USA > Pennsylvania > Montgomery County > Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, a history, Volume III > Part 10
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Masons, of which he is past master, and now (1923) was elected treas- urer; is past high priest of Pottstown Chapter, No. 271, Royal Arch Masons; and is also a member of the Patriotic Order Sons of America, being a past officer in this body.
Mr. Stover married, on October 12, 1904, Anna L. Brown, daughter of Frank S. and Elizabeth (Drumheller) Brown, of Royersford, Pennsyl- vania. Mrs. Stover is a vocalist of wide prominence in the community, having been educated under the best instructors. She has done choir work in Philadelphia and has had charge of the First Methodist Epis- copal Church choir for many years. In 1922 she had charge of the Ladies' Chorus of the Women's Club. Mr. and Mrs. Stover have two sons : 1. Paul B., born April 20, 1906, educated in the Royersford public and high schools, now attending Perkiomen Preparatory School, class of 1923. 2. Frank B., born February 7, 1910, now attending Wyndcroft School (private), Pottstown, Pennsylvania. The family home is at No. 567 Church street, Royersford.
WILLIAM M. SULLIVAN-The monuments bearing testimony to the skill and artistic genius of Mr. Sullivan are numerous and well known in the section of Pennsylvania, where he resides. A native of Norristown, Pennsylvania, he has contributed to esthetic marble and stone structures of permanent value in churches in this neighborhood. He is a son of Florence and Ann E. Sullivan.
William M. Sullivan was born at Norristown, Pennsylvania, October 17, 1861, and received his education there in the public schools and at Treemount Seminary. Later he learned the trade of marble cutter and the details of monument construction, a character of work in which he has been continuously engaged up to the present time. For several years he was interested in the King of Prussia Marble Quarries and while thus engaged cut the stone which forms the new addition to the County Court House. In October, 1884, Mr. Sullivan became the proprietor of the Granite and Marble Works, established in 1840 by Franklin Derr, at 127 West Main street, Norristown. Since becoming the owner of this business he has increased the output three hundred per cent, and among the buildings erected by him are the following: Washington Memorial Chapel, at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania ; Ursinus College, at Collegeville, Pennsylvania ; Lady Chapel of the Episcopal Church, at Cynwyd, Penn- sylvania ; interior of St. John's Church, in Norristown; and the monu- ment to the late Philander C. Knox, United States Senator from Penn- sylvania. This firm is completing a new plant at the corner of Main and Center avenue to which they expect to move soon, and are installing modern machinery. They employ only the most skilled labor to insure a high standard of excellence.
He is a Mason and member of Charity Lodge, No. 190, Free and Accepted Masons; Norristown Chapter of Royal Arch Masons; and Hutchinson Commandery Knights Templar, No. 32. He is affiliated with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and with the Commercial Club.
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Mr. Sullivan married, September 25, 1885, Margaret Long, of Norris- town. The children born to them are: Florence, wife of T. Stephen Neale, to whom two children were born, Margaret and Florence; Helen, wife of W. J. Jarrett, of Norristown, and they have two children, Wil- liam and Helen; Ralph J., who died in his fourteenth year; William Stanley associated with his father and married to Elsie Martin, of Tren- ton, New Jersey. He enlisted in the United States army, June 5, 1917, in the 108th Field Artillery, Pennsylvania National Guard, 28th Division. From Camp Hancock, Augusta, Georgia, he went overseas May 17, 1918, and was engaged in active fighting from August until Armistice Day. He suffered from a gas attack on the Vesle front, in France, and for acts of bravery at Argonne received the Croix de Guerre from the French Government, being one of the two men from Norristown to receive this honor. Entering the army as a private, he was discharged as a sergeant May 24, 1919. In addition to being a member of the Ameri- can Legion, he is affiliated with Charity Lodge, No. 190, Free and Accepted Masons, the Tall Cedars, and of Epsilon Kappi Pi, a college fraternity. He graduated from the Norristown High School in 1913, and from Drexel Institute, in Philadelphia.
JAMES W. POTTER-With wide and practical experience in the business world, and still identified with some of the foremost mercantile interests of Philadelphia, Mr. Potter has been active in the public life of Norristown ever since attaining his majority. He is now serving accept- ably in the office of burgess of this borough. Mr. Potter is a son of the late James D. Potter, long a resident of Norristown, who died February 27, 1922, and Catherine L. (Rotzell) Potter, a native of Montgomery county, and daughter of Charles Rotzell.
