Twentieth Century History of Youngstown and Mahoning County Ohio and Representative Citizens, Part 18

Author: Sanderson, Thomas W
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Chicago, Ill., Biographical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 993

USA > Ohio > Mahoning County > Youngstown > Twentieth Century History of Youngstown and Mahoning County Ohio and Representative Citizens > Part 18

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Station No. 6. south side. Wilson avenue. near Jackson street. Hose Company No. 6; five men: J. C. Vanghan, marshal.

Station No. 7. corner Madison avenue and Elm street. Hose Company No. 7 and Engine Company No. 2: ten men: A. W. Smedley. marshal. In January, 1904. this station in- stalled a Metropolitan No. 2 engine.

All the hose companies above mentioned are supplied in addition to the usual amount of regulation hose with two or more Babcock or chemical fire extinguishers, extension lad- ders, and other necessary apparatus.

POLICE DEPARTMENT.

Youngstown is a cosmopolitan city, almost every civilized country in the world having representatives within its limits. 11 is only to be expected that in such a large and mixed community, mmibering over 70,000 souls, a certain percentage of the inhabitants will be occasional or habitual transgressors against the moral code, and defiers of the laws which society has made for self protection. To cope successfully with this element a well-organized police force is necessary, and Youngstown is therefore fortimate in having a chief of police, police officials, and a police force of which any municipality might well be proud.

From the time of Colonel James Hillman, the first constable, and almost, if not actually.

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the first settler in the township, the department has experienced a gradual but steady growth, keeping full pace at all times with the require- ments of the ever-growing community.

Colonel, or, as we may here call him, Con- stable Hillman, was a man of nerve, as is evi- clenced in the fact of his single-handed arrest of a party of Indians, one of whom had shot and desperately wounded a white settler of Deerfield, named Daniel Diven, in revenge for having been cheated, as he thought, in a horse trade. The Indian had intended to shoot John Diven, Daniel's brother, but had shot Daniel by mistake. The Indians had called at the house of Judge Day, where the two brothers were attending a ball on Christmas night, and had asked for John Diven. Daniel going to the door in place of his brother, received the full charge of the Indian's gun, which inflicted a terrible wound in the head, from which it was a marvel that he survived. Constable Hill- man was awakened in the night by two mes- sengers, who told the story, and getting up, immediately set off for Deerfield, twenty-five miles away. On arriving there he found some fifty or sixty men ready to start in pursuit of the Indians, He declined any assistance, how- ever, telling them they could go if they wished, but that, if he went, he should go alone, and accordingly set off by himself. He came upon their camp early in the morning, and covering the chief with his gun, ordered the Indians to stack their arms against a tree, which they did. He then told them that he wanted the Indian who had committed the assault de- livered up, and the whole party to accompany him. The Indians at first declined to deliver up the criminal and some of them after a long consultation, put on their war paint, but Mr. Hillman's resolute demeanor, coupled with the fact that he cautioned to keep guard over their arms, finally induced them to reconsider the matter, and at last they agreed to accompany him to Warren, where the chief was placed under guard and the matter was finally settled.

In 1802, Calvin Pease and Phineas Reed were elected constables to succeed James Hill- man, and from this time on until 1867 there

seems to have been little record kept of the guardians of the peace. In that year Owen Evans was elected marshal and Captain Samuel C. Rook, William Casey, and Joseph Maltby were patrolmen. Captain Rook, a vet- eran both of the Mexican and Civil wars, is still living in Youngstown, hale and hearty at the age of eighty years.

He states that "during his time every good citizen was expected to look out for himself and his own property during the day time, and the bad ones were supposed to call a truce, no day watchman being employed except on circus days, holidays, and occasions of public demonstration when the night men did double duty. At this period, the south side was so sparsely settled that the policemen never vis- ited it except to serve warrants." "Drunks" were usually conveyed to the lockup in a wheelbarrow and the policeman, being his own turnkey, would reach in the window for the key, which hung on the wall, open the door and confine his prisoner. "If it happened to be a cold night, the rule of hospitality that then prevailed required the officer to build a fire in the prison stove to insure the comfort of his guest until the hour of his trial. About 1878, the force consisted of but five men, and they were accustomed to augment their sal- aries by lighting the street lamps, which cast a feeble illumination for a few surrounding yards on favored corners. "Also in case of the discovery of a fire the patrolman was expected to convert himself into a fire alarm and pro- ceed at full speed to the engine house, yelling 'Fire!' at every step. Personal taste was the sole arbiter as to dress and if the choice ran to a plug hat and sack coat or a straw hat and Prince Albert. or no coat at all, it was all the same, just so there was enough clothing to conform to the laws of propriety and to attach his star, the emblem of authority."

