New encyclopedia of Texas, volume 1, Part 65

Author: Davis, Ellis A.
Publication date: 1926
Publisher: Dallas, Tex. : Texas development bureau, [1926?]
Number of Pages: 1416

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Mr. Armstrong was born at Galveston on Decem- ber 12, 1894, and is a son of J. and Camille (Macera) Armstrong. His father is a well known building contractor and is now located in Houston.

Mr. Armstrong studied in the public and high schools of Galveston, and in 1911, when seventeen years of age, came to Houston where he obtained his first experience in cotton compress work. He was connected with W. D. Cleveland and Company for two years and then was with Sanders and Com- pany for a time. In 1916 he became connected with the Shippers Compress Company and has handled every branch of the business for this con- cern, including construction of plants, operation of presses, etc., and knows every detail incident to the handling of cotton. In 1922 he was made super- intendent of the local plant and has been in charge of its operation since that time.

In October, 1917, Mr. Armstrong entered the United States Army and was assigned to duty with the Quartermaster's Department at Camp Logan. He remained in the army for a year and one month, receiving his discharge in November, 1918, as quar- termaster sergeant.

Mr. Armstrong was married in Houston in 1917 to Miss Marguerite Maury, daughter of A. J. Maury, retired business man and Civil War veteran, now over eighty years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Arm- strong have one daughter, Camille. The family home is a beautiful modern place, situated near the cotton compress.

Mr. Armstrong has made a close study of the cotton compress business and is regarded by his associates as an expert in this line of work. He is quiet and unassuming but a man of splendid per- sonality and one who enjoys the hearty co-operation of his employees and associates in business.

D. LIVINGSTON of Houston, Texas, has had a wide and varied business career, which was started in the insurance busi- ness soon after he left school in 1896. Mr. Livingston came to Houston in 1918 as district manager of the United States National Life and Casualty Company of Chicago, and has built up a very large business in Southeast Texas for this company. Thirty people are employed in the Hous- ton office of this insurance company, which is located at 329 Kress Building, and they write in- dustrial, health and accident insurance and have perhaps the longest list of policy holders in this city. Twelve agencies report directly to the Hous- ton office. Mr. Livingston started his career in the insurance business in Central Ohio, where he remained for two years, after which he became as- sociated with a large manufacturing plant at Ash- land, Ohio, as bookkeeper, and remained in this position for a period of two years. He then entered the employ of the Erie Railroad, in the transporta- tion department, and worked practically all along the line of this railroad. He resigned his position in order to come to Dallas, Texas, where from 1914 to 1916 he was cashier of a large film distributing house of that North Texas city. He then returned to Ohio, where he became associated with the United States National Life and Casualty Company, with Cleveland as his headquarters. He was later sent to Akron, Ohio, as assistant manager of the office there, where he remained until coming to Houston in charge of the office of the company in this city. He is popular in the business circles here and has made many friends for himself and the company he represents.

A native of Ohio, Mr. Livingston was born at Ashland, on September 7th, 1876. His father, H. M. Livingston, (now deceased) was also a native of Ohio, and was engaged in the commission business in that state all his life, and was well known and highly esteemed as a citizen and business man. His mother, also born in Ohio, was Miss Mary D. Davis, a member of a well known family of that state, where she still resides. His early education was obtained in the public schools of Ashland, Ohio, after which he became a student of Savannah Acad- emy. He later attended Oberlin College at Oberlin, Ohio, where he first pursued an academic course and later took a full business course at this well known college.

Mr. Livingston was married at Cleveland, Ohio, on October 12th, 1913, to Miss Cora B. Craft, a native of Pennsylvania, where she was a member of a pioneer family. Mr. and Mrs. Livingston reside at 1608 Fannin Street. Since locating in Houston Mr. Livingston has identified himself with the bus- iness and social life of this city, and has become interested in many of the enterprises here, which he considers has a very bright future. He believes that Houston, with her deep water facilities, low freight rates, and the great number of manufactur- ing and educational features, is destined to soon lead the entire Southwest.

337

MEN OF TEXAS

OHN THOMAS CROTTY came to Houston in 1904 and brought with him a knowledge of the practical equipment to be used in the development of oil and gas fields. Mr. Crotty is president of the Republic Supply Com- pany, dealers in all kinds of oil and gas well equip- ment for drilling, producing and conserving oil and gas. This company was established in 1910 and is the largest oil well supply house in Texas with head- quarters in Texas, which is the home office. Be- sides the large stocks carried in Houston, the Repub- lic Supply Company has nine branch houses in the state and employ three hundred people. Their trade territory is mostly in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. They carry a large and complete line, large stocks always on hand, and do an immense business. Other officers of the Republic Supply Company are J. R. Covington, treasurer, and A. B. Judd, secretary, and their offices are located in the Second National Bank Building.

