USA > Pennsylvania > Prominent and progressive Pennsylvanians of the nineteenth century. Volume III > Part 14
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In these days of luxurious travel on both sea and land, the nomadic public, at least in this country, have been educated up to a point where it is necessary that the hotel accommodations offered them shall be of a character that will defy criticism. For this specific reason Mr. Henry has seen fit to build a hotel, bearing his name, in his native city. That it fulfills every requirement is amply testified to by those who have enjoyed a sojourn under its most hospitable roof. In the old days, when long journeys by stage-coach formed the one method of travel from point to point, hotel guests were more than satisfied if they could secure a clean chamber in which the linen was of snowy whiteness, and a table on which was set plain but well-cooked food. Nowadays, how- ever, the public tastes have been so developed by modern inventions,
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designed for their comfort and pleasure, that they demand more and more each succeeding year. The Hotel Henry is one of the most per- fectly appointed and artistically furnished hotels in the country. It not only sets a table exquisite in its appointments and perfect in its service and cookery, but it also has apartments whose furnishings not only satisfy the craving for rest and comfort, but meet the approval of the artistic sense that has been born of constant travel in this and foreign lands.
Mr. Henry is a member and Vestryman of Christ Episcopal Church, of Allegheny City, one of the oldest and best known churches in Western Pennsylvania.
Mr. Henry was married, in 1857, to Ann E., daughter of William A. and Ann J. Irvin, who were prominent and highly respected residents of Pittsburg, and were descended from the Witherspoon and Junkin families, familiar in the history of the early events of the country. They have three children, Lillian H., wife of Frank B. Smith, William D. and David Ford Henry, Jr.
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HENRY HESS.
LL countries, whether civilized or savage, have, in their age, held to a special drink of some kind or another. It may have been in the line of fermentation from cereals and fruits, or brews from various leaves and roots, that the people of different nations have found a strengthening drink especially suited to their tastes. Yet it is an established fact that where the product of hops and malt has once been introduced, it has generally become a national beverage. To satisfy the demand, immense breweries have been established in the United States, and particularly in the city of Philadelphia, which has obtained a place in the front rank for the excellence of its malt liquor productions. The accomplishment of this result has, of course, required the services of men peculiarly adapted and thoroughly well trained for the brewing business, marked prominence in this line being attained by the subject of this review.
HENRY HESS was born on August 1, 1859, in the hamlet of Dublin, not far from Doylestown, the county seat of Bucks County, Pennsyl- vania. He is descended from a sturdy line of Dutch ancestry. His early life was spent on his father's farm, and such meager facilities for education as were placed within his reach he eagerly grasped, withal yearning for better opportunities of self-advancement. That was nearly four decades ago, when the free school system of Pennsylvania was not organized as it is to-day, and educational opportunities were rather limited, being confined to a few weeks' tuition in winter, under the guidance of peripatetic pedagogues. As a boy, young Hess saw that life on a farm meant nothing more nor less than a tread-mill exist- ence, and, like many another boy before him, he determined to branch out into a field containing wider possibilities. Therefore, while yet in
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his teens, he removed to Philadelphia, where he succeeded in obtaining employment in Thomas W. Sparks' shot-manufacturing establishment. A few months later, during the year 1880, he entered the office of the brewing firm of John F. Betz & Son. It was here he laid the corner- stone of his rapid rise in the line of business that he drifted into, probably more by the force of circumstances than as a matter of choice. An unfailing performance in his duties and a close attention to details formed traits in his character that especially commended him to his employers, and he was soon promoted to the position of chief office assistant and collector, the latter responsibility being a decided com- pliment to his integrity. Gifted with a degree of personal magnetism that has made him eminently popular, not only through the brewing trade of city, State and country, but also in other lines, he soon showed his employers that the right man had been found for the right place. It was while thus engaged that he made the acquaintance of John Spaeth and Louis Krautter, the former being the proprietor of a small brewery in what was then known as Coopersville, now a portion of the Thirty-third Ward of Philadelphia. From this acquaintance was developed the brewing plant of Spaeth, Krautter & Hess, which oper- ated and conducted the Anchor Brewery at the northeast corner of Germantown and Lehigh avenues. Mr. Hess assumed the burden of the management of its affairs, the brewing being left to Mr. Spaeth. This firm subsequently formed the nucleus of the corporation known as the Consumers' Brewing Company, consisting of the extensive brewing plants of John Roehm, Spaeth, Krautter & Hess, John C. Miller Brewing Company, the Mutual Brewing Company, the Welde & Thomas Brewing Company, and the Excelsior Brewing Company. This combination was formed in April, 1897, with a capital of $5,700,- 000 in bonds, preferred and common stock, and general offices were opened in the Bullitt Building, Philadelphia. Mr. Hess was unani- mously elected President, a position which he still holds, and, from the outset to the present, those interested in the consolidation have expressed their entire satisfaction with the successful results achieved under his intelligent guidance.
