USA > Pennsylvania > Allegheny County > Pittsburgh > Biographical review : v. 24, containing life sketches of leading citizens of Pittsburgh and the vicinity, Pennsylvania > Part 50
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William C. Stillwagen attended the public schools of Claysville for the usual period. Later he entered the academy of West Alex- ander, where he remained two years. In 1866 he entered St. Francis College at Loretto, and in 1868 Notre Dame University in South Bend, Ind., from which he was graduated in 1871. He began the study of law at the Uni- versity, and after completing his preparations for the legal profession with Hopkins &
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Lazear, of Pittsburg, was admitted to the bar April 14, 1874. He has acquired a local rep- utation as an upright and able legal adviser, and enjoys a large general practice.
On August 24, 1875, Mr. Stillwagen wedded Martha A. Oldshue, daughter of Dr. Lincoln Oldshue. He has had three children; namely, Mary E., Edward L., and William C. William C., born November 19, 1876, died April 2, 1886. In politics Mr. Still- wagen is a Democrat, and he was active in the interest of the late General Hancock in 1880. He attends the Roman Catholic church.
ILLIAM N. EPPING,* cashier of the Pittsburg post-office, was born in Pittsburg, October 13, 1869, son of Henry and Amanda (Kreig) Epping. Henry Epping was born in Westphalia, Ger- many, and with his father landed in New Or- leans when two years old, his mother having died on the voyage. A year later they came to Pittsburg, where the child grew up. He was apprenticed to a glass-blower in his boy- hood, and followed that trade for some years. About twenty-five years ago he began the manufacture of steam-pumps, being one of the first to take up this industry west of the moun- tains. His business increased ; and he manu- factured oil, water, and air pumps for a large trade, employing many men. 1Ie also owned considerable real estate. A Democrat in politics, he took an active part in civic affairs, being three times elected to the Select Coun- cil, where he had a strong record as an anti- ring man. He earned for himself the respect of his fellow-citizens in general, and had many warm friends, who admired his courage and integrity. He died at the age of fifty-one, January 22, 1895. He married Miss Kreig, of Swiss ancestry, daughter of Michael Kreig,
one of the pioneer settlers of the South Side. Their children were: William N., Ella M., John R., and Raymond L. The parents were members of the St. Augustine Church, Roman Catholic. Mrs. Epping is still living.
William N. Epping was educated in the public schools of Pittsburg, and graduated from the high school in the class of 1888. He first became the messenger at Duquesne station, on the Pennsylvania Railroad, and four months later obtained the position of office boy with the Carbon Steel Company. During a four years' stay he was rapidly advanced to the position of cashier and pur- chasing agent, and only left to accept his present responsible position of cashier of the Pittsburg post-office, where he yearly handles one million dollars, an unusual position of trust for a man less than thirty years of age. But he has discharged the duties thereof ac- ceptably to all and with much credit to him- self. He has an assistant under him, and is in charge of the pay-roll of all the carriers and men in the city office, and also of the railway post-office clerks to the number of one hun- dred. He retains his interest in the pump works, and the business is still carried on successfully.
Mr. Epping married Miss Clementine Frau- enheim, of Pittsburg, daughter of the late Eduard Frauenheim, of the Iron City Brewing Company, November 28, 1894. They are both members of the St. Augustine Roman Catholic Church. Their home is at 811 Mel- lon Street, at the East End.
LETCHER MCKENDRIE WHITE, M. D.,* an able and successful physi-
cian of Wilkinsburg, Allegheny County, Pa., was born in the adjacent town of Sewickley, June 7, 1858, and is of Scotch-
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Irish antecedents. His paternal grandfather, the Rev. John White, was a well-known Meth- odist preacher, being a circuit rider in Penn- sylvania and adjoining States. He lived to be seventy years old, and reared a family of two daughters and three sons.
John W. White, one of his sons, and father of the Doctor, was born and reared in Wash- ington County, this State, where during his very early years he was engaged in farming. On reaching man's estate he read law, and, having been admitted to the bar, settled in Sewickley, where he is still living. He prac- tised law successfully for many seasons, and for the past twenty-four years has been Judge of the Court of Common Pleas of District No. 2, this being his third consecutive term of ser- vice. In politics he is an active Republican ; and, besides holding various local offices, he was a member of the Constitutional Conven- tion held many years ago. He married Mary Thorn, who was born in Allegheny County. Her father, the Rev. Charles Thorn, was also of Scotch descent and a circuit rider of the Methodist. persuasion. Both Judge White and his wife, as would naturally follow from their birth and breeding, are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. They have six children, as follows: Charles T .; John N .; William H .; Fletcher M .; James C .; and Sophronia Thorn, the wife of John L. Locke.
