USA > Pennsylvania > Philadelphia County > Philadelphia > Warwick's Keystone commonwealth; a review of the history of the great state of Pennsylvania, and a brief record of the growth of its chief city, Philadelphia > Part 44
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WILLIAM SELLERS.
& Sellers, his partner being Edward Ban- croft, one of his former employers. A plant was established in Kensington and the business growing rapidly the firm removed to new shops at Sixteenth street and Pennsylvania avenue in 1853. Mr. Bancroft died in 1856 and the firm name was changed to William Sellers & Co., which was incorporated thirty years later with William Sellers as president. In 1868 Mr. Sellers organized, and be- came president of the Edgmoor Iron Company, the largest concern in the world at that time devoted to structural iron and steel work. It furnished all the material, except the cables, for the Brook-
lyn bridge and the iron work for the Cen- tennial Exposition buildings. In 1873, Mr. Sellers became president of the Mid vale Steel Company Dating this period of active executive work. he kept pace with the requirements of advanced meth- ods and developed many new devices. Ilis accomplishment in mechanical crea- tion and application was marvelous and the Franklin Institute Journal, for May, 1905, paid a high tribute to his mechan- ical genius and fertility of resources. It spoke of the spiral gear planer drive as the best known of his inventions. This machine was patented in 1862 and is gen- erally used in this and many foreign countries. His best known individual achievement was his development of the Sellers, afterward known as The United States Standard Screw thread. Eminent authorities pronounced Mr. Sellers "the greatest mechanical engineer in the world." His firm received medals from the leading scientific institu- tions of the world and from all the principal expositions where its product was exhibited. Mr. Sellers was a most enthusiastic supporter of the Centennial Exposition held at Philadelphia in 1876, and was one of the vice-presidents of its Board of Finance. He was one of the organizers of the Union League, a man- ager of the old Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company, a director of the P. W. & B. R. R. Co., a trustee of the University of Pennsylvania for thirty-seven years and for a long time was president of the Franklin Institute. Ile was for five years a Commissioner of Fairmount Park and at the time of his death was a member of the American Philosophical Society, Academy of Na- tural Science, American Society of Me- chanical Engineers, the National Acad- emy of Science, the Institute of Mechani- cal Engineers and the Iron and Steel In- stitute of Great Britain, a corres- ponding member of the Societe d'En- couragement pour L'Industrie Nationale in Paris, and after the Paris Exposition the French Government conferred upon him the decoration of Chevalier de la Le- gion d'honneur. He died January 24, 1905, at the advanced age of eighty-one years.
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WARWICK'S KEYSTONE COMMONWEALTHI.
LEWIS D. ZIEGLER.
Lewis Davis Ziegler, son of George J. and Anna B. Ziegler, was born in Ches- ter County, Pa., February toth, 1846. Ile was the youngest of five brothers, all of whom in 1866 founded the shoe man- ufacturing house of Ziegler Brothers, which still exists in full power under his sole ownership.
The early life of the subject was spent with his father who was a competent German shoemaker, who thoroughly trained his sons in this craft, so that by the time they were of sufficient age they engaged in the manufacture of ladies' and children's shoes on a larger scale through the use of machinery. Their capita! was small at the start, but the practical skill and active energy of the brothers soon established a reputation for making reliable shoes, and the busi- ness grew rapidly, so that seven years after starting they built the large fac- tory 117, 119 and 121 North 5th street, which at the time was more than ample. But, in a few years it had to be enlarged and later again enlarged to meet the wid- ening demand for their goods. In time, through retirement and death, all of the older brothers discontinued. Since 1910 Lewis Davis Ziegler has been sole owner and under his management the business has widened into still higher grades of women's footwear, the full capacity of the plant is always crowded, so that the volume and character of the output ex- ceeds that of any former period. Mr. Ziegler has had from the beginning inti- mate knowledge and direction of the manufacturing end. Ile is also widely known as a salesman of the first rank. He has been blessed with a rugged con- stitution, together with a sunny cheerful optimistic temper and being thoroughly familiar with the mechanics of shoe- making he has built up an organization of loyal and capable employees, who are glad to partake of his advice and lead- ership in his most successful business.
