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Chicago: Its History and its Builders, Volume 4 E-Book

Josiah Seymour Currey

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Herausgeber: Jazzybee Verlag
Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
Sprache: Englisch

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Maybe there has never been a more comprehensive work on the history of Chicago than the five volumes written by Josiah S. Currey - and possibly there will never be. Without making this work a catalogue or a mere list of dates or distracting the reader and losing his attention, he builds a bridge for every historically interested reader. The history of Windy City is not only particularly interesting to her citizens, but also important for the understanding of the history of the West. This volume is number four out of five and features hundreds of biographies of the most important Chicago citizens.

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Chicago

Its History and its Builders

Volume 4

Chicago: Its History and its Builders 4, J. Seymour Currey

Jazzybee Verlag Jürgen Beck

86450 Altenmünster, Loschberg 9

Deutschland

ISBN: 9783849648978

www.jazzybee-verlag.de

[email protected]

MARSHALL FIELD.

To say that Marshall Field was the greatest merchant of his day is to proclaim that he was the most eminent merchant prince in the world's history; and both statements are true to the letter. In his boyhood he was noted for both industry and perseverance, and, carrying the same preeminent traits into his mature life, he came to tower above his fellow merchants of the great working world. He penetrated to the possibilities of men and business situations with lightning-like rapidity; the intellectual sweep with which he finally organized a magnificent mercantile house whose scope embraced both the old world and the new, proclaimed the man of vast power, as well as penetration, and the unfailing courtesy and superb endurance of the man carried all before him. The old-time merchants of the Stewart school had these qualities of polished granite, but Marshall Field added to them a worldview, and also the application of artistic genius to mercantile affairs and environment. He not only sold goods honestly and gave the people promptly what they wanted, but he educated their tastes, showed them beautiful and new creations for their persons and their homes, and then met their advanced and more refined wants at as reasonable a cost as was compatible with honest goods and fair profits.

And when Marshall Field had personally progressed from the station of a raw clerk from the country districts of New England to a world-wide eminence in the field of mastery, he was still a modest, unassuming man. "There have been men," said a local journal on January 17, 1906, (the day after his death), "whom wealth has made purse proud, arrogant, offensive to their equals and tyrants to their employees. We are glad to say that Marshall Field was not one of them. Riches did not change his manners. He was never aggressive or pompous. There was in him no show of self-conceit in manner or speech. He was reticent, but it was the reticence of modesty, not of pride. His employees were attached to him. He treated them with the courtesy he extended to everybody. He was as quiet or reserved, and as unostentatious, when he was worth a hundred millions as when he was worth a thousandth part of that. He attended strictly to his own business, which he understood perfectly, and did not meddle with that of others. He did not set himself up as the general instructor of the community. He asked people to let him alone as regarded the just conduct of his affairs, and he conceded to others the right he proclaimed for himself.

"There was no man in Chicago more kindly regarded by his fellow citizens than Mr. Field. There was no one so conspicuous of whom so few harsh things were said. His riches made him odious to no one, for the people high and low saw that he was untainted by wealth, and was always an upright man, fair and even generous in his dealings. He was the first citizen of Chicago when he died, and he has left no one to take his place. He will be sincerely mourned by the men, women and children of Chicago."

In explanation of his lifelong inclination to keep himself in the background, Marshall Field always said frankly that he preferred to work where he could do the most good, which in his case he claimed was remote from public platforms and showy places. When counsel was asked of him, however, either as a member of society or as a citizen of Chicago, he gave it with exceptional power and insight, couching his arguments and his conclusions in straightforward forcible language. As a citizen he was ever ready to express an opinion, if he felt that it was wanted and would be useful, and not long before his death he analyzed Chicago's financial condition in a masterly manner, pointing out that many of its ills of dirt, decay of public improvements, bad water and imperfect drainage were due to lack of businesslike handing of available funds.

Mr. Field's self-poised momentum as a merchant and a man was an especial inspiration to young men, and, without assuming to be a teacher of moral, and even business laws, within the later period of his life he wrote a number of brief essays for their consideration, advising them of the value of economy, honesty and industry. The practical suggestion set forth may be summarized as follows: Never give a note. Never buy a share of stock on margin. Never borrow. Never give a mortgage on your holdings. Hold all customers to a strict meeting of their obligations. Do business on a cash basis. Give the best quality for the least money. Sell on shorter time than competitors. Try to sell the same grade of goods for a smaller price. Never speculate.

Mr. Field enjoyed the personal advantage that his physical appearance was in perfect keeping with his high and substantial character. Many noble men and women suffer a serious drawback through life because of physical characteristics which seem a brutal contradiction of the real soul of their being. But Marshall Field was both distinguished and genial in appearance, and all his features were strong and large. With white hair and mustache, high and broad forehead, and calm yet penetrating gray blue eyes shadowed by heavy brows, he was a man of marked bearing who at once commanded attention and respect.

