USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > History of the city of Columbus, Ohio, from the founding of Franklinton in 1797, through the World War period to the year 1920 > Part 82
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Dr. Lisle has been on the medical staff of the Mt. Carmel Hospital continuously since 1902, and he was assistant professor of medieine at Ohio State University from 1902 until he resigned in 1917 in order to give his undivided attention to his large and rapidly growing private practice.
Dr. Lisle is a member of the American Medical Association, the Ohio State Medical So- eiety and the Columbus Academy of Medieine. He also belongs to Kappa Sigma, a Greek letter fraternity, and to the Columbus Athletic Club.
In the year 1906, Dr. Lisle was united in marriage with Ellen Brown, who was born, reared and educated in Columbus. She is a daughter of the late George W. Brown, who at the time of his death was vice-president of the Case Manufacturing Company.
To the Doctor and wife three children have been born, namely: Leslie Mac, jr., John B. and Ann.
Dr. Lisle takes an interest in the general welfare of his eity and he is in every way deserv- ing of the respeet and good will which is accorded him by all who know him.
JAMES HENRY BURNS. There is an habitual tendency in human nature to live in and for that which is perishing, henee the necessity for something that shall remind us of what is abiding, something that shall enable us to realize our larger duties and higher destiny. The life of the masses of the people tends to become commonplace, and the only way to give color and zest, interest and beauty to the things around us is to be able to view them from the inside of a rich, splendidly furnished intellectual home. This is possible no matter in what line of work we are engaged. James Henry Burns is one of the citizens of Columbus, where he has been well known and influential in business and civie eireles for over thirty-seven years, who realized at the outset of his career that a man's mental attitude toward his fellow men, the busi- ness world and life in general had much to do with his suecess and happiness, and he has sought to develop his mind along general lines while engaged in his routine of daily tasks.
Mr. Burns, for thirty-seven years has been at the head of one of the oldest and most prosperous tailoring establishments of Columbus. His father, the late Michael Burns, was a native of Ireland, in which country he grew to manhood and learned the tailor's trade. He eame to Ameriea in 1853, landing at Baltimore, where he worked at his trade until 1861, and in that year removed to Zanesville, Ohio. After working in Zanesville as a journeyman tailor for a number of years in 1867 he entered the merchant tailoring business as a member of the firm of Dennis & Burns. He removed to Columbus in 1873 and established his business on North High street, where he continued with his usual success until his death on February 9, 1892. He bceame prominent in the affairs of the city, and from 1878 to 1882 he served as police commissioner of Columbus. He was prominent in the affairs of St. Patrick's parish and was one of the active and well known Catholics of this seetion of the state.
While living in Baltimore, Maryland, Michael Burns married Bridget Treahy, also a na- tive of Ireland, from which country she came to America in early life. Her death oceurred in 1895. One of their sons is William J. Burns, the distinguished detective and seeret service man, now of New York City, who is known professionally all over the globe. a veritable Sher- loek Holmes.
James HI. Burns of this review was born at Zanesville, Ohio, October 18, 1862, and was cdueated in the public and parochial schools and at Notre Dame University, in Indiana. Upon leaving college he became associated in business with his father and his brother, William J. Burns, and following the death of his father he succeeded to the business, which he still con- ducts under the firm name of "Burns." Under his able management the business has con- tinued to grow and today it stands as one of the most popular establishments of its kind in Columbus. Mr. Burns is a member of the National Association of Merchant Tailors of Amer-
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ica. Perhaps the most notable recognition of the "Burns" standard for correct tailoring was made by the late President Mckinley, who, at the event of his inauguration, compli- mented Mr. Burns by wearing a suit made by this shop.
Mr. Burns was one of the organizers and ineorporators of the Buckeye State Building & Loan Company, one of the leading banking institutions of Columbus, and he has been a mem- ber of its board of directors and its vice-president since its incorporation.
Like his father before him, Mr. Burns has long been one of the leading Catholics of Columbus. As a boy he traveled over the diocese with Bishop Rosecrans and served on the altar when the bishop was giving the children confirmation, He is a member of the Cathedral congregation and served on the building committee when the beautiful church edifice was remodeled. He is also an active and prominent worker in Knights of Columbus circles.