Ilis education was mainly at the coun- try school near his father's home. lle
was janitor of this school when a boy, receiving seventy-five cents a month, and takes pleasure in relating his experiences in wading through snow and storm in order to make the fire and clean up ready
LEWIS D. ZIEGLER.
for the school session. Mr. Ziegler, while most genial among men is quiet in his taste and is pre-eminently a church and home man. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, the Historical So- ciety, Manufacturers' Club, Pen and Pen- cil Club, and is active in the Philadelphia Boot and Shoe Manufacturers' Associa- tion, being also a member of the Joint Board of Arbitration, and takes great in- terest in the success of this association, which has contributed so much to the en- joyment of its members and the harmon- ious relations existing among its em- ployees in this city.
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THOMAS SHAW OF SHAW MONT.
Thomas Shaw, M. E., of Shawmont, inventor and scientist, who was granted 187 patents by the United States Govern- ment and won over 100 medals for his inventions, was born in Philadelphia, May 5th, 1838, and died January 19th, 1901. He was the inventor of the mercury
THOMAS SHAW, OF SHAWMONT.
steam gauge, the standard of pressure of the world ; the noiseless steam exhaust, which muffles the sound of escaping steam, and which is now used univer- sally on all locomotives and steamships. One of his simplest but most useful in- ventions was the Verona Lock Nut Washer, commonly known as the Spring Pawl Washer, which goes between the mit and the fish plate for holding the rails in place, and to Mr. Shaw and this device humanity is indebted for safety in railroad travel all over the world. There are thousands of millions of these wash- ers in use.
Franklin B. Gowen, who was presi- dent of the Philadelphia & Reading Rail- way Company, thought so much of Mr.
Shaw that he named the station adjoin- ing Mr. Shaw's property "Shawmont," and the Pennsylvania Railroad paid the same tribute. Shawmont avenue is nam- ed after him, likewise Shawmont Dam, on the Schuylkill River.
His estate at Shawmont was one of the most beautiful in the country. There were seventeen buildings on it, including the manor house and the farmer's house, all used by Mr. Shaw for different pur- poses. He raised deer, bred foxes, and took a deep interest in scientific agricul- ture and horticulture. His gardens were the joy of all who visited Shawmont. Attached to the manor house was a large music hall built by Mr. Shaw specially for his daughters, only one of whom sur- vives him, however, Cora Irene, now Mrs. Joseph R. Wilson.
It is interesting to note that Mr. Shaw rolled the first steel tire ever produced in America. He also made the first elliptic springs in America, and both at the Butcher Steel Works, Philadelphia, (now Midvale Steel Works), of which he was superintendent when he was less than 30 years of age.
Mr. Shaw was the confidential adviser of Captain Eads, who built the great Mis- sissippi bridge. It was Mr. Shaw who solved for him the problem of founda- tions through the great depth of soft mud.
Mr. Shaw had many prominent offers from foreign governments, all of which he declined. The Emperor Napoleon III. invited him to France to change the sys- tem of generating steam on the French warships from coal to oil fuel. Alexan- der II., the father of the present Czar of Russia, invited him to that country to take charge of its railroad system. Mr. Shaw was too busy at home, however, to consider any foreign work.
For twenty-five years he was a mem- ber of the Committee on Science and Arts of the Franklin Institute, and was granted the Elliott-Cresson Medal and the Scott Legacy Medal for his inven- tions, being the highest awards in gifts of that institution.