Fletcher M. White, having received his pre- liminary education in the public schools and academy of Sewickley, completed the Sopho- more year at Allegheny College in Meadville. He began the study of medicine under Dr. T. B. La Shells, was graduated from the Western Reserve Medical College, February 27, 1884, and subsequently took a post-gradu- ate course at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. White then located in Allegheny as a practitioner, and, after being there a year, was
elected surgeon of the Allegheny work- house. During his five years of service in that capacity he gained valuable experience. Coming to Wilkinsburg in July, 1891, the Doctor has won the confidence of the commu- nity to a marked degree, and has built up a thriving practice, his professional skill and up-to-date knowledge of the science to which he is devoting the best years of his manhood winning him a large patronage.
Dr. White is identified with various frater- nal organizations, including the Odd Fellows and Junior Mechanics, the Allegheny County Medical Society, the Duquesne Medical Club, and the Wilkinsburg Medical Club. In poli- ties and religious faith he follows in the foot- step; of his worthy progenitors, being a stanch Republican and a most valued member of the Methodist Episcopal church.
C. BIPPUS, M.D.,* of Allegheny City, a physician of the regular school of practice, was born in Butler, Pa., May 30, 1864, son of John G. and Rachel (Meyers) Bippus. His paternal grandfather, Matthew Bippus, died in Germany at the age of fifty-four years. He was a miller, and was Burgess of the borough during the" last six years of his life. He left a family of five children.
John G. Bippus, who was a carpenter and contractor, was born in Wittenberg, Germany, and came to America in 1846. He lived in Philadelphia until 1851, when he removed to Allegheny City, where he followed his trade until the year 1859, when he took up his resi- dence in Butler. He was for four years a sol- dier in the late Civil War, going as a private in Company H, One Hundred and Sixty-ninth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and afterward be- coming Captain of the company. He was
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wounded April 2, 1865, at the taking of Fort Gregg, while acting as Lieutenant Colonel of the regiment, for which position his thorough military training received at the University at Bonn, Germany, had fitted him. After the war he was Prothonotary of Butler County for three years, was later Census Enumerator, and has held various minor offices. . He married Rachel Meyers, also a native of Wittenberg. Her father, Jacob . Meyers, came from Ger- many in 1832, and settled in Oakland town- ship, Butler County, where he carried on a farm. He served in the Mexican War, and was wounded three times He died at his home in Butler County at the age of eighty-four; and his wife, Mrs. Rachel M. Bippus, surviving him, died January 3, 1897, at the age of seventy- two years. They had eight children, six of whom are now living : Jacob ; Matthew; Samuel M. ; Dr. Christian C. ; Lida; and Emma, wife of Henry Heydrick. The two eldest, now de- ceased, were Catharine and John.
Christian C. Bippus was brought up on his father's farm, and received his early education in the district schools. He attended Prince- ton and later the University of Ohio at Co- lumbus, where he was graduated in 1886. His professional knowledge was obtained at Jefferson Medical College, from which he received his diploma in 1889. Since he opened his office in Allegheny City, he has been able to build up a large general practice, having been successful from the first.
Dr. Bippus is a member of the Allegheny County Medical Society and the State Medical Society. He is connected also with the Junior Order of American Mechanics, and is a mem- ber of the Board of Control of Allegheny. On February 18, 1896, he married Miss Kathryn M. Stewart, daughter of Mr. John Stewart, of Pittsburg. Dr. and Mrs. Bippus are both members of the Lutheran church.
HARLES C. MEREDITH, M.D., a rising young physician of Pittsburg, Pa., was born in Fairmont, W. Va., December 13, 1866, son of F. M. and Louisa (Cleland) Meredith. William Mere- dith, the Doctor's paternal grandfather, was brought from Wales to America by his par- ents, and was but three years of age when they settled in Fairmont. His son, Mr. F. M. Meredith, was born in Fairmont, and was a lifelong resident of that place. He married Miss Louisa Cleland. Of this union were born six children, as follows : Flora May, who resides at home; Charles Clyde, of Pittsburg ; Harry Brady, of Fairmont, W. Va. ; Désirée, the wife of Bruce Hill; Ella; and Ruby.
