USA > Pennsylvania > Erie County > A twentieth century history of Erie County, Pennsylvania : a narrative account of its historic progress, its people, and its principal interests, Volume II > Part 19
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Alfred Baker, son of Isaac, was admitted into the firm which then became Isaac Baker and Son, as at present.
Mr. Baker is acknowledged not only to be one of the leading merchants of Erie but among its most public spirited and progressive citizens, his interest in all forms of public education and charitable work being especially deep. He was one of the original promoters of the Erie public library, having been one of the board which permitted the city to own its own library and largely through his energy and wis- dom this institution has become one of the leaders of its kind in the state. As stated, he has also been identified with the local board of education for twenty-one years, having served as president of that body for several terms. He has also been a trustee of St. Vincent's Hospital since its organization and president of the same one term. He is also at the head of various social and religious organizations of the city ; is an active member of the Chamber of Commerce and is also a director in the Security and Savings Bank of which he was one of the organizers. Mr. Baker is of the Hebrew faith and has long been presi- dent of the Jewish church in Erie.
Mr. Baker was married to Miss Bertha Einhorn, a native of New York City, and daughter of Rev. Dr. David Einhorn, one of the most noted reform rabbis of his time. The five children born to Mr. and Mrs. Baker are as follows :- Clara, the widow of J. Mayer, of Cleve- land; Alfred, a member of the firm of Isaac Baker and Son: Edward M., now residing in Cleveland; and Belle and Florence, both living with their parents.
HENRY E. FISH, member of the firm of Gunnison, Rilling and Fish, a leading law firm of Erie is not the only representative of his profes- sion whose thoroughness and prominence may be traced to his long train- ing as an official court reporter. Such an experience insures an unusu- ally precise and practical knowledge of legal forms and court pro- cedures, and when grafted upon systematic study of the principles of the law makes a professional equipment of remarkable solidity. Mr. Fish is a native of Otego, Otsego county, New York, born on the 9th of April, 1863, and is a son of Liberal C. and Mary (Briggs) Fish, both also natives of the Empire state. He completed his literary educa- tion at the Gilbertsville (New York) Academy, and located at Erie in 1881. For the succeeding years he held the position of official sten- ographer in the courts of Erie, Lawrence and Mckean counties, Penn- sylvania. During that period he also prosecuted his law studies under the preceptorship of the late John P. Vincent and Judge Emory A. Walling.
Mr. Fish was admitted to the Erie bar in 1889, to the superior and supreme courts of Pennsylvania in 1896, and also to the federal courts in the latter year. In 1891, two years after becoming a legal- ized attorney, he resigned his position as official stenographer, and has since practiced law only, his leadership at the bar having been espe- cially pronounced as a civil and corporation attorney. In 1895 he became associated with William G. Crosby, as senior member of the firm Fish and Crosby, and three years later became junior of Rilling and Fish. In 1907, by the admission of Judge Frank Gunnison, the firm assumed its present style, Gunnison, Rilling and Fish. Mr. Fish is an active and valued member of the co-partnership and, individually, is both the attorney and a director of the Security and Savings Bank of Erie. In
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Masonry, he is a Knight Templar, has attained the Scottish rite and is a Shriner; and is also identified with the Erie Chamber of Com- merce and the Erie and Kahkwa clubs.
On June 25, 1889, Mr. Fish married Miss Nellie Slocum, daughter of the late R. M. Slocum, an old resident of Erie, and to them have been born the following: Roger E., in 1892, who is now a student at Princeton University, and Howard Mc, born in 1895.
DAVENPORT GALBRAITH. To the enlisting of men of notable en- terprise, ability and integrity in the furtherance of her commercial and industrial activities is to be ascribed the great material and civic pros- perity of the city of Erie, and among those prominent and honored in such connection stands Davenport Galbraith of this brief review, who is a native of this city and a scion of one of its best known families. He is a member of the bar of his native county and vice president of the Erie Trust Company; one of the leading financial institutions of this section of the old Keystone state.
