History of the Western Reserve, Vol. II, Part 35

Author: Upton, Harriet Taylor; Cutler, Harry Gardner, 1856-
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago ; New York : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 886

USA > Ohio > History of the Western Reserve, Vol. II > Part 35

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About 1812 Mr. Rider built a double log house on what is now North State street in the city of Painesville, and opened it as a tavern. Some two years later he built an- other on what is now Mentor avenue about a mile west of the court house. In 1817 he erected a more commodious frame building and opened it as a tavern in the following year (1818). This was a story and a half structure, a little to the west of the log one which he occupied as a tavern until his death (February 22, 1840). It was then continued as a tavern by his son, Zerah, but had been enlarged in (1832) by twenty feet and the whole raised to two full stories. Mr. Rider (Zerah), then a boy of twelve years, with two yoke of cattle hauled most if not all the heavy timber from the woods, some of it sixty feet in length, for the repairs and rebuilding. One hundred and fifty guests have found shelter for a night beneath its hospitable roof; and Mr. Rider said he had counted a hundred teams, going or feeding, as he stood on the great pillared veranda of this, his birthplace, and also of his transition, March 15, 1902. He was a quiet kindly soul, a man highly re- spected by every one who knew him; and was

the original and successful inventor of the steam traction engine, or wagon (1871).

In 1842 Mr. Rider received a commission from the governor as captain of volunteer militia, in command of the Painesville Rifles. Mr. Rider married Miss Louisa Perkins, of Chagrin Falls, to whom four children were born: Marion (1842), Hiram Joseph ( 1844), Zerah Perkins (1848) and Immogene ( 1851).

Zerah Perkins Rider is well and widely known as a faithful contractor. He was a member of the city council for four years, serving with credit at all times. He occupies the old home wherein both he and his father were born. Zerah married Ella Cawley, of Cincinnati, and to them were born seven chil- dren : Jane L., 1879; Marion, 1881 ; Elizabeth Agnes, 1882; Lucy Margaret, 1884; Alice, 1886; Ella, 1894; and James Z., 1896. Mrs. Rider having recently died, her danghter, Jane L., has charge of domestic matters. Marion, Lucy M. and Elizabeth are expert accountants in court work, and have been honored at differ- ent times, by appointment as deputy recorders. Marion Kiley, now living in the old house, has three children, making four generations born in the old Rider tavern.

ALLEN L. PARKER, of Orwell, was born on a farm west of the village, where his oldest brother, Zera, now resides, August 12, 1840. He is a son of Nehemiah Holt and Chloe Sa- mantha (Cook) Parker, who are mentioned at length in connection with the sketch of Zera Cook Parker. Allen L. Parker lived at home until he was of age, and September II, 1861, enlisted in Company A, Sixth Ohio Cavalry; forty-three of the company were fron· Orwell, and captain, later major, Bing- ham was in command. Mr. Parker served for a year and a half as company clerk, and then as clerk for adjutant at the regimental headquarters. He looked after the details and records of the regiment, and filled this ca- pacity until his discharge. He kept his rank in the company, and was present at all the bat- tles fought by it. The regiment was part of the Army of the Potomac, and was in all of the heavy campaigning in Virginia, and at Gettysburg. Mr. Parker was captured at the battle of Culpeper Court House or Cedar Mountain ; he was detailed as ward master for the hospital, and at the retreat of the army he fell into the hands of the enemy. In the hospital were 200 cases of amputation. Mr. Parker was a prisoner sixty days and spent

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three weeks in Libby prison, his squad being the last men paroled. He was in Libby prison at the time several federal prisoners dug their way out and escaped. After an absence of four months he was exchanged and returned to his regiment. Upon his return he con- tinued his service as before, with rank of sergeant. Mr. Parker at one time received a slight musket wound in his right wrist, and his horse was shot from under him. At the same time a new recruit fell dead across his own right leg. The cavalry were fighting one hundred to one. Mr. Parker saw much fierce fighting, and was under fire fifteen days consecutively. After serving three years, he was discharged, October 5, 1864. As clerk of the regiment, he made out discharges for the first eight men behind the breastworks, with guns firing constantly ; at this time there was not a commissioned officer in the company. He and seven others were the first to receive discharges.

