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& A. M. ; Toledo Chapter, No. 161, R. A. M. ; Toledo Council, No. 33, R. & S. M. Toledo ommandery, No. 7, K. T. ; Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, Valley of Toledo ; and Zenobia Temple, A. A. 0. N. M. S., of Toledo, Ohio. Mr. Shields is also identified with the Knights of Pythias and the Anthony Wayne Chapter, Ohio Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. He belongs to the Maumee River Yacht Club, an association that indicates largely the nature of his recreation. He is an earnest supporter of the Chamber of Commerce and its public-spirited purposes and his religious faith is indicated in his membership in the Episcopal church.


CLARENCE A. BERGER, M. D.


Dr. Clarence A. Berger is a self-made man whose professional career has been marked by continuous advancement and in medical circles of Toledo he has gained an enviable reputation as an obstetrician. He was born in Manchester, Michigan, May 6, 1879, and is a son of H. K. and Elthea (Lake) Berger, the former also a native of the Wolverine state and the latter of New England. Representatives of the Lake family settled in Connecticut in pioneer times and in girlhood the mother went to Michigan, in which state her marriage occurred. For many years the father has engaged in the trucking and transfer business at Manchester, which numbers him among its foremost citizens, and success has attended his efforts. Of the two children born to Mr. and Mrs. Berger one died in 1906.


Clarence A. Berger attended the grammar and high schools of his native town and after completing his course he devoted two years to teaching. He then began the study of pharmacy and for some time was connected with the drug business. which led to his interest in medical science. Having saved a sum sufficient to cover the expenses of his professional training, he entered the Toledo College of Medicine and was graduated in 1903. From 1903 until 1905 he was connected with St. Mary's Hospital at Evansville, Indiana, and then returned to Toledo, where he followed his profession until 1909, when he went to the eastern metropolis. For a term of service he was a member of the medical staff of the New York Lying-In Hospital. Returning to Toledo, he has since concentrated his attention upon cases of that nature, in the treatment of which he has been very successful, having made a thorough study of this branch of the profession. He has built up a large practice and is also a member of the medical staff of Mercy Hospital of Toledo.



Dr. Berger was one of the first physicians in Toledo to offer his aid to his country during .the World war, and was called to active duty in April, 1917, on the day the United States entered the conflict. He was commissioned a lieutenant in the Medical Corps of the navy and was promoted lieutenant commander on the 1st of July, 1918. He made twelve trips overseas and was also on coast guard duty, serving on the Massachusetts, while later he was transferred to the naval hospital at Newport, Rhode Island. He was next sent to the Rockefeller Institute for special training for transport service and was made senior medical officer of the United States Transport Zeelandia, on which he served until relieved from duty on the 31st of October, 1919.


Dr. Berger was married November 23, 1904, to Miss Eugenia Ricard, a daughter of Oliver and Lucy Ricard, natives of Canada but now residing in Toledo. Dr. Berger is a Knights Templar Mason, a Shriner, and in the consistory has taken the thirty-second degree. He is a member of the Exchange Club and the


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American Legion and his professional connections are with the Toledo & Lucas County Academy .of Medicine, the Ohio State Medical Society and the American Medical Association. He is a man of marked strength of character and determined purpose, who has constructed his own success and what he has accomplished represents the fit utilization of his innate powers and talents. He has won a prominent position in his chosen field of activity and his marked ability and genuine personal worth have won for him the respect, admiration and esteem of his professional associates and also of the general public.




HUGO V. BUELOW


Since coming to Toledo, Hugo V. Buelow has thoroughly identified his interests with those of the city and as manager of the Terminal Auditorium he has brought to the residents of this community many notable attractions of great educational and cultural value. He was born in Detroit, Michigan, May 2, 1867, a son of Charles H. and Katherine (Winnai) Buelow, both of whom were of foreign birth. In 1848 they came to the United States, first establishing their home in Toledo, while later they removed to Detroit, where the father was connected with various lines of business. Both Mr. and Mrs. Buelow have passed away.


