USA > Ohio > The biographical cyclopaedia and portrait gallery with an historical sketch of the state of Ohio. Volume III > Part 7
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* * The notices in the San- dusky Register seem to me to fall far short of what might properly be said of Judge Lane. Like his father, and also his mother, he was from early boyhood a great reader, and though he read with wonderful rapidity, he comprehended and digested his author with telegraphic dispatch. He was truly and eminently a learned man. In law, in history, in moral science, in literature he was 'a full man,' 'thoroughly furnished to all good works.' But his highest glory was in the purity and integrity of his character. As to all matters personal or private, in belief or faith, he was peculiarly and characteristically and sensitively reticent, modest, diffident, almost exclusive. He was an earnest and generous supporter of the Protestant Episcopal church, and his most intimate associates, outside of his own family and kindred, were rec- tors of his parish and his bishop. He held the Bible as the 'word of God,' and honored its teachings and rested his hopes of 'life and immortality' in the gospel. Like Lord Eldon, he was truly 'a buttress of the church,' supporting and adorning it from the outside, and evidencing by his devotion that his heart was in it. You are doubtless aware that his ancestry (and your own) have a noble record. The family of Griswold was a very ancient one, and has an hon- orable place in English history. As early as the sixteenth century, Matthew, son of Edward Griswold, joined a company of Pilgrims, and sailed from England during the reign oi
Charles I, and landed upon the shores of Massachusetts, May 30th, 1630, about ten years after the arrival of the May- flower. He settled in Lyme, Connecticut, and married the daughter of Henry Wolcott, of Windsor, Connecticut. His son, Matthew Griswold, married Phobe Hyde, of Norwich, Connecticut, and their son John married Hannah Lee. The son of John (Governor Matthew Griswold) married Ursula Wolcott, daughter of Governor Roger Wolcott, and great- grand-daughter of Henry Wolcott. Their son, Governor Roger Griswold, married Fanny Rogers, and their daughter, Frances Ann, married Ebenezer Lane, the father of your husband." Mrs. Lane occupies the family mansion at San- dusky, with all the surroundings and appointments preserved with reverent care, especially his ample library at the house, and in his office an extensive law library, as left by Judge Lane. Their children are Elizabeth Griswold Lane, born Oc- tober 25th; 1851, married November 25th, 1873, to Charles H. Moss, and has one daughter, Emeline Knap Moss, born September, 27th, 1874; Sarah Spencer Lane, born March 2d, 1858; Wolcott Griswold Lane, born January 24th, 1866, and Charles C. Griswold Lane, born December 16th, 1867. This imperfect tribute is rendered to this family circle with the suggestion that " He hath not wholly died. He lives in the affections of kindred and friends, and in the high regard of the community. He lives in our remembrance of his social virtues, his warm and steady friendships, and the vivacity and richness of his conversation. Indeed, he seems to us now, as in truth he is, not extinguished or ceasing to be, but only withdrawn as the clear sun goes down at his setting, not darkened, but only no longer seen."
McCOOK, DANIEL, soldier, was born July 22d, 1834, at Carrollton, Carroll county, Ohio. He was the sixth son of Judge Daniel McCook, and the third of the family to fall in battle. He was delicate from his childhood, and early man- ifested a liking for books. Educated at a college in Flor- ence, Alabama, he there graduated in 1857. He next studied law, and in 1858 was admitted to the bar. He settled in Leavenworth, Kansas, becoming a member of the firm of Ewings, Sherman & McCook -the two Ewings, sons of Hon. Thomas 'Ewing, and the other a name that was to be- come celebrated in the military annals of the war. Here he married in December, 1860, Miss Julia Tibbs, of Platte coun- ty, Missouri. He was captain of a militia company, the Shields' Grays, when the news came of the firing upon Sum- ter. With them he entered the service. A little later he left Leavenworth to report to General Lyon, then at Wil- son's creek. "Here's for a general's staff or a soldier's grave!" he exclaimed, as he bade farewell to his family and friends, and he was destined to win both. In November, 1861, he was appointed adjutant-general on the staff of his brother Alexander, then a brigadier commanding a division in Buell's army. In this capacity he served nearly a year, accompanying his brother through the advance on Nashville, the battle of Pittsburgh Landing, and part of the campaign against Chattanooga. In May, 1862, he was called upon by Governor Tod to undertake the recruiting of the 52d regi- ment Ohio infantry, and had completed his task just in time to answer the call for troops in Kentucky to repel the inva- sion of Kirby Smith. He was soon made commander of a brigade, and at Perrysville formed part of the division of Sheridan. At Stone river he encountered Wheeler's men, and saved the ammunition train from capture, for which ser-
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vice he was complimented by General Rosecrans. In the assault on Kenesaw mountain, Colonel McCook fell mortally wounded. "If Harker and Daniel McCook had lived," wrote Sherman afterward, "I believe I should have carried the position." A little before he died a dispatch was brought him from the War Department, announcing his promotion to a brigadier-generalship of volunteers, for distinguished gallantry in battle. He had won the star he set out for, and the soldier's grave as well. He was buried with military honors, in Spring Grove cemetery, near Cincinnati, beside his father, and two brothers who had already met death at the hands of the enemies of their goverment.
