USA > Pennsylvania > Encyclopedia of Pennsylvania biography : illustrated, Volume I > Part 48
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TAYLOR, Edward J.,
Civil Engineer, Financier.
It is a matter of some difficulty to des- ignate the limits of the city of Pitts- burgh, Pennsylvania, with any degree of accuracy, so united is it with numerous other places by means of bridges, local railroads, and its immense and varied lines of products. So many small towns are dependent upon the Iron City for the real necessities of life, that its actual area is many times larger than would be shown on a geographical map. And this huge size has only become a possibility
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EŞ Taylor
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by the achievements of men of the high- a large farm, and he attended the com- est degree of mentality, men in whose brains have been generated the ideas for the enormous and beautiful bridges which span our rivers, and who have created the wonderful plants in which the masses of steel and iron are forged which are such a vital necessity to the civilized world in the present day.
Of those who have rendered particu- larly notable service in this direction is Edward J. Taylor, chief engineer of the Pittsburgh Coal Company and all its branches. It is most decidedly a case of the man being fit for the task assigned him. Quick-minded and ready to grasp the salient points of a situation, he is en- dowed with the self-reliance and execu- tive ability necessary to carry out suc- cessfully the vast schemes with which he has been entrusted. He is of English and Scotch-Irish descent, and has the in- domitable determination of the one na- tion combined with the long-headedness and aggressiveness of the other two.
Edward Taylor, his father, was born in England, and came to this country in 1830. He was the first to explore the copper and iron regions of Lake Superior and call attention to their ultimate devel- opment. He made his home in Mifflin township, Allegheny county, Pennsyl- vania, in 1850, resided there for a period of thirteen years, then removed to Peebles township, now the Twenty-sec- ond Ward of Pittsburgh, where his death occurred in 1884. He married Elizabeth J. Calhoun, of Scotch-Irish descent, who died in 1876. She was a woman of strong mentality and of an amiable disposition. She and her husband were among the earliest settlers in Mifflin township and cultivated a farm in that section very successfully.
Edward J. Taylor was born in Mifflin township, Allegheny county, Pennsyl- vania, July 6, 1854. His early years were the uneventful career of a country boy on
mon schools of his section of the coun- try. Subsequently he became a student at the Western University of Pennsyl- vania, now the University of Pittsburgh, from which he was graduated in the class of 1876 with the degree of civil engineer. The August following his graduation he took up his residence in Mckeesport, Pennsylvania, where he had been ap- pointed to the office of city engineer, a position he filled very efficiently until 1890, a period of fourteen years. During these years many large works of con- struction were supervised by Mr. Taylor, and among those of his designing were the systems of waterworks and sewer- age, and numerous railroad and highway bridges over rivers in the vicinity. A large number of coal and coke properties were also opened by Mr. Taylor, some of these being among the most important in the country. When the coal mining in- terests of the Pittsburgh district were consolidated and the Pittsburgh Coal Company organized in 1899, Mr. Taylor was selected for the important post of chief engineer of these combined inter- ests, and he has amply demonstrated the wisdom of this selection during the years he has held office. His counsel is also in demand as a director of the Washing- ton Coal & Coke Company, and of the National Bank of Mckeesport. The Ca- nadian government, as well as the largest coal and coke operators of Pennsylvania and Ohio, have utilized the services of Mr. Taylor with profit as a consulting engineer. He is a member of the Engi- neers' Society of Western Pennsylvania.
Mr. Taylor married, December 27, 1881, Luvia O., daughter of Ernest and Annie (Pedder) Succop, of Pittsburgh. They have had children : Charles E. and Ernest S.
The weighty demands made upon Mr. Taylor by the important interests with which he is connected have left him little
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time to concern himself with the political matters of the community, but he is an earnest supporter of Republican princi- ples, and conscientiously casts his vote for the candidates of that party. He lives in a beautiful home on Darlington road, fronting Schenley Park, Pitts- burgh, whose hospitality is in great de- mand by their large circle of friends. Mrs. Taylor is a woman of most excel- lent tastes, and devoted to the interests of her husband and children. She has ever entered into all the plans of her am- bitions husband with a wholeheartedness which has been an incentive to him to renewed effort, and her cordial apprecia- tion of the results he has accomplished have doubled his enjoyment of them. While business affairs consume the greater part of his waking hours, Mr. Taylor takes a deep interest in the wel- fare of his fellow citizens, and has helped in many projects for their social and civic betterment.
