USA > Ohio > Knox County > Past and present of Knox County, Ohio, Vol. II > Part 30
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Politically, Mr. Leonard is a Republican and he has ever been loyal to the tenets of his party. He was elected justice of the peace soon after coming to Mt. Vernon and served in this capacity for eleven years in a manner that reflected much credit upon himself and to the entire satisfac- tion of all concerned. In the fall of 1910 he was elected city solicitor and is now serving as such. Fraternally, he belongs to the Masonic order, in which he stands high.
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Mr. Leonard was married on January 27, 1904, to Mrs. Ida Sweet- Gilinore, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a lady of many winning traits. This union has been without issue.
Mr. Leonard is a studious man and is well versed, not only on all mat- ters of the law, but on public, scientific and literary topics, and he is a gen- tleman of high character and stands well in the community. His pleasant home is at No. 302 South Gay street.
ROLLIN R. McINTIRE.
The well known Mt. Vernon attorney, Rollin R. Mclntire, is regarded by all classes as one of Knox county's enterprising, progressive, public- spirited citizens, quick to see, to seize, to act and aid in any project that means prosperity and growth to his locality and cherishing a deep interest in all movements for the general good. Pleasant and impressive in address, he is kind, generous, straightforward, genial and companionable. He has achieved an honorable record in his profession, and, in fact, in all circles, being a worthy son of a worthy sire and esteemed for the many qualities that go to make up the inherent and finer qualities of a refined gentleman.
Mr. McIntire was born in Mt. Vernon, Ohio, on March 1, 1871, and he is the son of Alfred R. and Helen ( Richards) McIntire, the former born in Holmes county, this state, and the mother in Knox county. Grand father John McIntire came to Knox county with his family when the father of the subject was twelve years of age and became one of the influential pioneers here, engaging in farming on an extensive scale. Grandfather McIntire and grandfather Richards were justices of the peace in adjoining townships for several years and both were able dispensers of justice and well known and popular in their townships. A complete sketch of Alfred R. McIntire and wife, parents of the subject, is to be found on another page in this volume.
Rollin R. McIntire was educated in the Mt. Vernon public schools, from which he was graduated with the class of 1887. He then attended the Ohio State University at Columbus one year ; later entered Oberlin College. where he made a splendid record and from which he was graduated in 1894. Upon leaving college he began traveling for the Mt. Vernon Bridge Company and the Groton Iron Works, continuing successfully with them for about three years. He also went into the works of the Mt. Vernon Bridge Company and was employed as a workman, in order to learn the
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business thoroughly. But notwithstanding his excellent start in the busi- ness world, he took up the study of law in 1898 with his father and was admitted to the bar in 1901 and he practiced with his father until the latter's death in 1902. He then formed a partnership with D. B. Grubb, which continued until Mr. Grubb moved to Columbus in 1906; since then he has practiced alone. He makes a specialty of abstract work and has done a great deal of abstracting for coal companies in southern Ohio and Ken- tucky and is widely known as an expert in his line. As an attorney he stands high among his contemporaries at the bar, keeping well advised on all phases of the profession, being accurate, with an analytical mind, well balanced and always actuated with fairness and fidelity to his duty.
Politically, Mr. McIntire is a Republican and he has long been active in public affairs. He has served as a member of the council of Mt. Vernon, also as city solicitor for four years, and in January, 1910, he was elected city clerk, which office he yet holds, giving his usual high grade and com- mendable service.
Mr. McIntire was married on December 6, 1898, to Laura L. Stone, daughter of Dan C. and Delilah (Martin) Stone, a highly respected family of Mt. Vernon, the father being the local representative of the Standard Oil Company ; the mother's death occurred in November, 1903.
Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. McIntire, both of whom are deceased. He and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church and are both popular with the best society of the city and county. Their neatly arranged and tastily kept home is at No. 505 East Vine street.
Personally, Mr. McIntire has ever been popular with a wide circle of friends and acquaintances and is regarded as one of the worthy native sons of Knox county.
OLIVER C. HAGAN.