In 1896 Mr. Burns was united in marriage with Lottie M. Tyler, of Columbus, who was born at Fremont, Ohio, and to this union four daughters have been born, namely: Mary Gwendolyn, Eleanor Elizabeth, Alice Anne and Mildred, the latter deceased.
ALBERT ELBRIDGE GRIFFIN, M. D. The student of the early history of the human race finds that ignorance and superstition surrounded the anatomy of the human organism, which resulted in the belief that disease was of supernatural and mysterious origin. For ages it was believed that the siek and afflicted were possessed of devils; and weird chants, incan- tations and so-called religious rites and ceremonies were commonly resorted to rather than the application of drugs or other means of modern healing. It was from such a benighted state of the human mind that our present systems of healing were developed. One of the promin- ent physicians and citizens of Columbus is Dr. Albert Elbridge Griffin, who has been identi- fied with the professional and civie life of the capital city for many years. He was born in Muscatine county, Iowa, July 4, 1853.
Thomas F. Griffin, father of our subject, was a native of New York state. He came to Ohio in early manhood and learned the cabine maker's trade at Newark. There he met and married Elnora Woods, who was a native of Virginia. Her father owned and operated a mill in Newark, Oho, for many years. The family later moved to Muscatine county, Iowa, thence to Sigourney, Keokuk county, that state, where Thomas G. Griffin opened a cabinet making factory. At the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted in an Iowa regiment and served gal- lantly for four full years with the northern ar nies; taking part in many important engage- ments. After he was honorably discharged and mustered out he returned to Iowa but soon thereafter removed his family to Columbus, Ohio, where he and his wife spent the balance of their lives.
Dr. Griffin acquired his early education in the Columbus public schools, then learned telegraphy and for a period of eighteen years he was an operator. During that time he read medicine. He was graduated from Columbus Medical College, then known as Hamilton Medi- cal College, in 1884, with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. Soon thereafter he began the practice of his profession at Reynoldsville, but a year later located in Columbus where he has since remained, and during this period of thirty-four years his name has beeome a house- hold word to a large number of the older families of the capital city, among whom he has enjoyed a large patronage.
Dr. Griffin was physician to the Franklin County Infirmary for about five years. Ile is a member of the Columbus Academy of Medicine. Taking an active interest in public affairs ho was elected a member of the city council, then elected a second time, serving in all nearly three full terms when he resigned on account of serious illness. which continued for five years. during which time his office was locked. After regaining his health he was appointed to fill out an unexpired term in the city council and then he was elected and reelected, and during his second term he was chosen president of the council, and since 19t6 he has held this posi- tion, also that of vice-mayor of the city. Pevions to his first election to the city eonn- cil he served two terms as a member of the city school board. During his years of service in the council he has done much for the general good of Columbus, whose every interest he has very much at heart and seeks to forward in every legitimate way. His voice has always been on the side of good clean government. In and out of the council he has supported all measures inaugurated for the betterment of the city and her institutions.
Dr. Griffin is a member of East Gate Lo Ige, Free and Accepted Masons, and is a thirty-
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second degree Scottish Rite Mason, also belongs to the Ancient Arabie Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
Dr. Griffin married Catherine Woodruff of Blacklick, Ohio. Her father, who was a vol- unteer during the Civil War in an Ohio regiment, was killed at the first volley at the battle of Shiloh. To the Doctor and wife a son and a daughter have been born, namely: Frank O., a graduate from the department of veterinary, Ohio State University, and is now an inspector of meat for the city of Columbus; and Beulah, who married Mortimer Hayes of Columbus.
Dr. Griffin is in every way deserving of the good will and respeet which all who know him freely accord him.
PRESTON ELMER THOMAS. Under the teachings of intelligent and religious par- ents Preston Elmer Thomas, warden of the Ohio State Penitentiary at Columbus early ac- quired those habits of industry and self reliance, which, linked with upright principles, have uniformly characterized his manhood life. He is deserving of the confidence which is reposed in him by those who know him, for his private and public life have alike been exemplary during his long residence in the capital eity and central Ohio.