This superb personality originated and was nurtured near the little village of Conway, Massachusetts, the year of Marshall Field's birth being 1834. In this locality his English ancestors settled in 1650. The family homestead was about one mile and a half from town, on the summit of a considerable elevation, which had long been known as Field's Hill. Forest-clad hills were all around, and the panoramic view of meadows, brooks, nesting farms and villages, was something to soothe the mind for years after, in the smoke and bustle of great cities. Amid such surroundings were born and reared the four sons and two daughters comprising the Field family, Marshall being the third child and son. When he was six years of age he commenced to attend winter school, and within the next few years assumed the lead in such out-door sports as "Fox and Hound," which called for both speed and endurance. It is a matter of record that Marshall was usually the fox, that position requiring ingenuity as well, and old settlers who were boys in the days of his residence recall a famous run of twenty miles to South Deer field and return, in which the fox finally came home untouched and unwinded. Ingenuity, speed and endurance; that was Marshall Field — the boy, father to the man. On account of the abandonment of the old road which ran past the homestead and lowered the price of the property, the home farm was sold when Marshall was about fifteen years of age, and, although another was purchased, it was decided that the third son was better fitted for a store clerk than for an agriculturist. It is said that his mates fully subscribed to this decision complaining that they had no chance to knife trade when Marshall was in the ring. After serving a short apprenticeship in a store at Pittsfield, which served to whet his ambition for a larger fields he decided in favor of the great undeveloped west.

Mr. Field became a resident of Chicago in 1856, so that the fifty years intervening between his majority and his death he devoted to the development of his house, his character and the upholding of the city's name for mercantile, commercial and civic honor. At the time of his arrival in the Western city Cooley, Wadsworth & Company were proprietors of its leading dry-goods house. The population was estimated anywhere from sixty-thousand inhabitants, which then seemed an empire of people to the young Massachusetts man. Although then unformed to city ways, when he said simply and firmly to the "boss" that he was a good clerk and could sell goods there was that about him which carried conviction; he was therefore engaged and in today's vernacular "made good." In January, 1860, he was admitted to the partnership and appointed manager of the business, then conducted as Cooley, Farwell & Company but after his association, as Farwell, Field & Company. In 1860 Levi Z. Leiter also entered the firm, and in January, 1860, Potter Palmer (who already had been in business for thirty years) approached Messrs. Field and Leiter with the proposition to buy his dry-goods house, that he might retire and recuperate his broken health. Mr. Palmer's offer of part cash and notes for the balance was accepted, and the firm of Field, Palmer & Leiter, which was formed January 11, 1865 transacted a flourishing business until 1867, when the notes were paid and Mr. Palmer's name dropped from the style.

The firm of Field, Leiter & Company was formed in January, 1867, and the following September their business was installed in a large building erected by Mr. Palmer on the northeast corner of State and Washington streets. For four years and one month this was the grand center of the dry-goods trade of the northwest, and at the time of the fire of 1871 their sales had reached the aggregate of eight million dollars. But the fire swept away the business entailing a destruction of three million five hundred thousand dollars worth of property, with an insurance of two million five hundred thousand dollars. Before the ruins had ceased to smoke, temporary headquarters were established in the old street car barns, at the corner of State and Twentieth street and the business was there conducted until another tore was completed on the old site in 1873. Meantime a building had been erected on the corner of Market and Madison streets, and a portion of it occupied for retail purposes and known as Retail No. 2, for the benefit of patrons coming from the west and north sides of the city. With the completion of the State street store in 1873, the retail was separated from the wholesale business and transferred altogether to the State street concern. Fire again visited Marshall Field's State street store in 1877, the loss being seven hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars, but it was reopened in the following year, the business having in the meantime been carried on in temporary quarters. So the development of the gigantic enterprise continued apace, its intricate and powerful machinery hidden from the public, by its continuous expansion indicated by the occupation of new space from year to year. In 1878 Mr. Higinbotham was admitted as a partner, and in 1881 Mr. Leiter retired. From the latter year, for a quarter of a century, Mr. Field was the master spirit of the house.

In 1885 was commenced the vast granite structure covering the square bounded by Adams, Franklin, Fifth avenue and Quincy, for the accommodation of the wholesale business, and it was completed in 1887. By the expansion of the retail department seven-eighths of the block bounded by State, Washington and Randolph streets and Wabash avenue has been covered with granite buildings twelve stories in height — the portion which is still unoccupied being the corner of Randolph street and Wabash avenue. The different structures are connected by covered bridgeways and for all conveniences are one. The Annex, on the corner of Washington street and Wabash avenue, M-as completed in 1893; Central Music Hall and other property on Randolph street, was razed and replaced by the Field buildings in 1901-02; in 1905 the great store was extended north of the Annex along Wabash avenue, and during 1905 and 1906 the original building at the corner of State and Washington streets, which had been a mercantile landmark for so many years, was taken down and replaced by the present immense granite frontage. The floor area of the retail establishment is now forty-one acres, and its employees number from six to nine thousand, according to the season. Some thirty-five hundred persons are employed in the wholesale house.