Besides his extensive brewing interests, Mr. Hess is prominently engaged in many other enterprises, being a Director in the Northern
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National Bank, the Keystone Ice Company and the Contractors' Surety, Title and Trust Company. Mr. Hess' wonderful success has not alone been confined to his happy faculty of making and holding friends, but to his remarkable capacity for the conduct of affairs, his natural executive ability, his commercial acumen and foresight, and his unexampled control, not only of self, but also of all subordinates, bind- ing them to him with links of loyalty forged in the fires of fair treat- ment and the common brotherhood of man.
Mr. Hess is married and has a family of seven children. He takes considerable interest in social affairs and in the general progress of his city.
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ADDINELL HEWSON.
HE several great medical colleges seated in this city have contributed largely to Philadelphia's fame the world over. Throughout the European centers of scientific knowledge and investigation, Philadelphia is recognized as a center of advanced instruction in the sciences of medicine and surgery. The high standard maintained in the curriculum of the colleges, the fame of her instructors and the fact that they are in the lead in all the sciences, prominent in dis- covery and the employment of new methods, have placed Philadelphia in the front rank of instruction in the Divine Art. Conspicuous among the instructors and demonstrators who are very materially aiding in making and maintaining the fame of the city is Addinell Hewson. Coming from ancestors distinguished for their medical and surgical knowledge and skill, his father, grandfather and great-grandfather having been able instructors, he is particularly well fitted for the teach- ing of his profession.
ADDINELL HEWSON was born on September 2, 1855, in Philadel- phia. His father, Addinell Hewson, is dead. His mother, Rachel Macomb (Wetherill) Hewson, is still living. His grandparents were Thomas T. Hewson and Emily (Banks) Hewson. His great-grand- parents were William Hewson and Mary (Stevenson) Hewson. His father, Addinell Hewson, M.D., and grandfather, Thomas T. Hewson, M.D., were both surgeons of marked ability and were engaged in active surgery and in clinical demonstration at the Pennsylvania Hospital. For a time his grandfather was a teacher of anatomy in the University of Pennsylvania. His great-grandfather, William Hewson, F.R.S., was instructor of anatomy in the Windmill School in London, England, and was the Associate of the famous William
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ADDINELL HEWSON.
Hunter. Fout consecutive generations of teaching of the medical and surgical sciences is a history of which few families can boast, and of which Doctor Hcwson's posterity will have reasons to be proud. Addinell Hewson attended the Episcopal Academy from 1867 to 1872 ; the University of Pennsylvania from 1872 to 1876, and the Jefferson Medical College from 1876 to 1879, being graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine at the Jefferson College, and the same year the University of Pennsylvania conferred upon him the degree of Master of Arts.
He began the practice of medicine and surgery, making a spe- cialty of the latter, in March, 1879. He was at once recognized as being particularly well equipped for the teaching of anatomy. The position of Assistant Demonstrator of that branch of the profession was offered to him by the Jefferson Medical College the same year in which he had received his diploma. This position he accepted and filled with marked ability for seven years, indicating his thor- ough knowledge of anatomy and his faith in the destiny of medicine to attain to higher things. Doctor Hewson then became Prosector of Anatomy for three years, when he was appointed Demonstrator of Anatomy. This position he has held at the Jefferson Medical College until the present. Though much of his time and attention is occupied by his large private practice and the hours required for lectures and demonstrations at the College, still he holds several other important offices.