James W. Potter was born in the city of Philadelphia, March 21, 1880. The family settling in Norristown in his infancy, his education was received in the public schools of this community. His first regular employment was with Harley Brothers & Company, prominent grocers of Norristown, located at the corner of Chain and Marshall streets, although he had for some years sold papers as a newsboy. Active in the grocery business for about three years, Mr. Potter then entered the employ of the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad, in the capacity of brakeman, in the passenger service, and was thus engaged for a period of four years. His next change was into mercantile affairs, when he became identified, on March 1, 1902, with the nationally celebrated firm of Wanamaker & Brown, of Philadelphia. He has since been continu- ously identified with this concern in the capacity of salesman, and is still thus active.
Mr. Potter is undoubtedly better known in his home community for his long and useful service in the public affairs of the borough. Always keenly interested in the welfare of Norristown, and a staunch supporter of the Democratic party, he was a worker in the ranks of his party from the time of casting his first vote. In 1904 he was brought forward as Democratic candidate for burgess, against Samuel Roberts. Although
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the odds against him were too heavy for his success at that time, he has ever since been a leader in the party. Serving continuously as commit- teeman of his ward, he was made a member of the Borough Council in 1908, serving until 1911 as Democratic Councilman from the First Ward. In 1921 Mr. Potter was elected chief burgess of Norristown, and is now the incumbent of that office. His success at the election of that year was the cause of much rejoicing among his friends and felicitations from them, and he is conceded by his opponents to be thoroughly qualified for the duties of his position. His record thus far has proved him not only efficient and capable, but a man of resource and tact, and possessed also of the dignity becoming in the highest official of the community. Mr. Potter is widely known in fraternal circles, being a member of Norris- town Lodge, No. 620, Free and Accepted Masons, of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, No. 714, of which he is past exalted ruler, of the Loyal Order of Moose, and of Minnekaunee Tribe, Improved Order of Red Men, of which he is past sachem.
Mr. Potter married, October 22, 1901, Miss Leila E. Wisner, of Norris- town, daughter of William and Jane (Shaw) Wisner, and they have one daughter, Ruth W., born January 18, 1904. The family home is at No. 609 Noble street.
HARRY S. MORGAN-The years of employment with James Lees and Sons Company of Bridgeport, Pennsylvania, have been utilized by Mr. Morgan in a way to increase his usefulness to the concern, so that he has lately come to occupy an executive position of considerable import- ance. He is still a comparatively young man and his present attainment augers well for the future.
Scott W. Morgan, born November 17, 1847, married Emella Brown, who was born December 27, 1851, and died June 13, 1914. They were the parents of the following children: Myrtle; John; Bertha, wife of Frank Traver ; Gertrude; Florence, wife of Harry Wall; Alice, wife of Oscar Williams; Harry S., the subject of this sketch. The father, who is still living, was a farmer having one hundred and seventy-five acres of land at Beaumont, Pennsylvania, which he worked until 1915.
Harry S. Morgan was born August 30, 1894, on his father's farm at Beaumont, where he worked when not attending the public schools. He graduated from the high school in 1911 and spent the years 1912-13 at Bloomsburg State Normal School. Then he taught school for three years 1914-17 at Laurel Run borough schools. He was then given a position as assistant shipping clerk with James Lees and Sons Company, and in 1918 became a salesman. In 1921 he was entrusted with the posi- tion of assistant sales manager and advanced to assistant general man- ager for Minerva Yarns on January 1, 1923, succeeding J. L. Schweyer, who had then become general manager.
Mr. Morgan is a Republican in politics. He is a member of the Illinois Commercial Men's Association, and in religion, is a communicant of the Jeffersonville Methodist Church.
He married, at Norristown, August 17, 1915, Dorothy Reese, a
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daughter of George H. (deceased) and Katherine (Remaley) Reese. Mr. Reese had been manager of a slag works at Swedeland. One child was born to Mr. and Mrs. Morgan on January 13, 1917, Richard Henry.
J. CRAWFORD JOHNSON-J. Crawford Johnson was born in Norristown, Pennsylvania, June 18, 1871, son of Joseph S. and Eliza J. (Crawford) Johnson. He was graduated from Norristown High School in 1889, and became employed on the Norristown "Herald," learning printing, and then engaged in reportorial and editorial work, with espec- ial attention to legal and political writing. He was elected clerk of courts of Montgomery county in November, 1919.
