USA > Oklahoma > Tulsa County > Tulsa > The history of Tulsa, Oklahoma > Part 26
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Bernard H. Lasky pursued a public and high school education in San Fran- cisco and afterward attended the Stanford University, from which he was gradu- ated with the Bachelor of Science degree in 1912. He then took up mining work which he followed in California, Nevada, Arizona and Texas. For a time he was field engineer for the United States Smelting & Refining & Exploration Company, so serving for two years, after which he came to Oklahoma and was with the Empire Gas & Fuel Company, occupying that position for a year. He was next with Hager, Bates & Lewis, a prominent firm of geologists and then entered the army in response to the call for troops to serve in the World war. He was commissioned a first lieutenant of the Three Hundred and Sixteenth Engineers and saw active service in France and Belgium, being familiar with every phase of modern warfare such as was necessitated by reason of the course pursued by the Germans in their attempt to dominate the world.
Following his return to America Mr. Lasky became associated with Mowry Bates, the pioneer geologist and oil man of Oklahoma, and they are now asso- ciated in the practice of their profession as geologists and oil engineers of Tulsa, making appraisals and geological reports. Mr. Lasky has remained throughout the intervening years a close student of his profession, constantly broadening his knowledge by study, research and investigation. To this end he has taken up membership in many technical and scientific societies, belonging to the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, the American Asso- ciation of Petroleum Geologists and various others. He has a large clientele in the oil business and ranks very high in his profession.
Aside from his profession he is a Mason and has membership in Petroleum Lodge, No. 474, A. F. & A. M., the Elks lodge at Seattle, Washington, and the
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Foresters of America. He is a popular young man by reason of social qualities, while his energy and developing ability are bringing him prominently to the front in professional circles.
JOHN T. BLAIR.
Extensive business interests claim the time and attention of John T. Blair, who as a member of the firm of Blair Brothers, realtors, architects and builders, with offices on the seventh floor of the Petroleum building, is readily conceded a representative and progressive citizen of Tulsa. He was born in Wheaton, Kansas, on the 31st of October, 1885, a son of John J. and Celia ( Farrell) Blair, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Illinois. The Blair family were pioneers in Kansas, to which state the father removed in 1876 and where for eleven years he engaged in farming. In 1887, however, he removed to Missouri, where he farmed until 1898, and then, returning to Kansas, resumed his agricultural pursuits in that state. In 1902 he came to Oklahoma and located in Cushing, remaining there until 1905, when he established residence in Tulsa. He has since been associated with his two sons in the conduct of their business interests and has also built and sold houses on his own account. He has made a success in life and he still retains possession of his homestead in Missouri which brings him a substantial income. Mrs. Blair is also living and takes a prominent part in the club and social affairs of Tulsa.
In the acquirement of an education John T. Blair attended the schools of Missouri and at the age of sixteen years, putting his textbooks aside, began railroading as an employe of the Frisco and Katy lines in the building depart- ment. For three years he was active in that connection, during which time he aided in the construction of that road into Cushing. During his spare hours Mr. Blair took several correspondence courses along the branches of civil service and architecture and in 1907 he established a building business in Tulsa. In 1910 he also became interested in real estate and with his brother, Joseph E., is now conducting business under the firm name of Blair Brothers. They make a specialty of designing, building and selling homes, and their business has grown to extensive proportions.
When Mr. Blair embarked upon his business career in Tulsa he had a capital of but seven dollars but with characteristic energy and determination he forged ahead, allowing no obstacles, however great, to remain long in his path. He has since that time planned and built homes at a cost of over three million dollars, in addition to many office buildings, churches and other public structures. In the year 1920 the firm's building operations exceeded the six hundred thou- sand dollar mark and their real estate sales for the first six months of that year amounted to over one million four hundred thousand dollars. The firm has been instrumental in opening up the following additions, starting north on Main street : Kirkpatrick Heights, Carlton Place, Crosley Heights, Morning. side, Maple Ridge and Sunset Park, and they are now busy building these addi- tions. They are sole agents for Sunset Park and hope to make it the most exclusive residential section in Tulsa. The operations of Blair Brothers for the year 1921 will exceed all previous years, and the labor records of Tulsa show that they have for the past ten years maintained the largest individual pay roll of any firm in the city.
