USA > Ohio > Memoirs of the lower Ohio valley, personal and genealogical : with portraits, Volume II > Part 10
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38
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City, Mo. One year later he married Helen E. Hess, daughter of Mr. Alfred Hess of Cincinnati, O., and a native of New York state. Mr. McCurdy was engaged in the real estate and insurance busi- ness while in the West. In the year 1889 he again returned East with his family, and became interested in the Favorite Carriage Com- pany of Cincinnati. He was elected secretary of this company, which position he held for five years. In 1894 he handed in his resigna- tion, and severed his connection with this concern, organizing in the same year the Brighton Buggy Company under the laws of the State of Ohio. Mr. McCurdy's career as a manufacturer has been highly successful. Beginning with a very small capital, he has worked himself up to the position of one of the "Captains of Indus- try." Outgrowing his facilities in Cincinnati, where he was first located, he came to the city of Evansville in the year 1902, where he built a large brick factory, one of the most modern plants in the United States for the manufacture of vehicles. This business is now known as the Hercules Buggy Company, the name having been changed from the Brighton Buggy Company of Cincinnati. Each year, since the organization of the business in 1894, has shown a marked increase over the former year. Mr. McCurdy's skill in selecting the right kind of men, and his unquestioned executive abil- ity, place him in the foremost ranks in the business community. The Hercules Buggy Company, of which he is president and the prin- cipal owner, has a floor space of nearly four acres, and a manufac- turing capacity of 40,000 vehicles per annum. Mr. McCurdy has built a very large and commodious residence in the city of Evans- ville, located on Riverside avenue, where he has recently moved his family. He has also become identified with a number of enterprises in the city, including the banking interests and the street railway systems.
RAGON BROTHERS, wholesale grocers and proprietors of the Diamond Coffee and Spice Mills, Evansville, Ind., have been so long identified with that city's commercial life, and are so widely known through the Lower Ohio Valley, that their house has become one of the landmarks of Evansville. The Ragons are among the oldest families in the city. They came from Kentucky immediately after the war and established a wholesale grocery business, under the firm name of Ragon Brothers, the founders being Edward G. and Ferd H. Ragon, two of the most hard-working, energetic gentlemen who ever located in Evansville. The grocery trade of the city has
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always been one of the great factors in making Evansville an impor- tant commercial center, and few concerns have contributed more to this end than the firm of Ragon Brothers. For forty years, without a day's interruption, this house has gone steadily forward, increasing their own trade and widening the circle of Evansville's commercial influence. Ferd H. Ragon died some years ago, but the business went on and continued to increase under the management of his brother, Edward G., for twenty-five years, when he, too, was called to his final rest. Edward G. died Feb. 27, 1902, and his death removed from the business and social life of Evansville one of the most prominent figures, a liberal and willing contributor to the city's growth and welfare-one who will be remembered for many years to come as one of the most enterprising and public spirited of men. Since his death his son, Chester L. Ragon, has become the active head of the firm. In 1902 the business was incorporated, the pres- ent officers being Chester L. Ragon, president and treasurer; H. R. Dunavan, vice-president, and William Clarke, secretary. All these gentlemen have been connected with the business for many years, and know every demand of the trade. The policy of the firm has always been a conservative one, and under the present management its customers find no departure from its established usage. Chester L. Ragon was carefully trained to the business by his father, and upon the death of the latter took charge, conducting the business along the old lines. Even when incorporated no innovations were introduced, the old name being retained, and it is safe to predict that the house will stand for years to come, as it has stood for years in the past-the leader in the grocery trade of Evansville.
