USA > Ohio > Montgomery County > Dayton > History of Dayton, Ohio. With portraits and biographical sketches of some of its pioneer and prominent citizens Vol. 2 > Part 8
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It was about the year 1850 that the first planing machine was brought to Dayton by Bomberger & Thresher, who successfully followed the busi- ness of planing lumber for about fourteen years. Commencing on a small scale at first, they at length were enabled to creet a three-story manufac- tory at the intersection of Wayne Street and the canal. In 1862, they sold out to M. Burrous & Company, who, in 1863, were largely engaged in the manufacture of all kinds of house building material, and in addition to this were also largely engaged as building contractors. The engine in their factory was about one hundred horse-power, and they turned out a large amount of work each year.
This business afterward passed into the hands of D. W. Stewart & Company, the "Company" being Jeremiah HI. Peirce. This was about 1868, and this firm continued until 1875, when the firm of D. W. Stewart & Company was dissolved, Mr. Peirce purchasing the interest of Mr. Stewart. Mr. Peirce continued the business alone until 1880, when JIenry Coleman purchased an interest, and since then the firm name has been Peirce & Coleman. Since its original establishment this business has been very largely increased. The plant covers an extensive area,. and comprises the main factory, which is three stories high, is of brick, and
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is 80x100 feet in dimensions. To this there is a wing 30x60 feet. There is also a one-story engine house, dry kilns, and two extensive lumber yards, one at the factory, and one at the corner of Dutoit and Bacon streets. Tbe machinery and other appliances in operation in this factory are of the latest and most improved patterns, and are propelled by a one hundred horse-power steam engine. Employment is furnished to one hundred and fifty workmen in the various departments of the business. The products of this establishment consist of sash, doors, blinds, moldings, and interior finish for buildings, the latter consisting of hard wood work of all kinds, doors solid or vencered, store fronts, ornamented doors for residences, . newel posts, balusters, stair railings, brackets, bank work, and all other parts of buildings made of wood.
The business now carried on by D. E. McSherry & Company, that of the manufacture of grain drills, was established in 1864, by MeSherry, Kneisly & Company, the works being located on Wayne Street. In 1865, Mr. Kneisly retired from the firm, and the present firm name was adopted. In 1868, the business had so increased that it became necessary to have more room, and the present location was selected, and a factory erected thereon. The buildings occupy three sides of a square, are of brick, and are three stories high. The main building contains the machine and carpenter shops, the planing rooms and the offices. The west wing is used for an additional machine shop and for the painting department, and the rear building is used for pattern shops, gate building, grinding, polishing, and japanning rooms. The foundry is at the east end of the works and has a capacity of seven tons per day. In the various depart- ments there are employed from one hundred to one hundred and twenty skilled men, besides other laborers. The articles manufactured by this company are the "MeSherry" grain drill, the "MeSherry Unrivalled" force feed, the "None Such " spring-tooth harrow, and the "New Model" pulverizing rotary dise harrow. Other agricultural machinery is also manufactured by this firm. Their goods are shipped to all parts of the United States, and exported to all parts of Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. The members of the firm are Daniel E. MeSherry and Edward Breneman, both of whom have been connected with the house ever since its establishment.
Boyer & McMaster commenced the manufacture of stoves in 1864 in a one-story brick building on Bayard Street, the present location of their works. At first they employed but eight men. When they com- meneed business there were in the city four other stove foundries, now there is but one other, and this one is not any of the four referred to. Boyer & McMaster are now the leading stove manufacturers in the city,
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their "Homestead" stoves being very popular, and having a very wide sale. Their force of men is large, and they have an extensive trade.
A. A. Simonds came to Dayton from Massachusetts in 1874, and founded his present business that year, which consists of the manufacture of planing machine knives, engine bars and plates for paper mills. IIc erected a substantial brick building in which operations were connnenced. At the present time his buildings are, one of brick, 40x100 feet in size, and the other a frame one, 30x105 feet. Mr. Simonds now manufactures in addition to the articles mentioned above, molding knives, stave-jointing knives, spoke knives, slasher knives, tenoning knives, siding knives, book- binders' knives, and in fact, everything in the shape of machine knives. A specialty of the works is the Diamond Bed Plate for paper manufacturers. This plate is specially designed to aid in the production of good pulp in the shortest time, and with the least expenditure of power. The business is a great and growing one, and the trade extends to all parts of the United States.
