USA > Ohio > Lucas County > Toledo > Memoirs of Lucas County and the City of Toledo > Part 2
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MEMOIRS OF LUCAS COUNTY
ding part of the city, into a thing of beauty that could have no rival. He served well and faithfully upon many public boards, and to him is due the establishment of the magnificent free library structure at the corner of Madison and Ontario streets. The bill creating the public library institution was drawn by Mr. Scott in 1873, and was introduced in the State legislature by T. P. Brown. With but one exception, this was the first free public library established in the West. For twenty years Mr. Scott served on the library board, the greater part of this time as its president, and when he resigned the position he left a valuable collection of books, well housed in a beautiful building. He resigned with considerable regret from an institution, the growth and perfection of which had been one of the objects of his fondest public desires. He was a zealous worker for education generally, and in the Manual Training School, con- ceived by his father, Jessup W. Scott, he had another object for his generous labor. After the death of the father, the three sons- William H., Frank J., and Maurice A .- gave $60,000 in city prop- erty to be devoted to the building and equipment of the Manual Training School building. And it was largely through the efforts of William H. Scott that this property was sold and the building erected and properly equipped. He was president of the board that had this matter in charge for many years, and he was actively interested in the progress of the school and its pupils until the time of his death. He was identified with several other educational institutions. During Governor Young's administration he served as trustee of the Ohio State University at Columbus, for seven years he was one of the board of directors of the Wesleyan College, and while a resident of Adrian, Mich., he served as a director of the schools of that city. In 1876-9, he was vice-president of the Toledo Woman's Suffrage Association. In addition to his activities in these institutions of a public nature, privately he was a director in a number of corporations and banks, and he was instrumental in the organization of the early street railway lines. But in the last three years of his life he paid little attention to active business affairs, his health failing to such a degree that he found it impos- sible to spend much of his time in his office. He died at his resi- dence, 2505 Monroe street, in Toledo, March 5, 1901. In 1851, Mr.
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BIOGRAPHICAL
Scott was married to Miss Mary A. Winans, of Adrian, Mich., and of this union there were born four children-Mrs. Frances E. Waters, of Baltimore, Md .; Susan W., Jane, and Edward Jessup.
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BIOGRAPHICAL
HARVEY SCRIBNER
Taken from "Men of Toledo and Northwestern Ohio."
Harvey Scribner inherited a logical turn of mind from his father, the distinguished lawyer and judge-Hon. Charles H. Scrib- ner, now deceased. It was in his father's office that Harvey Scrib- ner studied and afterward practiced law in Toledo, the firm after his accession bearing the title of Scribner, Hurd & Scribner. In 1871, Harvey Scribner was admitted to the partnership of this great firm, the illustrious Hon. Frank Hurd being a member and remaining as such until 1894, when the partnership was dissolved. Some years prior to this, Judge Charles H. Scribner was elected to the Circuit bench and retired from the firm. Harvey Scribner, after the demise of his father and the Hon. Frank Hurd, became a member of the law firm of Scribner, Waite & Wachenheimer. Mr. Wachenheimer recently withdrew, Lieut. Henry DeH. Waite remaining with Mr. Scribner. Their specialty is railroad cases. Mr. Scribner has been peculiarly successful in securing damages for his clients who were injured by railways. Associated with Frank H. Hurd, he recov- ered a verdict of $30,000 in the famous Shannon case against the Hocking Valley railroad; also a verdict of $20,000, and was sus- tained in the Supreme Court, for Edward Topliff, who was injured in the Lake Shore railway collision at Vermillion. Mrs. Eliza L. Topliff, whose husband was killed in the terrible railroad disaster at Kipton, got a judgment of $10,000, the full limit, against this company through Mr. Scribner's efforts. He was also counsel for a large number of the Toledo tunnel catastrophe cases brought before the courts, and collected by suits and settlements some $60,000 from the Lake Shore Railway Company. He caused to be broken the will of Charles B. Roff, which had been drawn up by the late Chief Justice Morrison R. Waite, and released a fund of $100,000 from a trust and secured it to the widow. Latterly, Mr. Scribner has taken to literature, and, though he is extremely modest about this attain- ment, he wields a clever pen in the telling of stories. His expe-
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MEMOIRS OF LUCAS COUNTY
rience in the law has been valuable to him and will no doubt furnish excellent material for numerous short stories in the future. Mr. Scribner was born at Mt. Vernon, Ohio, March 19, 1850. He was graduated from the schools of his native town and was but nine- teen years of age when he located in Toledo, with his parents, Charles H. and Mary E. (Morehouse) Scribner. There were ten children born to Judge and Mrs. Scribner. Those living are: Har- vey, Rollin H., Mrs. Charles Gates and Mrs. Joseph Spencer, of Toledo; Mrs. Louis Richardson, of Chicago; Mrs. Charles Cone, of New York; Edward M. Scribner, of Bridgeport, Conn .; and Charles E. Scribner, of Chicago. Judge Charles H. Scribner died in 1897; his wife survives him. Harvey Scribner married Jennie B. Bullard, Sept. 23, 1880. His wife had two children-Daisy and Fred-by a previous marriage. No attorney in Toledo is better liked than is Mr. Scribner. He is a thorough gentleman, of fine sensibilities, generous and public-spirited to a degree. He is one of the trustees of the Public Library, and is secretary of the Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.