On the 12th of January, 1916, Mr. Blair was united in marriage to Miss
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Theresa Ronoldson, a daughter of William and Belle Ronoldson. Her mother passed away in 1896 and until recently her father has made his home in Tulsa but is now a resident of New Orleans. Mr. and Mrs. Blair have become parents of three children: Mary Isabelle, Geraldine Cecelia and John William.
Since age conferred upon Mr. Blair the right of franchise he has been a stanch supporter of the democratic party, having firm belief in the efficacy of the principles of that party as factors in good government. He is a com- municant of the Catholic church and fraternally is identified with the Knights of Columbus. Mr. Blair is well informed on the questions and issues of the day and is a self-educated man, for he put away his school books when but sixteen years of age. Thrown upon his own resources at an early day he learned his lessons in the school of experience, and his advice to young men starting into the business world today is to be ambitious and honest above all else. He is also a stanch advocate of the "own your home" policy, believing the home, no matter how small, to be the finest investment which a young married man can make. During the World war Mr. Blair devoted a generous portion of his time to the promotion of all local drives and also made extensive donations to many charitable affairs.
JOHN MURRAY WARD.
High on the roll of citizens' who have contributed to the business development and consequent improvement of Tulsa appears the name of John Murray Ward, who arrived here in 1907, the year in which Oklahoma was welcomed into the galaxy of the states that constitute this great republic. It is an interesting fact that one of his ancestors was active in shaping the history of the republic, for the interesting story of Mary Lindley Murray and her pleasing hospitality is known to every school-boy. Her husband, one of the prosperous merchants of New York, was rather inclined toward the crown, a tory at heart, but Mrs. Murray and her daughters were ardent advocates of the patriots' cause and she quickly embraced her opportunity to aid the forces of Washington when, following the British victory in the battle of Long Island, General Howe, with his five British men-of-war sailed up East river to continue the pursuit of Washington, who had retreated from Brooklyn. The British anchored opposite Murray Hill, on which stood Belmont, the splendid home of the Murrays. Mrs. Murray watched the landing of the Redcoats four thousand strong and at the same time saw the disorderly retreat of the American forces, who had not had time to rally. Realizing that the opportunity must be given for General Washington to reassemble his men in battle form Mrs. Murray took advantage of a previous acquaintance with General Howe in England and sent one of her servants to invite him and his staff to dine at the Murray home. "I do thank you, Madam," was Howe's courteous reply. "But I must first catch that rascally Yankee, Putnam." "Did thee not hear that he had gone?" was her quick rejoinder. So came Howe, Cornwallis, Tryon, Clinton and the others to enjoy the courtesy of the mistress of Belmont. She and her daughters gave the English guests a warm welcome and entertained them so royally that while lingering over the hospitable board the American forces had opportunity to rally. Messengers were dispatched and the divisions massed, so that behind the Harlem entrenchments the patriots were ready for Howe's attack the following morning. History records this "Not a great battle, but a great victory for the Americans," and in
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R.K.Parkhurst.
The ward
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journals kept of that day both British and American soldiers attribute Howe's delay at the Murray home as the reason of Putnam's chance of escape, and the time thus gained made possible later American victories.
Charles Sumner has said, "Peace hath her victories no less renowned than war," and it was in the domain of peace that John Murray Ward made brilliant conquests through his capable management of business affairs. As stated it was in the year 1907 that Mr. Ward and his wife, May Parkhurst Ward, removed
from Colorado Springs to Tulsa. The opportunities of the city made strong appeal to him and though for some years he had been a successful physician in New York city he turned his attention to commercial pursuits in the west. For a considerable period he was identified with hotel management and his ability in this direction was pronounced. While in Tulsa he became the first receiver for the Robinson Hotel and later was manager of Hotel Tulsa, entering upon this connection at the time of the opening of the hostelry and so continu- ing until failing health caused him to put aside the arduous duties of this char- acter. Later he was identified with real estate development in Tulsa and his sound judgment was at all times manifest in his activity in the real estate field. Opportunity seemed ever to him a call to action and one to which he made ready response. By perseverance, determination and honorable efforts he overthrew every obstacle which barred his path to success and reached the goal of pros- perity, while his genuine worth, broad mind and public spirit made him a director of public thought and action. He stood as a representative of our best type of American manhood and chivalry.
