in the celebrated "march to the sea," and at Savannah resigned his commission one month previous to the expiration of his term of service.
Although greatly benefited by his extended experi- ence in the army, he sought to still further increase his professional knowledge in a brief season within the lecture room of a medical college in New York city, and, bemg there fitted to encounter with skill the dif- ficulties of surgical science, he returned to Cleveland, where, in 1865, he became associated as a partner with his father-in-law, Dr. Brooks, with whom he continued to practice until 1871. Since that time Dr. Herrick has pursued alone the profession of physician and surgeon, mounting steadily in skill and fame until he is to-day a widely successful practitioner, and is con- fessedly a leading representative in the "old school."
From 1865 to 1868 he filled the chair of professor of "obstetrics and diseases of women and children" in the Charity Hospital Medical College, and upon the reorganization of that college as the Medical Depart- ment of Wooster University he was chosen to be pro- fessor of the principles of surgery, which chair he still occupies. In 1863 he was elected president of the Ohio State Medical Society, of which he is still an active member. He is also a prominent member of the American Medical Association and the Northeast- ern and Cuyahoga County Medical Societies. Ile is a frequent contributor to the valuable medical litera- ture of the State; his papers on "tubercles" and "the Charitable Institutions of the State, " read before the State Medical Society the present year (1829) being received with marked approval.
A Presbyterian in religious faith, Dr. Herrick is an earnest Christian worker, and devotes much of his time, his energies and his means to labors of be- nevolence; his heart, as well as his professional instincts responding gladly to the calls of suffering humanity, while his ontstretched hand is an eager servitor in a noble work.
Dr. Herrick's family consists of his estimable wife, one daughter and three sons, all of whom reside with their parents. Having risen unaided, save by his own earnest and unflagging efforts, from one of the lower rounds of life's ladder to social and professional em- inence, Dr. Herrick has made a record which the youth of the present time may well look upon with respect and emulation.
RENSSELAER R. HERRICK.
HIon. Rensselaer R. Herrick, who occupies to-day the chief magistracy of the city of Cleveland, first set foot within that city forty-three years ago, at the youthful age of ten, and there he has spent the sub- sequent years of what has proven a busy and useful existence.
Mr. Herrick comes of good old Puritan stock, and in this country traces his ancestry back to 1629, when
his great-grandfather's great-grandfather, Ephraim Herrick, came over from Leicester, England, to mend his fortunes in the western world. Ephraim Herrick settled in Connecticut upon reaching the shores of America, and there his descendants con- tinned to live and multiply until within less than a century, when they began to migrate from classie New England to newer and more inviting fields. To connect the past with the present, it may be noted that Rensselaer R. Herrick's father, Sylvester P., was born in Clinton, New York, in 1793; his grandfather, Andrew, in Connecticut, April 7, 1752; his great- grandfather, Andrew, in Preston, Connecticut, Feb- ruary 10, 1727: his great-grandfather's father, Eph- raim, in Connecticut in 1692; and his great-grand- father's grandfather in Connectient in 1638.
Andrew Herrick, grandfather of Cleveland's pres- ent mayor, removed about 1290 with his family to Clinton. New York, in company with a band of Con- neeticut colonists, and became, later on, a prominent citizen of that place, closely identified with the suc- cess of Hamilton College, of Clinton, a widely known and popular institution of learning.
Sylvester P., the son of Andrew, entered in early manhood upon active business pursuits and was suc- cessively a prominent merchant in Clinton, Vernon and Utica; in which latter place he resided at the time of his death.
In Utica, on the 29th day of January, 1826, Rens- selaer R. Herrick first saw the light, and in 1828 his father died. His childhood days moved uneventfully along until he reached the age of ten, when the sturdy and resolute lad set out for the West, to seek his for- tune and to do his little share toward the support of his widowed mother's family.
Reaching Cleveland, he obtained employment in the printing office of the Ohio City Irgus, located on the west side of the Cuyahoga. There he remained, learning the printer's art, until 1839. He then en- gaged in such occupations as he could find, and until 1843 he divided his time between attending school and earning a livelihood.
Being then seventeen years old, he decided to be- come a carpenter. Taking service with a prominent builder, he so improved his time and opportunities that at the expiration of three years, when he had reached the age of twenty, he began business on his own account as a buildler and contractor. This oceu- pation he steadily pursued until 1820, when he was able to retire from active business and to enjoy the ease which had been won by a quarter of a century of unflagging industry.
Mr. Herrick's first appearance in public life was made in 1855, when he was chosen a member of the Cleveland city council, and this mark of public con- fidence was successively repeated in 1856, 1857 and 1858. After that, for the space of ten years, the pressing cares of business compelled him to decline all publie honors; but in 1869, yielding to the pressure of the popular demand, he was again elected a mem-
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ber of the council. In 1873, 1874, 1876 and 1877 he was a "eitizen's member " of the board of improve- ments, and in 1849 he was elected mayor of the city for the term of two years.
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