USA > Pennsylvania > Allegheny County > Pittsburgh > Biographical review : v. 24, containing life sketches of leading citizens of Pittsburgh and the vicinity, Pennsylvania > Part 30
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In September, 1886, Mr. Hamilton was ap- pointed Superintendent of the Schools of Alle- gheny County, Pennsylvania, and since then has been four times elected to fill that impor- tant position. In 1888 he organized the Alle- gheny County School Directors' Association, which has done much to unify and raise the standard of educational work in the county. During 1893 and 1894 he was president of the Pennsylvania State Teachers' Association. About this time Grove City College conferred on him the degree of Master of Arts. At present writing he has a larger number of teachers and pupils under his supervision than any other county superintendent in the United States. In 1886, when he became superin- tendent, there were four hundred and fifty teachers, with twenty-three thousand school children. There are now more than one thou- sand schools, with forty-eight thousand chil- dren.
Although leading an unusually active pro- fessional life, Mr. Hamilton has found time for occasional glances into the business world. In 188S, with a few others, he was instrumental in organizing the Consolidated Building and Loan Association of Braddock, and annually since then has been elected one of its Board of Managers. He is a director in the Masonic Hall Association of Braddock and a member of the Board of Managers of
the Carnegie Library. He was the first man in this part of the country to get Mr. Andrew Carnegie interested in public libraries, secur- ing in 1882 from that now noted philanthro- pist the sum of five hundred dollars to pur- chase books for the Braddock Public School Library. In 1897 Mr. Hamilton was one of the incorporators of the State Bank of Brad- dock, of which he is now a director.
In politics he has always been a Republi- can. He is a stanch protectionist, and in 1884 took the stump in the interest of the Plumed Knight. However, since his election as Superintendent he has not taken an active part in politics outside of his own town. For many years he has represented his ward in the City Council of Braddock, and for two terms was president of that body.
In fraternity matters Mr. Hamilton has taken a leading part. He is a member of Braddock's Field Lodge, No. 510, F. & A. M .; Shiloh Chapter, No. 257, R. A. M .; Gourgas Lodge of Perfection; of Pittsburg Chapter, Rose Croix; Pennsylvania Council, Princes of Jerusalem; of Pennsylvania Con- sistory, S .. P .:. R .:. S., thirty-second de- gree; of Tancred Commandery, No. 48, K. T., of which he is at present Eminent Commander; and of Syria Temple, Illustri- ous Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of Junior Order of American Me- chanics. In many of these organizations he has filled the highest offices, and represented them in the grand bodies of the State.
But professional, business, and social mat- ters do not monopolize all of Mr. Hamilton's time. He takes a most active part in all charitable and religious work. He is a Pres- byterian, and has been for fifteen years a teacher in the Bible classes in the Sunday- school. He was a leading spirit in organiz- ing the Second Presbyterian Church of Brad-
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dock, of which he is an Elder, and served for several years as president of its Board of Trus- tees.
On June 2, 1886, he married Minnie, only daughter of John and Sarah E. McCune, of Braddock. Mrs. Hamilton died June 9, 1887, leaving one son, Paul Holland Hamilton.
The active and aggressive personality of Mr. Hamilton has made its influence felt throughout this community in every circle, educational, social, fraternal, and religious. He is widely known and highly respected, and enjoys the confidence and esteem of his fel- low-citizens in a marked degree.
JDWARD FORD, the president of the Pittsburg Plate Glass Company from 1883 to the beginning of 1897, was born January 21, 1843, at Greenville, Ind., son of Captain John B. and Mary Bower Ford. After he had finished the course of the com- mon schools at New Albany, Ind., whither his parents removed when he was about. twelve years old, Edward Ford pursued a thorough business course at Bryant & Stratton's Com- mercial College." Then he was employed as assistant clerk aboard' a steamer running on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. While on the river, he rose from the position of clerk to that of master of a steamer, and eventually became the owner of the two vessels, the " At- lantic" and the "Burgess." He subsequently sold these to the Mississippi Valley Trans- portation Company. In 1868, forming a co- partnership with his father, the firm of J. B. Ford & Son was organized for the manufact- ure of cylinder window-glass. Buying a fac- tory equipped with twelve window-glass blowers, they carried it on until the comple- tion of the plate-glass factory, which was com - menced when the firm was formed. Then,
selling the former plant, they operated both the plate-glass and window-glass furnaces, under the name of the Star Glass Company.