Upon his return to Orwell, Mr. Parker be- gan manufacturing buggies, employing three to five men, and turning out about twenty-five buggies per year. Open buggies sold for $150 and top buggies at $225 to $250. Five years later he converted his business into a spoke factory, which he conducted two years. He then sold his interest and purchased a farm one mile and a quarter west of Orwell, and began buying cattle. Later he purchased a farm in Windsor township which he recent- ly sold. He formerly owned 600 acres. He sold two farms, one in Huntsburg and Wind- sor, one being 160 acres, and he still owns the one in Trumbull county. For the past seven years Mr. Parker has made his home in Or- well Village, and has continued dealing in stock. . The territory he has covered is in three counties; he has handled from three to five carloads of stock each week, sending to the Pittsburg market. He was formerly asso- ciated with C. B. Snyder, of Bloomfield, an old dealer, operating all through the war, Mr. Snyder's wife being a cousin of Mr. Parker. In the beginning Mr. Parker bought for Mr. Snyder, who supplied the cash, and he was in this business thirty-five years, but for the last twenty-eight years he has operated alone. He has made a marked success of the enter- prise, and has found it very profitable; he was the leading buyer of the section. Mr. Parker was also a heavy owner of stock, and fed three or four carloads annually for the market.

In political views Mr. Parker is a Repub- lican, and has often served as delegate to con- ventions, being active in party work. He has served as township trustee. He is well known all through the region, and has won the confi- dence and regard of all with whom he has had dealings.

January 17, 1865, Mr. Parker married Marian Jane, daughter of Frank and Martha Smith, who lived in Orwell Village, on the present site of the DeVoe general store. He had been a merchant in New York City, a salesman, dealing in groceries. Mr. and Mrs. Parker became parents of two children, Clara, who died at the age of nine years, of malig- nant scarlet fever, after an illness of forty- eight hours, and Bert. Bert lives on a farm in Windsor township, which he operates on shares for his father, and is an able, industrious farmer. He married Carrie Baker, and they have three children, Albert, Allen and Marian.

PAUL E. WERNER .- The throbbing pulsa- tions of the manufacturing industries of the city of Akron are now felt in all sections of the civilized world, so far are borne the prod- ucts of her magnificent institutions. Con- tributing in due quota to this prestige is the Werner Company, book manufacturers, lithog- raphers, printers and engravers, of which great concern Paul E. Werner of this sketch was the founder and of which he is president and general manager at the time of this writ- ing. The finely equipped manufactory of this company is the largest of its kind in the Union and represents the tangible results of the well directed efforts of its present executive head, who came to Akron as a youth without finan- cial reinforcement and who has here so guided his course as to build up one of the splendid industrial enterprises of the Western Reserve.

Paul E. Werner is a native of the kingdom of Wurtemburg, Germany, born on May 5, 1850, and is a son of Edward and Barbara (Moll) Werner, both of whom passed their en- tire lives in that section of the great empire of Germany. In his native land the subject of this sketch was reared to the age of seven- teen years and there he was afforded the advantages of excellent schools. In 1867 he came to America and took up his residence in Akron, which was then a mere village. Here he was employed in various clerical posi- tions until 1874, but in the meanwhile his ambition and self-reliance were urging him forward to still greater accomplishment. In

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the year last mentioned he made his first independent venture of importance by effect- ing the purchase of the Akron Germania, a weekly newspaper published in the German language. He brought his energies to bear in the promotion of the interests of this paper and the upbuilding of its concomitant busi- ness functions, and such was his success that in 1878 he found himself justified in founding the Sunday Gazette and also the Akron Trib- unc, which issued daily and also a weekly edition. The active management of all of these well ordered papers he retained in his own hands until 1884. when the rapidly expanding scope of his other business interests rendered it expedient for him to dispose of his news- papers, all of which had been significantly prospered under his able management. Since that year he has given his attention to the supervision of the great business of the Werner Company, which was organized and incor- porated in 1888, and which now bases its operations upon a capital stock of $1.500,000. The great book manufactory now owned and controlled by this corporation represents in a special degree the practical development of the ideas and policies of Mr. Werner, whose initiative and administrative powers have proved adequate to the meeting of every emer- gency and contingency in connection with the upbuilding of the great industrial enterprise. Intimate practical knowledge, keen prescience and indefatigable energy have characterized the entire career of Mr. Werner, and his course has been marked by inflexible integrity and honor, so that he has gained and held a secure place in the confidence and esteem of those with whom he has come in contact in the vari- ous relations of life. The following pertinent statements concerning the business of which Mr. Werner is the head are well worthy of reproduction in this volume, the data being based on the business of the concern as indi- cated in its records for the year 1908, which record has since been expanded by the sub- stantial and rapid increase in the scope of the business controlled.

