USA > Ohio > The biographical cyclopaedia and portrait gallery with an historical sketch of the state of Ohio. Volume II > Part 52
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"We are, yours very respectfully,
JOHN WELSH, A. R. LITTLE, T. S. HARRISON,
T. A. SCOTT, G. T. LEWIS, W. W. JUSTICE,
W. H. RAWLE, W. S. RUSSELL, E. H. COATES,
C. L. BORIE, C. H. CLARK, J. B. MITCHELL,
C. J. STILLE, L. P. THOMPSON, F. B. REEVES,
C. MACMICHAEL, E. T. STEEL, W. E. LITTLETON,
LEWIS WALN SMITH, A. L. SNOWDON,
L. T. DICKSON.
To this General Goshorn sent a courteous reply, accepting the invitation, and acknowledging the high compliment in- tended. It was determined by the gentlemen having the testimonial in charge that a well selected library, with book-
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cases and furniture especially designed for a room in the residence of the Director-general, in the city of Cincinnati, would be an acceptable and appropriate gift. At the time designated a large number of ladies and gentlemen filled the chamber of the Common Council, in Independence Hall, to witness the ceremony of presentation. An orchestra was present to assist in the programme. At the hour of noon the Hon. William S. Stokley, Mayor of the city of Philadelphia, escorted the Hon. Alfred T. Goshorn into the hall. They were accompanied by General U. S. Grant; his excellency John F. Hartranft, Governor of Pennsylvania; members of the United States Centennial Commission and of the Cen- tennial Board of Finance; the Select and Common Councils of Philadelphia ; members of the Board of Trade; and other distinguished gentlemen. Mr. Henry C. Carey, on behalf of the donors, then presented the testimonial, in a felicitous and complimentary address, to which General Goshorn responded in graceful terms. The following is an extract therefrom :
"No individual is entitled to the credit of the results of that Exhibition. It was the impersonal character of the manage- ment, and combination of favorable circumstances, that brought order to the organization, and harmony to the exe- cution of its regulations. If it were judicious, I would ven- ture to mention the names of many of my associates who are deserving of public recognition for their devotion, ability, and unwavering fidelity to the work confided to our keeping. I am glad of this opportunity, however, on this occasion, and in this place, to acknowledge my special indebtedness for personal and official support and co-operation in the affairs committed to my direction, to the municipal authorities and citizens of Philadelphia, to the press of the country (and especially this city), to the members and officers of the United States Centennial Commission, and Centennial Board of Finance, to the faithful officers attached to my per- sonal staff, and to the women of the country-who, from the beginning, have been devoted friends of the enterprise. I accept, then, this testimonial, as an expression of your appreciation of the services rendered by the administration of the Exhibition, and assure you of my deep sense of grat- itude for your friendship and kindness.'
The donors consisted of nearly two hundred of the most prominent citizens of that city, in addition to those above- named. The room in which the collection of books is ar- ranged is in the old family homestead. It was decorated and furnished entirely by a committee appointed by the donors. The effect sought is the simplicity and repose regarded as essential for a room devoted to library purposes. The books were selected by the donors, and supplied by Messrs. Porter & Coates, of Philadelphia. The bindings, which are of great variety and beauty, were mostly executed by Messrs. Rawson & Nicholson, of that city. Inside of the cover of each volume is the following engraved book-label : "Presented to the Hon. Alfred T. Goshorn, at Independence Hall, May 11th, 1877, by the Citizens of Philadelphia, in grateful remembrance of his faithful, courteous, and efficient services as Director-general of the International Exhibition, 1876." General Goshorn has received the following decora- tions from the governments named, in recognition of his serv- ices and courtesies to foreign representatives in the late Inter- national Exhibition, to-wit : Belgium, Cross of the Officer of the Order of Leopold; Netherlands, Knight of the Nether- lands Lion ; Sweden, Knight Commander of the Swedish Order of the Polar Star; Russia, Knight of the Imperial and Royal Order of St. Stanislaus ; Italy, Commander of the Order Corona d'Italia ; Turkey, Grand Officer of the Imperial Order of the Medjidie; Spain, Grand Cross of Isabel La
Catolica; Tunis, Grand Officer of the Order of Nishan El Ifihar; Japan, Kiyokee jitsu Cho-Kuo-Sho (Order of the Rising Sun of Meiji); France, a Gold Medal, struck to com- memorate the French participation in the Philadelphia Ex- hibition. Upon his return to Cincinnati, a number of his fellow-citizens, desiring to express in a public way their appreciation of his services as Director-general, requested him to meet them at a dinner, at the Grand Hotel in that city, April 4th, 1877. About one hundred and fifty gentlemen thus assembled, of which the Hon. Alphonso Taft was chosen chairman. In his address of welcome he said :