Charles Clyde, the elder son and the sub- ject of this sketch, pursued his elementary studies at the common schools and at the State Normal School in Fairmont. He graduated from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy in 1889, and engaged in the drug business for about two years. Deciding at this time to study medicine, he took his first preparatory course at the College of Physicians and Sur- geons at Baltimore, Md., afterward going to Pittsburg, and graduating from the medical department of the Western University of Pennsylvania in the spring of 1893. Upon receiving his degree, Dr. Meredith located on Third Avenue in the city of Pittsburg, where he has since engaged in general prac- tice. He is a member of the Elks, the Hep- tasophs, and of other fraternal orders. In politics he is an Independent.
AMUEL J. HAYES, M.S.A., D. D. S., one of the older dentists of Pittsburg, lately passed away, was born near Johnstown, Cambria County, Pa., June 22, 1833, son of Warren and Mary
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(Bowser) Hayes. He was of Scotch ancestry, and a grandson on the paternal side of Pliny Hayes, who served as a surgeon in the Revo- lutionary War. The grandfather afterward practised medicine, and also carried on a fac- tory for the manufacture of wooden bowls. He died probably about 1813. He was a man of fine physique, standing six feet, two inches in height, and possessed a strong will. His son, Warren, father of Samuel J., was born in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. Warren Hayes served in the War of 1812, and after the close of that struggle moved to Cambria County, where he established a wooden bowl factory, and also engaged in farming, owning there a farm of about three hundred and fifty acres. " He married Mary Bowser, who was born and reared in Cambria County ; and they became the parents of five sons and four daugh- ters, of whom three are now living.
Samuel J. Hayes spent his youth on his father's farm, attending the common schools until seventeen years of age. He then entered Mount Pleasant College, at which he subse- quently graduated. After his graduation he began teaching in public schools, and later .
became principal successively of various academical and normal schools, his pedagogic career in Westmoreland County extending over a period of about twelve years. In the mean- while he studied for the Baptist ministry, and in-due time was ordained. He then for six years performed ministerial duties as pastor of the Baptist church at Lewisburg, but was subsequently obliged to resign this position and give up the ministry on account of a bronchial affection from which he suffered. Not discouraged, he took up the study of den- tistry, to which he applied the energies of a powerful mind backed by an earnest purpose to achieve something more than a mediocre stand- ing in that rapidly advancing profession ; and
that his efforts were crowned with success the results of his thirty years' professional life bear ample testimony.
To Dr. Hayes belongs the credit of dis- covering the true, fundamental principles of anæsthesia, namely : that there can be no true anasthetic without sufficient free oxygen as the chief component element to supply red corpuscles of blood, support combustion, and sustain life; that the subordinate element must be a suitable narcotic liquid, asso- ciated with the atmospheric air, or the at- mospheric air surcharged with pure oxygen in sufficient quantity to normally oxygenate the blood; that the combination of these ele- ments must be so proportioned from the be- ginning of the anaesthetic condition to the end as not to produce a shock from the chemical and pathological effect of the narcotic drug ; that anæsthesia is a physiological condition in which the force and functions of life are in continuance under certain modifications caused by the narcotizing of the muscular tissues and nerve filaments, thus preventing normal circulation in the sensory nerves ; that the usual definitions of anaesthesia are mis- leading, as they imperfectly express the true physiological and pathological conditions in- volved; that what are commonly called local anæsthetics are simply pain obtundents, the state produced by them being very similar to that caused by the compression of a closely tied string around any member of the body ; that nitrous-oxide gas, formerly so extensively used in the dental profession, is nothing more nor less than an asphyxiant, as it contains no free oxygen to sustain life and support com- bustion ; and that there can be no death from true anæsthesia properly produced, it being always due either to asphyxia or to a powerful shock from the chemical and pathological effect of the drug used.
