USA > Ohio > The biographical cyclopaedia and portrait gallery with an historical sketch of the state of Ohio. Volume II > Part 33
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
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 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74
at New River, West Virginia, he was put in possession of a large sum of money for the commissary, Colonel Crane, and having proceeded as far as Charleston by boat, was obliged to ride about forty-five miles alone. When within eight miles of the camp he was attracted by the reflection of the sun's rays on the bayonets of Floyd's army, who seemed to be executing some movement, about two miles distant. Put- ting spurs to his horse, he soon came upon a small squad of Union cavalry, under command of a sergeant, of whom he requested a fresh horse and an escort, and was immedi- ately told "It would be an escort to hell, for the rebs are picking off every one who passes up the road." He pro- cured a fresh horse, but no escort; it was a beautiful black creature, and remarkably fleet, but he had proceeded only a short distance before the rebel sharp-shooters' rifles com- menced cracking and striking the trees just before and be- hind him in a manner that made it exciting, both for the horse and its rider, the former seeming to realize the im- minent peril as vividly as the latter, and sped almost with the fleetness of the wind. Suddenly, however, it was thrown back upon its haunches, and the doctor was thrown forward, but managed to alight upon his feet, as he was holding by the mane at the time of the accident. The horse wheeled around violently and pawed the ground in the most frantic manner for a few seconds, but finally seemed to recover himself, when the doctor sprang into the saddle, and went off at a rapid rate. In a few minutes the faithful creature dropped again, and blood was discovered streaming from its face and some upon its breast, plainly indicating that he had been shot in two places. The doctor managed to run be- tween the bullets about a mile, when he wound around the side of a hill, and was out of danger. He finally reached head-quarters with his money intact. Not the least of Dr. Clendenin's valuable services during the war was the rad- ical changes he made in hospital records. Under the old system patients transferred from one hospital to another, and another, and so on, were admitted and recorded as new cases each time, and being reported to Washington as such, would often double the real number of disabled men. Be- sides this, whatever record was made of a man when he entered the hospital remained unaltered, although he might have contracted other diseases which proved fatal. His sug- gestions were adopted by the government, and are still in use. Dr. Clendenin returned to Cincinnati in October, 1865, and on the Ist of November was appointed executive officer of the Board of Health, and filled it to the entire satisfaction of the public. At the close of the war he was appointed one of the surgeons of the Cincinnati Hospital, but after serving three years he resigned for want of time to attend to its duties. Notwithstanding his numerous professional duties, the doctor has found time to cultivate his tastes and become an amateur in literature. He has written some poems that have been favorably received, and has contributed some very amusing stories to the magazines, but he has latterly confined himself to religious and scientific subjects, and is a regular contributor to Our Monthly. As a preceptor he is eminently practical, and handles his subjects in a manner that leaves the impression that he is thoroughly conversant with them. He is strong in his religious convictions, his preference being for the Presbyterian form and doctrine. He is inflexible in his determination, undeviating in his integ- rity, and generous in his disposition. His heart is in his pro- fession, and is always rewarded with the approving reflection
Western Biogl Pub Co
423
BIOGRAPHICAL CYCLOPÆDIA AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
that what has been done has been well and conscientiously done. Mild in deportment, cheerful in demeanor, and genial in social intercourse, his career in the future will probably be crowned with no less success than the past. January Ist, 1866, he married Miss Sabra Birchard, of Cambridge, Penn- sylvania. Mrs. Clendenin's ancestors belonged to that branch of the Birchard family from whom descended ex-President R. B. Hayes. Two children, William and Mary, were born to them-William alone surviving.