The public schools and the German-American Seminary of Detroit afforded Hugo V. Buelow his educational opportunities and after laying aside his textbooks he learned the trade of wood and stone carving in that city and in Grand Rapids, Michigan, continuing his connection with that work until 1897. He then turned his attention to the beet sugar industry, in which he was a pioneer, and aided in promoting one of the first factories of this kind in the state, the plant being located at Marine City. He did much to develop the beet sugar industry in Michigan, spending a large portion of his time in educating the farmers along that line, and for many years he was connected with the Marine City Factory. In 1911 Mr. Buelow came to Toledo, securing a long term lease of the Terminal Auditorium, which he has since successfully operated. He first put on an automobile show, adding other attractions from time to time, and in 1914 he opened the first farmers' exposition held in this building, operating it along land show lines. Its object is to furnish agriculturists with practical instruction in the raising of sugar beets and other products and the use of various types of machinery, many prominent lecturers being engaged for this purpose. The exposition found instant favor with the farmers of the Maumee valley and has become an established institution, proving of great benefit to the agriculturists of this part of the state, and Mr. Buelow is now making preparations for the Tenth Farmers' Exposition, which will be held in December, 1923. The Terminal Auditorium is a large hall well adapted for exhibition purposes and has housed many conventions and other public gatherings, among which may be mentioned the National Bowling Congress of recent date. It has been the means of bringing many visitors to Toledo and under the capable management of Mr. Buelow is proving a decided asset to the city.


Mr. Buelow has been married twice. In 1890 he wedded Miss Henrietta Soter, who passed away in 1912, leaving a son, Harold L., whose birth occurred in Detroit in 1892. He was educated in the public schools of that city and is now a resident of Toledo. He married Miss Olga Steinbrecher of Detroit, and they have a daugh-


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ter, Phyllis. For his second wife Hugo V. Buelow chose Mrs. Elma Westbrook, whom he married June 9, 1915, and her child, Beryl, lives with them.


In all matters of citizenship Mr. Buelow has ever been loyal, progressive and public-spirited and during the World war he acted as ward chairman of the Liberty Loan committee. He is an active and helpful member of the Chamber of Commerce and the Toledo Convention Bureau and is also connected with the Lions Club, the Maumee River Yacht Club, the Toledo Yacht Club and the Riverside Boat Club, while fraternally he is identified with the Loyal Order of Moose, Elks and Eagles. Since his initial step was made in the business world his career has been marked by continuous advancement, for he has always made it a point to give his best efforts to every task which claims his attention. His labors have been directed along those lines which are factors in public progress and improvement and his life has been one of great activity and usefulness.


HON. ULYSSES GRANT DENMAN


Ulysses Grant Denman, one of the prominent lawyers of Ohio and for nearly thirty years a member of the Toledo bar, is, senior member of the well known law firm of Denman, Kirkbride, Wilson & McCabe.


Ulysses Grant Denman is a representative of one of the pioneer families of northwestern Ohio and was born in Wiltshire, Van Wert county, this state, on the 24th of November, 1866, his parents being John and Eliza Jane (Dailey) Denman. The father was a native of New Jersey and came to Ohio as a young man. He served throughout the Civil war, later taking up his residence in Van Wert county, where he continued to reside to the time of his demise, which occurred in 1910, when he had reached the notable old age of ninety-two years. His wife, who was a native of Ohio, survived him for more than a decade, being eighty-eight years of age when she was called to her final rest, passing away at Wiltshire, Ohio, December 17, 1921.


Ulysses G. Denman completed the high school course in his native town with the class of 1885. He afterward became a student in the National Normal University at Lebanon, Ohio, and subsequently attended the Northern Indiana Normal School at Valparaiso, from which he was graduated in 1889. Turning to the profession of teaching, he successfully followed it for several years but always regarded this merely as an initial step to other professional labor, as it was his desire and purpose to become a lawyer. With this end in view he entered the law department of the University of Michigan and received his LL. B. degree with the class of 1894. The same year Mr. Denman was admitted to practice at the Ohio bar and opened a law office in Toledo. He has been very successful in his profession. A profound, astute and versatile lawyer, he enjoys an exceptionally high class clientele, which he has represented in some of the most important litigation that has come up before the courts of this city.