In 1872 Mr. Ford went to Columbus, Ohio, and there was connected with the Columbus Window Glass Company for three years. From Columbus he went to Jeffersonville, Ind., to take a position with the Ford Plate Glass Company, of which his father was the head. Severing his connection with that firm in 1881, Mr. Ford became associated with the Pittsburg Plate Glass Company of Creighton- ville, Pa., who were the pioneers of the glass industry in this section of the State. In 1883, two years after the establishment of these works, he was elected to the responsible position of president of the company. Under his wise management the business has been greatly extended, four new plants having been built. These, with those purchased from other manufacturers, make nine large factories controlled by the company. They have a pro- ducing capacity of eighteen million square feet per annum, which is stated to be six times greater than the combined product of all the other plate-glass companies in the Union.
In February, 1897, Mr. Ford became inter- ested in the manufacture of soda ash. After ending his official connection with the Pitts- burg Plate Glass Company, he was elected president and general manager of the Michi- gan Alkali Company of Wyandotte, Mich. Having accepted these offices, he is now per- manently located in Wyandotte, but still re- tains his large holdings in the Pittsburg Plate Glass Company.
ORRIS W. MEAD, superintend- ent of the Bureau of Electricity in Pittsburg, Pa., was born at Underhill, Vt., October 28, 1854. He is the
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son of the late Daniel C. and Naomi O. (Ter- rell) Mead, and a grandson of Josiah Mead, a farmer of Underhill, who belonged to one of the old Vermont families.
Daniel C. Mead was born in that town in 1828. He grew up on the old farm, and lived there until after his marriage. He engaged in business in that vicinity, shipping country produce to Boston and to other large cities. When his son, Morris W., was about four years of age, Mr. Daniel C. Mead went to Lowell and opened a hotel called the Wame- sett House, at the same time commencing the study of law with B. F. Butler. After several years spent in Lowell he changed his residence to Graniteville, Mass., where he was station agent and Postmaster until in 1861 he removed to Boston to accept a posi- tion with E. H. Ashcroft Manufacturing Company. This company was interested in steam gauges; and for them he came to Pitts- burg, opening a supply depot for their busi- ness, all the manufacturing establishments obtaining from him their first steam gauges, water gauges, valves, and so forth. Five years later a large Eastern corporation for drilling for oil made him their representative; and he bought in their name large property at Smith's Ferry, where oil was first found, where he was very successful, and later for the same company went to Cabell County, West Virginia. For five years Mr. Mead @carried on their extensive oil business in that section. He was then given the agency for their special patents for smoke preventives and coal savers, and was the first to do a large business in these lines. He married Miss Terrell, daughter of William Terrell, a mem- ber of one of the oldest families of Under- hill, his native town. Mr. Terrell was Town Clerk and Postmaster for many years. He was the owner of a large estate, and held a
prominent position in the town. Mr. Daniel C. Mead was a member of Washington Lodge, F. & A. M. He died in 1874, and Mrs. Mead died in 1875. She was the mother of seven children, of whom but two are now liv- ing, Morris W. and Electa A. The Meads were members of the Methodist Episcopal church on Oakland Avenue and afterward of the church on the corner of Magee Street and Fifth Avenue, where the father was an active official of both church and Sunday-school.
Morris W. Mead attended the public schools of the Fourteenth Ward, Pittsburg, and after- ward the University of Underhill, Vt., gradu- ating from the Pittsburg High School in 1873. He read law for two years with J. H. Baldwin, and after his father's death went into the oil business for two years, during which time he drilled two wells near Oil City. In 1877 he returned to Pittsburg, tak- ing the position of head salesman in the estab- lishment of J. R. & A. Murdock. After a short period he entered the city fire alarm office as an operator, being promoted in a year's time to position of chief operator. Two years later he was appointed superin- tendent of the Fire Alarm Telegraph, in those days a comparatively simple office. During his first year of service a vacancy occurred, and he was made secretary of the Fire Com- mission, holding for two years the com- bined positions of secretary of the Fire Com- mission and superintendent of the Fire Alarm Telegraph. So many electrical improvements and additions were made in the department of which he was superintendent that another secretary was elected; and Mr. Mead after that was able to give his entire time to the superintendence of the electrical system of the city. Under him was introduced the po- lice telephone system of Department of Pub- lic Safety. In 1887 the new charter was
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passed in Pittsburg, establishing a bureau of electricity, and Mr. Mead was made the superintendent, combining all electrical in- terests of Pittsburg, including control of the electric railroads, safety arrangements for electrical propulsion, inspection of all electric power, heat, and light wires in all the build- ings of the city, and so forth. Under him all the new and valuable improvements in electri- cal communication have been introduced, and to-day Pittsburg owns as fine a system of po- lice and fire alarm and electric light inspec- tion as can be found in the United States. The scheme of rubber covering, made in a special manner for underground wires, is an original idea of Mr. Mead's, which he intro- duced into Pittsburg, an extended contest over which was one of the leading technical contests in the year 1896. Now all new wire is thus protected before being laid.