LARKIN, JOSEPH FRANKLIN, president of the Cincinnati National Bank, was born January 12th, 1821, at Felicity, Clermont County, Ohio. His father, Moses Larkin, was a Virginian by birth, having emigrated from Botetourt County, in that State, to Ohio, in 1812, and finally settled in Clermont County, where he married Miss Mary Fagin. Mr. Larkin's boyhood, until fifteen years of age, was spent in his native village, and there he obtained a common school edu- cation, displaying a love for mathematics in preference to his other branches of study. When not at school he was acquiring industrious habits. At eleven years of age he took his sickle and entered the harvest field of a neighbor-a Baptist preacher-and began his first day's work from home. He worked away until about ten o'clock. in the morning, when the customary lunch was brought to the hands, and with it a jug of whisky. Such was young Larkin's aversion to whisky (due partly to home training) that he immediately quit work, and left the field. He next served in a store, at Neville, for a short period, afterward learning the art of var- nishing with Turpin Daughters, at Neville, where, for the first time, he handled money of his own earning, his wages amounting to twenty half-dollars, the effect of which (when paid) upon his mind and eyes he remembers to this day. His first adventure from home to any distance was upon a trip down the Ohio, as far as Louisville, on a boat loadcd with furniture, being employed to varnish and otherwise assist in completing for the trade the unfinished portion of the cargo. Afterward he was apprenticed as a clerk, in the store of Robertson & Shields, in Batavia, Ohio, done at the instance of Dr. J. C. Kennedy, a friend of the family. His term of service was to last three years, for which he was to receive board and washing and fifty dollars a year. Because of suspension on part of his employers, he served only half of his term. During this period, however, he had saved half of his earnings, and with this capital he bought a note on Colonel Curry, formerly sheriff of Clermont County-his first step in the banking business. He next served in the store of Justice & Sinks, at Bethel, for a short period, then returned to Felicity, and went into the store of Fallen & Turner, serving as clerk there for a month or so. Rev. Maxwell P. Gaddis, then one of the pastors in charge of Wesley Chapel, in Cincinnati, being a friend of his father's family, and having some idea of his aptness for business, wrote him a letter, in which he informed him that he could pro- cure him a situation in the store of Wood & Sharp, wholesale and retail dry goods merchants, of that city. This was in 1839. The suggestion was acted upon, and young Larkin rode to Cincinnati on horseback, accepted the terms offered, and re- turned to his home with a view to making his final arrange- ments to enter into business in that city. What was his astonishment to find his home burned to the ground when he rode up to it on his return. Shortly after, he came to Cincin- nati with five dollars in his pocket, with which he began a
career that to-day may be regarded as one of the most suc- cessful of Cincinnati bankers, displaying financial ability of a high order, integrity of the clearest type, and the most inde- fatigable industry. An incident occurred at the store of Wood & Sharp which determined Mr. Larkin to change his busi- ness-a turning point in his life-and but for which he might have missed his now evident calling. It was a question as to superior penmanship, between himself and another employé, the determination of which influenced the conduct of Mr. Larkin. He thereupon determined to enter the bank of B. W. Hewson & Co., then on Main Street, above Second, in that city, as an assistant, and soon obtained an appointment as teller. He became a member of Mr. Hewson's family, boarding there, and enjoying his confidence and esteem. He continued with him until the embarrassment and suspension of that bank, in 1842. It was the wish of Mr. Hewson that the bank should be turned over to Mr. Larkin, such being his confidence in his abilities at that early day, but objections being interposed it was not done. Mr. Hewson then wanted Mr. Larkin to go to St. Louis, and enter the banking house of E. W. Clarke & Co., but he declined to leave Cincinnati. He tendered him a position also in the Lafayette Bank, of Cincinnati ; this he also refused, alleging that he did not think he could be a banker, lacking capital. Mr. William Wood, of Hopper, Wood & Co., wholesale auction and commission merchants in dry goods, offered him a position in that house in the fall of 1842, as clerk. He accepted, and remained until 1844, then formed a partnership with John M. Wood, under firm name of Wood & Larkin, dry goods merchants, at No. 24 Pearl Street. This lasted until 1848, when Mr. Larkin sold his interest in that firm to his partner. He then pur- chased the store belonging to Hines Strobridge & Co., on Main Street; but before transferring all his interests to his partner, the consummation of the sale was prevented by objections interposed by their creditors. Mr. Larkin then purchased his partner's interest, and consolidated the two stores. This was undertaking to carry too much of a load, and the consequence was a suspension, and an assignment, on the part of Mr. Larkin, to John Simpkinson, Esq. A com- promise was effected in March, 1849, creditors releasing Mr. Larkin upon paying forty