It is the progressive wide-awake men of affairs that makes the real history of a community, and his influence as a potential factor of the body politic is difficult to estimate. The examples such men furnish of patient purpose and steadfast integrity strongly illustrate what is in the power of each to accomplish, and there is always a full measure of satisfaction in adverting, even in a casual way, to their achievements in advancing the interest of their fellow men and in giving strength and solidity to the
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institutions which make so much for the prosperity of the community. Such a man is the worthy gentleman whose name forms the caption of this bio- graphical review, and as such it is proper that a resume of his eminently commendable career be accorded a place among the representattive citizens of the city and county in which he resides.
Oliver C. Hagan, well known gas and oil man of Mt. Vernon, was born May 17. 1853, in Clarion county, Pennsylvania. He is the son of William and Mary Jane ( Rairden) Hagan, the father a farmer and lun- ber man, who never became a resident of Ohio.
Oliver C. Hagan grew up on the home farm and when old enough assisted with the work there and in the lumber business, attending the dis- trict schools in the mean time. When seventeen years of age he became interested in the oil business and first secured employment with operators at Parker's Landing, Pennsylvania. Later he went to northern New York and operated in that locality for some years. In the intervening years up to 1894 he operated in the fields of Pennsylvania, northern New York and West Virginia, gaining a vast amount of information and experience along all the different lines of the business from field man to operator. In 1894 he came into the Ohio field, locating at New Lexington, Perry county, oper- ating in all the counties of that section of the state both as a contractor and oil producer. For about two years he operated independently and met with considerable success. In 1896 he realized the practicability and saw the advisability of co-operation and with this idea he became one of the pro- moters and organizers of the Ohio Fuel Company as one of the first stock- holders and directors of the company. The organization of this company resulted in the consolidation of a number of small companies and individual interests in the southern Ohio oil field, and Mr. Hagan has been actively connected with the management and operation of the company from its or- ganization and has charge of all the drilling department of the company in its Ohio territory. The company organized with a capital stock of seven- teen thousand dollars and with one or two producing wells; today it is capi- talized at fifteen million dollars, with over six hundred producing wells and supplies most of the principal cities of southern Ohio with fuel gas. Mr. Hagan is also a stockholder in the United Fuel Company, operating in West Virginia with about three hundred producing gas wells and one hundred and fifty producing oil wells. In 1906 Mr. Hagan became a resident of Mt. Ver- non and has since resided here, being nearer the center of the company's field of operations. As superintendent and manager of the producing depart- - ment of the Ohio Fuel Company, Mr. Hagan has drilled over four hundred
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wells up to March 1, 1911, since coming to Mt. Vernon and fully seventy-five per cent. of these are producing wells, working sometimes as high as twenty- five different drilling outfits and employing only the best expert operators.
In May, 1896, the Hagan Drilling Company was organized with Mr. Hagan as president and general manager, operating all over southern Ohio for both gas and oil, and, like the other concerns with which he has been connected, has grown rapidly and been very successful under his able man- agement and judicious counsel. Mr. Hagan is a recognized oil and gas expert and has probably done more than any other single individual to de- velop the Ohio field and he has extensive and valuable holdings: The Ohio Fuel .Company has the largest pumping station in the world, located at Homer, just over the Knox county line in Licking county and this has been largely constructed and equipped during Mr. Hagan's management in this field.
Mr. Hagan's entire life since he was seventeen years of age has been wholly given to gas and oil development and production and he has a most accurate knowledge of formations and conditions that are likely to produce oil and gas, which makes him a valuable asset in any field. He is an or- ganizer and promoter by nature, a man of keen discernment, rare business acumen and foresight, being enabled to foresee with remarkable accuracy the future outcome of a present transaction and he ranks with the leading business men of the state.
Politically, Mr. Hagan is a Democrat, but has never been active in party affairs, yet always interested in the welfare of his community and state and has kept well informed on public matters. Fraternally, he is a thirty-second- degree Mason. Personally, he is pleasant, genial, courteous, makes and re- tains friends without effort, and, being honest and straightforward in his business relations, he has the good will and confidence of all who have come into contact with him.