Mr. Shaw made millions and spent millions in the interest of science. The invention which he placed ahead of all others, however, and on which he spent a
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WARWICK'S KEYSTONE COMMONWEALTH.
quarter of a million dollars, was the he decided to devote his entire time to Shaw Gas Tester for detecting the pres- commercial and industrial pursuits. He was the sole owner of E. E. Brown & Co., Philadelphia ; president of the Bu- chanan Foundry Company, Lebanon, Pa. ; president of the Cedar Farm Company, Rising Sun, Maryland ; vice-president of ence and percentage of gas in coal mines. This device has unquestionably prevented hundreds of explosions of gas, and saved thousands of lives by indicating its pres- ence in advance. It is the official stand- ard of Pennsylvania.
Mr. Shaw came from a long and dis- tingnished line of Colonial ancestry, and beyond this' he was able to trace his de- scent back to Michelet, treasurer to the Frankish King Chlodwig, A. D. 536. Mr. Shaw married Matilda Miller Garber, a descendant of Benedict Garber, one of the earliest settlers of Collegeville, Pa. Mrs. Shaw died in 1902. Their only liv- ing descendants are Mrs. Joseph R. Wil- son, of Overbrook, Philadelphia, and her children, Mary Michelet, John Hawkes. Sydney Violet and Cora B. H. Wilson.
ELMER ELLSWORTH BROWN, M. D.
Dr. Brown was born in Cecil County, Maryland, May 6, 1861, and is a lineal de- scendant of both James and William Brown who in 1701, were the first settlers of Nottingham Lots. The forebears were ministers of the Society of Friends, and were the founders of the congrega- tion that still worships in Brick Meeting House. Cornelius S. Brown, father of Dr. Brown, was a farmer who was killed while serving in the Union Army during the Civil War. Dr. Brown's carly edu- cation was received at the Soldiers' Or- phan School, Mount Joy, Pennsylvania, and his first employment was on a farm. Afterwards he became an apprentice in an iron foundry, becoming successively foreman, superintendent and finally a partner. In 1897 he received the degree of Doctor of Medicine from Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia. After practicing his profession for a few years
DR. ELMER 1. BROWN, DECEASED.
Temple University, Philadelphia, and vice-president of the Philadelphia Foun- drymen's Association. He was also a di- rector in the Waterbury Foundry Com- pany, Waterbury, Con .; Peoples Na- tional Fire Insurance Company, United Fire Insurance Company, Independence Fire Insurance Security Company and the Quaker City National Bank, Philadelphia.
Dr. Brown was a Republican in poli- tics and was a member of the Mannfac- turers Club, Masonic fraternity and sev- eral other social and fraternal organiza- tions. His death occurred May 23. 1913.
WARWICK'S KEYSTONE COMMONWEALTH. 393
CHARLES J. WEBB.
An indefatigable worker for the com- mercial advancement of Philadelphia is Charles J. Webb, head of Charles J. Webb & Co., leading wool merchants, whose labors along unostentatious lines will leave their impress upon the mercan- tile history of the city. He was born in Wilmington, Delaware, July 31, 1858, the son of James Lamborn and Susan Rapp (Graeff ) Webb, the former of English and the latter of German extraction. The paternal branch of the family was foun- ed in America by Benjamin Webb, who settled here in 1713. The maternal branch was established here earlier for the rec- ords show that Daniel Graeff, Mr. Webb's great grandfather, served as a Captain in the Revolutionary War, while George Maris, another maternal fore- bear, was a member of the Colonial As- sembly in 1684-88 and 1690-93, Provin- cial Counsellor in 1695 and a Justice of the Peace in 1684-89 and 1691-93. Mr. Webb's father was a leather merchant and in addition to Charles J., his chil- dren were Benjamin, now deceased, Har- riet, How Mrs. S. S. Saffold, and Mar- garet A., how Mrs. James G. Kitchen. Charles J. Webb was educated in the public schools of Burlington, N. J., and began his business career as a clerk in a grocery store. This position, however, did not afford the opportunities his am- bition craved and in 1873 he came to Philadelphia and entered the employ of James G. Kitchen, at that time the lead- ing wool merchant in the country. Mr. Webb was but fifteen years old at this time but he applied himself zealously to his work and soon mastered every detail of the business. A few years later he started in business for himself and after- wards founded the house of Charles J. Webb & Co. That firm's almost immedi- ate success was due to his comprehensive knowledge of the business coupled with an inborn executive ability. Under his able direction the business expanded to such an extent that the plant has been enlarged several times and the house has attained first rank in the wool business, enjoying a high reputation for integrity and occupying an enviable position in the mercantile affairs of Philadelphia.
