Toledo City (part 3 of 21)

Hudson Fitch

Hudson Fitch, of Toledo, familiarly known as "Colonel" Fitch, traffic manager of the Toledo & Ohio Central and the Zanesville & Western railroads, was born at Olmsted Falls, Cuyahoga county, Ohio, Jan. 12, 1846. His parents, Smith W. and Maria S. (Fitch) Fitch, were first cousins and were descendants of some of the first families that settled in the Western Reserve. About 1830 four brothers named Fitch came from Connecticut and settled in that part of Ohio known as the Western Reserve, which was at that time a wilderness. Colonel Fitch can trace his ancestry back in an unbroken line to the year 1636, when some of the Fitch family came from England and settled in Connecticut, the last Royal governor of that colony having been a Fitch. Hudson Fitch was educated in the public schools of his native county. On Dec. 28, 1863, he enlisted as a private in the One Hundred and Twentyfifth Ohio infantry, and although less than eighteen years of age, was soon afterward made sergeant. His faithful performance of duty led to his promotion to the rank of first sergeant and finally to second lieutenant. He followed the fortunes of his regiment in the Atlanta campaign until captured at Atlanta. After a short time as a prisoner of war, at Andersonville and in other prisons, he was exchanged, rejoined his regiment and was mustered out at Camp Irwin, Texas, in September, 1865. That he was a good sol¬ dier is evidenced by his promotions, and he commemorates his military service by membership in Volunteer Post, Grand Army of the Republic, of Toledo. Prior to the war, Mr. Fitch had begun his business career as a clerk and bookkeeper in a general store, and after being mustered out of the army he again engaged in that occupation. In 1875, he entered the general offices of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern railroad at Cleveland as a clerk, and remained with that company until in October, 1880, when he became associated with the Toledo & Ohio Central. In January, 1881, when the headquarters of the Ohio Central were removed from Columbus to Toledo, he became a resident of the latter city. In railroad work, as in his military service, Colonel Fitch's conduct has been characterized by an intelligent and conscientious discharge of the duties assigned him, and his fidelity and energy have been rewarded by successive promotions to better positions and salaries, until he now holds the important office of traffic manager, as above stated. On all questions relating to national policies, he affiliates with the Republican party, but in local affairs he is broad-minded enough to rise above mere party considerations and vote for the man he deems best fitted for the office. This independence of thought and action marks the highest type of American citizenship, of which Colonel Fitch is a worthy example. He is a member of Rubicon Lodge, Free & Accepted Masons, and is a Thirty-second degree member of the Scottish Rite Consistory. He also belongs to the Business Men's Club and the Country Club, of Toledo, and in all the societies with which he is associated he is regarded as a useful member. It has been said that every man has a hobby, and Colonel Fitch's hobby is outdoor sports, particularly horseback riding. He keeps a fine saddle horse, and derives great pleasure from his rides about the city. His vacations are chiefly spent in the West, where he enjoys riding about with the cowboys, sleeping with them on the ground at night and otherwise roughing it, returning to his work with new vigor. Notwithstanding he has passed the age of three score years, he is still hale and hearty, nearly six feet tall, of splendid physique and commanding appearance, and there is no doubt that his well preserved manhood is due in a great measure to his out¬ door exercise. On Nov. 11, 1868, Colonel Fitch led to the altar Miss Mary Odell, a native of Twinsburg, Summit county, Ohio, though the greater part of her early life was passed in the city of Cleveland, where she was educated, and where she and her husband were married. Colonel and Mrs. Fitch reside at the Monticello, one of the best family hotels in Toledo, located at the corner of Michigan and Monroe streets, and both have a host of friends among the best people of the city.

Willard Ezra Allen

Willard Ezra Allen merits recognition in this compilation by reason of his standing as one of the successful representatives of the manufacturing interests of the city of Toledo, as well as for the reason that he is a citizen of sterling worth and one who enjoys uniform popularity in the community which is his home. Mr. Allen is a native of the neighboring Ohio county of Lorain, where he was born on a farm, in what was then called Camden, but now Kipton, Aug. 15, 1860; and he is a son of Charles Willard and Ruth E. (Beach) Allen, the former of whom was born Oct. 18, 1835, near Brockport, N. Y., and the latter July 12, 1837, in Auburn, N. Y. Both families were early founded in America, the paternal in New England, which was the generous and beneficent cradle of much of our national history, and the maternal in New Jersey, the citizenship of which State has exercised a wholesome influence in the affairs of our common country. The first Ameri¬ can ancestor of this immediate branch of the Allen family was one William Allen, who emigrated from England in 1635, and settled at Salisbury, in the county of Norfolk, Massachusetts. One of his descendants was Ezra S. Allen, the paternal grandfather of the subject of this review. Ezra S. Allen was born near Brockport, N. Y., Jan. 26, 1812, and devoted the greater part of his comparatively short life to agricultural pursuits. In 1836 he removed to Lorain county, Ohio, and settled on the farm which is still known as the "Old Allen Homestead," and there he suc¬ cumbed to the grim reaper, March 18, 1841, at the early age of twenty-nine years. The maternal great-grandfather of Willard E. Allen was Benjamin Beach, who married Jane Allen, daughter of Capt. Job Allen, a well-known military and political leader of the early days in New Jersey. Benjamin Beach operated iron mills and mines during the Revolutionary period at various places in New Jersey, and he maintained one of his forges at Valley Forge, in Pennsylvania, where Washington and his army were encamped during the dreary winter of 1777-78. Ralph Beach, who is asso¬ ciated with Thomas A. Edison, at West Orange, N. J., in the construction of the new Edison electric street car, has in his pos¬ session a cannon ball that was cast at Valley Forge by his ancestor, Benjamin Beach. The maternal grandfather of Mr. Allen, whose name was also Benjamin Beach, was born at Rockaway, N. J., Dec. 11, 1771, and in his youth became an iron worker, being con¬ nected with his father's interests in the iron mines of New Jersey, which are still owned by members of the Beach family. Later he removed to the vicinity of Plattsburgh, N. Y., where he met and married his third wife, Mary Holcomb, whose father and brothers were active in the War of 1812. He followed agricul¬ tural pursuits there for a time, and then moved to the vicinity of Auburn, N. Y., where he died Oct. 1, 1838. Charles Willard Allen, the son of Ezra S. Allen and the father of Willard E., was less than a year old when his parents removed from the Empire State to their new home in Lorain county, Ohio, and there he grew to manhood, early devoting his attention to the basic industry of agriculture, to which he maintained an unswerving allegiance throughout the greater part of his active career. He received his rudimentary education in the district schools of the neighborhood in which he lived, and finished with a course at Oberlin (Ohio) College. He then remained for some time upon the home farm, after which he entered the employ of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad Company and assisted in the construction of the first railroad bridge across the Maumee river at Toledo. Again returning to the old homestead in Lorain county, he was there engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1874, when he removed to Monroe county, Michigan, and purchased a farm in Erie township. To the improvement and cultivation of this landed possession he continued to give his attention until 1907, when he practically retired from active participation in affairs and took up his resi¬ dence in the city of Toledo. One year later he removed to Oberlin, Ohio, but in 1909 returned to Toledo, where he now maintains his home. He is a man of sterling character, strong both phys¬ ically and mentally, despite his advanced age, and upon the record of his long career as one of the world's noble army of workers there rests no blemish. His life has been one of consecutive indus¬ try, and he gained success through his own well-directed efforts. He is a Republican in his political proclivities, and has been active in promoting the interests of that party, casting his first vote for Gen. John C. Fremont for President, and he and his good wife have been life-long members of the Baptist church. On Nov. 3, 1858, he was happily married to Miss Ruth E. Beach, who, after a period of fifty-two years of wedded bliss, in the evening of life is enjoying with him the fruits - of their combined efforts and industry. She is the daughter of Benjamin and Mary (Holcomb) Beach, and is the youngest of twenty-four children born of the three marriages of her father. Her early education was secured in the district schools, and after attending the Auburn (N. Y.) Seminary she became a teacher at the age of fifteen. Later she entered Oberlin College, where she completed her education. At the age of seventy-three years she is in the enjoyment of excellent health, and she is the only survivor but one of her father's numer¬ ous family. The mother of the late Hon. Charles P. Griffin, who so long represented Lucas county in the Ohio legislature, was a sister of Mrs. Allen. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Charles W. Allen there were born six children, of whom the following specific mention is appropriately made in this connection : Willard E. is he to whom this review is more particularly dedicated; Rufus W. is a partner in the firm of Granger & Allen at Oberlin, Ohio ; Marietta is the widow of Fred E. McCaskey and resides at Toledo; Theodore B. is the senior member of the firm of T. B. Allen & Co., oil producers, of Toledo; Laura B. is the wife of Wallace Wash¬ burn, of Syracuse, N. Y., and Charles J. resides in Toledo.

