USA > Ohio > The biographical cyclopaedia and portrait gallery with an historical sketch of the state of Ohio. Volume II > Part 60
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life as a lawyer. He possessed patience, industry, integrity, and great popularity-a rare combination in a young man starting out upon a professional career, which was a success from the beginning. In 1850 he was the choice of the Whigs as their candidate for Mayor of Columbus, and was elected to that office over the Democratic nominee by a handsome majority. He was renominated in 1852, and the same result followed. Again in 1853, 1855, 1857, and 1859 he was nominated and elected over his Democratic oppon- ents by a handsome majority. In 1853 both of the leading political parties nominated strong men for the office of Mayor. Mr. English was induced to stand as an independent candi- date. The result was that he was elected over both party candidates by a large majority, thereby indicating that he was stronger before the people than the organization of the two parties and all the factions put together. His record as Mayor of Columbus, for eleven years, is without a blemish. He contributed largely of his means to aid in the relief of the families of soldiers who enlisted in the armies of the Union, and shouldered a musket as a private soldier when John Morgan invaded the State, in 1864. Upon his retirement from the office of Mayor he resumed the practice of law, and his clientage has increased to such an extent that it may be said to be larger, if not more lucrative, than that of any other one lawyer at the Columbus bar. He is a methodical, hard-working lawyer, and no lawyer on the other side feels that his cause is safe as long as Lorenzo English is working to secure a different result. He always finds the strongest points in behalf of his own client, and the weakest places on the adverse side. He very seldom gets into a weak or bad case, but even when he has been thus unfortunate, he has been known to impress a part of the jury with the belief that his side was the strongest and best, and secure thereby verdicts of disagreement. He has for many years been upon one side or the other of the most important cases in our courts. Mr. English is not especially eloquent as an advocate. He is not poetic or dramatic, but as a logician he is invincible. He presents his points to the court or jury clearly cut and forcible, and without superfluous words, and in a style which makes him powerful in argument to either. His written pleadings are seldom faulty. A deep knowledge of human nature is another characteristic which he possesses in an eminent degree, and which enables him to see into and com- prehend all the details and issues of his cause quickly when its main features are presented to him. In the spring of 1869 he was elected a Republican member of the City Coun- cil of Columbus, from the Fourth Ward, that ward then being largely Democratic. In 1871 his party nominated him for County Treasurer. At the October election following, the result showed that he had overcome a Democratic majority of one thousand eight hundred votes, and had received eight hundred majority beside, and he made a popular officer. He was the Republican nominee for Congress in the Co- lumbus District, in 1878. Though the district was largely Democratic, it required the combined efforts of the leaders and the rank and file of the opposition to defeat him; though the wards of the city of Columbus at the same election gave an average majority to the Democratic candidates of about eight hundred, Mr. English carried the same wards by a majority of forty-two. Mr. English has held many other places of trust and honor, aside from those named, and he always discharged the duties of all with singular fidelity. It is not often that it can be said of a man who has been so
long active in professional life, and in politics, that he has no enemies. Yet it can be said of our subject that he is without an enemy. This alone attests the worth of the man, and the high esteem in which he is held by his neighbors. Any further eulogy would be superfluous. He works as hard as ever, and though sixty-four years of age readily passes for a man of fifty.
