New encyclopedia of Texas, volume 2, Part 13

Author: Davis, Ellis A.
Publication date: 1926
Publisher: Dallas, Tex. : Texas development bureau, [1926?]
Number of Pages: 1262

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Mr. Sawyer was born in Alabama, the twenty- eighth of March, 1877, the son of the late Dr. J. B. Sawyer, a practicing physician of Memphis, Ten- nessee, and Eudora Stubbs Sawyer. Mr. Sawyer was educated in the public schools of Memphis, attending the high school there, and rounding out his educa- tion with special courses. Mr. Sawyer came to Texas in 1893, going to Hillsboro, where he was in a retail drug store for two years, after which he went to Galveston, where he was in the drug business for four and a half years. He then came to Beaumont, and was with W. B. Dunlap for a year and a half, and for another year and a half with the Caswell- Preston Drug Company. In 1905 he started in busi- ness for himself, at that time having a partner, whom he later bought out. At that time he opened the Post Office Drug Store, still owning a large part of the stock of this company. Later he bought the Orleans Drug Store, and is now a stockholder in this business. Still later he started the Citizens Drug Store No. 1, later opening the Citizens Drug Store No. 2, and in both of which he is a stockholder. He is interested in the Hardin Drug Company, In- corporated, at Silsbee, Texas, owning the building occupied.

Mr. Sawyer was married at Beaumont, in 1908, to Miss Ethel Little. They live at 875 Fifth Ave- nue, and attend the Methodist Church. Mr. Sawyer is a member of the Beaumont Country Club, and is a Mason, York Rite, and a member of El Mina Tem- ple Shrine at Galveston. Mr. Sawyer's achievement in the business world has been entirely through his own efforts, and his intimate knowledge of the drug business, as well as his ability as an executive, has resulted in a wholesale drug business which is an im- portant factor in the commercial life of the com- munity. Mr. Sawyer has also been identified with many business and civic affairs, and has done much for his community along the lines of civic advance- ment and beautification.

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NEW ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TEXAS

NTON JACOBS, Volkart Brothers, Inc., agency of Volkart Brothers, Inc., 26 Bea- ver Street, New York City. President and general manager, Max Greeven. Vice pres- ident and secretary, Leon B. Herault. Houston manager, Anton Jacobs. Office, 1509 Cotton Ex- change Building. Telephone, Preston 3189.

S. ALLEN is one of the live, progressive young insurance men of Houston and is associated with R. M. Anderson in the Anderson-Allen agency with offices at 317 Carter Building. Anderson and Allen are general agents for the Lincoln National Life Insurance Com- pany and have a large section of South Texas as their territory. Local agents are stationed at prac- tically all important points in their territory and the agency has been producing a steadily increas- ing volume of business since its organization in May, 1922. The Lincoln National is one of the strongest old line companies operating in Texas and writes an attractive line of standard life contracts. Business produced by the Anderson-Allen Agency by the middle of the summer of 1923 indicated they would write during the year a considerable increase of business over the previous year.

Mr. Allen procured his first experience in life insurance work as an agent for the Southland Life Insurance Company of Dallas. He was with the Southland for only a few months when he accepted the general agency for the Lincoln National Life at Jacksonville, Texas. His territory there em- braced four counties surrounding Jacksonville and the agency was conducted with splendid success from September, 1921, until May, 1922, when Mr. Allen concluded to join forces with Mr. Anderson in the agency at Houston.

A native of Texas, Mr. Allen was born at Rusk in Cherokee County on September 4, 1891. He is a son of W. R. and Leota (Summers) Allen and received his education in the public schools and high school at Jacksonville and in a commercial college at Tyler. His father was a well known business man at Jacksonville and for ten years or more prior to his death in July, 1923, was the resident agent there for the Texas Company. He originally came to Texas from Georgia, some fifty years ago.

After leaving the business college, Mr. Allen's first work was as secretary to the superintendent of the Texas and New Orleans Railway Company. He remained in this position for about a year and a half, when he resigned to become stenographer in the general offices of the Texas Company. He remained with this company for several years and was filling the position of general cashier when he resigned. In 1919 Mr. Allen was elected secretary of the Young Men's Business League of Houston and had a splendid record of accomplishments to his credit when he resigned eighteen months later to enter the insurance field.

Mr. Allen was married in Jacksonville on August 6, 1913, to Miss Clyde Williams, daughter of J. D. Williams, prominent business man and dry goods merchant at Jacksonville for the past forty years. Mr. and Mrs. Allen are the parents of two children, R. S., Jr., and Mary Jean.

