Toledo City (part 6 of 21)

In his political views John William Banting is independent, placing the qualifications of a candidate above all other considerations, and in civic work and progressive endeavor he does his part as a member of the Toledo Chamber of Commerce. He is a thirty-second degree Mason and is also connected with the Toledo Club, the Rotary Club, the Inverness Club and the Izaak Walton Fishing Club, which has recently been organized. He finds his chief recreation in fishing and golf. He has fought life's battles unaided and has risen to a position of pre-emience in the business world. His is the record of a strong mentality, stable in purpose, quick in perception, swift in decision, energetic and persistent in action, and Toledo is proud to claim him as a citizen. His home is at No. 2521 Parkwood avenue.

George P.-Kirby

George P. Kirby has for more than forty years been identified with the Toledo bar. Continuing in general practice he tries all kinds of cases and tries them well and has long enjoyed a good clientage. He is a native of New York, his birth having occurred in the city of Troy, August 9, 1858, his parents being Peter and Charlotte (Bernard) Kirby, both of whom were natives of England, whence they came to the new world in early life, establishing their home in the Empire state.

George P. Kirby pursued his early education in the public schools of his native city and was a young man of nineteen years when in 1877 he came to Toledo. Here he entered upon preparation for the practice of law and after thorough, comprehensive and preliminary training was admitted to the bar in May, 1881. Since that time he has continued in general practice here and earnest efforts, close application and the development of his native powers have gained for him a creditable position at the bar. that has numbered many prominent representatives. An excellent presence, an earnest manner, marked strength of character, a thorough grasp of the law and the ability accurately to apply its principles make him an effective and successful advocate and a wise counselor. He has been the general counsel of the National Union Assurance Society since July, 1906.

On the 26th of March, 1883, Mr. Kirby was united in marriage to Miss Kate F. Krieger and they have become parents of two children: George P. and Paul B. Mrs. Kirby died May 11, 1916. Mr. Kirby is a member of the Unitarian church and interested in all those forces which make for the uplift of the individual, for civic righteousness and for general progress. Fraternally he is both a York Rite and Scottish Rite Mason and be belongs to the Toledo Club.

Sewell W., Beckley

Among the large business enterprises which are important factors in Toledo's commercial activity and prosperity is the wholesale tea and coffee house of the Blodgett-Beckley Company, of which Sewell W. Beckley is vice president and general manager. He has had broad experience along business lines and the success which is now attending the operations of the company is largely due to his untiring efforts and administrative ability. Mr. Beckley was born in Bedford county, Pennsylvania, December 11, 1872, and his parents, George W. and Susan (Wendell) Beckley, were also natives of the Keystone state. The father was a successful agriculturist and became the owner of one of the well improved and valuable farms of Bedford county. He was an honored veteran of the Civil war and his demise occurred in 1920, when he was eighty-four years of age. The mother survives him and has reached the age of eighty-two. In their family were five children: William, Manford, Mrs. Mary Sutter and Mrs. James Mickle, all of whom are still living in Pennsylvania; and Sewell W.

In the acquirement of an education Sewell W. Beckley attended the district schools of Bedford county, Pennsylvania, and the Lock Haven Normal School of that state, after which he taught school for a term. He was sixteen years of age at that time and one of the youngest teachers in the state. He then secured a position in a grocery store conducted by James Sutter, starting with a salary of eight dollars per month, which included his board. He remained with Mr. Sutter for three years, during which period he rose to the position of manager and buyer, doing valuable work in promoting the success of the business, and at the time of his resignation was the highest salaried employe of the company. When nineteen years of age he became a traveling salesman for the H. J. Heinz Company of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, well known as the manufacturers of fiftyseven varieties of pure food products, and for fourteen years he was identified with that firm, winning promotion to the position of general road manager. In the fall of 1905 he came to Toledo and became associated with the Bour Company, wholesale dealers in tea and coffee. In 1912 the business was reorganized, at which time the present style of the Blodgett-Beckley Company was adopted, and the subject of this review became sales manager and vice president, while since 1920 he has been first vice president, manager and general sales manager, one hundred and twenty-five road salesmen being under his charge. Thoroughness in everything he undertakes is one of Mr. Beckley's outstanding characteristics and he has closely studied every phase of the business, visiting the tea- and coffeegrowing countries and thus gaining a comprehensive knowledge of the various processes employed in preparing for the market the products handled by the house. This knowledge he has imparted to his salesmen, who are thus enabled to present their line of goods more intelligently and effectively, resulting in a large increase in the volume of trade. He keeps in close touch with what is being done in all departments and has succeeded in maintaining a high degree of efficiency in the operation of the business, which has greatly prospered through his welldirected efforts. The activities of the company are conducted on an extensive, scale and theirs is one of the largest undertakings of the kind in this section of the country. In addition to their Toledo house they also maintain establishments at Cincinnati, Columbus and Cleveland, Ohio; Detroit, Michigan; Milwaukee; Wisconsin; Indianapolis, Indiana ; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Buffalo, New York; Louisville, Kentucky ; and Minneapolis, Minnesota; and in Kansas City, Missouri, they operate a branch roasting and distributing plant.

At Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on the 10th of May, 1894, Mr. Beckley was married to Miss Gertrude Masters, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. David Masters, prominent residents of that city. Mr. and Mrs. Beckley have two sons: Harold, the elder, was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in 1898, is a graduate of one of the high schools of Toledo, and is now associated in business with his father. He married Miss Gertrude Simon of Toledo, and they have a son, Harold Beckley, Jr.; Raymond Beckley, who was born in Johnstown in 1903, also completed a high school course in Toledo and is now connected with the Landman & Griffith Automobile Company of this city.

Mr. Beckley is fond of all outdoor sports and amusements, particularly of horseback riding, and is the owner of a fine saddle horse. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and his political allegiance is given to the republican party. He has membership with the Toledo Commerce Club and is also connected with the Toledo Club and the Toledo Yacht Club. He is likewise identified with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and in Masonry he has attained the thirty-second degree in the consistory. He is a self-made man who fully deserves the honor that is accorded the fortunate individual who has fought and won in the great battle of life and he has made his labors count as a forceful factor in promoting the business interests of his city as well as in the attainment of individual prosperity.

John Cummings

John Cummings, who long figured prominently in connection with the wholesale shoe trade and also in banking circles in Toledo, passed away in this city July 1, 1921. He was a leading and progressive business man and prominent citizen and through an extended period had contributed to public progress and upbuilding here. He was born May 6, 1831, in Lagrange county, Indiana, a son of Robert and Mary Cummings. His education was acquired in the country schools and he assisted his father in the development of the home farm during his boyhood and youth. He was eighteen years of age when in 1849 he started for California, attracted by the tales concerning the discovery of gold on the Pacific coast. He had varied and interesting experiences in the west, becoming a representative of the pony express there in carrying the government mails and also acting as a member of the vigilantes committee. With money earned on his western trip he came to Toledo and here he entered the wholesale shoe house of the W. W. Griffin Company. He thoroughly acquainted himself with the business, worked his way steadily upward and in time became one of the owners thereof, the store being conducted later by the R. & J. Cummings Company, of which:he was one of the partners. Their ramifying trade relations reached out to various sections of the country and their business steadily grew and developed under the careful direction of John Cummings and his associates in the undertaking. He also entered banking circles, becoming president of the Ohio Savings Bank & Trust Company, and he was likewise a director of the Blade Printing & Paper Company. His interests and activities thus were broad and varied and his labors were an important element in the continued business expansion and growth of Toledo.

In 1863 Mr. Cummings was united in marriage to Miss Carrie Sinclair, a daughter of John and Mary Sinclair of Monroe, Michigan. They had three daughters: Cora and Kittie, (twins), the first named of whom died in infancy," and Kittie married Morrison W. Young, but is now deceased ; and Elizabeth is the wife of Silas Cornell Walbridge of Toledo. ,

Mr. Cummings was a lover of the out-of-doors and greatly enjoyed hunting. He became a charter member of the Cedar Point Gun Club and whenever opportunity permitted he made his way into the open. He was also a lover of horses, greatly enjoyed racing and was one of the promoters of the Tri-State Racing Association, He held membership in the Toledo Club and at all times his life was actuated by his belief in the teachings of the Presbyterian church, in which he long held membership. He had reached the venerable age of ninety years when death called him. One could not mourn for him as for an individual 'cut off in the prime of life or the heyday of youth. Hus career was as the day with its morning of hope and promise, its noontide of activity, its evening of completed and successful effort terminating in the rest and quiet of the night. He played well his part, he achieved his purposes and the interests and activities of his life were at all times well balanced. To an unusual degree he enjoyed the respect, confidence and goodwill of all who knew him and many of his associates still warmly cherish his memory.

