USA > Ohio > Montgomery County > Memoirs of the Miami valley > Part 34
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The warehouses of Keller & Gebby in Bellefontaine are the oldest in the county, built about 1850, by David Boyd, operated by Douglas & Gardner for some time, then by Boyd & Ghormley, and later by David Boyd & Sons, who controlled it for a period of
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from twenty to thirty years, or until 1886, when the plant and busi- ness was sold to Armstrong, Elliott & Co., D. C. Keller being the "company." After three years Mr. Elliott retired from the firm, which Mr. Frank Dowell then entered, the name changing to Arm- strong, Keller & Co., under which business was conducted from 1889 to 1899. As Keller & Dowell the firm continued from 1899 to 1906, when Elmer R. Gebby replaced Mr. Dowell-and he firm of Keller & Gebby is now entering its thirteenth successful year. Thus nearly seventy years' continuous elevator shipping and stor- age business has been carried on from this historic plant, which is the largest concern of its nature within a wide circle. Branch plants are' located at Bellecentre, New Richland and Huntsville, and the business done here is commensurate with the importance of Belle- fontaine as a commercial center. Grain, seed, wool, coal, hay and builders' supplies are the lines handled.
The A. R. Kerr & Co. warehouse business was founded in 1870, by R. S. Kerr & Co., and operated under that name until 1895, when it was changed to Kerr Brothers, who maintained the same lines of trade and shipping until 1915. The death of R. S. Kerr occurring in May, 1915, the firm was reorganized, becoming A. R. Kerr & Co., A. R. Kerr being the son of the founder. Coal, grain, wool and feed are the lines of commerce now engaged in by the firm. The present warehouse and office stands south of Auburn street, extend- ing south to the alley, but formerly was situated on the north side of Auburn, on railroad ground, using a part of the space once occu- pied by the old "Bee Line" roundhouse. It then covered the his- toric Blue Jacket spring, the water from which was piped into the office of the warehouse for drinking purposes. In the old round- house days, the same spring furnished water for the engines of the road, the once well-known Michael Kelly operating the pumping engine which kept the tank filled. Also, it was the water from this spring which played a major part in subduing the great con- flagration of 1856, when Bellefontaine narrowly escaped being wiped from the map, the "Bucket Brigade" maintaining a line of water from the spring to the fire. After all this service, it seems hardly credible that this flowing fountain of pure water should be hidden away in the debris of a neglected spot. It is, however, still there in the old place, though tightly covered, and requiring a six-inch pipe to conduct its waters to a sewer. Bellefontaine owes it to itself to bring the forgotten fountain to light and perpetuate it.
The lumber market in Bellefontaine is supplied by two con- cerns, the oldest of which is of long history, having its beginnings in the firm of Hoge, Williamson and Brown. In 1876 this firm became, by deaths and reorganization, Williamson and LeSourd. At Mr. Williamson's death, Mr. LeSourd took his sons into part- nership, the firm becoming A. LeSourd and Sons, and the business is now conducted as "The A. LeSourd Sons company," Mr. LeSourd senior having departed this life in 1914. The LeSourd company have played an important part in the building up of Bellefontaine, erecting, upon their own initiative, many houses of which the in- creasing population of the city gladly availed themselves. Other firms who deserve special mention in this connection are the real
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THE STORY OF LOGAN COUNTY
estate firms of Carter brothers, and Hamilton brothers, both of which have built extensively, providing homes for the rapid influx of industrial forces in the city. The second lumber concern is the Logan County Lumber company, which is the largest lumber ware- house in the county, and operates a wood-working department at its headquarters on Patterson street. This plant was established by the Peter Kunz company about fifteen years ago (in 1904), with capital largely local, and the manager is Mr. E. Ray Allebaugh, a business man of high standing.
The O'Brien Stone company of Bellefontaine, is an important industry, manufacturing crushed and pulverized limestone from do- mestic sources, as well as cut and building stone, which is imported. The headquarters of the company is located near the original quar- ries of Logan county, west of Bellefontaine.