COLE, AMOS B., soldier and legislator, was born in Portsmouth, Ohio, December 13th, 1827. His parents were Silas W. Cole and Elizabeth Hueston. His boyhood was spent partly in the city and partly on a farm. When a youth of nineteen he enlisted in the service of his country in the war with Mexico; served until peace was declared, and was honorably discharged in 1848. Returning home he resumed the occupation of farming, in which he has since been engaged. January 2d, 1851, Mr. Cole married Martha E., daughter of John Orme, of Scioto county, Ohio, but formerly of Maryland. The fruits of this union have been seven chil- dren, of whom six are now living. O. V. Cole is in the gov- ernment employment as clerk in the second auditor's office in Washington City, and J. Orme Cole is chief clerk under Major Gaines, the United States pension agent in the same city. His oldest daughter, Ida F., is the wife of T. C. Ander- son, an attorney of Portsmouth, Ohio. A. Spencer, Charles C., and Lollie L. Cole reside at home. In July, 1862, Mr. Cole was mustered into the service of his country as captain of company F, 117th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which was afterwards reorganized as the Ist Ohio Heavy Artillery, and served until December, 1864, when, by special order No. 321, he was mustered out of the service on account of disability, from sickness contracted in the army. He was one of the organizers of the republican party in Scioto county, and for a quarter of a century has been a zealous and uncompromising advocate of its principles, contributing liberally of his means and time for its maintenance and advancement, but asking no reward. It has been his aim to work for principle and not for pay, and he has sought no remuneration at the hands of any party or clique. On several occasions he has been chosen the standard-bearer of his party. In 1873 he was elected on the republican ticket clerk of the court of common pleas of Scioto county, and re-elected in 1876, thus serving six years. In the fall of 1879, without any solicitation on his part, he was nominated by the republicans of his county for representative in the Ohio Legislature. His predecessor, a democrat, had carried the county by three hundred and eighty-one majority, and was again in the field; but Mr. Cole was elected by a majority of two hundred and fifty, thus making a gain of over six hundred votes. A warm friend and admirer of General Garfield, he ably supported that gentleman for United States Senator, preferring him to either of two other candidates in his own section of the State. Indeed, previous to the meeting of the Legislature, in 1880, he confidently predicted that Mr. Garfield would be the man chosen for that position. He is a personal friend and admirer of President Hayes, and once dined with that gentleman when he was running for governor of Ohio, upon which occa- sion Mr. Cole remarked to Mr. Hayes, "If we defeat Bill
Allen with you this fall, we'll make you the next President of the United States." After the fourth day of the Chicago con- vention, in 1880, and before Mr. Garfield had been seriously thought of, Mr. Cole, who was at that time a strong Sherman man, confidently predicted that Mr. Garfield would be the republican nominee for the presidency. These and a number of other predictions made by Mr. Cole have been literally fulfilled. He is a man of very strong attachments, and when a man once commends himself to his confidence he has a secure hold upon his regard and affections for life. Such has been noticeably illustrated in his profound regard for Generals Grant, Hayes, and Garfield, and Secretaries Chase and Sher- man. But, though strong in his friendships, he harbors no malice, possesses a high sense of honor, and is always ready to sacrifice self for the interest of others. He is an indepen- dent thinker, a shrewd observer, a clear and logical reasoner, and possesses in a high degree the power of forecasting the results of this or that line of policy, and in all the positions which he has occupied has shown himself a man who can not be controlled by a clique or bribed to act contrary to the dictates of his honest judgment and the claims of duty. In keeping with these characteristics he has made as faithful and efficient a representative as Scioto county ever had, and his standing in the legislature is second to no other new member. Though deprived in early life of any thing more than a common school education, he has ever been a con- stant reader of history and current literature, and by personal and private application has become one of the best-informed men in his community. For many years past he has been a leader in his section of the county in all matters of education, morality, and general progress. A soldier of two wars, and the present representative of his county in the legislature, unostentatious and unambitious, yet positive in his views, plain and outspoken in his sentiments, he enjoys the respect and confidence of his fellow-citizens as an independent, con- scientious, and upright man.