Mamie a fait )
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BIOGRAPHICAL
MAURICE A. SCOTT
Maurice A. Scott, deceased, was at the time of his death one. of the oldest residents of Toledo, and in the business affairs of life he was considered a leader who had won his way to the top by sheer force of intelligent application and shrewdness. He was born in Ridgefield, Conn., in 1830, and was the son of Jessup W. and Susan (Wakeman) Scott, who are given appropriate mention on another page of this volume. He came with his parents to the Maumee Valley, in 1833, and lived in Toledo the greater part of his life. In 1870, he moved to Castleton on the Hudson, but took up his residence in Toledo again in 1888, when he built a handsome resi- dence on Monroe street. While his father was editor and part owner of the "Toledo Blade," in 1845-6, Mr. Scott learned the print- er's trade. In 1849, he acquired the art of telegraphing and for sev- eral years, from 1850, had charge of the telegraph office in this city. In 1859, in connection with his brother-Frank J. Scott-and William H. Raymond, he ran the Toledo Mills, which had been built by the last named gentleman, the location being at the corner of Jackson and Summit streets. The same year, Maurice A. and Frank J. Scott purchased the greater part of their father's interest in Toledo and Lucas county property and went into the real- estate business. In 1865, the partnership was dissolved, Maurice A. remaining in the business, and he built many business blocks, flats, and residences. He dedicated several parks to the city. Mr. Scott was married, in 1855, to Mary J. Tallant, of Concord, N. H., and of this union one child, Mrs. E. D. Libbey, was born. Mrs. Scott died in Castleton, N. Y., in 1858, and, in 1861, Mr. Scott again married. His second wife was Mary B. Messinger, of Boston, and there were two children: Mrs. William H. Chapin, of Springfield, Mass .; and Mrs. H. A. Ten Eyck, who died in Albany, N. Y., in 1896. Mr. Scott's social life was somewhat peculiar. While in business he was from the first remarkable for extreme caution, and as he grew older for extreme shrewdness in his judgment of what
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MEMOIRS OF LUCAS COUNTY
would be surely remunerative, in his social relations he was in early life noted for wit and a singularly piquant faculty of repartee. At social gatherings, if there were those with him who could stir him to the exercise of that talent he was often most brilliant. Mr. Scott was a millionaire and owned more frontage of desirable down- town property than any other individual in Toledo.
LOUIS MONTVILLE
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BIOGRAPHICAL
LOUIS MONTVILLE
Louis Montville, deceased, was a pioneer resident of the East Side, Toledo, and throughout a long residence in that section of the city he won and held the respect of all with whom he came in con- tact. With perhaps one or two exceptions he was the largest individual holder of East Side property, and the Montville Block at First and Main streets and a quantity of other properties front- ing on First, Second and Platt streets were among his holdings. Mr. Montville was born in the state of New York, in 1837, and at the close of the Civil war he came to Toledo from his former home at Watertown, in that state. Soon after his arrival in To- ledo he located on the East Side, where he entered upon the con- tracting business, and he gained his first financial start in grading East Side streets. He continued in the contracting business until his death, but in later years his work was largely that of pile con- tracting and at the time of his death he was completing the work on the drydocks for the Toledo Shipbuilding Company. While of limited school training he had a remarkable ability in calculating the value of timber, and he could tell at a glance what would often require long and elaborate calculation by others. He was energetic and industrious, and was held in high esteem by all who knew him. His death occurred on May 27, 1907, and he left a widow, three sons-Fred, of Alger, Ohio; Louis, of Memphis, Tenn .; George, of Toledo-and two daughters-Mrs. Adeline Sutton and Mrs. Emma Barror, both of whom reside in Toledo.
