History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Part 96

Author: Johnson, Crisfield
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott & Co.
Number of Pages: 716

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life in the West, sustained by their mutual affection. till at last. after a long life of usefulness and self-sac- rifice, Hiram Townsend passed to his rest on the 9th day of December, 1820, at the age of seventy-two, universally honored and esteemed. His widow still survives, residing in Cleveland, on the West Side.

Their son. Oscar Townsend, was born at their resi- dene. in Greenwich, March 22. 1835. He was, from the very first, inured to the practical labors of farm life, labors which no doubt aided largely both in de- veloping his present muscular and well knit frame, and in giving that practical readiness and that power of adapting means to ends, which have so thoroughly characterized him throughout his life. His educa- tional advantages were limited to such training as the country schools of that time afforded, except during a few months in 1852, when he attended the old Pros- pect-street grammar school, then under the charge of Mr. L. M. Oviatt. afterwards superintendent of the Cleveland public schools and librarian of the public library, of whose attentive guidance Mr. Townsend has ever since cherished the most grateful recollee- tions.

The location of the Cleveland. Columbus and ('in- cinnati railroad across his father's farm, in 1848, had aroused the ambition of young Townsend, then only thirteen years old, to find a wider and more congemal sphere of action than his rural occupation had af- forded. Beginning in a subordinate position on the railway just mentioned, his carnest and constant en- deavor was to subserve the interest of his employe s by unwearying faithfulness to every assigned duty. This trait was soon observed by those who could not only appreciate but reward it: and in the spring of 1856 young Townsend, at the age of twenty-one, through the kindness of E. S. Flint and Addison Hills, was transferred from Shelby station to the Treighi office at Cleveland.

In April, 1862, Mr. Townsend was invited to a position in the Second National Bank of Cleveland. where he remained till 1865, when he was tendered the post of superintendent of the Empire Transporta- tion Co., and assumed the charge of the western department of that line. The energy and a: ility which had characterized Mr. Townsend in every posi- tion which he had hitherto occupied were, by this time, so fully recognized that in Angust, 1868, he was tendered and accepted the offices of director and vice president of the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincin- nati and Indianapolis railroad. When, a few months afterwards, Mr. L. M. Hubby, the president of the company, met with an accident which disabled him from performing the duties of his position, Mr. Town- send became the acting excentive officer, and in Sep- tember, 1820, at the age of thirty-five, was elected president of the corporation.

In this position his exeentive and financial abilities had a wider scope for their display than ever before, and, whatever adventitious circumstances may be claimed to have contributed to the result, Mr. Town-

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THE CITY OF CLEVELAND.

send can certainly point to that term of five years- from 1868 to 1823-under his management, as em- bracing the most prosperous period in the history of the Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Indian- apolis railroad. In closing his connection with the road, in 1823, Mr. Townsend carried with him a writ- ten testimonial by his successors as to the correct- ness of all his official transactions in behalf of the company, covering millions of dollars, from first to last, a testimonial which he prized far beyond the pres- tige gained while at the head of the company.

After a few years of comparative leisure, improved by him in other pursuits, Mr. Townsend was tendered the position of general manager of the Cleveland, Tuscarawas Valley and Wheeling railroad company, by its board of directors, composed of such capable and successful business men as Selah Chamberlain, Amasa Stone, Dr. W. S. Streator and others, who had been associated and intimately acquainted with him for many years. This post he accepted and now occupies.

Ile is also a part owner and the president of the Lake Superior Transportation Co., which owns sev- eral vessels employed in the iron ore trade between ports on Lake Superior and Lake Erie.

Mr. Townsend was united, December 22, 1856, to Miss Elizabeth Martin, daughter of the late Thomas Martin, formerly of Huron county, Ohio, by whom he has four sons, viz: Frank M., now twenty-one years of age; Jay Frederic, nineteen; Willard II., twelve; and Oscar, Jr., five.