On August 10, 1893, he married Miss Etta L. Fulliam, daughter of Dr. George W. and Elizabeth Fulliam, of Muscatine, Iowa. A daughter, Lydia, died in 1903, and their only living child, Ettabelle Fulliam, is the wife of J. Le Roy Schweyer (q. v.), of Norristown. Mrs. Johnson died February 22, 1920.
JOHN LEEDOM JONES-In one of the most practical lines of business endeavor Mr. Jones has for many years been active, and for some time now has been the head of an important flour mill in Bridge- port, Pennsylvania. Mr. Jones is a son of John and Mary E. Jones, his father having been active in both agriculture and mining.
John Leedom Jones was born in Delaware county, Pennsylvania, March 10, 1860. The family removed to Norristown in his childhood, and his attendance at the Norristown public schools comprised his only educational advantages. At the age of seventeen years the young man entered the industrial world, securing a position in a flour mill in Norris- town. Three years later, in 1880, he went to Minnesota, where he was employed along the same line of activity for three years, and gained wide and valuable experience. Returning East Mr. Jones went to Philadel- phia, where he acted as salesman for the Milborn Mills Company for a period of eight years, after which he was located permanently in Bridge- port, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania. Establishing a flour mill here in association with W. C. Stokes, the business was carried forward suc- cessfully for about four years. When Mr. Stokes retired from the firm, Mr. Jones received into partnership Mr. Warren A. Wright, who con- tinued with him for many years, and was killed in an auto accident November 1, 1921. Mr. Jones is still active as the head of the business, and is counted among the leading men of the community, also being well known in Norristown, his place of residence. In political affairs Mr. Jones is an independent Republican, although he has never sought public prominence. For recreative interest he turns to the out-door world, and is a member of the Ersine Tennis Club and the Plymouth County Golf Club. He has long been identified with the Episcopal church.
Mr. Jones has been twice married. He married first, on December 6, 1893, in Norristown, Helen D. Wills, daughter of Morgan R. and Mary
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D. Wills, and she died April 30, 1919. He married, second, on October 17, 1921, at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, Nina Pugh, daughter of John and Emily Pugh, of that town. The family home is at No. 910 De Kalb street, Norristown.
PAUL RAYMOND CARROLL-There are many interests that hold the attention of Paul Raymond Carroll, of Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, for aside from his thriving business he is conspicuous in the political, fraternal, and athletic life of his community. He is the son of Lawrence J. Carroll, so long associated with the Lee Tire Corporation, and Margaret Carroll, and has a brother, Francis T. Carroll, and two sisters, Catherine M. and Margaret C. Carroll.
Paul Raymond Carroll was born in Norristown, Pennsylvania, March 15, 1896. He had his preliminary education from St. Matthew's Parochial School, from which he was graduated in June, 1912. For professional training he matriculated in the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, of which he is a graduate, class of 1917. Upon the conclusion of his col- legiate study, he came to Conshohocken and established a drug business, the development of which has occupied much of his time and attention with the best of results. He has not neglected other and outside affairs, being prominent in Democratic politics, and is a councilman, representing the First Ward on the Conshohocken board. Fraternally he affiliates with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and is active in the Young Men's Athletic Association of his city. He is a communicant of St. Matthew's Catholic Church.
ROMANUS FELLMAN-Romanus Fellman, of Norristown, Penn- sylvania, was a trained artillery man when the United States entered the World War, and was eagerly accepted by the government for service in the training of our new army. Before the war ended he had been made a major and was commander of the Third Battalion, 6Ist Field Artillery. He is well known in Norristown for his efficient service as chief of its police force. The son of Levi Fellman, born March 6, 1845, and Catherine Fellman, born March 4, 1844, Romanus Fellman was born on March 5, 1879, at Hatfield, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania. He was educated in the public and high schools of his native place and later had a year's training in West Point Military Academy, West Point, New York.
His career was begun as a bricklayer, working at his trade for twelve years, four of which were with Charles Heckler of Philadelphia. He then became a member of the Philadelphia police force for four years, coming to Norristown in 1914 to act as its chief of police for the next six years. Since January, 1921, he has been warden of the county jail.