SEIBERLING, JOHN F., inventor and manufacturer, born in Norton Township, Summit County, Ohio, March Ioth, 1834, was the son of Nathan Seiberling, fromn Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, farmer. The family came originally from Germany, in the last century. His great-grandfather, Peter Seiberling, was a soldier of the Revolution, and his grand- father, formerly living in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, was, in 1875, the oldest living postmaster in the United States, having received the office from President Monroe, and held it for fifty-five consecutive years! The subject of this sketch was educated at Western Star Seminary, Summit County, Ohio, and in 1857 engaged in the drug business, at Akron, in that county. Herein he continued for two years, when, returning to Western Star, he resumed the occupation of farming. At this time he and his brother were one day working a Manny reaper on the farm, when John noticed the extremely hard work attending its use, and at once set his ingenuity to work to devise some mode of remedying this evil. After sundry attempts during the next two weeks, he invented what is known as the "Dropper," which accom- plished the object he sought to attain, by reducing very con- siderably the labor attendant on the use of the Manny reaper. This invention he at once patented, and it soon became in universal request, a royalty being paid the inventor on the sale of each machine. The following year Mr. Seiberling in- vented another agricultural machine-the one so widely known as "The Excelsior" mower and reaper. It proved a great success, and under the firm name of Kline, Seiberling & Hower, he engaged in its manufacture, at Doylestown, Wayne County, Ohio. The firm commenced with the man- ufacture of twenty-five machines in the first year of its opera- tions, and in four years, such was found to be its immense utility, that the number manufactured increased to eight hundred in the year. Another factory was at once started, at Massillon, Stark County, under the firm name of Brown, Seiberling & Co., for the manufacture of this useful machine, and was attended with great success. In 1865 Mr. Seiberling disposed of his interest in this firm, and removed to Akron, where he erected the mass of buildings known as "The Excelsior Works," and under the firm name of J. F. Seiber- ling & Co., carried on his business of manufacturing. As many as forty-five hundred machines have been turned out in one year by this enterprising firm, which number repre- sented an amount of business done of seven hundred thou- sand dollars-this immense product having had its source in Mr. Seiberling's invention of the "Dropper " and the "Ex- celsior " machine. There are at present some five factories employed in the manufacture of this machine, in various parts of the country. The " Excelsior" works were carried on under a stock company, of which our subject was the superintendent. In 1869 he withdrew, and the "Excelsior" works are now no longer in operation. A lighter machine than the " Excelsior" being demanded by agriculturists gen- erally, he exerted himself to meet the demand, and after patient effort and numerous experiments, invented and per-
Wadern Bing Pub Jo
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fected the machine known as the "Empire," embodying new and important features of great practical utility to the farmer. He forthwith erected "The Empire Works," con- tiguous to the old " Excelsior " buildings, and commenced the manufacture of the new machine, which has been re- ceived with great favor by the agricultural community. In 1880 he purchased the old "Excelsior" works, and at pres- ent date (1883) is building annually about eight thousand of the new "Empire " machines. These go throughout the entire United States, and he has shipped some of them to Germany and England. After purchasing the " Excelsior " works he invented a " Twine Binder," of which he is man- ufacturing a large number, they having met with great favor and success. In addition to his large manufacturing opera- tions, Mr. Seiberling is also a director of, and large stock- holder in, the Bank of Akron ; president of the Straw Board Company ; president of, and director in, the Akron Milling Company ; a stockholder in the Agricultural Works at Doyles- town ; and in a coal bank, at Mineral Point. In politics he is a liberal Republican. He has held office in the Board of Education, and has filled various other offices of a minor and local character. He has never sought prominence in politics, but has contributed largely in services and money to several benevolent associations. In 1858 he married Miss Catherine L. Miller, of Norton, his own native township, who bore him eleven children, nine of whom are now living. He is endowed with the inventive genius in no small degree, and possessing also great energy of character, has become an influential man in his community, being withal a modest and affable gentleman, and in every way a most worthy citizen. His works take rank among the many large manufacturing in- terests of Ohio.