Davenport Galbraith was born in the city which is now his home, April 8th, 1862. He is a son of the late Judge William A. Galbraith, long a distinguished member of the bar of Pennsylvania and also a jurist of high reputation. Davenport Galbraith was graduated at Yale University, in 1884, with the degree of Bachelor of Science, and then matriculated in the law department of the University of Pennsylvania, where he was graduated as a member of the class of 1887 and from which he received the degree of Bachelor of Laws. After his admis- sion to the bar of his native state he became associated with his father in the practice of his profession. After a few years, however, he vir- tually withdrew from this connection as another field of activity offered special attractions to him. He thus became one of the organizers and incorporators of the Erie Dime Savings & Trust Company, of which he was vice-president from the inception until the institution was reor- ganized under his direction, as the Erie Trust Company, of which he has since served as vice-president. He has given the major portion of his time and attention to the building up of this stanch and popular institution, and its success from the start has been in large degree due to his able executive policy and unflagging attention to its affairs. He enjoys unequivocal popularity in the business and social circles of his native city, is independent in politics and is identified with the Erie, the Kahkwa, the Yacht and the Golf Clubs.
On the 18th of June, 1885, Mr. Galbraith was united in marriage to Miss Winifred Downing, daughter of Jerome F. Downing, of Erie.
ALURED P. BURTON. Ranking high among the substantial business men of Erie is Alured P. Burton, who has been an important factor in advancing its growth and prosperity. He is one of the best known citizens of this place, and its leading undertaker, being at the head of the firm of A. P. Burton & Sons, of No. 1219 Peach street. His in- fluence as a man of honor and integrity is felt throughout the com- munity, his sterling qualities of heart and mind being everywhere recognized and respected. A native of this city, he was born, Septem- ber 4, 1836, a son of David and Elizabeth (Irvine) Burton. His grand- parents, John and Phoebe (Wooster) Burton, came from Connecticut to Erie county in 1811, locating in Mill Creek township, where they
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took up a large tract of land, on which they spent the remaining years of their lives.
David Burton was born in Connecticut, February 16, 1793, and when about eighteen years of age came with the family to Mill Creek township. He served as a soldier in the War of 1812, and aided in the building of Perry's fleet. He assisted his father in clearing a home- stead from its original wildness, and was subsequently engaged in vari- ous kinds of business, spending a large part of his active life in the city of Erie, dying January 30, 1869. His wife, Elizabeth Irvine, was born, January 1, 1797, in Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, and came to Erie county on a visit, when she met David Burton. She survived him a few years, passing away May 9, 1875. They were two of the orig- inal members of the class which, organized in 1826, was the nucleus of the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Erie, now the Seventh Street Church. Ten children were born of their union, namely : Peter E., born March 16. 1816, served as sheriff of Erie county, and died October 19, 1863; John, born October 19, 1818, died April 23, 1863; Andrew, born May 26, 1823, served as treasurer of Erie City, and died June 19, 1894; Wooster, born April 16, 1828, died October 28, 1856; Alured P., of this brief biography; Hannah, born September 16, 1825, married M. A. Dunning, of Erie; Sarah, born September 16, 1825, married A. P. Durlin, of Erie; Mary, born May 10, 1827, died June 19, 1829 ; Elsie, born September 19, 1831, died January 15, 1884; and Charlotte E., born April 4, 1839, married D. J. Pfouts, of Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania.
After leaving the public schools, Alured P. Burton attended the Erie Academy for awhile, and at the age of fourteen years began to learn the trade of a printer, which he subsequently followed a number of years. He was assistant post master in 1861-2 and afterwards with his father and brother Andrew, he was here employed in the coal busi- ness for awhile. Establishing himself in the undertaking business in Erie in 1876, Mr. Burton has since continued it successfully, being well liked, and very popular throughout the community. He has a thorough knowledge of the art and science connected with his profession, and for many years has been very prominent as an undertaker, and very widely known in connection with the Tri-County and State Funeral Directors' Association, of which he was president for a time. He is still a member of that organization, and also belongs to the National Funeral Directors' Association. . In 1895, without solicitation on his part, Mr. Burton was appointed by Governor Hastings a member of the first State Board of Undertakers, and at the first meeting of that body, held in Philadelphia, November 1, 1895, he was chosen treasurer of the board. In these organizations, the object of which is to promote the knowledge of the business, and provide for co-operation among its members, Mr. Burton has been quite active and prominent.