The Bellefontaine Bridge and Steel company was organized and incorporated about 1890, and began business on Garfield street, at the vicinity of the Bell Novelty company and the Grabiel apple warehouse. After a few years a new location, where space was less expensive, became desirable and a new plant was erected, around which the growing suburb of Iron City has clustered, the land being platted into lots for the homes of employees. The plant was de- stroyed by fire in 1906, but the company almost immediately rebuilt, on a larger scale, to meet the increasing business prospects. This concern has been a boon to the city of Bellefontaine, as it has fur- nished steady employment since its beginning, and under the effi- cient management of Mr. John E. Miller, who entered the employ of the company in 1895, coming here from his native state, Vermont, it has become a great financial success. The product, which is normally devoted to bridge and structural steel, will be resumed as soon as the government contracts for war materials are completed. Fully one hundred employees are kept busy at the plant. The capital stock, which originally was $10,000, has grown to $150,000. The officers and board of directors at present stand as follows : president, John L. Longfellow ; vice-president, F. E. Milligan ; secretary-treas- urer and general manager, John E. Miller; Dr. W. S. Phillips and George P. Worrell.
The Colton Brothers company, merchant millers, is the oldest mill in Bellefontaine, and the largest by far in the county, covering nearly two acres enclosure, and standing on its original site between the railroad tracks, fronting on Columbus street west. The per- sonnel of the original firm was Robert and Joseph Colton, who built the mill in 1869, since which date the business has been continuous for practically fifty years, with steady growth. The original mill operated with old-fashioned "buhrs," but in the summer of 1918 the capacity of the mill was greatly enlarged by the installation of a three hundred horsepower engine, supplemented by an oil engine of one hundred horsepower, the flour milling capacity now being six hundred barrels daily, and corn meal and feeds, two hundred barrels. About one hundred tons of corn and other feeds can be turned out daily, when desired. The average output of flour is in the neighbor- hood of one hundred thousand barrels annually. The warehouse has room for storing about one hundred thousand bushels of grain. The
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product goes southeast into the Virginias and Carolinas, and also far to the northeast, exports to England and Scotland in normal times, being extensive. During the war with Germany shipping has been under government supervision. The Colton brothers were in active business connection with the mill until the death of Robert Colton in the spring of 1918, and that of Joseph Colton in the spring of 1917. The business was incorporated in 1900, and the personnel of the present firm is: Edwin M. Colton, president; Alfred S. Colton, vice-president; C. J. Pierce, secretary ; H. K. Humphrey, treasurer and manager.
The question of why a county so noted for wool production as Logan does not manufacture an ounce of wool for the trade is not yet satisfactorily answered. Attempts have been made in this direc- tion, but from no vital cause have failed. The Peerless Bedding company now occupies a building which was erected by John F. Miller for a woolen mill, and which prospered for a time, but failed because the proprietor, a saloon-keeper, was more interested in wildcat mining schemes than in wool manufacture, and sacrificed the industry to the injury of others as well as himself. The building was idle for some time, or used for temporary manufacturing en- deavors, then occupied by the Miller brothers' carriage body works, and finally, at the suggestion of an outside investor, opened up about 1900 as a mattress factory in charge of Howenstine and Huston, who engaged a capable manager and included the manufacture of com- forts and pillows in the industry, which grew rapidly to a volume worth hundreds of thousands annually. The present manufacturers of the same lines, incorporated in 1911, and the building is rented to them. The firm was re-organized in 1914, and now stands as Bennett and Goodfellow, after several changes in its personnel. Bennett and Goodfellow are sterling business men and their product is of sterling manufacture, consisting of mattresses of cotton, wool and "silk fibre," the latter known by the trade name of "Kapoc." Pillows are made both of feathers and of cotton. A government contract for fifteen thousand beds is just now, January, 1919, being brought to completion.
Other industries which have become prominent and are growing in magnitude and importance are the J. L. Simpson company, iron castings ; the Ironwood Manufacturing company, machine products ; the Clingerman machine shop; the Humphrey Bronze and Alumi- num company, and the Kauffman Metal Parts company ; all of which are adding to the material prosperity of Bellefontaine, and all of which have been doing important war work for the government during the two years past.
It seems unnecessary to say that the really great financial tower of strength in Bellefontaine is the pay-roll of the Big Four shops and terminal, and the division offices. These plants, located in Bellefontaine in 1890 for the now trifling bonus of one hundred thou- sand dollars voted by the citizens, are at present more than equal, in dollars and cents returned, to all the other industries in the city. More than half a million dollars annually are being poured into Belle- fontaine by means of the Big Four pay-roll. The great terminals have been enlarged in the season just past (1918), and still greater
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additions are planned. The third floor of the beautiful Canby block is occupied, entire, by the division offices.