Mr. Webb is keenly alive to everything of vital importance to the city and firmly believes Philadelphia is destined to even- tually regain its old time commercial su- premacy. This optimistic view has been strengthened by the return of the wool trade to its former position. In quiet and
CHARLES J. WE BB.
indirect ways Mr. Webb has done much for the advancement of the city's mer- cantile and social interests and the esteem in which he is held was shown recently upon his return from a foreign tour, when he was given a hearty reception by bis business associates and friends, and those who witnessed the demonstration were greatly impressed by the recogni- tion of his worth as a merchant and pro- gressive citizen. Mr. Webb takes no in- terest in politics but is always active in any concerted movement that stands for advancement. lle is a member of the Union League, the Manufacturers Club and other organizations and is a trustee of the Bethlehem Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia. Ile is an ardent golf player and fond of all outdoor sports, serving as first Commodore of the Island Heights
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NOVEMBER 7, 1926
LE
EDWARD G. FORD
ia
Retired Merchant Was Noted as a Trapshooter
The funeral of Edward G. Ford, re- tired merchant and noted as a trap- shooter, will be held at his home at 425 Green, lane, Roxborough, tomorrow afternoon at 2 o'clock.
N FMr. Ford died at his home Thursday, after a short illness. He
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a As thirty-one years he was in business on 6th near Race, retiring in 1913.
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( His wife, Margaret M. Ford ; of ( brother. Jolin M. Ford, and four sis- ters, . Mrs. S. A. Henry, Mrs. Charles gh a Hoehling, Mrs. George Ray and Mrs. ed John MacFarland, survive him.
MRS. SARAH W. BALDWIN
Wife of Former Speaker of State House Was Active In Charity Mrs. Sarah. W. Baldwin, 73, wife of Richard J. Baldwin, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives and a former State Senator, died early yes- terday after a short illness at the home of her daughter, Mrs. William Temple, n Concordville.
Mrs. Baldwin was a member of the society of 'Hicksite Friends and the oncord Meeting and was active in jose circles as well as in charity work. irviving, are another daughter, Mrs. orence ,Baldwin Passmore; and. two as, Thomas B. T. Baldwin, of Hapris- g, qud R. Lindley Baldwin, of Midia. funeral will be private.
G. A. SACCHI
Had Been With Westinghouse Com. pany Since 1893
Funeral services for G. A. Sacchi were held yesterday at his home in Lansdowne, .The body was taken to New , York for interment in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery near Tarrytown. Mr. Sacchi, who died on November. 4, ' was manager of the stoker sales department of the Westinghouse Elec- tric and. Manufacturing Company. Ile became associated with the company 'in 1893. Hle Is survived by his wife, two' daughters and a sister.
HE IS COL. HOFFMAN NOW
Head of Hoffman-Corr Company Is Honored by Georgia Governor
George F. Hoffman, of 312 Market! street, president of the Hoffman-Corr Manufacturing Company, | was notitied yesterday of his appointment as aide- de-cnimp with the rank of colonel on the staff of Governor Clifford Walker, of Georgia. .
Colonel Hoffman is widely known in manufacturing circles both in this city and in New York. Ile is a member of the . Union League, the Manufac- turers' Club, the Jewelers' Club, the Wellwood Club and the Watatic Club. Ile was the founder of the Ashburn- ham Foundation at Ashburnham,
Mass., "and is a director of the Cush- ing Academy. . Recently he awarded a prize of a round trip to Europe for the writer of the best essay among the boys of the Central High School.