Card Prawa
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BIOGRAPHICAL
CARL F. BRAUN
Carl F. Braun, the subject of this biography, was born at Gudensburg, Germany, Aug. 16, 1843. He received a technical education in the Fatherland, having been graduated at a polytechnic school at Cassel, Germany, and in 1862, at the age of nineteen years, determined to try his fortune in America. In that year he arrived in Toledo, and in 1866 he became a clerk in the hardware house of Roff & Company. As a young man he was alert and energetic, quick to grasp business opportunities, and strictly faith- ful to the discharge of his duties. His salary at the start was not princely, but he managed to save the greater part of it, with a view to engaging in business for himself; and, in 1868, he became a member of the firm of Roff & Company. Toledo was then growing rapidly, and in the years immediately following the Civil war the hardware business, as well as other lines, enjoyed a boom. By 1873 the firm's business had greatly expanded, and in that year was organized the Bostwick-Braun Company, composed of Carl F. and Geo. A. Braun and Oscar A. Bostwick, and this company became the successors of Roff & Company. The new concern opened a store at the foot of Monroe street, on part of the ground now occupied by the great concrete Bostwick-Braun Building, though the company occupied quarters at the corner of St. Clair and Monroe streets for a number of years, until they moved to their present quarters. Carl F. Braun was in the active manage- ment of this immense hardware house until 1904, when he retired. In addition to his interests in this house he was identified with a number of other enterprises, having been a director of the Home Savings Bank and the Citizens Deposit & Trust Company, and at one time he was vice-president of the Home Bank. In 1881 he purchased the old Swan Creek railroad, which had been projected in 1876, but the promoters had experienced some trouble in secur- ing a right of way. Mr. Braun, however, succeeded where his predecessors had failed. He re-organized the company, was elected
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MEMOIRS OF LUCAS COUNTY
president, and the road was soon extended from the intersection of Bismarck and Hamilton streets to the old Toledo, Cincinnati & St. Louis (now the Clover Leaf) track, thus saving considerable time and labor in operating in and out of the city. Mr. Braun was one of the business giants in Toledo in his day, a man of high ideals and unblemished reputation, and his friends were many. He died suddenly at his home, 1615 Monroe street, June 25, 1908, hon- ored and respected by all who knew him, the immediate cause of his death being a stroke of paralysis. On May 22, 1879, he married Miss Elise Lenk, and of this union were born three sons-Walter M., Arthur P., and Carl W., here named in the order of birth. Walter M. and Carl W. are residents of Toledo, where the former is a member of the firm of Stacy & Braun in the investment bond busi- ness, and Arthur P., who was a mining engineer in Mexico, died suddenly May 17, 1910. Mr. Braun was by nature intellectually fitted for a business career, and belonged to that class of citizens, who, while advancing their own interests, add materially to the valuation of those interests that surround them. While a success in business, he was better still, a good citizen. Believing in the future of Toledo, he gave both his time and influence in behalf of many measures for the common good. Unto this class of men, who have been the real factors in the development of Toledo's great- ness, is this volume dedicated.
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ยท BIOGRAPHICAL
CHARLES F. CURTIS
Charles F. Curtis, deceased, was born at Victor, Ontario county, New York, Feb. 19, 1821. He was the son of Samuel and Elizabeth Curtis, the former a native of New York State and the latter of Connecticut. The Curtis family is of English descent, but has been represented in America for a number of generations. Charles F. was the eldest of a family of five children, there having been two sons and three daughters born to his parents. He passed the years of boyhood upon his father's farm, and received such advantages as the district schools afforded, afterward attending an academy for two years. On leaving school, Mr. Curtis became a contractor on the New York & Erie railroad, and was thus en- gaged from 1849 to 1851. He then came to Toledo and soon after- ward engaged in the construction of the Michigan Southern & Northern Indiana railroad, now known as the "old line" of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern, on which he was engaged for the three ensuing years. In 1853, in connection with Benjamin Fol- som and August Thomas, he formed the firm of B. Folsom & Com- pany, being in charge of the construction of the road extending from Toledo to Butler, Ind., seventy-one miles in length, of what is now known as the Air Line division of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern. His connection with railroad interests covered a period of about fifteen years, most of the time as contractor. On May 1, 1857, with August Thomas, he formed the firm of Curtis & Thomas and engaged in the lumber trade, continuing so associated until 1862, when Webster S. Brainard, former book-keeper, was admitted to the partnership, and the firm was changed to Curtis, Thomas & Company. Immediately after the death of Mr. Thomas, in 1868, the firm was again changed, taking the name of Curtis & Brainard, and real estate and vessel property business being added, the firm continued in active operation until the death of Mr. Curtis, Feb. 20, 1900. It did a large business and was recognized as one of the substantial firms of Toledo. At the time of his death, Mr.