Mr. Field's public works are numerous and important. In March, 1871, he took a leading part in the effort to merge the old Chicago Library Association into the Young Men's Christian Association. After the great fire, he was one of the foremost to inspire hope, courage and confidence in business circles, and make possible the greater Chicago which arose from the ruins. His services in the distribution of money and supplies were invaluable. Identified with the Chicago Relief Society from its organization, he was named by A. T. Stewart as first on the committee to control the fifty thousand dollars donated by him for the relief of women and children in Chicago. He was also for years a member of the Chicago Historical Society, aided in founding the Art Institute, was one of the organizers of the Citizens' League, and one of the charter members of the Commercial Club in 1877. In 1881 he aided in the establishment of the Chicago Musical Festival Association and of the Chicago Manual Training School in 1882. To the latter he gave twenty thousand dollars and to the new Chicago University he devoted a tract of land near the Midway Plaisance, now valued at two hundred thousand dollars, and known as "Marshall Field." He was long a director of the Merchants' Loan & Trust Company, and was otherwise associated with many of the great commercial, financial and industrial enterprises which have made Chicago a world's metropolis. The climax of his public benefactions was the establishment of the Field Museum at Jackson Park, by provisions of his will, eight million dollars being bequeathed for its founding and support.

The death of Marshall Field, generally pronounced the foremost citizen of Chicago, certainly one of the greatest figures of his day, occurred at the Holland House, New York, where he was staying during an anticipated week's absence from Chicago, on the 16th of January, 1906. There were present at his death bed his wife (formerly Mrs. Arthur Caton) to whom he had been married only a few months, Mr. Stanley Field, and Mrs. Marshall Field. Jr. The latter, who was the widow of his only son, recalls the tragic death of Marshall Field. Jr. less than two months before, a blow to the father which he bore with dignified silence, but which is thought by those nearest to him to have broken him in spirit and body. The great bulk of his fortune amounting to perhaps one hundred millions of dollars, went to his two grandsons Marshall Field III, and Henry Field. His only daughter, Mrs. David Beatty, wife of Rear Admiral Beatty, of the British navy, inherited six million dollars, and Mrs. Delia S. Caton Field the widow, as an ante-nuptial bequest, the magnificent family residence, with contents and one million dollars.

RUFUS CUTLER DAWES.

Rufus Cutler Dawes, whose attention in business lines has largely been given to the promotion of gas and electric light projects, is numbered among those men whose initiative spirit carries them beyond the bounds in which the great majority labor, and the extent and importance of the interests which he has financed and controlled well entitle him to be numbered among Chicago's captains of industry. He was born at Marietta, Ohio, July 30, 1867, a son of General Rufus R. and Mary Beman (Gates) Dawes. His father served in the war of the rebellion as a colonel of the Sixth Wisconsin Regiment, which was a brilliant section of the famed Iron Brigade, and was brevetted brigadier general for distinguished services and gallant conduct at the head of his command. He also served for one term in congress and died about ten years ago at his home in Marietta, Ohio, where his widow still resides. The Dawes family comes of old New England stock, of which William Dawes, who rode with Paul Revere on the memorable night when the Continental troops were aroused to repulse the British advance, was a member. Rufus C. Dawes was the second in order of birth in a family of four sons and two daughters, including: Charles G. Dawes, mentioned elsewhere in this volume; Hon. Beman G. Dawes, of Marietta, Ohio, who was formerly a member of congress; Henry M., who is associated with his brother Rufus in business affairs; Mary B., the wife of Rev. Arthur G. Beach, of Ypsilanti, Michigan; and Betsy D., the wife of Harry B. Hoyt, manager of the gas company at Jacksonville, Florida.

Rufus Cutler Dawes was graduated from Marietta College with the class of 1886, winning the degree of Bachelor of Arts, while on the 3d of June, 1893, his alma mater conferred upon him the Master of Arts degree. Fortunate in that he was not born to a life of poverty or of closely restricted financial resources, Mr. Dawes in his business career has nevertheless proven that success is not a matter of fortunate circumstances or of inherent genius, as held by some, but is rather the' outcome of clear judgment, experience and keen discernment. Throughout almost his entire business life he has given his attention to organizing and managing gas and electric companies, in many of which he has been interested officially as well as financially. At present he holds a directorship and the presidency in the following institutions: Union Gas & Electric Company, Metropolitan Gas & Electric Company, Shreveport Gas, Electric Light & Power Company, Texarkana Gas & Electric Company, Mobile Gas Company, Citizens' Gas & Electric Company, Seattle Lighting Company, Pulaski Gas Company, Beaumont Gas Light Company, and Central Indiana Gas Company; and he fills offices in these and similar capacities in a number of other concerns of a like nature. He also has other extensive moneyed interests, connecting him inseparably with the promotion of business activity in the middle west, and is widely recognized as an efficient and reliable business man, capable of recognizing opportunities that others pass heedlessly by and capable also of coordinating forces into a harmonious working whole.

Mr. Dawes was married in 1893 to Miss Helen V. Palmer and the children born to them are William Mills, Charles Cutler and Jean Palmer Dawes. The family residence is at No. 1800 Sheridan road, Evanston, Illinois. Mr. Dawes is a republican in his political views and in matters of citizenship manifests a progressiveness and loyalty that constitute him one of the strong supporters of projects for municipal upbuilding and betterment; and he is president of the board of education, school district No. 75, Evanston, Illinois. He is, moreover, of a generous nature in his support of philanthropic movements and his name is on the membership roll of Chicago's leading social organizations, including the Chicago Club, Glen View, Evanston Country and Evanston Clubs.

ALBERT KEEP.