HENRY, Walter L., Insurance Underwriter.
One of the prominent men in the life insurance business in Eastern Pennsyl- vania, and residing at Lebanon, Walter L. Henry is the son of Levi Winter Henry, of Heidelberg township, Berks county, who was born July 19, 1838. Levi W. Henry married, at Annville, Pennsylvania, February 19, 1863, Ma- tilda Lovina Stout, born December 21, 1845, in North Heidelberg township, Berks county, Pennsylvania. There were twelve children of this marriage: Milton S., Reuben A., Annie L., Martin L., George D., Clara L., Walter L., of whom further; Samuel E. D., John S., Charles F., Stella M. and Martha E.
Walter L. Henry was born in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania, May 31, 1875. His first education was that to be had at the public schools of Lebanon, but his later
training was of a unique and valuable type. After he left school he had a short experience in mercantile life, when still a boy of fourteen, and then joined the Pennsylvania Nautical Schoolship, "Sara- toga." This vessel, under command of Commander Green, cruised for five months in the West Indies. The studies and travels of the boys on the "Sara- toga" were continued during a cruise of five months in European waters, touch- ing at Southampton and going up the Thames to London, later to Havre, France, and to the island of Madeira, re- turning at length to Philadelphia. After this educationally broadening trip, Mr. Henry entered the Lebanon Business College, studying bookkeeping, banking, and commercial law. As one of his rec- reations, Mr. Henry became an enthusi- astic bicycle rider, and soon became a champion in that line of athletic sports, winning the short distance track cham- pionship of Lebanon county.
Mr. Henry began his business career October 3, 1899, in an office in the Peo- ple's National Bank Building in Leba- non, and afterwards affiliating himself, January 1, 1900, with the New York Life Insurance Company. Since that time he has made for himself a record for activity and business acumen. A token of the appreciation in which his work has been held from the outset by the company, is the fact that he won in his first year of service a membership in the "$100,000 Club Class" of the company. The suc- cess that follows enthusiastic energy has followed him from that day, gaining as he did in 1902 the promotion to district manager, and since then other distinc- tions and rewards at the hands of the company, conspicuous among which were that of membership in the "Old Guard" of the company, in 1902. In 1903 he was presented, at a banquet of the company, with a gold medal containing twenty-three cut diamonds, forming the
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albert Atamillion
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number fifty. This was in recognition of arriving in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1608, his being one of the "Fifty Stars" of the company's whole agency force in the United States, Canada, West Indies, and Mexico.
A taste for travel once formed seldom leaves a man, and Mr. Henry had the op- portunity in 1904, which he at once seized, of taking a long educational tour. He left for a ten thousand-mile trip on October 22, 1904, making San Francisco his destination. Mr. Henry is still a member of the "$100,000 Club Class" of the company, and has been a continuous member of the "Nylic" for thirteen years, and in seven more years (in 1919), when he will be forty-four years old, his busi- ness will be averaged and he will be en- titled to a pension, an unusual achieve- ment at that age. This pension is only given by the company for twenty years of continuous, efficient and faithful service.
Mr. Henry is a member of the board of directors of the Young Men's Christian Association, a member of the finance committee of the board, and chairman of the outdoor activities of the association. He is also an active member of the Fourth Street Presbyterian Church, serv- ing as president of the Brotherhood of the Congregation. Politically, he is a Republican.
Mr. Henry married, December 27, 1905, Margaret E., daughter of William and Margaret Neill, of Arlington, Illinois. To this marriage have been born two children : Russell Neill, born January 14, 1907, at Coleman's Manse, on Maple street, Lebanon, Pennsylvania ; and Mar- garet Neill, born June 2, 1910.
HAMILTON, Albert,
Leader in Glass Industry.
The glass-making industry was intro- duced into this country in the earliest period of our colonial history, workers
the year after the founding of the settle- ment. They received little encourage- ment, but in 1787 the Massachusetts leg- islature gave to a company an exclusive privilege for fifteen years for glass-mak- ing in that colony. In 1796 the first glass works in Pittsburgh were established at the foot of Coal Ifill, now Mount Wash- ington, and the city has ever since been the center of the glass industry in the United States. Among the business men of the last generation to whom this im- portant interest is largely indebted for its present great fame was the late Al- bert Hamilton, of the well-known firm of J. T. & A. Hamilton. Not only was Mr. Hamilton for a long period a power in the glass industry, but for many years he was prominently identified with the fraternal, social and religious interests of the Iron City.