Mr. Denman is one of the most prominent republicans in northwestern Ohio and while he has held many public offices, nearly all of these have been along the strict path of his profession. He served as assistant city solicitor from 1900 until 1902 and then was called upon to act as one of the lawmakers of the state, being chosen to represent his district in the house of representatives. He was city solicitor of Toledo from 1903 until 1906 and in 1908 was elected attorney general of


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Ohio to fill out an unexpired term. He was then reelected to the office in 1909 and continued to serve through the succeeding two years. In 1911 he was appointed United States district attorney for the northern district of Ohio and in these connections he has made a notable record of able and fearless service. He belongs to the Toledo Bar Association, the Ohio State Bar Association and the American Bar Association and is honored and respected by his colleagues as one of those who fully uphold the ethical standards and ideals of the profession. Among his business interests he is a director of the Buckeye National Fire Insurance Company and president of the Maumee Valley Mortgage Company.


On the 26th of December, 1889, Mr. Denman was united in marriage to Miss Frances May Neptune of Adams county, Indiana, a daughter of James I. Neptune of that county. They have one child, Agnes Neptune, who was born in Toledo on the 20th of June, 1903, and is attending the Toledo Conservatory of Music and ,Fine Arts.


Mr. Denman belongs to the Commerce Club, also to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. There is never any question as to his position upon any vital proposition, for his standpoint is never an equivocal one. He closely and thoroughly investigates any cause or interest with which he has to do and then stands firmly in support of what he believes to be right. His activities have been comprehensive in scope, far-reaching and beneficial in results.


WESLEY S. THURSTIN, JR.


The name of Thurstin has long been associated with the law practice in Toledo through the active connection of father and son with the bar of this city. Wesley S. Thurstin, Jr., was here born on the 26th of June, 1877, and in his professional career had the stimulus of the splendid example of his father, Wesley S. Thurstin, Sr., whose career long reflected credit and honor upon the history of the legal profession in northwestern Ohio, where the family has been represented from pioneer times. The father was born in Wood county, this state, June 11, 1838, and prepared for law practice as a student in the University of Michigan, in which he completed his course just prior to the outbreak of the Civil war. With the bombardment of Fort Sumter he was one of the first to respond to the call for troops and became a member of the famous One Hundred and Eleventh Ohio Regiment commanded by General Isaac R. Sherwood, who originally was the first adjutant of the regiment and was succeeded in that position by Mr. Thurstin. It is said that the latter's military career was distinguished by courage, patience, endurance and readiness to accept any duty or danger. He participated with his command in all the battles between Chickamauga and Atlanta and later was in the battles of Nashville, Franklin, Fort Anderson, Goldsboro and Raleigh, winning advancement to the rank of captain of Company D. Later he wrote a most interesting history of the regiment, being selected for this task at the first meeting of the surviving members held in Perrysburg, Ohio, in 1878.


With his return from the war Captain Thurstin entered upon active practice of law and for almost a half century continued a distinguished member of the Ohio bar. He became a member of the firm of Bissell & Gorrill and he advanced steadily in his profession till he occupied a notable place in the foremost rank of


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Ohio's attorneys. He was also active in connection with the public life of the city and served for a number of years as a member of the board of education and in other positions of public honor and trust. He belonged to the Grand Army of the Republic and to the Royal Arcanum and was actively and helpfully associated with all those organized efforts looking to the civic benefit of the city and to its moral and intellectual progress.


In 1867 Captain Thurstin was married to Miss Martha J. Gorrill of Perrysburg Ohio, who was of Scotch-Irish lineage on the one side and of English descent on the other. Her father came from Cornwall, England, in 1824 and established his home on the outskirts of Perrysburg in Wood county. English is also the predominant strain in the ancestral paternal line of W. S. Thurstin, Jr., for his ancestors came to the new world about 1630, settling in the Massachusetts Bay colony. The death of Captain Thurstin occurred in Toledo, July 22, 1910, while his wife survived until 1917. In their family were seven children, four of whom are still living : Wesley S. Ethel, the wife of Cleveland F. Bacon of New York city ; Alice ; and Wilbur G., both of Toledo.