Rev. R. Lincoln Long, a distinguished divine of Toledo, is pastor of the Collingwood Avenue Presbyterian church and a strong moving force for moral progress in his community. He is a native of the south, his birth having occurred at Henderson, Kentucky, April 15, 1888. His parents were A. R. and Savina (Osman) Long, who were natives of Pennsylvania, the birth of the father occurring in Franklin county and that of the mother in Schuylkill county, and in early life they went to Kentucky, whence they removed to Freeport, Illinois. There the father engaged in the practice of dentistry and subsequently he followed his profession in other cities, winning success in his chosen vocation. After his death the mother came to Toledo, where she spent her remaining years, passing away on the 25th of December, 1921. Two children were born of their union.

R. Lincoln Long is the only surviving member of the family and his public school training was received at Freeport, Illinois. He then attended Winona Academy of Indiana and afterward became a student at Lake Forest College, near Chicago, Illinois, from which he won the A. B. degree in 1912. He next entered the McCormick Theological Seminary at Chicago, Illinois, and was ordained to the ministry in 1915. His first charge was at Paulding, Ohio, where he was stationed until 1918, filling the pulpit of the First Presbyterian church. In the early part of 1918 he came to Toledo as assistant to Rev. Samuel Charles Black, religious educator and pastor of the Collingwood Avenue Presbyterian church. Soon afterward Dr. Long received from Washington & Jefferson College the degree of Doctor of Divinity, and on returning to this city in 1919 he was appointed to his present pastorate as Dr. Black's successor, in which connection he has charge of one of the largest and wealthiest congregations in the city. His desire to uplift mankind has found expression in organized and systematic effort and under his able guidance the influence of the church is constantly broadening, while his undoubted sincerity and devotion to his work have won for him the esteem and affection of those to whom he administers religious instruction.

At Camp Point, Ohio, on the 2d of September, 1915, Dr. Long was married to Miss Reva Henry, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. H. G. Henry, prominent residents of that place, and they have three children: Dorothy Martha, who was born at Paulding, Ohio, June 10, 1916; Robert, who is also a native of that place, his birth occurring November 14, 1918; and Caroline, who was born in this city August 16, 1920.

Dr. Long is deeply interested in both the material and spiritual welfare of Toledo and is an earnest member of the Chamber of Commerce. He is also a member and one of the trustees of the Kiwanis Club and a Knights Templar Mason, while in the Scottish Rite Consistory he has taken the thirty-second degree. He is a logical thinker, a clear and convincing speaker and a man of scholarly attainments whose powers and talents have been a leavening force in making high ideals a tangible asset in the daily affairs of life.

Claude Allen Campbell, one of the best known among Toledo's younger men in banking circles, is the secretary of The Ohio Savings Banks & Trust Company, and was born in Gibsonburg, Ohio, June 4, 1892, a son of William Wells and Mertie (Laird) Campbell. The father is a well known attorney of Toledo.

Claude A. Campbell attended the public schools of Toledo and afterward graduated from Oberlin College, where he not only made an excellent record in his studies but was also prominently known in athletics, winning his letter in baseball, football and track. He likewise made a most creditable record in oratorical contests and in his scholastic work stood at the head of his classes.

In entering on his business career Mr. Campbell turned his attention to the real estate business, becoming connected with the E. H. Close Realty Company. Later he organized the Cambridge Realty Company and specialized in the operation and development of business blocks. As manager of the Ohio Building Company he first became connected with The Ohio Savings Bank & Trust Company, later being made manager of its mortgage and loan department. Subsequently Mr. Campbell was advanced to the position of officer in supervision of seven branch banks, and recently was again advanced to his present position, that of senior secretary of the institution. Mr. Campbell's rise has been rapid and his present position with one of the largest financial institutions in Toledo, is the direct result of his capability. Among his other business connections, he is the vice president of the Southway Realty Company and of the Atlas Building Company. He was formerly chairman of the Toledo Building Owners' Association and president of the State Association.

On the 24th of October, 1914, was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Campbell and Miss Jane Gray of Bolivar, New York, whose father was an oil operator there and at that time mayor of the city.

Mr. Campbell belongs to the Toledo Club and to the Inverness Club. He is past president of the Exchange Club, a member of the Toledo Real Estate Board and of the Toledo Builders' Exchange. He has membership in all degrees in the Masonic fraternity and the nature of his interests is further indicated in his connection with the Young Men's Christian Association. In a word, he stands stanchly in support of all those agencies which make for the benefit of the individual and of the community at large, seeking ever to promote the material, intellectual, social and moral progress of both city and state. Mr. Campbell's residence is at No. 3221 Collingwood avenue. '

Fred A. Crossett, one of the best known hotel men of Toledo and the middle west, is proprietor of both the Eastwood Hotel and the Hotel Monticello. He displays the qualities of the pioneer in management, inasmuch as he employs initiative resulting in new ideas in the care of the hostelries under his direction. Mr. Crossett is of Canadian birth. He was born at Eastwood, Ontario, January 6, 1886, and is a son of Dr. Andrew and Mary Ann (Bedford) Crossett, the former devoting his life to the practice of medicine. In the public schools of his native country Fred A. Crossett began his education, which he continued later in Ohio, and in early manhood he devoted three years to teaching school. He was afterward connected with the United States weather bureau at Little Rock, Arkansas, for a period of two years and for an equal time engaged in the real estate business in that city. He returned to Toledo in 1909 to enter the real estate business, in which he was engaged for eight years. He turned his attention, however, to hotel interests in 1914, when he became manager of the Madison Hotel, of which he had charge until 1919. In 1918 he opened the Eastwood Hotel, thus engaging in business independently, and in November, 1919, he purchased the Hotel Monticello, of both of which he remains proprietor. He is a prominent figure in business circles here and is the secretarytreasurer of the Toledo Hotel Men's Association and district vice president of the Ohio. Hotel Association.

Mr. Crossett was married July 19, 1922, to Miss Helené Esther Brien, a daughter of Dr. Augustus A. E. Brien of Manchester, New Hampshire. By a former marriage Mr. Crossett has a daughter, Dorothy Virginia Crossett, who was born March 26, 1915, in Toledo, Ohio.

Mr. Crossett has membership with the Gideons, with the Ohio Hotel Men's Association, with the Toledo Yacht Club, the Toledo Automobile Club and with the Masonic fraternity, in which he has attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite. He is also a Knights Templar Mason and member of the Mystic Shrine. He is a member of the Izaak Walton League of America and a most enthusiastic angler. In fact, if Mr. Crossett has a hobby, it is his great interest in his recreational pleasures of fishing and hunting. His fishing outfit is one of the most modern and complete owned by any Toledo angler and has been recently augmented by a glass cabin cruiser. His hunting equipment is equally complete. He spends several months each year in the hunting and fishing regions of the north. Moreover, Mr. Crossett is identified with the Greeters Association of America and with the Young Men's Christian Association. He is keenly interested in athletics and especially in the work of the Y. M. C. A. gymnasium. In the foregoing are indicated the nature of his interests and the rules and principles that govern his conduct. He is interested in those forces which make for the uplift of the individual and the benefit of mankind at large and permeated by the spirit of good cheer and kindliness, he sheds around him much of the sunshine of life.

Joseph Lambert Tillman

Joseph Lambert Tillman is the president of the Maumee Malleable Castings Company, controlling two of the important iron and steel manufacturing concerns in the state. James Russell Lowell said that an institution is but the lengthened shadow of a man, and certainly the great plant of the company stands as a monument to the business ability, initiative and progressive spirit of Mr. Tillman, whose indefatigable energy has at no time declined a call to labor or to service. Toledo is proud to number him among her native sons, his birth having occurred March 25, 1866. His parents, Frank and Regina (Johnson) Tillman, were both natives of Belgium and in early life came to America, settling in Toledo, where the father learned the meat business and afterward became a wholesale meat dealer, conducting an extensive and successful enterprise. He died in Toledo in 1905, his widow surviving until 1909. They were the parents of five children: John, Mrs. Theresa Vollmayer, Joseph L., Mrs. Fannie Nagle and Frank.