Willard Ezra Allen, whose name initiates this biographical review, secured his early educational training in the district schools of Lorain county, Ohio, which he attended from the age of six to fourteen, when his parents removed to Monroe county, Michi¬ gan. From then until his nineteenth year he contributed his quota to the work of the home farm, increasing his services as his ability and physical powers justified, and in the meantime tak¬ ing up and continuing various studies, preparatory to teaching. At the age of nineteen he secured his first school - a four months' winter term, at a monthly stipend of $18. The school was located in Bedford township, Monroe county, four miles from his home, and he walked that distance twice daily during the continuance of the term. The following summer he taught another term in Erie township, and in these pedagogic endeavors he earned the first money that enabled him to enter Hillsdale Col¬ lege, at Hillsdale, Mich. He matriculated in this institution of learning in September, 1880, and after completing the fall term he again resumed teaching, taking charge of the same school in which he had labored the previous winter, and at a salary increased to $24 per month. In addition to his work as teacher he continued his college studies during the winter months and re-entered col¬ lege for the spring term of 1881, successfully passing the final examination for the year with his class. He was chosen president of the Freshman class near the close of his first year in college, and in 1883 he entered the Junior Oratorical Prize contest of the Alpha Kappa Phi Society for what was then known as the Melendy Prize. He selected as the subject for his oration, "Poetry Among the Arts," and at the end of the contest he was awarded the honors of the occasion. Up to the time of completing his college work the vacation periods were devoted by Mr. Allen to the agency business, beginning in the summer of 1881 with a pocket dic¬ tionary as the article for sale. He succeeded in disposing of a copy to the first customer called upon, and although a profit of but one cent was realized from the transaction at the close of the first day's work his profit on sales made amounted to nearly one dollar. In four days the little city of Hudson, Mich., had been thoroughly canvassed and a net profit of $15 had been accrued by the ambitious and energetic salesman. From that time on, book selling and other agency work, pursued during the college vaca¬ tions, became the source of sufficient revenue to enable Mr. Allen to pursue his course of study. In 1884 he entered the subscrip¬ tion book publishing field, opening his first office at Hillsdale, Mich., and among other books which he published was one entitled "Anecdotes of the Rebellion," of which more than 30,000 copies were sold. In 1890 he became associated with George F. Cram, the map and atlas publisher of Chicago, the style of the firm becoming "The Cram-Alien Publishing Company/' with offices located in the Illinois metropolis. In 1893 Mr. Allen severed his connection with this publishing company to accept an appoint¬ ment by Governor Altgeld as special Illinois representative to the International Irrigation Congress which convened at Los Angeles, Cal., in October of that year. He was chosen as a member of the National Executive Committee on Irrigation and served in that capacity for the period of one year. In the spring of 1894 he organized the Morning Daily News Company at Los Angeles, Cal., and began the publication of a paper which later became the official organ of the People's Party in Southern California. He disposed of his interest in this newspaper in 1895 and returned to his former home, where he spent the ensuing three years in developing certain inventions. In 1898 these inventions formed the basis for the organization of the Allen Manufacturing Com¬ pany of Toledo, which was incorporated in 1901 under the laws of the State of Ohio, with Fred E. McCaskey as president, and Willard E. Allen as secretary and treasurer. This company has for years manufactured a number of specialties, the most impor¬ tant of which is the Allen Bath Apparatus. After the death of Mr. McCaskey, in 1905, Mr. Allen became the sole proprietor of the concern, and has continued as such up to the present time. He is also interested in several other establishments in Toledo, as well as being the owner of valuable real estate interests in the city. It will be seen from the foregoing that Mr. Allen's career has been an exceedingly active one, and the success that has attended his efforts has been due solely to his native ability and energy. He has gained a high standing in his home city as a man of large affairs, and is identified with various organizations, such as the Business Men's Club, the Chamber of Commerce and the Toledo Credit Men's Association. Fraternally he ranks high in the Masonic order. He became a Master Mason Oct. 5, 1885, and at the present time is a member of Rubicon Lodge, No. 237; Fort Meigs Chapter, No. 29; Toledo Council, No. 33; Toledo Commandery, No. 7; the Miami Lodge of Perfection; Northern Light Council, Princes of Jerusalem; Fort Industry Chapter, Rose Croix H. R. D. M.; Toledo Consistory of Sublime Princes of the Royal

Secret, and of the Ancient Arabic Order, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, Zenobia Temple. He is also a member of the auxiliary Order of the Eastern Star. He has membership in the Sons of the American Revolution; the oratorical society, Alpha Kappa Phi, of which he is an alumnus, and of the Greek letter fraternity, Phi Delta Theta, Michigan Gamma. He is a member of the Toledo Yacht Club, and his interest in the beautiful and artistic is shown by a liberal support given to the Toledo Museum of Art. In politics he gives a consistent support to the men and measures of the Republican party, but has never been an aspirant for public office, as his business interests demand all of his attention. The religious faith of himself and wife is expressed by membership in the Ashland Avenue Baptist Church, of Toledo, where they are regular attendants. Mr. Allen is a very pleasant and affable man, perhaps a little brusk in business intercourse, but beneath the exterior are to be found all the attributes of the true gentleman, faithfulness to his friends being a prominent characteristic. He is one of the popular citizens of Toledo, where his circle of friends is only circumscribed by the list of his acquaintances. One of the busiest of the busy men of the city, when the hour comes for closing his office he lays aside his business cares and in the privacy of his home thoroughly enjoys the companionship of his wife and children, to whom he is exceedingly devoted. On Nov. 3, 1900, Mr. Allen was united in marriage to Augusta L. Sutton, widow of the late Isaac Sutton, of Toledo, Ohio. To her first marriage were born two sons - Raymond Alden and Samuel Wayne. To the union of Mr. and Mrs. Allen have been born three children, as follows: Frederick Willard, born Jan. 21, 1902; Ruth Etta, born Jan. 26, 1904; Sterling Ezra, born Oct. 26, 1906, died Feb. 24, 1910. The family home, one of the most beautiful residences in the city, is located at Collingwood Villa, 3015 Collingwood avenue, Toledo, Ohio, and is the center of gracious hos¬ pitality.

George W. Close

George W. Close, one of the foremost figures in commercial and banking circles in Northern Ohio, and one of the extensive realty owners of Toledo, is a native of this State, having been born on a farm in the vicinity of Bellevue, Sandusky county, Ohio, Jan. 11, 1851. His paternal great-grandfather was a gallant soldier in the Revolutionary war and shortly after the cessation of hostilities settled in Pennsylvania, being the first of the progenitors of the subject of this sketch to establish his domicile in the Keystone State. The parents, George W., Sr., and Mary (Moyer) Close, were both natives of Union county in that commonwealth, the former having been born July 5, 1804, and the latter Jan. 5, 1814. They were reared, educated and married in their native State, and in 1838 located on a farm in the immediate vicinity of Bellevue, Ohio, where, thirteen years later, George W., of this review, first beheld the light of day. There the Close family continued to main¬ tain their residence until 1876, the father owning and operating his large grain farm until that year. The father then moved to Bellevue with his family and took up his residence in that city during the remainder of his life, enjoying the fruits of his long and exceptionally industrious career, his death occurring about 1889. George W. Close, Jr., was twenty-five years of age at the time of his parents' removal from their farmstead to Bellevue, and he acquired his elementary educational training in the district schools in the neighborhood of the parental farm in the last named place. His early life was not much different from that of all farmer lads, and at an early age he became inured to the sturdy discipline of rural life, which tended to develop in him those qualities of indus¬ try and application which afterward figured so prominently in his eminent success. He supplemented the knowledge gained in the district schools with a course in the Bellevue High School, and later attended Oberlin College. In 1870, he embarked in the mer¬ cantile and private banking business at Berlin Heights, Erie county,

Ohio, and also engaged in shipbuilding. In 1882, he disposed of his mercantile and private banking business and in the following year organized the Berlin Heights Banking Company, of which he be¬ came president and general manager, which offices he continues to occupy. This concern enjoys an extensive and profitable patron¬ age. He is also interested in the Berlin Fruit Box Company, which was organized in 1863, and of which he has been the president since 1890; the firm of Close & Peak, Wakeman, Ceylon and Berlin Heights, Ohio, dealers in grain and coal; the Bank of Huron, Erie county, Ohio, of which he is president; the Wakeman Banking Company, at Wakeman, Huron county, Ohio, of which he is sec¬ retary and treasurer; the American Publishers' Company, of Nor¬ walk, Ohio, of which he is president; the Equitable Realty Com¬ pany, of Toledo, of which he is president; and he is one of the large real-estate owners of Lucas county, being the proprietor of several business blocks and numerous business properties in Toledo, and at present he is acting as receiver for the Wauseon Savings & Trust Company, of Wauseon, Fulton county, Ohio. In all his undertakings Mr. Close has been guided by quick decision, cool judgment, undaunted courage, confidence in his abilities, firmness, strict adherence to correct business principles, and, above all, ster¬ ling integrity, which has won him many friends in the commercial world who realize that he can be relied upon to carry out his contractual obligations to the letter. By close observation of the market conditions he has been able to embark in lines of business that are practically certain to yield him substantial re¬ turns; by his industry and well directed efforts he has been instru¬ mental in making those undertakings successful; and by his sound judgment and conservative methods he has avoided everything resembling speculation and confined himself to strictly legitimate investments. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, havingattained the degree of Master Mason, Nov. 1, 1876; the Toledo Club and the Country Club. In his political views he is a con¬ sistent adherent of the principles of the Republican party, though, notwithstanding he takes a commendable interest in questions of the hour, he is by no means an active politician in the understand¬ ing of that term, though he never fails to perform the duties of good citizenship at the polls. In regard to religious matters, he entertains views which are extremely liberal and broad-minded, and is affiliated with the Congregational denomination, owning the pew which has been in the possession of various of his progenitors. He was instrumental in twice rebuilding the First Congregational Church at Berlin Heights, and has given liberally of his time and means to the furtherance and maintenance of other church socie¬ ties, and of various worthy charitable and benevolent objects. On Nov. 15, 1876, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Close and Miss Ada Eliza Hine, daughter of Theodore B. and Lovina (Reynolds) Hine, of Berlin Heights. Mrs. Close received her summons to the life eternal in July, 1903, less than two years after the commemo-' ration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of her marriage to Mr. Close. Of this union were born four children - Theodora Hine, who is the wife of Frederick Fox, a banker of Norwalk, Ohio; Helen Katheryn; George W., Jr., who is now attending the Holderness School for Boys at Plymouth, N. H.; and Lovina Hine, at Smead's School, Toledo.