The Dayton Furniture Factory was started as an incorporated com- pany in 1865, for the purpose of the manufacture of furniture. Since that time, however, the ownership has changed several times. Mr. II. R. Parrott is now the sole proprietor. The factory is a large and substantial building, four stories high, and is stocked with the latest improved machinery. A. large number of skilled mechanics are employed in the production of a medium grade of bed-room suites of various styles and designs, many of them original and manufactured exclusively by this company. Chamber sets are a specialty with this establishment, although other kinds of furniture are made. The machinery is operated by a one hundred and fifty horse-power engine, and the goods manufactured here are shipped to all parts of the United States.
C. F. Snyder commenced the manufacture of extension table slides in 1874, in a small way, on the lower hydraulic, between Third and Fourth streets. His factory was run by water power, and he employed one man and a boy, also working himself, thus having three hands engaged, and using a limited amount of machinery. In 1881, he moved to the Woodsum Machine Company's building, where he remained until 1884, when he moved into his present three-story brick building, located on Monument Avenue and the Cincinnati, Hamilton & Dayton Railroad. Here he employs twenty-five mechanics and turns out annually slides enough for about one hundred thousand extension tables. The name of the device manufactured by Mr. Snyder is the " Reliable Extension Table Slide," and it is well known to table manufacturers all over the country. The fact that this establishment is exclusively devoted to the manufacture
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of these slides, is an apt illustration of the tendency toward specialization everywhere observable in manufacturing industries, as well as of the tendency toward automatism in the same industries. The result is that manufactured products are constantly being cheapened in production, and as a natural and necessary result are constantly being sold for less money and more extensively used.
The business now conducted by the Reynolds & Reynolds Company was established in 1866 by Ira Reynolds and his son, L. D. Reynolds. It consists in the manufacture of blank books, stationery, and school supplies. The location at first was in the Osceola Mills, where about fifteen men were employed. In 1875, the business was moved to the ยท three-story and basement brick building at the northeast corner of Second and Jefferson streets, where it has been ever since. In this building there are twenty-five thousand square feet of floor space. Ira Reynolds died in 1880, and L. D. Reynolds continued the business alone until 1889, when the Reynolds & Reynolds Company was incorporated. The specialties of this company's manufacture are blank books, stationery. and school supplies, and the success; and growth of the business has been owing to the devotion of the company's energies to specialties. About one hundred hands are employed, and the annual product of the factory is about one hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars. The officers of the company at the present time are as follows: L. D. Reynolds, president; G. W. Shaw, vice-president; R. L. Hughes, secre- tary; G. G. Shaw, treasurer, and L. G. Reynolds, general manager.
The house of Thomas Staniland & Sons was founded by Thomas Staniland in 1865. The present firm was formed in 1888, and is com- posed of Thomas Staniland and his two sons, Charles J. and Frank T. Staniland. The premises cover an area which averages seventy-five feet wide by two hundred feet in depth. Steam power is used, and about twenty skilled artisans are employed. The firm deals in all kinds of Scotch and American granites, and Italian and American marbles. They make a specialty of designing monuments to order, and many specimens of their work may be seen in the cemeteries of this and adjoining States. The firm is. now composed of Staniland & Jenkins, J. J. Jenkins becom- ing a member on the 1st of May, 1889.
In 1866, Peter Loeb and T. Stevenson established themselves in the business of casting malleable iron, their works being on a small scale, and located on East Third Street, opposite Gebhart's flouring mill. In 1869, the Dayion Malleable Tron Company was incorporated by Charles New- bold, E. A. Parrott, I. E. Parrott and others, with a capital stock of one hundred thousand dollars. The first officers of the company were: E. A.
