USA > Pennsylvania > The Book of Prominent Pennsylvanians; a standard reference > Part 9
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Joseph Natali, police magistrate of the Oakland Sta- tion and acting Italian vice consul, was born in Italy. He was brought to Pittsburgh by his parents,
JOSEPH NATALI. as a small boy, in 1872. Mr. Natali at- tended the public schools of Pittsburgh and Duff's College. For 12 years he held the position of interpreter in the Allegheny county court, and as such assisted in many important trials. In 1894 he was ap- pointed consular agent for Italy, serving for 10 years. In 1902 Victor Emanuel III. created him a knight of the Crown of Italy, in appreciation of his services to Italian subjects. It is a testimonial to Mr. Natali's efficiency that he has been called upon for the sixth time to take charge of the Italian vice consulate in Pittsburgh. On July 1, 1909, he was appointed police magistrate by the Mayor of Pittsburgh, serving continuously since, and has given general satisfaction. Mr. Natali is very popular among the Italian residents of Western Pennsylvania.
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GEORGE WILLIAM CRAWFORD.
George William Crawford, banker and booster for Pittsburgh, is another living testimony that in the early days of the Iron City the reputation of this region worked as a magnet and drew to its swelling population people from all over the country and the world. Mr. Crawford's parents, Andrew Isaac Crawford and Martha J. E. Crawford, lived in the quiet town of Kewanee, Ill., where, January 10, 1856, their son was born. Shortly thereafter they were attracted to Pittsburgh, where the boy was placed in the old Mansfield academy, located in what was then known as Mansfield, and which was subsequently changed in name to Carnegie. After finishing his education at the Mansfield academy he entered Duff's college, in Pittsburgh, where he graduated in his nineeteenth year.
Upon leaving school he looked about him for an opening. There was a place just such as he wanted in a bank, although it is generally admitted by those who have learned to know him since that he would still have made a great success of himself had he entered any other kind of a business. His first position therefore was given to him in 1874 when he entered the Diamond National Bank as a clerk. He remained there 28 years, being rewarded for his hard work by obtaining the position of cashier and director not long before he left that institution.
In 1902 he left the Diamond National Bank with a full and ripe knowledge of the banking business and as a person readily sought after by other and bigger banking in- stitutions. For the past ten years he has served as a director in the Peoples Savings Bank and the Peoples National Bank and the Safe Deposit & Trust Company of Pittsburgh.
During the past ten years also other interests began to claim his attention. Manu- facturing concerns sprang up in great numbers, and the men at the head of those con- cerns were constantly demanding the help ofsuch men as Mr. Crawford. He was in great demand as a director, and to this day he is serving in that capacity for a number of in- stitutions both in Pittsburgh and Boston.
In addition to holding the presidency of the Peoples Natural Gas & Pipeage Company of Pittsburgh, he is a director in the following corporations: The Allegheny Heating Company, the Crucible Steel Company of America, the Humboldt Fire Insurance Company, the Safe Deposit & Trust Company, the Peoples National Bank and the Peoples Savings Bank, all of Pittsburgh, and the Columbian National Life Insurance Company of Boston.
Mr. Crawford loves the great out doors and is fond of clean, healthful sports. When he feels the need of a change from the grind of business he seeks it with friends among fellow-members of the Pittsburgh Athletic Association.
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ROBERT GARLAND.
A leading figure in the business, po- litical and club life of Pittsburgh is Robert Garland, a manufacturer and a member of the city council. Mr. Gar- land was born in Dungannon, County Tyrone, Ireland, September 27, 1862, the son of Robert Garland and Eliza Jane Atwell Garland. While quite young Mr. Garland came to Pittsburgh. He at first started to work for Lewis, Oliver & Phillips, which concern afterwards be- came Oliver Brothers & Phillips, and still later became the Oliver Iron & Steel Company. During his connection with these firms Mr. Garland rose rapidly until in 1893 he decided to leave the em- ployment of the last named company and launch into business for himself. In this undertaking he was assoicated with his brother, John W. Garland, the con- cern being known as the Garland Chain Company. Mr. Garland is president of the Garland Nut & Rivet Company; treasurer of the Garland Corporation; director of the Third National Bank and of the Pittsburgh Life & Trust Co.
ENOCH RAUH.