At the usual age Joseph Lambert Tillman became a pupil in the parochial schools of this city, pursuing his studies to the age of thirteen, when necessity seemed to demand that he start out in the business world. He afterward attended night school to further his education and better qualify for life's practical and responsible duties. In the meantime he secured employment with the Merchants Dispatch & Transportation Company and after a brief period he left that position to enter the employ of the Bostwick-Braun Company, wholesale and retail dealers in hardware, their establishment being now one of the largest of the country. Mr. Tillman's original position with that corporation was in the shipping department and for more than thirty years he remained as a most substantial and faithful employe of the company, working his way upward through various departments and winning promotion from time to time until he was occupying a position of large responsibility. Later, however, he resigned to organize the Buckeye Boiler Skimmer Company, later the Industrial Steel Casting Company, also the Maumee Malleable Castings Company, all of which have become large industries of Toledo, operating extensively and successfully. Mr. Tillman is the president of the Maumee Malleable Castings Company and of the Industrial Steel Casting Company and is president and treasurer of the Buckeye Boiler Company, also president and treasurer of the Wine Railway Appliance Company and secretary and treasurer of the Diamond Theatre Company. His business activities thus cover a wide scope and he has become recognized as a dynamic force in connection with the industrial and commercial development of the city. He brings system and order into all that he

On the 25th of November, 1891, Mr. Tillman was married to Miss Katherine Nagelbrecher of Toledo, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Theodore Nagelbrecher. They have become parents of twelve children: Angela; Ralph, who married Miss Mildred Gessler ; Lambert J., who is factory manager with the Wine Railway Appliance Company and is mentioned elsewhere in this work; Theresa, secretary and treasurer of the Adamson Company, wholesale jewelers of Toledo; Mrs. Florence Snyder, who resides in Toledo and has two children, Sally and William ; Joseph L., Jr., who was graduated from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana and is now vice president and mechanical engineer of the Industrial Steel Casting Company and who married Miss Hildegard Hering; Cecilia, who is now with the Adamson Company; Raymond L., a student in the University of Notre Dame; Katherine, who was graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1922, has taken up chemistry and nursing at St. Vincent's Hospital, Toledo; Robert, who is attending St. Johns University; and Bernice and Beatrice, twins, who are students in the Notre Dame Academy. The religious faith of the family is that of the Roman Catholic church and Mr. Tillman is a third degree member of the Knights of Columbus, in which he has filled all of the chairs. His political allegiance is given to no political party, he being absolutely independent. He was appointed a member of the new charter commission of the city of Toledo and a commissioner of city planning. He was also made a member of the committee on canal investigation and is doing active work along the line of public service. During the World war he took a most helpful part in promoting all the loans and was chairman of the fifth district draft board. He belongs to the Merchants & Manufacturers Association, _ 1s identified with the Art Museum and has membership in the Toledo Club and the Toledo Yacht Club. The interests and activities of his life are varied, bringing a well balanced development, and there is no phase of substantial city progress that seeks his aid in vain. At the same time he is a resourceful and representative business man, controlling large interests whereon the material growth of Toledo depends. His residence is on River road.

David Mayer Kable

David Mayer Kable, proprietor of four of the leading lunch rooms in Toledo and treasurer of the General Fireproof Storage Company of this city, has ever manifested a notable alertness and enterprise in the conduct of business affairs and has won a substantial measure of success as the result of his close application and ability. Mr. Kable is a native of Indiana, his birth having occurred in Knox county, that state, February 17, 1866, his parents being James Williams and Mary (Mayer) Kable. The father, who was a farmer by occupation, died in Kansas in 1889. ;

The youthful days of David M. Kable were spent upon the old homestead farm where he early became familiar with the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the crops. His educational opportunities were those afforded by the public schools and when his textbooks were put aside he concentrated his efforts and attention upon farm work and so engaged until 1893, when he went to Peoria, Illinois, where he began working in a restaurant and there learned the business, spending two and a half years in that employ. On the expiration of that period he opened a restaurant on his own account in Peoria, conducting it for a short time, when he sold out because of ill health. He then purchased a farm in Iowa, where he continued to make his home until 1896, when he came to Toledo, having sold his farm, and here returned to the restaurant business, opening a lunch room, which grew rapidly in popularity and in patronage. He has owned and successfully conducted many lunch rooms from St. Louis to Elmira, New York, and is still the proprietor of four in Toledo, which are liberally patronized by reason of the excellent service rendered and the merited reputation of the cuisine. He also yet owns restaurants in other towns, but has curtailed his business in this connection to some degree. He is now the treasurer of the General Fireproof Storage Company and is making it, as well as his restaurant business, a source of gratifying profit.

On the 15th of October, 1891, Mr. Kable was married to Miss Iva Trimmill, a native of Kansas and they have become the parents of three children: Ama Ethel, the wife of Norman W. Reed of Toledo; Elva, the wife of Clifford H. Brundage of Toledo; and Avo Mary, at home. Mr. Kable is identified with the Epworth Methodist Episcopal church, in which he is serving on the board of stewards and he makes his religion a workable principle in his life. He is also prominently known in club circles, having membership in the Toledo Club, the Toledo Yacht Club, of which he is a life member, the Rotary and the Inverness clubs. He has ever been a man of great activity and energy and his alertness and progressiveness have carried him far on the high road to success, while at all times the sterling worth of his character has been attested by those with whom he has been brought into contact.

John C. Helwig

John C. Helwig, a native son of Toledo and a member of one of the old and well known families of the city, has been dependent upon his own resources for a livelihood from the early age of thirteen years. Eagerly grasping each opportunity which has come his way, he has steadily advanced until he now occupies a prominent position in business circles of his city as treasurer of the Toledo Builders Supply Company, with which he has been identified for the past thirtyone years. He was born March 15, 1874, and is a son of Fred and Frederica (Krieger) Helwig, who are of European birth. Coming to the United States in 1872, they established their home in Toledo, where they have since resided, covering a period of fifty years, and they are numbered among the honored pioneers of the city. The father secured a position with the Lake Shore Railroad Company, remaining in their employ for many years, but he is now living retired at the age of eighty-four years, and the mother also survives. Four children were born to their union: Mrs. John Vogeli, Mrs. A. Pasch, Mrs. Louis Lempke and John C., all of whom are living in Toledo.

John C. Helwig, the only son in the family, attended the public schools of his native city to the age of thirteen years, when he became a wage earner, filling clerical positions with various firms until his seventeenth year. He then entered the employ of the Toledo Builders Supply Company, starting in a humble capacity and thoroughly mastering each task assigned to him. His ability and devotion to the.

interests of the firm won him promotion from one position to another of greater importance and responsibility until he was at length made treasurer, in which office he is now capably serving, doing all in his power to promote the success of the company which he represents.

On the 21st of October,.1897, Mr. Helwig married Miss Elizabeth Vorderbrugge, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Vorderbrugge, well known and highly respected residents of this city. To this union five children have been born: Mrs. Mabel Clark Shaw, who acquired her education in the local schools and is a resident of Toledo; Fred C., who was a member of the Students Army Training Corps during the World war and is now attending the Ohio State University; Addie, a high school pupil; and John H. and Ruth, both grammar school students.

Mr. Helwig is a Lutheran in religious faith and his political allegiance is given to the republican party, while fraternally he is identified with the Knights of Pythias. His is the record of a self-made man whose career has been stimulated by laudable ambition and characterized by earnest, systematic effort. He had no advantages to aid him at the outset of his career but he realized that energy, determination and honest dealing are indispensable concomitants of success. Through the employment of these agencies he has steadily progressed and his course has at all times marked him as a citizen of worth, high regard being entertained for his business ability, his enterprising spirit and his devotion to the best interests of his city and state. He resides at No. 870 Colburn street.

Kenton Drake Keilholtz

In the grain trade circles of Toledo the name of Kenton Drake Keilholtz is a familiar one and there is in his life history much that should serve as inspiration and encouragement to others, inasmuch as he has worked his way upward from the humble position of office boy to the vice presidency of the firm of Southworth & Company, grain merchants. He was born in Tiffin, Ohio, June 24, 1885, and is a son of Richard William and Annie (Drake) Keilholtz. After completing the work of the public schools in Toledo, from which he was graduated as a member of the class of 1901, he started out to provide for his own support and his initial position was that to which allusion has already been made - office boy with the firm of Southworth & Company. He displayed industry and loyalty in performing his humble tasks and recognition of this on the part of his employers brought him promotion. From that time forward his advanced steps have been consecutively made until he has reached the position of equal partner with Mr. Southworth in the firm and he has contributed in large degree to the growth and success of the business. He has long been familiar with every phase of the grain trade and has directed extensive and important operations in this particular. In 1904 he became a member of the Toledo Produce Exchange, with which he has since been identified, and is now serving as president.

On the 14th of November, 1907, Mr. Keilholtz wedded Miss Flora Gage Conklin of Toledo, and they have become the parents of two children: Richard Conklin, born July 17, 1910; and Robert Gage, born May 25, 1912. Fraternally Mr.. Keilholtz is a Mason and exemplifies in his life the beneficent 'spirit and purposes of the craft. His interest in all those forces which make for righteousness and especially those activities which constitute a safeguard for the youth of the land is indicated in his connection with the Young Men's Christian Association, of which he is one of the trustees. He is prominently known in club circles, belonging to the Toledo, Inverness, and Rotary clubs and also to the Commerce Club, and he likewise has membership in the Toledo Transportation Club, of which he was formerly the secretary. He belongs also to the Chicago Board of Trade ahd to the Corn Exchange of Buffalo. His social connections and business activities have brought him a wide acquaintance in his adopted city, where almost his entire life has been passed, and throughout the community he is spoken of in terms of the highest regard. His residence is at No. 2736 Robinwood avenue.