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Parrott, president; II. E. Parrott, secretary and treasurer, and Peter Loeb, superintendent. In 1873, the company .moved to its present location in Miami City, on Third Street, between Summit Street and Dale Avenue. The officers elected then were: E. A. Parrott, president; IL. E. Parrott, secretary and treasurer, and Thomas P. Gaddis, superintendent. The organization continued until 1882, and in the meantime the business so increased that the sales reached an aggregate of one hundred thousand dollars per annum. In 1882, the officers became as they are now: R. C. Schenek, Jr., president; Charles A. Phillips, vice-president; The Dayton National Bank, treasurer, and Thomas P. Gaddis, secretary and general manager. The capital stock at the present time is one hundred thousand dollars, and the annual sales average about two hundred and fifty thou- sand dollars. The number of men employed is two hundred and fifty, and the foundry runs at its full capacity all the year round. Since moving to the present location the company has doubled its plant, which now consists of a machine shop, ware-room, office, furnace-room, coke-room, trimming-room, foundry, annealing-room, and other necessary buildings. Since 1883, the company has confined its manufactures exclusively to malleable castings from refined air furnace iron. In this connection it is worthy of note that this establishment was the second malleable iron foundry west of the Alleghany Mountains, the first having been estab- lished in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1865.
The building of the Dayton View Brewery was begun, in 1868, by" Coelestin Schwind. By 1869 he commenced brewing, employing the first year four hands and making fourteen hundred barrels of beer. The buildings, as they now stand, were erected as follows: The malt house and engine and boiler rooms in 1868, the former being two stories high and 38x82 feet in size, and the latter, 50x62; the cellar house in 1875, three stories high and 56x57 feet in size; the brewery and the stables in 1883, the former being three stories high and 52x62 feet in size, and the puddling house in 1888, one story high and 22x44 feet in size. The cost of the plant as it now stands was about seventy-five thousand dollars. The sales of the brewery have been increased from fourteen hundred barrels per annum to sixteen thousand and three hundred barrels in 188S. The number of hands has been increased from four at the beginning to seventeen at the present time, and the aggregate of wages has been increased from three hundred and fifty to four hundred dollars per month at the beginning to eighteen hundred dollars per month at the present time.
The Riverside Brewery was established in 1882 by George Schantz & Company, the company being Adam Schantz, the present proprietor. During the first year of the firm's existence about one fourth of the
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present plant was erected. The firm remained as at first constituted until January, 1887, when George Schantz retired and Adam Schantz has since been the sole proprietor. During the first year the brewery had a capacity of eight thousand barrels per year, but since then its capacity has become fifty thousand barrels per year. The plant consists of seven buildings, including the boiler and engine house and stables. The entire cost of the plant, as it now stands, was about one hundred thousand dollars. During the first year there were sold from this brewery seven thousand barrels of beer, but during the year ending May, 1888, the sales amounted to eighteen thousand barrels. The number of hands at first was ten, and at the present time the number is seventeen. The wages paid to the employes varies from fifty to one hundred and twenty-five dollars per month.
The business carried on by Mellose & Lyon, was originated by Mr. Mellose in 1868, in a small room on the canal, between Third and Fourth streets. At first Mr. McHose had but one assistant. In 1872, he commenced the manufacture of iron railing. In 1877, Calvin II. Lyon became a partner in the firm, since which time it has been known by its present title. The new firm ahnost immediately moved their busi- ness to .a room 70x80 feet in size at the present location. In 1879, they began the manufacture of iron fronts, and in August, 1880, they removed to the foot of Ludlow Street, where they started a foundry. From an investment of seventy-five dollars, and one assistant at first, the business has so increased that it is now one of the leading establishments in the city, which is noted the country over for its large manufacturing enter- prises. The plant covers a large area, and comprises a number of buildings varying from one to three stories high, each designed for a specific branch of the business. Both steam and water power are used, and the equip- ment of machinery is both extensive and excellent. The products of the works are mainly for architectural purposes, and include building fronts, fire escapes, columns, beams, girders, iron stairs, iron pavements, balconies, and in short, everything made of wrought or cast iron that may be needed in the construction of buildings. The iron used in the construction of the cable railroads in Chicago and Kansas City was furnished by this house. The iron work used in the government buildings in Jefferson, Texas; Springfield, Ohio; Springfield, Massachusetts; Augusta, Maine; Williamsport, Pennsylvania; and Jersey City, New Jersey, was made at these works. Many other buildings have been furnished with iron work by Messes. Mellose & Lyon. The number of men at present employed in these works is two hundred and twenty-five.