Mr. Crotty was born at Dunkirk, Chautauqua County, New York, December 21st, 1877. His father, M. L. Crotty, was well known in the business cir- cles of Dunkirk. His mother was Miss Mary Man- gan, a member of a well known family of New York state. His education was obtained in the pub- lic and high schools of Albany, New York. With a desire to learn every phase of the oil business, Mr. Crotty went to the oil fields of West Virginia in order to learn more of the business in general, and to get a practical experience from the operating and producing end, and since that time has handled every branch of drilling and production used in the oil industry.

A short time before coming to Texas in 1904, he became interested in the oil well supply business, and after looking over the Texas field and realizing the necessity for a large and complete supply house, organized the John T. Crotty Company, which was successful and built up a large business. In 1910, the company was taken over by the present com- pany of which Mr. Crotty is president, and under his careful supervision the Republic Supply Com- pany has continued to grow until it is one of the leading supply companies of the Southwest.

Mr. Crotty was married in Pittsburg, Pennsyl- vania, August 16th, 1903 to Miss Regina Padden, a member of a well known West Virginia family. They have three children, John William, ten years of age; Frank Bernard, aged eight years, and Eliza. beth Jane, five years old. The Crotty home is at Shady Side. In social organizations, Mr. Crotty is a member of the Houston Country Club and the Houston Club. Since coming to Houston in 1904, Mr. Crotty has noted many changes in the city and the great development which has taken place in the South Texas territory. He is optimistic as to the future of Houston and believes the time is near at hand when it will be the leading city of the South- west. Mr. Crotty is very loyal to the city of his adoption and never lets an opportunity pass to tell of the wonderful South Texas country and of the future that he believes is in store for this metro- polis.

M. KENNERLY has, through a career of thirty years as a Texas lawyer, won a place of leadership among the legal fraternity. Mr. Kennerly is the senior member of the law firm of Kennerly, Williams, Lee and Hill. He

came to Houston from Giddings in 1897 and since that time has established a large clientele. which includes many large corporations, among which are the Houston Oil Company of Texas, Receiver R. B. Creager of the Irrigation Company in the Rio Grande Valley, the People's State Bank and many others. The firm devotes a great deal of time to work in oil and land litigation. They are also engaged in trial work for the Federal Petroleum Company and the Republic Production Company. Among the leading cases in which Mr. Kennerly has been a prominent figure was: State of Texas vs. Houston Oil Company of Texas, attacked by state on titles to cancel patent to about 88,000 acres of land in Texas. This resulted in a victory for Mr. Kennerly, although the Texas Legislature had authorized the employment of special counsel, and was vigorously fought by the state. This case attracted a great deal of attention, not alone in Texas, but thought- out the country.

A native Texan, Mr. Kennerly was born in Lee County in 1874. His father, Joshua H. Kennerly, also a native of the Lone Star State, was born in what is now Washington County in 1831, when the broad western plains stretched for hundreds of miles over an empire of open cattle ranges and Indian at- tacks on the white settlers were frequent and often disastrous. His grandfather, Everton Kennerly, was truly one of the very early poineers of the state, having removed to Texas from Tennessee in 1829. His mother was Miss Hannah Hunton, a member of a well known Arkansas family. Mr. Kennerly's liter- ary education was obtained in the public schools of Giddings, and his legal education was secured through private study. He was admitted to the bar in 1893 when nineteen years of age, when he estab- lished his office in Giddings and began the practice of his profession, which he continued until 1897, with the exception of seven months practice in Hous- ton. From 1903 to 1907 he was referee in bank- ruptcy in Houston. Mr. Kennerly is prominent in the Republican circles of Texas and served as per- manent chairman of the Republican convention in Fort Worth, in 1922, and was active in the effort to put Peddy's name on the Republican ticket. He is president of the Baptist Hospital, at Houston.