Mr. Thomas is a native Buckeye and belongs to one of the old families of the state. His paternal great grandfather came to America from Wales and located in the wilds of Putnam county, Ohio. There, over eighty years ago, he established a machine shop. Before leaving the old country he engaged in the manufacturing business, and he accumulated a considerable fortune for those days, but he desired to try his fortunes in the new western world, where he believed great opportunities existed, so crossed the Atlantic in an old-fashioned sailing vessel. However, he found that Putnam county was not ready for machine shops and other similar evidences of civilization, and thus being far ahead of the times, he lost most of the money he put into his machine shop there. In 1841 his wife and three sons joined him in this coun- try. The sons are still living, all advanced in age, John, who resides in Putnam county, is eighty-seven years old; Evans, who makes his home in West Cairo, is eighty-five and David D., father of the subject of this sketch, has passed his eighty-third birthday. All these venerable brothers have devoted their lives to general agricultural pursuits and became substantial farmers.
David Dallas Thomas was born in Wales in 1836 and was five years old when he came with his mother to Putnam county, Ohio, from the lands beyond the sea. Here he grew to manhood amid primitive surroundings and worked hard when a boy. Upon reaching manhood he mar- ried Sarah Jane Ward, who was born in Pickaway county, Ohio, in 1843. Her death occur- red in 1916.
Preston E. Thomas was born at West Cairo, Allen county, Ohio, November 30, 1871. He grew up on the home farm where he assisted with the general work when a boy, and he received his education in the rural schools of his community and those of West Cairo, later taking a course in Ohio Northern University, from which he was graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Science in 1892. Three of his brothers were also graduated from this institu- tion, namely : Eli W., with the class of 1885, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Science; Charles H. was given the same degree in 1887; and Alvin L. graduated with the class of 1890, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Science also.
Upon leaving college Preston E. Thomas took up school teaching as a profession, having carefully prepared himself for this line of work, and continued teaching with unusual success for a period of thirteen years, during which his services were in great demand, for he was regarded as a man of progressive ideas and methods and he did much to place the schools in his locality on a higher level, inaugurating more advanced systems, and, being a student him- self always he kept well to the fore in all that pertained to educational affairs. The last five years of that period he taught at Wapakoneta, Ohio. From 1904 to 1908 he was a teacher in the Ohio Reformatory, and in 1908 was appointed parole officer, the duties of which position he discharged to the satisfaction of all concerned until May 1, 1913, when he resigned to ac- cept the appointment of warden of the Ohio State Penitentiary, which post he still fills, his long retention in this responsible position indicating that he has discharged his duties most faithfully and acceptably.
Many commendable reforms have been inaugurated at the penitentiary by Warden Thomas and his work there has attracted attention all over the country. He has eliminated polities from the management of the institution, the indeterminate sentence law was fathered by him,
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and the "trusty system" has been extended by him until Ohio penitentiary has a greater number of that class of convicts than any other prison in the United States, and the ratio of "walk- aways" men who abuse the privilege of trust is less than one in fifty. The use of "dope" among prisoners has been practically eliminated, and general discipline has been improved in such a manner that the inmates are better satisfied and better results are being obtained all around.
Mr. Thomas is a member of the Broad Street Methodist Episcopal church, belongs to Columbus Lodge, No. 3, Knights of Pythias, and of Humboldt Lodge, No. 476, Free and Ac- cepted Masons ; also Scioto Commandery and is a thirty-second degree Scottish Rite Mason; he is a member of the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and is one of the active and prominent Masons of central Ohio.
On January 1, 1894, Mr. Thomas was united in marriage with Mary Elizabeth Blume, who was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio, the daughter of P. C. Blume. To this union two children have been born, namely: Amanda A., who was graduated from the Ohio State University with the class of 1918; and Don A., who is now a student of Ohio State University, a mem- ber of the class of 1920.
Mr. Thomas is a genial, obliging, friendly gentleman who is popular with all who know him.