"Among the many prospering business en- terprises of Akron few are more widely known and still fewer are of equal importance to this section than that conducted by the Werner Company, the officers of which are men of capital, public spirit and unblemished integ- rity. They are as here noted: Paul E. Wer- ner, president and general manager; Richard M. Werner, vice-president and assistant treas-

urer; Karl Kendig, treasurer and secretary ; J. A. Reade, assistant secretary ; and Edward P. Werner, general superintendent. The Wer- ner Company has by far the largest and most complete book factory on the American con- tinent. It comprises under one roof, so to speak, and under one management, all the graphic arts and trades. It furnishes, directly and in a collateral way, the material means of livelihood for from four to five thousand Akron inhabitants. The great majority of the employes of the Werner Company are skilled in trades and arts and receive high compensa- tion. During the year 1908 the works of the Werner Company were in uninterrupted opera- tion and a great part of the time were running thirteen hours daily. In order to form an idea of the magnitude of this great industry one may well consider the following available and interesting data: During the year mentioned this company purchased and received raw ma- terial and shipped finished products represent- ing the full capacity of 1,200 railroad cars. The products included more than three mil- lions of large books ; more than fifteen millions of large and finely illustrated catalogues, made for the largest manufacturing concerns of this country ; and millions of other printed, litho- graphed and engraved articles. If the books alone that were manufactured by the Werner Company in the year mentioned were laid on one pile, one on top of the other, this pile would reach ninety-six miles into the air. If these books were laid side by side they would constitute a line 500 miles long."

While the principal output of this great plant is books, the Werner Company has gained an international reputation for the turning out of the highest grade of commercial work, typo- graphic as well as lithographic, and its cata- logue business is larger than that of any other printing establishment in the Union. The com- pany also manufactures and sells what is known as "The Werner Encyclopedia," now issued in twenty-six volumes. It can well be understood how potent and beneficent an influence this great industrial concern has exerted in connec- tion with conserving the commercial prece- dence and advancement of Akron, and no citi- zen of the place has manifested a more definite loyalty and broad-gauged public spirit than Paul E. Werner, who is a veritable captain of industry, and whose courage and ability have enabled him to achieve splendid results and to make himself known as one of the rep- resentative business men of the land of his

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adoption. He has various other interests in Akron and Summit county and has lent his co- operation and influence in the support of other business enterprises which have been of much benefit to his home city. He is president of the Klages Coal & Ice Company, of the Akron Germania Company, and of the German-Amer- ican Company. His public spirit and broad human sympathies have also led him to assist in the promotion and maintenance of worthy educational, philanthropic and religious move- ments, and he has never hedged himself in with his business affairs, no matter how great their exactions. His political support is given to the Republican party. His wife was a mem- ber of the Episcopal church. He is identified with various social organizations of a repre- sentative character.

On the 22d of February, 1873, was solem- nized the marriage of Mr. Werner to Miss Lucy Anna Denaple, who was born and reared in Akron, Ohio, and who was a daughter of William and Barbara Denaple. Mrs. Werner died in April, 1900, and Mr. Werner is now a widower. Mr. Werner has three sons-Ed- ward Paul, Frank Albert and Richard Marvin. All of the sons were afforded the advantages of Kenyon Military Academy, at Gambier, Ohio, all subsequently attended school in east- ern institutions, and schools in Germany. Ed- ward Paul, who is general superintendent of the Werner Company, was married in 1901, to Miss Harriet Poehlman, and they have three children. Frank Albert, the second son, is now maintaining his residence in Berlin, Germany, and has attained a high reputation as a por- trait artist. He was married in January, 1909, to Miss Laura Rueckheim, of Chicago. Rich- ard Marvin, who is vice-president and assist- ant treasurer of the Werner Company, mar- ried Miss Eda R. Hyndman, and they have two children. The family is one of unreserved popularity in connection with the social activi- ties of the community and the attractive home of the honored subject of this sketch is a rec- ognized center of gracious hospitality.

H. G. GOLDEN, M. D .- A well known and popular resident of Willoughby, and one of the leading representatives of the medical fra- ternity of Lake county, is meeting with emi- nent success in his profession, having by his skill and knowledge won the confidence of the people. A native of Ohio, he was born in 1863, in East Springfield, coming from thrifty Scotch-Irish stock on both sides of the family.