With the large additions of territory and increase of population consequent on the founding of new industries, an improved sys- tem of police government became a necessity, and in 1891, as the result of public agitation the Ohio legislature passed a non-partisan bill

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(amended in 1892) which provided, among other things, for the control of the police de- partment in cities of a certain population in which Youngstown was included by a board of city' commissioners, the members of said board to be appointed by the mayor and judge of probate immediately after the organization of the council, not more than two members of the board were to be members of the same political party. All police officers and night watchmen were to be appointed by the board under suitable rules and requirements as to physical condition and other elements of fitness, as the board should adopt, and were to hold their office during good behavior subject to re- moval or suspension at the pleasure of the board for cause entered upon the record book. The commissioners were also given power, in case of emergency and upon the application of the mayor, to appoint special policemen.

"On Monday, March 10, 1891, the city council, acting under the new law, abolished the office of marshal, and created that of chief of police, with a salary of $1,000 a year. John F. Cantwell was appointed as the first chief and held the position until succeeded by W. W. McDowell on September 8, 1894."

During the first term of Mayor R. Mont- gomery, 1888-1800, the first patrol wagon was put in service, and during the second the Gamewell police and fire alarm telegraph sys- tem was installed, "two innovations that have proved to be of incalculable value in facilitat- ing the work of the department." There was no further change in the law affecting the police department until the present code went into effect in 1902, which designated as cities all municipal corporations having a population of 5,000 or more, and provided among other things for a department of public safety in every city to be administered by two or four di- rectors, as council might determine. The code also provided that every applicant for a position in the department must state in his own handwriting, under oath, the facts on the following subjects : Ist, full name, residence and postoffice address: 2d. nationality : 3d, age; 4th, place of birth ; 5th, health and phy-

sical capacity for public service ; 6th, previous employment in public service; 7th, business or employment, and residence for the previous five years; 8th, education; 9th, such other in- formation as may be reasonably required by said board touching the applicant's fitness for public service.

Chief W. W. McDowell was appointed to succeed John F. Cantwell, September 8, 1894. He had been a member of the force for about four years, previously having been appointed patrolman by Mayor Montgomery in 1890. Since he took charge the force, which then consisted of a meager squad of sixteen men, has increased in size more than fourfold, there being now some sixty-seven names on the payroll, including a captain, lieutenant, five sergeants, and two detectives.

"Among the many improvements that have been made during his incumbency there is none of which the chief is more proud than the new headquarters building, and the mod- ern sanitary prison with its humane equipment for handling the various cases that require at- tention.

"For years he had seen the desirability of a jail so constructed that the sexes could be separated, and youthful offenders kept from coming in contact with old and hardened criminals. In accordance with this idea, in the construction of the new building, a large room was set aside in the basement for tramps, none of whom, by the way, who come seek- ing lodgings are ever turned away; the chief holding the opinion that it is safer to have them under surveillance than to be roaming around the streets.

"On the upper floors are separate rooms for women, boys under sixteen, and a padded cell for violent cases. The entire construc- tion of the cell department being of steel with cement walls, floors and ceilings, the chances for escape even by the most expert jail breaker are reduced to an absolute minimum."

The Bertillon system of measurements, which since its invention by Dr. Alphonse Ber- tillon and adoption by the chief of prefecture of the Parisian police in 1882, has proved an infallible means of identifying criminals, is in

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use in the Youngstown department, having been adopted on the recommendation of Chief McDowell. A national bureau of identifica- tion under this system was established at Washington, D. C., by the national association of chiefs of police of the United States, to the benefits of which all members of the associ- ation are entitled upon payment of the yearly dues, which are graded according to the popu- lation of the various cities.

