Century history of Butler and Butler County, Pa., and representative citizens 20th, Part 58

Author: McKee, James A., 1865- ed. and comp
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1526

USA > Pennsylvania > Butler County > Butler > Century history of Butler and Butler County, Pa., and representative citizens 20th > Part 58

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The Reiber Grist Mill on the Conno- quenessing Creek, north of the Walter Mill about one mile, was built in 1842 by Archibald McCall, a wealthy Philadelphia merchant and land agent. He sold it to Thomas Frazier who ran it for a short period and the property then passed into the hands of Clymer and Mylert. In 1856 the property was purchased by George Reiber who operated the plant up until 1895. During this period the mill was re- modeled and improved three times and in addition to the buhr system it contained the full roller process and had a daily ca- pacity of one hundred barrels of flour. Mr. Reiber also carried on a distillery in connection with the mill for a few years, and later he erected a distillery. closer to the railroad which he operated until 1873. About 1890 Mr. Reiber took into partner- ship with himself his three sons, Edward, George L. and Henry Reiber, under the firm name of George Reiber & Sons. The construction of the Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad in 1897 and the extension of the railroad yards in the vicinity of the mill property was the means of destroying the large country patronage of this mill and the plant was finally closed.

The Oriental Mills. In 1867 H. J. Kling- ler erected a mill on Mifflin Street known as Klingler's Mill. In 1883-4 the mill was remodeled and enlarged when the present title, the Oriental Mills, was adopted. The capacity of the first mill was sixty barrels per day. The old buhr system operated

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by steam power was in use until 1884, Street on the property now owned by Lev- when the roller system was adopted. The ingston McQuistion and Mrs. L. Beau- mont. Abdiel Martin carried on the tan- ning business in Butler about the same time, on West Cunningham Street on the Jacob Lawall property. William Mardorf commenced the tanning business about 1870 at the foot of West Cunningham Street and continued the business until about 1888. present building is 40x45 feet, three stories high, with cupola and iron roof, and an annex of 28x80 feet. The capacity of the mill is 150 barrels per day. In 1886 the firm name was changed to H. J. Klingler & Company, Harry S. and Fred J. Klingler becoming partners with their father. In 1897 Fred J. Klingler retired, and since that time H. J. Klingler and Harry S. Klingler have composed the firm WOOLEN MILLS. of H. J. Klingler & Company, of which Harry S. Klingler is the general manager. In 1889 the firm built the Specialty Roller Mills near the West Penn depot, and have since carried on both mills very success- fully. In 1903 the building at the West Penn depot was enlarged by the addition of a grain elevator, which is fully equipped with modern machinery, and the Mifflin Street mill was also improved by the in- stallation of a complete new roller proc- ess which increased the output of the mill and enhanced the value of the product.

EARLY TANNERIES.

One of the earliest and leading indus- tries of the town was the tanning business. A pioneer tannery was located on the cor- ner of East Jefferson and Franklin Streets, and started soon after the town was laid out. The second tannery was es- tablished by Hugh McKee on the site of Berg's bank, on the corner of Main and Jefferson Streets, and was an extensive plant for those days. It was the largest manufacturing institution in the town for many years.

In 1841 Conrad Roessing opened a tan- yard on North Washington Street, be- tween Clay and Pearl, which he operated until 1886, when the property was pur- chased by Henry Wagner. Soon after the buildings were removed and dwelling houses took the place of the tannery.

For many years William McQuistion op- erated a tannery on South Washington

The pioneer woolen-mill and carding factory was established by John Negley about 1810, and was operated by Malachi Richardson. About 1833 O. G. Croy and George W. Smith operated a woolen mill which stood on the north side of Jefferson Street, between Main and Mckean Streets, in the neighborhood of the Weisner prop- erty. This mill was the first of the kind in the limits of the borough, and the power was furnished by a horse-tread mill. What was long known as the Union Woolen Mills on the south side of the creek, was erected in 1842 by William J. Ayres. After conducting it a few years he sold it to William P. Mackey, who used a part of the building for a grist-mill. John H. Thompson was the next owner, and in 1861 the plant was purchased by Hugh Fullerton who operated it as a woolen- mill until his death in 1892. The mill was operated for about a year after Mr. Ful- lerton's death by James Fullerton, and in 1894 the building was sold to J. B. Sher- man who converted it into a machine shop.

In 1812 John Gilmore brought a carding machine to Butler, which was operated for many years and was of great utility to the people of the community. It was the cus- tom of the farmers to bring their wool to the carding machine and have it carded into long rolls. It was the duty of the women during the long winter evenings to spin the yarn from which socks and woolen garments were made for the use of the family. This was also the custom

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HISTORY OF BUTLER COUNTY

in the town as well as in the country and nearly all of the woolen goods were man- ufactured in this way.