HENRY S. BENNETT, senior member of the insurance firm of Bennett, Hutchinson & Co., Evansville, Ind., was born in England, Feb. 22, 1836. In 1857 he came with his parents and the other mem- bers of the family to the United States. For several years he lived in the State of New York, but about the close of the Civil war came to Evansville, where he engaged in the insurance business, as man- ager of the insurance department of W. J. Lowry & Co. In 1872 he formed a partnership with Cyrus K. Drew, under the firm name of Drew & Bennett, and soon had a large insurance business. A branch office was established at Indianapolis, where a considerable volume of business was transacted. This branch office was later sold to Henry Coe. In 1882 Mr. Drew retired and was succeeded by I. H. Odell, the style of the firm becoming Bennett & Odell. In
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1894 Mr. Odell was succeeded by Alexander Hutchinson, and the present firm name was adopted. Mr. Bennett has personally rep- resented the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York for thirty-six years, and enjoys the distinction of having written the only one hundred thousand dollar policy that was ever written in Evansville. In recent years he has given a good portion of his time to the adjustment of losses for some of the companies represented by his firm. This requires a rare tact and presence of mind, yet Mr. Bennett has fully demonstrated his ability in this line, as in all other departments of the fire insurance business. He has held the position of president of the Evansville board of fire underwriters sev- eral times during his career in the city and is undoubtedly the Nestor of fire insurance in Evansville, if not in the state. Politically Mr. Bennett is a Republican, and one of the kind who believes in not hiding his light under a bushel. For twelve years he was a member of the Evansville city council, and for twenty-five years he was chairman of the city, county or district committee, sometimes of all three at the same time. As chairman of the district committee he was a member of the State central committee, from the First Con- gressional district, and was a potent factor in shaping his party's policy in the State of Indiana. When he first took the political reins the First district, Vanderburg county, and the city of Evansville were all solidly Democratic. He was not daunted, however, by the con- ditions, but went to work to change the situation. For several years the First district has been represented by a Republican in Con- gress and both the city and the county are regarded as safely Repub- lican on a straight party vote. Much of this change has been due to the intelligent, well-directed and persistent efforts of Mr. Bennett. Notwithstanding his success as a political leader he has never been a seeker for office, though he has twice been postmaster of Evansville; once to fill out an unexpired term under President Arthur, and a full four-year term under President Harrison, from 1889 to 1893. Mr. Bennett is well known in the fraternal circles of Southwestern Indiana, being a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and one of the charter members of Orion Lodge No. 35, Knights of Pythias, the first lodge organized in Evansville. On June 10, 1865, he was married to Miss Susan DeBruler, the adopted daughter of Dr. James DeBruler, for- merly a prominent physician of Evansville, and they have four chil- dren, one son and three daughters living, and two sons dead.
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MARCUS S. SONNTAG was born in Evansville, Ind., received his education in the public schools of that city and has, for the past four years, been a member of the board of education. He is regarded as one of the leading business men of the city. He is a member of the Evansville Business Men's association and, with others in this organization, has been active in bringing new industries to Evansville. He is president of the Union Investment Company, which has erected and sold more than three hun- dred homes in Evansville during the past ten years. This company has played a wonderful part in building up and beautifying the suburbs of the city and today is making it pos- sible for many worthy citizens to secure their own homes. Mr. Sonntag is a director in the Old State National Bank, the largest and oldest financial institution in Southern Indiana, and has just taken a prominent part in the successful launching of the American Trust and Savings Company, a financial institution that is sure to cut a figure in the affairs of Southern Indiana. Associated with Mr. Sonntag in the organization of this new company was E. O. Hop- kins, formerly occupying a high position in the railroad world and a man of large means and wide resources. Mr. Hopkins is president of the company and Mr. Sonntag vice-president. Mr. Sonntag is also a director and the secretary and treasurer of the Evansville & Eastern Electric Railway, the building of which line between Evans- ville and Rockport, Ind., was commenced on Sept. 6, 1904. In poli- tics, Mr. Sonntag is a Republican and for years has taken a promi- nent part in the councils of his party. He stands high in the social, political and business life of the city and is a man of rare judg- ment, backed by an unsullied character. His opinions are often sought and generally heeded, for he is a man of conservative but tenacious disposition and usually safe to follow.