Mr. Allen has always maintained an active inter- est in civic affairs and is a member of the Houston

Salesmanship Club and a director of the Young Men's Division of the Houston Chamber of Com- merce. He also is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.

OHN F. LEWIS has during his eight years spent in the oil business established an en- viable reputation as a producer of flowing wells, having brought in fifteen producers without drilling a dry hole, and has also proven a success as an executive. Mr. Lewis came to Hous- ton in 1919 from Fort Worth and is President of the Producers Crude Oil Company, with office located at 405 Goggan Building. The Producers Crude Oil Company was organized in 1922 with a capital of $1,000,000.00, fully paid, and operate in the Mid- Continent oil and gas fields and are operating in Arkansas and expect to begin active development work in Texas. Other officers of this company are Frank Lewis, Secretary and Treasurer; this young oil official graduated from Harvard University in June, 1923. J. H. Smith of Fort Worth is Vice- President of the Producers Crude Oil Company. Mr. Lewis was Vice-President and Field Superintendent of the Old Dominion Oil Company, whose predeces- sors were the General Petroleum Company, from 1919 to 1922.

A native Texan, Mr. Lewis was born in Erath County, November 13, 1876. His father, F. M. Lewis, a native of Alabama, came to Texas in 1854 and for many years was engaged in farming in Erath Coun- ty. His mother was Miss Minerva Gilbreath, a native of Tennessee, and came to Texas in 1853. His education was obtained in the country schools of Erath County. After leaving school in 1896, he started his business career as a clerk in a store at Dublin, Texas, and later became a traveling sales- man in Texas, Louisiana and West Mississippi, and continued in this line from 1903 to 1905. He then became Manager of the Strawn Merchandise Com- pany at Strawn, Texas, where he remained for one year, and then went to Mexia with the Nussbaum store, where he remained until 1910, as Manager of this dry goods store. In 1910 he entered the dry goods business for himself at Dublin, Texas, and in 1912 his store was burned and he engaged in the real estate business there, and continued in this line of endeavor until 1917 when he entered the oil busi- ness. Mr. Lewis drilled a number of wells in Ste- phens and Wichita Counties, and it was while drill- ing here that he drilled the fifteen consecutive pro- ducing wells, and this occurred while he was an offi- cial with the General Production Company and the Old Dominion Oil Company. In addition to his oil interests, Mr. Lewis owns farm lands in West Texas and has other real estate interests in the State, and is a Director in the Quartet Music Company of Fort Worth.

Mr. Lewis was married in Dublin, Texas, on De- cember 26, 1897, to Miss Irene Smith, a native of Tennessee and a member of a prominent family of that State. They have three children, Frank, Imo- gene and Billie. Mr. Lewis is a member of the A. F. and A. M. He is one of the most careful and con- servative men engaged in the oil business and has built up a strong company. He has had several years experience in the field and today spends the greater part of his time there, and is a student of the oil business, and is popular in the oil circles of Texas.

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MEN OF TEXAS

ARRY A. BURR, for many years a resident of Orange, where he has been identified with the technical management of public utilities throughout much of his business career, has used his influence to further the de- velopment of Orange along progressive lines. Mr. Burr is secretary and general manager of the Gulf States utilities under the executive management of Stone and Webster, Inc., whose predecessor, the Orange Ice, Light and Water Company, was estab- lished in 1896, and has since supplied Orange with these important utilities. At all times the com- pany has kept pace with the development of the city, extending their service as the growth of Orange demanded, and has been an important fac- tor in this growth. Mr. Burr has directed much of this development, and is keenly awake to the part public utilities take in civic advancement. The ice plant has at present a capacity for eighty tons of ice daily, employing in this department five men, and manufacturing ice for wholesale distribution only. The light department, a modernly equipped plant, has a daily capacity of nine thousand kilo- watts, furnishing light and power throughout Orange County, including the oil fields near here, and also extending service to a number of Louisiana towns and oil fields. This department employs seventy-five people. The water department, a plant with a capacity of two million gallons of water per day, the supply coming from pure artesian wells sunk to a depth of seven hundred and fifty feet, has some fifteen miles of water mains, supplying this important utility to the entire city, and has a force of five employees. The officers of the old Orange Ice, Light and Water Company were: W. H. Stark, president; H. J. L. Stark, vice president and treas- urer, and Harry A. Burr, secretary and general manager. The plant office is located at 406 Front Street, where modern electric appliances are dis- played and handled.