Mr. Kennerly was married in Giddings, Texas, in 1895, to Miss Evelina Meineke, a native of Grimes County, deseased since March 28th, 1922. Two sons were born of this union; Irl F. Kennerly, attorney with his father, and Thomas Everton, a student of the law department of the University of Texas. On June 27, 1923, Mr. Kennerly was united in marriage with Miss Lula B. Reynolds, a native of Bexar Coun- ty. Miss Reynolds has resided many years in Hous- ton, and was educated in the University of Texas. The Kennerly home is at 1523 Heights Boulevard. Mr. Kennerly is a member of the Houston Club, the Harris County Bar Association, of which he is ex- president, and the State Bar Association. He is a staunch and consistent member of the Baptist Church. Mr. Kennerly has always been interested in all matters having to do with the progress and ad- vancement of Houston, which he believes is destined to become the leading city of the Southwest. He has won substantial recognition of his legal attainments, and through his devotion to professional duties, Mr. Kennerly is well known as a careful, painstaking and conscientious lawyer.

338

John @ Crotty

NEW ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TEXAS

LYDE V. BROWN, owner of the Brown Manufacturing Company at Houston, has been a resident of this city for a score of years, during which time he has engaged in manufacturing activities. The Brown Manufac- turing Company, manufacturers of screens, was es- tablished in 1911 and is located at 3619 Commerce Street, in a building with ten thousand square feet of floor space owned by Mr. Brown. The company also acts as agents for weather strips and metal screens, and does an extensive business in that line. A force of from eighteen to twenty-five em- ployees is maintained. In addition to the plant at Houston, Mr. Brown also operates a similar plant at San Antonio, manufacturing an extensive line of screens in that plant, which he opened in 1921. Mr. Brown is also on the Advisory Board of the Hous- ton Building and Loan Association, the pioneer building association at Houston, and one that has taken an active part in encouraging home owner- ship for many years.

Clyde V. Brown was born at Henderson, Texas, the twenty-seventh of July, 1881, son of W. M. Brown and Mary (Johnson) Brown. Mr. Brown, Sr., a native of Mississippi, has served as a Meth- odist minister for many years, but is now retired. Mrs. Brown is a native Texan. Cylde V. Brown was educated in the schools of Texas and since leaving school has engaged in business in this state, coming to Houston in 1906 to enter the business world here.

Mr. Brown was married at Henderson, Texas, in 1904, to Miss Nettie Thompson, daughter of W. A. B. Thompson, and Cornelia (Lewis) Thompson. Mr. Thompson is a well known merchant and farmer of Henderson. Mr. and Mrs. Brown reside in Houston at 813 Boundary Street, and have two children, Ho- mer Brown, who is associated with his father in the Brown Manufacturing Company, and Lanelle Brown. Mr. Brown belongs to the Builders' Ex- change and the Methodist Church.

RANK J. BECKER planned and constructed the American Maid Flour Mills, the only plant of its kind in Houston, of which he was Vice President and General Manager until his removal to Dallas. Mr. Becker was raised in an atmosphere of the mill and elevator business, and has devoted more than forty years of his life to this industry.

Mr. Becker was born in Henderson, Illinois, in 1862. His father, Lothar Becker (deceased since 1889), was a pioneer miller in the early days of Illi- nois. In 1876 he removed to Galveston and built the Galveston Flour Mills. Later he organized the Reymershoffer Corporation, known as the Texas Star Flour Mills, a corporation with a capitalization of $25,000.00 and in 1884 he retired from active business pursuits and was succeeded by his son, the subject of this sketch. Mr. Becker's mother was, prior to her marriage, Miss Mary Agnes Smith, a member of a prominent Illinois family. Mr. Beck- er's education was obtained in the public and high schools of Henderson, Illinois, and at Knox College, graduating from this institution in 1879. In the same year that Mr. Becker finished his college train- ing he came to Texas and entered the flour mill with his father in Galveston, where he remained until 1918. Houston capitalists having arranged for the financing of a flour mill in their city, induced

Mr. Becker to come to Houston to undertake its construction, which he did successfully as is evi- denced by the increasing business of the firm.

Mr. Becker was married at Hannibal, Missouri, in 1884 to Miss Addie Virginia Barde, a member of a pioneer Missouri family. They have one son, Louis F. Becker of Dallas.

D. BUTLER was prompted originally to move to Houston by reason of the superior advantages offered by the schools of the city and has never regretted that his in- terest in the welfare of his children caused him to come here. A resident of the city for nearly a quarter of a century, Mr. Butler is one of Houston's solid, substantial business men and has prospered and developed his business as the city has grown and expanded.