Discharging his duties with a high sense of conscientious obligation to his fellowmen, Dr. Parker B. Robinson has advanced steadily in his chosen calling until he is today one of the foremost representatives of the medical profession in Toledo, where he is now successfully practicing with a large patronage. A native of Ohio, he was born at Wauseon, Fulton county, August 19, 1874, his parents being Thomas R. and Sarah G. (Worley) Robinson, who were likewise natives of this state, the father born at Fredericksburg and the mother at Little Sandusky. They always resided in Ohio and the father devoted his life to the occupation of farming, save for the period of his service in the Civil war, when he enlisted as a private in an Ohio regiment and was on active duty in defense of the Union for a year. He lived long to enjoy the liberty, peace and prosperity that grew out of that long struggle, passing away in 1920, at the age of eighty-two years. He had for several years survived his wife, who died in 1915, at the age of seventy-two. They were the parents of six children: Mrs. Gertrude Abbs, residing at Wauseon; Mrs. Katherine Conkle, also living at Wauseon; Mrs. Grace Cook, living at Fort Wayne, Indiana; Stella, residing at Wauseon; Ralph, also of that place; and Parker B., of this review.

The last named, pursuing his education at Wauseon, was there graduated from the high school, after which he took up the profession of teaching in Fulton county. He devoted four years to instructing others and then became a student in the Ohio Northern University at Ada, Ohio. He afterward took up the study of medicine, which he read privately for a time, and later entered the Northwestern University at Chicago, where he was graduated with the M. D. degree in 1904. At that time he located at Put-in-Bay, where he remained in active practice until the fall of 1917, when he came to Toledo, where he opened an office and has continued, winning substantial success in the discharge of his professional duties. He has at all times kept in touch with the trend of modern professional thought, progress and investigation and has membership in the Lucas County Medical Society, the Ohio State Medical Society, the Academy of Medicine and the American Medical Association. He is always interested in anything that tends to bring to man the key to the complex mystery which we call life and has been quick to adopt any new methods of practice which his judgment sanctions as of real worth to the profession.

On the 14th of June, 1905, Dr. Robinson was married to Miss Eina J. Weisel of Monroe, Michigan, a daughter of the Rev. Theodore and Minnie Weisel of that place. Mrs. Robinson is a graduate nurse of the Toledo Hospital. By her marriage she has become the mother of five children: Donald, born at Put-in-Bay in 1908 and now attending the Scott high school; Irene, born at Put-in-Bay in 1911; Parker B., born in 1913; Douglas, born in 1915; and John S., born in 1917:

Dr. Robinson belongs to the Masonic lodge and he is also identified with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Toledo Automobile Club. He has membership relations with St. Paul's Episcopal church and His interest centers in those forces which make for the good of humanity and public betterment. Politically he is a republican and has done effective work for progress and improvement in the different localities in which he has made his home. His life has been actuated by the spirit of advancement and his determined purpose has enabled him to overcome many of the difficulties and obstacles in his path and reach a notable place among the successful representatives of the medical profession in Toledo.

Vance I. Gray, consulting engineer, has attained distinction in his profession as indicated by the extent and important nature of the work which has been entrusted to his care. His life story is one cf steady progress, resulting from the development of his innate powers and talents and the wise utilization of 'his opportunities. Born in Lake City, Minnesota, on the 29th of February, 1872, he is a son of Robert Richie and Charlotte (Lupton) Gray. The father, a native of Ohio, was a saddle manufacturer who resided during his later life in Minnesota.

Vance I. Gray obtained his preliminary education in the public and high schools of his native state and afterward pursued a course in electrical engineering in the University of Minnesota, where he completed his studies with the class of 1893. Later he was associated with the D & D Electric Manufacturing Company of Minneapolis,. with which concern he worked his way upward from the position of office boy to superintendent, each promotion coming to him in recognition of merit and ability. In 1897 he left Minnesota to establish his home in Toledo, where he accepted the position of shop superintendent with the F. Bissell Company. Later he became machinery sales engineer and continued with that house until 1910, or for a period of thirteen years. He has since practiced his profession as a consulting engineer, with offices in the Nasby building, and his clientage covers Ohio, Michigan and Indiana and also extends as far south as Kentucky and as far east as New York. He is a man of high scientific attainments and of broad experience in his chosen professional field and his opinions are largely accepted as authority upon questions relating to his life work. In addition to the independent practice of his profession he is also the president and general manager of the North Baltimore Service Company at North Baltimore, Ohio. He keeps abreast with the trend of scientific thought and progress through his membership in various engineering societies.

On the 29th of November, 1899, Mr. Gray was married to Miss Carrie Bllinghouse, a native of Toledo, and they have become parents of three children: Margaret Alice; Caroline; and Junior Vance, who was born in September, 1911, in Toledo. Mr. Gray greatly enjoys fishing and hunting, to which he turns for recreation from onerous professional duties. He is a member of the Masonic order, having attained the Knights Templar degree in the York Rite, while with the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine he has crossed the sands of the desert. He is also a member of the Chamber of Commerce and of the Exchange Club. Each step in his career has been a forward one and his achievements represent the fit utilization of his innate powers and talents. His residence is at No. 1029 Lincoln avenue.

Alonzo Chesbrough

In the records of early progress in northwestern Ohio when men of virile strength, capability and initiative were laying the foundation upon which has been built the present progress, prosperity and greatness of this section, Alonzo Chesbrough took his place with those who were formulating and shaping the destiny of Toledo. He became a notable figure in connection with the lumber trade and the extent and importance of his activities were resultant in a large measure in making this city a great transportation and business center.

Alonzo Chesbrough is a native of New England, his birth having occurred in Dorset, Vermont, in 1817. He largely spent the period of his minority in the Green Mountain state and at the age of twenty years started out to provide for his own, support, making his way to Lockport, New York, where he became an employe of the lumber manufacturing firm of Cameron & Moody. On applying for work he was told that there was nothing for him, but he was not satisfied to be thus curtly turned aside. He then asked permission to work without salary until he could demonstrate what he could do. Such a request could not reasonably be refused and accordingly he was sent out with a gang of choppers, where his industry and faithfulness won immediate recognition. The following day, therefore, he was placed upon the pay roll at the highest rate of wages paid to men of his occupation. For twenty years thereafter Mr. Chesbrough remained with the firm which had at first refused to give him employment and gradually he advanced from one position to another of larger responsibility, until he was managing the interests of that extensive lumber company. In 1855 he resigned his position, feeling that his capital and his broad experience justified his embarkation in business on his own account. He believed a favorable field was offered in Toledo and he came to this city, where within a short space of time he had established a large, growing and profitable business.. A contemporary biographer has written of him: "Few local business men were more widely and favorably known over northwestern Ohio than the late Alonzo Chesbrough. He became acquainted with farmers and laborers as well as business men on his own plane, and everywhere was known for the high probity and strict integrity of his character. He was of the type of man now almost old-fashioned whose verbal promise was just as good as a written note. To such character he united untiring energy, and, therefore, his success came as a matter of course. With the extension of his local business he acquired a large tract in the timber regions of Michigan, as well as in Ohio. For the last twenty- "five years of his life his business headquarters were with the old firm of Bell, ~ Emerson & Company, wholesale grocers, at the corner of Madison and Summit streets, this company being subsequently known as Emerson & Company. For more than thirty years prior to his death Mr. Chesbrough had his home in East Toledo. Besides his vast timber interests he was connected with other financial enterprises, and had served as vice president both of the Second National Bank of Bay City, Michigan, and of the Exchange Bank of Lockport, New York... Mx,

Chesbrough proved invaluable to both of these institutions. Like many of the old-time lumbermen Mr. Chesbrough had an almost infallible knowledge of human: nature, and it is said that he was rarely deceived in men. In the flourishing days of the old lumber industry it was necessary for a man, in order to succeed, to assemble about him a small army of daring, hardy and efficient employes, and the judicious selection of such a staff of workmen was really of greater importance than capital and no doubt it was the faculty of judgment so thoroughly trained and so accurate in Mr. Chesbrough that enabled him to conquer success in spite of any natural adversities or difficulties."

At Niagara Falls, New York, in 1855, Mr. Chesbrough was married to Miss Sarah J. Tufford, who was born there October 13, 1825. In 1874 she joined her husband in Toledo and became a prominent figure in the social circles of the city. They had a family of four sons, who reached adult age: [Fremont B., of Boston, Massachusetts; Frank P., of Detroit, Michigan; Abram M., of Toledo; and Aaron, also of this city. The death of Mr. Chesbrough occurred here January 30, 1887, when he was about seventy years of age. His wife survived until May 17, 1893, passing away at the age of sixty-eight.. Mr. Chesbrough had made real and valuable contribution to Toledo's business development and growth, being numbered among those men who were the real founders and promoters of the city, meeting and mastering every condition and emergency as it arose and instituting a spirit of contagious enthusiasm concerning the future that has not lost its force to the present day.

Howard Curry Baker

Howard Curry Baker, a member of one of the prominent and highly respected families of Toledo, is well known in engineering circles of the city and is devoting his attention to the construction of heating and power plants, being recognized as an expert in this line of work. He was born in Clio, Michigan, June 11, 1885, a son of Arthur T. and Luella (Curry) Baker, also natives of the Wolverine state. They are now residing in Toledo and the father is numbered among the well known produce merchants of the city.