Bailey Hall Hitchcock

Bailey Hall Hitchcock, civil engineer, was born at Hanson, Plymouth county, Massachusetts, April 28, 1828. Pie was descended from Luke Hitchcock, who came from Fenny Compton, England, and was living "in good esteem" in Hartford, Conn., in 1647. The latter had a son, Luke, born June 5, 1655. One of the sons of Luke 2d was Ebenezer, born at Springfield, Mass., Aug. 24, 1694. He married Mary Sheldon, who was the mother of his fourteen children. She was the daughter of Joseph Sheldon, of Sheffield, who was a representative to the general court in 1708, and a direct descendant of Archbishop Gilbert Sheldon, of Canterbury, England. The mother of Mary Sheldon was Mary, daughter of Joseph Whit¬ ing, treasurer of Connecticut for thirty-nine years, having succeeded his father, William Whiting, who had held the office for thirty-seven years, and being followed by his son, who continued the treasurership in the family for thirty-two years more. The wife of Joseph Whiting was Mary, daughter of the Hon. John Pyncheon, of Springfield. His wife was Amy, daughter of George Wyllys, the second governor of Connecticut, a man of wealth and a Puritan of the Puri¬ tans. In 1638 Governor Wyllys sent his steward, William Gibbons, with twenty men, to prepare a home for him, and a year later took possession of the Wyllys estate in Hartford, on which stood the tree to become the famous Charter Oak of a later generation. He died Jan. 18, 1776. Rev. Gad Hitchcock, son of Capt. Ebenezer and Mary (Sheldon) Hitchcock, was born Feb. 12, 1719, at Springfield, Mass. He was graduated at Harvard College, in 1743, and settled over the parish at Pembroke, Mass., in October, 1748. The settlement was for life, and on Dec. 22, 1748, he was married to Dorothy, daughter of Samuel and Dorothy (Avery) Angier, of Cambridge. Samuel Angier was the son of the Rev. Samuel Angier and Hannah, only daughter of Urian Oakes, fourth president of Harvard College. Sam¬ uel Angier's grandfather was Edmond Angier, who married Ruth, only daughter of William Ames, D. D.. "of famous memory." Dr.

Ames was a Fellow of Christ College; was driven from England for non-conformity; was sent by the States-General of Holland to the Synod of Dort to "aid the President of the Synod by his sugges¬ tions." He was the author of the "Medulla Theologi" and other works, and was a professor in the University of Franeker. His por¬ trait, painted in 1633, hangs in Memorial Hall in Harvard Uni¬ versity. Mrs. Hitchcock's lineage was equally illustrious on her mother's side. Her grandfather was Dr. Jonathan Avery, and her grandmother, Sybil (Sparhawk) Avery, after the death of her young husband, married Rev. Michael Wigglesworth, who wrote the "Day of Doom." Sybil's mother was Patience, daughter of the Rev. Sam¬ uel Newman, who led his people into the wilderness and founded a town he called Rehoboth, because his flock might now say, "The Lord has made room for us and we shall be fruitful in the land." He was the author of the first concordance of the Bible, and in the words of Cotton Mather, "was a very living preacher and a very preaching liver." In December, 1748, Mr. Hitchcock bought a house, that is still standing, and seventeen acres of land. Here he passed his days and here he died, full of years and honors. In 1774 he was called upon to deliver the election sermon in the Old South Church in Boston before the Legislature and the Governor, it being the occasion of the "Election of His Majesty's Council for the said Province." The fierce excitement and spirit of resistance that pre¬ ceded the outbreak of the Revolution had reached its height. The tea had already gone overboard in Boston Harbor, and blood was soon to flow at Lexington. Pembroke had been the first town in outspoken protests and threats against the tyrannical action of the royal government and the preacher's whole heart was with his peo¬ ple, whose ideas he had helped to mold. He had chosen for his text Prov. xxix: 2 - "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn." The very text was like a trumpet call to battle. Fresh from the people, whose excitement and indignation he shared, he arose in the pres¬ ence of the hushed assemblage and launched full on the bosom of the astonished Governor, "When the wicked beareth rule, the peo¬ ple mourn." He gave an outline of the condition of affairs in America and added, "If I am mistaken in supposing that plans are formed and executed subversive of our national and charter rights and privileges and incompatible with every idea of liberty, all Amer¬ ica is mistaken with me." He boldly defended the right of revolu¬ tion, and called on the people to be careful of their civil and re¬ ligious liberties. Governor Gage was filled with great wrath on account of the boldness of this position. After listening to the ser¬ mon, the legislature ordered it printed, and then proceeded to elect councillors in full accord with the preacher's advice. Governor Gage negatived thirteen of them, and adjourned the legislature to meet at Salem, June 17, as a punishment, and as a means of keep¬ ing them from coming together. At Salem, he again adjourned them, but they locked the doors, refused admission to the Gov¬ ernor's messenger, and transacted their business in spite of him. Mr. Hitchcock was elected, July 12, 1779, a member of the conven¬ tion to make a constitution for Massachusetts. The convention met in 1780 and formed the constitution under which Massachusetts was governed until 1820. In 1787 he received the degree of D. D. from Harvard College. The following record remains in the hand¬ writing of his son: "My honored mother died Aug. 6, 1792, after an indisposition of four months, in the seventy-ninth year of her age. My honored father died Aug. 8, 1803, after an indisposition and confinement of four years. He was in the eighty-fifth year of his age and the fifty-eighth of his ministry." Dr. Gad Hitchcock, the only child of Gad and Dorothy Hitchcock, born Nov. 2, 1749, was graduated at Harvard in 1768. He served as surgeon in the army of the Revolution, in Col. John Bailey's regiment, and was afterward chief surgeon of General Fellow's brigade hospital in the Jerseys, till the end of his term of enlistment, in February, 1777. He married, July 9, 1778, Sagie Bailey, daughter of Col. John Bailey, of Hanover, Mass. They had twelve children - seven daughters and five sons. The oldest son and eighth child, Charles Hitchcock, was born in Hanson, Mass., Sept. 4, 1794. He was a farmer, a man of education, a useful citizen, holding office in educational, town and county affairs, and was a member of the legislature. He died in Pembroke, Nov. 9, 1848. He married Abigail Little Hall, daugh¬ ter of Bailey Hall, of Pembroke, and granddaughter of Dr. Jeremiah Hall, who was a noted surgeon, serving in the French and Revolu- tionary wars and as a member of the Continental Congress. Her ancestry goes back to Thomas Little, who married Ann Warren, daughter of Richard Warren of the Mayflower; and another line goes back to Edward Doty of the Mayflower. She was a woman of fine endowments and greatly beloved. Early left a widow, she de¬ voted herself to the education of her children. The last twenty years of her life was spent with her daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph H. Tyler - the son-in-law being a leading lawyer of Cambridge, Mass. - in their beautiful country home at Winches¬ ter, Mass., receiving the care and devotion of her children and grandchildren and the happiness she so richly deserved. She died in her eighty-sixth year in the full possession of her faculties. Her oldest son, Charles, after graduating at Dartmouth and the Dane Law School at Cambridge, settled in Chicago, where he held a leading position at the bar, and, in 1870, was president of the con¬ vention which framed the present constitution of the State of Illi¬ nois. He died at his home in Chicago in May, 1881, in the prime of life. Mr. Hitchcock, the subject of these memoirs, received his early education at the academy at Hanover, Mass., a well known preparatory school. He afterward studied surveying with "Squire" John Ford, of Marshfield, and in the office of Ezra Lincoln, a well known civil engineer of Boston. From May, 1849, to April, 1852, he was assistant engineer on the construction of the Troy & Green¬ field railroad, now 4he Hoosic Tunnel Line, being under the emi¬ nent engineer, Thomas Lovett, and had a prominent part in this pioneer piece of railroad tunneling. From April, 1852, to 1853, he was assistant engineer on the Sackett's Harbor & Saratoga rail¬ road. From April to November, 1853, he was on surveys of the \\ hitehall & Plattsburg railroad and the Troy & Rutland railroad. At that time, that region of the Adirondacks was an unknown wilderness, and the survey was made with an Indian guide, cutting hemlock branches for their beds on the deep snow and reaping the full benefit of the "open-air" life. He left Saratoga Springs, N. Y., in November, 1853, for Attica, Ind., where he entered the employ of Boody, Ross & Company, in the construction of the Wabash rail¬ road, then called the Toledo & Illinois railroad. He came to To¬ ledo in September, 1854, when the cholera had caused all business to be suspended and many of the workmen had died, and took pos¬ session of all the railroad property until the work was resumed. He resigned, in 1859, to engage in the lumber and manufacturing business, afterward erecting large buildings, and going into partner¬ ship with John Walbridge. The firm did a large business, employ¬ ing many men, and during the years of the Civil war contributed generously toward the Federal cause. Mr. Hitchcock served several years in the city council and as police commissioner, and was a valued counsellor in all the affairs of the city pertaining to his pro¬ fession. In 1874, he took up his old profession of civil engineering and was engaged at the American Bridge Co. works in Chicago and at Phoenixville, Pa., on bridges for the Cincinnati Southern railroad, afterward superintending their construction in Kentucky. He was chief engineer of the Toledo & Findlay railroad, and for several seasons was engaged in government engineering on the rivers and harbors of Lake Erie; and later was consulting engineer with J. D. Cook, engineer of the Toledo water works. He died April 23, 1893, on his seventy-fifth birthday, at his home in Toledo. His wife and three children survive him. He married, Dec. 9, 1856, Sarah Hatch Collamore, a daughter of Dr. Anthony Collamore and Caroline (Hatch) Collamore. His oldest son, Edward Bailey Flitchcock, born in Toledo, in December, 1860, married, first, Miss Eleanor Corwin, of Lebanon, Ohio, deceased, and, secondly, Miss Celia Ennis, of Iowa. They have one child, Helen Abigail, born May 25, 1908. He is a civil engineer by profession, connected with MacArthur Brothers Company, contractors, and has been connected with large construction enterprises. Abby Little Hitchcock was born in Toledo, in November, 1862. She graduated at the Michigan University in 1885, and married A. C. Bartlett, of Chicago, in June,