Dr. Golden was an ambitious scholar in his youthful days, and after leaving the public schools continued his studies at Westminster College, in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, where he was graduated with the degree of A. B. in 1885. Three years later, in 1888, he was graduated from Union Seminary, in New York City. Subsequently ordained as a minister, Mr. Golden preached ten years in the Presby- terian church, and in 1896 and 1897 was chap- lain of the Wyoming state senate, the follow- ing year, in 1898, during the Spanish war, serving as chaplain of the Second Regiment .. Rough Riders.

In 1904 Dr. Golden was graduated from the Western Reserve Medical College with the de- gree of M. D., and has since been successfully engaged in the practice of his profession in Willoughby.

FRIEND METCALF .- The Metcalf family is of noted stock, whether the genealogist consid- ers its English or its American record. Trac- ing the line no further than to Ezra Metcalf, great-grandfather of Friend, it is found that he married a direct descendant of Sir Francis Drake. This original emigrant settled in New Hampshire and his son John, who was born in Keene, that state, became one of the pioneer mail carriers of western New York, delivering the first government bag ever received in Buf- falo. His official duties soon took him into the Western Reserve, but when he first set- tled at Ashtabula, in 1813, he opened a small store on the east side. A heavy storm drove the ship containing his first load of goods from Buffalo into the waters of Silver creek, where it was at once pressed into the naval service of the United States. Shortly after settling in Ashtabula, however, John Metcalf secured an- other mail contract with the government for a western route to Cleveland, extending his serv- ice both in territory and efficiency, one of his lines finally extending to Detroit. As this phase of his career covers more than thirty years, it undoubtedly places him in the class of noteworthy western pioneers in the develop- ment of the government mail service. John Metcalf died in Ashtabula August 20, 1853. his wife, whom he married in 1815, being Clarissa Sweet, daughter of Peleg Sweet, Sr., who migrated to the Western Reserve from Winsted, Connecticut, in 1807. Mr. Sweet be- came one of the largest land owners in Ash- tabula county, donating many acres of his es- tate for public purposes. He was a Revolu-

EZRA R. METCALF

MRS. EZRA R. METCALF

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tionary soldier at Ticonderoga, serving throughout the war in a New York regiment. Mr. and Mrs. John Metcalf had six children, of whom Ezra Return, the second born, be- came the father of Friend Metcalf.

Ezra Return Metcalf was born at East Ash- tabula, Ohio, March 17, 1818, and during his earlier life was a sailor on the lakes. Later he settled in Ashtabula and became a large land owner, dividing some 400 acres among his four children. He died in East Village, Janu- ary 20, 1900, having. married Virginia Wilkin- son Sweet, daughter of Peleg Sweet, Jr. His wife, who survived him until September 4, 1906, was the mother of four children who reached maturity, viz : Marion, Friend, Chaun- cey and Dennis D.

Friend Metcalf was born on the old home- stead at East Village, July 28, 1849; was reared and educated in that locality and is still living on a portion of the family estate, neigh- bor to his younger brother. Chauncey. He is a prosperous farmer and is highly honored for his useful and virtuous life. His wife was formerly Miss Luella Hayward, who has borne him Bessie. Ruth C., Paul S. and Wallace E. Metcalf.

CHAUNCEY METCALF .- Coming on both sides of the house from noteworthy pioneer stock, being a descendant of John Metcalf and Peleg Sweet, Sr., very early settlers of Ashta- bula, Chauncey Metcalf well merits especial mention in this brief history of the Western Reserve. A native-born citizen, his birth oc- curred August 25, 1851, on the homestead where he now resides, being a son of the late Ezra Return Metcalf, and grandson of John Metcalf. His great-grandfather, Ezra Metcalf. married a Miss Drake, a direct descendant of Sir Francis Drake, the noted English explorer. and emigrated from England to New York, locating in New Hampshire.

John Metcalf, born in Keene, New Hamp- shire, in 1785. was there reared and educated. On attaining man's estate, he migrated to Canandaigua, New York, and was soon busily employed in carrying the mail from there to Niagara, and, as soon as a road was opened up, his route was extended to Buffalo, where he had the distinction of carrying the first mail bag delivered in that city. Pushing his way westward, still with a mail bag on his back, he blazed the path through the wilderness that afterwards became the beaten track for the hundreds of emigrants that sought homes in

the western wilds. About 1813 he settled in Ashtabula, Ohio, opening a small mercantile establishment on the east side, in the meantime resigning his government commission as mail carrier. On first coming here, he loaded a small vessel in Buffalo with a stock of general merchandise, intending to send the cargo across the lake to Ashtabula. During a heavy storm the craft ran into Silver creek and was there pressed into the service of the United States. The goods were stored on the beach, but were too badly damaged to be of use.