Enoch Rauh's rise to public promi- nence is not the result of many advan- tages, but came through a keen business sense, intelligence and persistence, to- gether with a high business integrity. Mr. Rauh did not have any special ad- vantages in education; after beginning work at the age of 13 going to night school for some years. Today he is senior member of Rauh Brothers & Company, Pittsburgh merchants. Mr. Rauh also entered the firm of the Homer Laughlin China Company, of East Liverpool, O., and Newell, W. Va. Mr. Rauh always has been interested in civic, business and philanthropic affairs, and he is a director in many philan- thropies. He was one of those chosen when the council of nine was appointed to direct the municipal affairs of Pitts- burgh. Mr. Rauh has won an enviable record as a champion of the people's rights. Mr. Rauh has for five years been president of the Pittsburgh As- sociation of Credit Men. He is also vice- president of the National Association of Credit Men.
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MICHAEL L. BENEDUM.
Michael L. Benedum, wealthy oil producer and public spirited citizen of Pittsburgh, was born July 16, 1869, at Bridgeport, West Virginia. His parents were Emanuel and Caroline Benedum.
He secured his education in the common schools of West Virginia. Mr. Benedum, at an early age, engaged in the milling business, but later accepted a position in an engineering corps of the South Penn Oil Company.
Mr. Benedum impressed the officials of the company so favorably that he was soon transferred to the land depart- ment. From that time on his rise was rapid, and in a few years he became as- sistant superintendent for the company in West Virginia.
Not satisfied with an employe's salary in a business in which fortunes are so often made in a year-sometimes in a day-Mr. Benedum resigned from the South Penn Oil Company in 1898 and started in the oil producing busi- ness for himself. His extensive experi- ence with the South Penn Oil Company, united with a keen business instinct, brought him success early in the venture.
Desirous of carrying on an oil producing business national in extent, Mr. Benedum associated himself in business with J. C. Trees and others, operating under the name of the Benedum-Trees Oil Company, the J. C. Trees Oil Company, and various other com- panies. Both he and his associates have invaded nearly every oil field in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
They were pioneers in the oil business in Oklahoma, Illinois and Louisiana. They have spent hundred of thousands of dollars in "wild-catting," drilling wells far from territory known to contain oil. Often they lost, but in the aggregate they have won for- tunes.
Mr. Benedum is president of the Benedum-Trees Oil Company, and an officer and director in many other oil and gas companies. He is a member of the Duquesne Club, Pitts- burgh Athletic Association, the Pittsburgh Country Club, and other social organizations. He is also a member of the Masonic Order and Knights of Pythias.
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W. A. HOEVELER.
One who has attained most favor- ble prominence in the affairs of Pitts- burgh is William A. Hoeveler, member of the city's council and leading busi- ness man. Mr. Hoeveler is the eldest son of Augustus and Elizabeth (O'Leary) Hoeveler and was born in Pittsburgh May 14, 1852. He was edu- cated in the parochial schools of Pitts- burgh, at Newell's Institute and at St. Vincent's College. When 17 years old, Mr. Hoeveler engaged in the manufac- ture of glue and continued in this occu- pation until 1887, when he established the storage business in which he now is engaged. Mr. Hoeveler also is an in- ventor and has devised a number of ap- pliances of value. He is a Roman Cath- olic, a member of the Knights of Colum- bus, and in politics is independent. He married Katherine Hemphill, February 17, 1885, and they have three children. It has been by his service in city council that Mr. Hoeveler has become best known to the public.
H. M. IRONS.
Harold M. Irons, city solicitor who defended Pittsburgh in suits growing out of the "Hump removal," was born in New Wilmington, January 10, 1876. His parents were W. D. Irons and Edith B. (nee Van Orsdell) Irons. When a boy Mr. Irons attended the pub- lic schools of McDonald, Pa., and he graduated from Westminster College. He then entered the law office of John S. Robb, of Pittsburgh. After reading law for several years he passed the legal examination, was admitted to the Alle- gheny bar in 1904, and opened a law of- fice in Pittsburgh. In 1908 he was ap- pointed assistant city solicitor. Mr. Irons was married in 1905 to Miss Ed- na May Holliday, a daughter of George L. Holliday, at one time in charge of the Pittsburgh postoffice. There are three children. Mr. Irons belongs to the order of Free and Accepted Masons. There are few who have achieved appointment as city attorney for Pittsburgh after practicing law only four years.
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JOE CLIFTON TREES.
Joe Clifton Trees, oil and gas producer, sport lover, philanthropist and clubman, is a unique figure in the busy life of the city of Pittsburgh. He is the son of Isaac T. Trees and Lucy A. Trees. Previous to his entry on his highly successful busi- ness career, Mr. Trees received a liberal education. In 1892 he was graduated from the Indiana Normal School, and 1895 was graduated from the University of Pittsburgh, then the Western Uni- versity of Pennsylvania.