Albert Keep, whose activities were an element in the early commercial development of Chicago, in his later years through his business connections reached out to various sections of the country in the management and control of the affairs of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway system, of which he was made president. Ability may have been inherent, but it is only through the exercise and utilization of one's talents that they are developed, and a life of intense and intelligently directed activity gave to Albert Keep the power which made him for many years a most forceful business factor in railway circles. He was born in Homer, Cortland county. New York, on the 30th of April, 1826, a son of Chauncey and Prudence (Wolcott) Keep, and was the fifth in a family of seven sons, all of whom were noted for superior business attainments and high character. The father was a man of wealth and likewise of sound judgment, who realized that if his sons were to become factors in the business world their instruction must be practical and that their powers must be tested in the actual field of service.

Albert Keep was sent as a pupil to the village schools and later spent two years as a student in Cortland Academy, but made his initial step in the business world when a youth of fourteen, being employed as clerk in a general country store in his native town from 1841 until 1846. His five years' experience there demonstrated the fact that he possessed latent ability and that he would develop it through industrious application. In all the five years he was never absent from his work for a single week day, being on hand at seven o'clock in the morning and often remaining until nine at night in the duties of the position.

The field of his activity was transferred to the west in 1846 and a long cherished ambition saw its fulfillment when he became part owner of a store in Whitewater, Wisconsin, his associates in the enterprise being Philander Peck and Henry Keep. He remained in Whitewater until 1851, when the firm decided to dispose of their business there, having more capital than was needed by the demands of the trade in a small town. A removal was made to Chicago, where they opened a dry-goods house under the firm style of Peck, Keep & Company, their location being at No. 211 South Water street. The new undertaking was attended with success from the beginning, but the great activity in real estate led them to dispose of their mercantile interest in 1856, making investment of their capital in property. Mr. Keep erected a number of buildings which he rented and also sold as opportunity came to dispose of them at an advantageous figure. He continued to deal extensively in real estate and in making loans for himself and others. He suffered losses in the memorable fire of October, 1871, his office and most of his buildings being destroyed, but he at once resumed operations and continued actively in business circles as a builder and dealer in real estate until June, 1873. He was then called to the presidency of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway system. His election to this office was a great tribute to him from the fact that he was not even a stockholder of the company at that time. It was necessary, however, for him to purchase stock in order to qualify for the presidency. He was closely associated with his brother Henry until chosen president of the railroad company, their extensive interests being held mostly in partnership relations. During the many years that they were associated in business they worked in entire harmony, no contention or dissatisfaction ever arising. Their business ideas as well as their family relationship held them in a close bond after Albert Keep was elected to the railroad presidency. The multitudinous duties of such a position were in a measure familiar to him. He had had some previous experience with railway interests, having been retained in 1864 by the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad Companies to acquire greatly increased rights of way for them and also depot facilities, which they needed in and about Chicago. On his election to the directorate of the Lake Shore Railroad he was made a member of its executive committee and continued as a director for eighteen years, when the pressure of other business interests compelled him to resign. He remained as president of the Chicago & Northwestern for fourteen years, or until 1887, when he resigned to become chairman of the company's board of directors and under his administration as president and in his later office as chairman of the directorate the property of the company increased continuously in extent and value. He found the property poorly maintained and equipped but his practical business methods soon wrought a change and his able management did much toward making the Northwestern one of the greatest railroads in the country. He resigned as chairman of the board in 1901 but continued as a director to the time of his death. He was likewise a director of The Merchants' Loan & Trust Company. A conservative business man, he was never given to speculating but won his success in legitimate fields and through the successful conduct of important interests.

Mr. Keep was twice married, his first union being with Susan Rice, of Homer, New York, April 6, 1851. She died November 29, 1859, and he was again married on the 3d of September, 1861, when Miss Harriet S. Gunn, who still survives him, became his wife. She is a native of East Bloomfield, Ontario county, New York, and a daughter of Amos B. and Wealthy (Whittlesey) Gunn. Mr. and Mrs. Keep had one daughter, Lucy Gunn, who became the wife of Ralph Isham and had one son, Albert Keep Isham, who was born January 9, 1801. Mrs. Isham died July 12, 189t. A lover of home, Mr. Keep was found a most congenial companion at his own fireside, where his friends were always sure of a hospitable welcome. He was by nature social and democratic, yet dignity was never laid aside to the point of allowing familiarity. His was a strong character and marked personality and these won for him wide recognition. One of his most marked characteristics was his pronounced integrity. He had an especially light sense of honor, his word was as good as his bond and his promises were made to be kept. He was interested in many projects which have been of worth in the life of the city. He was a director of The John Crerar Library, of the Chicago Home for the Incurables, a member of the Presbyterian church and a member of the Chicago and Calumet Clubs. He never regarded life as a dreary waste; on the contrary he was inclined to an optimism which, however, was well balanced by practical judgment. He recognized fully the obligations and responsibilities of wealth and these were fully met. His success was the logical sequence of the natural unfolding and development of his native powers. He believed in the opportunity for natural development in each individual and his own life was an exposition of the wisdom of this view.

MARVIN A. FARR.