Harry A. Burr was born in Floyd County, Iowa, the fourteenth of July, 1880. His father, O. Burr, a native of Ohio, after a number of years in Iowa removed to Jennings, Louisiana, and later, in 1889, came to Orange. His mother, whose maiden name was Miss Helen Walker, was a native of New York State. Harry A. Burr was educated in the public schools of Orange, later taking a commercial course at the Massie Business College, at Birmingham, Alabama, after which he began his practical busi- ness career. He had formerly, as a school boy, worked for the Orange Ice, Water and Light Com- pany during vacations and after one year with the Leader Printing Company came back to the plant. During the years that followed he worked in prac- tically all the departments, obtaining a first-hand knowledge of the technicalities of public utilities, and in 1914 was made general manager of the plant, four years later, in 1918, becoming secretary of the company.

Mr. Burr was married at Orange, in March, 1907, to Miss Bessie Parish, a native of Orange, and the daughter of James Parish of this city. Mr. and Mrs. Burr live at 406 Third Street. He is a Mason, Orange Blue Lodge, a Knight of Pythias, a Macabee, an Elk, and a Woodman of the World. He is also a member of the Rotary Club, and the Country Club, and has for many years taken a deep interest in the advancement of Orange, particularly in the development of the up-to-date public utilities.

B FRANK BROWN, president and general manager of the Sabine Supply Company, a wholesale hardware and supply company, doing a large business in Southeast Texas and Southwest Louisiana. This business has been built up from a small concern to its present position among the hardware jobbers of Texas, mainly through the efforts of Mr. Brown, who has been connected with this company as its manager since 1906. Officers of the company are: B. F. Brown, president and general manager; W. H. Stark, vice president; H. J. L. Stark, treasurer, and D. A. Pru- ter, secretary. The foregoing officers, with Mr. F. H. Farrell, make up the board of directors.

B. F. Brown was born in St. Joseph, Missouri, De- cember 18th, 1875, his wife, formerly Miss Julia Andrews Robertson of Austin, Texas, and his three children, Julia, age thirteen, Eleanor, age eight years, and Frances, age four years, comprise his fam- ily. Mr. Brown is a member of St. Paul's Epis- copal Church, a director in the Orange National Bank and is chairman of the Orange Wharf and Dock Commission, operating wharves and terminals at Orange.

AMES N. PARKER has been actively identi- fied with business affairs at Orange since coming here several years ago, and as a banker has taken an influential part in the commercial and civic development of this city. He came to Orange in 1919 to organize the Guaranty Bank and Trust Company, which he served until recently as vice president and directing head. Since leaving the bank Mr. Parker has devoted his atten- tion to looking after his personal business interests.

James N. Parker was born at Arizona, Louisiana, the nineteenth of March, 1880. His father, James A. Parker, a native of Arkansas, during his early life a lawyer of Arkansas, and a former general attorney of that state, removed to Louisiana in the '70s, and later became a Methodist minister. James N. Parker was educated in the schools of Louisiana, graduating from the high school at Lake Charles, after which he entered Vanderbilt University, tak- ing the B.S. degree in 1898. He began his banking career at New Orleans, in 1909, as clerk in a bank there, later going to Rayville, Louisiana, where he was in the Rayville State Bank for three years, leaving as cashier. After several years with the Louisiana State Banking Department he became president of the Bank of Delhi, of Delhi, Louisiana, and later went with the Frost-Johnson Lumber Company, at Mansfield, Louisiana, as superinten- dent and later as manager. After nine years with the company he came to Orange.

Mr. Parker was married at Monroe, Louisiana, the twenty-second of November, 1906, to Miss Jessie Mason, the daughter of John T. Mason, a prominent business man of Louisiana. Mr. and Mrs. Parker reside at 611 Tenth Street, in Orange, and have two children, Jessie Nash, and Eliza Belle. Mr. Parker is a Mason, Blue Lodge Chapter, Mansfield, Lou- isiana, Royal Arch and Knight Templar, at Beau- mont, and a member of El Mina Temple Shrine at Galveston. He belongs to the Country Club, the Orange Gun Club and the Port Arthur Tarpon Club, and is well known as an outdoor sportsman. Mr. Parker is also interested in civic work and supports liberally those movements which have for their purpose the advancement of Orange.