His love for his alma mater, the later educational institution, has been remarkably evidenced by many and re- peated substantial gifts to the institu- tion. A most valuable adjunct to Pitt, the Smoky City's own university, is the magnificent Trees athletic stadium. There on the summit of the big plot of ground in the Schenley district of Pitts- burgh devoted to the needs of the uni- versity, is the imposing Trees gym- nasium and the big athletic field, the great athletic settlement being the gift of the subject of this life sketch. His bounty to that institution, however, has not been limited to the gifts for the Pitt stadium. He is an ardent lover of healthy sports, and his annual banquet to the big football squad of Pitt after the close of the season is characteristic of his acute interest in things athletic.
In the vast Pittsburgh district which leads the world in oil and gas production, Joe Trees is an imposing figure. His interests are extensive and he stands very high in the councils of the country's oil and gas producers. In Pittsburgh business circles he wields a potent influence, and he has been prominently connected with a number of movements aiming at the promotion of the Smoky City's interests.
His influence in the oil and gas business has been so extensive as to spread over a goodly portion of the United States. Seeing the vast possibilities of oil and gas resources of the State of Arkansas, Mr. Trees, with a number of fellow Pittsburghers, decided to enter that field. He was a pioneer in the producing business in that State, and by the display of rare business judgment and acute discernment he was instrumental in making that State one of the nation's leading oil and gas producing territories.
Mr. Trees is extensively represented in the governing bodies of a number of oil and gas producing concerns throughout the country. He is president of the Arkansas Nat- ural Gas Company; president of the Arkansas Fuel Oil Company; president of the J. C. Trees Oil Company; president of the Penn Mex Oil Company; president of the Wabash Gas Company ; president of the Regal Oil Company, and vice-president of the Benedum Trees Oil Company. Mr. Trees is a member of the Duquesne Club, the Oakmont Coun- try Club, the Pittsburgh Country Club and the Pittsburgh Athletic Association.
Pennsylvania with her vast store of natural resources, the development of which has brought her largely to the fore in the world's history, has a coterie of able business men whose efforts are largely accountable for the Keystone State's remarkable standing. In this coterie, representing the Smoky City, is Joe Clifton Trees.
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Charles Elmer Bown, attorney and banker, was born in Pittsburgh February 18, 1875. His parents were
Charles T. Bown and Louisa (nee Alter) CHARLES Bown. He is a graduate of the Pittsburgh ELMER BOWN. grammar schools and of the Pittsburgh Central high school. He attended Harvard College and the Pittsburgh law school. In 1898 he was admitted to the Allegheny county bar and began the prac- tice of law immediately. In 1909 he was appointed as- sistant city solicitor. He is a director in the South Hills Trust Company and the Southern Heights Land Company. Mr. Bown is a Mason and belongs to the Americus Club, the Stanton Heights Golf Club, the South Hills Repub- lican Club, and the American Academy of Social and Po- litical Science. He is married and has three children. Mr. Bown is a shrewd, successful attorney, an able speaker and a keen business man.
Harry Hamilton Rowand, the son of Archibald Rowand, Jr., and Sarah Howard Rowand, was born in Verona, Allegheny county, Pa., April 8,
HARRY 1871. He was graduated in the class of HAMILTON 1892 from Washington and Jefferson ROWAND. College. Then he studied law with his father and was admitted to practice in all the courts of Allegheny county in 1894; had a general practice until appointed assistant district attorney in 1906. He is now first assistant under District Attorney William A. Blakeley. At the outbreak of the Spanish-American War Mr. Rowand was made a second lieutenant in the Eighteenth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer In- fantry, and shortly thereafter promoted to a first lieu- tenancy. He is a member of the Oakmont Country Club and the Oakmont Boat Club, as well as a number of patriotic orders. Mr. Rowand was married to Miss Florence E. Kier in 1898. They have one child.
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George Nugent Monro, attorney at law, was born in Ascot, Buckinghamshire, England, November 18,
GEORGE 1833, the son of Henry Loftus Monro
NUGENT and Sarah A. Monro. He was gradu- MONRO. ated from St. David's College, Carmar- then, Wales, and came to this country when 19. He taught school at Highland Falls, New York, and was graduated from the General Theological Seminary, New York City, in 1857; was ordained dea- con in the Episcopal Church, serving two years, com- ing to Pittsburgh in 1859. Here he studied law with the firm of Purveyance & Coffee and was admitted to the bar in 1863. Mr. Monro was married in 1863 to Miss Sarah A. Morgan. He was a councilman for more than 20 years. He is a vestryman in St. Peter's Church, and Past Eminent of Tancred Commandery No. 48; a member of St. John's Lodge and the Du- quesne Club.