In general personal appearance, that is, in hight, weight, massiveness of frame, and in movement, Mr. Townsend is said to resemble the late Senator Stephen A. Douglas, although their faces, as the picture shows, are dissimilar, Mr Townsend is of medinm hight. with a large, well-shaped head, abundant brown hair, well streaked with gray, dark auburn whiskers, large, blue eyes, a florid complexion, indicating a sanguine temperament, a firm, full neck, very broad shoulders, with a chest that, like Douglas', is of extraordinary size in proportion to his hight. His movements are active, and his gait is usually very rapid.

Ile is genial and kindly m manner, readily accessi- ble to all, but prompt and decided when promptness and decision are necessary. He loves and attracts children, and greets acquaintances with a smiling eye and a hearty grasp of the hand. lle possesses and expresses strong feelings and preferences, with sin- cerity, and is noted for the faithfulness with which he fulfills every promise, no matter how much it may prove to his own disadvantage. Although naturally modest and retiring in his disposition, yet he mingles freely in the social circle, and is ready to do his part in promoting the general enjoyment of any assemblage met for mutual entertainment.

Mr. Townsend is a member of the First Baptist church of Cleveland, as are also his wife and his eld- est son. He is strictly temperate in his habits, and abjures the use of alcoholic drinks and tobacco in

every form, as certain to prove deleterious to health in the end. But, while thus holding his faith and moral principles, he is never intolerant of the views of others, and, as the result of his study and thought, is in full sympathy with the most enlightened science and philosophy of modern times. llis hand and his heart are alike open to all proper demands, whether for the public advantage or for private unostentatious charity, tempered by a wise discrimination, which knows almost instinctively when to withhold and when to give freely.

JEPTHA H. WADE.

Jeptha II. Wade, whose name has been prominently connected with the telegraphie history of the West, and associated with many other important enterpises, was born in Seneca county, New York, on the 11th of August, 1811.

le is a son of Jeptha Wade, a surveyor and civil engineer, and was brought up to mechanical pursuits, in which he achieved a fair amount of success. In youth he was unexcelled as a marksman, and, in the days of militia training, he was the commander of four hundred Seneca-county riflemen. They generally closed the season with target practice, and in these annual trials of skill he invariably showed his right to command by not allowing himself to be beaten.

Having a taste for art, and finding his health im- paired by the labors and close application consequent upon his mechanical employment, he, in 1835, turned his attention to portrait painting, and by study and conscientious devotion to the art he became very suc- cessful. While engaged in this work, in Adrian, Michigan, the use of the camera in producing portraits came into notice. He purchased a camera, and, aided only by printed directions, succeeded in taking the first daguerreotype ever taken west of New York.

In 1844, while busy with his pencil and easel, taking portraits, varying his occupation by experimenting with the camera, news came to him of the excitement created by the success of the experiment of working a telegraph line between Baltimore and Washington.

Ile turned his attention to the new seience, studied it with his accustomed patience and assiduity, mas- tered its details, so far as then understood, and immediately saw the advantage to the country, and the peenniary benefit to those immediately interested, likely to accrue from the extension of the telegraph system which had just been created.

He entered earnestly on the work of extending this system, and the first line west of Buffalo was built by him, between Detroit and Jackson, Michigan. The Jackson office was opened and operated by him, al- though he had received no practical instruction in the manipulation of the instruments. After a short in- terval he again entered the field of construction, and, working with untiring energy, soon covered all Ohio, and the country as far west as St. Louis, with a net work of wires known as the "Wade lines."

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

This was not accomplished, however, without experi- encing the difficulties, annoyances and misfortunes to which all great enterprises are subject in their infancy. Ignorant employees, imperfect insulation and ruinous competition were the greatest embarrassments. But to Mr. Wade these obstacles were not insuperable and in the face of all these difficulties he proceeded with the work of opening and operating telegraph lines. Imperfect insulation was met by the invention of the famous " Wade insulator," which is still in use. He was the first to enclose a submarine cable in iron armor (across the Mississippi river at St. Louis), for which invention the world and its telegraph system owes him much: as it was this important discovery and improvement in their construction that made tel- egraph cables a snecess, and the crossing of oceans a possibility.