COWLES, E. W., physician, born in Bristol, Connect- icut, in 1794, died in June, 1861, at Cleveland, Ohio, was the son of Rev. Giles Hooker Cowles, D. D., a pioneer clergyman, who, in 1810, removed from Connecticut to Ashtabula county, Ohio, where, in 1812, he founded the first church in Ohio or- namented with a steeple. Dr. Cowles received his early education from his father, and, like him, became imbued with the highest principles of the Christian religion. After studying in the office of Dr. O. K. Hawley, of Austinburgh, he took his medical degree and was engaged in practice in Portage county until 1832, when he removed to Cleveland. From 1834 to 1838 he resided and practiced in Detroit, Mich- igan, and with the exception of these years his life was passed in the active duties of his profession in Cleveland, where he made for himself a high reputation both as a physician and a valuable citizen. His leading trait as a physician was the exercise of benevolence and fearlessness in the performance of his duties. These noble qualities in him were thoroughly illustrated during his first year's residence in Cleveland, when a virulent and fatal form of cholera visited the city and surrounding country, creating the utmost terror, and depop- ulating the city with fearful rapidity. Amid the general stampede and wholesale flight which ensued, at the risk of his own life, he stood firmly at his post, administering to the stricken ones, devoting his nights as well as days to the alle- viation of their sufferings. In one instance, the whole crew
Conrad Windisch.
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and passengers of a steamboat had suddenly become help- less victims of the plague. Disregarding the entreaties and implorings of his family and friends, he bravely boarded the ship, and there remained until everything possible had been done to relieve the sick and to fight down the death-dealing scourge. His predominating trait was his love of justice to all-the high and low, rich and poor. This sense was strongly developed in his hatred of the system of slavery, which, as he expressed it, "violated every commandment in the decalogue, every principle of justice, all laws of human nature, and destroyed the foundation of a common hu- manity." He was an early and staunch abolitionist, a pow- erful and able debater on the subject of slavery, and was for some time a member of the old " Liberty Guard," and super- intendent of the "underground railway." Many a poor fugi- tive slave owed his freedom to his kind offices and exertions while in this position. As a politician he was somewhat prominent-supported General Harrison for President in 1840, as an old-line whig, joined the " Liberty party " in 1841, and became a member of the free-soil party in 1848. In all walks of life he was distinguished for moral rectitude, hon- esty, and incorruptible integrity. He was an active and de- vout member of the Congregational church, and one of its most valued supporters. In 1815 he married Miss Almira M. Foote, who died in 1846, leaving four children- Judge Samuel Cowles, of San Francisco, California; Mrs. Helen C. Wheeler, of Butler, Missouri; Mr. Edwin Cowles, of Cleveland, and Mr. Alfred Cowles, of Chicago.
WINDISCH, CONRAD, one of the founders and senior member of the Lion Brewery Company, of Cincinnati, was born March 6th, 1825, at Egloffstein, Bavaria, Germany. His father, John Ulrich Windisch, was a farmer and brewer of that place. After obtaining a common school education he commenced, at the age of thirteen, working on the farm and in the brewery. He was thus employed until he was twenty- three years old, when becoming dissatisfied with the meager advantages afforded him in that country, and with little hope of improvement in the future, he determined upon coming to America. He sailed from Bremen November Ist, 1848, and landed in New York February Ist, 1849. He crossed the mountains in a stage coach, in the winter season, stopping at Pittsburg, where he found employment in a brewery, at five dollars per month and board for the first month, and seven dollars for the next six months. Not content with that locality, he went to St. Louis, where some friends resided. He, with three others, took the tour of the lakes by steam- boat, and arrived in Chicago, whence they proceeded to St. Louis. Not finding suitable employment there, he went to Belleville, Illinois, and engaged himself to a brewer for eleven dollars per month. In consequence of the unwholesomeness, caused by the brewery being located in a coal mine, his health began to fail, and in two months' time he was so prostrated with fever and ague that he was obliged to quit the place. After medical treatment in St. Louis for several months, he renewed his labors at Camp Spring Brewery, at twelve dollars for the first month, and fourteen for the second, and fifteen for the third, at which wages he con- tinued for some time. Not wishing to locate permanently in St. Louis, he decided to visit his friends in Cincinnati. The firm was indebted to him about ninety dollars at this time, and as he had never seen any paper money in his native country, he declined to accept his wages in that kind of c-4