"MY FRIENDS :- It is a pleasant duty to welcome home a man who has achieved success abroad, and returns bringing with him honor to his native city. In modern times, the want which the historic games of antiquity so well supplied has been secured by Expositions, which bring into competition the industries, the inventions, the arts, and the artists of the Republic and of the world. Perhaps no man in America has accomplished so much in this field of usefulness as our guest of this evening. He began with organizing the well- remembered Expositions of Cincinnati, and managed them so well that they became a permanent institution. When the hundredth anniversary of our national independence was approaching, and the people and government awoke to the importance of signalizing that year in our history, a man was wanted who could comprehend the extent and difficulty of the enterprise, and feel the sentiment of the occasion. For- tunately, Cincinnati had the man, and the Government Com- missioners had the discernment to find it out. They placed the work in his hands. For four years, laying aside every other care, he has devoted himself to this. It involved vast improvements, and vast expenditures of money. More than seventy acres of ground were to be covered with costly build- ings. A single structure, known as the Main Building, was to occupy twenty-one acres. Legislation was to be procured. A great variety of men and interests at home were to be con- ciliated. Foreigners were to be dealt with, and treated with justice and firmness, and yet with such courtesy as to secure their harmonious co-operation. All this was occupied by the Director-general, with the support, it is true, and aid of the Board of Finance, and the United States Commissioners; and our city shares the honor of his success."
The following is an extract from General Goshorn's reply :
" MR. CHAIRMAN AND GENTLEMEN :- After an absence of almost four years, engaged in an important national work, I have returned to renew an active interest in the affairs of my native city. I did not expect, nor have I thought that I de- served, the distinguished recognition which you have extended to me this evening. There is no compensation or reward more valuable to the citizen than the indorsement of his public acts by his friends and neighbors. Your friendly words and earnest expressions of approval of my public services have affected me most sensibly. I appreciate in the fullest measure your kindness, your friendship, and this cordial and sincere welcome to my home. I thank you for the compliment of this occasion, and for the distinction which it conveys to this community and to the country. I am not unmindful of how much I am indebted to the citizens of Cincinnati for their confidence, and for the official positions I have held here and elsewhere. When I was appointed by Governor Noyes, and commissioned by the President of the United States, as Centennial Commissioner from the State of Ohio, and more especially when I was chosen Director- general of the International Exhibition of 1876, the public understood, and I was glad to acknowledge, that these po- sitions of trust were offered to me in recognition of my con- nection with the Cincinnati Industrial Exposition. To the experience I acquired in that enterprise I am indebted in a large degree for whatever of success and honor have ensued from my labors in Philadelphia; and to that enterprise are we indebted, this evening, for this pleasant meeting. . · The nations of the world came to join us in a celebration that will be remembered for all time as an occasion of peace and good will. May the concord and harmony that charac-
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terized that assemblage of the nations remain with us as an enduring monument of international fraternity, and of the happiness, prosperity, and contentment of our united country."
The following toasts were proposed: "The International Exhibition,"-Response by Hon. W. S. Groesbeck. "Ameri- can Art,"-Response by Hon. M. F. Force. " American In- dustries,"-Response by Murat Halstead, Esq. "Educating Influences of the Exhibition,"-Response by Dr. Noah Porter, President of Yale College. "The City of Philadel- phia,"-Response by Thomas S. Harrison, Esq. "The State of Ohio,"-Response by General Edward F. Noyes. " Cincin- nati, and her Expositions,"-Response by Mayor G. W. C. Johnston. "American Commerce,"-Response by Geo. F. Davis. Many letters were received and read from distin- guished gentlemen, among them one from Hon. John Welsh, President Centennial Board of Finance, and late United States Minister to England :
"PHILADELPHIA, March 29th, 1877.
" GENTLEMEN,-No one can hold Mr. Goshorn in higher respect than I do, for his ability or excellence of character ; nor can any one be more sensible than I am of the debt the country owes to him for his extraordinary services in the conduct of the International Exhibition. It is, therefore, with great regret (as I can not be with you) that I have to decline the invitation which you have had the kindness to extend to me, and that I shall be deprived of the pleasure of uniting with you on so interesting an occasion. Let me add, gentlemen, that no mark of appreciation which his fellow-townsmen may confer on him is unmerited; and if the Government of the United States is to be represented at the Paris Exhibition, in 1878, as it should be, there is no one who, as Chief Commissioner, could fill the position more ably, nor do more honor to the country, than Alfred T. Goshorn, Esq. " With great respect, I am, your obedient servant, " JNO. WELSH."