Mr. Burton married, October 1, 1857, Susan, daughter of George W. Brecht, of East Mill Creek township, Erie county. Six children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Burton, namely: Charles H., George D., Lewis E., one daughter who died in infancy; Harry, of the firm of A. P. Burton & Sons, and Ramsay, also associated in business with his father. These sons, Harry and Ramsay, are well acquainted with the details of undertaking, and share with their father the responsi- bilities of the extensive business which the firm is managing. Religi- ously Mr. Burton is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, to which Mrs. Burton, also, belongs. Politically he is a steadfast Repub-
THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
ASTON, LENOK TILDEN FOUNDATIONS
Rom thompson
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lican, and has served as a member of the common council. Fraternally he is active and influential in Masonic circles, being a Knight Temp- lar, and a thirty-second degree Scottish Rite Mason.
VICTORY M. THOMPSON, deceased, was for many years closely identified with the development of the transportation, coal, oil and real estate interests of northwestern Pennsylvania, and was recognized as one of the most progressive business men and citizens of Erie for a period of over thirty years. Mr. Thompson was a native of Madison county, New York, where he was born on August 7, 1829, the son of Joseph S. and Rachel (Case) Thompson. The father was born in the Green Mountain state, son of Joseph Thompson, a native of France, who originally settled in Massachusetts and thence moved to Vermont. The maternal family was of Scotch origin.
The parents of Victory M. located at Erie in 1832, and in 1848, when nineteen years of age, the youth engaged in the canal boat busi- ness-not as a laborer, but as proprietor of a number of boats which he operated and later owned, organizing what was long known as the "Thompson Line." During this period he also became interested in the oil business, owning and operating the Erie City Oil Works, one of the early refineries in the United States. Besides controlling this transporta- tion line and conducting his oil refining business, Mr. Thompson as a young man carried on a successful coal business, at Erie, Pennsylvania, and also operated at Meadville, Pennsylvania. Furthermore, he had other large commercial interests, and was an extensive holder of real estate in many of the points around which his business interests centered. At his prime, in fact, he was considered one of the most eminent business men of northern Pennsylvania.
Victory M. Thompson married Rebecca, daughter of John and Esther (Gillespie) Glenn, who was a native of Erie. Her father was born in the north of Ireland, and was a pioneer and honored citizen of Erie county. Mr. Thompson died in October, 1887, his wife having passed away the year before. Their eldest son, Clarence L., still occupies the old Thompson residence at Eighth and Cherry streets, where he has resided for forty-five years.
ORLANDO E. CROUCH, president and treasurer of Crouch Brothers Company, representing the largest milling industry of Erie, is also one of the pioneer millers of the county. The standing of the family as a leading factor in founding the infant communities of the county is fur- ther strengthened by the fact that the paternal grandfather, Phineas Crouch, migrated with his family from his native county of Rutland, Vermont, to Erie county, as early as 1817. He first located in Fairview township, at a later date settling permanently in MeKean township. The maternal grandparents John and Harriet May, were natives of Ply- mouth, Massachusetts, and settled in the locality about the same time as the Crouches. The parents of Orlando E., Ansel and Nancy (May) Crouch, were natives respectively of Rutland county, Vermont, and Can- aan, New Hampshire, the father being born in 1794, and the mother in 1804. The former was an industrious and prosperous farmer, and Orlando E. was born on the family homestead in Mckean township, on the 18th of September, 1835. He is the fifth in order of birth, the other members of the family being Melissa, Sophronia, Phineas and Harvey L., deceased ; Joseph B., a resident of Erie; and John M., who is also dead.