500 WOMEN IN PILGRIMAGE
Phila. Catholic Group Will Visit Statue of Liberty Today
A pilgrimage to .the' Statue of Lib- erty in New York Ilarbor, will be made today by 500 members of the Central Organization of Catholic - Women as their annual patriotic journey. They will leave Broad Street Station at 7:40 'A. M., and will be met in New York by a committee representing the Knights of Columbus.
A wreath will be placed at the base of the statue by Miss Mary J. Fisher, president of the organization. A sight- seeing tour and a. dinner at the Hotel "Breslin will follow.
engineer. The funeral . will be held Tuesdayj'afternoon at 2 o'clock from an undertaking establishment nt 19th and Arch streets. ..
last .was born 'at Concord, Del., on March 21, 1858,' and came to Philadelphia when he was fifteen years old. For
He was vice president of the Board of Trustees of the Leverington . Pres- byterian Church, Roxborough, and a
member of Columbia Lodge, No. 91. F. and&A. M. His skill as a' trap- "shooter , and his enthusiasm for the sport won .. bin much note among sportsmen. He was a member of the Quaker Clty Gun Club, the Camp and Trail Club and the Roxborough Game, Fish and Forestry Protective Asso- ciation ..
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WARWICK'S KEYSTONE COMMONWEALTII.
Yacht Club, during 1898 and 1899. Fond of traveling, he has traversed the United States several times, made one trip around the world and spent some time in the Orient. Mr. Webb married Miss Mary Kate Spangler, daughter of An- drew M. and Mary M. (Schaeffer) Spangler, October 5th, 1882. Mrs. Webb is a Colonial Dame and Daugh- ter of the American Revolution. The children by this union are Charles Ed- win, Andrew Spangler and Herbert Keeng Webb.
GEORGE F. HOFFMAN.
There is no man more prominent in the commercial life of Philadelphia than George F. Hoffman, president of the Hoffman-Corr Company. Born in Ash- burnham, Mass., in 1863, he received his education in the public schools and then took a commercial course in Poughkeep-
GEORGE F. HOFFMAN.
sie, New York. His first position was a clerkship in the freight office of the Bos- tou and Maine Railroad Company at Fitchburg, Mass., from whence he came to Philadelphia as manager of the Steel I Forse Collar Company. Finding this po- sition offered little chance for business advancement, he became salesman for a cordage house and seven years later, hav- ing acquired a thorough knowledge of that line, started in business for himself. In 1899 he organized the Hoffman-Corr Company, for the manufacture and sale of cordage products and the business has grown to such proportions that large stores are maintained in Philadelphia and New York. Mr. Hoffman is a member of the Union League of Philadelphia and the Union League Club of New York City, the Germantown Cricket Club, Man- ufacturers' Club, New England Society, Friendly Sons of St. Patrick and the Ma- sonic fraternity. He is very charitably inclined and during several cold weather periods of business depression he sup- plied the poor of Germantown with coal and Bonr. He has at different times en- tertained the inmates of the Masonic Home and has taken bodies of newsboys to the Zoological Gardens, on which oc- casions he supplied each boy with a pair of new gloves. He also gave a series of concerts in Vernon Park, Germantown, and donated a cup to the Schuylkill Navy to be rowed for by the clubs at the annual regatta. Ile used his influence to make the Italian language an elective study in the Central High School and offered a prize of a round trip to Italy for the boy taking the study who wrote the best essay on "Italy," and he received notice from the American minister at Rome that the successful student would be presented to the King. Mr. Hoffman was a Presiden- tial elector in tooo and has been men- tioned for the Mayoralty nomination on the Republican ticket.
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WARWICK'S KEYSTONE COMMONWEALTH.
HAMPTON L. CARSON.