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With these principles as a basis Dr. Hayes invented, perfected, and patented a new process of applying anæesthetics, the patents being owned and the business conducted by the Hayes Dental Company, of which the Doctor was president, and which was organized in 1890, with the headquarters at Chicago and Pittsburg. On the incorporation of the com- pany he gave up his office and devoted most of his time to pushing the business interests of the firm. He also edited the journal called Dental and Surgical Microcosm, published by the company quarterly, and devoted to the sub- ject of anaesthesia. For many years also he was engaged in other journalistic work, pub- lishing the Connellsville Tribune, a Republi- can paper. Besides this he carried on a busi- ness in general merchandise. He lectured largely before medical and dental schools throughout the United States, and wrote ex- haustively on the subject of anaesthesia for the dental and medical journals of the Univer- sities of Michigan, Pennsylvana, and Mary- land, and for other famous institutions of learning. In the midst of his usefulness he was called away by death, dying June 18, 1897, from cancer of the liver, a disease from which he had suffered for several months. His beloved pastor fittingly said of him at his funeral service, "whose early professional life was devoted to the interests of the soul, and whose later years to the alleviation of human suffering."
Dr. Hayes was twice married, his first wife being in maidenhood Miss S. Ella Ashcom, of Ligonier, Pa. She bore him three daugh- ters and one son, namely: Cora, who married John F. Ammend ; Mollie R., wife of George W. Morrison; Kate B., who lives at the fam- ily residence; and William Warren, who died July 12, 1893. The last named was a gradu- ate of the dental department of the University
of Maryland, and had taken charge of his father's practice when summoned by the hand of death. Some time after the death of his first wife Dr. Hayes married Mary Frances Reddington, formerly of the Pittsburg Female College. Dr. Hayes was a member of the Fourth Avenue Baptist Church. He was a member of the Mississippi Valley Society and of other dental associations, and of Fort Ligonier Lodge, F. & A. M.
OHN A. HAWKINS, M.D.,* one of the younger physicians of Allegheny, was born in this city, January 28, 1866, son of Joseph H. and Annie M. (Kess- ler) Hawkins. Robert Hawkins, the progen- itor of this family, was born in Lancaster County, England, in 1695. He emigrated to Baltimore, Md., in 1715, and settled near Havre de Grace. He had four sons -- Thomas, William, Robert, and Richard, all of whom fought in the War of the Revolution. Robert Hawkins, Jr., was killed at Valley Forge. William Hawkins, from whom the Doctor is descended, settled in the South.
Joseph A. Hawkins, the grandfather of Dr. Hawkins, was a native of Virginia and a car- penter by trade. He died at the age of forty- one, leaving a large family. His son, Joseph H., was a carpenter and a school-teacher. He served three years as a Confederate soldier, being in the "Hardy Blues " and in Ashley's cavalry, and took part in the battle of Bull Run. He died in West Virginia in 1884, at the age of forty-three. He was a member of the Christian church, as is his wife, who sur- vives him, residing with her son John. She is a native of Pennsylvania. Of their seven children four are now living - John A., William, Joseph, and Edward C.
John A. Hawkins in his boyhood attended
JAMES LITTLE.
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the Second Ward School of Allegheny, and then learned the trade of brass finishing, to raise funds with which to continue his educa tion. He entered the Western Pennsylvania Medical College, and was graduated in March, 1892. Since that time he has built up a good general practice. He is especially interested in surgery and in rectal, genito-urinary dis- eases. In March, 1891, he married Miss Allice Perrett, daughter of John H. Perrett. He has two children - Mamie and Genevieve. Dr. Hawkins is a member of the Christian church. He is connected with the Allegheny County Medical Society, the American Medi- cal Association, and the West Penn Alumni Club. He is also a member of the Bellevue Blue Lodge, F. & A. M .; of the Gourgas Lodge of Perfection; and the Pennsylvania Consistory, S. P. R. S., thirty-second degree.
AMES LITTLE, a retired carpenter and builder, and an old resident of Pittsburg, was born February 2, 1819, in the County Tyrone, near Crookstown, Ire- land, son of David and Margaret (McCarthy) Little. He comes of an old and prominent family of the north of Ireland. His grand-
father, James Little, was a farmer and a Pres- byterian. The father, born in County Tyrone
in 1782, lived a quiet farmer's life in the County Derry, where he died in January, 1896, at the remarkable age of one hundred and fourteen years, probably the oldest man of his generation. He retained all his faculties throughout his long and vigorous old age, and, until a week previous to his death, was able to attend personally to all his wants. He had six sons and three daughters, of whom there are living: James, the subject of this sketch ; Matilda, now Mrs. Alston; Jane, the widow of Samuel Miller, late of Ireland; Margaret,
the wife of William Clemens, also of Ireland; and William, now residing in Ireland. The parents were Episcopalians.