The "Honse consolidation" placed his interests in the Erie and Michigan, and Wade lines in the hands of the Mississippi Valley Printing Telegraph Com- pany, and before long this consolidation was followed by the union of all the House and Morse lines in the West, and the organization of the Western Union Telegraph Company soon followed. In all these acts of consolidation the influence of Mr. Wade was active and powerful. Realizing the fact that competition between short, detached lines rendered them unpro- ductive, and that in telegraphy as in other things union is strength, he directed his energies to bringing about the consolidation, not only of the lines connect- ing with each other, but of rival interests. The sound- ness of his judgment has been proven by the remark- able prosperity of the lines since their consoldation, in marked contrast with their former condition. He was one of the originators of the first Pacific tele- graph, and on the formation of the company was made its first president. The location of the line, and its construction through the immense territory, then in great part a wilderness, between Chicago and San Francisco, were left mainly to lus unaided judgment and energy, and here again those qualities converted a hazardous experiment into a brilliant success.

Hle remained president of the Pacific company until he secured its consolidation with the Western Union Telegraph Company, to accomplish which he went to California in the latter part of 1860, and succeeded in harmonizing the jarring telegraphic interests there. On the completion of this arrangement, in 1866, Mr. Wade was made president of the consolidated com- pany. having his headquarters in New York. It is scarcely possible to overestimate the value of his con- nection with the Western Union Telegraph Company at this period of its history, especially after he be- came its chief executive officer.

Hle possessed, in a superior degree, the invaluable faculty of administration and the power of clear, accurate, discriminating systemization. He knew how to appreciate and estimate the value and force of obstacles, how to carry out by careful and prudent

steps, and in well arranged detail, a fine conception, and organize it into a permanent force. His work was done by quiet, effective, well-planned and thorough methods. At a meeting of the board of directors in July. 1867. a letter was received from Mr. Wade de- clining, on account of failing health, a re-election to the office of president. His withdrawal from tele- graphic administration was received .with general regret, and the following resolutions were passed after the election of the new board was announced :

" Resolved, That, to the foresight, perseverance and tact of Mr. J. H. Wade, the former president of the company, we believe is largely due the fact of the existence of our great company to-day, with its thou- sand arms grasping the extremities of the continent, instead of a series of weak, unreliable lines, unsnited to public wants, and, as property, precarious and insecure:

"Resolved, That we tender to Mr. Wade our con- gratulations on the fruition of his great work, signalized and cemented by this day's election of a board representing the now united leading tele- graphic interests of the nation."

The telegraph had brought to Mr. Wade vast wealth, but it had also brought him into a state of health which imperiled its enjoyment. To dismiss care he sokl out his entire telegraphie interests, and in travel and in the enjoyment of his home in Cleveland, which be provided with every appliance of art and taste and comfort, gave himself up to needed rest and recuperation. On his restoration of health, which fol- lowed a judicious respite from labor, he entered into many spheres of active life. The wealth he has ac- cummlated is mostly invested in such a manner as to largely aid in building up the prosperity of Cleveland. The large and pleasant tract of land in the seven- teenth ward, adjoining Euclid avenue, known as " Wade Park," was beautified at his own expense for the enjoyment of the public.

At the organization of the Citizen's Savings and Loan Association, of Cleveland, in 1861. he was elected its president, and still retains that office. Hle is the originator and president of the Lake View Com- etery Association. As a kading director in many of the largest factories, banks, railroads and public in- stitutions, his clear head and active judgment are highly valued. He is a director of the Second Na- tional Bank. of Cleveland: a director of the Cleveland Rolling Mills, Cleveland Iron Company and Union Steel Serew Company, and the president of the American Sheet and Boiler Plate Company, and of the Chicago and Atchison Bridge Company, of Kan- sas. Ile is also a director in three railroad compa- nies, and the president of the Kalamazoo, Allegan and Grand Rapids, and Cincinnati, Wabash and Michigan railroads. He is, besides, president of the Valley railroad, running from Cleveland toward the coal fields of Olno. This will be a valuable acquisi- tion to the interests of Cleveland, and under the management of Mr. Wade will be promptly carried forward.

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THE CITY OF CLEVELAND.