For thirty-eight years Marvin A. Farr has been connected with the real-estate business in Chicago and is widely known as a prominent representative of that field of activity. He is a native of New York state, having been born in Essex county, in 1853, and is the youngest of seven sons of George W. and Esther (Day) Farr. He is a scion of one of the oldest Massachusetts families, being a direct descendant of George Farr, who with his brother Stephen settled in the Massachusetts Bay colony in 1629. The line of descent is through George (1), Stephen (2,), Stephen (3), Stephen (4), Stephen (5), Randall (6), and George W. (7). On the maternal side he is descended from Anthony Day, who came to Gloucester, Massachusetts, in 1635. The lineage runs as follows: Anthony (l), Nathaniel (2), Benjamin (3), Jonathan (4), Jonathan (5), and Bezaliel (6), his mother being a daughter of Bezaliel and Celinda (Day) Day. The ancestors of Mr. Farr in all branches were among the earliest settlers of this country, having emigrated in the seventeenth century. George W. Farr, the father of our subject, came west in the '50s and located at Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he engaged in the lumber and mercantile business. He died there in 1863, at the age of fifty-five years. The mother died several years ago, aged eighty-three years.

Marvin A. Farr received his early education principally in private schools and at Carroll College, Waukesha, Wisconsin, supplemented by private instruction and broadened through extensive travel in the United States and Europe. In 1871 he graduated from Carroll College, of Waukesha, Wisconsin, and two years later began his business career in the employ of H. H. Porter and James B. Goodman, of this city, then engaged in the lumber and real-estate business. About 1879 he ventured in the real-estate business for himself and for some time was also manager of the West Chicago Land Company, operating extensively in subdivisions of west side suburban property. For over thirty-five years Mr. Farr has been actively engaged in the real-estate business in Chicago, handling principally subdivisions and manufacturing properties. He has long been a member of the Chicago Real Estate Board and something of his standing in real-estate circles is indicated by the fact that he has been honored with the presidency of that organization. While devoting his attention almost entirely to real-estate operations, Mr. Farr has also been identified actively and financially with numerous other enterprises and is now a director of the Chicago Title & Trust Company and interested in other corporations. He has taken an active interest in public institutions and movements and is a director of the United Charities. He is an active member of the Chicago Association of Commerce and chairman of its real-estate and loan division, and is also a member of the City Plans Committee. His social affiliations are with the Union League, Midlothian, Country and Kenwood Clubs, in all of which he has filled various official positions and served as president of the latter for some years. He is an independent republican and a member of the Kenwood Evangelical church.

In 1886 Mr. Farr was united in marriage to Miss Charlotte Camp, a daughter of the late Isaac N. Camp, of this city. They have two children: Newton Camp Farr, who graduated from Cornell College as a civil engineer and is now engaged in the practice of his profession; and Barbara Farr, still at home. Mr. Farr has offices in the Marquette building and resides at No. 4737 Woodlawn avenue.

HOMER ALLISON STILLWELL.

Homer Allison Stillwell, vice president of Butler Brothers and manager of the Chicago house, was born in Nineveh, Pennsylvania, December 30, 1860. His father, Addison Stillwell, a native of Pennsylvania, was a veteran of the Civil war and died in 1863 from illness contracted in the service. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Rhoda Thompson, was of a prominent Pennsylvania family who removed to Illinois in pioneer times. The Stillwell family is of English ancestry and the Thompsons also came of English lineage.

After the death of his father Homer Allison Stillwell removed with his mother and his brother, McClellan Stillwell, now of Auburn, New York, to southeastern Ohio, where he lived until nine years of age, when a further move was made to Urbana, Illinois. He acquired much of his education in the public schools there, working during the periods of vacation, and in due time was graduated from the high school. He afterward spent two years in the University of Illinois, working his way through his entire educational course. In 1882 he left college and came to Chicago where he wished to secure a situation in connection with the lumber trade, but after some weeks of unsuccessful effort he abandoned this plan and accepted a position with Butler Brothers in the packing room. He rapidly worked up through numerous promotions and in a few years became head of the packing room, and subsequently chief of the shipping department, while in 1893 he was made manager of the house. In time he acquired a financial interest in the business and in 1 902 was made a director, while in 1907 he was elected vice president, which office he still fills. He has devoted his entire time and energy to this position and is not actively connected with any other although a director of the National City Bank.

On the 1st of March, 1886, Mr. Stillwell was married to Miss Ellen Hill, of St. Louis, and they have two sons: Addison Stillwell, a Yale graduate of 1911, and Wellesley H., a student in St. Paul's preparatory school of Concord, New Hampshire. The family reside at No. 5017 Greenwood avenue.

Mr. Stillwell is a Mason and was for some years active in the order. He is a member of Landmark Lodge and is a past eminent commander of Mount Joy Commandery, K. T. He also belongs to Oriental Consistory, A. A. S. R.. and to Medinah Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He holds membership in the Commercial Club and was its secretary in 1909-10. He is likewise a member of the Union League, of which he has been a director since 1909, and belongs also to the Chicago Athletic Association, the Mid-Day Club, the Hamilton Club, the Midlothian Club, the Onwentsia Club, the South Shore Country Club, the Traffic Club, the Service Club, the Illini Club of the Alumni of the University of Illinois, the Pennsylvania Society and the Kenwood Country Club. His principal activity outside of business has been in connection with the Chicago Association of Commerce, of which he has been a member for some years. He was chairman of its ways and means committee of 1907, in 1908 was first vice president, and 1909 chairman of the executive committee and the following year was elected its president. He has been very active in its work and has served on numerous important committees, his labors being a potent instrumentality in the upbuilding of the association since 1907. His religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Kenwood Evangelical church.