He is now serving his city and State in many relations that pertain to the public welfare. He is one of the trustees of Marietta College ; also a trustee of the Woodward Endow- ment Fund-an appointment made under the will of Mr. Woodward; is president of the Union Board of High Schools; has been one of the trustees of the Springer Music Hall Association from its beginning, and is now chairman of its Executive Committee ; he and the Hon. Julius Dexter con- stituted the Building Committee of Music Hall while it was in process of erection; is vice-president of the Cincinnati College of Music; and is a director of the Cincinnati Museum Association. It should be stated, also, that Mr. Springer re- signed as trustee of Music Hall Association upon General Goshorn's return from Philadelphia, in order to have the General appointed in his place. He is also a Director in the Fidelity and Safe Deposit and Trust Company, of Cincinnati, and a member of its Executive Committee-consisting of himself and Messrs. Julius Dexter and Thomas Emery. At the dinner tendered him at the Grand Hotel, General Goshorn uttered these inspiring, if not prophetic, words :
" May there arise here, for the enjoyment and cultivation of our people, and as a natural outgrowth of our own and the International Exhibition of 1876, a grand Museum of Science and Art. The London Exhibition of 1851 gave to London the South Kensington Museum. May our Exhibi- tions give to Cincinnati a similar institution-a permanent attraction, and an honor to our city."
Soon afterward followed the princely donation of Mr. Charles W. West, for the purpose of building such an institu- tion. The foundations are already laid, upon a commanding eminence in Eden Park. Upon this granite substructure are rapidly rising the walls that shall constitute the West Art
Museum of Cincinnati, and whose direction is wisely in- trusted to the experienced judgment, the consummate taste, the suaviter in modo, fortiter in re of General Alfred Traber Goshorn. In charge of such an enterprise-one in which every citizen of Ohio feels an interest and takes pride-we leave him, concluding this sketch with two extracts made from addresses delivered at the complimentary dinner alluded to above. One from Hon. Judge Taft's remarks :
"Pericles exalted Athens above all other cities by making it the home of the fine arts, of intellectual culture, and of architectural and monumental beauty. He adorned it with imperishable edifices. He crowned the Acropolis with the Parthenon-a temple of the Virgin goddess Minerva-built, however, not so much to be a place of worship as to form a central point and home of the Athenian expositions, known as the Panathenaic contests and festivals, which were peculiar to Attica. The Parthenon, itself a work of unparalleled art, he filled with statuary and paintings. It stood upon the summit of the city, a thing of permanent interest and beauty, attracting visitors from Greece and from all nations. When he had completed it, and accustomed the people of Attica to gather around it and compete in music, in poetry, in oratory, and in other liberal arts and industries, he had secured to his beloved Athens immortal fame-a glory which neither time nor fate could take away. Let such be the destiny of our Queen City of the West."
And the following from that of General Force :
" Art is not trivial, it is not a mere pastime, an amusement, a luxury.
'The hand that rounded Peter's dome And groined the vaults of Christian Rome, Wrought in a sad sincerity.'
The great works of art are the products of intense enthusi- asm. Patriotism finds vent for its expression in public monu- ments, and the zeal of religious devotion reared the cathedrals that still breathe upon us the hush of awe and devotion. The walls of galleries are pictured histories. The colored canvas stirs, even in the unlettered, every chord that can be touched by narrative, drama, or homily."