In 1868 the business of manufacturing agricultural implements was
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commenced at 1140 East Third Street by Dodds & Beall in a two-story frame building 100x30 fect in size. This firm was succeeded soon after- ward by John Dodds and he was succeeded in 1870 by John Dodds & Company, J. W. Stoddard being the "Company." This com- pany was succeeded in 1875 by J. W. Stoddard & Company, consisting of J. W. Stoddard, F. F. Stoddard, and W. A. Scott. The firm of J. W. Stoddard & Company lasted until 1884, when the Stoddard Man- ufacturing Company was incorporated with a capital of five hundred thousand dollars. The first officers of the company were J. W. Stoddard, president; W. A. Scott, secretary and treasurer; E. F. Stoddard, viec- . president and superintendent. E. F. Stoddard died in May, 1887, since which time there has been no vice-president, and in 1886 Mr. W. A. Scott was succeeded as treasurer by W. J. Jones, and the officers at the present time are as follows: J. W. Stoddard, president; W. A. Scott, secretary, and W. J. Jones, treasurer. The frame building mentioned above was destroyed by fire, and a two-story brick structure erected in its place in the form of an L, which was 110x136x40 feet. The rapid increase of the business soon required an additional story to be erected. Since then other buildings have been added until the company occupies several four-story structures, covering an entire square of ground. The implements manufactured by this company consist of grain drills, broadcast seeders, hay rakes, harrows, etc., their specialties being the "Triumph" grain drill, the "Tiger" hay rakes, "Tiger" mowers, "Climax" and "Stoddard" disc harrows. They employ about four hundred men, and their business is correspondingly large.
The business of manufacturing grain drills was commenced in 1868 by Weusthoff & Getz in a three-story building 50x100 feet in size, at the corner of State and Wayne streets. The work was continued by them until 1871, when the Farmers' Friend Manufacturing Company was incorporated, and succeeded to the business. The incorporators of this company were as follows: B. Kuhns, William Weusthoff, J. G. Getz, John M. Aikin, and C. F. Kneisly. The capital stock was one hundred thousand dollars and remains at that figure at the present time, the surplus having become ninety-five thousand dollars. The first officers of the company were as follows: B. Kuhns, president; William Weust- hoff, secretary and treasurer, and J. G. Getz, general superintendent. Mr. Kuhns retained the office of president until 1886, when he sold his interest in the company and was succeeded in the presidency by J. W. Stoddard, who still retains the position. The office of vice-president was created in 1877, and Robert Craig elected to the place. He was succeeded by C. F. Kneisly, and he by J. A. Marley, the present incumbent. The
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office of secretary and treasurer was divided in 1872, and C. F. Kneisly became treasurer, Mr. Weusthoff retaining the office of secretary. This arrangement continued in force for only a few months, when the duties of the two separate offices were again merged, and A. W. B. Rhodes elected secretary and treasurer. A few months afterward he was succeeded by Victor P. Van Horne, who held the office from January 13, 1873, until 1886, when the business of the company had so increased that it became necessary again to separate the two offices, and John F. Campbell was elected treasurer, Mr. Van Horne retaining the office of secretary, which be holds at the present time. Mr. Getz retired from the company in 1876, at which time the office of superintendent became a salaried one, and has since been held by employes of the company.
In 1875, it became necessary to erect larger buildings, and ground was purchased on the corner of the streets adjoining the old building. On this new ground a four-story brick building was erected, and another story was added to the old building the same year. In 1878-1879 a foundry was erected on the corner of Walnut and Wayne streets, which is connected by a shaft with the principal structure. The rattling and grinding shops are between the main buildings and the foundry. At the same time that the foundry was erected, a two-story structure was creeted in the rear of the main building, which is used as a boiler and engine room and blacksmith shop. The ground covered by these several buildings is five hundred feet deep by one hundred and eighty-five feet in width at one end and one hundred feet in width at the other. The ground is intersected by one street and one alley. This property is all owned by the company, together with a railroad track for loading and unloading freight. Besides this, they have a large piece of ground rented for the purpose of piling lumber and for stabling purposes.