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THOMAS O'SHELL.
The career of Thomas O'Shell has been a checkered one, but, withal, successful, as an account of his life shows, for it must be admitted that to rise from the lowly position of a cart driver to the station of a State legislator, with the prefix "Hon." to one's name, may be deemed something of a success. So it has been with Thomas O'Shell.
Mr. O'Shell was born at Walter's Mills, White township, Cambria county, Pennsylvania, August 8, 1857, the son of George H. and Elizabeth Rolls O'Shell, springing from a family whose ancestors came over on the Mayflower. As a boy, he attended the public schools. He was a bright lad, and when eight years old delivered a public oration, the occasion being a Fourth of July celebra- tion. At 16 he left the farm for the cart-driving job. Later he worked in a lumber camp and on a sawmill at Houtz- dale, Pa. He also knew the life of a miner, having worked in Clearfield, Jef- ferson, Center and Allegheny county mines. He was advanced to assistant claim agent for the Monongahela River Consolidated Coal & Coke Company, working as a clothing salesman before being employed by the Monongahela River Consolidated Coal & Coke Company.
Later he worked as a clothing salesman, and was master workman of the Salesmen's Assembly in 1907. He worked in the steel mills of the Carnegie Steel Company and the Jones & Laughlin Company, and was president of Excelsior Lodge No. 63, Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel & Tin Workers. He was one of the organizers of the First United Labor League of Pittsburgh, and was vice-president, besides being associated with a number of other trade and labor unions, holding official positions in all. He is now president of the Two-Score Land Purchasing Company, treasurer of the South Side Council No. 133, Jr. O. U. A. M .; financial secretary and treasurer of Camp Hays No. 4, Sons of Veterans.
Mr. O'Shell formerly was a director of the Morse sub-district school board. In 1907 and 1909 he was elected to the State House of Representatives, and in his first term was secretary of the Committee on Labor and Industry, handling the Employers' Lia- bility bill. He was secretary of the Committee on Mines and Mining in the 1909 session.
Mr. O'Shell is prominent politically and takes great interest in civic affairs. He is a member of the Tariff Club, Americus Club, the South Hills Republican Club, the Birm- ingham Turnverein, the Owls, South Side Council, Junior Order United American Me- chanics; of Camp Hays, Sons of Veterans, and of the South Pittsburgh Board of Trade, Beechview Board of Trade and the South Hills Board of Trade. His election to the Leg- islature in 1907 was from the Ninth legislative district of Allegheny county, while in 1909 he was honored with the confidence of the voters of the Sixth district of the county. Both times Mr. O'Shell was elected on the Republican ticket, and he did excellent work during his terms, particularly in his efforts, as a committeeman, to have legislation de- sired by his constituents made laws. In politics, Mr. O'Shell nominally is a Republican, but he has always reserved the right to independent thought.
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WILLIAM M. RAMSEY.
William Moore Ramsey, gas inspector of Allegheny county, was born in Nobles- town, Allegheny county, March 15, 1845, the son of John and Isabella Porter Ramsey.
Mr. Ramsey is one of the foremost men in the gas business, being one of the best posted men in his particular line. He was educated in the public schools of Allegheny City, now North Side, Pittsburgh, having come to Pittsburgh when very young. After leaving school he started to work with the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, and stayed with this company but a short time.
He then became identified with the oil refining business and has been connected with oil and gas enterprises ever since. Mr. Ramsey has taken a prominent and active part in the development of the gas industry in Pittsburgh, which is recognized as one of the factors that has contributed to the city's commercial greatness.
For many years he was a gas inspector, for which work he is peculiarly fitted on account of his wide knowledge and experience. Mr. Ramsey is of Scotch-Irish descent, and combines the qualities of that rugged race with his American propensities and firm- ness of character.
He learned the gas and oil business with the firm of Reese & Graff. Living in West- ern Pennsylvania, which for years has ranked as the leading gas-producing region, he has been in a position to take advantage of every opportunity in this line. His pro- gressive nature and energetic application to business has made him the powerful factor he is in these circles.
Mr. Ramsey is one of the oldest Shriners in Pittsburgh. He is a member of several Masonic lodges, having been affiliated with the Masonic order for many years. Mr. Ramsey belongs to McCandless Lodge No. 390, Free and Accepted Masons of Pitts- burgh, and also of Syria Temple, A. A. N. O. M. S.