REUBEN KELLUM PARKHURST.
The name of Reuben Kellum Parkhurst is closely associated with the sub- stantial development and improvement of Tulsa, where many attractive build- ings which he erected still stand as monuments to his spirit of enterprise and progress. It has been said that if one would understand the individual he must delve into his ancestral history. In tracing the descent of Reuben K. Parkhurst one learns that the family prior to the fifteenth century was prominent in Sur- rey, England, where Parkhurst Manor was established and where Sir Robert Parkhurst held court in the year 1629, while afterward he became lord mayor of London. The Parkhurst arms in heraldry record deeds of bravery and valor of those of the family who participated in the crusades. Parkhurst forest in the Isle of Wight is the first recorded royal forest and up to the present time three thousand acres still known by this name are protected and maintained by the government for the growth of timber used in the navy.
Through each succeeding generation representatives of the Parkhurst family have stanchly borne their part in matters of citizenship and have manifested the progressive spirit which does not fear to venture where favoring opportunity points the way. It was this that led members of the family to come to the new world and made Reuben K. Parkhurst a citizen of Tulsa, when the present metropolis of the oil field bore little resemblance to the beautiful and substan- tial city that it is today. Leaving his home in Fairfield, Illinois, Mr. Parkhurst came to Tulsa in 1908. With notable prescience and sagacity he seemed to realize something of what the future had in store for the town and acting according to the dictates of his faith and judgment he at once purchased prop- erty on North Main street, on a part of which he erected the Parkhurst block,
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thus giving impulse to the growth and development of business interests in that part of the city. He afterward erected and later sold several handsome resi- dences on the north side, while he and his wife established their home at No. 622 North Cheyenne street, where he resided to the time of his demise in November, 1916. His activity in business not only contributed to his individual success but was also a potent factor in the development of the city and state. His life was one of continuous activity, in which was accorded due recognition of labor, so that he became one of the substantial and prosperous residents of Tulsa. His interests in his later years were thoroughly identified with those of the city and at all times he was ready to lend his aid and cooperation to any movement calculated to benefit this section of the country or advance its won- derful development. His daughter, May Parkhurst Ward, widow of J. M Ward, is still a resident of Tulsa, a lady of liberal culture and innate refinement, whose life is characterized by many good deeds of a charitable and benevolent nature and who is very active in club matters.
THOMAS M. HASKINS, M. D.
Dr. Thomas M. Haskins engaged in the practice of surgery in Tulsa since 1916, thoroughly qualified for his professional duties by broad preliminary training, having been a student in the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Baltimore and in the Bellevue Hospital Medical College of New York, from which he graduated in 1888. He is a native of West Virginia, his birth having occurred on a farm in Wetzel county, August 19, 1869, his parents being William H. and Anna Jane (Brookover) Haskins. The father, a native of Virginia, was of Irish descent, the great-grandparents having been the founders of the family in the new world. William H. Haskins largely devoted his attention to the occupation of farming, which he followed in Wetzel county for many years. He was likewise prominent in public affairs there, filling a number of offices and was a member of the Baptist church. His wife was born in West Virginia and in their family were six children, four of whom are living, there being three sons: Thomas M., John C., and A. P.
The youthful experiences of Dr. Haskins were those of the farm bred boy. He early decided to enter upon the profession of medicine as a life work, but taught school for several years in early manhood, beginning in his teens. When twenty-two years of age he was elected superintendent of schools in Wetzel county and filled the office for two terms. He afterward taught a private normal school for two years at Burton, West Virginia, and was occupying the position of county superintendent of schools at the time of the completion of his first medical course. His more advanced educational training of a literary character was received in the Fairmont Normal School and later he entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Baltimore, where he won his M. D degree in 1886. He practiced for two years in his native town and for ten months at Davis City, after which he located at Benwood, West Virginia. Subsequently he removed to Wheeling, West Virginia, where he erected a hospital. The main building was first constructed and in the spring of 1900 he built an annex in order to accommodate his growing practice. The main building is a four-floor structure, one hundred by fifty feet, and he equipped it with every modern convenience. The annex is five stories in height and the hospital became one of the best in Wheeling. Dr. Haskins continued at the
DR. THOMAS M. HASKINS
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head of the hospital until 1916, when he removed to Tulsa, where he has since engaged in surgical and general practice. His ability is pronounced by reason of his thorough study and broad experience and he is a member of the Associa- tion of Military Surgeons of the United States, which was organized in 1891 and incorporated by congress in 1905. He likewise belongs to the Ohio County Medical Society, the Tulsa County Medical Society, the Oklahoma State Medi- cal Association and the American Medical Association.