CHARLES G. DAWES.

Charles Gates Dawes, president of the Central Trust Company of Illinois, ex-comptroller of the currency and a financier of national repute, both in practice and the clear enunciation of theories, is a native of Marietta, Ohio, born August 27, 1865. He is a son of General Rufus R. and Mary B. (Gates) Dawes. His father served in the war of the Rebellion as the brave colonel of the Sixth Wisconsin Regiment, a brilliant unit of the famed Iron Brigade, and was brevetted brigadier general for distinguished services and gallant conduct at the head of his regiment. He represented his district in congress for one term and was otherwise prominent in the public affairs of the state. He died about ten years ago at his home in Marietta, where his widow still resides. The family comes of old Massachusetts stock of English origin and among the ancestors was William Dawes, who agreed with Paul Revere that he would ride in one direction and Revere in another to alarm the settlers of the approach of the British that meant the opening of the Revolutionary war. Charles G. Dawes was the eldest in a family of four sons and two daughters, the others being: Rufus C, of whom a sketch also appears in this work; Hon. Beman G. Dawes, of Marietta, Ohio, former member of congress; Henry M., associated with his brothers in business here; Mary B., the wife of Rev. Arthur G. Beach, of Ypsilanti, Michigan; and Betsy D., the wife of Harry B. Hoyt, manager of the gas company at Jacksonville, Florida.

Charles G. Dawes was educated in the common schools of his native town and at Marietta College, graduating from the latter institution in 1884, and two years later from the Cincinnati Law School. He had already done considerable work as a railroad civil engineer and after graduating in law became chief engineer of a small line which is now part of the Toledo & Ohio Central Railroad. In 1887 he removed to Lincoln, Nebraska, and for seven years was there engaged in the practice of law. Having made a special study of railroad freight rates, he was retained by many Nebraska shippers in their suits against the railroads, whose hearings brought about the passage of the Interstate Commerce law. In the pressing of these suits he came into marked prominence as a lawyer and at the same time obtained high standing as a republican leader and campaigner. In 1891 he removed to Evanston, Illinois, having acquired an interest in the local gas company, his activities in this direction afterward extending to other points.

Mr. Dawes had been an admirer of William McKinley and in 1895 inaugurated the work in Illinois, which led the republican state convention of 1896 to instruct its delegates to support him for president in the national nominating convention. He was appointed on the executive committee of the republican national committee and was regarded as McKinley's special representative. When Mr. Dawes was appointed comptroller of the currency in 1897 his relations with the president became even more confidential and his business-like conduct of the affairs of his office, especially his regard for the welfare of depositors in the national banks, met with the cordial approval both of the administration and the general public, irrespective of party. On October 1, 1901, he resigned the office to enter upon his campaign for the United States senatorship, but in May of the following year withdrew from the contest and a few days later was elected to his present position as head of the Central Trust Company of Illinois, which he had then recently organized. Mr. Dawes was the youngest man who ever held the position of comptroller of the currency; but in his case comparative youth and inexperience seemed to be no drawback to advancement. Mr. Dawes is also a director of the Peoples Trust & Savings Bank, the Monroe National Bank and the Calumet Insurance Company and is interested in numerous gas and electric projects with his brother Rufus C. Dawes. Moreover, his humanitarian spirit is manifest in his active cooperation with projects tending to ameliorate the hard conditions of life for the unfortunate. For the past three years he has been the president of the Home for Destitute Crippled Children, in which position he succeeded the late James H. Eckels. He is also vice president of the Chicago Grand Opera Company.

On January 24, 1889, Mr. Dawes married Miss Caro Dana Blymyer, of Cincinnati, Ohio, and their children are Rufus Fearing and Carolyn. The family home is still in Evanston. Mr. Dawes is a member of many clubs, his connection including the Commercial, Chicago, Union League, Glen View, Evanston, Evanston Country, Evanston Golf, Marquette and Hamilton Clubs.

HERMAN WALDECK.

Herman Waldeck, vice president of the Continental & Commercial National Bank, was born in Baden, Germany, November 19, 1871. In his native land he pursued his education and in 1892 when twenty-one years of age, crossed the Atlantic to the new world with Chicago as his destination. Throughout the period of his residence here he has been connected with banking interests. He was first employed as clerk in the International Bank of Chicago from 1893 until 1897, and in the latter year became connected with the Continental National Bank in a minor clerical capacity, becoming assistant cashier in 1903, which position he held until elected to the vice-presidency in July, 1909. Since the consolidation of the Continental National Bank with the Commercial National, in August, 1910, he has occupied the position of vice president of the Continental & Commercial National Bank, taking an active part in its management, in shaping its policy and in extending the scope of its activity and business relations. Advancement has come to him as the logical sequence of his close application and the ability he has displayed in meeting the heavy responsibilities which have devolved upon him in his various connections with the banking interests of the city.

On the 22d of April, 1903, Mr. Waldeck was united in marriage to Miss Gertrude Schwab, a daughter of Aaron Schwab, of Chicago, and they now reside at No. 5328 East End avenue. His social nature finds manifestation in his membership in a number of the leading clubs of the city, including the Union League, the Mid-Day, the South Shore Country, the Bankers and the Lake Shore Country Clubs.