1894. Frederick Collamore Hitchcock, born in Toledo, in Septem¬ ber, 1864, is a civil engineer, unmarried, and is vice-president and general manager of MacArthur Brothers Company, contractors, of New York and Chicago. Mrs. Sarah (Collamore) Hitchcock, the wife of the subject of these memoirs, was born in Pembroke, Mass., and is the daughter of Dr. Anthony and Caroline (Hatch) Colla¬ more, of that place. Her father, Dr. Anthony Collamore, was gradu- ated at Harvard in 1806, and was a prominent physician and mem¬ ber of the Massachusetts legislature. Her mother, Mrs. Caroline Collamore, died in Toledo, in March, 1879, at the home of her daughter, Mrs. W* W. Bolles. The first of the Collamore family that moved into this country was Peter, coming to Scituate, Mass., early in the history of the colony. He had no children and sent for his nephew, Capt. Anthony Collamore, in England, to inherit his estate. The latter settled in Scituate and was commander of the militia there. William Henry Harrison, former president of the United States, married Annie Symmes, great-granddaughter of Capt. Anthony Collamore. He was a valiant Indian fighter, secre¬ tary of the Northwest Territory, and a delegate to Congress. Dr. Collamore's grandmother was a daughter of Col. Benjamin Lincoln, of Hingham, and a sister of Maj.-Gen. Benjamin Lincoln, who re¬ ceived the sword of Cornwallis at the surrender of Yorktown. He was Secretary of War for Washington, and signed his own dis¬ charge from the army.

Emil Grosh

Emil Grosh, well known in connection with the Maher & Grosh wholesale cutlery establishment, was prominent in Toledo business circles until his death, Dec. 2, 1900. He was born in Sonneburg, Germany, Aug. 6, 1841, son of Henry and Mary (Schmidt) Grosh, both natives of Germany. Emil Grosh was left an orphan at a tender age and, while a lad, left his native city and came to Buffalo, N. Y., where he was received into the family of an uncle, Henry Schmidt. He was sent to school by his rela¬ tives in Buffalo and, upon reaching suitable age, was employed in the hardware store of Lawrence & Noble, at Goshen, Ind. He remained in this position until 1864, when, in company with a son of Mr. Noble, he opened a hardware store in Bourbon, Ind. He resided in Bourbon four years and then sold his interest in the company and removed to Rochester, where for three years he was engaged in the same business. He then accepted a position with the C. Gerber & Company hardware house, as traveling salesman, and remained in the employ of that company four years. In these different capacities, Mr. Grosh became thoroughly familiar with every department of the hardware business, and when he came to Toledo, in the early seventies, and associated himself with Mr. Gruber in a wholesale hardware establishment, the firm prospered and enjoyed a large patronage. Upon Mr. Gruber's death, his share in the concern was purchased by Mr. Maher, and the firm has since been known as the Maher & Grosh Wholesale Cutlery Com¬ pany, although Mr. Grosh sold his interest to Mr. Maher four years before his death. The firm of Maher & Grosh dealt in highclass articles and enjoyed a firm footing in the business world. Mr. Grosh was a man of energy and devotion to his business, as well as the possessor of a clear and logical intellect. His character entitled him to the respect which he received from his fellow men, and his business integrity was unquestioned. Mr. Grosh was married, June 16, 1868, to Miss Mary H. Chamberlain, daughter of Judge Ebenezer M. Chamberlain and Phoebe Ann (Hascall)

Chamberlain, of Goshen, Inch Mr. and Mrs. Grosh became the parents of two children - Dr. Lawrence Chamberlain Grosh, a medical practitioner of Toledo; and Jerome Emil, who is deceased, having met death by drowning, in 1903. Mr. Grosh had retired from business in 1896, and expected to enjoy with his wife some years of well-earned leisure. Sickness and death overtook him in a very short time, and he was laid to rest in Woodlawn cemetery, in December, 1900, leaving to mourn his loss his devoted wife and sons. Mr. Grosh was a member of the Masonic order. He felt no ambition to hold political offices, but was a consistent Republican in his party affiliations. The parents of Mrs. Grosh were both of American nativity, the noted father - Judge Ebenezer M. Cham¬ berlain - having been born at Orrington, near Bangor, Me., Aug. 20, 1805, and the mother at Leroy, N. Y., March 13, 1816. Judge Chamberlain received his education in New England and was taught the trade of shipbuilding, at which he was employed until he was twenty-one years of age. Upon attaining his majority, he studied law, in accordance with a cherished ambition, and, in 1833, he located in Goshen, Ind., and entered upon the practice of his profession. He was a brilliant and eloquent speaker, a close stu¬ dent and a deep thinker. His success was flattering, and most complicated litigation, involving large interests, was intrusted to him. He was actively interested in political matters and was elected a member of the Thirty-third congress from the Fort Wayne district of Indiana. He had previously, in 1835 and 1837, served two terms in the House of Representatives of the State legislature of Indiana. He later gave up his private law practice to accept a seat upon the bench, and was Circuit Judge of Elkhart and LaGrange counties for thirteen years. Judge Chamberlain's record as a lawyer and as a man was unassailable, and as a judge he was swayed by no consideration other than his duty. He possessed all the qualifications of judicial character - extensive legal knowledge, sound morality, urbane and agreeable manners. Judge and Mrs. Chamberlain were the parents of eight children, of whom only two are living. These two are daughters, both widows, the one of Emil Grosh and the other of Frank G. Hubbell, who was a prominent citizen of Goshen, Ind.