CAPT. ALEXIS COPE. An enumeration of the representative citizens of Columbus, and indeed of the state of Ohio, who won recognition and success for themselves and at the same time conferred honor on their community and the commonwealth, would be incomplete were there failure to make specific mention of the gentleman whose name introduces this memoir. He was distinctively a man of affairs, wielding a wide influence among those with whom he was associated, ever having the welfare of his state at heart and doing what he could to aid in its progress and development. He firmly believed the old Buckeye state to be one of the most attractive, progressive and prosperous of any in the Union and it has always been due to such men as Captain Cope that she could justly claim a high order of citizenship and a spirit of enterprise which marked advancement along all legitimate lines. The state of Ohio has been signally favored in the class of men who have had to do with the administering of its affairs in official capacity, and this was one of the connections in which Captain Cope's career demands recognition, serving his community and the commonwealth faithfully and ably in positions of responsibility. He also achieved a splendid reputation as a lawyer, having been from the be- ginning intensely methodical and unswervingly persistent in search of the true light and of the essentials of the legal foundations and in sources of legal conception and thought. As a writer he achieved a high reputation and as a man he stood "four square to every wind that blows."
Capt. Alexis Cope was a native son of the state which he honored by his lifelong citizen- ship, having been born at Colerain, Belmont county, Ohio, June 27, 1841, and his death occur- red suddenly in Columbus, September 3, 1918. He was the third in order of birth of the ten children born to Dr. Caleb and Mildred (Fowler) Cope, who were pioneer settlers in Belmont county. They were of Quaker faith and were of English extraetion, the family having been established in America in 1692. Of the ten children referred to, the only survivors now are, Orlando Cope, of Belmont county, and Dr. Charles Cope, of Detroit, Michigan. Alexis Cope attended the common schools and Hopedale college, where he studied law. His studies were interrupted by the outbreak of the Southern Rebellion, and he at once enlisted as a private in the Seventeenth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, for three months service, and took part in the Rosecrans campaign in West Virginia. In the fall of 1861 he enlisted for three years. joining the Fifteenth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and it was with the Army of the Cumberland that he won the rank of Captain. When the war ended he had served as regi- mental adjutant, adjutant general of General Wood's staff, and division inspector general.
After the war Captain Cope went to St. Clairsville and renewed his legal studies, being admitted to the bar in 1866. He was engaged in the active practice of his profession there until 1873, when he was appointed collector of internal revenue for the sixteenth Ohio district. He served in that position until January, 1877, when he took up his residence in Columbus, this move being prompted by his appointment as chief clerk in the office of the secretary of state. He was the incumbent of that position six years, four under Colonel Barnes and two under Major Townsend, and in this capacity he cdited the year books and Ohio statisties for
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the years of 1877 to 1883. A year after he retired from the office of the secretary of state, Captain Cope was appointed secretary of the board of trustees of the Ohio State University, and so thoroughly did his qualifications and talents fit into the requirements of this office that he was retained for twenty-one years. During that time he wrote a history of the University, and his services for that institution and for education generally included the securing and locating of the Emerson McMillen observatory. Then for twelve years and up to the time of his death he had charge of the Virginia military lands concerning their relation to the Uni- versity and served as a member of the committee appraising the funds for the College of Agriculture. In the latter years of his life Captain Cope practiced law, and at the time of his death he was a member of the law firm of Ricketts & Cope, his partner being T. H. Ricketts.
Politically, Captain Cope was an ardent supporter of the Republican party, and ever took a keen interest in its campaigns. Though reared a Quaker, he eventually united with the Methodist Episcopal church and became a member of the Broad Street church in Columbus, to the various activities of which he gave his earnest support. Fraternally and socially, he was a member of the Loyal Legion and the Grand Army of the Republic, in both of which he was very deeply interested, and was also a member of the Society of the Army of the Cumberland and the Ohio Archaeological and Historical Society. He was a member of the Columbus Cham- ber of Commerce and for a number of years was identified with the Columbus Club. He was very active in his support of everything which in any way promised to benefit the city of Colum- bus and his advice and counsel were frequently sought in matters of importance affecting the public welfare.