Doctor Hewson is editor of Holden's Dissector ; Dispensary Surgeon to the Episcopal Hospital; Surgeon to St. Timothy's Hos- pital, Roxborough; Professor of Anatomy at the Philadelphia Poly- clinic College for Graduates in Medicine, and Physician to the Philadelphia Orphan Society. Doctor Hewson is very prominent in medical societies, and is an occasional contributor to leading medical and surgical journals and scientific magazines. The socie- ties of which he is a member include the College of Physicians of Philadelphia ; the Philadelphia Academy of Surgery; Philadelphia County Medical Society; Pennsylvania State Medical Society ; American Medical Association; Congress of American Physicians and Surgeons; American Association of Anatomists; and of the
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Obstetrical and Pathological societies. He is President of the Philadelphia Chapter of the Jefferson Medical College Alumni Association, and for a time was Dispensary Surgeon to St. Mary's Hospital, and Chief of the Surgical Clinic of the Jefferson Medical College Hospital.
Doctor Hewson and Lucy Clabaugh, of Taneytown, Maryland, were married in 1883. They have four children : William, Ellen, Addinell Stevenson and Harry Clabaugh.
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W. D. HIMMELREICH.
ILLIAM DAVID HIMMELREICH was born in W Kelly Township, Union County, Pennsylvania, Sep- tember 11, 1842, the ninth child of Peter Himmel- reich and Elizabeth (née Charles). Peter's father emigrated from Germany in the Eighteenth Century and settled in Buffalo Township, Union County. The grandmother of the subject of this sketch was a Withington, and male ancestors of this name came from England at an early date to this country, carry- ing on the business of clock-making, in Mifflinburg, as Withington & Son, for many years. Capt. Peter Withington was one of the heroes of the Revolution, having commanded a company in the Twelfth Pennsylvania Regiment of the Continental Line. He died in 1777. The subject of this sketch began his business career in a country store near home, receiving in an old schoolhouse nearby his early educa- tion. After three years in the store, he became clerk for Captain Crotzer, Postmaster at Lewisburg. Several ventures in the mercan- tile business, apparently not to his liking, followed, and finally he attracted the favorable attention of John B. Packer, the President of the First National Bank of Sunbury, becoming clerk in that institution. Through faithful attention to every detail he gained the confidence of Mr. Packer, an eminent lawyer and financier, a circumstance which had much to do with later successes. A hard worker himself, he knew the value of industry, while his own strict integrity served as a touch- stone in his judgment of others. Mr. Himmelreich remained with him ten years, and, during the latter part of his service, was entrusted with the most delicate and intricate business. The arduous work of the bank proved to be too great a strain upon Mr. Himmelreich's health, and he purchased an interest in the firm of Billmeyer, Dill &
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WILLIAM D. HIMMELREICH.
Company, boat-builders and manufacturers of lumber, at Lewisburg, in 1872. This was a prosperous enterprise with a most capable head, Philip Billmeyer, who was an authority on all matters relating to lumber. The firm name was subsequently changed to P. Billmeyer & Company, the other partners being George S. Matlack and Henry C. Wolfe, and to this harmonious combination Mr. Himmelreich added new force and energy. Mr. Billmeyer died in 1885, but the business was continued by the other partners under the firm name of W. D. Himmelreich & Company, which remained unchanged at the death of Mr. Matlack, in 1893, leaving but two of the firm. Mr. Himmelreich's quarter of a century in this branch of business was an unusually suc- cessful one. During all this time Mr. Himmelreich's busy brain and energy were concerned in the advancement of the welfare of Lewis- burg, and, along with George S. Matlack, he was instrumental in having the Buffalo Mills located there, backed by Judge Hoffa. He was one of its principal stockholders, and was also connected, as stockholder and Director, in the Nail Works, Furniture Works, Bridge, Gas, Water, Coal, Light and Telephone companies. In addition to giving these various interests a portion of his time, he assumed, in March, 1895, the duties of President of the Union National Bank. As its executive he opened up new avenues of business by his strong personality, and under his direction the institution was a prosperous one. His latest and most extensive project was the developing of a large tract of virgin forest in West Virginia. After tramways had been built, mills established and difficulties surmounted, he associated with him Con- gressman Dayton, of West Virginia, S. T. Foresman, of Williamsport, W. R. Kramer, of Milton, and H. C. Wolfe, of Lewisburg. The new firm had just entered the markets with the brightest possible prospects of success, when suddenly the brain that conceived it all was stricken in death.