W. J. PATTERSON, President and General Manager, Heyl & Patterson, Inc., Pittsburgh, Pa.
E. R. WALTERS, Director Department of Health, City of Pittsburgh.
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CHARLES DONNELLY.
Charles Donnelly, chief of the Allegheny county detectives, is in a position unique, seldom met in police circles, for Mr. Donnelly is the scion of a wealthy and socially prominent family who has given his intelligence, excellent education, military training and long business experience to the public as a detective.
Chief Donnelly's service as a detective began in 1909, after he had been a member of the firms of the McClure Coke Company, the Pittsburgh & Chicago Gas Coal Com- pany and the Pittsburgh Milling Company, being the president of the latter concern.
He is a son of Charles Donnelly, the late coke operator of Pittsburgh. He was grad- uated from Princeton University in 1895, and enlisted in the regular United States Army, serving through the Spanish-American War and winning a captaincy through his valor. Chief Donnelly attributes his later success in business and as a detective to the training received in the regular army, which, he believes, makes an ideal schooling for a police official. He was Captain of Company E, Eighteenth Pennsylvania Volunteer In- fantry, during the war.
While at Princeton, Chief Donnelly gained fame as a football player. Mr. Donnelly always has been aggressive, and in working on some of the biggest criminal cases brought to his attention as a member of the Allegheny county detective force, has shown unusual ability to cope with any mysterious or difficult case.
J. J. KIRBY.
James J. Kirby was born in Johns- town, Pennsylvania, August 9, 1879, the son of Edward Kirby and Annie Durnian Kirby. When but two years old he was brought to Pittsburgh by his parents, who located in the present Sec- ond ward of the city, where he has lived continuously ever since. Mr. Kirby was educated in St. Patrick's parochial school, at Seventeenth and Liberty streets. When 10 years old he began working in the steel mills. He was elected constable and left the mill, going back again after a short time. He was appointed alderman by the Governor of Pennsylvania in 1896, and was after- wards elected to the same office, which he has held continuously since through re-election. Mr. Kirby has always been interested in clean athletic sports, hav- ing won renown as a wrestler and oars- man. As a magistrate he has won wide commendation.
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Joseph Miner Searle was born in Scranton, Pa., July 7, 1859, the son of Voltaire Searle and Amanda
JOSEPH Carey Searle. Mr. Searle received his academic training at Hampton Academy
MINER
before he took up his life work. He has SEARLE. gained wide prominence as a mechanical and mining engineer in the Pittsburgh district and throughout the Southern States. Mr. Searle is chief of the Bureau of City Smoke Inspection in Pittsburgh. In this capacity he has attracted wide attention. Pitts- burgh's reputation for smoke makes his office a diffi- cult one to fill. However, during Mr. Searle's incum- bency he has given general satisfaction by his discern- ing and effective administration. His reputation as an efficient chief of the Bureau of Smoke Inspection is now international, he being president of the Interna- tional Association for the Prevention of Smoke.
William Coates, chief of the Pittsburgh Fire Depart- ment, was born in Ireland, May 12, 1848. His parents were John Coates and Rachel (nee Curry)
WILLIAM
COATES. Coates. As a baby he was brought to Pittsburgh by his parents, and attended the public schools of Pittsburgh until he was aged 13. Then he worked in Pittsburgh steel mills until the begin- ning of the Civil War. He served throughout the war, and then went to work again in a steel mill. Later he be- came a United States postoffice inspector. From 1876 to 1886 he was a member of the Pittsburgh Fire Commis- sion. In 1886 he became assistant to the chief engineer in the city fire department, and in 1913 was appointed chief. He belongs to the Masonic fraternity and to the Grand Army of the Republic. He is married and has five children.
One of the chief characteristics of S. A. Dies, super- intendent of the Bureau of Building Inspection of Pitts-
S. A. DIES. burgh, is his untiring energy and atten- tion to duty. Mr. Dies was born in 1861 in Indiana county, Pennsylvania, where he received his pre- liminary education. The father of Mr. Dies was a promi- nent contractor, and when the son left school he entered into business with his parent, devoting his time to learn- ing construction work. Mr. Dies came to Pittsburgh in 1887, working as foreman and superintendent on con- struction jobs in every part of the country. In 1891 he went into business with his brother, W. H. Dies. He was appointed superintendent of building inspection in 1903 and retained his office through changing administrations. Mr. Dies is popular among his business and professional associates, and brilliantly successful in his chosen calling, discharging the rather trying duties of his office diplo- matically and without fear or favor.
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