MCKELLY, ROBERT, a leading lawyer of Upper San- dusky, is a Pennsylvanian by birth, of Scotch-Irish descent. His parents, Alexander McKelly and Mary (Torrence) Mc- Kelly, both natives of County Antrim, Ireland, emigrated to America in the beginning of the present century, and settled in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. There they remained for a number of years, and there the subject of this sketch was born April 8th, 1815. In 1823 the family crossed the mountains and became permanently located near Pittsburg. Robert was then eight years old, and from that time he passed his school-boy days in Alleghany County. In 1830 he was sent to Cannonsburgh College; but while a mere youth his services were in demand as a teacher, and before graduating he moved to Ohio, to take charge of a school in Richland County. He was then nineteen. Hon. George W. Geddes, of Mansfield, was one of his pupils at that time, as was also ex-Congressman F. C. Le Blond, of Mercer County. Young McKelly was in a fair way of continuing in that useful calling, but being tendered a clerkship in the Mount Vernon Post-office, he quit teaching and acted in the ca- pacity of assistant postmaster for three years. About this time, feeling impulses of ambition, he concluded to have a profession, and choosing the law, he commenced reading with Henry B. Curtis, a prominent attorney of Mount Vernon, but before getting through he entered the office and finished his studies with John K. Miller, who was subsequently a Member of Congress. In 1842 he was admitted to the bar, and at once started in the practice of his profession, at Bu- cyrus. He was successful. His energy, perseverance, sound judgment, and especially his force as a jury advocate, secured
to him numerous and prominent clients. He had the care of the legal business of several important corporations, and became the attorney and counselor of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railroad. Upon the removal of the Wyandots from Ohio their reservation became vested in the Federal Government, and Wyandot County was formed. The new county, composed of that Indian reservation and portions of the surrounding counties, was organized in 1845. Upper Sandusky was the county seat, and the United States had a land-office there. The same year Mr. McKelly was ap- pointed, by President Polk, register of that office, with his head-quarters near where Colonel Crawford was defeated by the Wyandots and their allies, and captured and burned by the Delawares. Remaining in the new county until the lands of the reservation were sold, Mr. McKelly moved with the office to Defiance, but soon thereafter resigned the position of register, and returning to Upper Sandusky, established himself as a lawyer at that place, which he has ever since made his permanent home. In 1851 he was nominated by his party friends as Probate Judge. Joseph Kinney was a competitor for the same office, and McKelly gave the matter no personal attention. The result was a tie vote. Governor Wood, having the appointing power in such cases, and thinking well of McKelly, commissioned him. Soon after that Judge McKelly was one of the projectors and chief supporters of the Ohio and Indiana (now the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne and Chicago) Railroad. He was elected, in 1853, a member of its board of directors ; was also chosen its general freight and ticket agent, and for a while he acted in the capacity of its president. In all these situations he discharged the duties of the trusts in a manner highly creditable to him- self and to the advantage of the company and its patrons. In 1857 he was elected a member of the Ohio Senate, and represented the counties of Wyandot, Seneca, and Crawford. He was an active and efficient member of that body, and served on the Judiciary Committee, and also on the Com- mittees of Finance and Railroads. Recognizing his ability as a legislator, and appreciating his devotion to the interest of his constituents, his party offered him a re-nomination, at a time, too, when there would have been no opposition, and when a re-election was certain. But his private business in- terfered with his going back to Columbus, and the proffered honor was declined. With the exception of serving his county one term as Prosecuting Attorney, what have been mentioned are the only political official positions Judge Mc- Kelly has held, though his party adherents have named him in their conventions as an available candidate for Common Pleas Judge and also for the National Congress, and on one occasion they came within three-fourths of one vote of suc- ceeding to nominate him for the former, and on another occasion one and a half votes to nominate him for the latter. Coming of age at the close of the popular administration of Jackson, he cast his first presidential vote for Van Buren. He has ever since voted with the Democrats, has been prom- inent at all times in the councils of that party and in the advocacy of its principles. Although brought up in the Presbyterian faith of his parents he does not seem to give the dogmas of that denomination preference over the tenets of other Christian Churches, but exercises a broad charity and consideration for the different religious beliefs of his neigh- bors. He is a progressive man, and he has been among the foremost in pushing forward every good work, every substan- tial improvement and railroad enterprise affecting his town.
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He has been twice married. His first wife was Rebecca Jane, daughter of Enoch Ogle, of Richland County, Ohio. She died in 1863. Of the ten children of that marriage but three are living-two sons and a daughter. They are Robert A., a prosperous hardware merchant, of Upper Sandusky ; James M., connected with the Adams Express Company, of the same place; and Roberta Alfreda, the accomplished wife of James Irvine, a prominent lawyer and successful financier, of Lima, Ohio. His present wife, to whom he was married in 1871, is Isabel, daughter of Jesse Snyder, of Wyandot County, Ohio. Judge McKelly is a large, stout man, six feet high. His hair, now whitening from the frosts of many winters, was black, as were also his eyes, and his complexion is dusky. At the age of sixty-eight his movements are active, and his step firm. He is un- affected in his address, and in disposition he is cheerful and buoyant. He still practices law, being devoted to the pro- fession-never abandoned-which he adopted over forty years ago.