Mr. Butler is engaged in the real estate and loan business and has offices at 7091/2 Congress Avenue. Coming to Houston in 1900 he worked for the Southern Pacific Railway Company for a year and then was connected with the local street car system for three years, leaving the street railway company when the employees went on strike in 1904. He then went to work for the Capital Realty Company and in 1906 was made manager of the business. In 1910 he purchased a half interest in the business and has continued to operate the loan department under this name. This is one of the oldest loan offices in Houston, making a specialty of chattel mortgage loans. The business was originally es- tablished as Kay and Company and operated under this name for twenty-five years, being succeeded by the Capital Realty Company in 1902.

The real estate department of Mr. Butler's busi- ness is handled as the McCarrey Land Company. He is now confining his attention entirely in the real estate line to handling his own properties and making loans on real estate and developing suburban additions.

Mr. Butler is a native of Texas and was born on June 14th, 1871, in Shelby County, a son of Rev. G. W. Butler, farmer and Baptist minister. His father came to Texas in 1857 from Bowling Green, Kentucky. His maternal grandfather, Allen Bryan, a native of Selma, Alabama, located in Shelby County in the early days and secured two leagues and labor of land, totaling 4,440 acres, extending from where Timpson now stands to the Sabine River.

Mr. Butler was educated in the public schools of Teneha and at Woods Post Office in Shelby County, and later attended Baylor University at Waco where he was a class mate of Governor Pat Neff.

On June 1, 1892, he was married at Teneha to Miss Minnie Stanley, daughter of a pioneer family who came to Texas from Alabama and Kentucky in the fifties. They have four children, Marguerite, now Mrs. Marguerite Miller of Springfield, Missouri; Louis C., of Trinity, Texas, and Misses Minnie Maurice and Fannie May. The family home is at 3810 San Jacinto Street.

Mr. Butler is a thorough-going business man, conservative, and a great believer in Houston and its future. He takes an active interest in civic affairs and is a member of the Woodmen of the World. He predicts a population of half a million for Houston during the coming decade.

341

MEN OF TEXAS

M R. WADDELL, president of the Waddell House Furnishing Company, Inc. of Hous- ton is one of the most efficient and pro- gressive furniture dealers in the South- west where he has devoted the energy and skill of his entire life to the furniture business. This com- pany has one of the largest and finest establish- ments of the kind in the state, occupying a commo- dious building six stories in height, built and owned by it with a floor space of 100,000 square feet. In addition to the large and complete stock of furni- ture, the Waddell Company have a large Drapery Manufacturing Plant in the building, where draper- ies of all kinds are made for the stock and to order for their customers. They also operate a mattress factory at the corner of Sampson and Walker Streets, which occupies a space 75 by 125 feet, where one of the most popular mattresses on the market is manufactured. The Waddell House Furnishing Com- pany's pay rolls carry from one hundred to one hun- dred and ten people. This large furniture company, located at 1102-4-6-8-10 Prairie Avenue at the cor- ner of Fannin Street, was established in 1882 by Mr. Waddell's father, the late H. Waddell, under the name of H. Waddell, and was continued under this name until incorporated in 1911. The annual vol- ume of business exceeds $1,250,000. Other officers of the Waddell House Furnishing Company, Inc. are H. K. Waddell, vice president; Harold Wilson, sec- retary and treasurer, and G. A. Rick, manager.

A native Texan, Mr. Waddell was born in Houston June 25, 1874. His father, H. Waddell, founder of the Waddell Furniture Company, was of Scotch- Irish parentage. Before coming to Houston, he resided in Galveston and the great storm which swept the Island City caused him to move to Hous- ton in 1874. He was active in the business until his death. Mr. Waddell's preliminary education was ob- tained in the public schools, and later he studied in different colleges and academies of Europe.

Mr. Waddell began in his father's furniture store as a boy, where he remained, learning all phases of the furniture business, and after the death of his father was made president of the concern. Mr. Wad- dell's executive skill has been developed by having spent all of his life in the atmosphere of the fur- niture business and he knows furniture as few men know it. He was married at Liberty in 1910 to Miss Louise Bamford, a native of Houston and a member of a well known Texas family. They have two children, M. R. Jr., and Mary Louise. The Waddell home is at 2403 San Jacinto Street. Mr. Waddell is a member of the Masonic Lodge No. 4 of Temple; the Scottish Rite Consistory No. 1 of Galveston, and a member of the Scottish Rite body of Houston to the 18th degree, and a Shriner of Arabia Temple, of which he is treasurer .. For many years he has been active in the Scottish Rite work in Houston and Galveston and has been rewarded with the degree of K. C. C. H. Other organizations of which he is a member are the Glenbrook Country Club, Houston Launch Club and the Turnverein. Mr. Waddell has seen Houston grow from the town on the banks of the murky Buffalo Bayou to the thriving, commer- cial deep-water city of today. He has always been prominently identified with all movements tending to promote the growth and importance of Houston and has an abiding faith in the future of his city.