Stevens Warren Flower

Stevens Warren Flower, late a highly respected and influential citizen of Toledo, at one time a resident of Maumee, a gallant soldier in the great Civil war, and for many years an active and prominent figure in commercial and religious circles in the county, was a native of the old Empire State, having first beheld the light of day in the town of Clayton, Jefferson county, New York, Aug. 21, 1832. He was descended of highly honorable ancestry. His father, Joseph Warren Flower, of Massachusetts, served in the War of 1812, and his widow received from the Federal govern¬ ment a land grant of 160 acres, and was also awarded a pension. His grandfather, Timothy Flower, of Connecticut, was a member of the Continental army during the Revolutionary war, and the records show that twenty-five men of the Flower name and ances¬ try, residents of the States of Massachusetts, Connecticut and New York, served their country honorably in this conflict, which resulted in the annihilation of British tyranny in the American colonies. Mr. Flower's mother, Amy Stevens, was a daughter of Gen. Elias Stevens, of South Royalton, Vt., a prominent and influential man in his day, serving in the Connecticut militia in the war of the Revolution, and as a member of the Vermont legislature for twenty years. These facts, taken from family and military records, show that patriotism, so important an element in Mr. Flower's nature, was an inheritance from both paternal and maternal ancestors. When he was about two years old his father was summoned to the life eternal, and after about five years of widowhood his mother married Augustus Ford, master in the United States navy, who was a noble father to the boy and young man, and who went to his reward in 1855. Soon after the mar¬ riage of the mother to Mr. Ford the family moved to Sackett's Harbor, N. Y., where Stevens W. lived until he entered the mil¬ itary service of his country in the great Civil war, enlisting Sept. 12, 1862, as a first lieutenant in Company H, Tenth New York heavy artillery. He served with his command in a variety of places, participating in the defenses of Washington and in the memorable campaigns of Sheridan. He experienced active service at Cold Harbor, Va.; before Petersburg and Richmond; in the assault on Petersburg; in the battle of Cedar Creek, Va., and in the fall of Petersburg and Richmond, April 2, 1865. For fidelity to duty, and because of his marked executive ability, he was appointed quartermaster and served in this capacity in many im¬ portant branches of the service until his discharge from the army at the close of the conflict, in June, 1865. As quartermaster he furnished supplies to General Sherman's and Sheridan's commands as they passed through Petersburg on their final return from their triumphant invasion of the South to Washington, and was complimented verbally by General Sheridan for the prompt and efficient manner in which he had supplied his army with provi¬ sions. For his faithful and exceptionally meritorious services wher¬ ever assigned he was recommended for promotion by the quartermaster-general shortly prior to the evacuation of Richmond and Petersburg, and was recommended by General Grant for the posi¬ tion of assistant quartermaster-general, but, because of the confu¬ sion incident to Lee's surrender and the assassination of President Lincoln, the commission was not issued. During its period of service his regiment lost 267 men, two of whom were officers, and two died in the hands of the enemy. Mr. Flower received a pension for disabilities incurred in the service. He came to Ohio immediately after the cessation of hostilities, and early in the spring of 1866 associated himself with his father-in-law, the late George W. Reynolds, in the Reynolds Flour Mills at Maumee, in which he retained his interest until 1873, when the firm retired from the milling business. But about five years previously the firm had established a commission house in Toledo, under the name of George W. Reynolds & Co., of which Mr. Flower assumed the general management in 1873. The above firm was continued until 1876, when Mr. Reynolds retired, and soon afterward the firm of S. W. Flower & Co. was formed, its principal business being that of dealing in seeds, especially clover seeds. The busi¬ ness has grown steadily and has been remunerative, is still car- ried on, and during Mr. Flower's last illness was very ably con¬ ducted by Charles S. Burge, the other member of the firm. S. W. Flower was an honored member of several patriotic and fraternal organizations, belonging to the ancient and honorable order of Free & Accepted Masons, which he joined shortly after attaining to his majority, at Sackett's Harbor, N. Y.; Ohio Post, No. 107, Grand Army of the Republic; Anthony Wayne Chapter, No. 739, Sons of the American Revolution, and the Toledo Produce Ex¬ change, of which he was an active member for over thirty years, and of which he served as president for a term. His ances¬ tors were not only patriotic and highly honorable, but were also of a decided Christian character. His grandparents, parents and stepfather were all Christian people. His most intimate friends were Christian people. He gave his heart to God in early man¬ hood, and ever afterward his daily life was strictly in accord with the tenets of the Christian faith. He carried his religious prin¬ ciples into his business, and often said that if he succeeded in commercial pursuits it must be along the lines of strict honesty, integrity and the fundamental teachings of the Lowly Nazarene. He prospered in the seed business because he handled good seed, and the firm of which he was the head became known far and wide as one that could be depended on to buy and sell on the prin¬ ciple of the strictest honesty. He loved to converse on religious topics, especially those pertaining to personal religious life and experience. Being of a modest and retiring nature, he often felt troubled that he did not feel as keen religious emotions and per¬ sonal assurances as some Christian people experienced or pro¬ fessed. He was both conservative and progressive. While cling¬ ing to the old doctrines, and always loyal to the church, he took a broad and statesmanlike view of the Kingdom of God, and did not deem it necessary to follow the old and beaten path if a better way presented itself. In the Christian church he found the suitable field for the practical exercise of his Christian faith and principles. In the spring of 1867 he united with the Metho¬ dist Episcopal church at Maumee, in the affairs of which he was very active until he took up his residence in Toledo, in 1874, when he transferred his membership to St. Paul's Church of that denomination. By changes of residence he became an attendant upon the services of other churches, having been for a number of years a member of St. John's Methodist Episcopal Church, and frequently attending, with Mrs. Flower, the church of her choice, the Episcopal, at Trinity or St. Mark's. Among young people he was an especial favorite, contributing to their enjoyment in all possible ways and assisting them by kindly advice and example. Nearly all his life he was a highly successful teacher of Bible classes in Sabbath schools; and his Christian activities, especially the study and teaching of the Word of God and his many unos¬ tentatious benevolences, became to him real means of grace; and he always counted them among the happiest experiences of his life. For several years prior to receiving the summons to the Church Triumphant, Mr. Flower was unable, because of severe afflictions, to attend religious services in the church. But in all this time the sacred fire of his deep and abiding faith never died out on the domestic altar of his home. Morning and eveningreading of the Scriptures and prayer were regularly maintained, and frequently in the household worship he strengthened his body and soul by receiving the Holy Eucharist, in sacred commemora¬ tion of his dying but risen and ever-living Lord. Possessed of an intellect with the ability to grasp things of a permanent value, he had a judicial mind which gave weight to his opinions, and a beautiful Christian spirit which made him as fair with those who differed from him as with those whose views were strictly in accord with his own. Men trusted him because of their profound faith in his integrity; they followed him because he possessed the qualities of leadership; they loved him because he was an humble follower of Jesus; and those who knew him best loved him most. He was hospitable and charitable to an extreme degree, thoroughly enjoying the companionship of friends and delighting in aiding those in humble circumstances to better their conditions. His last months on earth were marked by suffering and weakness best known to those who so long and faithfully ministered to him both by day and by night; but he endured it all with true and unflinching Christian fortitude, fully believing that, this painful life ended, there would be for him, through the merits and mercy of his crucified Redeemer, the bliss, the fruition of a glorious immortality and eternal life; and as he neared the end he looked back over his long and exceptionally useful life of nearly fourscore years, a large part of which had been cheerfully given to the service of the Kingdom, he patiently awaited the approbation of the Master - "Well done, thou good and faithful servant/' He joined the "silent majority" Nov. 13, 1908, and all felt that a leader whom it was thought could not be spared had been called home to a well-earned reward. There is a vacancy in many hearts that will never be filled by another, and many a man will perform the duties of life more faithfully and conscientiously because of the influence of his quiet, unostentatious, yet forceful, life. He has departed this life, but his memory will forever remain green in the affection and respect of those who love and revere goodness. Stevens W. Flower was twice married. In September, 1865, was solemnized his marriage to Miss Frances B. Reynolds, an adopted daughter of the late lamented George W. Reynolds, for several years associated in business with Mr. Flower, and one of the most influential and respected citizens of Lucas county, who then and for many years resided at Maumee. Frances (Reynolds) Flower was taken ill in July, 1866, and gradually failed until the last days of December of the same year, when God called her home, and her body was laid away in beautiful Riverside Cemetery, at Mau¬ mee, amidst a vast concourse of sorrowing friends and acquaint¬ ances, only about fifteen months after their marriage. On Oct. 8, 1874, Mr. Flower was happily united in marriage with Miss Ellen Burge, of Maumee, and in the following November they removed to Toledo. Ellen (Burge) Flower was born in Bampton, Devonshire, England, April 21, 1847, and died in her home in Toledo, April 24, 1903, after a happily wedded life of twentynine years. Mrs. Flower was a woman of rare excellence of mind and heart, one of those characters that leaves its impress upon every life it touches. Kind and sympathetic, she was ever ready to contribute to the comfort and good cheer of all who canne within the sphere of her influence, finding her greatest happiness in earnestly endeavoring to make others happy. More than any other one characteristic that molded her life was her utter unsel- fishness, and she exemplified the Christian virtues in her daily walk and conversation. Her well-rounded Christian character and sweet, loving and gentle disposition endeared her to all and made her life a constant benediction. A woman of perfectly transparent character, a devout Christian, having a positive experience of sal¬ vation by Divine Grace through faith, sympathetic, useful and beloved, she lived in fear of the Lord and died a peaceful and happy death. Almost her last conscious words were the beautiful benediction of the Lord's prayer: "Thine is the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen."

Edmund H. Osthaus

Edmund H. Osthaus. - Toledo is proud to claim as one of her citizens Edmund H. Osthaus, the artist, whose work has made him famous on both sides of the Atlantic. Mr. Osthaus was born at Hildesheim, Germany, Aug. 5, 1858. He pursued his studies at the Royal Academy at Duesseldorf, under Christian Johann Kroener. His master, while a great painter of landscape, frequently turned his brush to the representing of animals, and from him, no doubt, Mr. Osthaus received his first inspiration, for, while his brush possesses equal facility in the painting of landscapes and figures, he is perhaps better known as a painter of hunting dogs. Not only by virtue of his early training, but also in consequence of his love of the chase, Mr. Osthaus is admirably equipped to excel in his particular field of art. He is a frequent exhibitor in the exhibits of the American Water Color Society, the Society of Western Artists, and the other important exhibitions of the coun¬ try, and at the various museums in Chicago, St. Louis, Indian¬ apolis, Pittsburg, Cincinnati, etc. Mr. Osthaus was one of the founders and incorporators of the Toledo Museum of Art, and has always been one of its most active trustees and supporters. So well does Mr. Osthaus understand what he paints that for many years he has been one of the judges in the various national field trials. Recently, following the trial of the Continental Club in North Carolina, the New York Herald, in an article devoted to the work of Mr. Osthaus, included the following interview with Todd Russell, of the Kennel Department of Outing: " 'Today,' said Mr. Russell, 'the specialist has a recognized position which gains him credit within limits, and possibly causes him to be looked at as narrow from the broader viewpoint of general work. It is a pleasure, therefore, to find a man, a painter, who, while restricting his subject matter to a limited field, is nevertheless master of the technique of his craft. Edmund H. Osthaus not only is a good dog painter - he is a good painter who paints dogs.