Albert Hamilton was born May 3, 1843, in Pittsburgh, and was a son of Daniel and Ruth (Telford) Hamilton. The boy received his education in the schools of his native city, and after com- pleting his course of study entered the service of the O'Hara Glass Company. At the outbreak of the Civil War he wished to enlist, but his application was rejected by reason of his youth. On reaching the necessary age, however, he was enrolled as a member of the 193d Pennsylvania Volunteers, and served with credit for a short time prior to the close of the war.
After the return of peace, the young soldier renewed his connection with the glass industry, remaining for some time in the service of the O'Hara Glass Com- pany, whose factory was then situated in the Lawrenceville district. Eventually Mr. Hamilton resigned his position in order to associate himself with the W. H. Hamilton Company, which now ope- rates a large factory in Charleroi. In 1879 Mr. Hamilton, in company with his
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brother, J. T. Hamilton, withdrew from the llamilton Company and founded the firm of J. T. & A. Hamilton. A few years later the latter became interested in the New York Jobbing House, pur- chasing the share of C. T. Nightingale and becoming secretary and treasurer of the company which, prior to the later organization, was known as the Climax Bottle-Stopper and Supply Company. Throughout his business career Mr. Hamilton showed himself to be a man of fine natural endowments, spotless probity of character and useful influ- ence, possessing practical common sense and ballast and the power to overcome obstacles. A sense of justice pervaded all his dealings, and his conduct toward his employés was marked by uniform kindness and consideration.
In politics Mr. Hamilton was a Re- publican, but never mingled in party con- troversies nor sought public office. The responsibilities of business engrossed his whole attention, but did not prevent him from taking an intelligent interest in community affairs concerning which his advice was often sought. Generous in his benefactions to charity, his influence was always given to those interests which work for the Christianizing of the race and recognize the common brotherhood of man. He belonged to Alexander Hays Post, No. 3, Grand Army of the Republic, and Pittsburgh Commandery, No. 1, Knights Templar, and was an earnest member of the Shadyside Presbyterian Church.
The personal appearance of Mr. Ham- ilton was an index to his character, his countenance, bearing and manner show- ing him to be a man of large nature, up- right, clear-headed, of strong will, in- flexible purpose and sound judgment. Loyal in his attachments, he numbered his friends by the hundred.
Mr. Hamilton married, May 1, 1873, Amelia W., daughter of Joseph and
Emily E. (Robinson) McCreary, and granddaughter of Olney Robinson, of Manchester, New Hampshire, who estab- lished the first cotton mills in New Hampshire. They became the parents of the following children: 1. James W., of Pittsburgh. 2. Grace E., married James Watson Reed, of Pittsburgh. 3. Frank A., married Georgia N. Heard, daughter of George and Margaret Heard, of Pittsburgh; they have one child: George Heard Hamilton. 4. Albert G. Mrs. Hamilton, a woman of charming personality, is admirably fitted by mental endowments, thorough education and in- nate grace and refinement for her posi- tion as one of the potent factors of Pittsburgh society. A thinking woman, gifted with foresight and business acu- men of a high order, she possesses in- dividuality and distinction and is withal an accomplished home-maker, the charm- ing residence in the East End, over which she presides and which is one of the social centers of the city, having ever been to her husband-a man of strong domestic tastes and affections-a refuge from the cares of business and the spot where his happiest hours were passed.
The death of Mr. Hamilton, which occurred October 17, 1902, was a direct blow to Pittsburgh. Unostentatious in his activities, he was a man of most pro- gressive endeavor, always seeking a channel through which the material and moral welfare of the city might be ad- vanced. An astute business man of fine judgment and aggressive methods, he was intensely public-spirited and was un- selfish in his labors for the common weal. Passing away ere he had completed his sixth decade, Mr. Hamilton was removed in the prime of life from the sphere in which he had accomplished as much as many men who round out their three score and ten. Had he lived he would have done much more, for with men of
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William Grumbine
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his type increase of years means en- larged powers and stronger desires for the public good. Would that Pitts- burgh had more citizens like Albert Hamilton !