He was president of the Pittsburg Electric Club, also a member of the New York Electric during the existence of those clubs. He is on the Electrical Committee of the International Fire Chiefs' Association, is a member of the National Committee for standardizing wires for electric light wiring, a member of the old-time Telegraphers' Association, and a member of the National Electric Light Asso- ciation, also vice-president of the National Association of Fire and Police Telegraph Su- perintendents of the United States. He was honorary assistant to Professor Barrett, who was Chief of Department of Electricity at the World's Columbian Exhibition, Chicago, 1893, one of three men to be so honored, the electricians of New York, Brooklyn, and Pittsburg being chosen. He was also one of the chief electricians, with the Boston and Chicago city electricians, who made a spe- cial investigation upon the destructive nature of electrolysis. His local interests are many :
he is a director of the Young Men's Republi- can Tariff Club of Pittsburg, and is chairman of the Regatta Committee of the Yacht Club, taking a great interest in the sport, and set- tling many contests every year. He is con- nected with the Americus Club, a leading national organization. The Club visits dif- ferent cities, and is recognized for its fine drill and handsome uniforms. Mr. Mead is a Mason of the Pittsburg Lodge, No. 484, . and a member of Consistory, thirty-second degree, and of the Mystic Shrine, holding a high official position in the last-named order. He was for fifteen years a member of the Twin City Lodge, I. O. O. F., of Allegheny, and of Madock Lodge, K. of P., and a member of the ancient order K. of M. C. He is also a member of the Press Club.
Mr. Mead married Johanna L. Ecker, sister of H. P. Ecker, city organist of Allegheny, and holding the largest musical interests in Pittsburg. Their father is H. J. Ecker, who was connected for many years with the West- inghouse Company. Mr. and Mrs. Mead re- side in Oakland, East End. They are mem- bers of the Bellefield Presbyterian Church, of which Dr. Holland, now Chancellor of the Western University, was pastor; and Mr. Mead was one of the earliest members, being connected with the society thirty-five years, being a member of the Sunday-school before the church was organized in 1871.
ILLIAM R. THOMPSON, a banker of Pittsburg, is a native of Alle- gheny, and comes of Scotch Cov- enanter descent. His father, in the days of the abolition movement, was an "agent for the underground railroad." Young Thompson at- tended the Fourth Ward Public School until twelve years of age. For the next five years
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he was employed in the United Presbyterian Board of Publication as errand boy and sales- man. During the last year of the Civil War he served in Knapp's Independent Battery. Upon his return to civil life he was given the position of book-keeper in the banking-house of Hart, Caughey & Co. While here, his leisure time was spent in study under the late Professor Lewis D. Bradley, to prepare him- self for entering Jefferson College; but his ambition was thwarted by home needs, and he was obliged to continue in business. He was subsequently employed in the Mechanics' National Bank. In the fourteen years for which this connection lasted, he rose from the position of book-keeper to that of president of the institution. In 1881 he bought the in- terest of John B. Jones in the banking house of Semple & Jones, and afterward that of Mr. Semple, the firm name thereupon becoming William R. Thompson & Co.