cents on the dollar. In this con- nection it is proper to state that twenty-three years afterward Mr. Larkin summoned his old creditors to his bank, and then paid in full their claims against him under that old assign- ment, with interest at six per cent for the long interval. This is one of the causes of his gratifying and exceptionable success as a business man-his sense of justice and his desire to render to every man his due. It should also be stated here that his partner, just spoken of, was his first employer when he came to Cincinnati, being of the firm of Wood & Sharp, already referred to. In 1849 Mr. Larkin went back to a clerkship in the house of Thomas Sharp & Co., at No. 26 Pearl Street, and remained there four years. Then Mr. Morris S. Hopper, doing business as Morris S. Hopper & Co., offered him one-third of the profits as an interest in this firm for his services. He accepted it, and went there in 1853, where he remained one year. Then he went on a collecting tour for the firm through Indiana. Those were the days of free bank currency, when in that State the dis- counts ranged from five to forty per cent. Knowing that the same money passed at much higher rates in Ohio banks, Mr. Larkin conceived an idea as to speculation. His early love for finances returned, and he was impelled thereby to
424
BIOGRAPHICAL CYCLOPÆDIA AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
relinquish his connection with that house and embark in business by himself. His first step was to procure desk room in the office of James F. Meline & Co., bankers, at No. 57 West Third Street, Cincinnati, and his principal business at first was buying and selling free bank notes in Ohio and Indiana ; also negotiating loans on securities for contractors on the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad. The next move was to the bank of G. H. Bussing & Co., where he obtained desk room, and assisted the firm in keeping books. Then he began the business of broker. In 1857 he re- moved to No. 5 West Third Street, in the Trust Company Build- ing, and took desk room in the office of the Savings Bank of Cincinnati, where he entered upon the regular banking busi- ness. One feature was to redeem the currency of that bank in gold, charging them only the premium on the gold so employed, they in return charging him but a nominal rent, fifteen dollars per month. Here his steps were rapidly up- ward. His field of operations was widening before him. Confidence in his business capacity, integrity, promptitude, and reliability as a financial agent increased. All who came in contact with him saw these commanding qualities, and the gradual increase of the deposits with him indicated his deep- ening hold upon the confidence of the financial public, so char- acteristically sensitive. One or two illustrative instances may be mentioned-a deposit of ten thousand dollars, at one time, by Mr. G. K. Schoenberger ; and one by Mr. N. N. Hill, then in business on Pearl Street. This last deposit remained in Mr. Larkin's bank for nearly twenty-five years, through all the panics of that period, the depositor never calling but for a small portion of his principal, being satisfied with his inter- est-a remarkable case of unshaken fiduciary trust. In 1881 this money was voluntarily returned to Mr. Hill, with three months' interest in advance, to his home in Mount Vernon, Ohio. Mr. Larkin's next move was to the basement of No. 8 West Third Street, under the Valley Bank of Cincinnati ; shortly afterward moving up stairs into No. 6, one door east. While there he formed a partnership with Messrs. George and Thomas Fox, under the firm name of Larkin, Fox & Brother, to continue three years; and in February, 1862, he moved to No. 25 West Third Street. This bank then did a prosperous business under Mr. Larkin's exclusive manage- ment, in which he displayed those remarkable abilities that fit him for the position of a president of a bank. In May, 1866, this partnership expired by limitation. The firm of Joseph F. Larkin & Co. then had its origin, with a capital of one hun- dred and fifty thousand dollars, to last five years, in which were interested some of the leading capitalists of Cincinnati. This was the war period, and Mr. Larkin carried on the trans- actions of his bank in a way that added much to his fame as a financier. In 1871 the firm of Larkin, Wright & Co. was formed. They operated with a capital of $300,000, until 1876, when the firm name was changed to Joseph F. Larkin & Co., comprising substantially the same partners. Soon after this Mr. Larkin bought out the interest of Mr. Wright, that firm continuing until 1881. Through this period of contraction of currency, depression in all values, the resumption of specie payment, and the wreck of many firms, banks, and individuals, Mr. Larkin safely conducted the business of the firm. In 1881 the Metropolitan National Bank of Cincinnati was founded out of the business of J. F. Larkin & Co., with Mr. Larkin as president, to which he sold the good-will of his business for one hundred thousand dollars, less fifteen thousand dollars hitherto paid by the firm of