Captain Cope numbered among his personal friends many men of political, educational and literary prominence, among whom were President Mckinley, William Dean Howells, Whitelaw Reid and Professor Mendenhall. He was himself the wielder of a facile pen and had he adopted literature instead of law as a life vocation he would have been eminently sue- cessful. During the period of his connection with the Ohio State University, he wrote a one- volume book on the Civil War entitled "The Fifteenth Ohio Volunteers and Its Campaigns, 1861-1865," which is recognized as an authentic and well-written work, dealing with the western phase of the war and settling many issues that the usual history leaves unsettled. Captain Cope was an especial admirer of Abraham Lincoln and read everything that was ever written about him. Before his death he had planned notes on President Lincoln's references to the constitutional aspects of the Union, intending a little later to write a book on the subject.
On October 22, 1868, Captain Cope was married to Ione Lewis, of St. Clairsville, Belmont county, Ohio, the daughter of Elisha and Katherine (Dean) Lewis. On the maternal side, Mrs. Cope is descended from Holland aneestry, and her mother was an aunt of William Dean Howells, the noted author. Mrs. Cope is the third in order of birth of the five children born to her parents and of this family she is now the only survivor. To Captain and Mrs. Cope were born the following children: Frank A., deceased ; Alex, deceased; Florence, who became the wife of Allan J. Seney and the mother of two children, Henry and Mary; she is now the wife of Samuel J. Maurice; Mary, who became the wife of E. B. Hatcher, of Columbus, and their two children are John and Elizabeth Dean. Mrs. Maurice inherited from her father decided literary talents and has done much appreciated work along this line. Mrs. Cope, though now in her seventy-seventh year, is remarkably well preserved and her physical and mental activ- ity would be ereditable to one many years her junior. During the recent World War she took a deep interest in all the activities in which women were engaged, especially in the providing of clothing and supplies for the boys overseas and in camp. During the war period she knitted thirty-five sweaters, nine helmets, four pairs of sox and nine pairs of mittens, and she also has the enviable record of having knit a sleeveless sweater in eleven hours and twenty-five minutes. Mrs. Cope has been a member of the Broad Street Methodist Episcopal church for the remark- able period of sixty years, is a member of all the church societies and for eight years has been in charge of supplies. Honored and respected by all, there is today no woman in this locality who occupies a more enviable position in the circles in which she moves.
In the death of Captain Cope, the community suffered a distinct loss, for he had acted well his part in life's drama and had given generously of his superb powers in furthering the upbuilding of the city honored by his citizenship. He was a man among men. He viewed the world through optimistic eves. He bound himself to his friends with bonds of steel. He was clean of habit and mind and conscientious and painstaking in his every endeavor. All in all, he served well his day and his memory is indelib'y enshrined in the hearts of all who knew him
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The following lines are quoted from a beautiful tribute to Captain Cope by one who knew him long and intimately :
"Captain Cope was a fine personality ; a man of noble ideals and fine life. He was the most lovable man one ever met. His conversation was uplifting and his manners kindly and graceful. He never intruded himself anywhere. His modesty was as sweet as a woman's. . But baek of his quiet attitude there was a feeling and a sentiment that built up a very attractive manhood. He was a strong Republican, but never let that faet out- run his personal convietion. During the last years of the past eentury he was one of the promotors of publie opinion and of political action. This was largely because he was elosely connected with all the leaders of publie sentiment and through them impressed his convietions upon the times."
COL. DANIEL MUNSON HALL. The Union soldier during the great Civil War be- tween the states builded wiser than he knew. Through four years of suffering and wasting hardships, through the horrors of prison pens and amid the shadows of death, he laid the superstructure of the greatest temple ever ereeted and dedicated to human freedom. The world looked on and called those soldiers sublime, for it was theirs to reach out the mighty arm of power and strike the chains from off the slave, preserve the country from dissolu- tion, and to keep furled to the breeze the only flag that ever made tyrants tremble and whose majestic stripes and seintillating stars are still waving universal liberty to all the earth. For all these unmeasured deeds the living present will never repay them. Pension and political power may be thrown at their feet; art and sculpture may preserve upon canvas and in granite and bronze their unselfish deeds; history may eommit to books and eold type may give to the future the tale of their sufferings and triumphs; but to the children of the generations yet unborn will it remain to aeeord the full measure of appreciation and undying remembrance of the immortal character earved out by the American soldiers in the dark days in the early sixties, numbered among whom was Col. Daniel Munson Hall, of Columbus, who oeeupies the exalted position of commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republie.
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