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MEMOIRS OF LUCAS COUNTY
Curtis was also president of the Toledo Savings Bank & Trust Company and a director of both the First National and the Hol- comb National banks. He was a man of large business affairs, and was successful in his financial operations. His business career was characterized by sterling integrity and sound judgment. Mr. Curtis affiliated with the Democratic party, but never sought the honors or emoluments of public office. He was a member of Trin- ity Church, and for a number of years held the offices of treasurer, junior warden and vestryman, all of which he resigned prior to his death. Mr. Curtis was first married to Miss Julia Moore, of Victor, N. Y. His wife died at Bryan, Ohio, in 1854, leaving a daughter, Miss Ella Moore Curtis, now living with Mrs. Curtis, and in 1894 he was married to Mrs. Mary A. A. Birckhead, of Toledo, who sur- vives him, and who resides at 2636 Cherry street, Toledo, Ohio.
James melon.
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BIOGRAPHICAL
JAMES MELVIN
James Melvin, deceased, was a native of the State of Massa- chusetts, having been born in the historic old town of Concord, Dec. 20, 1826. He was a direct descendant of the Melvins who came to New England soon after the Mayflower touched the rock-bound coast, laden with the Pilgrim Fathers. His ancestors were among the ardent supporters of the American colonies from the beginning of the Revolutionary struggle against England, and it is of historical interest that his grandfather, Amos Melvin, was one of the guards in Concord town on the night that Paul Revere made his famous ride from Boston-the night preceding the day upon which the embattled farmers "fired the shot heard 'round the world." He, whose name introduces this memoir served his country with the same loyalty as did his ancestors, and in the dark days of 1861, when the integrity of the Union was threatened, at the first call for troops, in April, he enlisted in the Sixth Massachusetts infantry and with it served a three months' enlistment. Later, he re-en- listed in the Thirty-third Massachusetts infantry, and performed his duty nobly in all the marches, campaigns and battles of that com- mand for a period of two years, at the end of which time his health became impaired and he was discharged from the service on account of disability. Returning then to his Massachusetts home, as soon as the condition of his health would permit he resumed the thread of a peaceful life. In 1870, he came to Toledo and imme- diately opened a men's and boys' clothing establishment, with quarters at what is now 231 Summit street, under the name of the Boston Square Dealing Store. By careful attention to the details of the business and strict integrity he soon secured a per- manent hold upon the clothing trade of Toledo and vicinity, and as the James Melvin Clothing Company the establishment has grown to be one of the most exclusive in its line in the city. Mr. Melvin served the city as a member of the board of aldermen for one term and as a member of the board of education for two terms. In his
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MEMOIRS OF LUCAS COUNTY
public, business and domestic life, his name stood for integrity and purity, and in these days of "high finance," when financial gain is placed before every other consideration, his life record, stainless on every page, stands out with peculiar significance. He was a mem- ber of Forsyth Post, Grand Army of the Republic, and of Anthony Wayne Chapter, Sons of the American Revolution. He had been a member of the Unitarian Church of Our Father from the time of its organization, and served as treasurer of the church board for many years. In his death, which occurred June 23, 1906, Mr. Mel- vin left a sorrowing wife and two daughters-Mrs. Clifford Taft Hanson, of Toledo, and Mrs. J. Alan Hamilton, of Buffalo, N. Y. Mrs. Mary Lacey, sister of Mr. Melvin, lives in the old home at Concord, Mass.