Wesley S. Thurstin, Jr., pursued a public school education in Toledo to the age of seventeen years, when in 1894 he entered commercial circles and was identified with merchandising until 1901. In the meantime, like his father, he had put aside all business cares and personal interests in response to the country's call for military aid and had joined the Tenth Ohio Regiment as a private for 'service in the Spanish-American war. Previous to this time he had had some military training as a member of the Natal Reserve. The regiment greatly rejoiced when one day the order came for them to proceed to the Philippines and there was not a member of the entire command that was not keenly disappointed when that order was countermanded the following day. When discharged Mr. Thurstin was serving as regimental color sergeant. It was natural that a young man of his alertness and devotion to all that stands for the public welfare should early become interested in politics, and in 1902, when but twenty-five years of age, he was made secretary of the Lucas county republican executive committee. It was not his purpose, however, to concentrate his efforts and attention upon the political game and the following year he became a student in the Ohio State University. Already he had done considerable law reading under the direction of his father and as a law student he completed his collegiate course, being admitted to the bar in the spring of 1904. He has been admitted to practice in all of the courts. He has tried all kinds of cases and tries them well. His ability has constantly increased through the exercise of effort and as the result of his continuous study of the fundamental principles of law. He always enters the court thoroughly prepared and he seems to lose sight of not a single point that will weaken the cause of his adversary or strengthen his own position, basing his every point upon the principle of jurisprudence applicable thereto. He was director of law for the city of Toledo in 1914-15. He has always given stanch support to the republican party and has long been a recognized leader in its ranks, whether in office or out of it. In 1906 he originated, conducted and defeated the proposed amendment to the Ohio constitution, providing for property classification.


On the 8th of September, 1904, Mr. Thurstin was married to Miss Ella E. Sullivan, a daughter of John E. and Ella Sullivan of Toledo. Mr. and Mrs. Thurstin have become parents of two children : John Gorrill and Wesley S. (III), both born in Toledo and now pupils in the public schools. Mr. Thurstin and his family are members of the First Congregational church. He is both a York and Scot-


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tish Rite Mason, attaining the Knights Templar degree in the commandery and the thirty-third degree in the consistory and is a member of Zenobia Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He likewise belongs to the Knights of Pythias and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and he has membership with the Spanish-American War veterans, the Toledo Commerce Club, the Toledo Automobile Club and along the strict path of his profession is. identified with the Lucas County and Ohio State Bar associations. He represents an old and honored pioneer family of Ohio and like his forebears he has made his work of worth to the commonwealth, upholding the highest standards of citizenship and giving stalwart allegiance to all those activities which make for intellectual and moral progress.




JOHN B. HERRMANN


On the business record of Toledo through fifty-five years appears the name of John B. Herrmann, who throughout that time conducted a merchant tailoring establishment on Summit street. He was truly a self-made man and as the architect of his own fortune builded wisely and well, for he started out empty-handed, working his way upward steadily through determined purpose prompted by a commendable ambition, so that eventually success in substantial. measure crowned his labors. Mr. Herrmann was born in Baden, Germany, December 6, 1836, his parents being Gabriel and Louisa (Kaiser) Herrmann. It was the intention of the parents to emigrate to America and just as they were perfecting their plans to make the start the father died of a broken blood vessel. Following his interment the mother brought her family of one son and two daughters to the new world, carrying out the previously formed plans. On their arrival she was robbed of their chest of goods, which she had brought with her, so that all the family had was what was on their backs. They went to Buffalo, New York, and John B. Herrmann, then thirteen years of age, learned the tailor's trade, their financial condition rendering it imperative that he immediately seek employment. He applied himself with thoroughness and earnestness to the mastery of the business and developed a high degree of skill and efficiency. In young manhood Mr. Herrmann, while still a resident of Buffalo, was united in marriage to Miss Mary C. Peters, who was born near Berlin, Germany. Soon afterward he brought his wife to Toledo, where they established their home about 1861. Not very long afterward Mr. Herrmann enlisted in the Home Guards, the Civil war being then in progress, and he became a member of Company F, One Hundred and Thirtieth Regiment, Ohio National Guard. On his return from military duty he opened a tailoring establishment on Summit street, in which location he remained until he retired from business in 1914. In the meantime his trade had steadily grown and his business expanded until it was one of very substantial proportions. He made clothes for all the prominent men of Toledo and there were many who were his patrons through almost the entire period of his connection with the business life of this city.


As the years passed five children were added to the household of Mr. and Mrs. Herrmann, these being : Leopold F., who is now engaged in the tailoring business in Toledo ; Charles P., a shoe merchant of Oakland, California ; John B., who is proprietor of a hardware store in Chicago ; Louisa M., now the wife of William Northcott of Toledo ; and Marie J., who is living at home.