Mr. Hagan has been twice married, first, on October 12, 1872, at Boli- var, New York, to Catherine Albaugh, daughter of William and Mary Al- baugh, which union resulted in the birth of four children, namely : Minnie, who married Robert Dailey, of New Lexington, Ohio; Axie Olwilda mar- ried John Minesinger, of Granville, Ohio; Luemma Gertrude married Arthur Denman, of Sedan, Kansas; William H., of Granville, Ohio. The wife and mother passed to her rest on August 12, 1890. Mr. Hagan's second marriage was solemnized on October 12, 1892, to Ocie Oleta Hagerson, daughter of Asa and Elizabeth Hagerson, of Bolivar, New York. This union has been without issue. The family home, a modern, commodious and beautiful dwell-
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ing. is located on East Gambier street, Mt. Vernon, in one of the most de- sirable sections of the city, and here the many warm friends of the family frequently delight to gather, finding an old time hospitality and good cheer ever prevailing.
MORTIMOR E. LYTLE.
The essential conditions of human life are ever the same, the surround- ings of individuals differ but slightly, after all; and when one man passes another on the highway of life to reach the goal of prosperity before others who perhaps started out before him, it is because he has the power to use advantages which properly encompass the whole human race. Such thoughts are prompted by a study of the career and characteristics of Mortimor E. Lytle, of Mt. Vernon, Knox county, one of the leading oil and gas ex- perts in the Buckeye state, who has achieved his envied position solely through individual efforts, with many obstacles against him, but he has sur- mounted them one by one and his efforts have been crowned by success.
Mr. Lytle was born on August 18, 1855. in Venango county, Pennsyl- vania, the son of William and Sarah (Fleming) Lytle. The father was born November 25, 1814. and died November 12, 1865: the mother's birth occurred on February 14, 1815, and she died March 6, 1898. William Lytle was a carpenter and farmer, a man of sterling character; neither he nor his wife ever lived in Ohio.
Mortimor E. Lytle spent his youth in his native county and attended the district schools. When only nine years of age he began work in the oil fields of his neighborhood and at the age of fifteen he was a competent driller. During his youth and young manhood he spent in the oil fields of Pennsylvania and New York, becoming proficient in all the departments of the work, being a keen observer by nature and having an insatiable desire to master all the ins and outs of this special field of endeavor. About 1881 he became interested in gas development and was active in the gas fields. On account of failing health he went to Kansas in 1897 and worked in the gas fields of that state until April, 1900, when he went to Los Angeles, Cal- ifornia, and took charge of a lease for the California Oil Company in that section of the state and materially assisted in its development. After a few months with this company he went to San Francisco and took charge of the drilling for an oil company whose fields were located about fourteen miles north of San Francisco. In February. 1901. he returned east and in
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May of that year located at Martinsville, West Virginia, having found the West Virginia field an excellent one. He there assumed charge of a com- pany's business, both in the field and the distribution in cities, operating largely in West Virginia and southeastern Ohio. He remained with this company until the formation of the Ohio Fuel Supply Company, he being one of the promoters and organizers of the company, which was a combina- tion of a number of small companies operating in the same field. From the organization of this company, Mr. Lytle has been a stockholder and director and actively connected with its operations and management, and it is safe to say that its rapid growth and almost phenomenal success has been due in no small measure to his judicious counsel and able management. Upon the organization of the Ohio Fuel Supply Company, Mr. Lytle moved to Mt. Vernon and assumed charge of the oil and gas field development. The company operates from Lorain county in the north to Hocking county in the south and has sunk about six hundred and fifty wells, fully eighty per cent. of which are producing wells. Mr. Lytle has spent his entire life in the gas and oil fields and is a recognized expert in the business. His wide, varied and successful experiences make him familiar with every phase of the business and he is now prominent in the affairs of one of the largest produc- ing companies in the oil and gas districts. A man of splendid business ca- pacity, keen discernment and rare foresight, coupled with fine executive ability, he is a tower of strength in any business concern and his name con- nected with any enterprise is enough to insure its success.