OHN WILLIS SLAUGHTER, well known in educational circles throughout the country, is a member of the faculty of the Rice In- stitute, where for several years he has been lecturer in civics and philanthropy. In addition to the Lectureship at the Rice Institute, Mr. Slaughter is Director of the Houston Foundation. He is inter- nationally known, having lived and worked in many parts of America and Europe, as a man of the very highest educational attainments. He came to the Rice Institute in 1919 and two years later assumed his post with the Houston Foundation. He is also Secretary of the City Planning Commission and is President of the Houston Safety Council, and is Executive Secretary of the Community Chest.

Mr. Slaughter was born at Camp Hill, Alabama, January 10, 1878. His father, George M. Slaughter, was a large land owner and cotton planter of Ala- bama. His mother was Miss Catherine Jarrell, a member of a prominent Alabama family. His early education was obtained in the public and high schools of Alabama, and under private tutors. Later, he attended Lombard College at Galesburg, Illinois, for three years and graduated from this institution with the degree of A. B. He then entered the University of Michigan, where he remained for three years and graduated with the Ph. D. degree. Since his gradua- tion from the University of Michigan in 1901 Mr. Slaughter has devoted himself almost entirely to educational work. Leaving the University of Mich- igan he went to Clark University at Worcester, Mas- sachusetts, and worked for two years with G. Stanley Hall. At the end of this time he became head of the Department of Psychology in the University of Cincinnati. After one year there he returned to Clark University as a teacher. Twelve months later he went to the University of London as Lec- turer and remained there for seven years. During this time he was Secretary of the Sociological So- ciety under the Presidency of Viscount James Bryce, who was subsequently made Ambassador to this country. Associated with him in this work also were Lord Avebury and Arthur Balfour. Mr. Slaugh- ter left London to engage in business in South Amer- ica and stayed there three years. The World War brought him back to the United States, where he became a member of the Council of National De- fense with headquarters in New York City. After the war, Mr. Slaughter came to the Rice Institute, Houston, where he has since remained, and at the time of the resignation of Dr. R. E. Vinson, as Presi- dent of the University of Texas, he was most favor- ably considered for this place.

Mr. Slaughter was married in Dallas, Texas, to Miss Margaret Perkins, a daughter of Judge E. B. Perkins, a prominent lawyer of Dallas and General Attorney for the Cotton Belt Railroad. They have one daughter, Betsy. Mr. and Mrs. Slaughter re- side at No. 4 West 11th Place. Mr. Slaughter holds membership in the University Club and is a con- sistent member of the Episcopal Church. There are very few men in Texas who have had the vast ex- perience in travel that Mr. Slaughter has enjoyed, a part of which was for pleasure and a part when he toured the country lecturing. He has contributed some very valuable articles on scientific subjects to the various magazines of the country, and to sev- eral educational publications for publishers in New York City.

342

M. R. Waddell

NEW ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TEXAS

HOMAS H. MONROE, for a decade a factor in the lumber business at Houston, has during his association with the West inter- ests made a creditable record along all lines and is considered one of the best informed and most progressive lumbermen in the city. Mr. Monroe is secretary and treasurer of the South Texas Hard- wood Company, the South Texas Lumber Company, the West Lumber Company, the Fort Terrett Ranch, the West Production Company, the Trinity Valley and Northern Railway Company and the West Build- ing Company. He has his office in the West Build- ing, and since assuming this responsible position in September, 1914, Mr. Monroe has devoted him- self with indefatigable energy to the affairs of these organizations, and has materially assisted in build- ing them up. During this time he has performed many services not usually in the scope of the duties of the secretary and treasurer, and has established the reputation of a business man of keen insight and responsibility. J. M. West, one of the best known lumbermen of the Lone Star State is pres- ident of all the above mentioned organizations, with the exception of the South Texas Hardwood Com- pany.

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New encyclopedia of Texas, volume 1, Part 65

Author: Davis, Ellis A. Publication date: 1926 Publisher: Dallas, Tex. : Texas development bureau, [1926?] Number of Pages: 1416

Author: Davis, Ellis A.
Publication date: 1926
Publisher: Dallas, Tex. : Texas development bureau, [1926?]
Number of Pages: 1416