PIONEER FOUNDRIES.

The pioneer foundry was established by John and Alfred MeCarnes about 1840 or 1841. They carried on the business until 1847, when James G. and William Camp- bell purchased an interest and five years later became sole owners of the plant. In the early days the foundry manufactured plows, stoves, and did a general line of .work that met the requirements of the community. The plant is still operated by the heirs of the Campbell estate, and does a general line of foundry work. The fore- man in charge of the plant, who is one of the oldest foundrymen in the town, is Philip Crouse.

A few years after the Campbell foundry was started, Carns and MeJunkin estab- lished a foundry at the corner of North Washington and West Clay Streets. This property was purchased by H. J. Kling- ler and Martin Reiber in 1859, and after passing through a number of ownerships, ceased operations about 1875.

About 1850 S. Tinker established a foun- dry and shops for the manufacture of farm implements and threshing machines on Mifflin Street, adjoining the Klingler Mills. About 1865 the plant was purchased by William Bauer, who manufactured farm implements for many years. Orig- inally the shops extended from Mifflin to North Street and a large number of men were employed. The shops have long since been abandoned, but the foundry part is still operated on a small scale by Mr. Bauer.

STANDARD PLATE GLASS WORKS.

The first large manufacturing enter- prise of importance to be started in Butler was the Standard Plate Glass Works on the Southside, which were opened July 30, 1887, when the first pot was taken from

the furnace and cast into the molds. Ten plates, each 9-16 of an inch thick, 12 feet long and 6 feet wide, were cast and tem- pered, and within the ensuing week twenty pots were rolled and tempered daily, and a force of 140 men were employed. The first large plate produced here was pur- chased by D. H. Wuller for the window of his store on South Main Street, now known as Wuller's Pharmacy.

The local stockholders and originators of this industry were J. H. Shields, H. J. Klingler, Rev. William A. Nolan, William A. Stein, J. Henry Troutman, William Campbell, Jr., and John Kirkpatrick, while the non-resident stockholders were R. C. Schmertz, W. A. Schmertz, A. F. Chandler, Jas. A. Chambers, II. S. Me- Kee, Simon Cameron, Morton McMichael, and B. K. Jamison. A. C. Boyd, who was the first manager of the plant, was also one of the first stockholders. The first officers were H. J. Klingler, president ; R. C. Schmertz, vice-president; A. F. Chand- ler, secretary and treasurer. R. Brock- man, who introduced glass-grinding ma- chinery in France, was manager, and un- der his direction there were four hundred workers from France, Belgium and Ger- many.

Since the inauguration of this industry many changes have been made in the offi- cial board. James A. Chambers succeed- ed Mr. Klingler as president the second year, and in January, 1893, J. T. Hamilton of Pittsburg, was elected president, a po- sition which he still holds. A. F. Chand- ler, the first secretary, was succeeded by E. J. Howard, and he in turn by J. Henry Troutman of Butler. Mr. Chandler was also the first treasurer, and when he re- tired from the secretaryship, W. A. Schmertz of Pittsburg was elected to po- sition of treasurer. Subsequently these two offices were united, and at the present time J. Henry Troutman is the treasurer and secretary. The office of manager was first filled by A. C. Boyd, next by R.

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Brockman, and subsequently by D. E. Imbrie, of Pittsburg; George A. Kim, of Wheeler, Edmund Brown, H. A. Tilton, Pittsburg; and John S. Campbell, of But- ler. and George F. Neale. The latter was suc- ceeded in July, 1907, by Daniel K. Al- bright. In 1891 the office of superin- tendent was abolished, being merged into that of general manager.

The railroad privileges enjoyed by the company are all that can be desired. Tracks lead to every large building, where machinery for handling and delivery of raw material and loading the finished product is of modern design. The com- pany owns its own gas plant, and one of the wells drilled by this concern is the deepest exploration for gas or oil in But- ler County. At the beginning of the in- dustry, the fire-clay for the manufacture of pots was obtained from Missouri, while the melting-sand was taken from Maple- ton, Pennsylvania. Today much of the melting-sand is procured in Butler Coun- ty, and nearly all of the material, much of which was imported a few years ago, is now obtained within the State, with the exception of sulphate of soda, which is secured at Syracuse, New York. When the works were first operated the build- ings covered three and one-half acres of ground. They have been extended from time to time, until today they cover an area of about ten acres. The orginal out- put has been increased from one million feet per year to four million feet. Dur- ing the winter of 1908-9 a large addition was built to the main factory, and new machinery installed that materially in- creases the output. At the present time the plant is employing five hundred men, and the pay roll aggregates $350,000.00 a year. The present officers of the com- pany are James T. Hamilton, of Pittsburg, president; John F. Anderson, of Butler, vice-president; J. H. Troutman, secre- tary and treasurer; and D. K. Albright, general manager. The above officers with the following compose the directors: Hon. John M. Kennedy, of Pittsburg; A. M.