As lawyer, author and orator the fame of Hampton L. Carson has spread be- vond the confines of his own State and is almost national in its scope. Mr. Car- son was born in Philadelphia, February 21, 1852, the son of Dr. Joseph and Mary ( Hollingsworth ) Carson, the father be- ing for twenty-five years Professor of Materia Medica at the University of Pennsylvania. The paternal ancestors were Scotch Presbyterians, who settled in the north of Ireland on account of persecution, finally migrating to this country and locating in Philadelphia be- tween the years of 1740 and 1745. The maternal forebears were of English and Welsh extraction and figured extensively in the State's history from the time of William Penn. Mr. Carson received his preparatory training in the private school of Rev. John W. Faires and then entered the University of Pennsylvania where he achieved honors in declamation and Eng- lish composition. He graduated from the Department of Arts in 1871, and from the Law School in 1874 with the degrees of A. M. and LL .. B. Ile prepared for the Bar in the office of William M. Tilgh- man and after admission entered upon ac- tive practice as a member of the firm of Redding, Jones and Carson. His last connection was with the firm of Jones, Carson and Beeber, since which time he has practiced alone. From 1895 until 1901, he filled a professorship in the Law School of the University of Pennsylvania. Lafayette College conferred upon him the I.L. D. degree in 1808, and in 1892 the Western University of Pennsyl- vania bestowed a similar honor, while he won the same distinction from his Alma Mater in 1905. During his long career, Mr. Carson has been frequently urged to accept public office, but he per- sistently refused until Governor Samuel W. Pennypacker proffered him the At-
HAMPION L. CARSON.
torney Generalship of the State. Hle ac- cepted the position and brought to the of- fice an ability and resourcefulness of mind that enabled him to view imparti- ally the momentons questions that arose during his incumbency. While Attorney General he wrote over five hundred opin- ions and his arguments before the Su- preme Court of the State and the United States Supreme Court, are contained in thirty-two vohinies. Mr. Carson has been a prolific writer. He was at one time editor of the Legal Gasette and his law articles in that journal were widely read. Ilis monograph on "Law of Crimi- nal Conspiracies" attracted widespread attention as it was the first work ou strikes and boycotts, from a legal aspect. that had ever appeared, and his "History of the Supreme Court of the United States" holds a high place in legal literature. As an orator he has been called upon to place in nom-
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WARWICK'S KEYSTONE COMMONWEALTHI.
ination many judges and other officials, to deliver eulogies upon departed jurists and statesmen, to make addresses at col- lege and university commencements and before the Bar Associations of many States. In an address on "Judicial Re- call" made recently before the Circuit Court of Appeals, Mr. Carson severely denounced the doctrine of recall and paid a high tribute to the independence of the judiciary, predicting "That never will a sober, righteous and self-respecting peo- ple, with a full knowledge of its danger, permit the measureless abomination and the unspeakable sacrilege of the 'Judicial Recall.'" Mr. Carson is a member of the Union League, University, Lawyers, Manufacturers, Legal and Franklin Inn clubs ; the Law Association, Wistar As- sociation, American Philosophical So- ciety, Pennsylvania Society of the Sons of the Revolution, American Historical Society and the Swedish Historical So- ciety. He is now President of the State Bar Association and the Chancellor of the Law Association of Philadelphia.
JOSEPH W. CATHARINE.
Although a resident of Philadelphia since childhood. Joseph W. Catharine was born on the Atlantic Ocean, while his pa- rents were on a voyage in the clipper ship "Carrier Dove," of which his father was captain. The elder Catharine, who was one of the old line of Maine seafaring men, afterwards commanded steamers plying between Philadelphia and South- ern ports, and also Union transport steamers during the War of the Rebel- lion. Mr. Catharine was educated in the public schools and soon after reaching manhood became active in Thirtieth ward politics. He was admitted to the Bar December 18th, 1889, and was appointed Assistant City Solicitor in 1893, to suc- ceed Charles B. MeMichael, who had been
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