Larkin, Wright & Co. Mr. Larkin held this position until February 12th, 1883, when he resigned as president, and ad- dressed himself to the organization of the Cincinnati National Bank, of which he is now president. This was effected in a period of ten days-the capital stock, five hundred thousand dollars, being subscribed in that short space of time-another incident showing the strong hold Mr. Larkin has upon the confidence of the capitalists of Cincinnati. The secret of this success in life may be found in the private character of the man. He has a deep religious nature, having become a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church when fourteen years of age, and maintaining a membership therewith for forty- nine years, being now a member of St. Paul Church, on Seventh and Smith Streets, Cincinnati. He has always regarded it his duty to contribute one-tenth of his profits to Church and chari- table enterprises, and for the last ten years has adhered strictly to this rule, for the reason that his sympathies were strongly acted upon by the financial embarrassments of the Cincinnati Wesleyan College especially. He also contributed largely to the relief of Wesley Chapel, in which he had worshiped for over forty years. The Loveland Camp Meeting Associa- tion has also been generously remembered-and in all these instances, and others that should be named, he has given from a sense of duty and with a spirit of cheerfulness, as due the cause of the good Master who has prospered him greatly in all his business enterprises. It should be added that he is interested in the publications of the National Association for the Promotion of Holiness, in Philadelphia. In 1844 he married Miss Emeline Wood, sister of William Wood, Esq. She died in 1847. His present wife, Julia (Stark) Larkin, is a daughter of William T. Stark, Esq., of Xenia, Ohio. She is a descendant of the " Mollie Stark " of revolutionary fame. They were married May Ist, 1851. Mr. Larkin has now four children living : Madison F., in the United States Bank of New York City ; Albert M., receiving teller in the Cincinnati National Bank; Francis M., a student in the Ohio Wesleyan University ; and Helen, still at home. Four are dead: William F., Edgar D., Lydia S., and a daughter that died in infancy. Mr. Larkin has always borne a fair reputation in business circles. John M. Newton, Esq., an expert accountant, after examining the books kept by Mr. Larkin in his banking business, said : " No man ever held a firmer rein or had more in hand his business than Mr. Larkin." A prominent banker in New Orleans writes in a private letter :
" I see that your energy could not exhaust itself in the founding of one half-a-million dollar bank, but that you have added another of like size to your financial achievements. Accept my congratulations upon the further proof, not only of your own energy, but of the high degree of confidence reposed in you by the business men and capitalists of your section. This continued flocking of capital to you whenever you call, is flattering in a high degree-the noblest testimony that could be rendered to your honor as a man and your skill as a financier."
Abstemious from boyhood, never indulging in narcotics or spirituous liquors, or any of those dissipations which involve a loss of health or a compromise of conscientious scruples- adherence to these principles, and no disregard of higher responsibilities, have preserved him until he seems at the present time to be but in the midst of his business career. By honest and capable methods he has acquired a competence, and has learned the art of using the world as not abusing it. He now owns and resides in the house built in 1841 by his first
٠
Western Bingl Pus An
J. D.Lincoln
425
BIOGRAPHICAL CYCLOPÆDIA AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
wife's father, Mr. Ebenezer Wood, at No. 14 Ellen Street, in Cincinnati. Years ago he determined not to retire from busi- ness until that final call shall be made which summons us all from labor to the rest that is unending.
LINCOLN, TIMOTHY DANIELSON, lawyer, born in Brimfield, Hampden county, Massachusetts, May 11th, 1815, is the son of Dr. Asa Lincoln and Sarah (Danielson) Lincoln. Mr. Lincoln is descended on both sides from some of the most honored families in New England. His father, Dr. Lincoln, held several prominent public positions in his section of the State, and was highly esteemed, both as a physician and a man of unusually liberal and advanced views. His mother was a daughter of the Hon. Timothy Danielson, chairman of the Committee of Safety in western Massachusetts, during the Revolutionary war; he was subsequently made judge, and retained till his death,-a marked position among his fellow citizens. General Danielson dying when his daughter was. only twelve months old, his widow, Mr. Lincoln's grand- mother, became the wife of General William Eaton, who dis- tinguished himself as commander of the troops acting in conjunction with Decatur against the Algerines in 1815. Gen- eral Eaton was remarkably attached to his little step-daughter, and spared neither pains nor expense in her education. She died when the subject of this sketch was fourteen years old. Mr. Lincoln's education commenced in the public schools of his native village, and was completed at the Wesleyan Uni- versity at Middletown, Connecticut. He read law for two years and a half with the Hon. Charles H. Warren, in New Bedford, Massachusetts. It is said that every young man in New England is either teaching school, has taught school, or is about to do so. Mr. Lincoln made no exception to this rule, but took charge of one of the public schools, while he prepared himself for his profession, working regularly over sixteen hours a day. Having been admitted to the bar, on