Vol. II-9
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Orlando E. Crouch, of this sketch, was reared on the farm in Mc- Kean township until he was sixteen years of age and soon afterward (in 1852) he became an apprentice at the milling trade and business at Wesleyville, a suburb of Erie. In 1852 he located at Erie and in the following year, with his brother Phineas, he purchased the old Fair- mount mill on East Eighth street. Fourteen years of successful busi- ness enabled them to build the Merchant Mills and when this plant was burned in 1892 they proceeded to erect larger and more modern mills. They were completed in the year following the fire, and the business was subsequently incorporated with Phineas Crouch as president and Orlan- do E. Crouch as treasurer and he subsequently became president. He is therefore at the head of the largest and oldest industry of the kind in Erie ; is an active member of the board of trade, a director of the Peoples' Bank, and a citizen who, in every respect, is a credit to his fine, sturdy family and his American citizenship. Since his youth he has been an earnest Methodist and for years has been a substantial and an active supporter of the First church of Erie. Mr. Crouch's wife was known before her marriage as Miss Carrie L. Dickinson. She is a native of Wattsburg, Pennsylvania, daughter of Dr. S. and Harriet (Maxwell) Dickinson. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. O. E. Crouch are as fol- lows: Martha, Charles R .; Ruth E., who is now Mrs. E. H. Suerkin, of Erie ; and Edith A., who married R. C. Arbuckle, also of that city.
CHARLES HENRY TAFT, a native son, conducts one of the most extensive tailoring establishments in Erie. From a small beginning through his patience and perseverance and the manifestation of a high grade of business sagacity he has founded an enterprise which from year to year gradually enhanced in value until at present he is numbered among the leading tailors of the Bay city. Not only in business lines is he well known and highly respected but also socially inasmuch as he occupies a high place as a citizen who largely devotes himself to the uppermost interests of the city and as well to the cultivation of a wide circle of intimate friends.
Nr. Taft, as above stated, is a native son and represents one of the oldest families of this emporium. His grandparents were Thruman and Sarah E. (Ross) Taft, originally from Vermont and Connecticut, respectively. They were both of distinguished New England families, the former being of Scotch-Irish while the latter was of Scotch descent. It is worthy of remark here that the Taft family, which is now under consideration, is identical with that from which descended the present president of the United States, William H. Taft. At an early date Thru- man J. Taft located in this city and was the promoter and proprietor of one of the pioneer lime kilns established here. In the conduct of his business he supplied lime for the building of the first "Reed House" and for a number of other well known edifices. Later in life he removed to the state of Iowa where he entered into rest, while his widow, who survived him for a number of years, passed into the beyond in this city.
Joseph R. Taft. the father of Charles Henry, was born on the corner of Sixth and Walnut streets in Erie in 1811. Hle courted the distinction of being the first baggagemaster to go out from Erie on the first passen- ger train which was put into operation on the Pittsburg & Erie Railroad running between this city and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Later he be- came a conductor on the same road, continuing to perform the duties of that station for many years. Later in his life he and his family
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repaired to Iowa where they purchased a farm and for about ten years they engaged in agricultural pursuits. However, husbandry not being that occupation for which he was best fitted, he gave it up and, return- ing to Erie, again he engaged in railroading, in which he continued until he passed out of this life on October 10, 1905, when he was in his sixty- first year. His wife was Sarah E. Lindsley, a native of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, who still survives. In their family were the following children : Charles H .; Arthur N., of this city; May, who was united in marriage with Charles M. Pierce, and resides in New York City; Mrs. Jennie Standbauch, a resident of Buffalo, New York; Ross L., a resi- dent of Erie; Sarah E., the wife of Irvin Foster, residents of Roches- ter, New York; and Raymond R., also of this city.
East Eleventh street between Holland and German streets in the sixth ward, was the birthplace of Charles H. Taft and there he entered into this life January 29, 1867. His education was acquired in the city schools and upon completing his studies he engaged in employment in various capacities in different business houses here for a considerable length of time when eventually he launched out in the merchant tailor- ing business at No. 1504 Peach street, making this independent venture about the year 1891. Meeting with success in his enterprise the volume of his trade soon required that he seek larger quarters in a more favora- ble district and he removed to No. 6 West Eleventh street, where he remained for a time and in 1908 assumed charge at his present location on Peach street in the Kimberly Hotel block. Here he conducts a high class tailoring establishment and is one of the most popular men in this line of trade in the city, his popularity being so great that he courts the reputation of being the leading tailor in the Bay city. His trade is exclusively of the very best, his motto being, "there is nothing too good to go into clothes" and as a consequence his extensive and prosperous business is an evident demonstration that he daily lives in obedience to the rule which he has set for the government of his business. He turns out the highest class workmanship, being very careful at all times to give value received and his output brings him, in every instance, the highest approval and as a consequence, as the years have passed by, he has increased his patronage to such an extent that he is now one of the most reliable and highly respected business men of the city.