SPRINGER, REUBEN R. was born in Frankfort, Kentucky, in 1800. His father, Charles Springer, was a native of West Virginia, a soldier under General Wayne, and a par- ticipant in the battle of the Maumee, in 1794. For many years he was postmaster of Frankfort, and also cultivator of a farm near Lexington, Kentucky. He was killed in 1816, by being thrown from a wagon. Reuben Springer's mother was Catherine Runyan, a native of Princeton, New Jersey. She survived her husband several years. Young Reuben received a very meager education in the schools at Frank- fort. At thirteen he entered the post-office as clerk, and suc- ceeded his father as postmaster. He held this position for two years, when he became a clerk on a steamer running between Cincinnati and New Orleans. He was very eco- nomical, and in a few years was able to buy an interest in the line to which the boat belonged, and continued in the steam- boat business for twelve years. On January 30, 1830, he married Jane Kilgour, daughter of Henry and Catharine Kilgour. Mr. Kilgour was at that time a member of the firm of Kilgour, Taylor & Co., the largest wholesale grocery firm in Cincinnati. Immediately after his marriage Mr. Springer became a junior partner in the firm, with which he continued for the next ten years. His close application to business impaired his health, and in 1840 he was obliged to retire from active business. The firm dissolved, and each member retired wealthy. Charles Springer, a brother of Reuben Springer, succeeded to the good will of the house. He was lost at sea in the ill-fated steamer Arctic, in 1854. Mr. Springer then turned his attention to the recovery of his health. In 1842 he left for Europe, but unsettled business compelled his return the following year. He revisited Europe in 1844-5, in 1849, and in 1851. On his fourth and last trip he was accompanied by Mrs. Springer, and together they spent much time in visiting the art centers of the Old World. By turning his attention to a study of the laws of health, he renewed his impaired constitution, and has lived thirty years beyond the limit which his hopes had fixed. In all these years he has taken advantage of every means to prolong his life. Mr. Springer is wealthy. His wealth con- sists principally of real estate, railroad bonds, and other securities. His income from rents alone is said to be seventy- five thousand dollars a year. He is a large stockholder, and for many years has been director of the Little Miami, Pitts-
burg, Fort Wayne and Chicago, and Lake Shore Railroads. At the close of last year he declined a re-election as director of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne and Chicago Railroad, after serving sixteen years in that capacity. He owns seven hun- dred thousand dollars' worth of first mortgage bonds of the Cincinnati, Indianapolis, St. Louis and Chicago Railroad, which bear six per cent interest. He is a large stockholder and director in the Third National, Lafayette, and other banks, as well as in the Equitable and other insurance com- panies. He has never held a political position. He has been very careful and cautious in his investments, always placing his money where it would be perfectly safe and cause him the least anxiety or care. His extreme caution made him look with suspicion upon the Southern Railroad scheme, and he consequently held himself aloof from that enterprise. In politics Mr. Springer was a Henry Clay Whig, and a personal friend of that great statesman, but became a Republican at the birth of the party. In religion he is a Catholic, and is a member of the Cathedral congregation. He has given to the Cathedral over thirty thousand dollars, at the same time contributing to many public and private charities. Mrs. Springer died eleven years ago, leaving no children. Mr. Springer has educated four young relatives of his wife. He is a man of refined tastes, and a lover of all that is beautiful in art and nature. During his travels in Europe he collected many valuable paintings and works of art. His home, at Plum and Seventh Streets, Cincinnati, is filled with these souvenirs of foreign travel. In conversa- tion Mr. Springer is always most interesting when talking on the subject of art. The success of the Musical Festivals in 1873 and 1875 demonstrated the possibility of a permanent institution in Cincinnati, and Music Hall was the result of the enthusiasm created by these festivals. In May, 1875, Mr. Springer addressed a letter to John Shillito, offering to donate one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars for the purpose of building a music hall, on two conditions: First, that the lot on Elm and Fourteenth Streets be secured from the city for