The Valley railroad was projected previous to the panic of 1873, which put a stop to it. As the times began to improve, vigorous efforts were made to carry it forward, which met with but little success until the summer of 1878.

The importance of this road was strongly advocated by the newspapers, meetings of the citizens were held and a general interest awakened. Under this impetus the road was put under contract, and considerable progress was made in the work, when it was checked by a controversy between the contractors and the company.

Before this a contract had been made by the city of Cleveland with the Valley railroad for the transfer to the company of that portion of the bed of the Ohio canal sold to the city by the State, which would give the railroad the most favorable entrance into the city and access to shipping facilities on the lake.

The terms of this contraet had not been complied with, and its abrogation by the city was threatened. At this juncture the management of the Valley rail- road succeeded in effecting a negotiation with capi- talists for the amount necessary to complete and equip the road, but the parties who agreed to lend the money demanded as a condition that Mr. Wade should become the president.

Mr. Wade took the matter into consideration, and announced his willingness to assume the position if the canal-bed negotiation could be satisfactorily ad- justed without a lawsuit with the city, to which he was utterly averse. The city council met the diffi- culty by a resolution authorizing the mayor to make and sign a new contract, on terms satisfactory to Mr. Wade and the Valley railroad company.

The company was reorganized, with Mr. Wade at its head, the difficulties with the contractors were satisfactorily adjusted, work was renewed and the road will be completed by the end of the present year (1829).

In addition to his other manifold duties Mr. Wade has been appointed by the citizens of Cleveland as commissioner of the city sinking-fund, park com- missioner and director of the Workhouse and House of Refuge. For several years he was vice president of the Homeopathie hospital, to aid which he has contributed freely. He is one of the trustees of the Cleveland Protestant Orphan Asylum, and is now building for that purpose, at his own expense, a mag- nificent fireproof building, sufficiently large to ac- commodate from one hundred to one hundred and fifty children. This building is located on St. Clair street, and will be completed in a few months.

Mr. Wade has also contributed freely to many other charitable causes and objeets. He is now in the zenith of his power, and is universally beloved by the people of the beautiful eity which he has made his home, and which he has done so much to enlarge and adorn, and by the many recipients of his unostenta- tious charities.

SAMUEL WILLIAMSON.

The subject of this sketch was born in Crawford county, Pennsylvania, on the 16th of March, 1808. Ile is the eldest son of Samuel Williamson, who was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and re- moved to Crawford county about the year 1800. Dur- ing his residence in that county he was married to Isabella McQueen, by whom he had a family of seven children. On the tenth of May, 1810, he removed to Cleveland, Ohio, where, in connection with his brother, he carried on the business of tanning and currying, which he continued until his death, which occurred in September, 1834. He was a man of enterprise and publie spirit, highly esteemed as a citizen, liberal in polities, and for many years justice of the peace and associate judge of the court of common pleas.

Samuel Williamson was but two years of age when he came, with his parents, to Cleveland. When he attained a suitable age he was sent to the public schools, which he attended until 1826, and then en- tered Jefferson College, in Washington county, Penn- sylvania. He graduated from that institution in 1829, and, returning to Cleveland, entered the office of Judge Andrews, with whom he read law for two years. In 1832 he was admitted to the bar, and immediately commenced the practice of his profession in connec- tion with Leonard Case, with whom he was associated until 1834, when he was elected to the position of au- ditor of Cuyahoga county. He remained in that office for a period of eight years, at the expiration of which he returned to the practice of law. This he continned with slight interruptions until 1872, when he retired from its activities to the enjoyment of a well-earned leisure. During these years his time was not, however, wholly engrossed by his professional interests. Ile was elected to a number of respon- sible positions of publie trust, and discharged the duties pertaining to them with unvarying fidelity and marked ability. In 1850 he was chosen to represent the county in the legislature; in 1859-'60 he was a member of the board of equalization, and in the fall of 1862 was elected to the State senate, in which he served two terms. He rendered valuable service as a member of the city council and of the board of educa- tion, being active in promoting public improvements and educational institutions. Ile was a director of the Cleveland and Columbus railroad, and for two years held the office of proseenting attorney. Ile is now president of the Cleveland Society for Savings, one of the largest and best conducted associations of this kind in the West, having a deposit of over $8.000,000.