The dues for a city of the size of Youngs- town are $15 per year. If a thief or suspected person is arrested whom it is desired to identify his picture and measurements are taken under the Bertillon system and forwarded to the Central office at Washington, and if the per- son is a crook his identity, history and a list ·of his usual companions are obtained. Chief McDowell has been a member of the National Association of the Chiefs of Police of the United States and Canada since the year 1895, and of the state association since its organi- zation in 1901. He is also vice-president of the latter association. He has been untiring in his efforts to give the citizens of Youngstown a thoroughly adequate system of police pro- tection, and has succeeded as nearly as it is possible for success to be attained. Although a strict disciplinarian, he has endeared himself to his men by his uniform fairness and im- partiality and their loyalty to him is unques- tioned.

MAHONING AND SHENANGO RAILWAY AND LIGHT COMPANY.

The company controlling the street car system of Youngstown, Warren, Niles. New Castle and Sharon, and connecting lines, is known as the Mahoning and Shenango Rail- way and Light Company. It was incorporated in 1902 to take over the independent trolley lines which had been operating in the territory mentioned, many of which were owned by different corporations. The merged interests include the following companies :

The Mahoning and Shenango Railway and Light Company; Youngstown-Sharon Railway and Light Company; Sharon and

New Castle Railway Company; the Mahoning Valley Railway Company ; the New Castle and Lowell Railway Company; the Youngstown Park and Falls Street Railway Company; the Sharon and New Castle Street Railway Com- pany; the Sharon and New Castle Railway Company; the Valley Street Railway Com- pany; the Sharon and Wheatland Street Rail- way Company; the Youngstown Consolidated Gas and Electric Company; the She- nango Valley Electric Light Company; the Sharon Gas and Water Company ; the Sharps- ville Electric Light Company; and the New Castle Electric Company.

The books of each of the foregoing com- panies are kept in accord with the statutes gov- erning corporations in the states under whose laws the companies were organized, separate sets of books being kept for each of the six- teen companies. In addition to the above there are a number of other companies which form connecting links in the trolley system.

The Youngstown street railway system was founded in 1875, when James Mackay, with his brothers David and Robert, and others, organized a stock company for the pur- pose of building a horse-car line on Federal street. As at first constructed the line was about two miles long. extending from the turn-table in front of M. Clemens' old store in East Federal street, near Basin street, to the car barns at Jefferson street, Brier Hill. Four cars were in service. At first there were no conductors, and the drivers used to stop at the treasurer's office, at Smith's brewery, and deposit their fares each trip. During the busy hours of the day a man was stationed about midway on Federal street to assist the drivers in collecting fares, boarding each car in turn for this purpose. Mr. James Mackay, who is still living, was president of the com- pany for the first seven years, with Alfred Smith as treasurer. The line was gradually ex- tended and new routes added, the first exten- tion being on Wilson avenue. In 1889 a fran- chise was granted to the Youngstown Street Railway Company for an extension of the line on Federal street, Himrod avenue, Mahoning avenue, and Henrietta street; also for exten-

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sions of line on Lawrence street and North avenue.

The Mahoning Valley Electric Railway was chartered in November, 1894, and the same company was granted a twenty-five year franchise from June 3. 1895. The name of the company was changed in 1896 to the Mahoning Valley Railway Company, and the latter company subsequently purchased the property of the Youngstown Street Railway Company, increasing its capital stock from $150.000 to $1.500,000.

The Youngstown Park and Falls Street Railway Company was chartered for twenty years in 1893, with the privilege of extending five additional years on request ; and a fran- chise to October, 1914, was passed in council in June, 1895. Other franchises were subse- quently granted this company extending to June, 1920.

The Youngstown Consolidated Gas and Electric Company was incorporated in 1896, with a capital of $1,055,000.

The Mahoning and Shenango Railway and Light system now controls and operates one lunalred and fifty miles of track, not in- cluding the double track in the different cities. It has invested $150,000 in paying its share of the street paving in the different cities through which it operates. New cars have been purchased during the past year at an out- lay of $250,000. The company has invested $400,000 in power plants. It is now about to erect a new boiler house at a cost of $25,000, and to spend $50,000 more for the installation of new boilers. Two new engines will also be installed, in addition to those recently placed in commission at North avenue. They will cost $90,000. The increased demand for power since the large cars were placed in service has been tremendons, and additional power will have to be supplied. The topography of Youngstown makes it one of the most difficult cities in the country in which to operate street railways. It is hilly and consumes power at an alarming rate.