currency, so he was paid in five-franc silver pieces. This together with a twenty-franc gold piece brought from Ger- many, still unmelted, constituted his capital. He traveled by way of boat to Cincinnati, and by the time he reached his destination had reduced his cash to sixty dollars. He was not long to be idle. Taking a hasty glance through the city, he soon found employment in Herancourt's brewery. After retaining this situation for eight months his reputation as an experienced brewer would obtain him a situation almost any where, and in order to improve his circumstances he went into the employ of Mr. Koehler, of the Buckeye Street Brewery, where he was shortly afterward promoted to the super- intendency of the work. He retained this situation for three years, during which time he exercised prudential economy, spending only what was absolutely essential to his comfort, and, as the sequel will show, he owes his wealth to-day to this fact. His savings had only accumulated to a few hun- dred dollars when an opportunity to go into business pre- sented itself. Mr. C. Moerlein had recently started a brewery in company with Mr. Adam Dillman, and as the latter died shortly after putting the works into operation, Mr. Windisch's thorough acquaintance with the business, combined with a little ready money, pointed him out to Mr. Moerlein as a very suitable partner. It was in 1854 that this business union was formed, and as both were men of sound judgment and in- domitable perseverance, great success attended their enter- prise. Their business rapidly increased from month to month until 1855, when it received a wonderful impetus by the manu- facture of lager instead of common beer, the next twelve years being of almost unprecedented prosperity. In September, 1866, Mr. Windisch sold out his large interest to his partner, and formed another business alliance with Messrs. Gottlieb and Henry Muhlhauser, for the purpose of starting another brewery, to be called the Lion Brewery. Large works were erected, to which additions have since been made, until now they have over one thousand feet front and one hundred and fifty feet in depth. It is replete with all the modern appliances, which render it a first class establishment. The machinery is run by one eighty-horse power engine. One of their kettles, containing three hundred barrels, is believed to be the largest in the United States. They have cellars capable of holding forty thousand barrels of beer; their malting capacity is over two hundred thousand bushels a year ; and the sales of this immense concern during the past year amounted to over one hundred thousand barrels. It is undoubtedly the largest institution of its kind in Ohio, and one of the largest in the United States. The brewing business has grown to be one of the most important manufacturing interests in Cincinnati. The amount of capital employed and the number of men engaged exceed that of any other industry. It is worthy of note that the beverage that has gained for Cincinnati such a wide-spread fame has super- seded, in a large degree, the injurious liquors that were in universal use a few years ago. People wonder how great fortunes are accumulated by men who begin with nothing, and how great success attends the efforts of those whose lots are cast so inauspiciously as was the case of Mr. Windisch. And all we can say of the matter is, that they must consult the principles to which he conformed, as mentioned in the beginning of this sketch. It would be well for the young Americans of this age to note the fact that it is not so often the most brilliant talent that achieves the greatest success as untiring effort, steady pursuit of an object, a vigilant outlook
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for any leaks that may, if neglected, sink the ship. Prompt, energetic execution of any orders that a house may be fav- ored with always inspires confidence, and confidence is the very soul of business. This conclusion was an intuition with Mr. Windisch. He was also a good judge of human nature, and was always cautious in the selection of his men, which fact has undoubtedly saved him a small fortune. Being a man of remarkably quick perception, and constantly on duty himself, every employé, from the highest to the lowest, knew he could retain his position no longer than he merited it. Another thing that has aided Mr. Windisch materially is the fact that he has always eschewed politics, and devoted all his energies to the department of industry in which he was engaged, the use of the elective franchise being all the voice he wished in law-making. Not the least secret of his great success has been his thorough knowledge of his business, and his ambition to excel in the quality of the goods he manufactured, and to this end watched every process to see that no inferior articles were used, and no part of the process slighted. Mr. Windisch is an excellent type of the German nationality. Aside from his business interests, he is a man of generous impulses and genuine benevolence, at all times ready to relieve cases of want and aid the needy. Person- ally he is companionable and fond of a joke. This remark- able business man is now on the shady side of life, having the misfortune a few years ago to suffer a paralytic stroke, which has necessitated his retiring from the practical over- sight of the business, though he still retains senior member- ship in the firm. His oldest son, John Ulrich Franklin, is the active member, who has been a junior partner for several years past. Mr. Windisch was married in 1854 to Miss So- phia Wilhelmina Kobmann, from his native village, by whom seven children have been borne, five of them still living.