In politics Mr. Herrmann was a stanch republican, giving unfaltering alle-


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giance to the party. He found his greatest happiness in the family circle and the memories of his wife and children are filled with recollections of his kindly deeds, his uniform courtesy and his deep interest in the welfare of the members of his household. He was a man of high integrity and of lofty principles, esteemed and respected by his fellowmen for what he accomplished and the course which he always pursued. The last six years of his life were spent in honorable retirement from business, with leisure to enjoy what he had earned. Death called him on the 25th of April, 1920.


HAROLD SHELDON REYNOLDS


For three generations the name of Reynolds has been closely interwoven with the financial history of Toledo. It has become a synonym for high standards of banking, for progressiveness in all that relates to financial affairs and for unsullied integrity in the conduct of all lines of business with which representatives of the name have been associated. It has been said that a man is fortunate who has back of him an ancestry honorable and distinguished and he is certainly happy if his lines of life are cast in harmony therewith. In person, in talents and in character Harold Sheldon Reynolds is a worthy scion of his race and the business interests instituted by his grandfather, ably carried on by his father, are being still further promoted through more youthful enterprise and zeal, while experience is adding to that sound judgment which must preface the wise and successful management of any undertaking. He is a grandson of Colonel Sheldon Clark Reynolds, one of the early bankers and pioneer grain men of Toledo, and a son of Frederick Jesse and Ida Louise (Stone) Reynolds mentioned elsewhere in this work.


Harold Sheldon Reynolds was born in Toledo, February 1, 1885, and in the acquirement of his education pursued his studies in the Toledo grammar and high schools, while later he enjoyed the advantage of training in St. Paul's School for Boys at Garden City, Long Island. He afterward continued his education in both the literary and law departments of the University of Michigan and then initiated his business experience in connection with the old firm of Reynolds Brothers, grain merchants, with which he was identified from 1905 until the firm passed out of existence in 1909, owing to the increasing importance of the financial interests with which his father and grandfather had become associated. It was in the latter year that Harold S. Reynolds entered the First National Bank and went through the various departments, and in 1912 he was selected to the directorate as the successor of his grandfather. In 1915 he was called to official position by being made vice president of the First National Bank of Toledo and continued in that position until 1923, when he was elected president, thus becoming the head of one of the oldest, most stable and most extensive banking institutions of the northwestern section of the state. It was founded in 1851 as a private bank and organized under the national banking act in 1863 that was passed in that year and is of almost unlimited resources with an unsurpassed reputation of stability and efficient service. The bank is capitalized for five hundred thousand dollars, has a surplus of a million dollars and undivided profits of a half million, while the total resources of the bank are more than twelve million dollars. Mr. Reynolds is one of the youngest men in the country at the head of an institution of the size of the First National Bank. While the interests of the First National claim the major part of the time and at-


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tention of Harold S. Reynolds, he has also figured quite prominently in manufacturing and real estate circles and in connection with other business interests which figure in the commercial and industrial life of the city.


On the 3d of February, 1909, Mr. Reynolds was married to Miss Rachel Reed Ketcham of Toledo. Mrs. Reynolds is a granddaughter of Valentine H. Ketcham, who was prominent as a banker and merchant here from early times and the family has long been an honored and prominent one in connection with the social life of the city. Four children have been born of this marriage : Mary Virginia, Rachel Ketcham, (II) ; Harold Sheldon, Jr.; and Rosalie. Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds attend the Trinity Episcopal church and he is identified with a number of the leading clubs of the city, including the Toledo, Toledo Country, Inverness, Carranor Hunt and Polo, Commerce, Toledo Automobile, and the Sylvania Golf and Castalia Trout clubs. He likewise belongs to the Bankers Club of New York and to the Psi Upsilon fraternity of Ann Arbor, Michigan. Unlike many of the sons of wealthy men he has not placed his dependence upon family position and prestige but after the manner of his forbears has earned his high 'position in business circles through capability and merit., making his name like that of his father and grandfather a synonym for forcefulness in the banking world and of initiative and enterprise in connection with still other business interests.