GRUMBINE, William,
Business Man, Public Benefactor.
For more than a quarter of a century the late William Grumbine, of Hanover, was numbered among the prominent merchants of that city, and was influen- tial in its financial, political and religious life. Mr. Grumbine was a descendant of ancestors who introduced into Pennsyl- vania that distinctively German element of sturdy enterprise and sagacious thrift which has contributed so largely to the prosperity and development of the com- monwealth.
Peter Grumbine, grandfather of Wil- liam Grumbine, was one of those who took up arms in behalf of the colonies at the time of the struggle for independ- ence, serving with credit throughout the Revolutionary War. He was a leading citizen of Hanover and lived to the ad- vanced age of ninety-six. His son, George, was presumably a native of Hanover, and married Mary Schultz. .
William, son of George and Mary (Schultz) Grumbine, was born March 24, 1824, in Hanover, and received his education in the schools of his native town. Early in life he engaged in the manufacture and sale of carriages, and gave evidence of innate business abil- ity, but his spirit of enterprise prompted him to enter upon a new line of endeavor and he accordingly established a drug and grocery business which from the outset testified by its prosperity to his capable management. For many years his store was situated at the corner of Carlisle street and Centre square. In all his undertakings he was attended by an extraordinary measure of success, the re-
sult of his far-sighted sagacity, clear and sound judgment, and progressive yet wisely conservative methods. It was not long before he was numbered among the leading merchants of his native town.
As a true citizen, Mr. Grumbine was interested in all projects which meditated the improvement and progress of the community, and actively aided a num- ber of associations by his influence and means. He served as a director in the Hanover Branch and the Baltimore & Harrisburg railroad companies, two lines of transportation which have aided great- ly in building up the material interests of the community. In 1863 he was one of the founders of St. Mark's Lutheran Church, and in 1885 purchased in Bal- timore the famous Oriole bell which had been used at the sesqui-centennial of that city. Mr. Grumbine had this bell placed in the steeple of St. Mark's Church, and presented it, with the necessary appli- ances, to the borough council as a town clock.
In politics Mr. Grumbine was an ar- dent Republican, but could never be per- suaded to accept any but minor munici- pal offices. He was several times elected a member of the Borough Council, and at the opening of the Civil War was chief burgess. He also served as a mem- ber of the School Board, of which in 1879 he was chosen president. Known to be a vigilant and attentive observer of men and measures, a man of accurate judgment and liberal views, his advice on questions of the day was frequently sought and often added weight to public movements. Mr. Grumbine's salient characteristics-those of a progressive, broadminded and kindly man-were written upon his face, and his geniality and courtesy, together with his sterling qualities, won for liim the lifelong friend- ship of many and the sincere respect of the entire community.
Mr. Grumbine married, March 24,
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1848, Elizabeth, daughter of Jacob and GREGG, Edward, Elizabeth (Ickes) Newman, and their only surviving child is Anna M., who was educated in Hanover, and in June, 1890, became the wife of A. H. Melhorn, a prominent merchant of that city. Mr. and Mrs. Melhorn have four children : William, Helen E., Anna Kathryn and Newman. Mrs. Melhorn is the owner of a large amount of real estate and per- sonal property in the borough of Han- over, among which are several business blocks near the center of the town. She is a woman of not only unusual sweet- ness and beauty of character, but is in- tellectual, energetic and sagacious, and she and her family are prominent in the social circles of Hanover.
Mr. Grumbine was a man of strong domestic tastes and affections, never so happy as at his own fireside and finding in his wife an ideal helpmate. Both Mr. and Mrs. Grumbine delighted in enter- taining their many friends and their home was a center of genial hospitality.
The death of Mr. Grumbine, which oc- curred December 31, 1888, removed from his home town one whose career, exem- plifying as it did the essential principles of a true life, contains many elements of inspiration for others. Industry, deter- mination to conquer an honorable des- tiny, purity of purpose, integrity of con- duct-these brought him the only suc- cess which he would have deigned to ac- cept, a success which had for its basis truth and honor. Mrs. Grumbine sur- vived her husband but a few years, pass- ing away May 2, 1892.