A commercial asset of decided importance to Bellefontaine is the wholesale groceries concern of F. N. Johnson & Co., which occupies its own large warehouse on West Chillicothe street. It was established in 1900, and is not only the first but the only wholesale house in this line in Logan county, and is operated by a live wire company, the officers of which should be given the credit they are too modest to claim. The officers and board of directors are : president and manager, F. N. Johnson ; vice-president, L. A. Chapman (Lima, Ohio) ; secretary-treasurer, A. L. Kendall; Emil Geiger, Max Kaufman, and J. L. Longfellow. With practically the same personnel, the F. N. Johnson Maple Syrup company (an en- tirely separate firm) was formed in 1917, which operates branch plants in Geauga county and in Essex, Vermont. Charles Mc- Laughlin and A. P. Johnson are included in this board of directors.
A new industry or line of commerce recently opened in Belle- fontaine is the hides and pelts depot of the Brown brothers, which bids fair to promote the local welfare by centralizing the product of Logan county in this line.
Of the industry of the county at large, which is pre-eminently agricultural in character, two elements may be broadly said to have contributed chiefly to its development, the Sheep Breeders' asso- ciation and its successor, the Logan County Woolgrowers' associa- tion, and the Logan County Fair association. The sheep and wool industry had the encouragement of Judge Lawrence, whose interest in and knowledge of these questions was of the greatest value and developed early ; and the county fair, which, with the possible lapse of one or two seasons, has been held annually for seventy years or more, has promoted agriculture in all its lines, as well as the fine and homely arts of farm and domestic life. The Granges, also, have been a benefit to the rural communities.
Bellefontaine banks and loan companies occupy an enviable position in the public confidence which is well deserved, for it has been won entirely upon merit and not through advertising. Finan- cial gales have passed over this city as well as others, but its banks have weathered them all without harm.
The oldest financial institution in Logan county is the People's National bank, which was first organized as a private firm in 1854, by William Rutan and Abner Riddle, under the firm name of Rutan and Riddle, and, with re-organizations at different milestones along the way, has had an uninterrupted existence ever since that date. The firm employed Robert Lamb as cashier, and as the People's bank the business was conducted. After a few years Mr. Lamb was taken into the firm, which became Rutan, Riddle & Co., with- out change of the bank title. At the next re-organization J. B. Williams entered the firm, which did not change name. Reuben B. Keller entered the bank in 1869 as clerk and messenger. In 1880 the bank was again re-organized, being chartered July 1, 1880, as "The People's National bank," with Abner Riddle, president; J. B. Williams, vice-president ; Robert Lamb, cashier ; Reuben B. Keller, assistant cashier. The bank was capitalized at $100,000, which re-
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mains the same, while the accumulated surplus and undivided profits approximate at this date (January, 1919) $55,000, with total re- sources over one million dollars. The newly elected officers are : W. W. Riddle, president ; John E. West, vice-president ; R. B. Keller, cashier; F. L. Cory, R. B. Hiatt and Ray S. Fisher, assistants. Mr. Keller is the second cashier in the history of the bank, and the only one left of the working force of the bank when he entered it in 1869. The headquarters of the bank were remodeled, enlarged and modernized in 1908, when special attention was paid to the safe deposit department, which is of the strongest construction, while the general equipment and furnishings of the bank are mas- sive, artistic and commodious.
The earliest Bellefontaine institution to be so chartered, is the Bellefontaine National bank, which was organized in 1870, and opened for business April, 1871, with $100,000 capital. The first president was Judge William Lawrence, under whom it was or- ganized, and who retained the presidency until shortly before his death ; vice-president, J. N. Allen ; cashier, James Leister ; assistant, and bookkeeper, Charles Mclaughlin. At the date of January 1, 1919, the surplus and undivided profits are $47,000, the resources of the bank aggregating close to $1,000,000. From 1909 to 1918, de- posits have increased $287,853 to $643,132. Mr. Charles McLaugh- lin is now the president, Charles S. Hockett, vice-president, Fred C. Spittle, cashier, and S. W. Huffer and Miss Cora Zearing the as- sistants. The bank was originally housed at the same corner where it now stands, but in the old building which had accom- modated the Gazette printing office, and a drug store, Dr. Aaron Hartley being the owner of the property, which was purchased and remodeled to meet the needs of the bank. In 1892 this old building was torn down and the present substantial bank building erected on its site.