CHARLES HENROTIN.

Charles Henrotin, one of the organizers and the first president of the Chicago Stock Exchange, whose life of intense and well directed activity has constituted a source of the city's progress and development, has won honors both at home and abroad. Coming from a distinguished ancestry, his lines of life have been cast in harmony therewith. He was born April 15, 1843, in Brussels, Belgium, a son of Dr. Joseph F. and Adele (Brice) Henrotin, who were also natives of that land. They arrived in Chicago in 1848 and Dr. Henrotin continued in the active practice of medicine in this city from that date until his death in 1876. His service was especially valuable during the cholera epidemic that raged from the years 1850 to 1854. The family achieved distinction in the field of medical and surgical practice through several generations, the last being the late Ferdinand Henrotin, in whose honor Memorial Hospital of the north side was named.

Brought to Chicago in his fifth year, Charles Henrotin pursued his education in the schools of this city until 1856, when he was matriculated in the College of Tournai in Belgium, therein pursuing a four years' course, which he completed by graduation with the class of 1860. His tastes from early boyhood were extremely literary and this strain in his nature has been an influencing factor throughout his entire life, leading him into close and pleasant association with the distinguished citizens and men of letters of Chicago.

He returned from Belgium in 1860 to accept the position of lieutenant on the staff of General Fremont at Cape Girardeau, Missouri. At length he resigned that position to enter the service of the Merchants Loan & Trust Company, of which he became cashier in 1866, succeeding Lyman J. Gage, late secretary of the treasury. Broad and varied experience in connection with that institution well qualified him to engage in business on his own account, when, in 1877, he turned his attention to the conduct of a private banking and brokerage business. His word has come to be largely accepted as authority upon questions of finance in Chicago, for the character of his business has placed him prominently in the front rank among the city's financiers. He has promoted many enterprises and as broker represented the English syndicates for the sale of the breweries of Chicago and the Union Stock Yards. He dealt extensively in the bonds and scrip of Chicago during the period of the city's financial embarrassment from 1878 until 1880 and paid the city interest on bonds for the year 1877, advancing the money for a year to prevent default. In 1881 he established the first telephone company of Paris, France, and has financed many important business projects not only in this city but elsewhere. He was the principal organizer and promoter of the Chicago Stock Exchange, was chosen its first president and has held the office for two other terms. He was also a member of the New York Stock Exchange for many years and is connected with the Chicago Board of Trade.

High honors have been conferred upon Mr. Henrotin in public and semi-public connections. He was chosen a director of the World's Columbian Exposition in 1892 and was a member of several of the most important committees. In 1876 he was appointed the successor of his father, Dr. Joseph F. Henrotin, in the office of Belgium consul at this place. In the same year he was made consul general of the Ottoman Empire and still occupies both offices.

In 1869 Mr. Henrotin was united in marriage to Miss Ellen Martin, one of the most prominent social leaders and club women of Chicago. She was vice president of the auxiliary of the World's Fair congresses and was twice president of the Federation of Women's Clubs of the United States. She has the decorations of the Chefaskat of Turkey, the Palms Academic of France, of an officer of the Academy of France and Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of Belgium. The decorations that have been conferred upon Mr. Henrotin were those of the Order of Commander of the Medijidee and Commander of the Osmanic of Turkey; officer of the Legion of Honor of Belgium; Chevalier of the Crown of Belgium; the decoration of the Civic Cross of Belgium, presented in recognition of twenty-five years consular service; and Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of France. His club relations are with the most prominent social organizations of the city, including the Germania, Bankers', Chicago and other clubs. He is recognized as a leader not only in the field of finance, where his operations have been extensive, but also in municipal and governmental affairs, in the social life of the city and in the discussion of themes of broad and vital significance.

PATRICK J. CUMMINGS.

Patrick J. Cummings, one of the organizers of the Eastern Casket Company and widely known as a leading undertaker of Chicago, was born in County Tipperary, Ireland, on the 5th of March, 1854, and is a son of Patrick and Mary Cummings. The father died in the year 1856. In the family there were eight children, of whom Patrick J. was the youngest. Four sons of the family had already come to the United Stated when in October, 1865, Mr. Cummings of this review, accompanied by his mother, crossed the Atlantic. They settled on the north side in Chicago and Mrs. Cummings spent her remaining days in this city, her death occurring in 1870.

Patrick J. Cummings was a lad of nine years when with his mother he made the trip across the briny deep to the new world. He acquired a public school education and made his initial step in the business world as an employee in the McCormick Reaper Works. Later he occupied a position in the coopering establishment of Jones & Chapin, and in 1877 he secured a position with the City Railway Company as register, clerk and assistant foreman. Thus gradually but steadily he was working his way upward and increasingly responsible positions brought him increased pay that in time made him the possessor of capital sufficient to enable him to engage in business on his own account. In 1890 he established an undertaking business at No. 4131 South State street under the firm style of O'Toole & Cummings. In 1897 the partnership was dissolved and Mr. Cummings started out independently at No. 4104 South State street. Subsequently he removed his business to No. 4116 South State street and in 1908 he erected a building for his own purposes at No. 4125 South State street — a three story structure having a stone front twenty-five feet in breadth. He has his own chapel seating one hundred, and he owns an auto livery.