THE WILLARD LIBRARY, of Evansville, Ind., is the bene- faction of Willard Carpenter, one of the most benevolent and public spirited men who ever lived in the city. He was a man of great native ability, progressive and energetic, and was deeply interested in the material prosperity and industrial development of the city where the greater portion of his long and useful life was passed.
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In the public records of Evansville, in the old files of newspapers, his name is to be frequently seen, as having been associated with some of the progressive movements of his time. Men are yet liv- ing who knew him personally, and these living witnesses will corrob- orate the statement that he was always one of the leaders in behalf of good government and municipal progress. But, aside from his interest in the city's industrial and commercial thrift, he felt a deeper concern for the moral and intellectual advancement of his fellow-men. His contact with men in every walk of life, and his knowledge of public affairs, taught him that the highest destinies of a republic, where every man is a component part of the government, can only be realized through the liberal education of the masses. In his per- sonal affairs he was eminently successful, accumulating a large for- tune, and toward the close of his life he determined to do something for the city in which he had acquired his wealth. In his benevolence, as in all other matters, he was intensely practical. Entertaining the views he did it was but natural that his generous impulses should take the turn they did, and that he should endow a library. Had his object been the mere perpetuation of his own name; had he been actuated by the selfish motive of promulgating his own impor- tance, his munificence might have found various channels better cal- culated to subserve such an end. Under date of Aug. 23, 1876, he addressed the following communication to a board of trustees selected by himself:
"Gentlemen :- I have intended for many years to devote to some public use a portion of the property and means which I have acquired by a long life of labor. I have, at various times, endeavored to ben- efit the community in which my life has been mostly spent, by inau- gurating various enterprises. Legal difficulties, and other obstacles, have intervened to render inoperative schemes for the public good, which I have at various times undertaken to put in operation.
"After consultation with many gentlemen of this city, I have concluded without further delay to establish and endow a public library, to be located in a public park, on land owned by me, situate in the city of Evansville. I am induced to do this in the well- grounded hope that such an institution may become useful toward the improvement of the moral and intellectual culture of the inhabi- tants of Evansville, and collaterally to those of the State of Indiana; and also toward the enlargement and diffusion of a taste for the fine arts.
"The city of Evansville has reached in population and commercial
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importance a period in which such a scheme should, and I have no doubt will, meet with the hearty approval and assistance of the municipal authorities and all private citizens.
"In presenting to you the object I propose, I wish you to under- stand that the details proper to its organization and government and its future control and conduct are to be left to your judgment and discretion, and the perpetuity of that control I confide to you and your successor, to be appointed in the manner prescribed in this letter.
"But I desire to present my views in general of the object and purposes of the proposed institution, in order that by no possibility shall the property hereby donated ever be diverted to any other pur- pose; and that the result of much thought and labor on my part shall be commensurate with the high objects to be attained; and as a guide, and, as it were, an organic law for you, in the discharge of your duties.
"I have directed skilled attorneys to prepare a deed conveying to you the property therein described, estimated by me to be worth the sum of $400,000: the said deed to be signed and executed by my wife and myself. The property thereby conveyed lies in the limits of Evansville or contiguous thereto.
"I desire and direct that the building for the public library hereby proposed shall be located on that portion of the property designated in said deed which is generally known as Carpenter's field. The re- mainder of said tract of land known as Carpenter's field shall be forever kept as a public park. It shall be, at the discretion of the trustees, enclosed by a neat fence; and fountains, flowers, trees, grass-plats, and all the usual accessories of a park shall be provided and kept in order, so as to make the park a resort for the people for all time to come.
"I desire that the co-operation of the city in this scheme of a public park shall be secured, so that the square now owned by the city adjoining this tract of land shall be made subsidiary to the gen- eral purpose of promoting public health and popular recreation. The control of said public park under proper municipal regulations, shall remain with the trustees hereby appointed. You and your suc- cessors will constitute forever, a board of trustees, seven in number, to be maintained in perpetual succession for the accomplishment, preservation and supervision of the purposes for which the library and park are to be established. To you and your successors, there- fore, by virtue of said deed and this instrument, I give full and
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exclusive power to take, receive and hold in fee simple, the said real estate in said deed particularly described, and to sell and convey in fee simple, at such times and for such prices as may be deemed advisable, all the said real estate except that which is particularly set apart for the said library and park, and out of the proceeds of such sale to erect a suitable building, to improve, ornament and adorn said park, and to purchase books, maps and works of art for the use of the people of all classes, races and sexes free of charge, forever. A permanent fund shall be created out of the proceeds of such sale for the support of the institution."