Mr. Himmelreich took an interest in public affairs. His politi- cal affiliations were with the Democrats, but he had due consideration for the opinions of others, and was far from being a politician. In 1888 he was a Presidential Elector, and was subsequently made Post- master at Lewisburg by President Cleveland. As a Trustee of the State Hospital for the Insane, at Danville, he served for a number
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of years. Perhaps in no place will his loss be more keenly felt than in the Presbyterian Church and Sunday-School. As a member of the Board of Trustees he was a tower of strength in solving the questions and difficulties that regularly presented themselves. His wise counsels and feasible plans were backed by a generous purse, and for over four years he conducted the Bible studies of a class of young ladies in the Sunday-School. His teaching had the merit of being from the heart. Mr. Himmelreich amassed a substantial fortune, and, what is still better, made good use of it. He delighted in lending a helping hand in an effective way wherever there was need. It would be impossible to enumerate his private charities, the straitened circumstances eased by his timely aid, or the hearts he comforted. In fact, Mr. Himmelreich was much more than a business man. Reading and travel had added mental cultivation and developed his companionable qualities.
An enduring monument to his memory is the W. D. Himmelreich Library of the Presbyterian Sunday-School, a gift of about four thous- and volumes. It was his pride and care during life, and by his will he made ample provision to perpetuate it by placing apart funds to the amount of $30,000 (which sum may be materially increased) for a library building and for endowing it. His death occurred suddenly in New York City, October 23, 1897, from heart failure.
CHARLES S. HOLLINSHEAD
T HE occupancy of the presidential chair of an insurance company of national importance is significant of great ability. The subject of this review, Charles S. Hol- linshead, undoubtedly possesses such, and his pro- gressive spirit has given him deserved prominence in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He is the ninth President in line in the history of The Union Insurance Company of Philadelphia, and, although young in years, is in every way experienced and quali- fied. He has as many friends among the officers, managers, field men and agents as any man in the business. His entire life has been devoted to the work of insurance, and to him belongs the honor of organizing the agency system and establishing branches throughout the country for the Union Company.
CHARLES STERLING HOLLINSHEAD was born in New Jersey on January 10, 1850, his parents being Joseph H. and Margaret W. Hol- linshead. He received his early education in New Jersey and gained the finishing touches at the public schools in Philadelphia. While yet a boy he entered the office of the Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania, of which corporation his father, Joseph H. Hollinshead, was Secretary for more than a quarter of a century. Later he be- came associated with the general agency firm of Duy & Hollinshead. This splendid training marked him, when he had just reached his majority, as a young man especially fitted for the position of Fire Mana- ger of the Union Insurance Company. He was at that time meeting with considerable success in the insurance world as an agent, but his capabilities were appreciated so highly by the Directors of the Union Company that they made him an exceptionally favorable proposition. Acceding to their request, he became Fire Manager of the Company
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CHARLES S. HOLLINSHEAD.
in October, 1872, and has been connected with the corporation ever since. In his new position he soon demonstrated his fitness for the business and his remarkable capacity for work. How he developed the fire branch of the Union, planning agencies from Maine to Califor- nia, and making friends for himself and the company, is known to every one familiar with the history of fire insurance during the last two decades or so. In this way, many of the present agents are of his personal appointment, and his knowledge of men and his faculty of holding their confidence and securing their best work have no better exemplification than in the fact that during the past years, when fires have been most serious and many companies were obliged to retire from a contest so unequal, the Union has been able to maintain an honored position in the insurance world. At the close of 1888 the stockholders of the company concluded to retire from the marine branch of the business and pursue a fire insurance business exclu- sively. As a result a re-organization was effected that attracted wide- spread attention and favorable comment, and at the first meeting of the Board of Directors, in January, 1889, Mr. Hollinshead was elected President of the company. That the stockholders chose wisely and well their present executive, the gratifying results obtained plainly show. To terminate existing contracts of marine insurance and re-in- surance without impairing the company's credit ; to prosecute suits of marine frauds discovered, and to guide the company safely through years so disastrous as to be almost without parallel-these were part of the vast obligations President Hollinshead had assumed. Since his election to the Presidency he has received the unanimous vote of the Directors, resolutions of commendation from the stockholders and the hearty co-operation of the entire official staff, while a very con- siderable part of his success is due to the support given to him by the loyal agents of the company.