The eldest in a family of three children, Howard Curry Baker attended the public schools of Marlette, Michigan, and afterward became a student at the State Agricultural College, from which he was graduated in 1905, on the completion of a course in mechanical engineering. The next year was devoted to architectural work in Saginaw, Michigan. He then came to Toledo and was employed by George S. Mills, architect, for the next two years. This was followed by engineering work with the Yaryan Naval Stores Company of Gulfport, Mississippi, of which Homer T. Yaryan was the head. For five years he remained with that firm and at the end of that time returned to the north, becoming | connected with Eagan Brothers, well known heating contractors of Toledo. He continued in their employ for seven years and then entered the service of the Baker-Smith Company of New York city, engaged in constructing power plants for the government. A year later he severed his relations with that concern and came to Toledo in 1919, organizing The Howard C. Baker Company, of which he has since been the president and treasurer. They specialize in the construction of heating and power plants and have been awarded many large contracts, their business being one of growing extent and importance. Mr. Baker has had broad experience along professional lines and has developed a high degree of skill and efficiency in his chosen field.

In Detroit, Michigan, on the 22d of May, 1911, Mr. Baker was united in marriage to Miss Naomi Mae Harsh, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. M. J. Harsh of Toledo. Mr. Baker is a member of Second Church of Christ, Scientist, Toledo, and is connected with the American Society of Heating & Ventilating Engineers, the Toledo Chapter of American Engineers, the Toledo Commerce Club and the Kiwanis Club. He has never been satisfied with the second best but has constantly endeavored to reach the highest degree of perfection possible in his work and what he has accomplished represents the fit utilization of his innate powers and talents. He stands high in his profession and is loyal to all those interests which make for honorable manhood and progressive citizenship. His residence is at No. 1644 Woodward road, Wildwood.

Thomas Britton Earl

Thomas Britton Earl, the treasurer of the George M. Jones Company and also of its subsidiary organizations, embracing four companies in all, is thus a prominent figure in connection with the coal trade of Toledo and is recognized as a strong executive, possessing initiative, determination and persistency of purpose, as well as keen insight into business transactions. Toledo numbers him among her native sons, his birth having here occurred August 20, 1857, his parents being William Cook and Harriett Tarlton (Wheeler) Earl. His father was for many _ years a distinguished figure. in fraternal circles, serving for twenty-two years as the grand secretary of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows of Ohio, in which position he continued to the time of his demise. He was a native of Massillon, Ohio, but established his home in Toledo in 1845 and became the first railroad agent in this city. He resided here until called to his final rest.

Thomas B. Earl was educated in the public schools of Toledo and started out in the business world as a telegraph operator and station agent with the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway, with which he was associated for a decade. Actuated by a laudable ambition, he has improved every opportunity pointing to advancement and after leaving the railroad company he took up the business of stave manufacturing in Ottawa county, as a member of the firm of Salisbury, Johnson & Earl. The succeeding five years were devoted to the business and he then withdrew from the company, after. which he spent a few years in charcoal manufacturing and in farming. He then again became identified with railway interests and for twelve years was connected with the freight department of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad, while for two years he was in the employ of the Western Railroad. On his return to Toledo in 1903 he took charge of the sales for the George M. Jones Company, extensive coal dealers, and in 1906 he was elected treasurer of the company, as well as of its subsidiary companies. With characteristic thoroughness he has studied every phase of the coal trade and his capability and efficiency are demonstrated in his constant rise to success and prominence in this field. He is also the treasurer of the Bond Hotel Company. uke of Martin, Ottawa county, Ohio, and they have one daughter, Blanche, who is now Mrs. Lucius Hughes of Toledo. Mr. Earl has never entered into various fields of activity outside of business, for here he has found full scope for his industry and determination - his dominant qualities. Step by step he has advanced along lines leading to prosperity until he is now an official in one of the strongest commercial corporations of the city. His residence is at No. 323 Kenilworth avenue.

Clark Ep Agsted

Clark E. Husted, vice president and secretary of the Edward Ford Plate Glass Company, one of the chief industries of the city, was born in Buffalo, New York, June 29, 1882, and is a son of Giles E. and Julia N. (Murray) Husted, the former a native of New Hampshire and the latter of New York. Since early manhood the father has been in the service of the New York Central Railroad Company and he is now acting as freight agent at Toledo. Mr. and Mrs. Husted have many friends . in this city, which has been their home for the past thirty-two years.

The third in order of birth in a family of four children, Clark E. Husted attended the grammar school and afterward became a pupil in the Central high school of this city, from which he was graduated in 1898. On starting out in the business world he obtained a clerical position with the New York Central Railroad Company and remained with that corporation until 1906, when he joined the clerical force of the Edward Ford Plate Glass Company, and through successive promotions became vice president and secretary of the company, with which he has been identified for sixteen years.

On the 17th of October, 1912, Mr. Husted was married to Miss Elsie Goemann, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Henry L. Goemann, the former a member of the Goemann Grain Company of Toledo. Mr. and Mrs. Husted have two sons: Clark E., Jr., who was born in 1915; and Henry Goemann, whose birth occurred in 1917.

At local elections Mr. Husted votes independently, supporting the man whom he regards as best qualified for office, but when national issues are at stake he casts his ballot in favor of the candidates of the republican party. He is a member of the First Congregational church and has also become identified with the Toledo Chamber of Commerce and the Inverness Club. He has constructed his own success and his life record is one in which notable business ability and the recognition and utilization of opportunity are well balanced forces.

Lambert J. Tillman

Lambert J. Tillman, works manager of the Wine Railway Appliance Company, belongs to a family that has long been actively and closely associated with industrial development in Toledo. He is of the third generation of the family in this city and was born here February 13, 1895, his parents being Joseph L. and Katherine (Nagelbrecher) Tillman, who are mentioned at length on another page of this work. The father being one of the recognized leaders among the industrial captains of Ohio.

and afterward became a student in St. John's College, from which in due course of time he was graduated. In early life he learned the plumber's and steamfitter's trade and, having gained a thorough and comprehensive knowledge of the business, he became identified in 1912 with the Wine Railway Appliance Company. He started in a minor position and acquainted himself with the various phases of the trade. He has worked steadily upward as he has mastered the business in principle and detail and today is works manager of the company, which employs between twenty-five and fifty men, engaged in the manufacture of all kinds of railway appliances. He is one of the directors of the company, likéwise a director of the Industrial Steel Casting Company and a director and treasurer of the Buckeye Boiler Skimmer Company.

On the 23d of June, 1917, Mr. Tillman was married to Miss Marie Rooney of Toledo, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Rooney, representatives of pioneer families here. There is one child of this marriage, Alice Marie, born October 1, 1921. Mr. Tillman belongs to the Roman Catholic church and in the Knights of Columbus has attained the third degree. He is also identified with the South Side Chamber of Commerce and the Toledo Chamber of Commerce and cooperates heartily in the plans and projects of these organizations for the benefit and upbuilding of the city. He has always lived in Toledo, where he has many friends, and his course reflects credit and honor upon.one of the old families of the city that for many years has been closely identified with Toledo's substantial growth and development.

John Emory Parsons

John Emory Parsons, secretary and treasurer of The Maumee Valley Mortgage Company, is a native son of Toledo and a member of an old and highly respected family which has played an important part in the development and upbuilding of the city. He was born in Toledo, May 7, 1888, of the marriage of John E. and Georgianna (Parke) Parsons, who were natives of Pennsylvania and established their home in Toledo in 1875. The father was at one time Toledo agent for The Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York and he later became one of the foremost financiers of this city, serving for many years as vice president and treasurer of the Peoples Savings Association of Toledo. In civic affairs, too, he took a most prominent part, working effectively to promote the welfare and advancement of his community. He served on the board of gas commissioners of Toledo, was one of the trustees of the manual training school of the city and aided in the promotion of many public enterprises. He was an honored veteran of the Civil war, retiring from service with the rank of brigadier general. His demise occurred in Toledo in 1914 and the mother passed away in 1920. They were the parents of three children: Catharine, who married William E. Taylor of Jersey City, New Jersey; and Hannah L. and John E., both of whom are residents of this city.

Nees attending the Central high school of Toledo John Emory Parsons became a student at the Detroit University School, from which he was graduated with the class of 1908, and he then entered the law department of the University of Michigan, which conferred upon him the LL. B. degree in 1911. Returning to Toledo, he entered the law offices of Marshall & Fraser, with whom he remained until 1916, when he engaged in private practice for a year. He then enlisted for service in the World war and was sent to the Officers Training School at Fort Benjamin Harrison, where he was commissioned a second lieutenant of artillery in November, 1917. He was next ordered to Camp Dodge, Iowa, being transferred from there to Camp Jackson, South Carolina, and later attended the School of Fire at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. Before he was ready for overseas duty the armistice was declared and after his release from the service he returned to Toledo, becoming connected with the Peoples Savings Association, until he 'accepted the office of secretary and treasurer of the Thomas Davies Realty Company. He remained with that firm until 1921, when he was made secretary and manager of The Maumee Valley Mortgage Company, and is now serving in those capacities. His knowledge of the law, real estate and banking is of great assistance to him in the conduct of his business interests and his cooperation is regarded as a valuable asset in promoting the success of the undertaking, which ranks with the leading enterprises of this character in the city.