His drawing is admirable, and his ability to execute a particularly vivid portrait of an animal is something that always attracts the trained craftsman who knows from experience that this kind of work, unusual as it is, calls for a very special kind of mastery of the difficult points of the art. The best man in any work is apt to be the one who brings to it the greatest amount of personal interest. Mr. Osthaus does his dog work from love of that part of the game, and he is fortunate in being so able in its portrayal. His personal friends have seen many landscapes by him that are admirable in composition and color. For this reason they are annoyed sometimes that he restricts himself to but one public field - that of painting dogs. Sometimes, however, they are pleased, for the lucky one who has an 'Osthaus' of his favorite animal is not only qualified thereby to rank among sportsmen 'who know,' but has a constant reminder of how that dog really looked and was. That is good portraiture, and would be were the subjects gods or men or little red apples. As it is, the result of Mr. Osthaus' work as a painter of dogs has been, for all dog men, the perpetua¬ tion of the real type of excellence in each breed as he paints it. To the practical dog man there could be nothing of greater value, and its historical interest in days to come can hardly be esti¬ mated.' "

William Henry Cray

William Henry Cray, deceased, is remembered as one of the leading merchants of Toledo during a period of nearly a quarter of a century, throughout which time he was engaged in the hard¬ ware business. Mr. Cray was a native of the Empire State, having been born in Auburn, N. Y., May 27, 1830, and he was the only son of George Washington Cray, a native and influential citizen of the same place. The father was identified with business interests as a shoe merchant in Auburn throughout his active career and was enabled to retire with a competence several years prior to his death. Of his children they were three in number - Martha, Emily and William H., to whom this memoir is more particularly dedi¬ cated - each of whom have lived their allotted time and passed from the scenes of life's activities. William Henry Cray received his scholastic training in'the excellent schools of his native Auburn, and upon reaching the age of maturity became the valued assistant of his father in conducting his mercantile establishment. He re¬ mained thus employed until the tocsin of war was sounded in the dark days of the early sixties, when the blood of a patriotic ances¬ try coursing through his veins was aroused and he offered his services to his country. He became a member of Company C, of the Seventy-fifth New York infantry, in which his valor and patri¬ otic conduct was recognized by promotions until he was com¬ missioned captain of his company. The history of that fighting regiment in detail would tell the story of Captain Cray's military career, for amid the smoke of battle, on the tiresome march, and in the more quiet precincts of the bivouac, he was ever found at his post, faithfully performing the duties assigned him. He re¬ mained in the military service until victory had perched upon the banners of the Union and then, like thousands of other heroic souls, he returned to private life and took up the threads of a peaceful career. Being attracted to the city of Toledo by its fine business opportunities and its home inviting features, he located there soon after the close of the hostilities, and there he maintained his resi¬ dence during the remaining years of an exceedingly active life, his death occurring Sept. 9, 1890. As before stated, he became engaged in the hardware business, and in this line of endeavor he achieved marked success, building up an extensive establishment in Toledo and established his son Edwin in one of a similar kind in the city of Cleveland. He gave his undivided attention to his business interests, never caring to enter the maelstrom of a political career, but he took an intelligent interest in all questions of public nature and gave an unswerving allegiance to the men and measures of the Republican party. On Oct. 11, 1863, Capt. Cray was married to Miss Mary Josephine Henderson, a daughter of James and Mary E. (Munson) Henderson, prominent citizens of Auburn, N. Y., and of this union there were born five children, of whom more specific mention may be made as follows: Mary and Emily, twins, are de¬ ceased; George is a resident of Toledo; Edwin resides at Cleve¬ land, Ohio, where he is engaged in the hardware business; and William Walter is a resident of Toledo, being engaged with his brother George in the management of the hardware business, and he is also a prominent member of the Chamber of Commerce and of the Toledo Business Men's Club. James and Mary E. (Munson) Henderson, parents of Mrs. Cray, were both natives of the State of Connecticut, and after their marriage they located in Auburn, N. Y., where the father was engaged in the dry goods business for a number of years, later selling out and removing to New York City, where he engaged in business for some time. He retired from active participation in affairs several years prior to his death and returned to Auburn, where he resided the remainder of his life. After his death Mrs. Henderson came to Toledo and made her home with her daughter, Mrs. Cray, until she passed into the great beyond in 1880, at the advanced age of eighty years. Mrs. Cray, the widow of the subject of this memoir, resides in the beautiful family residence, which is pleasantly located at No. 2344 Monroe street, Toledo. She is a member and regular attendant of the First Congregational Church, in which her husband also had membership.

Philip Hurt Strausz

Philip Hurt Strausz, M. D., deceased, for a period of sixteen years a very successful practicing physician in the city of Toledo, was born at Winchester, Va., May 1, 1861, the son of Alexander and Anna (Young) Strausz, the former of whom was a native of Hungary, born at Budapest, Feb. 8, 1829, and the latter was born at Washington, D. C., May 1, 1837. The father was educated for the profession of architect and civil engineer, but before he could complete his studies his native land was in the throes of a revolutionary movement and the young Hungarians were impelled by irresistible influences to cast their fortunes upon one side or the other in the impending conflict. Mr. Strausz gave his services to the cause of freedom and entered the revolutionary army, in which he was first assigned to the position of corporal, and later was promoted to that of lieutenant. But the cause for which he fought was unsuccessful in the ensuing struggle, and with many others he was taken prisoner by the government forces at Vilagos. As a punishment for participating in the rebellion he was sentenced to serve for a period of ten years as a private soldier in the Austrian army in Italy and Bohemia, but while en route to the former coun¬ try he succeeded in making his escape, and reaching his native land was safely concealed for a time by his friends. Later, he went to Hamburg, and from that place journeyed to London, Eng¬ land, in 1850. The following year he sailed for American shores, and landing in Boston, Mass., he presented to Edward Everett a letter of introduction which had been given him by Philip Hurt, Esq., of Hargate Manor, Staffordshire, England. Through the aid of Mr. Everett he secured employment with an architect in Boston, but the position was not a very lucrative one and he later found employment with the United States coast survey in Wash¬ ington. While thus employed he was appointed a member of the # committee to welcome Louis Kossuth, the leader of the Hungarian revolution, to America. On Dec. 12, 1851, he began work as an hydraulic draughtsman in the party of Lieut.-Com. Richard Wainwright, the father of Lieutenant-Commander Wainwright, of battleship Maine celebrity. He continued in the work of the coast survey for a number of years, and at the beginning of the Civil war was promoted to acting assistant engineer, in which position he served until 1865, when he resigned to try his fortune in private life. During the war he served under Admiral David D. Porter, and it fell to him to lay the plans for the naval activities in the siege of Vicksburg. Later he had charge of a hydrographic party, on the Hudson river and also on the coast of Maine, until Novem¬ ber, 1864, when he was ordered to serve as assistant engineer on a survey of the San Juan river in Nicaragua. After the close of the war he located at Wilmington, N. C., where he engaged in the milling business, and after being thus employed for about ten years he removed to Irondale, W. Va., and there built a blast furnace. After conducting this for a few years he sold his interests and decided to spend the remainder of his days in peaceful retire¬ ment. He went to Palatka, Fla., where he became a member of the household of his son, who is the subject of this review, and upon the removal of the latter to Toledo the father accompanied him hither and continued his residence here until his death, June 4, 1905. Politically, he was a staunch adherent of the platform expressions of the Republican party and for a time while residing in Palatka, Fla., he very acceptably filled the position of county superintendent of schools. Fraternally, he was a member of the Masonic order. On Feb. 19, 1854, Mr. Strausz was married to Miss Anna Young, daughter of Noble and Anna (McWilliams) Young, of Washington, D. C., and of this union there were born six children: Philip Hurt, deceased, whose name introduces this review; Alexander, Jr., of Manila, Philippine Islands; Louise, Minna and Julian, all of whom are deceased; and Harry, who is a dentist in New Orleans, La. Dr. Philip H. Strausz, to whom this memoir is more particularly dedicated, received his pre¬ liminary education in the schools of Wilmington, N. C., and later continued his studies in the State university of West Virginia. Completing a course in medicine at Bellevue Hospital, New York City, graduating in 1885, he afterward attended post-graduate lec- tures in Tulane University at New Orleans, La., and served one year as interne. He then entered upon the independent practice of his profession in the nation's metropolis, but after a short time removed to Palatka, Fla., because of ill health, and in that city continued the practice until 1891, when he came to Toledo. Here he successfully followed his profession until cut down by death in the midst of a very successful career, his demise occurring Aug. 9, 1907. He made a specialty of diseases of the stomach and in treating ailments of that nature was the first physician to intro¬ duce the practice of washing the stomach; and he was also among the first to recognize the value of the lymph treatment. When the yellow fever epidemic was raging in the city of Jacksonville, Fla., in 1888, he offered his services and as a volunteer physician devoted his time and talents to the wiping out of that dreaded scourge. He served for a time as a member of the Florida State Medical Examining Board, and upon the Republican ticket, which represented his political faith, he was elected alderman in the city of Palatka, which position he satisfactorily occupied for two terms. Fraternally he was a member of both the Masonic and the Knights of Pythias orders, and in the domain of his profes¬ sion he held membership in the American Medical Association. His name was enrolled upon the membership list of St. John's Episcopal Church, and his zeal in the cause of Christianity is shown by the fact that he served as vestryman of the religious organization to which he belonged. Socially he was a member of the Toledo Yacht Club. On Feb. 10, 1888, Dr. Strausz was married to Miss Lida Virginia Davis, daughter of James A. and Virginia (Vance) Davis, of Morgantown, W. Va., and of this marital union were born two children - Carroll and Virginia - both of whom are students in the Toledo schools. The parents of Mrs. Strausz are natives of Morgantown, W. Va., the father having been born Sept. 22, 1831, and the mother Jan. 21, 1837. James Davis, the father, attended the public schools of his native place, and in early manhood learned the trade of cabinet-making. He later engaged in the furniture and undertaking business at Morgantown and he was thus employed until 1905, when he re¬ tired from business and removed to Toledo, in which city he and his estimable wife have since resided. Politically he is a Republican and his fraternal connections are with the Independ¬ ent Order of Odd Fellows. Mrs. Davis is the daughter of Addi¬ son and Mary Ann (Sturgiss) Vance, of Morgantown, W. Va., and her mother was a cousin of Abraham Lincoln.