Throughout his professional career he maintained a high rank at the bar of Cuyahoga county, and while he had a wide and varied experience in every branch of legal practice he was particularly successful as pros- ecutor's counsel, and was extensively employed in the settlement of estates.

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

In all the phases of his career and life he has been thoroughly upright, and well deserves the high respect and esteem in which he is held by all who know him.

HIRAM V. WILLSON.

This gentleman, an eminent lawyer and jurist, and the first judge of the United States Court for the Northern District of Ohio, was born in April, 1808. in Madison county, New York. He was educated at Hamilton College, graduating from that institution in 1832. Immediately afterward he commenced the study of law in the office of IIon. Jared Willson, of Canandaigua, New York. Subsequently his legal studies were continued in Washington, D. C., in the office of Francis S. Key, and, for a time, he taught in a classical school in the Shenandoah valley.

During his early studies he acquired the familiarity with legal text books and reports which in afterlife became of great service to him. Throughout his collegiate course, and during his law apprenticeship. he maintained a close intimacy with the Hon. Ilenry B. Payne, then a young man of about his own age.

In 1833 he removed to Painesville, Ohio, but soon proceeded to Cleveland, where he formed a law part- nership with his friend, II. B. Payne. They com- meneed business under the most disadvantageous cir- eumstances, being almost destitute of means in a land of strangers. They, however, met with encour- agement from some of the older members of the pro- fession, and in a short time established their reputa- tion as able and rising lawyers. After a few years years Mr. Payne withdrew from the firm, and it be- came successively Willson, Wade & Hitchcock and Willson, Wade & Wade. By these partnerships even the extensive business and high reputation of the old firm were much increased.

In 1852 Mr. Willson was the Democratic candidate for Congress against William Case on the Whig, and Edward Wade on the Free Soil ticket. In this con- test Mr Wade was successful, but Mr. Willson re- ceived a heavy vote.

In the winter of 1854 he was selected by the Cleveland bar to labor in behalf of a bill to divide the State of Ohio, for Federal judicial purposes, into two districts. After a sharp struggle the bill was sue- cessful-mainly through his efforts-and the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio was formed. In March, 1855, President Pierce appointed Mr. Willson judge of the court just au- thorized; an act which was received with general satisfaction by the members of the bar.

Until the time of his appointment he had been a strong political partisan, but in becoming a judge he ceased to be a politician, and to the time of his death never allowed political or personal motives to affeet his decisions. He proved himself an upright judge, whose decisions were based entirely on the facts of the case and its legal and constitutional bearings. The new court did not lack for business.

In addition to the ordinary civil and criminal cases, the location of the court on the lake border brought it a large number of admiralty suits. Many of his decisions in these cases were regarded as models of lucid statement and furnished valuable precedents.

Among the most noteworthy of his decisions in admiralty was one regarding maritime liens, in which he held that the maritime lien of men for wages, and of dealers for supplies, is a proprietary interest in the vessel itself, and cannot be divested by the acts of the owner or by any casualty until the claim is paid, and that such lien inheres to the ship and all her parts, wherever found, and whoever may be her owner.

In the case of L. Wiek rs. the schooner "Samuel Strong," which came up in 1855, Judge Willson re- viewed the history and intent of the common-carrier act of Ohio, in an opinion of much interest.

In other cases he supported his decisions by citing precedents of the English and American courts for several centuries. A very important case was what is known in the legal history of Cleveland as the " Bridge Case" in which the questions to be decided were the legislative authority of the city to bridge the river, and whether the bridge would be a nuisance, damaging the complainant's private property. Judge Willson's decision, granting a preliminary injunction until further evidence could be taken, was a thorough review of the law relating to water highways and their obstructions, In the case of Hoag es. the pro- peller " C'ataract" the law of collision was clearly set forth.

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History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Part 96

Author: Johnson, Crisfield Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott & Co. Number of Pages: 716

Author: Johnson, Crisfield
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott & Co.
Number of Pages: 716