SPENCE, GEORGE, lawyer, of Springfield, is a native of Clark County, Ohio. His parents were William and Eliza- beth (Wones) Spence, who emigrated from Yorkshire, Eng- land, about 1817, settling in Cincinnati the same year, trav- eling by flat-boat from Wheeling, West Virginia, to that city. The family resided in Cincinnati only two years, during which the father was chiefly engaged in burning lime. In the mean time he had entered land in Pike Township, Clark County, where, in 1818, he removed his family. He was an active, energetic man ; reared a family of thirteen children, eight of whom were sons; he kept a store, dealt in stock, and carried on different business operations in connection with farming, and became possessed of a large farm. His death occurred in 1847, and his wife died in 1852. George Spence was born May 22d, 1828. By dint of energy and perseverance he obtained a fair education during his early youth, or at least such as the country schools of that early day afforded. Being proficient in mathematics, he was ap- pointed, at the age of seventeen, assistant county surveyor, which position he held for several years. During the fall of 1845 he met with a severe accident. He was caught in the "tumbling shaft " of a threshing-machine, and had both legs and the left arm broken, besides sustaining other in- juries. From this injury he has never fully recovered. The following winter he taught school and studied Blackstone, his brother fortunately having a volume of that work; for young Spence, at this time, knew no lawyers from whom to obtain text books or advice. He also secured a copy of the
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History of England, which he studied very thoroughly in connection with Blackstone, and in the course of two winters spent in this way he became well grounded in these branches. In the mean time he was enabled to attend the Springfield Academy several terms, and in the fall of 1847 took a sup- plementary course of study at Gundry & Bacon's Com- mercial, Business, and Law College, at Cincinnati. In the following spring (1848) he entered the law office of Rodgers & White (both distinguished lawyers and jurists, now de- ceased), where he remained under their able tuition till -1850, when he was admitted to the bar. In 1851 he began prac- tice, and to-day occupies the same office in which he began his professional career. During the thirty-two years he has been engaged in the legal profession he has been associated with partners but for very brief periods, though since 1882 he has had as partner Mr. Willis S. Walker, son of General Walker, of Kenton, Ohio. During the first twelve years of his practice he was alone, and was successful. He soon came to the front in his profession, and for many years had the leading criminal practice in his part of the State. He was counsel in several noted murder cases. He has always carried on an extensive practice, and has accumulated a hand- some fortune. In the trial of cases before juries he is almost invincible. He is a man of great energy, a fluent speaker, original in expression, abounding in repartee, wit, and anec- dote, and when assailed by opposing counsel in the trial of a case can retaliate with telling effect. He allows nothing to disturb his poise of mind. Mr. Spence has been identified with the growth and history of Springfield and Clark County for over thirty years. He was a member of the city council for seven years, and took a leading part in establishing the street railway in his city, raising the first stock for the enter- prise, and was for several years president of the company. He has always been a Democrat in politics, and has ever been an active and influential member of his party. He was a member of the Charleston Convention, in 1860, and took part in the exciting deliberations of that body, which ended in the rupture of the party. He was also a delegate to the Con- vention at Chicago, in 1864, that nominated General General George B. McClellan for President. In 1865 he was the nominee of his party for State Treasurer, but was defeated with the rest of the ticket. In 1875 he ran for State Senate, but shared another defeat of the party, the district having a large standing Republican majority. Mr. Spence is a man of nervous temperament and possessed of remarkable energy. His organism is such as to make him one of the leading men of the town. He despises policy for policy's sake, and is himself emphatically independent as to his views on all sub- jects, political or otherwise, and advocates them vigorously, without regard to party or men. Mr. Spence married July 3d, 1855, Miss E. Jane Edmonson, of Dayton, who is related to the Bayard Taylor family. The great traveler and writer was during his life a frequent visitor of the family. Mrs. Spence is a lady of fine accomplishments, and has a well- earned reputation as a botanist. She has a large and valu- able collection, which includes many rare specimens from all parts of the globe. Of two children born to Mr. and Mrs. Spence, George E., a young man, is the only one now living.
MUSCROFT, CHARLES SIDNEY, M. D., chief of the medical staff of St. Mary's Hospital ; surgeon in charge of the Consolidated Street Railroads of Cincinnati, a position voluntarily tendered him by the management; one of the di- 24-B
rectors of Longview Lunatic Asylum; and late a medical director in the United States Volunteer Service, is a native of Sheffield, England, and was born in that part of the city known as Little Sheffield, February 14th, 1820. His parents were George and Hannah (Chapman) Muscroft. The father was one of the most successful manufacturing cutlers in that renowned city, but upon removal to America, in 1822, he became rather a jobber in that business. He came to this country in defiance of the prohibition of the British Govern- ment, which was opposed to the emigration of its skilled workmen; but departing ostensibly for settlement in Holland, he was enabled to get thence to the New World without opposition. Landing at Baltimore his sympathies determined him to join the community experiment being made by Robert Dale Owen, at New Harmony, Indiana, and he trans- ported his family and effects in wagons to Brownsville, Penn- sylvania, thence by river to Cincinnati, where he was per- suaded by several gentlemen to stay his journey