It is now many years since Mr. Grum- bine was removed from the scenes of his activity, but he lives still in the hearts of many. His memorials are the increased prosperity of his home town and the noble clock which will chronicle for fu- ture generations the flight of time. Truly may it be said, "His works follow him."
Merchant, Financier.
To say of a man that he was a pioneer business man of Pittsburgh-the Cen- ter of the Industrial World-is equiva- lent to claiming for him the distinction of membership in an order of knighthood, but this is what might with truth be said of the late Edward Gregg, for years a power in business affairs of the Iron City.
Edward Gregg was born in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, March 16, 1815, son of Levi and Elizabeth (Beltz) Gregg. Levi Gregg was a native of Pennsyl- vania, and Elizabeth Beltz was born in Germany. His father was of Scotcli- Irish descent, from ancestors who have resided near Philadelphia for many gen- erations. Levi Gregg came to Allegheny county when a young man and located on a farm near Bridgeville, and later settled at what is known as Gregg's Crossing, on the Panhandle railroad, near Oakdale, and followed agricultural pursuits. Edward Gregg was reared on his father's farm, and educated in the common schools. When fourteen years of age he came to Pittsburgh and learned the hardware business as apprentice in the store of Benjamin Darlington. Later he entered the employ of Logan & Ken- nedy, and in 1838 became a member of the firm of Logan, Wilson & Company. In 1857 the business was reorganized under the name of Logan & Gregg, and upon the death of John T. Logan, in 1871, the firm name was changed to Logan, Gregg & Company, of which Mr. Gregg was the senior member and the active managing partner up to his death. When confronted by the inevitable diffi- culties and obstacles which are encount- ered by every man who enters the com- mercial arena, Mr. Gregg displayed a force of character which enabled him to overcome them and continue his stead-
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Edward negy
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fast course on the pathway to prosper- ity. In 1896 the business was incorpor- ated under its present name, the Logan- Gregg Hardware Company. A number of financial institutions in which Mr. Gregg was interested derived great benefit from liis wise counsel which was that of a man of mature judgment, cap- able of taking a calm survey of life and correctly estimating its opportunities, its possibilities, its demands and its obliga- tions. For eighteen years he served as director and vice-president of the Safe Deposit & Trust Company. He was a director in the People's Savings Bank, the Iron City Bank, the Western Insur- ance Company and a stockholder in sev- eral other business enterprises. The goal of liis ambition was success, but he would have no success which had not for its basis truth and honor, and on these sure foundations he reared the fair fab- ric of his fortune.
A liberal giver to charity, Mr. Gregg always shunned publicity, and the full number of his benefactions was known only to the recipients of his bounty. To any project having for its end the pro- motion of the welfare of Pittsburgh he lent his hearty co-operation, and his gen- ial nature and companionable disposition caused him to be prominently identified with the social life of the city. He was a member of the board of trustees of the Reform School at Morganza, and in the early days served as chief of the Pitts- burgh Volunteer Fire Department. Mr. Gregg was a regular attendant of the First Presbyterian Church. In politics he was a Republican.
Mr. Gregg married, June 10, 1850, Clara A., daughter of John Parke, a prominent silversmith of Pittsburgh, who was a soldier in the War of 1812, mem- ber of the Pittsburgh Blues. By this marriage Mr. Gregg gained the life com- panionship of a charming and congenial woman, one fitted by native refinement,
a bright mind and thorough education, for her position as one of the city's fav- orite hostesses and withal an accom- plished home-maker. Mrs. Gregg is prominent in church and social circles, belongs to the First Presbyterian Church, and is a member of the board of man- agers of the Homoeopathic Hospital of Pittsburgh. Mr. Gregg was a man of strong domestic tastes and affections, passing his happiest hours at his own fireside, where he delighted to entertain his many friends.
Mr. and Mrs. Gregg were the parents of three children, who died early in life.
The death of Mr. Gregg, which oc- curred April 4, 1890, closed a career of usefulness and honor, a career strikingly illustrative of the fundamental principles of a true life, the record of which is un- marred by any shadow of wrong or sus- picion of evil. Edward Gregg, astute business man and public-spirited citizen, had the modesty which always accom- panies genuine elevation of character. Self-laudation was impossible to him. His motto was "Do." Such men are the glory of Pittsburgh.
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