the perpetual use of a society to be formed for the purpose, at a nominal rent and free from taxation ; and second, that a further sum of not less than one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars be donated by the citizens. The offer was received with enthusiasm, and committees to carry it into effect were appointed by the Board of Trade, Chamber of Commerce, and other bodies. When it was found that subscriptions flagged on account of the apparent preference being extended to Music Hall over the exposition, Mr. Springer, on June 7th, agreed to donate fifty thousand dol- lars more for the exposition interest, as soon as the one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars were subscribed by the citizens, on the condition that they should subscribe a further one hundred thousand dollars. The taking of sub- scriptions became even more arduous than before, and in November Mr. Springer offered to give another twenty thousand dollars, on condition that fifteen thousand dollars (the amount needed to make up the one hundred and twenty- five thousand dollars) be raised within thirty days. This was accomplished by gathering small sums, hundreds of laboring men and operatives contributing one dollar each, for which they received certificates of stock entitling them to one admission into the first exposition to be held in the new hall. On December Ist, 1875, the Music Hall Association was formed. Work on the building commenced September, 1876. The trustees soon ran short of funds, and Mr. Springer
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added to his already munificent gift by donating twenty thousand dollars on two different occasions. Mr. Springer's gifts have been as follows :
Original subscription, $125,000
Additional (November, 1875), 20,000
Additional (April, 1877), .
20,000
Additional ( January, 1878), 20,000
Organ fund, 5,000
Premium for carving, 500
Art Museum fund, .
10,000
Exposition buildings,
50,000
New building, College of Music, 40,000
Endowment, College of Music, . 80,000
Total, . $370,500
A life-sized statue of Mr. Springer-executed by Preston Powers, son of the celebrated sculptor, Hiram Powers-was unveiled at Music Hall, Monday, May 15th, 1882, with ap- propriate ceremonies. It is seldom that the living are so honored, but in this case it was fitting that the first statue erected in the great building should be that of its great patron. Mr. Springer is singularly modest, and notwith- standing his large gifts to the Music Hall and College, he refuses to have it named after himself. He is genial, unos- tentatious, and liberal to all public charities, and he will always be known as one of the city's greatest benefactors.
PROBASCO, HENRY, retired merchant, was born at Newtown, Connecticut, July 4th, 1820. He was educated in the public schools of Philadelphia. In 1835, he commenced his mercantile career as a clerk with Mr. Tyler Davidson, who was engaged in the hardware business in Cincinnati. He was made a partner in 1840, and married in the same year Julia, daughter of the Hon. Abijah Carrington, (comp- troller of the State of Connecticut,) and sister of Mr. David- son. Under his active personal superintendence, the busi- ness rapidly grew, and in less than six years from his being taken into partnership the firm of Tyler Davidson & Co. be- came the largest hardware business in Cincinnati. In 1851, Mr. Probasco conceived the idea of erecting a handsome store, far superior to any then in existence in the city, and he carried out the project on the site where the firm then transacted their business. It was the first store in Cincinnati built of free- stone. It was an example of the bold enterprise of the firm, and had the effect of enlarging men's ideas as to what business stores and business blocks should be. It was a grand com- mercial success, for in 1854, three years after the erection of the building, the sales had quadrupled those of 1851, having increased in amount from $150,000 to upward of $600,000 per annum. In 1856, Mr. Probasco spent about eight months in Europe, and observing that many of the leading merchants and manufacturers in the large cities of England had retired to their suburban residences, he began, on his return to Cin- cinnati, to consider plans for building a country-house, and he selected Clifton as the locality. In 1860, his mansion, known as Oakwood, was commenced, and it was completed in 1865. It is approached by an entrance which is inter- esting as a chef d'œuvre of Cincinnati wrought iron work. This was the first attempt that was made to unite limestone and sandstone in the construction of suburban residences. It
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