Mr. Fellman's military record is long and honorable. On December 28, 1898, he joined Company B, United States Engineers, as a private, for five months, and reënlisted in May, 1899, in Company E, United States Engineers, with which company he remained until December 24, 1901. From 1904 to 1916 he was a member of the National Guard, starting as a
1. Fellman
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private, and by promotion becoming successively corporal, sergeant, lieu- tenant and captain. In 1916 he went to the Mexican border as captain of the Field Artillery, and served until 1917, when he was assigned as com- mander of Headquarters Company of the Second Pennsylvania Field Artillery. Promoted to the rank of major, he became commander of the Third Battalion, 6Ist Field Artillery, and sent to Camp Jackson, South Carolina. He was assigned to and commanded the 6Ist Field Artillery from December 4, 1918, to February, 1919, when it was mustered out. He was detailed to the School of Fire at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, and was graduated with the fifty-third class in April, 1919, when he was assigned to and joined the 8Ist Field Artillery at Camp Knox, Kentucky. On May 6, 1919, he was appointed provost marshal of Camp Knox, and served in this capacity until his honorable discharge, December 31, 1920.
His fraternal and social connections are many, among which are the United States Spanish War Veterans ; Veterans of Foreign Wars ; Ameri- can Legion ; Norris Lodge, No. 714, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; Tall Cedars of Lebanon; a thirty-second degree Mason, of Louisville, Kentucky; a Knight Templar, of Elizabeth, Kentucky; a Shriner, of Louisville, Kentucky, and a member of the Methodist Epis- copal church.
On February 5, 1902, at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Romanus Fell- man was married to Harriet Mildenberger, of that city, and they are the parents of three children : Nelson, born June 21, 1903 ; Nicholas, born November 30, 1904; and Frances, born June 14, 1913.
WALTER YODER MOORE-Taking a broadly practical part in the business activities of Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, Mr. Moore is achieving marked success in serving the needs of the motoring public with garages at both Lansdale and Montgomeryville. He is counted among the enterprising young men of this section.
Walter Y. Moore was born at Lansdale, Pennsylvania, December 24, 1898, and is a son of Thomas David and Hannah (Yoder) Moore. As a young lad he attended the public schools of his native township, also covered the high school course there, then gained his first business experience in the grocery store of B. H. Springer, of that place. After three years in this connection Mr. Moore entered the garage business in partnership with Robert Mattern, establishing a modern and well equipped garage at Lansdale. The business prospered from the start, and the young men later, in 1922, established a similar enterprise in Montgomeryville. They are going forward with constantly increasing success, and stand among the leaders of progress in their field in Mont- gomery county.
Mr. Moore married, in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, October 11, 1919, Hattie Refsnider, daughter of Elmer Refsnider, and they have two chil- dren: Russell Walter, born in 1921, in Lansdale, and Betty, born in 1922, also in Lansdale.
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CHRISTIAN BAUER-In the agricultural activities of Montgomery county, Mr. Bauer is widely prominent, and also has interests of similar nature in foreign countries, where for many years he was personally engaged. Born and reared in Germany, Mr. Bauer is a son of Christo- pher and Carolina (Grassle) Bauer, both natives of Fautzheim, Germany. The father was a farmer by occupation, and a very prominent man in the town of his residence, Neifern, Germany, of which he was for several years mayor. The children of these parents number five, as follows: Ferdinand, deceased; Helena, now deceased, who was the wife of Wil- liam Grassle; Frederick, single; Magdelina, widow of the late August Leitz, a manufacturer of jewelry ; and Christian.
Christian Bauer was born in Fautzheim, Baden, Germany, on May 5, 1869. Educated in the public schools of the city of his birth, he then entered the Reialschuler Practical Business School and took a course in French, English and Spanish to prepare for the commercial jewelry busi- ness. He was clerk in various business houses and factories in Ger- many, and Spain, for eighteen years, and then had one year in a banking house in Germany, and again returned to Spain to study the language and business conditions of that country. In 1891, employed by a concern in Germany, he was sent to the West Indies and South America as salesman and buyer of jewelry and diamonds. Finding South America to his liking, in 1894 he established his own jewelry business in Bogota, Colombia, under the name C. Bauer, which was later changed to Bauer & Company. This interest is still being carried on, Mr. Bauer acting in the capacity of buyer in the United States, and he also manages several farms totaling close to two hundred acres for his father-in-law, Francis J. Clamer, of whom further mention is made elsewhere in this work. During his stay in Bogota, he established a private banking business and also had several farms, a cattle ranch and a coffee plantation until 1911. He was in the United States in 1904 to buy plated goods when he met Gerterude Margaret Clamer, whom he married the same year and with her returned to Colombia, where two of their children were born. In 1914 he was requested to return here to manage his father-in-law's inter- ests and has been here ever since. The farms over which he has juris- diction and their acreage are: Glen Farm, of fifty-two acres, where he resides ; Ironbridge, of eighty acres ; Deitrick, of thirty acres ; and Quarry Place, of seventeen acres. He took a trip to Germany in 1919 and pur- chased several properties, believing them to be good investments because of money depression there. With the desire to adopt this country as his Fatherland, he took out his first naturalization papers in 1919. In his religious affiliation he is a member of the Protestant church, in Germany.