As stated previously, the company was organized for the purpose of manufacturing grain drills, but in 1879 a line of corn planters was added. In 1886, another addition was made to the manufactures in the form of spring-tooth harrows, and in -1888 a lawn mower was added to their other several lines. The machines now manufactured by this com- pany are the grain drills known as the "Farmer's Friend," and the "Monarch;" corn planters, check rowers, and the corn drill known as the "Farmer's Friend; " the spring-tooth harrow known as the " U. T. K.," and the lawn mower known as the " Dayton." The number of machines being manufactured at the present time by this company aggregates from ten thousand to fifteen thousand annually. The number of employes varies from one hundred and fifty to two hundred.
In 1869, Charles W. Niekum, G. W. Heathman, and Elias Heathman
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formed a company for the purpose of manufacturing crackers, biscuits, etc. In 1872, Mr. Niekum retired, and the present firm name; G. W. Heathman & Company was adopted. The business was at first located on Main Street, near the Journal office, but soon afterward the company erected a frame bakery on Second Street, between Jefferson and St. Clair streets. Five years later they purchased a lot on the corner of Second and St. Clair streets, and upon it erected a three-story and basement brick, 68x100 feet in dimensions, which is equipped with a thirty horse-power engine and all the necessary machinery, and in which thirty-one operatives find employment. In 1885, Elias Heathman died, and since then G. W. JIcathman has been the sole proprietor. Everything in the form of crackers, biscuits, cakes, etc., is manufactured by this firm, of the best in- gredients, and the products of the factory find a market throughout Ohio and Indiana, and also to points in adjoining States.
A. L. Bauman's cracker manufactory was established September 1, 1877. It is located on West Third Street, and is a three-story briek building G6x100 feet in size. On the first of February, 1888, Oscar W. Bauman became a member of the firm, and the firm name was changed to A. L. Bauman & Brother, as it is at the present time. Louis E. Bau- man is book-keeper for the firm. The power required in this establishment is supplied by two steam engines, one of them being twenty-five horse- power, and the other ten. Over fifty workmen are employed, and the products of the factory consist of every variety of crackers, cakes,' biscuits, plain and fancy bread, etc. The trade of the house extends over Ohio, Indiana, and along the banks of the Ohio River into Kentucky and West Virginia, and it is yearly increasing both in scope and magnitude.
The business of G. J. Roberts & Company was established in 1871, by G. J. Roberts on St. Clair Street between Third and Fourth streets. In 1875, the present firm was formed, consisting of G. J. Roberts, Joseph Light, and Jabez HI. Roberts, under the firm name of G. J. Roberts & Company. In 1882, the present building was erected, which is three stories high, and 75x68 feet in area. The machinery in the business was much of it designed for the special purposes for which it is used. It is propelled by a twenty-five horse-power engine. The products of this establishment, which is called the Central Machine Shop, consist of steam pumping and hydraulic machinery, steam pumps, water motors, pateut injectors and steam jets and other articles upon which the proprietors are owners of the patents.
In 1880, Josiah Gebhart, D. Calvin Floyd, and Charles W. Gebhart established the white lead works, which stand at the corner of Second and Front streets. The main building which was formerly used as a bag.
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ging factory, is a brick building 100x50 feet in size, and two stories high. The firm manufactures. pure white lead, and employs about twenty men. The machinery of the works is propelled by a fifty horse-power engine. There are two kilns, one 8x80 feet, and the other 8x40 feet. The products of the works consist of about one thousand tons of white lead per year, besides ochers and Venetian reds. The trade of the firm is very extensive, and the members of it are the same as when it was first established.
C. N. Smith came to Dayton in 1872 and established himself in the manufacture of purifiers, flour bolts, etc., at which work he continued until 1889, in the spring of which year he succeeded in organizing a stock company for the purpose of manufacturing a dust catcher, purifiers, and flour bolts, all of his own invention. The company thus organized is named the "Eureka Manufacturing Company," and has a capital stock of thirty thousand dollars. The officers elected February 7, 1889, were John F. Pfeffer, president; J. F. Trader, secretary and treasurer. The manufactory is located at Numbers 403 to 407 East First Street; about seven men are employed on the average, and a prosperous business is carried on. !
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