The quality of glass produced by this factory is superior to that of the major- ity of the factories in the United States, and the local concern finds a ready mar- ket for all the glass it can produce, and has kept the works running night and day for the past ten years.

One of the feats performed by this fac- tory was the casting of the big lens for the observatory at Washington, D. C., in 1898. This lens is the largest glass reflecting lens in the world, and the work of casting it was accomplished with much difficulty.

HAMILTON BOTTLE WORKS.

The Hamilton Bottle Works had their beginning in the fall of 1882, when Dom- inick Ihmsen established an eight-pot fur- nace on the site of the present plant. About a year later the Butler Flint Bottle Com- pany, Limited, was organized, embracing ten glass workers, and the Ihmsen plant purchased. The company was composed of the following persons: D. Ihmsen, president; W. J. McKee, secretary and treasurer; Conrad Smith, John Smith, John Farrel, James J. Hayes, John W. Vogel and A. P. McKee. In June, 1888, the works were burned, and on August 30th following, the Butler Glass Company, Lim- ited, was organized. Charles Duffy was president and Thomas H. Gallagher, sec- retary. They, with John W. Vogel, James J. Hayes, Peter Vogel, John F. Lowry, Jacob Faller, Michael Buechle, Mrs. E. Grieb, William Aland, Albert Hannen, Frank Simper, John Kiehn, Peter Kiehn, John Kappler and J. H. Troutman, were the stockholders. A building was erected on the original site and the works were carried on about one year and then sold to the Hamilton Brothers, who have since operated the plant very successfully. In October, 1893, the buildings were partially burned, but they have since been rebuilt

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and equipped in first class order. The Ferguson, and the structural iron work works contain one twelve and one eight- pot furnace, and all kinds of flint prescrip- tion bottles are manufactured. The fuel used is natural gas, supplied by the firm's wells in Center Township, whence the fluid is piped to the works.

The Standard Steel Car Company, which has been an important factor in the development of Butler, was incorporated January 2, 1902, with a capital of $3,000,- 000. This was subsequently increased to $4,000,000. The incorporators and princi- pal stockholders of the company are resi- dents of Pittsburg, and the officers of the corporation at the time of its organiza- tion were J. M. Hansen, president; A. R. Fraser, vice-president and treasurer; and A. S. Valentine, secretary. In April, 1902, the company purchased a tract of land in the Third Ward of Butler Borough, lying between Fairground Avenue and the Pierce Road, and extending from Pillow Street to the Creek, for a manufacturing site, and at the same time purchased the John McElroy farm southwest of the bor- ough in Butler Township, for a town site. The manufacturing site in the borough in- cludes the properties owned by J. Geo. Stamm, on which the brick factory stood, Charles Duffy, Mrs. Caroline Pillow, James Bredin, the Butler Savings Bank, the heirs of Thos. Stehle, Mrs. Ellen Mc- Shane, and T. J. Shufflin. The latter pur- chase was a tract of three and one-half acres that belonged to the Butler Pickle Factory. The company also purchased the leases and plant of the old Butler Fair As- sociation, and occupied the old fair grounds as the site for their first build- ings. The erection of the plant was accom- plished in record-breaking time. Ground was broken for the large plant on the 20th of April, and the works were completed and the first cars turned out on the 1st of October, 1902. The excavation was done by David Winters & Son, of Pittsburg, the foundation work was done by Hugh

by the Mcclintock-Marshall Company of Pittsburg. The main building erected at that time was sixteen hundred feet long and four hundred feet wide. A large pow- er-house and machine shops were also erected at the west side of the main build- ing, and the paint shops and the main of- fice at the east side, on Fairground Av- enue. The entire plant was completed, the machinery installed, and the first steel cars turned out on the 1st day of October, 1902. At that time the capacity of the plant was from fifty to sixty cars a day, and employ- ment was furnished to about 2,500 men.

An extension was built to the main building in 1903, and other additions have been made since that time until the pres- ent capacity of the works is from 100 to 125 cars per day. When running full time the plant employs about 4,000 men, and its pay-roll amounts to over $300,000 a month. The present officers of the company are J. M. Hansen, president; J. B. Brady, vice- president ; William Bierman, secretary; T. H. Gillespie, treasurer; and W. Fletcher, assistant treasurer.