HOWARD, NELSON MONTGOMERY, commission merchant, and at present 'State representative, Toledo, Ohio, was born January 21st, 1828, at Gilead (now Grand Rapids), Wood County, Ohio. His parents, Robert Armstrong and Priscilla (Nelson) Howard, were natives of New York State. They were married February 12th, 1823, and removed to Ohio in the Spring of the same year. The father was by occupation a farmer. They settled on the Maumee river at Fort Meigs, and in 1827 the family removed farther up the river, settling at Gilead, where Montgomery was born. They resided at the latter place until 1835, when they re- moved to York Township, Lucas County, which afterwards became Pike Township, Fulton County, where the family remained until the death of both parents in 1872, at the age, of about seventy-four, having nearly reached the golden an- niversary of their nuptial bonds, as they would have been married fifty years the following February. The early edu- cation of the subject of this sketch was that afforded by the country schools of that day. At the age of thirteen he left home to clerk in a store, by which means he saved money enough to enable him, by working for his board, to attend a select school at Maumee City for two years. Though de- prived of a higher education, his habits of industrious reading, supplemented by a naturally quick perception and close ob- servation, have enabled him to gain a goodly store of knowl- edge and a fund of information that make him scholarly in habits and conversation, and ready with facts in argument and debate. After entering upon his active career his expe- riences were such as frequently attend the efforts of young
men in determining upon a life vocation, subject to changes and transitions and perhaps vacillations. From 1845 to 1850 Mr. Howard, then' a boy, served as clerk in a store at Adrian, Michigan. Two years were then spent at Sheboygan, Wisconsin, when he returned to Adrian, and very soon after settled in Toledo, engaging on the Ist of January, 1853, as book-keeper and salesman in the hardware establishment of S. & J. H. Whitaker. In 1854 he bought an interest in a manufactory of tubs and pails in Toledo, which failed after a continuance of two years. Mr. Howard, after a brief but not unprofitable experience in the commission business, was induced to accept a position, which he held five years, as book-keeper and one of the managers in the extensive man- ufactory and wholesale tobacco establishment of Calvin Bron- son. Not content with a vocation where his opportunities were necessarily circumscribed, and ambitious to take up the lines for himself, Mr. Howard, in 1863, in company with W. G. Powers, again engaged in the grain commission business, and at the end of the year, January Ist, 1864, bought out his partner and continued the business. He soon hung out the sign of N. M. Howard & Co., under which firm name the business has ever since been conducted. During the years of rebellion Mr. Howard, as chairman of the military committee for Lucas County, labored zealously in organizing and pro- viding for forces for the war, contributing liberally both time and money in behalf of the Union cause. Immediately after engaging in the grain trade Mr. Howard became a member of the Board of Trade, of which he was repeatedly one of the directors, and at one time vice-president. After the reorganization of the board into the present Produce Ex- change he was elected, upon different occasions, member of the committee of arbitration and the committee of appeals, serving upon these and other committees for several years. The business of N. M. Howard & Co. has grown into one of large proportions and constitutes an important part of the extensive commercial interests of which Toledo can justly boast, and which is the result largely of a few such enter- prising and progressive men as Mr. Howard. In 1871 he ' helped to organize the Merchants' National Bank of Toledo, in which he became a stockholder, and in 1872 was made its vice-president, a position which he still holds. He is also director and stockholder in the Merchants' and Clerks' Sav- ings Institution. Besides these interests he is a stockholder and director in the Toledo Mower and Reaper Company, and vice-president of the American District Telegraph Company of Toledo. In 1876 Mr. Howard was sent as delegate to the Republican State Convention, and was there elected a delegate to the National Convention at Cincinnati, which nominated R. B. Hayes for President of the United States. In 1879 Mr. Howard was, contrary to his own wishes, nom- inated by the republicans as Representative to the State Legislature, and was elected by the largest majority of any candidate on the county ticket. Having refused to be a can- didate for re-election his term expires January Ist, 1882. As a legislator he has proved himself most efficient, and for in- augurating and carrying out wise and wholesome legislation he is possessed of qualifications of a high order. During the Legislature of 1880 and 1881 he served as a member of the standing committees on finance, municipal corporations, and manufactures and commerce, and as chairman of the last named. Mr. Howard is an assiduous worker in committee and a ready debater in the assembly, and enjoys the repu- tation of having secured more local legislation for his con-
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