The company pays union wages to its em- ployes, who number all told about twelve hun- dred people, this number being increased at

certain periods of the year to as high as six- teen hundred. It pays out about $750,000 each year in wages alone.

The company recently moved into an en- larged and remodeled three-story office building at the corner of Boardman and Champion streets. This is one of the best arranged office structures in the city. The basement is occu- pied by the supply department, gas and elec- tric work shops, laboratory, meter and trans- former rooms. The first floor contains the office of R. Montgomery, vice-president and general manager of light and power com- panies, the offices of superintendents of gas and electric light and power departments, cashier, collection department, waiting room and freight department, On the second floor are the offices of M. E. McCaskey, vice-presi- dent and general manager of railway com- panies, general superintendent of railways, superintendents of power supply. transporta- tion, track and roadway, overhead lines, parks and claim department, On this floor the com- pany also maintains its own drafting rooms. The third floor is given over to the depart- ment presided over by Treasurer and Auditor S. C. Rogers, Besides the general bookkeep- ing room, private offices are provided for the assistant treasurer, the statistical department, stenographers and the filing and counting room. This floor also contains the directors' and conference room.

The center space in the building is occu- pied by a large and commodious vault, with openings on each floor, including the base- ment. A pneumatic tube system forms a eon- venient and rapid means of transferring papers and documents between the several depart- ments. Provision is also made for the com- fort and convenience of conductors and motor- men on all lines. A large room specially equipped with lockers and other modern con- veniences, is set apart for their exclusive use any hour of the day or night.

The plans for the remodeling of the build- ing were prepared by the company's drafts- men, who developed the ideas of the heads of the several departments as to their individual needs for space and other accommodations,

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The building also contains an independent telephone exchange with fifty-five phones for the company's exclusive use.

It is the policy of the company to patronize home industries. Where it is possible, sup- plies are purchased from the stores and fac- tories of the towns through which the lines pass or the lighting plants are operated. All the receipts from operation in the several cities are deposited with the local banks of the towns where such earnings are made. The company carries in all twenty-five separate bank ac- counts. It maintains its own inspective force, with uniformed officers on duty both day and night.

Some idea of the growth of the system may be obtained when it is remembered that twenty-five years ago there was not an electric street car or an electric light in the Mahoning and Shenango valleys. Today the district is webbed with trolley lines, and the electric light is used in stores. factories, homes and for street lighting in every town. The business is one of the most important in the country, and when interfered with by storm or other causes is missed more than any other public utility, except perhaps the water system. The trolley lines are now indispensable. They have brought distant communities nearer to- gether, made it possible to extend cities, cheapened travel, and developed communities that would never have prospered but for the transportation facilities they afford.

The power stations in Youngstown and other places in the system have been brought up to date at an enormous expense, old rolling stock is being replaced with new cars, and the company is working hard to keep the service up to the required standard.

The following is a list of the company's officers and heads of departments:

E. N. Sanderson, president, New York. R. Montgomery, vice-president and general manager, light and power companies. M. E. McCaskey, vice-president and general man- ager of railway lines. Leighton Calkins, sec- retary and general counsel, New York, Arrel. Wilson & Harrington, local counsel. S. C. Rogers, treasurer and auditor. W. T. Burns,

assistant treasurer and assistant auditor. G. J .. A. Paul, general superintendent of railways .. H. L .. Patterson, superintendent of power sup- ply. J. S. McWhirter, superintendent of shops and equipment. E. H. Bell, general superinten- dent of light and power ( Youngstown Con- solidated and Sharon Lighting Companies). Moses Coombs, general superintendent of gas. department. J. W. Sturdevant, chief claim agent. U. S. Sliter, superintendent of trans- portation (Mahoning Valley division). Chas. C. Beckman, superintendent of transportation (Youngstown-Sharon division). W. C. Smith, superintendent of transportation (New Castle division). F. C. McGonigle, superintendent New Castle Electric Company. Paul C. Kaercher, superintendent Sharon Lighting Company. Frederick L. Finch, superintendent of track and roadway ( Mahoning Valley and New Castle divisions). George G. Rose. ex- cursion agent and superintendent Idora Park. Perry Barge, superintendent of Cascade Park, New Castle, S. R. Wilkinson, superintendent of overhead lines ( Mahoning Valley and New Castle divisions). Charles D. Brown, super- intendent of overhead lines (Youngstown- Sharon division).