The Commercial and Savings Bank company is the youngest of the Bellefontaine banks, being organized April 8, 1901, and opened for business in October of the same year, in the building now oc- cupied b'y the Emil Geiger clothing house. This position was ex- changed several years ago for the situation in the Watson Block at the northeast corner of North Main and Columbus streets, which was remodeled in modern style and with good taste for the bank- ing business. The original directors were Robert Colton, presi- dent; Alfred Butler, vice-president; Harry S. Kerr, cashier ; Fred C. Spittle, assistant; T. F. Bushey, W. W. Fisher, Mack Dickin- son, Edw. W. Patterson, William R. Niven and E. P. Chamberlain. ยท Capital stock, $30,000; surplus and undivided profits, date of De- cember 31, 1918, $30,000; resources, practically a half million. The present officers and board are: Edw. W. Patterson, president ; William T. Haviland, vice-president; Alfred Butler, cashier ; Harry E. Travis, assistant. Niven U. Smith, Fred W. Arnold, John R. Cassady, Edw. M. Colton, and Robt. P. Dickinson.
The Citizens' Building and Loan company is the oldest or- ganization of its character in Bellefontaine, having been established January 29, 1885, by Thomas L. Hutchins, president; Isaac N. Zearing, vice-president; Joseph C. Brand, jr., secretary; John B.
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Williams, treasurer; Ducan Dow, Frank J. Scarff and Patrick F. Dugan. The resources of the institution have grown to full $750,- 000, according to report of December 31, 1918. Its present board of directors is as follows: I. N. Zearing, president; Charles Mc- Laughlin, vice-president ; W. W. Riddle, solicitor ; Mary A. Cheever, secretary ; J. D. Mclaughlin, C. B. Churchill and R. M. Wissler.
The Savings Building and Loan company was organized and established by Capt. William Lane, president, and Corey L. Lane, secretary, in July, 1891, and carried on along the usual lines, becom- ing a solid institution with total resources, to date, $746,000. Earn- ings and distribution equal about $40,000. Its 1919 organization is: Dr. R. W. Chalfant, president; W. E. Smith, vice-president ; John D. Inskeep, secretary ; A. Jay Miller, solicitor ; Fred C. Spittle and Fremont C. Hamilton, directors.
The Bellefontaine Building and Loan company was organized in 1894, and is now twenty-five years of age. It started business in the second story of the old building which, partially destroyed by fire some years ago, has been replaced by the new Lawrence block, on South Main street. The company then consisted of Joseph Colton, Anson B. Carter, Alfred Butler, Mack Dickinson, Reuben B. Keller, M. R. Boales and L. E. Corey, first secretary. Joseph Colton and Mack Dickinson, both deceased, have been replaced in the company by Leister JoHantgen and Charles Zearing, while Charles S. Hockett succeeded M. R. Boales, who moved away from Belle- fontaine some years ago. The present secretary is F. W. Arnold, under whose management the growth and prosperity of the in- stitution has been almost phenomenal. In the quarters on West Columbus avenue the company is beginning to fit rather tightly, and the business is growing, with loans totalling about one and a half millions, and resources of three million dollars.
The Bellefontaine Chamber of Commerce was formed, of rep- resentative business and professional men, April 1, 1916. Its pur- pose is to build up and promote the commercial, industrial and civic interests of the city and community. That it will fulfill its avowed purpose of "a bigger, busier, better Bellefontaine," is assured by the character of its membership. The official organization of the current year is: President, John P. Aikin; vice-president, Myran LeSourd; treasurer, Alfred Butler ; secretary, Merlyn R. Whitney ; Committees: Business, A. P. Humphreys; organization, G. E. Underhill; agricultural, O. P. Morris; civic, J. O. Stiles; at large, H. K. Humphrey, W. H. Hamilton, George K. Werrell.
Education
It is not the intention of the writer of this article to attempt a detailed account of the rise, progress, and present attainments of each of Logan county's schools, but to treat of their evolution in a general way.
Perhaps the most difficult problem that school men have been trying to solve for the past forty years is what to do with the rural school that it may keep pace with the progressive spirit of the times. The backward look is sometimes a pleasing as well as a profitable
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pastime since it affords us a better realization of what has been done by comparing what was with what is.