Thomas Jefferson Cronise

Thomas Jefferson Cronise, M. D., deceased, late a prominent physician of Toledo, was born in Tiffin, Ohio, Feb. 25, 1830, the son of Henry and Susanna (Fundenburg) Cronise, both of whom were nativles of Frederickstown, Md., where the father was born March 15, 1789, and the mother Oct. 21, 1795. The paternal grandfather, whose name was also Henry Cronise, was a Revolutionary soldier, having enlisted, Aug. 1, 1776, in the Second company of the German regiment of the Continental forces, under the command of Lieut.- Col. Ludwick Weltner. He served valiantly with this regiment for a period of three years and received an honorable discharge from the service, July 24, 1779. Henry Cronise, the father of Dr. Cronise, came to Tiffin, Ohio, in 1827, and engaged in the mercantile business as a dealer in dry goods. As the city grew to larger proportions, his establishment became the leading store in the place, and in the late forties he retired from its active management and trans¬ ferred the business to his sons. He was one of the leaders of the Democratic party in that section of the State, and in recognition of his ability was elected first to the lower house of the State legis¬ lature and afterward to the Senate. Both he and his wife died in Tiffin, and of the nine children born to them Dr. Cronise was the eighth in order of birth. Thomas Jefferson Cronise received such preparatory scholastic training as the schools of that day afforded, and when he had completed these preliminary courses, he went to Cincinnati and matriculated in the Ohio State Medical College, where, after he had completed the required work, he was granted the degree of Doctor of Medicine by the trustees of the institution. Immediately afterward he removed to Texas, Ohio, and began the practice of his profession, but the environment there not being con¬ genial, he removed to Waterville, Lucas county. While still a resident of Waterville, the Civil war broke out and President Lin¬ coln issued his call for volunteers. Among the first to respond was Dr. Cronise, who became a private in what later was known as

Company I, Fourteenth Ohio infantry. With his regiment he saw service in Kentucky, and in October went into quarters at Camp Dick Robinson. About this time rumors were rife that the Federal forces stationed at or near Wild Cat were surrounded by the Con¬ federates. The Fourteenth, with Barnet's First Ohio artillery, started at once for that place, making forced marches through the deep mud and driving rain, and reached there on the morning of Oct. 21. On nearing the battle-field the crash of musketry and artillery was heard. This spurred the excited troops and they double-quicked to the point of attack. The enemy shortly aban¬ doned the field and retreated. In the charge which carried the works at Mill Springs the Fourteenth was the first regiment to enter, and. pushing on after the flying enemy it reached the bank of the river in time to fire into the rear of the retreating column as it was board¬ ing the steamer. Dr. Cronise was with his regiment and shared in the slow advance upon Corinth. He was in the march from Nash¬ ville to Louisville, but on Oct. 9 the brigade with which his regi¬ ment was acting was detailed to guard headquarters and the ammu¬ nition train, and hence did not participate in the battle of Perryville. The following winter was spent at Gallatin and other points in Middle Tennessee, and in June, 1863, the regiment formed a portion of Rosecrans' advance on Tullahoma and Chattanooga. At Hoover's Gap a brisk engagement ensued, in which the regiment participated, and on Sept. 19 it marched upon the field at Chickamauga and was immediately deployed in line of battle. The regiment was engaged in hot and close contest with the enemy from 9 a. m. to 4 p. m., and then being relieved, it replenished its ammunition boxes and again entered the fight, continuing until sunset. In the brilliant assault on Missionary Ridge the regiment bore a gallant part, charging and capturing a Confederate battery of three guns, which General Hardee in person was superintending. Dr. Cronise par¬ ticipated in the long, fatiguing campaign for the possession of Atlanta, the "gate city" of the South. In all the marches and the almost incessant skirmishes and flanking movements of that cam¬ paign, he did his full duty. In that heroic charge of Jonesboro the Fourteenth took nearly as many prisoners as the regiment num¬ bered men, capturing a battery of four guns, several stands of colors, and two lines of trenches full of Confederates. On Sept 12, 1864, his term of enlistment having expired, Dr. Cronise received an honorable discharge from the service. He had been with his regi¬ ment in all the engagements in which it took part, with the excep¬ tion of some months when he had charge of Hospital No. 1 at Bowling Green, Ky., and while engaged at another time in similar duties at Nashville, Tenn. His professional knowledge was called into service and he was made assistant surgeon, a position he held until he received his final discharge. After the close of his military career, Dr. Cronise settled in Peru, Ill., where he had purchased a successful drug business. Pie remained in Peru successfully man¬ aging this business for about five years, and then, being desirous of resuming his professional work, disposed of the store and re¬ turned to his birthplace, Tiffin, Ohio, to again become active as a physician. Seven years later he removed to Toledo, which was one of the rapidly growing cities of the State, and started in his practice there. For nine years he was active in his work, but by the end of that time the exposure and strain, due to his army service, began to tell upon his physical condition, and it became necessary for him to retire. In the hope of regaining his lost vitality, he removed to Riverside, Cal., but the change did not affect the desired result, and on May 25, 1896, he answered the summons of his Maker. Dr. Cronise was a Democrat in his political belief, but never aspired to hold public office of any nature. He always had a love for the military, however, and on June 30, 1886, Gov. Joseph B. Foraker commissioned him major and surgeon of the First Regiment of Light Artillery, Ohio National Guard, a position that he held for a period of five years. On Nov. 16, 1864, was sol¬ emnized the marriage of Dr. Cronise and Miss Elizabeth Moore, the daughter of John A. and Almira (Post) Moore, of Maumee, Ohio. Of this union there were born two daughters, of whom it is fitting that mention be made in this connection. Grace Almira Cronise was born Nov. 6, 1865, and was married to Henry H. Ruggles, Feb. 24, 1885. A daughter, Helen Rose Ruggles, was born of this union, July 8, 1888, in Toledo, Ohio, and the father, Henry H. Ruggles, died July 8, 1890, at Riverside, Cal. On April 21, 1903, the widow, Grace Almira Ruggles, was married to Clinton W.

Hickok, and resides in Toledo. Gertrude Elizabeth Cronise was born Feb. 22, 1870, and on May 17, 1893, was married to Charles Willard Griffin, and now resides in Alameda, Cal. She is the mother of two children - Willard Cronise Griffin, born May 14, 1897, and Charles Willard Griffin, Jr., born March 21, 1901. Mrs. Cronise re¬ turned to Toledo after her husband's demise and lives in the beau¬ tiful family residence at 2137 Robinwood avenue. John A. Moore, her father, was born in Lynn, Conn., and her mother in Westbrook, in the same State. The former was a merchant who came to Mau¬ mee, in 1830, and from there later removed to Toledo, where he was engaged for many years in the dry goods business and built the block where Milner's store is now located. He was an influential Republican and a devout member of the First Congregational Church. Some years before his death, which occurred Dec. 27, 1900, he retired from active participation in the affairs of the business world. His widow passed away Oct. 18, 1903.

Joshua Robert Seney

Joshua Robert Seney, one of the ablest judges that ever graced the Ohio bench and one of the most eloquent and convincing lawyers that ever practiced at the bar, came from a family noted for their legal attainments. His father's people came to this country from England, though they were originally of Norman- French stock. John Seney, his great-grandfather, was a lawyer by profession and was for many years a member of the Maryland Assembly and chairman of what is now known as the Committee on Judiciary. He was also a member of the convention that ratified the Federal Constitution, in 1787, and of the Electoral College which unanimously chose General Washington for President. He entered the Revolutionary war as a captain of Maryland volunteers and, after nearly seven long years of service, was mustered out as colonel. Joshua Seney, the grandfather of the subject of this memoir, was graduated in the Literary Department of the Uni¬ versity of Pennsylvania, in 1773, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts. On his diploma are the names of Benjamin Rush, Professor of Chemistry and one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence; and Doctors Morgan and Shippen, the latter not only distinguished as a great scholar, but as the father-in-law of Benedict Arnold. Joshua Seney afterward served as a member of the Maryland Assembly, with his father, and was for four years a member of the Continental Congress, having, as a colleague, his old instructor, Benjamin Rush. He served upon the judicial bench as Chief Justice of his native State, having Will, Russell, Will, and Owens, as his associates. He was a member of the First congress after the Government was formed, and was re-elected to the Second congress, serving from March 4, 1789, to May 1, 1792, when he resigned. He was a presidential elector in 1792, voting for Washington and Adams. In 1798, he was again elected to Congress, defeating Hon. William Hindman, but he did not live to take his seat. Fie is buried in Queen Anne's county, Maryland,

Joshua Seney

From the commencement of the American Revolution, at various periods of his life, he filled with ability some of the highest stations, and discharged with integrity some of the most important duties to which his native State could appoint him;

The paternal grandmother of Joshua Robert Seney was the daughter of Commodore Nicholson, who, at one period of the Revolution, had chief command of the Navy. His father, also Joshua Seney by name, was born in New York, in 1793, and was graduated at Columbia College, in the Classical Course, and also in the University Law School. He was private secretary to Albert