The trustees, to whom this communication was addressed, were Thomas E. Garvin, Alexander Gilchrist, Henry F. Blount, John Laval, Matthew Henning, and Charles H. Butterfield. These gen- tlemen accepted the trust, and on Aug. 23, 1876, the deed was exe- cuted and soon afterward was placed on record. A general expres- sion of the public desire favored the naming of the library "The Wil- lard Library," and the park "Willard Park." To this Mr. Carpenter gave his consent, and from that time until his death he worked hand in hand with the trustees to carry out the plan. He expressed his desire to see, in his own lifetime, the library in successful operation, "to embellish our city, to instruct and elevate the people, and to promote the growth of virtue and knowledge." As soon as a suf- ficient sum could be realized for the building fund Reed Brothers, architects, were commissioned to draw plans for a building, which in appearance is an ornament to the city. Its cost was about $80,000 and it was erected under the personal supervision of Mr. Carpenter, who, notwithstanding his advanced age, visited the building almost daily, and only two months before his death climbed to the top of the walls on a tour of inspection. The death of Mr. Carpenter occurred in November, 1883, before the library was opened to the public, though the building was practically completed and he had the satisfaction of seeing the happy fruition of his hopes. Owing to removals from the city, resignations, etc., some changes have been made in the board of trustees. The present board consists of Thomas E. Garvin, president; S. G. Evans, vice-president; O. F. Jacobi, treasurer; R. D. Richardson, secretary; Alexander Gilchrist, and John H. Foster. Miss Otilda Goslee is the librarian, and has been ever since the institution was opened, with Miss Katie Imbusch and Mrs. M. O. Flower assistants. The number of volumes in the library is about twenty-nine thousand, to which additions are constantly being made, and some valuable art treasures are now on the shelves.
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Such, in brief, is the history of one of the public institutions of the city of Evansville. An institution of which every citizen is proud, and one which will stand as a more enduring monument than marble or bronze to the memory of its generous donor.
CAPTAIN LEE HOWELL, a promi- nent railroad man of Evansville, Ind., and president of the Evansville & Bowling Green Packet Company, was born on a farm in Lauderdale county, Ala., his par- ents having emigrated from the Car- olinas some years before his birth. At the age of fifteen he began his business career as a clerk and bookkeeper in a gen- eral country store. Here he continued until 1862, when he enlisted in the cavalry service of the Confederate army, in Cap- tain Philip Dale Roddy's company, which was afterwards organized into the Fourth Alabama cavalry regiment of Roddy's brigade and assigned to General Forrest's division, and served faithfully until the close of the war. Transportation had an attraction for him, and after the war he engaged in steamboating on the Tennessee and Ohio rivers, first as chief clerk and later as master and owner of packet steamers plying between Florence, Ala., Padu- cah, Ky., and Evansville, Ind. In the spring of 1872 he sold his steamboat interests to the Louisville & Nashville Railroad Company, and operated a steamer for that company between Danville, Tenn., and Florence, Ala., semi-weekly, for three years, when the company sold its river interests to the Evansville & Tennessee River Packet Company, and Captain Howell was appointed general agent for that company, with headquarters at Florence, Ala., looking especially after the interests of the company in the Tennessee river valley. Five years later he came to Evansville as general agent for the Louisville & Nashville railroad, and since that time has been one of the active business men of that busy city. In June, 1882, he was appointed general freight agent for the Henderson division. In the following November his jurisdiction was extended over the St. Louis division, and he has presided over the freight department of these two impor- tant divisions since that date. In addition to his duties in the freight department, he was acting superintendent of the St. Louis division and its branches from July I to Dec. 1, 1883. As the agent