Mr. Parsons is a member of St. Mark's Episcopal church and his political support is given to the republican party. Hus public spirit finds expression in his connection with the Chamber of Commerce and he is also a member of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion, the Sons of the American Revolution, the Toledo post of the American Legion, the Toledo Yacht Club and the Toledo Tennis Club and is a trustee of the last named organization. Mr. Parsons is a member of the Michigan and Ohio bar and of the bar of the United States district court for' the northern district of Ohio. By inheritance he bears a name that stands for the highest ideals in business and social circles of Toledo, and in person, in talents and in achievements is a worthy'scion of his race.

Clarence R. Rex, vice president of The Ohio Dairy Company, occupies a prominent position in business circles of Toledo and has also become widely known as an expert chemist, his services in this connection being in constant demand. He was born in Crawford county, Ohio, May 24, 1884, and is a son of C. C. and Mary L. (Bareford) Rex, also natives of this state. Mr. and Mrs. Rex reside in Toledo. He is engaged in contracting, having successfully operated a business of this character for a number of years. There are two children in the family: Orvial, who is living in Detroit, Michigan; and Clarence R.

The grammar and high schools of Galion, Ohio, afforded Clarence R. Rex his early educational opportunities and later he became a student at Northwestern University at Chicago, from which he was graduated in 1909 on the completion of a course in chemistry and bacteriology. Coming to Toledo, he entered the employ of The Ohio Dairy Company and two years later established the Tri- State Laboratory Company, which he conducted successfully for seven years, specializing in dairy research work. In 1916 he resumed his connection with The Ohio Dairy Company and since 1918 has been vice president and a director of the firm. He is exceptionally well qualified for this responsible office, owing to his specialized knowledge of the business, and has contributed materially toward the success of the company, which is operating one of the largest and most modern dairies in this section of the state. He is still active in chemical research work and draws his clients from all parts of the country, being regarded as an authority on chemical subjects. He has acquired a habit of painstaking accuracy in his work and keeps in close touch with all new developments in this science and its application to modern industrial processes.

On the 10th of January, 1914, Mr. Rex was married to Miss Carrie L. Kratt, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Fred Kratt, the former a prominent shoe dealer of this city. Mr. Rex is a member of Westminster Presbyterian church of Toledo and is affliated with the blue lodge of Masons, while he is also connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He has never been content with mediocrity but has ever been actuated by high ideals and what he has accomplished represents the fit utilization of his innate powers and talents. He has gained high standing in business and professional circles and his personal qualities are such that he has won the sincere friendship of many.

Fred H. Kruse

Fred H. Kruse was admitted to the bar in 1904 and has been engaged in law practice in Toledo as a member of the firm of Fritsche, Kruse & Winchester since that time. He was born here on the 3lst of August, 1877, and is a son of August T. and Mary (Hoffman) Kruse. He pursued his education in the Toledo public schools, and the law department of the Columbian (now George Washington ) University, of Washington, D. C.

On the 30th of June, 1909, Mr. Kruse was married to Miss*Edith E. Clark and they have become the parents of two sons, Richard and John. Fraternally Mr. Kruse is a Knight Templar and Thirty-second degree Mason, and belongs to the Sigma Chi. He is also a member of the Maumee River Yacht Club.

Henry Arthur Middleton

Henry Arthur Middleton, attorney at law and veteran of the World war, was born in Urbana, Ohio, July 19, 1888. He is the youngest of four children of Arthur Newton and Allie Loretta (Taylor) Middleton. His father, who likewise devoted his life to the practice of law, died in 1889. His mother, now Mrs. D. E. Kite of St. Paris, Ohio, is still living. Upon the death of his father, Mr. Middleton was adopted by Charles Newton and Mary Elizabeth (Middieton) Dodson - the latter being his father's sister- - and was reared by them.

Henry Arthur Middleton attended the public schools of Champaign county, Ohio, was graduated from the Springfield, Ohio, high school and spent two years as a student in Boston University. He received his legal education at Ohio State University and. was admitted to the bar of Ohio in 1911. Upon being admitted to the bar he became associated in the general practice of law with John F. Wilson and Fred C. Rector, in Columbus, Ohio.

On July 10, 1917, Mr. Middleton applied for admission to the Second Officers Training Camp, was accepted and mustered in at Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana, August 29, 1917. On November 27, 1917, he was commissioned first lieutenant of Field Artillery and was assigned to the Three hundred and Twenty-third Field

Artillery, Eighty-third Division, Camp Sherman, Ohio, with which regiment he remained during his entire service. With that division he sailed from New York on June 12, 1918, for service overseas. After his regiment had received the usual training in France, at Camp Coetquidan, he procesded to the front, arriving just in time to enter the Meuse-Argonne offensive, September 26, 1918. During this engagement his regiment supported the Ninety-first, Twenty-ninth and Thirtysecond division and was actively engaged at Ecury when the armistice was signed, November 11, 1918. On November 17th his regiment started on the march to the Rhine with the Thirty-second division, and ie it occupied the center wedge of the Coblenz Bridge Head. From August 20, 1918, to December 25, 1918, Mr. Middleton served as adjutant of the Second Battalion and after December 25th commanded Battery E; was promoted to the rank of captain of Field Artillery, March 4, 1919; returned to the United States April 6, 1919, and was honorably discharged at Camp Meade, Maryland, April 8, 1919.

Immediately following his discharge from the army Mr. Middleton became associated with the law firm of Brown, Geddes, Schmettau & Williams of Toledo, and has been a member of that firm since February, 1921.

Mr. Middleton belongs to the Masonic fraternity and to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and is a member of the Toledo Club. He holds membership in the Sons of the American Revolution by right of his descent from Revolutionary ancestors on both sides of the family and is now vice president of Anthony Wayne Chapter, in Toledo. He is also an active member of the American Legion and strongly endorses the purposes of that organization.

Mrs. Middleton was, before her marriage, Miss Myrtie Elnora Johnson of Urbana, Ohio, and like her husband traces her ancestry to a family settling in Virginia long prior to the Revolutionary war. Mr. and Mrs. Middleton are members of St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal church and both are actively interested in the social and civic enterprises of the city.

Joseph Shiloh Mather

Joseph Shiloh Mather, one of the owners of the Ohio-Toledo Ice Cream Company, of which he is secretary and treasurer, comes to Ohio from the south, his birth having occurred in St. James parish, Louisiana, on the 3d of April, 1862, and he comes from one of the old and highly respected families of that state, his parents being Joseph and Mary (Lyons) Mather. The father was a sugar planter. His death occurred some twenty years ago, but the mother died when Joseph Shiloh Mather was ten years of age.

The youthful days of Joseph S. Mather were spent in ARE native state and his educational opportunities were those afforded by the schools of New Orleans. He: started out to provide for his own support and became an employe of a wholesale grocery house of that city, where he remained for a number of years. In 1903 he removed to St. Louis, Missouri, and for five years was in the employ of the American Credit Indemnity Company. On the expiration of that period he located in Canton, Ohio, where for five years he was engaged in the rubber business and in 1912 he came to Toledo, where he purchased an interest in the Toledo Dairy Company, now the Ohio-Toledo Ice Cream Company. Mr. Mather was elected secretary and treasurer of this organization and has since been active in its management. He has done much to maintain the high standards of the company as to the quality of its product and the treatment accorded to patrons. The business of the company has steadily grown and developed until it is now the leading industry of its character in the city. Among his other business connections Mr. Mather is the secretarytreasurer of the Northern Refrigerating Company.

On the 15th of April, 1885, Mr. Mather was married to Miss Nathalie Wiendahl of New Orleans and they have a family of four children: Marie Therese, the eldest, is the widow of A. Warren Aylesworth of Canton, Ohio; Nathalie W. is the wife of B. T. Ryan of Columbus, Ohio; Joseph Shiloh, Jr., is a student at Princeton University ; and Lucy is attending the Sacred Heart convent at Detroit, Michigan.

Mr. Mather is numbered among the city's progressive business men. He belongs to the Chamber of Commerce, being in hearty sympathy with the plans and purposes of that organization to upbuild and extend the trade relations of the city and to further those projects which are a matter of civic virtue and of civic pride. He is a member of the Rotary Club, holding also to its high ideals concerning American citizenship and the improvement of opportunity and he is furthermore popularly known in the membership of the Transportation and Toledo Yacht clubs. Mr. Mather resides at No. 2510 Parkwood avenue.