examination by Judge Williams, he shortly afterward in the fall of 1841, started for the West, and in due time settled in Cincinnati, in which city he had neither friends nor acquaint- ances. One year's study in the State being required before he could be admitted to the Ohio bar, he remained twelve months in the office of Mr. Charles Fox, who at that time had the most extensive practice in the city, and in 1842, was ex- amined and admitted by the Supreme Court, then sitting at Zanesville, Ohio. The following year he became a partner of Mr. Fox, the firm name being Fox & Lincoln. This part- nership continued until 1846, when it was dissolved; after which, until 1854, Mr. Lincoln practiced alone, rapidly acqui- ring increased business and a higher reputation. In that year, Mr. Fayette Smith and Mr. James Warnock, young men who had been students and assistants in his office, be- came members of the new firm of Lincoln, Smith & Warnock. A short time before the death of Mr. Warnock, which oc- curred in July, 1872, Mr. Charles Stephens, who had grown up in the office, became a partner, the firm name being Lincoln, Smith, Warnock & Stephens, and after the death of Mr. War- nock, the surviving partners remained associated together, under the firm name of Lincoln, Smith & Stephens. Mr. Smith being elected to the bench in 1878, the firm became Lincoln, Stephens & Slattery, which existed until quite re- cently, when Mr. Slattery left it,-Mr. Stephens still remain- ing with Mr. Lincoln. It was chiefly in the trial of important marine and insurance cases, cases relating to wills, and other much litigated cases, that Mr. Lincoln attained his high repu-
tation. Among the many incidents of his professional life, may be mentioned the fact of his being retained as counsel by the St. Louis chamber of commerce, in the Rock Island bridge case. This celebrated trial for supremacy between the railroad and river interests of the West, enlisted much feeling on the part of the people of St. Louis, who favored the river, rather than the railroad business, then all powerful in Chi- cago. Mr. Norman B. Judd, subsequently our minister to Berlin, and Abraham Lincoln, late President of the United States, defended the Rock Island bridge interest. The suc- cess of Mr. T. D. Lincoln in conducting this case, led to his being engaged in other very important causes, among which may be mentioned the Clinton bridge case. In the well- known case of the lessees of Poor vs. Considine, which in- volved the title to one hundred and sixty acres of land on the Western hill, near Cincinnati, and on which St. Mary's col- lege, and various suburban residences stand, Mr. Lincoln was opposed to the late Mr. Thomas Ewing. At the request of Mr. Henry Stanbery, who was his senior counsel, he made the closing argument in the Supreme Court of the United States, in reply to Mr. Ewing. Mr. Stanbery was then pre- paring the defense of Andrew Johnson, who had been impeached by the Senate, and therefore asked Mr. Lincoln to make the closing argument. This was the last case, but one, that Mr. Ewing argued in the Supreme Court. In the case of Barrett vs. Williamson, Mr. Lincoln's opponent in the Su- preme Court of the United States was Mr. John J. Crittenden, then attorney-general, and in the case of the Mississippi and Missouri Railroad Company, heard in the same court, he replied to the Hon. Reverdy Johnson. Mr. Lincoln was counsel, with others, in the case of Mannix vs. Purcell, relat- ing to the Catholic Church property in the Diocese of Cin- cinnati under the assignment of Archbishop Purcell. He pre- pared the case on behalf of the numerous congregations and the educational and charitable institutions of the diocese, and made the closing argument for the defense. In this case, which is still pending, the property of over one hundred and fifty Churches, educational and charitable institutions, is involved, and it is one of the most important cases, both as to the amount of property and the principles involved, that has ever been before the courts in this country. Mr. Lincoln's prac- tice has not been confined to State limits, but occasionally has demanded his presence in various States of the Union; and there have been few members of the Cincinnati bar who have practiced so extensively in the Supreme Court, and the Court of Claims at Washington. ^His success is more due to natural ability, thorough knowledge of the law, and untiring industry, than to meretricious oratory. He expresses himself forcibly, with an earnestness that renders him an effective jury lawyer. He prepares his cases on all sides, and never goes into court until entirely possessed of his subject. Devoted to the best interests of his clients, he allows nothing to distract him from due attention to those interests, preparing his cases most care- fully, and arguing them so closely as to carry conviction with him. From the commencement of his legal studies, he was an industrious worker and close student, and early learned the value of a good library. An incident occurred early in his practice, in which, after having given a client advice, and re- ceived his fee therefor, he mentally questioned the soundness of the opinion given, and searching the books in several offices, he found that his opinion was erroneous, and notified his client accordingly. That was the origin of his large library. He then determined that he would not pretend to a
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.