Mr. Bauer married, in Trappe, Pennsylvania, on November 2, 1904, Gerterude Margaret Clamer, of Collegeville, Pennsylvania, daughter of Francis J. and Margaret (Deitrick) Clamer, and they have four children : Gerterude Margaret, born in Bogota, Colombia, on November 6, 1905 ; Carl, born in Bogota, Colombia, on September 5, 1907; Elsa Consola, born at Glen Farm, Collegeville, Pennsylvania, on October 12, 1917; and Maria Louise, born in Philadelphia, on June 27, 1922.
Christian Bauer
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AMOS S. WISMER-Amos S. Wismer, one of the old line trades- people of Lansdale, has been one of the factors in the success of his city as a thriving, up-to-date business place. Of a naturally retiring nature, he has not thrust himself forward in matters of public import, but none have been so ready to stand with and to help any movement looking toward the betterment of civic or business conditions. He is the son of Isaac and Elizabeth (Leatherman) Wismer.
Amos S. Wismer was born in Hilltown township, Bucks county, Pennsylvania, December 28, 1861, and attended the county schools until he was nineteen. and laid, during that period, the foundation upon which his later education was built. After schools days were over, he started to learn the tailor's trade, which took him successively to South Hatfield and Souderton, Pennsylvania, after which he became a journeyman tailor. Eventually, he went to Line Lexington, Pennsylvania, and set up in business for himself and spent eight very pleasant and successful years there. In January, 1895, he moved to Lansdale and opened a shop, and has continued both to live and work in the city up to this time (1922). His long service has given him a wide acquaintance, and he has cus- tomers who have come to him for thirty or more years.
Mr. Wismer is a follower of the Republican party, and has been for eight years an able member of the council of the borough of Lansdale. He fraternizes with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Patriotic Order Sons of America. For years he has been an attendant and member of the Reformed church of Lansdale.
On November 1, 1884, at Sellersville, Pennsylvania, he was married to Lydia Knipe, daughter of Amos and Elizabeth (Crouthamel) Knipe. Mr. Knipe was a well known contractor and mason of Montgomery county. Mr. and Mrs. Wismer are the parents of two children: Lotta, who is married to Oliver Wood, and lives in Dover, New Jersey ; and Harrison, who married Margaret E. Smith, and resides in Lansdale.
PAUL B. ZIMMERMAN-One of the younger men who is making his ability and industry felt in the business life of Lansdale, Pennsyl- vania, is Paul B. Zimmerman. With a thorough grounding in his trade, and after two years' service in the World War, he returned to Lansdale, and is now head of the Ambler Motor Company, Inc., a thriving concern, with ample headquarters and equipment. He is the son of William H. and Mary E. (Beaver) Zimmerman, his father engaged in the plumbing and heating business in Philadelphia and Lansdale, Pennsylvania. They are the parents of four children: William E., Ruth M., Elizabeth, and Paul B., of whom further.
Paul B. Zimmerman was born at Lansdale, Pennsylvania, March 17, 1892. After completing his education in the public schools of his native city, he was for six years associated with his father in business, four of which were spent in learning his trade. Desirous of getting started in the automobile business, he secured a position as shop mechanic with the Overland Motor Company, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, remaining for nearly three years, and then was with the Locomobile Company, of
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the same city, for a year. The entrance of the United States into the World War led him to enlist in the army on November 10, 1917, with the Quartermaster's Corps. He soon was changed to the Motor Transport Department, later was transferred to the Motor Transportation Corps of the First Division, and saw active service in the battle of Chateau-Thierry and in the Argonne offensive until the signing of the armistice. He then was sent to Andernach, Germany, with the army of occupation, and was discharged as sergeant at Camp Dix, September 20, 1919. Returning to his home, he was employed for nearly a year in the Norristown City Garage, Norristown, as manager of the parts department. He moved to Ambler following this, and opened a garage in a large two-story building, under the name of the Ambler Motor Company, Inc., which has met with a thriving success. He is a member of the William E. Hare Post, No. 206, ' of Lansdale.
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