On October 14, 1897, the twenty-fifth anniversary of his con- nection with the company was celebrated. It was a day of cordial greetings and a gala night for those directly concerned. There was a festive scene at the Hotel Walton, where the Board of Directors of the Union gave a testimonial banquet, in recognition of the service of Mr. Hollinshead as President of the company, and coadjutors and competi-
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tors met to join in the utterance of approval. Upon this occasion he was the recipient of a solid silver dinner service from the Union's Board of Directors, office staff and special agents. Congratulatory speeches were made in keeping with the significance of the celebra- tion, and Mr. Hollinshead was fairly overwhelmed with expressions of esteem and regard from friends, fellow-workers and acquaintances.
Mr. Hollinshead is married, his wife formerly being Margaret S. Errickson. Four children have been born to them, Francis A., Marie L., Sterling E. and Emily Ihrie Hollinshead, three of whom are living.
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ALBERT COLE HOPKINS.
A LBERT COLE HOPKINS, of Lock Haven, Clinton County, is a native of New York State, having been born in Villenovia, Chautauqua County, September 15, 1837. He is descended from a distinguished English family, whose representatives were among the early settlers of Connecticut. His father was Joseph Gilbert Hopkins, a prosperous merchant of Villenovia and Forestville, who was born at Hartford, Connecticut, in 1808. His mother was Abigail Webb Swift, who was born in Fishkill, Dutchess County, New York, 1808. Mr. Hopkins and Miss Swift were married at Jamestown, New York, on April 1, 1833. Three children were born to them, one a son, Albert Cole, the subject of this sketch, and two daughters, Frances A. and Ophelia.
The paternal grandfather of Mr. Hopkins was Daniel Hopkins, a prosperous druggist of Hartford, born in 1762, while his great-grand- father, Joseph Hopkins, of Waterbury, was born in 1730 and died in 1801. His great-grandfather traced his ancestry back through Stephen Hopkins, of Waterbury, born in 1669, John Hopkins, of Hart- ford, the latter born in 1634, to John Hopkins, probably of Coventry, England, who came to America in 1634, and first settled in Cam- bridge, Massachusetts, where he was made a freeholder in 1635. He removed to Hartford, Connecticut, in 1636, and must have been one of the company that made that notable journey from Cambridge to Hartford under Mr. Hooker in 1636.
The subject of this sketch enjoyed the advantages of the public schools of Villenovia and Forestville, completing his education by a two years' course in the Academy at Westfield, New York, and a course of the same length in the Alfred University, at Alfred,
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ALBERT COLE HOPKINS.
people of his section of the State; but after a vigorous campaign Mr. Hopkins was elected, having a majority of fifty-one votes. At the same election ex-Governor Pattison and the other Democratic State candidates carried the district by a large majority. He was re-elected to Congress in 1892 by a majority of over 3,000 over the Democratic candidate, and, at the end of his second term, retired from the public service to devote his undivided attention to his business interests. During the time of his public service his work at Washington was so highly appreciated by the people of his own county, Clinton, that its theretofore Democratic majority was wiped out, and the management of the affairs of the county was committed to Republicans.
While in Congress Mr. Hopkins was a hard-working, faithful Representative, attending carefully to all the wants of his constitu- ents. He served four years on the Committee on Indian Affairs, and it was largely through his personal efforts that the bill was defeated having for its object the removal of the Ute Indians from Colorado. He was the only Republican in the House, north of the Mason and Dixon line, and east of the Ohio, who voted against the repeal of the purchasing clause of the Sherman Act and for the coinage of silver at the ratio of 20 to I.
Mr. Hopkins was married at Troy, Pennsylvania, on January 17, 1860, to Lydia A. Long, daughter of V. M. Long. As a result of this union a daughter, Jennie Lydia Hopkins, was born in October, 1860. She married R. R. Peale, of Lock Haven, by whom she had one child, a son. Mrs. Hopkins died shortly after the birth of her child. The daughter, Mrs. Peale, died on March 2, 1886, and was survived only a few months by her son.
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