Politically, Mr. Lytle is a Republican, but has never been active in party matters or a seeker after the honors or emoluments of office, yet he believes it the duty of every man to familiarize himself with public questions that he may be an intelligent voter, and he has ever stood ready to support any movement having as its object the upbuilding of his locality and state. Frater- nally, he is a thirty-second-degree Mason, with all the subordinate degrees.
The domestic life of Mr. Lytle began on April 24, 1889, when he was united in marriage with Lillian S. Williams, a lady of many estimable traits, being the daughter of a highly honored New England family, Dwilly and Sarah (Brown) Williams, the father being a direct descendant of Roger Williams and the mother of General Mott, both famous colonial characters. Mrs. Lytle is a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
To Mr. and Mrs. Lytle three children have been born: Frederick, whose birth occurred on February 20, 1890, was graduated from the Ten- nessee Military Academy with the class of 1910 and is now a student of
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the Ohio State University at Columbus, preparatory to a course in law ; Lillian died in infancy ; Gertrude May, born January 5, 1896, is a student in the Mt. Vernon high school. Mr. Lytle and family are members of the Presbyterian church. Their modern, attractive and commodious home is at No. 501 North Main street.
Mr. Lytle is a man of strong personality, genial, sociable, straight- forward and honorable in all the relations of life. and a fine type of the successful, virile, sterling, self-made American.
SILAS PARR.
One of the influential and popular citizens of Mt. Vernon is Silas Parr, to whose career the reader's attention is now directed, who is ranked among the county's substantial business men. A man of upright character and excellent endowments, he has been a valued factor in local affairs and has ever commanded unequivocal confidence and esteem, being loyal to the up- building of this community and deeply interested in the progress of his adopted country and ever vigilant in his efforts to further the interests of this city along material, moral and civic lines. He has succeeded through his own efforts, having started out in life with but little assistance and he is eminently deserving of the rewards that have crowned his efforts.
Mr. Parr was born in Devonshire, England, September 1, 1848. He is the son of John and Susan ( Ware) Parr, both natives of England, where they grew up and were married. The father was a shoemaker by trade and he and his wife remained in their native land until their deaths.
Silas Parr remained under his parental roof-tree until he was eighteen years of age, when he emigrated to America on the steamer "City of Dub- lin," being three weeks on the voyage, meeting the famous steamer, "Great Eastern," on her return trip after laying the first Atlantic cable. Mr. Parr landed at Castle Garden, New York, but he remained there only a few hours, starting almost immediately on the journey to Mt. Vernon, Ohio, this being on election day. October 9, 1866. General Morgan and Columbus Delano were candidates for Congress, and Mr. Parr obtained his first glimpse of American politics. He started in life here with three dollars capital. He spent one dollar of this for four stamps with which to send letters home and fifty cents for a bed. Before coming to America he had been employed as page in a wealthy family and had attended school only a short time. There were
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no free schools in England at that time and his parents were very poor, and from the time he was thirteen years old he had to earn his own living. He could find no employment in Mt. Vernon, so he went to Centerburg, Knox county, and worked as an apprentice on a shoemaker's bench for his board and room during the following winter. In the spring he returned to Mt. Vernon and for six weeks he looked for employment before he found any- thing to do. He had no money, but a kindly disposed woman took him in and provided him with lodging and board until he could find work. He finally found a place with the Cooper foundry as a riveter's helper at nine dollars per week. But the work was too hard for him to endure and after nine weeks here he gave up the job and began the shoemaker's trade with Thomas Trick, who is still living and working on the bench at the advanced age of eighty-six years. The subject remained with Mr. Trick for four years, when he engaged as a shoemaker with Christ Weaver, who died in 1911, being ninety-two years old. Mr. Parr remained with this gentleman for three years, making boots exclusively, then he purchased a shop of his own in what is now known as the Jones block on West High street. Mr. Parr operated this shop for six years and had business enough to keep three men employed beside himself, making boots and shoes. His next venture in a business way was to open a retail store at No. 110 South Main street, in partnership with Theodore Seymore, under the firm name of Parr & Sey- more, which partnership continued about two years. Mr. Parr then located at No. 4 South Main street, buying an entire new stock and without a partner. After spending about two years in this location, he moved across the street on June 1, 1892, to No. 3 South Main street, where he has been located ever since, having built up a large and ever increasing business, always carrying a large, up-to-date and carefully selected stock of goods. In addition to his shoe business, he has been interested in the gas and oil development of Knox county and his investments in this line have been very remunerative, though the shoe business has claimed his exclusive attention. In point of years in business he is the oldest shoe merchant in Mt. Vernon and he is well known throughout the county.