In 1901 Mr. Cummings was united in marriage to Miss Helen L. Dobson, of Chicago. He is identified with several organizations, including the Royal League, the Independent Order of Foresters, the Woodmen of the World, the Catholic Order of Foresters, the Knights of Columbus and the Columbian Knights. He served as high chief ranger of the Foresters of Illinois for four years. He was one of the founders of St. Elizabeth's Catholic church, in which he still holds membership. His political allegiance is given to the democratic party and he had charge of the sewer department of Hyde Park for twelve years as superintendent, doing important public work in this connection. Along professional lines he is well-known as a member of the Chicago Undertakers Association, with which he has been identified since starting out in this line of business. He was elected president in 1909 and has been re-elected at each succeeding election since that time. He is also a member of the State and National Associations and has attended several of the national conventions held in San Francisco, California, in Milwaukee, in Columbus, Ohio, and in Florida. He organized the Eastern Casket Company and he has done much in promoting the interests of the profession through securing city legislation of value not only to the profession but also of great value to the general public. He has made steady progress in his business and is most liberally patronized. At the same time he has found opportunity to co-operate in plans and measures for the general good and has done valuable work as a citizen.

ERSKINE MASON PHELPS.

The history of Erskine Mason Phelps is the story of laudable ambition, unfaltering activity and earnest endeavor to reach in the business field a high plane, and that the qualities chosen as chief factors in his commercial career were resultant, was evidenced through many years in the house of Phelps, Dodge & Palmer, which enjoyed both local and national fame. As its chief executive, Mr. Phelps was through a long period the main factor in bringing that enterprise to the established basis which it occupied. He was born in Stonington, Connecticut, March 31, 1839, a son of Charles H. and Ann (Hammond) Phelps. He came of an ancestry honorable and distinguished. The Phelps family is one of the oldest and most prominent of New England and one that has had a close and continuous identification with the history of Connecticut from its first settlement. The American progenitor of the family was William Phelps, who was born in Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire, England, in 1599. He was one of the original members of the Church of England, of which the noted divine, Rev. Warham, was pastor. Mr. Phelps accompanied the party led by Rev. Warham to the new world. They crossed the Atlantic in 1630 as passengers on the old time sailing vessel, Mary and John, and first located in Dorchester, Massachusetts. In the spring of 16.36 William Phelps removed with his children to Windsor, Connecticut, and became a prominent factor in the affairs of the colony, residing there until his death on the 27th of November, 1675.

His youngest son, Timothy Phelps, wedded Mary Griswold, and the line of descent is traced on down through Timothy Phelps II, who married Martha Crow; Charles Phelps, who married Hepzipeth Stiles; and Dr. Charles Phelps, who was founder of the family in Stonington, Connecticut, where he first built a house at the foot of Cosaduc hill in the portion of the town known as North Stonington. About 1765 he removed to the main town of Stonington and erected a residence, which in later years formed the ell to the fine country home of his great-grandson, Hon. Erskine M. Phelps, of Chicago. Dr. Charles Phelps in 1767 became the first judge of the probate court for the town of Stonington, an office which he filled for thirty-three years. He married Hannah Dennison, and after her death, Sally Swan became his wife. His sixth child, Joseph D. Phelps, grandfather of E. M. Phelps, married Hannah Babcock.

The eldest son and second child of Joseph D. and Hannah (Babcock) Phelps was Charles H. Phelps, who was born in Stonington, Connecticut, in 1795, and at one time was the most prominent dry-goods merchant of New Orleans. He was instrumental in raising and paving the streets in both New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama. He met his death January 17, 1840, when the steamer Lexington was burned while on her regular trip from New York to Stonington. He had married Ann R. Hammond, and their children were six in number. Erskine M. Phelps, the youngest of the family, acquired his early education at East Hampton, Massachusetts, where he also attended Edward Williston Seminary. He was an apt and able student and with a goodly fund of information to serve as the foundation for the building of success, he went to St. Louis in 1857 and entered upon his business career there. He became connected with the banking firm of Allan, Copp & Nesbit and after a faithful service of two years removed to Boston, where he established a brokerage business on his own account. In February, 1861, he arrived in Chicago and entered into partnership with George E. P. Dodge, establishing a wholesale boot and shoe business. In 1865 the style name of the house, which was destined to grow into one of the leading enterprises of the west, was changed to Phelps, Dodge & Palmer, under which the business obtained a foremost place in the wholesale boot and shoe trade of the entire northwest. Year by year the enterprise was carefully and successfully conducted, enjoying continuous and substantial growth until 1899, when the firm sold out to the Edwards-Stanwood Shoe Company, of which concern Mr. Phelps was a director. He retained, however, only a supervisory interest in the house and so arranged matters that the older employees should enjoy most of the profits. He was also a director of the Merchants Loan & Trust Company, of the London Guarantee & Accident Company, the Commonwealth Edison Company, and a director and investor in other business enterprises and organizations. His life record stands as a splendid example of what may be accomplished in the commercial field, when energy, keen insight and unfaltering purpose are brought into full play.

On the 26th day of October, 1861, Mr. Phelps was married to Miss Anna E. Wilder. A happy home life was maintained for forty-five years, being terminated in the death of Mr. Phelps at his residence at No. 1703 Indiana avenue, May 21, 1910, when he was seventy-one years of age.