In 1894 Dr. Haskins was married to Miss Louise M. Schenk, a daughter of F. Schenk, a prominent business man of Wheeling, West Virginia, who was the founder of the F. Schenk Sons Packing Company. Dr. and Mrs. Haskins have become parents of five children : Rhea, twenty-five years of age; Mary. twenty-two; Edna, twenty ; Thomas, seventeen; and Evelyn, fourteen. Dr. Haskins belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, also to the Knights of Pythias and in Tulsa he has become a member of the Petroleum Club. His political allegiance is given to the republican party and at all times he keeps thoroughly informed concerning the vital questions and issues of the day. While in Wheeling he served on the city council, also on the board of control for six years. In recognition of his hospital experience he was ap- pointed in 1910 by Governor William C. Glasscock on the board of examination and registration of nurses, also appointed by Governor Hatfield, serving till he left West Virginia and came to Tulsa. He took special work in the Post- Graduate Hospital, New York, and clinics in Chicago and New York. He is a member of the staff of the Physicians and Surgeons Hospital of Tulsa.
DICK B. MASON.
Dick B. Mason, manager of the White Oil Corporation, a large oil producing company of Oklahoma, has made his home in Tulsa since 1917. For many years before his arrival in this state, however, he was connected with the oil industry. He is a native of Marietta, Ohio, born September 1, 1877. His father, E. J. Mason, was a railway engineer, connected with the Pennsylvania Railroad Company. At the time of the Civil war, however, he put aside all business and personal considerations and joined the army in defense of the Union, serving under General Hooker. He was a member of the Baptist church and in that faith passed away. ' His wife, who bore the maiden name of Lucetta Scribner, was born in Lowell, Ohio, and she, too, has departed this life. In their family were five children, all of whom are living.
Dick B. Mason attended the public and high schools of his native city and afterward took up railroading, becoming a telegraph operator when but thirteen years of age in the employ of the Baltimore & Ohio and the Pennsylvania Rail- road Companies. His early identification with the oil business began when he entered the employ of the Oil Well Supply Company at Parkersburg, West Vir- ginia. He remained with that firm for two years in West Virginia, after which he was transferred to Chanute, Kansas, where he represented the same concern. In 1904 he became identified with the Oil Well Supply Company at Bartlesville but in 1911 severed his connection with that concern and has since been carrying on business on his own account in connection with oil production. He dates his residence in Tulsa from 1917 and is now the manager of the White Oil Corpora- tion, a very large production company. His capability is widely recognized and he is a business man of the highest ethical and commercial standards. Steady prog-
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ress has characterized his course and his advancement results from ready recog- nition and utilization of opportunities.
In 1904 Mr. Mason was married to Miss Mary Morrison of Caldwell, Ohio, a daughter of Judge Morrison. They have become parents of two children: Dick B., twelve years of age; and Betty Jane, aged six. Mr. Mason is a mem- ber of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and also belongs to the Ma- sonic fraternity, having attained high rank in the order, as indicated in the fact that he has membership in Syrian Temple of the Mystic Shrine at Cincinnati, Ohio. He belongs to the Country Club and is also a director of the Tulsa Cham- ber of Commerce. Those who know him recognize his sterling worth as a man and as a citizen. He is ever actuated by the spirit of progress and advancement in all that he undertakes, whether for the benefit of the public or for the advance- ment of his own fortunes. His course illustrates clearly what can be accom- plished through individual effort. Starting out to provide for his own support when a lad in his early teens, he has through industry, diligence and sound judg- ment steadily worked his way upward until he is now occupying a most creditable position on the stage of business activity dealing with the oil industry in the southwest.