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NEW ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TEXAS

H. McNEILL, during the decade and more of his residence at Nederland, has attained a commendable reputation in the commun- ity for his activity in mercantile circles, and has taken a deep interest in civic affairs. Mr. McNeill is a member of the firm of McNeill & Company, one of the leading general mercantile stores in this locality, which he established in the fall of 1911, shortly after his arrival in this com- munity. The McNeill store has met with a pro- gressive growth since its establishment, meeting the community need for a mercantile store of re- liability and sound values, and at present has one of the largest stocks in the city, and employs a sales force of four people. The store is well lo- cated in the down-town business center, occupying a modern store building, and has a complete stock of dry goods, general merchandise and groceries. Mr. McNeill has partially relinquished the active management of the store in recent years, and the management of the business has been largely in the hands of his sons, J. H. McNeill, Jr., and J. Paul McNeill, and James B. Cook, who is a partner in the business.

J. H. McNeill was born in North Carolina the twentieth of August, 1862, the son of the late Alex McNeill, a native of that state and a prominent farmer. Mr. McNeill was educated in the country schools of his native state and in 1887 began in the mercantile business at Godwin, North Carolina, later removing to Brown Summit, also in that state, where he was in the mercantile business for many years prior to coming to Nederland in 1911 to en- gage in business. Mr. McNeill still owns three large farms in his native state and raises tobacco and grain.

Mr. MeNeill was married in North Carolina in 1890, to Miss Minnie Walker, a native of that State. They have three children living: W. T. Mc- Neill, a prominent young attorney of Beaumont; J. H. McNeill, Jr., and Paul McNeill, both in the store here as partners, and have two children de- ceased. In 1916 Mr. McNeill built one of the finest homes in Nederland, and the family have since resided there. Mr. McNeill has been a factor in the commercial development of Nederland, his pro- gressive merchandising methods greatly affecting the prosperity of the city, and has also been active in all civic work.

ILLIAM MEEKER, one of the real builders of Port Neches, and one of a group of business leaders who have been active in every forward movement, as one of the largest property owners here has been able to in- fluence the trend of advancement to a large ex- tent and has taken a constructive interest in all development work. Mr. Meeker came to Port Neches in 1916 and engaged in the furniture business here until his retirement in 1919, building up one of the largest furniture businesses here, and taking an active part in the commercial life of the city. Since 1917 he has built four modern business buildings of brick and concrete construction, and all of which are creditable additions to the business center. He has also built a modern moving picture building, with seating capacity for five hundred people, and equipped to give the highest type of shows, and provide the residents of Port Neches with a first

class amusement house. In addition to these prop- erties Mr. Meeker owns a number of rent houses and other valuable real estate. Since his retire- ment he has spent his time in looking after these interests, and in furthering the development of Port Neches.

Mr. Meeker was born in St. Louis, Missouri, the fifteenth of May, 1860, the son of Sam Meeker, a native of Tennessee, who went to St. Louis as a young man, and Mrs. Meeker, nee Hood, a native of St. Louis. He was educated in the public schools of Missouri, and as a young man went with the United States government, doing special work until coming to Texas in 1912. He located first at Brownsville, remaining there for one year, after which he went to Beeville where he engaged in business until coming to Port Neches, in 1916, since which time his career has been sketched.

Mr. Meeker was married at St. Louis, in 1910, to Miss Stella Gardner, a native of Illinois. They have made their home in Port Neches since Mr. Meeker's business interests have been centralized in this city, and are active in all public advancement movements. Although Mr. Meeker was formerly active in club and fraternal work, he has resigned from all these organizations, and devotes his entire time to his business interests, and to the development of his city.

LONZO CHARLES LOUIS WEITZEL, who has recently entered the business world at Beaumont, is one of the most progressive druggists of this city, and is a factor in the life here. Mr. Weitzel is secretary, treasurer and manager of the Palace Drug Store, one of the old established drug stores of Beaumont, which was bought out in 1922 by Mr. Weitzel and O. B. Saw- yer, and has continued to operate under the old name. The Palace Drug Store has a fine location at 600 Pearl Street, in the business district, and has a very large trade. Under the management of Mr. Weitzel the business has been materially expanded and built up and the success of the reorganized es- tablishment is a creditable reflection on his busi- ness ability. Every department is complete and es- pecial attention has been given to prescription work and the development of a large fountain trade. In addition to Mr. Weitzel as secretary and treasurer of the Palace Drug Store, O. B. Sawyer is president.

Mr. Weitzel was born in Goliad County, Texas, the thirteenth of January, 1897. His father, Fred Weitzel Jr., is a farmer, stock raiser and land owner of that county. Mr. Weitzel attended the public schools of Goliad County, and after leaving high school went in the drug business, at El Campo, Texas, where he spent five years. He then came to Beaumont, going with the Post Office Drug Store for a short time, and leaving there to buy an in- terest in the Palace Drug Store, which he has since managed. During the World War, Mr. Weitzel served with the Medical Corps, 35th Infantry, Nine- teenth Division, at Camp Travis, enlisting in Sep- tember, 1917, and being discharged in June, 1918.