Mr. Taft wedded Miss Dora Woodworth, a native of Girard, Penn- sylvania, and a daughter of Parker Woodworth, the couple having one son, Harold, who is now in his fourteenth year.
Fraternally Mr. Taft is well known, being a member of the Masonic fraternity and he also belongs to the Royal Arcanum, while socially he finds pleasure as a member of the Country Club. Religiously both he and his wife uphold the Presbyterian faith and are stanch supporters of a local church of that denomination. In this he has deviated some- what from the faith marked out by his ancestors inasmuch as his grand- parents were pioneers of the First Baptist church of this city. Mr. Taft is a man of excellent qualities of character whose straightforward deal- ing has commended him to the highest respect of every one throughout the community and he is justly entitled to honorable mention as one of Erie's foremost business men.
FRANK J. DETZEL. One of the successful and enterprising citizens of Erie, Frank J. Detzel is a fine representative of the German element that has added so materially to the thrift and prosperity of the city.
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Public-spirited and liberal, he willingly devotes much of his time and money to advancing the interests of city and county, and is now, in the spring of 1909. representing his district in the Pennsylvania Legislature. A son of the late Matthias and Apoline Detzel, he was born, January 24, 1859, in Erie county, on the home farm in Mill Creek township.
Matthias Detzel was born, July 25, 1834, in Bavaria, which was likewise the birthplace of his wife. Emigrating to the United States in 1852, he came direct to Erie county, locating as a farmer in Mill Creek township. Retiring from agricultural pursuits, he located in Erie, and in 1865 opened a grocery on State street, between Eleventh and Twelfth streets. Successful as a merchant, he gradually enlarged his operations, and in 1876, built, on Parade street, the first grocery in the east part of the city, and continued as a retail grocer until becoming interested in the restaurant business. Previous to that time, however, he engaged in con- tracting, in 1813 and 1814 receiving the contract for paving Sixth street from French to Parade street, and that part of Parade street lying between Sixth and Eighteenth streets. He also laid, in 1869, the Parade street sewer. In 1861 he was chosen supervisor of streets, and had the distinction of being appointed the first city superintendent of streets. A valued member of the Democratic party, he served one term as alder- man. Religiously he belonged to the Roman Catholic church.
Brought up in Erie, Frank J. Detzel was educated in the parochial and public schools, and as a boy was well trained to habits of industry and thrift. Succeeding his father in the grocery business in 1881. he has been exceedingly prosperous, enlarging and increasing his operations from year to year. Outgrowing the building which he at first occupied, he erected, in 1902, at the corner of Parade and Thirteenth streets, one of the finest brick business houses in the city, and is here carrying on a substantial retail grocery business, the equal of any house in the place, not even excepting those on State street.
For many years Mr. Detzel has been very active and prominent in public affairs, and is to-day one of the leaders of the Democratic party, both in Erie city and Erie county. For one term he was school director ; he has been a delegate to the Democratic conventions held in Harrison ; has served on the city and county committees: in 1906 was elected to the State Legislature; and in 1908 attended the Democratic National Convention which met in Denver. He is a member of the board of trus- tees of the Public Library.
Mr. Detzel married, June 30, 1881. Ida R., daughter of Jacob and Caroline Heidt, natives of Bavaria, Germany. Seven children have blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. Detzel, namely: Bertie L., Edward M., Olivia, Florence, Louise, Marie and Ida. Religiously Mr. Detzel and his family are members of the Roman Catholic church.
JOHN BRYCE, V. S., proprietor of a large livery establishment at the corner of Fifth and French streets, Erie, Pennsylvania, is a native of Canada, born at Mount Pleasant, Brant county, Ontario. His parents, George and Margaret C. Bryce, emigrated to Canada. in 1843, from their native town of Doune, Scotland, and became well-known and highly respected pioneers, while their sons attained prominence in their various walks of life. The eldest son, Rev. George Bryce, LL. D., was a pioneer in the then newly created province of Manitoba. In 1871, he was com- missioned by the Presbyterian church of Canada to establish a college near Fort Garry, on the Red River of the North, as a center of learning
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