Politically, Mr. Parr has always voted the Republican ticket, since he became of mature age, and while he has never been an office seeker he has always been interested in public matters. He is a member of the Knox county blind commission, and he has been active in all temperance movements since he was a boy, and has taken a very active part in the crusade against the saloons in Knox county.
Mr. Parr has been twice married, first on April 29, 1873, to Elizabeth
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Fisher, daughter of George and Emily Fisher, of Mt. Vernon. Her father was a farmer and his death occurred in 1895. His widow survives at the advanced age of ninety-two years. To Mr. Parr and his first wife two daughters were born, Edith, deceased, and Winifred, who married Charles E. Ayers, city editor of the Republican News, of Mt. Vernon ; they have two children, a daughter and a son. Mr. Parr's first wife passed to her rest on July 15, 1883, and on December 1, 1886, he was married to Harriet Arm- strong, daughter of Albert and Margaret (Shoup) Armstrong, of Mt. Ver- non, to which city they came from Richland county. Mr. Armstrong died many years ago, and his widow passed away on September 8, 1905.
Mr. Parr has been a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows for many years, also the encampment. He belongs to the Improved Order of Red Men. He is a member of the board of trustees of the Young Men's Christian Association. He and his wife belong to the Methodist Episcopal church, in which he was a trustee for twenty years and he is now one of the stewards of the church. He has been a teacher in the Sunday school ever since he came to Mt. Vernon. For some time during his early career here he taught a class of colored men on Sunday afternoons. He taught many of the older members of the class to read. Mr. Parr holds membership with the Mt. Vernon Merchants Association and has served on important commit- tees of the same. He also belongs to the State Retail Shoe Men's Association and is a member of the committee on insurance for the purpose of formulating a plan of co-operative insurance. He is active in the deliberations of this or- ganization. He was a member of the Mt. Vernon Civic League and one of its very active workers. Although English born, he quickly became Ameri- canized, both in citizenship and sentiment. He visited his native country and the home of his youth in 1906, but returned to this country better satisfied with it than ever before, although having greatly enjoyed his stay in his native land. The family home is at No. 404 North Gay street. Mr. Parr has al- ways stood high in the estimation of the people of Knox county and he numbers his friends by the score here.
JOHN MILTON WILSON.
One of the honored native sons of Knox county is John Milton Wilson, of Wayne township, where he carries on all departments of agriculture on his excellent farm with that discretion and energy which are sure to result in a large measure of success. While laboring for his own well-being he
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has ever had the interests of his county at heart, lending such assistance as becomes a good citizen in promulgating the civic, industrial and moral tone of the county. His career has been one of hard work and integrity, conse- quently he is deserving of the respect in which he is held by everyone.
Mr. Wilson was born on December 1. 1865, on a farm near where he now resides, five miles southwest of Fredericktown. He is the son of William and Sarah Ann (Hayes) Wilson, both natives of Wayne county, Ohio, and there they grew up, were educated and married, after which they moved to Michigan, where they remained about five years, when they moved to Wayne township, Knox county. Ohio, where they spent the re- mainder of their lives. The death of the father occurred on January 3, 1898, and his widow died a year later and both are buried in the cemetery at Fredericktown. The father was a large land owner and extensive farmer and he raised great numbers of live stock which he prepared for the markets, especially sheep. Politically, he was a Republican, but was never an office seeker. He was a busy man of affairs and was influential in his community.
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