and settle in the rising young city. He was a man of superior intelligence and mechanical genius, a public-spirited citizen, and a very useful member of society and business circles in Cincinnati in that early day. He lived there continuously from the fall of 1825 until April 23d, 1845, when he died, being then in his fifty-ninth year. A singular coincidence was the fact that he died upon the anniversary of his birthday, as well as that of Shakespeare. He was at the time about to make a new and notable venture, in the manufacture of malleable iron in that city, and his untimely death was, for this and other reasons, justly regarded as a public calamity. He was a leading founder and member of the Ohio Mechanics' Institute, and had sometimes lectured before that and other scientific bodies, on technical and other topics with which he was familiar; and upon his death a fitting series of resolutions was adopted by the institute, sent to his family, and published in the city papers. Charles Sidney was the youngest member of the fam- ily who lived beyond the period of infancy. He was trained in the private school of Mr. Neifs, in Cincinnati, then in the fa- mous academy of Professor Milo G. Williams, and finally the yet more famous academy of Alexander and William Kinmont. For two or three years he assisted his father in mechanical operations, and then, at the age of nineteen, began to read medicine, with Dr. Charles L. Avery. He also matriculated at the Ohio Medical College, took three full courses of lectures, and was graduated as a Doctor of Medicine, on the Ist of March, 1843. The young doctor began practice at once and alone, and has since continuously practiced in the city of his childhood and youth, and always without a partner. For about twelve years he was engaged in general practice, but near the year 1855 he began to turn his attention especially to surgery, in which his chief reputation has been attained. He has since been called to perform most of the grand operations known to surgical science. He has frequently and successfully accomplished the exsection of bones; in one or two cases the removal of all, or very nearly all, of the fibula. His operation for the removal of the entire ulna is noticed with interest in Dr. Gross's work on the " Centennial History of Surgery in America," published in 1876, in which only the names of Drs. Muscroft, R. D. Mussey, and George C. Blackman are mentioned among Cincinnati surgeons. He has devised a new method in the treatment of fractures, discarding the use of splints and relying solely upon the use of pillows and sand-bags, a method which in his practice has been most eminently successful, and has commended itself
Western Biog1 Puh Cn
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cause of its dilapidated appearance. He detected its faded merits, and by an intuitive touch restored it to its original, consummate loveliness.
MEANS, WILLIAM, ex-Mayor of Cincinnati, iron merchant and banker. The ancestors of William Means were natives of South Carolina. His grandfather was Colonel John Means, of Spartanburg, South Carolina, and his grand- mother, Ann Williamson, a native of that State, and a rel- ative of Sir Isaac Newton. Thomas Williamson Means, his father, located at an early day in Lawrence County, and married Sarah Ellison, a daughter of John Ellison, of Buck- eye Station, Adams County, Ohio, one of the first settlers, and a prominent citizen of that county. The industry and energy of Thomas W. Means enabled him to accumu- late a large fortune, and he is recognized as the iron-king of the Hanging Rock mining region of Ohio. The subject of this sketch was born at the Union Furnace, Lawrence County, Ohio. After the preparatory education, William Means entered Marietta College, and during his collegiate life spent one year at Farmers' College, near Cincinnati. In 1880 the degree of Master of Arts was conferred upon him by Mari- etta College. Mr. Means began his business career at the Ohio Furnace, Scioto County, Ohio, in 1852. . After remaining there for about two years he engaged with his father and others in building a blast furnace in Vinton County, Ohio. His business judgment and foresight induced his father and himself early to withdraw from the undertaking, which after- ward proved an unfortunate investment for the subsequent owners. He then entered the banking house of Dugan & Mackoy, at Portsmouth, Ohio, and became a partner there in connection with his father, and subsequently engaged in the banking business at Ashland, Kentucky, and later as- sumed the management of the extensive iron and coal interests of Means, Kyle & Co. In the spring of 1868 Mr. Means removed to Cincinnati, and has continued to represent that firm in his own name to the present time. It was while he was engaged in the management of the interests of Means, Kyle & Co. that he originated a form for ascertain- ing the cost and profits and losses in the manufacture of char- coal iron, which has since been printed and extensively adopted in the Hanging Rock iron region. The courage, delibera- tion, and executive ability which characterize the man were displayed while superintendent of all the furnaces and mines belonging to Means, Kyle & Co. There was but one strike among the employés during the whole time he was in charge, and this was so well managed that he left the men with their full confidence and esteem. Always kind and charitable to the poor, he was universally loved and respected by his em- ployes. Years ago he met a ragged urchin in the streets of Ironton, who had known what it was from a bitter experience to travel miles, weary and foot-sore, to beg for leave to work, and look into a sad mother's face and ask for bread when there was none to give. He took the boy home and cared for him, sent him to school, and he is to-day a well-known lawyer in Southern Ohio. Through the war he kept his men armed and organized, and during the Morgan raid was virtually in command of a camp of about nine thousand men. In the spring of 1881 he was nominated by the Dem- ocratic City Convention of Cincinnati for the office of Mayor, without any solicitation on his part, and in the April fol- lowing was elected by more than two thousand majority over the incumbent. The remainder of the ticket was de-
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