LEMUEL ALVIN KAUFMAN.
Lemuel Alvin Kaufman, proprietor of the Kaufman hotel, one of the leading hostelries of Tulsa, was born in Findlay, Ohio, October 10, 1872, his parents being Samuel and Sarah A. (Hall) Kaufman. The father was born in Ohio and engaged in the saddlery business at Mt. Blanchard, that state, for a number of years. He was a public-spirited citizen, interested in all that pertained to the general welfare, and he contributed in substantial measure to the moral progress and development of his community as a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He was a representative of a Masonic fraternity and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. His wife, also a native of the Buckeye state, is now living in Tulsa, and by her marriage she became the mother of two sons, both of whom are engaged in the hotel business, the elder being W. C. Kaufman, who is a hotel proprietor in Columbus, Ohio.
Lemuel A. Kaufman, after attending the public and high schools of his native state and the Grand River Institute of Austinburg, Ohio, turned his attention to the grocery business, being at that time a progressive youth without financial resources but possessed of energy and ambition. He afterwards went on the road as a traveling salesman and for fifteen years represented a chemical house of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, his territory covering the entire United States save that section west of the Rocky mountains. He afterwards came to Tulsa and was associated with John O. Mitchell in the oil business and other interests until July, 1917. He then turned his attention to hotel management, and is now the owner of the Kaufman Hotel, a first-class hostelry containing one hundred rooms, with attractive furnishings and modern equipment. As manager of the business he is making a success of the enterprise and the hotel is most liberally patronized. Mr. Kaufman has himself been an extensive traveler and recognizes the demands and needs of the traveling public. He is also associated with sev- eral other business enterprises as a director or stockholder.
In 1918 Mr. Kaufman was married to Miss Pearl Hartzog, a native of Ohio. He has three children by a former marriage: B. A. who is the head of the engineering department of the National Construction Company of Columbus,
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LEMUEL A. KAUFMAN
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Ohio. married Laura Claypool, and has two daughters, Anita and Margaret , Bernice is the wife of R. Stanley Wallace of the Columbus Bank Note Company of Columbus, Ohio, and they have one son, R. Stanley, Jr., usually called Dick. The daughter Gertrude is the wife of John Wallace, and they have one son, Harry, who is with his parents in Columbus, Ohio.
Mr. Kaufman has always been very fond of baseball and motoring, and turns to these pursuits for his pleasure and recreation. He is a popular and genial host, and since coming to Tulsa has won substantial success in the hotel business. Fraternally he is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and his religious faith is that of the Methodist Episcopal church.
OLIVER H. LEONARD.
Seldom does the news of a death carry with it such a sense of personal bereavement into many homes as did that of Oliver H. Leonard, honored as a citizen and business man in Tulsa, whose well-spent life and sterling character gained for him the warmest esteem, affection and goodwill of all with whom he was associated. Oliver H. Leonard was born July 26, 1863, in Muscatine county, Iowa. He belonged to one of the pioneer families of that locality, his parents being Joshua and Ellen H. (Ady) Leonard, both of whom were natives of Ohio. Removing westward they resided for many years in Iowa, where the father followed the occupation of farming as a life work. He was prominent in community affairs and commanded the respect of all who knew him. His birth occurred in Delaware county, Ohio, and there he obtained his education, after which he devoted his attention to farming in that state until 1854, when he became a resident of Springfield, Illinois. Two years later he established his home in Iowa, casting in his lot with the early settlers of Muscatine county, where he procured a tract of wild land which he converted into a rich and productive farm. He resided there until 1864 and then went to Poweshiek county. Iowa, becoming one of the prominent and influential citizens of that section of the state. He served for nine consecutive years on the board of county commissioners, and took a most helpful interest in promoting public progress in the little city of Brooklyn, and there he passed away in 1900. He gave his early political allegiance to the whig party and upon its dissolution joined the ranks of the new republican party. Both he and his wife were devoted members of the Methodist church and died in that faith. They had a family of seven children.
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