The first manager of the plant was P. F. McCool, who superintended the erection of the building and turned out the first cars. He was succeeded by E. G. Caughey in 1903, and the latter in turn by J. H. All- man, the present manager, who took charge in 1905. The chief engineer is A. Chris- tianson.

For the first two or three years after the organization of the company the main offices and the auditing department were kept in Pittsburg. In 1905 a frame build- ing was erected on the west side of the plant on Pierce Avenue, and the auditing department and all of the officers, except that of the president, were removed to Butler.

The Standard Steel Car Company has been called the young giant of the steel car industry, and in the short space of seven years it has doubled the capacity of

BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF BUTLER, LOOKING WEST FROM BUTLER COUNTY NATIONAL BANK (During high water in 1906)

BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF BUTLER, LOOKING EAST FROM BUTLER COUNTY NATIONAL BANK (During high water in 1906)

BIRD'S EYE VIEW OF EAST BUTLER

ALAMEDA PARK, BUTLER

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its plant, and taken a front rank among the manufacturing industries of the coun- try. Among the subsidiary companies con- trolled by the Standard are the Butler Bolt & Rivet Works, the Butler Car Wheel Foundry, located at Butler, the Steel Car Plant at New Castle, Pennsylvania, and the large plant at Hammond, Indiana. The Standard was one of the last concerns to be affected by the financial depression of 1908, and the plant here was in operation long after the other car-manufacturing plants in the country had closed down. After work was suspended here, the com- pany employed a large number of men in making repairs, and placing the plant in first-class condition to resume business, and also kept their organization intact.

The Forged Steel Wheel Company was incorporated June 20, 1906, by a number of Pittsburg capitalists who are also in- terested in the steel car business. The president of the company is J. M. Hansen, and T. H. Gillespie is the treasurer. A large plant was erected south of the town of Lyndora on the property of the Stand- ard Steel Car Company, and heavy ma- chinery installed for carrying on the work. Forged steel wheels were at first an ex- periment, and the plant erected here was considered an experimental plant. The last couple of years has demonstrated the practical ability of the new wheel, and the resumption of the iron and steel business will mean the employment of a large num- ber of men at the new factory in Butler.

The Butler Car Wheel Foundry was in- corporated December 22, 1905, with a cap- ital of $300,000. This company is also sub- sidiary to the Standard Steel Car Com-

pany. The plant was erected in the win- ter of 1905-6, and adjoins that of the Bolt and Rivet Works. It has a capacity of about 800 cast car wheels a day, and fur- nishes employment to about 300 men. When running full time the work distrib- utes about $35,000 a month with its pay roll.

WAGON FACTORIES.

The manufacture of wagons was com- menced in 1848 by John Lawall, Sr., who established the business in the rear of Reiber Brothers' blacksmith shop on West Cunningham Street. He conducted the factory at this point until 1860, when he removed to South Washington Street, ad- joining his residence. In 1872 he began the manufacture' of buggies and carriages, which he continued until his death in 1877. The business was then carried on by his sons, John and Jacob Lawall, until about 1885. At this time the growth of great carriage factories equipped with the most improved machinery rendered the manu- facture of wagons and carriages by the old process an unprofitable business, and de- stroyed the industry in the smaller towns.

The Thompson Brothers were pioneers in the same line, opening a factory on West Cunningham Street in 1857. This factory was located on the corner of Church Street and West Cunningham Street, and was quite an extensive affair for its day. The Thompsons sold the plant to Geo. C. Roes- sing and removed to Prospect, where they

The Butler Bolt and Rivet Company is . established a factory. Mr. Roessing con- a subsidiary company of the Standard ducted the business of manufacturing bug- gies and wagons in connection with the undertaking business until 1888, when the factory was closed and the undertaking business was removed to West Jefferson Street. Steel Car Company, and was incorporated June 28, 1906, with a capital of $200,000. The plant was erected on Pierce Avenue north of the main plant of the car works in 1906, and gives employment to about 200 men.

George C. Roessing established a cab- inet-maker's shop in 1847 on the Patton Kearns property on West Jefferson Street in the rear of what is now the Zim- merman store. It was the business of the

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HISTORY OF BUTLER COUNTY

furniture makers of those days to make coffins for the burial of the dead, and the business of undertaker was usually asso- ciated with that of cabinet-making. In 1860 Mr. Roessing purchased the wagon and carriage works of Thompson Broth- ers on West Cunningham Street, which he conducted in connection with the under- taking business until 1888. The introduc- tion of factory-made work made the wagon and carriage business unprofitable to the small operators, and Mr. Roessing closed this branch of his business and removed the undertaking department to the Odd Fellows building on West Jefferson Street. At this time Mr. Roessing had as- sociated with him his son, W. P. Roessing, under the firm name of George Roessing & Son.