George, Philip Hahn

George Philip Hahn, a well known member of the Toledo bar, was born in Napoleon, Ohio, June 26, 1879, and is a son of Antone and Sophia (Yackee) Hahn. The father was a native of Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, and on coming to the United States he located in Napoleon, Ohio. He established his business and continued an active factor in the commercial circles of the city to the time of his death on October 12, 1888. Politically he was a democrat and religiously a Catholic. He was married in Toledo, in 1878, to Sophia Yackee, who was born in Alsace, then a part of Germany, in 1858. Mrs. Hahn was fourteen years of age when her father brought his family to this country. They located near Napoleon, Ohio, where Mr. Yackee bought a farm which he placed under a high state of cultivation. Later he took up his abode in the city of Napoleon, where he passed away in 1905, at the age of seventy-four years. He gave his political allegiance to the democratic party and his religious faith was that of the Lutheran church. His daughter, Mrs. Hahn, and all of her family adhere to the same faith. By her marriage she became the mother of five children, of whom Anthony P. died some years ago after reaching young manhood. George Philip is the oldest of the family. Elnora is the wife of Henry Meyer, a druggist of Napoleon. Selma C. is now the wife of George C. Roedel, a clothing merchant of Archbold, Fulton county, Ohio. Ada S. became the wife of John H. Krafft of Cleveland.

George P. Hahn attended the public and high schools of Napoleon, after which he became a student in the Ohio State University, receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree as a member of the class of 1903. He then entered upon the study of law and in 1905 the LL. B. degree was conferred upon him. In the same year he was admitted to the bar and in 1906 was admitted to practice before the United States district court. He became a partner in the firm of Brown, Hahn & Sanger, now one of the representative law firms of the city, with an extensive and high class clientele. He is also an instructor in partnership and damages in the law depart- ment of St. John's University of Toledo, having occupied this position for several years. His ability is attested by a most successful professional career, which ranks him with the leading members of the Toledo bar.

On the 14th of November, 1906, Mr. Hahn was united in marriage to Miss Estella C. Vocke of Toledo and they have two children: Philip Vocke and Frances Elaine. j

Mr. Hahn is a republican in his political views, having stanchly supported the party since attaining his majority. Fraternally he is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and along strictly professional lines his membership is with the Lawyers Club and the Lucas County Bar Association. Mr. Hahn's residence is at No. 2635 Scottwood avenue.

Among the well known citizens of the younger generation of business men in Toledo none is better or more popularly known than Thomas H. Tracy, Jr., president of the Tracy Auto Sales Company, distributors of motor cars. Born in this city on the 15th of June, 1890, he is a son of Thomas Henry and Laura E. (Pratt) Tracy. The father, a native of Millbury, Ohio, is now one of Toledo's prominent attorneys and is mentioned elsewhere in this work. The mother was born in Weston, Ohio, and both are still living.

Thomas H. Tracy mastered the branches of learning taught in the grades and later in the high school at Asheville, North Carolina, while his collegiate work was pursued in the University of Michigan as a member of the class of 1912. He then turned his attention to business interests in his native city, entering the employ of the Toledo Screw Products Company. During the World war period he was engaged in government work in connection with the manufacture of munitions and following the cessation of hostilities he became associated with the Airway Electric Appliance Company, with which he remained for some time, becoming vice president of that corporation, the business being that of the manufacture of vacuum cleaners and electric motors. He sold his interest in that concern in 1921 and became district agent for the Earl and Stevens motor cars. In this connection he has built up a large sales organization and is now sole agent in this district for these two high-grade passenger cars. He organized his business under the name of the Tracy Sales Company, Incorporated, of which he is the president, with O. B. Briggs as vice president. This is a close corporation and the business under the direction of the two officials mentioned is steadily growing and developing, already the firm having put out a large number of cars which make their profits of substantial character.

Mr. Tracy was united in marriage to Miss Bess Whitker of Toledo, who passed away in 1919. They had a family of three children: Jane Laura, who was born in 1912 and is now attending school; Betty Ann, born May 27, 1916, also in school; and Thomas H. (III), born in September, 1917. On the 10th of May, 1920, Mr. Tracy was again married, his second union being with Miss Ruth Haviland, daughter of Charles Haviland.

Mr. Tracy has always voted with the republican party since attaining his majority and is conversant with the leading questions and issues of the day but has no ambition to fill political office, preferring to give undivided attention to his growing business affairs. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and his appreciation of the social amenities of life is indicated in his connection with the Toledo Auto Club and the Toledo Commerce Club.

Adolph J. Gendron

Adolph J. Gendron, who since starting out in the business world has been connected with manufacturing and commercial interests, is now the president of the Toledo Tire & Supply Company. A native son of the city in which he makes his home, he was born August 24, 1875, and is a son of Pierre and Delinw (Trudeau) Gendron. The father was the originator, patentee and manufacturer of the Gendron wheel and as such instituted a business of large proportions, plants being maintained not only in Toledo but in other sections of this country.

Adolph J. Gendron pursued his education in Assumption College at Sandwich. Canada, where he completed the course in 1892. After putting aside his textbooks he was associated with his father in business as a representative of the Gendron Wheel Company and afterward was made assistant manager at the Toronto (Canada) branch of the business. There his position was one of large responsibility and he thoroughly qualified for it by his alert and enterprising methods, his sound judgment and his close application. Since 1910 he has been the president of the Toledo Tire & Supply Company, jobbers of automobile accessories, and through the intervening period of twelve years has built up a business of very gratifying and substantial proportions. He also continues as one of the directors of the Gendron Wheel Company.

On the 28th of August, 1895, was celebrated the marriage of Adolph J. Gendron and Miss Clara Becker of Toledo and they have one son, Leon Pierre, who was born in 1896, and is a graduate of the University of Chicago of the class of 1917. He was afterward in the Aviation Corps during the World war, serving as an instructor in America, and he is now in the moving picture business.

Fraternally Mr. Gendron is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He belongs to the Toledo Club and his religious faith is that of the Catholic church. He is now a communicant of St. Joseph's church and he also belongs to the Knights of Columbus.

John Stollberg

For more than a third of a century John Stollberg has been at the head of the Stollberg Hardware Company. His initial step in the business world foreshadowed his present position, for he started out as a clerk in a hardware store when but a young lad. Through the intervening years he has embraced every opportunity for advancement and step by step has worked his way upward until he is today one of the foremost merchants and successful business men of Toledo. He was born in this city on the 5th of January, 1856, and is a son of William and Anna (Haller) Stollberg. His education was acquired in the public schools and in the Baldwin- _ Wallace College at Berea, Ohio. He secured a clerkship a little later in a hardware on his own account by establishing a small hardware store. Success attended the venture and from time to time he was able to increase his stock because of the growing demands of his trade. He closely watched and managed his business so that there should be no waste and that his investment should bring a legitimate financial reward. The constant development of the enterprise led in 1888 to the organization of the Stollberg Hardware Company, of which he has since been the president. In 1890 this was incorporated with a capital stock of three hundred thousand dollars and throughout the intervening period both wholesale and retail departments have proven sources of gratifying success. The business is represented upon the road by a number of traveling salesmen and the trade covers a wide territory.. Mr. Stollberg has always held to the highest standards in the personnel of the house, in the line of goods carried and in the treatment accorded patrons, and thorough reliability and enterprise have become synonymous with the corporation name.

On the 29th of May, 1879, Mr. Stollberg was united in marriage to Miss Mary E. Weber, a daughter of Jacob Weber, and they have become parents of three children: Iola May, now the wife of Dr. H. L. Green; Luella E., the wife of Oscar Leach; and Stella Irene, who married Harry W. Morgan and has three children, John Howard, Mary Elizabeth and Caroline.

Mr. Stollberg is well known in fraternal circles, having attained the thirtysecond degree of the Scottish Rite, and he also has membership with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. His greatest activity outside of business, however, is directed into religious channels. He has long been a most consistent, faithful and zealous member of Emanuel Methodist Episcopal church, of which for a number of years he has served as treasurer. He has also been superintendent of the Sunday school in the past and for forty years he has been director of the church choir. He was elected to the public service board of Toledo, of which he was made president, serving thereon in 1902, 1903 and 1904. His life has even been actuated by high ideals and the spirit of service in relation to his fellowmen and he has contributed in substantial measure not only to the material development put to the moral progress of the community and to the support of all those agencies which make for a better city and for the uplift of the individual. He resides at No. 2341 Putnam street.

John Philip Gomph

John Philip Gomph, concentrating his efforts and attention for many years upon life insurance, is now general agent at Toledo for the Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company. He is a native of the Empire state, his birth having occurred at Utica, New York, June 23, 1873, his parents being John and Mary (Jones) Gomph. The father was for years engaged in the sale of flannels and shirting, conducting a large and substantial business at Utica.

Spending his youthful days under the parental roof, John Philip Gomph entered the public schools at the usual age and passed through consecutive grades to the high school, in which he completed his studies. At the age of eighteen he became a traveling salesman. In young manhood he was interested in the National Guard and in 1898, following the outbreak of the Spanish-American war, he became quartermaster of Company E, First New York Volunteer Infantry, and was engaged in military duty for a year with the army. He was connected altogether with the New York National Guard for eighteen years as an active member of the organization and has never ceased to feel the deepest interest in military affairs.