Gallatin (his uncle by marriage) while the latter was Secretary of the Treasury, under President Jefferson. After practicing law for ten years in Uniontown, Pa., he came to Tiffin, Ohio. He was elected Clerk of the Supreme Court, and President Jackson appointed him United States District Judge for Pennsylvania, which position he subsequently resigned, preferring the freedom of the practice to the exactions of the bench. In 1840, he was one of the Presidential electors. He died in 1854. Anna (Ebbert) Seney, the mother of the subject of this memoir, was born in 1803, of Holland extraction, her grandfather, William Wood, having been one of those Dutch merchants who early migrated to America; her father, George Ebbert, was also a merchant and Mr. Wood's business associate. She was graduated at Browns¬ ville Female College and shortly afterward met her husband, at Uniontown, Pa., where he came with Albert Gallatin on a business mission. After a short courtship they were married. She was a woman noted for her charitable and kindly acts. She died in 1879. Joshua Robert Seney attended Antioch College during the presi¬ dency of Horace Mann, and later graduated at Union College, receiving the honors in languages out of a'class of 150 members, in 1860. He was master of seven languages and had the scholastic honor of belonging to the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity. Early in the Civil war, he offered himself as a private and, though of an early age, was recommended for a major's commission, but being in poor health at the time, the Government refused to consider his services. He was one of the organizers of the One Hundred and First infantry and served a short time as a sutler. Judge Seney studied law with Judge Pillars, of Tiffin, Ohio, and upon being admitted to the bar came to Toledo to practice his profession. He formed a law partnership with Hon. R. C. Lemmon, which partnership was dissolved when he was elected judge of the dis¬ trict - or Common Pleas - bench, when but twenty-nine years of age, and in a Republican stronghold. As a judge he made an envi¬ able record. He was careful, painstaking and just. He was the first judge in the State and one of the first in the Nation, to permit a negro to sit on a jury; and in one of many trying cases that came before him he decided "that a clerkship is not an office within the meaning of the Constitution, and that a woman is eligible to fill it." This decision was sustained by the Supreme Court and threw open the doors to the employment of women in clerical capacities, in State, county and city offices. The brilliant career of Judge Seney was cut short by ill health, which originally resulted from la grippe, and for over ten years prior to his death he was deprived of those privileges that health gives; but he bore his affliction uncomplainingly and with patience, resignation and fortitude - he was great in his misfortune. Before his illness, friends frequently endeavored to induce Judge Seney to run for office, and several times he was nominated by acclamation for important trusts, but he always refused these honors, as his highest aim was to excel in his profession. He had an exhaustless generosity - his greatest fault, if it can be called a fault. He was endowed with a sterling integrity, broad-minded and public-spirited, and he was absolutely fearless in doing what he thought was right. While Judge Seney was known as a classical scholar, a graceful writer, and a good attorney in the general field of law, yet his strongest forte was at the trial table. His logical arguments, couched in eloquent and forceful rhetoric, made him a peer in the conduct of court work, and in the examination of witnesses he would be hard to excel. While in politics he was a Democrat, yet he was an enemy to any set, no matter in what party, who opposed the fundamental principles of liberty and constitutional law. He was one of the three men, then young lawyers, who laid the foundation for the splendid law library of Toledo. Soon after locating in Toledo, he was married to Miss Julia Rice, of Ottawa, Ohio, daughter of Hon. C. H. Rice, president of the Ottawa Banking House, and a sister of the late Gen. Americus V. Rice, member of Congress and United States pension agent under President Cleveland. Judge Seney was a brother of the late Judge George E. Seney, of Tiffin, Ohio; of the late Judge Henry W. Seney, of Toledo, Ohio; of Mrs. Harvey Reddick, and of Mrs. Frances Crum, the well known and accom¬ plished artist, of Toledo. He was a cousin of George I. Seney, of New York, financier, philanthropist and art connoisseur. When Judge Seney was taken ill, by reason of his sickness he became financially involved and the support and maintenance of his family devolved upon his wife. Mrs. Seney, who is a graduate of Vermillion College, prior to her husband's illness, had achieved recognition by reason of her meritorious literary productions, and she immediately turned her efforts in that direction, doing magazine and special newspaper work. On the recommendation of Gov. James E. Campbell, the Ohio World's Fair Commission appointed Mrs. Seney hostess for Ohio at the Chicago World's Fair, which position she gracefully and ably filled. After the fair, she was associate editor on Toledo newspapers. During the Cleveland ad¬ ministration, she was appointed superintendent of the registry divi¬ sion of the Toledo postoffice, being the only woman to hold such a position in a first-class postoffice. This position she ably filled for five years, and then resigned it. The inspectors in their reports placed Mrs. Seney's office ''at the top" on account of its marked efficiency. Mrs. Seney is also known as an accomplished Shakesperean scholar. Since leaving the postoffice she has devoted herself largely to business interests and home duties, pausing occasionally to favor her friends with some products of her pen. George E. Seney, Jr., the son and only living issue of the above Joshua R. and Julia (Rice) Seney, is a native of Toledo, Ohio. He was graduated at the Toledo High School and Manual Training School, in both courses, in 1897. He attended the literary departments of the Ohio State University and the University of Michigan, after which he entered and was graduated in the College of Law of the Ohio State University. He was admitted to the bar in 1900, and thereupon entered upon the practice of law. In 1902, he was the Democratic nominee for prosecuting attorney of Lucas county and, while defeated, he ran markedly ahead of his ticket, against a strong opponent. When Judge Wachenheimer was elected county prosecutor, he offered Mr. Seney the position of first assistant, which position he declined, as it would necessitate his leaving a well established practice. For seven years preceding the death of Capt. Wesley S. Thurstin, he was engaged with that distinguished lawyer and his son, Wesley S. Thurstin, Jr., in the practice of law. At present he is a member of the firm of Seney & Thurstin, which firm is composed of George E. Seney, Wesley S. Thurstin, Jr., and I. E. Austin. George E. Seney married Miss Adah B. Kuhlthau, a woman of high accomplishments as a musician, poet and linguist, and the daughter of C. E. Kuhlthau, now residing in Delaware, Ohio. A daughter, Julia Rice Seney, Jr., is their only living child.

Manfred Milton Stophlet

Manfred Milton Stophlet, one of Toledo's well known archi¬ tects, with offices at 606-8 Nasby Building, was born June 20, 1877, at Ft. Wayne, Ind., which city had been the home of his father and grandfather. His father, John Walpole Stophlet, was the second son of Samuel Stophlet and Mary (McMaken) Stophlet, and was born at Ft. Wayne, Ind., April 25, 1845. His early life was passed in his native city, where he received his education and where, in 1872, he married Miss Lizzie Underhill, a daughter of Phineas Strong Underhill and Harriet Boynton Underhill. Five children were born of this union, four of whom are living: Alonzo B., Manfred M., Mark B. and Harry S. Stophlet, all residents of Toledo. In July, 1886, J. W. Stophlet, with his family, removed to Toledo, where for nearly a quarter of a century he was one of the best known of Ohio's traveling salesmen. He was a mem¬ ber of the Toledo Traveling Men's Association, being president for one term. He served as a private in the Civil war, in the One Hundred and Fifty-first Ohio infantry, one of the "Hundred-Day" regiments called out in 1864. He was a member of Rubicon Lodge, No. 237, Free & Accepted Masons, which organization had charge of his funeral, escorting the remains to Ft. Wayne for burial after his death, which occurred at his home on Maplewood avenue, Jan. 20, 1905. The earliest record of the Stophlet family is found in the history of the provinces of Alsace and Lorraine, which were for many years in dispute between the governments of France and Germany. Samuel Stophlet, the paternal grand¬ father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Pennsylvania and came to Ft. Wayne very early in the history of that city, where he filled many positions of honor and trust. He was post¬ master at Ft. Wayne for many years and also a member of the State legislature. "Judge Stophlet," as he was called, was married to Mary McMaken, a daughter of a pioneer resident of Ft. Wayne, whose early recollections extended back to a residence in the old block house of the fort, built by Anthony Wayne in 1794. Phineas Strong Underhill and Harriet Boynton Underhill came from New England and were associated with the early history of Ft. Wayne. Mr. Underhill was a prominent business man of that city at the time of his death, and Mrs. Underhill lived there for more than half a century. Manfred M. Stophlet received his early education in the public schools of Ft. Wayne and Toledo. After three years in the Toledo High and Manual Training schools, he entered the office of Harry Wachter, spending three years in practical work, preparatory to a special course in archi¬ tecture in Columbia University, at New York City. In the year of 1901, he returned to Toledo and has since been successiveh with Harry C. Wachter, E. O. Fallis, Bacon & Huber, and George S. Mills, architects of Toledo, remaining in the office of the last named for six years. While thus employed, Mr. Stophlet designed a number of the large public and commercial buildings of Toledo and surrounding territory. In May, 1909, he opened an office of his own at 606-8 Nasby Building, and, in the short time he has been in business, he has received a number important commissions. He is the architect for the Flower Hospital of Toledo, including the entire group of buildings contemplated as a part of that institution, and is in charge of their construction. Other buildings planned by him are the Masonic Temple, at Defiance, Ohio; and a number of churches, commercial buildings and residences in Toledo. He holds the commission for designing the group plan and buildings for the Defiance College, at Defiance, Ohio, and the passenger station at Cadillac, Mich., for the Ann Arbor rail¬ road. Mr. Stophlet belongs to the Toledo Traveling Men's Asso¬ ciation, the Business Men's Club, the Epworth Methodist Episcopal Church, and is a life member of the Maumee River Yacht Club. He is prominent in Masonic circles, being a member of Rubicon Lodge, No. 237, Free & Accepted Masons; Fort Meigs Chapter No. 29, Royal Arch Masons; and Toledo Council No. 33, Royal & Select Masters. On July 3, 1902, Mr. Stophlet married Miss Agnes Ruth Tower, a native of Toledo and a daughter of the late Benjamin Tower, who for many years was connected with the Wabash railroad. Mrs. Stophlet is a graduate of the Toledo

Normal Training School and, prior to her marriage, was for eight years a teacher in the city schools, having been the principal of the Broadway School at the time of her marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Stophlet have two sons: Robert Tower, born in 1904, and Richard Boynton, born in 1906. Mr. Stophlet resides at 2537 Fulton street.