Young James Little was brought up on his grandfather's farm, receiving his schooling in his native county. In the year 1838 he sailed for America, designing to come to Pittsburg. After a long and tedious voyage of four weeks' duration he reached New York only to find that a portion of the canal to Pittsburg had been swept away. He arrived in Pittsburg after an eight days' journey by wagon and canal. Here he entered into an apprentice- ship to Mr. Vogdes, who was then erecting the first court-house in Pittsburg, on which the young mechanic did his first work. From that time until about 1848 he worked under the best builders in the city, with the excep- tion of two years which he spent in Toronto, Canada. After 1848 he carried on his exten- sive and ever-increasing business without a partner, his principal work being on the beau- tiful residences of the East End. He erected the Fifth Ward school building, and he is the builder and owner of certain brick blocks on Wylie Avenue.
In 1847 Mr. Little married Miss Nancy Paul, daughter of William Paul, a well-known contractor of Pittsburg. Thirteen children were born to them, of whom but five are now living. His daughter Margaret, now the widow of Richard G. Watson, has made her home with her father since her husband's death. He has many grand-children to cheer him in his declining years. Both Mr. and Mrs. Little have been members of the United Presbyterian church for many years. Mr. Little has been identified with the Session from its start, and he assisted in the erection of the present Fifth United Presbyterian Church edifice, corner of Webster Avenue and Washington Street. It is interesting to note
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that Mr. Little, now a man of position and affluence in Pittsburg, owes his present inde- pendence of fortune entirely to his own honest exertions and business ability.
URTIS G. HUSSEY, M.D.,* who was largely interested in copper mines and copper smelting at the time of the first discovery of the ore in the Lake Superior regions, was born in the vicin- ity of the town of York, Pa., in August, 1802. His ancestry is traced back to Chris- topher Hussey, who was born in England in 1595 or 1596, came to America in 1630, and was one of the original settlers of Hampton, N. H., in 1639. He died there in 1686. His son Stephen settled in Nantucket.
The Doctor's faith was that of his fore- fathers, and he was associated with the gentle sect of Quakers throughout his life. His early youth was spent upon his father's farm in Ohio, his education being obtained in the district school during the short winter season. His medical studies were pursued at Mount Pleasant, Ohio, under the instruction of a well-known physician; and in the year 1825 he established himself as a practitioner in Morgan County, Indiana, following his profes- sion with great success for the next ten years. At the end of that time, with a capital of sev- eral thousand dollars, he engaged in mercan- tile business, conducting a general store, which proved entirely successful; and to this he added other lucrative enterprises, among them the curing, packing, and shipping of pork. In 1829 he represented his district in the State legislature, but declined a second nomination, pleading pressure of business.
He was married in 1839, and, removing to Pittsburg, here spent the next four or five years in the pork-packing business. About
the year 1843 copper was first discovered on the shores of Lake Superior; and in 1844, after carefully investigating the situation, Dr. Hussey, in company with others, organized the Pittsburg and Boston Mining Company. The first mines owned by the corporation were located at Copper Harbor. Those at Eagle River were afterward opened up; and here the famous Cliff Mine was operated by the com- pany. Dr. Charles Avery, the first president, died in 1858, and was succeeded by Dr. Hus- sey, who continued at the head of the company until the winding up of its business, which took place between 1870 and 1879. These mines had shown a profit of two million, eight hundred thousand dollars upon a capital of sixty thousand dollars. Dr. Hussey took the greatest interest in the smelting process, and invented a furnace with a movable top, which allowed the smelting of large masses of ore. This simple invention proved entirely success- ful and most valuable to the mines. The Pittsburg Copper and Brass Rolling Mills and Smelting Works, located on the Monongahela River, which were the first American copper mills, were put into operation by the Doctor, and were owned solely by him until the time of his death in 1893, the products being intro- duced into the market by the house of C. G. Hussey & Co. His ingenuity was proved by yet another perfected method. He was the first manufacturer to make crucible cast steel in quantities and of the best quality. He called his process the "direct process," and it proved successful in every way. His son, C. Curtis Hussey, inherited his ability and tact, and was associated with him in business at an early age, and at length became chief manager of the concern. He died in 1884.
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