Mr. Thompson is a trustee of Washington and Jefferson College, of the Western Theo- logical Seminary, of Avery College, and the Industrial (colored) School. He is treasurer of the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society, of the Western Pennsylvania Historical So- ciety, of the Pittsburg Association for the Improvement of the Poor, and of a number of other societies. The confidence reposed in him by the public, and the amount of labor and responsibility imposed on him by benevolent enterprises, may be inferred from the fact that he was made treasurer of the Charleston Earthquake Relief Fund. He came into national prominence as the treas- urer of the Johnstown Flood Relief Fund, when over one million five hundred thou- sand dollars passed through his hands. Mr. Thompson was also treasurer of the Russia Famine Fund, of the Titusville and Oil City Relief Fund, of that for the Relief of the Un-
employed in Pittsburg during the winter of 1893 and 1894, and of the fund for the Twenty - eighth Annual Encampment of the G. A. R. While such work was always per- formed without remuneration, there have been many cases in which he defrayed necessary expenses in order that every dollar of the subscriptions might be applied directly to the object in view. This was the fact in re- lation to the Johnstown Flood Fund, the report of which modestly says, "the neces- sary office expenses, clerk hire, etc., amount- ing to one thousand dollars, having been de- frayed privately."
A man of literary and artistic tastes, Mr. Thompson was one of the original members of the Art Society, and for many years its Presi- dent. He is the possessor of a choice library, in which Old English literature finds a promi- nent place, and is known as a writer and speaker of more than ordinary force and finish. In 1879 he married Miss Mary Thaw, daugh- ter of the late William Thaw, of Pittsburg, a philanthropist who refused to allow his name to be associated with any of his large gifts. Mr. Thompson is one of the executors of the large estate left by his father-in-law.
E. GREGG, editor of the Braddock Herald, was born at Lansing, Mich., May 21, 1866, where he resided until about sixteen years of age, when he left to attend the city schools, paying his tuition by working in a grocery store morning and evening. Having obtained a good business education, he set out to battle with the world, choosing for his occupation the wholesale music business. As travelling salesman he followed this until 1892, when, coming East, he engaged with the Carnegie Steel Company as assistant storekeeper at their works at Bes-
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semer, Pa., which position he held for three years, when he was employed as business man- ager of the Braddock Herald. His adaptabil- ity to newspaper work soon attracted the at- tention of the owners of the paper; and on January 1, 1896, he was given full charge of the business and editorial management. In this position Mr. Gregg had an excellent op- portunity to demonstrate his natural business ability, and in a short time established his reputation. He is known in his community as an indefatigable worker, and can be found at his desk early and late. Mr. Gregg is prominent in music circles, and stands high in the order of Knights of Malta. Of com- manding appearance, endowed with a bright and genial nature, both in business and social life he has endeared himself to a large circle of friends.
HOMAS HUMRICKHOUSE JOHN- SON, of Pittsburg, the chief engineer of the Pittsburg, Columbus, Cincinnati & St. Louis Railroad, with an office in Pitts- burg, was born January 12, 1841, at Coshoc- ton, Ohio. His grandfather, the Rev. David Johnson, who was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, was a descendant of a family that left Scotland on account of religious persecu- tion in the time of James II.
Thomas H. Johnson graduated from Jeffer- son College, Pennsylvania, in 1861. Two years later he accepted a position with the Pittsburg & Steubenville Railroad Company as rodman, and assisted in the construction of the bridge crossing the Ohio River at Steu- benville, that being the first railway bridge over any of the larger rivers of the West. In 1864 and 1865 he was engaged as rodman and transit-man in the construction of the Mari- etta & Cincinnati Railroad from Loveland to
Cincinnati. During the succeeding two years he was assistant engineer in the work of locat- ing and constructing the Pana, Springfield & North - western Railway in Illinois. From the fall of 1867 until 1875 he was assistant engineer on what is now the Panhandle Road, and during that time had charge of the build- ing of the Chartiers Branch and of the erec- tion of the Union Depot at Columbus. The next three years were spent by him in archi- tectural work and study at Columbus, Ohio, and the following five in the capacity of en- gineer for the contractors building the Indi- ana State-house, one of the most modern and handsome edifices of the kind in the country. From March, 1883, until January, 1896, he was principal assistant engineer of the Pitts- burg, Columbus, Cincinnati & St. Louis Rail- way. In 1896 he was appointed chief engi- neer of that railway, which, with its various branches, is sixteen hundred miles in length.