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of a great railway corporation his first duty is naturally to subserve the interests of the company he represents. This he has done to the entire satisfaction of the company, at the same time contributing in divers ways to the material advancement of Evansville. By his broad and progressive policy as freight agent he has stimulated the coal mining industry along the line of the Henderson division, and a large portion of the products of the mines goes to Evansville and other points north of the Ohio river; and by his uniformly courteous treatment of all who come in contact with him he has made friends both for himself and his company. Captain Howell was one of the principal promoters of the Evansville, Suburban & Newburgh rail- way, an enterprise that has added in no small degree to the city's prosperity; was one of the founders of the town of Howell, which was named for him; and was instrumental in securing the location there of the great railroad shops, which have given steady employ- ment at good wages to hundreds of Evansville's artisans. During the quarter of a century and more he has been engaged in the rail- road business he has never forgotten the good old days on the river, and has always retained an affection for river traffic. This was manifested in the organization of the Evansville, Ohio & Green River Transportation Company in 1888, which established a perma- nent and reliable towboat service between Evansville and Green river points, and to which packet service was added in April, 1896, thus securing to Evansville a large share of the Green river trade. On Jan. I, 1898, the packet portion of the equipment of the Evans- ville, Ohio & Green River Transportation Company, which at that time consisted of two first-class passenger and freight steamers, was merged with other interests into a new packet company, the Evans- ville & Bowling Green Packet Company, of which Captain Howell became, and is still president. The Evansville, Ohio & Green River Transportation Company and the Evansville & Bowling Green Packet Company have been very important factors in the development and building up of the entire Green river territory. During the present summer, the packet service of the Evansville & Bowling Green Packet Company was extended into Upper Green river as far as Brownsville, and as soon as the new government lock in course of construction just above Brownsville is completed, its service will be extended up to Mammoth Cave, which will give the entire Green and Barren river valleys within the zone of slack water navigation the benefit of regular and reliable packet service. The company in the spring of the present year contracted for the construction by the II-8
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Howard Shipbuilding Company, of Jeffersonville, Ind., of a new packet steamer, designed and built especially for the Green river trade. No expense has been spared to make this boat one of the best of her class plying on western waters, and it is safe to predict that she will be one of the most successful steamers that has ever plied on Green and Barren rivers, and no doubt will meet with the hearty support and fullest appreciation of the company's patrons. Captain Howell is entirely too modest a man to make any reference whatever to his work in connection with any of the interests he has repre- sented, but he is especially proud of his connection with the Louis- ville & Nashville Railroad Company, and the fact that he has been one of the trusted lieutenants of the present president of the com- pany, Mr. Milton H. Smith, from his first connection with the rail- road, when Mr. Smith was general freight agent of that line, which extended from Louisville to Decatur, Ala., and from Bowling Green, Ky., to Paris, Tenn .; and that he has witnessed and rendered what assistance he could in the development of that company to its present position of the leading trunk line of the South. Captain Howell was married in 1867 at Tuscumbia, Ala., to Miss Emma Ottaway. To this union there have been born four children, only two of whom survive, Lee, Jr., of Evansville, and Emma, now Mrs. James Edward Cox, of Owenton, Ky.
HON. JAMES A. HEMENWAY, junior United States senator from Indiana, and since 1894 to his election to the U. S. senate the representative in Congress from the First district of Indiana, is a descend- ant of one of the oldest families in America. During the early colonial days a Ralph Hemenway came from the Old Country and settled at Shrewsbury, Conn. His descendants are numerous throughout the Eastern states. In the early part of the nineteenth century the grandfather of James A. Hemenway came from New York to Indiana, locating at Boonville, where the subject of this sketch was born March 8, 1860. He received his education in the public schools of Boonville, and with the exception of a few years has passed his whole life there. After leaving school he took up the study of law, and coming to the conclusion that the West offered
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