YOUNGSTOWN BOARD OF TRADE.

The first organized effort to promote and develop the business and commercial interests of this section was made in 1887, when, at a meeting quite generally attended by the lead- ing business men of Youngstown and the vicinity, a board of trade was organized. This board during its existence of some ten years or more was largely instrumental in advancing the objects for which it was designed. It how- ever, gradually relaxed its efforts and about ten years ago ceased to exist.

YOUNGSTOWN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.

A movement for a new and permanent or- ganization was begun some two years ago, and resulted in the Youngstown chamber of commerce, which was organized in March, 1905, under regular articles of incorporation.

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The officers were chosen as follows: A. E. Adams, president ; B. Hirshberg, first vice- president; C. H. Booth, second vice-president ; Charles W. Gilgen, secretary; R. Montgom- ery, treasurer. The board of directors consisted of C. H. Booth, A. D. Thomas, A. E. Adams, J. E. Fitch, M. I. Arms, R. Montgomery, B. Hirshberg, Charles Hart, David Tod, Louis Heller, J. A. Campbell, Thomas McDonald, John Stambaugh, Geo. J. Renner, Jr., H. L. McElroy.

The by-laws contained eleven articles, the fourth of which provided for the creation of the following committees, each to consist of five members: Education and Schools, Enter- tainment, Literature, Library, Membership, Municipal, Transportation. Food and Fuel, Public Improvements, Finance Statistics, Fire Insurance, New Industries, Arbitration, Real Estate, Manufactures, Weights and Meas- ures, Taxation, Health and Sanitary Affairs, Water and Light, Wholesale Mercantile In- terests, Streets. Charity and Benevolence, Postal Affairs, Public Accounting, Auditing, Protective.

The first annual report showed a satis- factory beginning along the different lines of effort, with a list of 284 members. The offi- cers elected were: George L. Fordyce, presi- dent: John Stambaugh. first vice-president ; Louis Heller, second vice-president ; Charles W. Gilgen, secretary; R. C. Steese, treasurer. The Board of Trustees consisted of George L. Fordyce, C. H. Booth, A. D. Thomas, A. E. Adams, John H. Fitch, M. I. Arms, R. Montgomery, B. Hirshberg, R. C. Steese, David Tod. Louis Heller, J. A. Campbell. Thomas McDonald, John Stambaugh, Frank Hitchcock.

The work of the chamber during its first year. as might be expected, was initial. A number of problems were taken hold of by the different committees, and a satisfactory start made along various lines. As its secretary said in his report: " * * * The cham- ber has attempted to carry out the purposes for which it was organized. It has been as suc- cessful as any organization in the first year of its experience can reasonably hope to be, and

its officers have endeavored to make the com- munity at large feel that it is a representative business men's organization, that it is inter- ested in the wefare of our city, and that its opinions of matters of public interest are hon- est and deliberate."

The report of the secretary for the second' year ending April 30, 1907, shows that a con- siderable amount of work has been done in spreading information in regard to the busi- ness resources and opportunities of the city, and its future prospects, and in dealing in a practical way with various local prob- lems, including the water question, the courthouse proposition, questions of health and sanitation, improvements in streets (particularly the widening of Federal street from Euwer's corner to Chest- nut street, concerning which a measure is now pending in the council), and other important matters. The Credit Men's Association, which is a branch of the chamber, now consists of sixty-seven members, merchants, manufac- turers, bankers and jobbers, whose business, which is mainly an exchange of credit infor- mation, is transacted through the office of the 374 cases have been investigated and reported. Chamber of Commerce. Within the past year This organization pays its separate individual expenses by assessments and membership dues collected from its members, and its work is not of common interest to the membership at large of the Chamber of Commerce.

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Twentieth Century History of Youngstown and Mahoning County Ohio and Representative Citizens, Part 18

Author: Sanderson, Thomas W Publication date: 1907 Publisher: Chicago, Ill., Biographical Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 993

Author: Sanderson, Thomas W
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Chicago, Ill., Biographical Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 993