Since 1877 Mr. Johnson has been an active member of the American Society of Civil En- gineers. He is also a member of the Engi- neers' Society of Western Pennsylvania, which he served as president in 1895. In politics he is a decided Republican, but has never been an aspirant for official honors. He was married October 28, 1868, to Miss Martha E., daughter of John S. Patterson, of Steuben- ville, Ohio. They have three children - Bessie D., William K., and Margaret. Mrs. Johnson, who is highly esteemed in social and religious circles, is a member of the Shady Side Presbyterian Church.
ARRY G. ARCHER, an accom- plished organist and music teacher of Pittsburg, was born in Bellaire, Ohio, April 23, 1864, son of James G. and Sarah (Kyle) Archer. His father is a native
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of Washington County, Pennsylvania, and his mother of Philadelphia.
In early manhood James G. Archer learned the cooper's trade, which he followed for some years. He then entered the grocery business, which he carried on for some time with suc- cess; and he is now engaged in fruit packing. He and his wife are the parents of two chil- dren - Harry G., the subject of this sketch; and Charles K., who is employed in a railroad office.
Harry G. Archer attended school in Colum- bus, Ohio; and his musical education was com- menced under Herman Ebeling, of that city. In 1888 he went to Berlin, Germany, where he pursued an advanced course in pianoforte and organ playing, and the theory of music; and while in Europe he studied with such masters as Loeschhorn and Reimann. Returning to America in 1891, he established himself per- manently as a musician and teacher in Pitts- burg; and his efforts in behalf of musical art are highly appreciated by our citizens.
As a teacher Mr. Archer is eminently suc- cessful, and numbers among his pupils mem- bers of some of the most cultured families in the city. As a performer he is artistic, con- scientious, and interesting; and his appear- ances in public are always enjoyed by the lovers of classical music. He is a member of the Bohemian Club and organist at the Grant Street Lutheran Church.
OSEPH D. THOMAS, M.D., one of the leading physicians of Pittsburg, was born in the Twenty-eighth Ward, son of the late David Thomas and his wife, Rachel. His parents were natives of Dolwen Fawr, near Caermarthen, South Wales, whence they emigrated to America about sixty-five years ago. After landing, they
journeyed inland by way of Buffalo and Erie, and settled at Pittsburg. They had fourteen children, seven of whom are still living.
The Doctor received his early education in the public schools of Pittsburg. Shortly after, he enlisted in the Union army, and served during the last year of the Civil War as a private in Battery H of the Pennsylvania Light Artillery. One of his brothers, Reese Thomas, was in the service throughout the whole of the great conflict; and another brother served for a part of the time. After being mustered out, Dr. Thomas, feeling the need of more knowledge as a preparation for his medical studies, took a course in the Western University of Pennsylvania. Then he began to read medicine with the late Dr. George McCook. Later he entered the Medi- cal College of Bellevue Hospital in New York City, graduating from that institution in 1869. After taking a post-graduate course, he settled on the South Side, Pittsburg, where he has since been actively engaged in the practice of his profession. He is a mem- ber of the Allegheny County Medical Society, of which he was president for one term. He is also vice-president of the American Medi- cal Association, having been elected to that position at the meeting of the association held in May, 1896, at Atlanta, Ga. He is also a member of the South Side Medical Society, of which he has also been the president. For a number of years he was on the Pittsburg Board of Health, and for one year its presid- ing officer. Dr. Thomas is professor of genito-urinary diseases in the medical depart- ment of the Western University of Pennsyl- vania and a trustee of that institution. He has contributed various valuable articles to some of the prominent medical journals of the country, and in 1887 delivered the address on "Hygiene " before the Pennsylvania State So-
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ciety, at its mecting in Bedford, Pa. One of the founders of the South Side Hospital, he is serving on its Board of Trustees, and is a member of its surgical staff. Also mindful of the duties of citizenship, he has been a member of the City Council, was for a num- ber of years the president of the School Board of the Twenty-eighth Ward, and helped in organizing the South Side Pittsburg Board of Trade, of which he is now the president.
In April, 1876, Dr. Thomas was united in marriage with Miss Sarah Lizzie Keller, daughter of Abram Keller. They have three children - Mary Rachel, Alice Keller, and Joseph Dio, Jr. During the summer of 1890 Dr. Thomas made the tour of Europe, visiting England, Wales, Belgium, Germany, Switzer- land, Italy, and France. While so doing, he contributed to a Pittsburg daily paper a series of letters, which after his return home were collected and published in book form, under the title of "A Souvenir of Europe."
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