Mr. Weitzel was married at El Campo, in June, 1922, to Miss Olivia Otell, daughter of Fred Otell, a farmer and landowner of that section. Mr. and Mrs. Weitzel reside in Beaumont at 1493 Park Street. Mr. Weitzel is a Mason, and since coming to Beau- mont has taken an active interest in the commercial development of this city.

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MEN OF TEXAS

AMES HENRY RACHFORD came to Beau- mont in 1883 and during his long residence here has been active in the development of this city along all lines and many of the city's most substantial improvements were started by this progressive citizen. He started to practice law in 1887 and during this same year engaged in the land business, and was the first to enter the real estate business in this part of Texas. He selected Beaumont as the town of prom- ise, and among the many additions to this city which he and his associates platted and sold were the Herring Addition, the O'Brien Addition, the B. D. Crary Addition, the Langham Addition, the N. Blanchette Addition, the V. Blanchette Addition, the first section of the Van Wormer Addition and the Neches River Park Addition. They platted and sold out completely the Oaks Subdivision of Port Neches, and are selling the industrial and waterfront addi- tions of the Rachford and Dearing Subdivision of this city; this being the only additions to Port Neches with a river frontage and many other advantages. Mr. Rachford is the owner of the Coast Land Town- site Company, which is selling the additions to Port Neches, and is a firm believer in the future of this portion of Texas. The Coast Land and Town- site Company also are the owners of the Finlay Townsite in Hudspeth County. Having devoted many years of his life to the various branches of the real estate business, and the fact that he has resided here continuously for more than forty years, during which time he has made a close study of conditions and land values, makes him an authority on these matters and he is recognized as such. In 1888 Mr. Rachford organized the Rachford Abstract Company of Beaumont, of which he is the sole owner, and this company is the oldest abstract company in this section of the state. He is one of the pioneers in the rice growing industry of Texas and was largely instrumental in getting the people interested in rice growing in this section. In 1890 he sold much land to people from other states in order to get them to come here and assist in the development of this territory. Mr. Rachford is president of the Silsbee Oil and Development Company, which was organized in 1921, and are operating in Hardin County. He also has large and valuable land hold- ings, which he owns in fee, and in time expects to develop a real oil field. He has drilled many wells and located valuable holdings, but is holding devel- opment on account of titles. He is the owner of the Rachford Building at Port Neches, Texas. Mr. Rachford has the oldest real estate office in Beau- mont or in this part of the state. He served as county judge part of an unexpired term in 1896, and served as county surveyor of Jefferson County for a period of twelve years. Mr. Rachford started the interest in building sidewalks in Beaumont and has ever been active along this line, and now this city can boast of as many miles of sidewalks as any city of similar size in the country. He was for many years a member of the school board and has always taken an active part in the educational matters of the city and community. Mr. Rachford was one of the organizers of the first Chamber of Commerce of Beaumont and was the first sec- retary of this organization. Among his many achievements for the good of this portion of the country was in 1894, when the people of this portion of the state were struggling to get the national

government to appropriate money to dredge Sabine Pass, and at this time a great portion of this con- gressional district looked on deep water aspirations for this section as a joke, and in order to overcome this, Mr. Rachford, with a few associates, called the first and only Deep Water Convention, and car- ried a solid twelve-coach trainload of East Texas people to Sabine Pass to see the waterway. After that they all became boosters and appropriations were forthcoming. In 1900 Mr. Rachford, with a few friends and associates, worked up the Rice Carnival, which was a success and the forerunner of the fairs for this portion of Texas. For many years he was connected with river excursions, carry- ing thousands of passengers every season, and is still engaged in putting this territory on the map as a shipping point. Mr. Rachford's office in Beau- mont is located at 948 Pearl Street. He came to Texas in 1883 and settled in Dallas, but in Novem- ber of the same year, he removed to Beaumont, and for the first few years practiced law here, which was practically confined to land practice,

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New encyclopedia of Texas, volume 2, Part 13

Author: Davis, Ellis A. Publication date: 1926 Publisher: Dallas, Tex. : Texas development bureau, [1926?] Number of Pages: 1262

Author: Davis, Ellis A.
Publication date: 1926
Publisher: Dallas, Tex. : Texas development bureau, [1926?]
Number of Pages: 1262