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BIOGRAPHICAL
PETER HOFFMAN BIRCKHEAD
Peter Hoffman Birckhead, deceased, was a native son of the State of Maryland, though he contributed the major portion of his life's activity to business and social interests within the city of Toledo. He was born in Baltimore, Md., Nov. 13, 1827, and was the son of Dr. Lenox and Mary (Hoffman) Birckhead, who were both natives of the State of Maryland, where they lived out their allotted time. The father who was educated in medicine in Edinburg and Paris was a practicing physician in the city of Baltimore and its vicinity for many years, and then, later in life, divided his time between the practice of his profession and farm- ing. He took a loyal interest in public affairs but never sought the honors of public office. In the war of 1812 he served as a volun- teer in defense of Fort McHenry, the occasion being the one im- mortalized by Francis Scott Key's poetical production, "The Star- Spangled Banner." The Birckheads were professional and com- mercial men in and around Baltimore for a great many years. The progenitors of the family came originally from Basil, Swit- zerland, the migration being first to England and thence to Mary- land. The early ancestors left their European home on account of their religious views. Dr. Solomon Birckhead, the paternal grand- father of the subject of this memoir, was a practicing physician during his entire life in Baltimore, where he died at an advanced age. The maternal grandfather was Peter Hoffman, also of Balti- more, Md., and his occupation was what was known in those days as "merchant shipper," dealing in groceries, teas, and coffees, and doing an export and an import business. The Hoffman family is of Holland descent, with trading instincts, and for generations the members of the family were merchants. To Dr. Lenox Birckhead and wife there were born seven children, of whom Peter H. was the eldest, and the others were Jane, Louisa, John, James, Susan, and Mary, all deceased. Peter H. Birckhead received his educational training in Baltimore, where he was afforded the advantages of the
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MEMOIRS OF LUCAS COUNTY
schools of that period. At an early age he began his independent career by entering the employ of Hoffman & Sons (the senior mem- ber of which firm was a maternal uncle), grocery merchants and shippers, of Baltimore, and he remained so engaged until 1852. He then removed to Michigan, where, in company with a Mr. Ferris, he conducted a saw mill, cutting timber from a tract of land owned by his father. Two years later, in 1854, he came to Toledo and, in company with a Mr. Woolsey, engaged in the stave and coop- erage business, with an office and yard located at the foot of Lagrange street, the location now being a part of the site of the Vulcan Steam Shovel plant. The business was eventually merged into the Vulcan Iron Works, of which establishment Mr. Birck- head was the president at the time of his death. He was held in high esteem in the business community and was one of Toledo's most prominent citizens. On June 21, 1888, after having led a useful and industrious career, and after an illness of more than six months, which he bore patiently, Peter H. Birckhead passed to the life eternal, thus depriving the family of a loved member, for he was always attached to his home, and was a devoted and indulgent husband and father. Among his most intimate friends were Charles F. Curtis and Valentine H. Ketcham. He was a consistent and worthy member of Trinity Episcopal Church, and in politics he voted consistently with his convictions, giving his sup- port to the principles of the Democratic party. Mr. Birckhead was twice married, the first time to Harriet Steinbrenner, of Philadel- phia, Pa., and of this union there were born two children-Lenox Birckhead, who is located in Milwaukee and connected with the Bucyrus Steam Shovel Company, and Harriet Antoinette, who also lives in Milwaukee, with her brother. On Dec. 26, 1865, Mr. Birckhead was married to Miss Mary A. A. Titus, daughter of Israel and Adaline Titus, of Toledo.
Samadan
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BIOGRAPHICAL
SELAH REEVE MACLAREN
Selah Reeve Maclaren, deceased, was for many years one of the leading men of affairs of the city of Toledo, and his success in the business world was the natural sequence of industry, clearness of per- ception, fixedness of purpose and strength of will. And to the surviving members of his family he left the heritage of a good name, which he valued above riches. In the death of Mr. Maclaren, which occurred Jan. 29, 1905, Toledo lost one of her best citizens. Prominent in business and active in Christian fellowship, he had much to do with the building up of the city and advancing its in- terests in varied ways. Mr. Maclaren was born in New York City, June 11, 1846, the son of a Presbyterian minister, and when eight years of age was taken to Fall River, Mass., where he received his education. On April 14, 1865, although not nineteen years old, he left his boyhood home to come to Toledo, and upon arriving here entered the employ of N. Reeve & Company, lumber dealers, whose place of business was at the corner of Adams and Water streets. After faithful service as an employe for a period of six years, in 1871, at the age of twenty-five, he formed a partnership with H. C. Sprague and they engaged in the lumber business under the firm name of Maclaren & Sprague. Later, when the firm became in- corporated, Mr. Maclaren was made president. He was also presi- dent of the Franklin Printing & Engraving Company and of the Holcomb National Bank, having been re-elected to the presidency of the bank a short time before his death. Fraternally he was prominent in Masonic circles, and for years he was active in the Young Men's Christian Association movement, having for some time filled an official position in the association. His deeply religious nature found constant expression in good deeds and in active membership in the congregation of his choice. When he first came to Toledo he united with the First Presbyterian Church, and when the Westminster Church was founded he took his letter to that organization and for a number of years was one of its prom-
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