Entering insurance circles, he became identified with the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company as special agent in 1901, and in 1912 he came to Toledo, where he continued as its representative until 1916, when he resigned. In that year he was made general agent for the Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company and has continued to act in that capacity. He has made a most thorough study of insurance in all of its phases and few are able to discuss more broadly or intelligently all of the questions that have to do with insurance, both in principle and detail. He ably represents the corporation with which he is now associated and under his guidance the work of the district over: which he has supervision is being steadily developed.

On the 22d of June, 1904, Mr. Gomph was married to Miss Edith Gleason of Warren, Massachusetts. They are members of the Collingwood Avenue Presbyterian church and are interested in all that pertains to the social, intellectual and moral progress of the community. Mr. Gomph belongs to the Masonic fraternity, having taken the consistory degrees and become a member of the Mystic Shrine. He is also identified with the Chamber of Commerce and in the field of social activity he is well known as a member of the Toledo, Inverness and Toledo Automobile clubs. He is likewise very fond of golf, which affords him a pleasurable source of recreation from the arduous cares of a business career. Mr. and Mrs. Gomph are fond of travel and indulge in this pleasure as time and occasion permit.

Frank L. Baumgardner

Frank L. Baumgardner is a member of the firm of Baumgardner & Company, conducting a wholesale business in dry goods and notions. This is one of the largest mercantile houses in Toledo and one which has been in continuous existence since 1866. Frank L. Baumgardner was born in this city April 5, 1875, his parents being Edson W. and Frances Mary (Langan) Baumgardner, the former a native of Wooster, Ohio, while the latter was born in Pennsylvania. The family has long been represented in this state, the name of Baumgardner being associated with the history of Ohio from pioneer times. In young manhood Edson W. Baumgardner came to Toledo and entered into partnership with his kinsman, L. S. Baumgardner, who in 1866 came to Toledo and established the firm of L. S. Baumgardner & Company for the conduct of a wholesale business in dry goods, notions and furnishings. The business was begun on a comparatively small scale but during the intervening years has constantly increased and the house has for an extended period been numbered among the chief mercantile enterprises of northwestern Ohio. Edson W. Baumgardner was continuously associated with the business, contributing largely to its success, until his death, which occurred on the 5th of April, 1920, when he was sixty-nine years of age. His widow still makes her home in Toledo. In their family were three children: Frank L., Edson L. and Carleton M. '

Reared under the parental roof Frank L. Baumgardner pursued his preliminary education in the grade and high schools of Toledo and afterward became a student in the Peekskill Military Academy at Peekskill, New York, while later he entered the University of Michigan. Following the completion of his college course he turned to the business world, desirous of entering upon a gainful occupation. He became associated with his father's mercantile establishment, starting in a minor capacity and working his way upward until he became one of the owners of the business. This is today one of the large wholesale enterprises of this state, employing one hundred salesmen locally while the house is represented on the road by twenty traveling salesmen. Frank L. Baumgardner has in substantial measure that quality which for want of a better term has been called commercial sense. He readily discriminates between the essential and the non-essential in all business matters and his judgment is thoroughly sound and reliable and his methods at all times progressive and resultant.

Mr. Baumgardner is interested in everything that has to do with public welfare and progress and His political allegiance is given to the republican party. He attends the First Congregational church and he has membership in the Toledo Club, the Inverness Country Club and the Toledo Chamber of Commerce. His aid is a valuable asset in many projects which are looking to the material, social and moral benefit and upbuilding of the community ; and throughout Toledo, where he has spent his life, Frank L. Baumgardner is held in the highest esteem, being a worthy representative of an old and honored family here.

John Quincy Keller, president of the King Manufacturing Company, has advanced steadily throughout his business career from a humble position until he is now widely known among the manufacturers of northwestern Ohio. He was born in Wauseon, Clinton township, Fulton county, this state, December 6, 1865, and is a son of Abraham Benjamin and Catherine Keller. The father, who was a shoemaker, is now deceased. After obtaining a public school education John QO. Keller was employed in his boyhood in a drug store and, working his way upward, became assistant pharmacist. In 1883 he entered the employ of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad Company as a brakeman and remained with the road until 1893, being superintendent of the gravel pit at Rome City, Indiana, at the time he resigned. He is now a member of the Pioneer Association of old Lake Shore & Michigan Southern railway employes. '

For a time Mr. Keller was with the Shaw-Kendall Engineering Company at Toledo, which later became the National Supply Company, working as a machinist for two years, and on the expiration of that period he, with John King, organized the King Manufacturing Company for the manufacture of ladies' house-wearing apparel. The business is capitalized for sixty thousand dollars and the plant equipment includes one hundred and sixty-five machines. He employs seventy-five people and the business is growing steadily. Mr. Keller is president of the company, directing its activities, and the sales cover the middle states.

On the 31st of December, 1889, Mr. Keller was married to Miss Olive Viola Woodcott of Toledo and they have become parents of three sons. Orra Karlton was born January 6, 1893, and is now production manager of the King Manufacturing Company. He married Hazel Ethel Bishop on the 18th of June, 1914, at Fredonia, Ohio. He is a Mason of high rank, having attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite, and is also a member of the Mystic Shrine; George Kenneth, the second son, born May 23, 1895, was educated in the public schools and the Toledo University and is now secretary of the King Manufacturing Company. He, too, is a Consistory Mason and Mystic Shriner and is also identified with the Independent Order of Foresters. On the 23d of June, 1920, he married Mildred Jeanne Bumgardner of Toledo and they have one child, Olive Jane, born October 9, 1921, in Toledo; Benjamin Mechlin, born July 3, 1897, in Toledo, was educated in the public schools and is assistant production manager of the King Manufacturing Company. He, too, is identified with Masonry, having now attained the thirty-second degree in the Mystic Shrine. He married Nettie Beesch of Toledo on the 10th of November, 1919.

Mr. Keller's sons have followed in their father's footsteps not only in business but in their connection with Masonry, for Mr. Keller is a loyal member of the craft, belonging to the consistory, the Mystic Shrine and to the Grotto. He is also connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Foresters and he belongs to the Toledo Automobile Club and to the Chamber of Commerce - associations which indicate the nature of his interests and activities outside of the field of business and show him to be a man of sterling worth, actuated by high principles and governed by commendable motives. The sons, too, like the father, are making an excellent record as business men and citizens and the members of the family are highly esteemed by their many acquaintances and friends. Mr. Keller's home is at No. 1024 Lincoln-avenue.

William Benjamin Geroe

William Benjamin Geroe, a thorough gentleman and a progressive business man, left the impress of his individuality in large measure upon the history of Toledo not alone by reason of what he accomplished in a commercial way, although he was one of the representative commission merchants of the city, but also by reason of his prominence in the social life and in his connection with every project put forth for the substantial upbuilding and 'benefit of the community. Born at Cherry Grove, Hamilton county, Ohio, on the 3d of August, 1855, the little village being one of the suburbs of Cincinnati, he was a son of Aaron Ackerman and Anna (Taber) Geroe. The father conducted a commission and wholesale fruit business in Cincinnati until 1870, when he removed his family and his business to Toledo, where for many years the name has figured prominently and honorably in connection with the commission and fruit trade of this city.

William B. Geroe acquired his early education in the public schools at Cherry Grove and with the removal of the family to Toledo he entered the Central high school, from which he was graduated with the class of 1874. When his course was completed he traveled for two years as representative of the firm of Ketcham & Voit in the hardware trade and.then gave up his position to enter into partnership with his father under the firm style of A. A. Geroe & Son, with offices on Water street at the corner of Monroe. After a year, however, they removed to 505 Monroe, at which address the firm conducted an ever-increasing business for thirty years, becoming known from New York to California as one of the largest _and most reliable firms in the commission and fruit business in the entire country. Following the death of his father, William B. Geroe became the head of the business and in the year 1906 he took his son into partnership and incorporated the business under the name of The Geroe Company. In 1912 they removed to their present quarters at Nos. 32 and 34 North Huron street. Important and extensive as were the interests which he directed as head of this corporation, William B. Geroe did not confine his business activities to this line alone. He became one of the directors of the Union Bank, also of the Market Bank, the Guardian Bank and of many other important business interests. He was the president of The Geroe Company and was one of the best known men not only in Toledo but throughout northern Ohio, his social as well as his business qualities and his public spirit bringing him into prominence.

On the 3d of October, 1877, Mr. Geroe was married to Miss Caroline Louise Fitch of Toledo, a daughter of Simeon and Esther Mary (Morris) Fitch, who removed from Ogdensburg, New York, to Toledo about 1842, at which time the population of the city was only about three hundred. Mr. Fitch was here engaged in the grain trade and operated a line of canal boats to various points along the canal. Mr. and Mrs. Geroe became the parents of three children: Waulliam Ackerman, who married Grace McFadden and has two children, Caroline A. and William Benjamin (II) ; Mrs. Louise Webster, who has one son, Philip Geroe Webster ; and Helen, who is living in New York.