Martin and George Reiber were engaged in the wagon manufacturing business in the fifties, having a shop on West Cun- ningham Street on the McQuistion prop- erty.

MACHINE SHOPS.

Butler first attracted attention as a cen- ter for the manufacture of oil well tools and supplies in 1880 about the time the Bald Ridge oil field was opened up. Pre- vious to that time there were no shops of importance in the town and nothing out- side of a small line of repair work was attempted.

William Kesselman & Company estab- lished their shops here in 1881 for the manufacture of drilling and fishing tools, heavy forgings, and the repairing of en- gines. Their plant was located along the B. & O. Railroad tracks on the south side of the creek, the main building being 31x 87 feet, with a machine shop 28x40 feet. Steam hammers were used in this shop for the first time in Butler, and the firm has since kept pace with all the modern im- provements.

The shop now operated by W. H. Lar- kin & Company on Center Avenue was founded in 1885 by Thomas and W. G.

Hays. Their business consisted of the manufacture of drilling and fishing tools, as well as dealing in oil well supplies. In 1887 the Hays brothers disposed of their interests to Larkin, Warhus and Company, and in 1890 Mr. Warhus disposed of his interest in the partnership to John Feigel. Since that time the business has been car- ried on under the firm name of W. H. Lar- kin & Company. In addition to carrying on a general manufacturing business the firm manufactures gas engines, and has an extensive trade throughout the entire oil country.

The Butler Boiler Works were estab- lished about 1888 by Mr. Kane, who after- wards sold the plant to James Meehan. In 1891 they were purchased by Hughes brothers, and for many years they were one of the valuable acquisitions to the manufacturing industries of the town.

The Butler Manufacturing Company, Limited, was established in 1888 with a capital stock of $20,000, and the incorpora- tors of the company were J. W. McKee, president; H. S. Gibson, secretary and treasurer; and D. W. Younkins and J. E. Russell, directors. The plant was located on Monroe Street opposite the old Elec- tric Light plant, and for a number of years an extensive business was carried on in the manufacture of engines, boilers, and general foundry work. Originally the plant was erected at Bradford for the man- ufacture of ball engines and in the year above mentioned it was removed to But- · ler and enlarged.

F. H. Bole established a machine shop for the manufacture of oil well and fish- ing tools in 1884 at the corner of South Mckean & Quarry streets. He carried on the business until 1895, when he disposed of his property and removed to Pittsburg.

The Star Iron Works were first estab- lished at Karns City by Sherman & John- son. In 1894 they purchased the old Ful- erton Woolen Mill property on Etna Street and removed their plant to Butler. They

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manufacture engines, pumps, casing cut- ters, fishing tools of all kinds, and make a specialty of the manufacture of brass goods.

Spang & Company. The large estab- lishment on Etna Street occupied by George A. Spang & Company had a small beginning. In 1893 George A. Spang es- tablished a small machine shop on the site of the present building and engaged in the manufacture and repair of fishing tools. The working force consisted of the pro- prietor and one or two helpers. In the fall of that year the shop was removed to Glade Mills, then the heart of an oil ex- citement, where the business was enlarged and conducted till 1896. In 1897 the shops were removed to Renfrew, and in the fall of 1900 a limited partnership was organ- ized with D. B. Campbell as chairman, Emery Brandon secretary and George A. Spang, manager. The firm engaged in the manufacture of drilling and fishing tools, oil well packers and machine work. That year the plant was removed to But- ler, and the shops established on Etna Street at the present location. The busi- ness grew rapidly and soon required an additional capital to carry it on, and larger quarters, and in 1907 the company was incorporated as George A. Spang & Company, the officers being John F. An- derson, president; J. W. Brandon, secre- tary, and George A. Spang, treasurer and manager. The same year the concrete building now occupied by the com- pany was erected. This building has a floor space of 15,000 square feet, and the different shops of the con- cern occupied the floor space of 34,000 square feet. In January, 1909, the com- pany purchased the plant and business of the Etna Manufacturing Company of But- ler, and consolidated the two plants. They employ about fifty men, all skilled me- chanics, and make a specialty of fishing tools and oil well packers. The fishing tools and packers manufactured by this

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Century history of Butler and Butler County, Pa., and representative citizens 20th, Part 58

Author: McKee, James A., 1865- ed. and comp Publication date: 1909 Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1526

Author: McKee, James A., 1865- ed. and comp
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1526