Shortly after coming here, John Metcalf, in company with Edwin Harmon, secured an- other contract for carrying mail, this time for the route west of Ashtabula, as far as Cleve- land, Fort Meigs, Defiance, and other places of importance. He visited Washington as many as fourteen times to renew his contract with the government, going always on horse- back. After coming to Ohio, he carried the mail in a wagon drawn by a pair of stout horses, and in 1815 put on a small stage coach, with accommodations for two passengers. using this until 1818, when he was succeeded by a line of mail coaches operated by William Whitman, of Ashtabula, and Calvin Cole, of Painesville, a line which was subsequently ex- tended to Detroit. After a continuous service of more than thirty years, John Metcalf sur- rendered his commission as mail carrier and spent his last years in Ashtabula, dying August 20. 1853.

John Metcalf married, in 1815, Clarissa Sweet, who was born in 1797, a daughter of Peleg Sweet, Sr., who emigrated to the West- ern Reserve from Winsted. Connecticut, in 1807, settling in Ashtabula. In an early ac- count of Jefferson, Ohio, it says that the first Court of Common Pleas met there June 20, 1811, and the next day granted to Benjamin Sweet a license to keep a "house of public entertainment" in Richfield township, also one in Austinburg, and a similar license to Peleg Sweet for Ashtabula. Two grandchildren of Peleg Sweet, Sr .. are now living, namely: Ha- man C. Sweet, of Flint, Michigan, born April 22, 1827; and Rushbrook P. Sweet, of Cat- aract, Wisconsin, born October 10, 1832. Peleg Sweet, Sr., became one of the most extensive landholders in Ashtabula county, owning eight hundred or more acres. He donated the park on the east side for training purposes, and gave to the town the original land for the cemetery. He was a soldier in the Revolution- ary war, serving at Ticonderoga in 1775, under

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Captain Sedgwick, and in a New York regi- ment in 1778, under Captain John Hill. To him and his wife, Clarissa, six children were born, all of whom grew to years of maturity, living to good old ages, as follows : Birdsey S., born August 20, 1816, succeeded to the owner- ship of the old homestead ; Ezra Return, father of Chauncey ; John Quincy, born in 1819, set- tled in Saybrook township; Clarissa, born Oc- tober 28, 1822, widow of Robert Johnson, who served in the Civil war, and died May 12, 1900, she being the only child now living; Lorin D., born in 1824, resided in East Ashtabula, and his widow and one son, John, are now living in Cleveland ; and Mary Matilda, born in 1827, married Dennis Dean, and moved to Lake Su- perior, her death, at the age of sixty years, being the first among this family of children.

Ezra Return Metcalf was born at East Ash- tabula, Ohio, March 17, 1818, and during his earlier life sailed for a number of years on the lake. Subsequently settling permanently in Ashtabula, he bought land and began the improvement of a homestead. Laboring with persistency, and using excellent judgment, he accumulated money, and from time to time in- vested in more land, acquiring title to upwards of four hundred acres. About 1888 he divided his real estate among his children, and moved to the east village, where he lived, retired from active business, until his death, January 20, 1900. He married Virginia Wilkinson Sweet, a daughter of Peleg. Sweet, Jr., and grand- daughter of Peleg, Sr., and Mary (Wilkinson) Sweet. She survived him, dying September 4, 1906. She bore him four children, who grew to maturity: Marion, Friend, Chauncey and Dennis D.

Chauncey Metcalf has spent his entire life on the homestead where he was born, having never been away from it more than fourteen days at a time. He labored industriously as a boy and youth, assisting his father in improv- ing a homestead, and in accumulating property, all working together most harmoniously, until his father divided his estate as he wished. Mr. Metcalf received as his share of the property 138 acres of the old homestead, and has since bought fourteen acres. Here he is carrying on general farming with eminent success, making a specialty of dairying, keeping twenty-five cows. He also devotes much time to stock raising, having in his herd from thirty to thirty-five head of thoroughbred Holstein cattle.

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History of the Western Reserve, Vol. II, Part 35

Author: Upton, Harriet Taylor; Cutler, Harry Gardner, 1856- Publication date: 1910 Publisher: Chicago ; New York : The Lewis Publishing Company Number of Pages: 886

Author: Upton, Harriet Taylor; Cutler, Harry Gardner, 1856-
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Chicago ; New York : The Lewis Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 886