The first work of the pioneer of old Logan was providing for the physical welfare of his family. Food, clothing, and shelter were absolute necessities, to furnish which forests must be cleared and drained and arable fields carved from the trackless wilderness. It is a significant fact that in all pioneer settlements, as soon as a comfortable cabin was erected, and a little corn planted, a log school house was rolled up. A cavernous fire place filled the rear end ; the outside chimney was made of sticks and mud ; the roof, often, of logs chinked with leaves over which a covering of dirt was packed ; the windows were mere slits between the logs, glazed with greased paper ; the seats were rude benches hand-made.
What a "Red Letter" day for the entire community was the dedication of this first Temple of Learning.
"There, in his noisy mansion, skilled to rule, The village master taught his little school; A man severe he was, and stern to view, I knew him well, and every truant knew; Well had the boding tremblers learned to trace The day's disasters in his morning face; Full well they laughed with counterfeited glee At all his jokes, for many a joke had he; Full well the busy whisper, circling round, Conveyed the dismal tidings when he frowned; Yet he was kind, or if severe in aught, The love he bore to learning was in fault. The village all declared how much he knew; 'Twas certain he could write, and cipher too: Lands he could measure, terms and tides presage, And even the story ran that he could gauge. In arguing, too, the parson owned his skill, For e'en though vanquished, he could argue still ; While words of learned length and thund'ring sound Amazed the gazing rustics ranged around, And still they gazed, and still the wonder grew That one small head could carry all he knew, But past is all his fame. The very spot, Where many a time he triumphed, is forgot."
Though myriads of bacilli, microbes, and germs of every known variety lurked in the chinks of the walls, or held high carnival in the cracks of the puncheon floors, the unwary rustics thoroughly enjoyed their school life and many of them passed their fourscore milestone before succumbing to heart failure.
The public school system of Ohio was established in 1821, and four years later the first uniform law on school taxes was passed, directing the county commissioners to levy one-half mill for com- mon school purposes, only one-half of which could be expended for a site and a house. Ten years later the maximum amount of school- house tax was fixed at $300. In 1853 the power of taxation for
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schoolhouse construction was vested in boards of education, which resulted in an increased amount available for building purposes.
The log house was replaced by one of frame or brick all con- structed on the same architectural plan, which of necessity was marked by great simplicity. Of equipment for teaching there was little if any. No attempt was made to beautify either school room or grounds. The three R's may have been well taught; but the spiritualizing influences so necessary to educational uplift were lacking.
The pioneer having settled the country, now began to settle down and improve country life. New methods of communication, better means of transportation, had brought the erstwhile isolated farmer right into the hurry and bustle of the world's work. Newer and better comforts of life were within his reach. His two-roomed cabin had given place to a commodious modern house. His ample barns afforded storage for the greater harvests improved machin- ery and scientific farming had made possible. No longer was the old lumber wagon used for social visits or for church going, the carriage or automobile having taken its place. The successful farmer is not satisfied with mere creature comforts. Flowers, shrub- bery, and shade trees tastefully arranged on a well-kept lawn indi- cate his love for the beautiful in nature. Music, pictures, current magazines, and the masterpieces of the best authors, within his home, speak eloquently of higher ideals and a richer country life.
But what about the country school house? Has it kept pace with its surroundings? 'Tis true that the old order has changed in many localities, and the improvement of house and grounds has given the country boy and girl a wider outlook and a richer life; but too often the box-car type, with its blank walls and desolate yard, remains.
"Of the many pictures that hang on memory's wall," that of a dilapidated weather-beaten structure seemeth most vivid. The little old building stood on the edge of a ravine back of which were forest trees.
One stormy morning, late in November, an old man mounted on a shambling farm horse was slowly approaching this temple of learning, for such it was. Behind the old man sat a terror-stricken young girl. Soon the building was in sight and gathered around its door was a group of eager rustics of every age and size. The zero hour came all too quickly; the horse stopped, the girl dis- mounted, and twenty pairs of eyes were focused upon her. The very critical examination seemed to result in the unanimous deci- sion that her head could carry all she knew and not be over- crowded. The door was open; a fire made; the director, mounting his old horse, slowly rode away, and the three months' campaign began. It was fierce, but there were no casualties, though four months slowly rolled by before hostilities ceased along that line.
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