STEVE M. JOKEL


Steve M. Jokel, a member of one of the prominent families of Toledo, belongs to that class of men who owe their success to hard work, perseverance and ability and the consensus of public opinion names him with the foremost architects of the city. He was born in Toledo, on the 12th of December, 1888, and is a son of Stanislaus and Anna (Gracey) Jokel, who came to the United States in 1886, establishing their home in this city. The father at first engaged in the dry goo& business but afterward disposed of his stock and he is now connected with the Prudential Insurance Company. Mr. and Mrs. Jokel have become the parents of six children, of whom four survive: Gertrude, Mrs. Clara La Sage, Leo and Steve M.


The last named attended the parochial schools of Toledo and afterward became a student at the Tri-State Business College. When fifteen years of age he became a wage earner, securing a clerical position in the wholesale notions establishment of L. S. Baumgardner & Company, and for two years remained in their employ. He next entered the office of Thomas Huber, an architect, and continued with him for seven years, acquiring a practical knowledge of the business during that period. He then spent a short time in the service of Thal & Aftel and afterward accepted a position with the firm of Mills, Rhines, Bellman & Nordhoff, prominent architects of Toledo. He received the greater part of his professional training through attendance at the night school of the John Huntington Architectural Society of Cleveland, Ohio, winning first prize in designing and also receiving medals as a reward for proficiency in his studies. He became supervising architect for the Cleveland Board of Education, acting in that capacity for one and a half years, and then returned to Toledo, where he has since followed his profession. On the 5th of April, 1919, he formed a partnership with Edward Thal, becoming junior member of the firm, and this relationship


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continued until March 1, 1923, when Mr. Jokel purchased Mr. Thal's interests and is conducting the business under the name of Steve M. Jokel. They are conducting a large business and many notable examples of their handiwork are to be seen in Toledo, the most imposing monuments to their skill being the Empire Theatre building, the Holmes & Landwehr building, the Commercial building and the building of the Save Electric Corporation, in addition to numerous residences and theatre buildings in and around the city and retail stores and furniture factories—in fact, he specializes in factories, township schools and suburban homes. The work of the firm is the manifestation of high and enduring art, exhibiting splendid adaptation to specific needs, combined with beauty of form and design, and has won the favorable attention of the general public and of those able to judge. from technical and artistic standpoints. Mr. Jokel also has other business interests, being a director of the Bay Land Company and a stockholder in the Auburndale Savings & Loan Association of Toledo.


On the 7th of June, 1915, Mr. Jokel was married to Miss Edith Lillian Rupert of this city, and they 'have become the parents of three children, of whom the first born died in infancy. Two daughters survive : Joan Marie, who was born in 1921; and Katherine Louise, born July 30, 1922. Mr. Jokel is a member of the Maumee Bay Shore Commercial Club, the Toledo Chamber of Commerce, the Gyro Club and the American Institute of Architects, and he exercises his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the republican party. He is interested in all that tends to raise the standard of his profession and promote the efficiency of its representatives and has made his life count as a forceful factor in enhancing the beauty and attractiveness of Toledo. He has always been a zealous supporter of any measure conducive to the welfare of his city and his name is prominent among those whose enterprise and initiative typify the spirit of progress in Toledo.


LEWIS BALTZELL HALL


For over a quarter of a century Lewis Baltzell Hall has been identified with the Toledo bar and he has gained recognition as an able attorney and wise counselor, capable of handling important litigated interests. He was born in Tiffin, Seneca county, Ohio, July 16, 1870, and his parents were John A. and Mary S. (Stoner) Hall, the former also a native of Tiffin, while the latter was born in the state of Maryland. The paternal grandfather, Luther A. Hall, was a prominent attorney and he was largely instrumental in securing the extension of the Pennsylvania railroad through the state of Ohio. His son, John Hall, successfully engaged in the manufacture of building brick at Tiffin, Ohio, in which city his demise occurred, and the mother is also deceased. In their family were four children, of whom three survive : Mary E., who is still a resident of Tiffin ; Mrs. Grace Rohrback, whose home is on Catalina island, California; and Lewis B.


In the acquirement of an education Lewis Baltzell Hall attended the grammar and high schools of his native city and afterward entered the Ohio Wesleyan University, from which he was graduated in 1892, with the A. B. degree. He then read law in the office of Judge George E. Seney of Tiffin, and in 1895 was admitted to practice. In February, 1896, he came to Toledo and for a short time was in the office of Judge Curtis L. Johnson, since which time he has practiced inde-


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pendently, and in the intervening period his clientele has steadily increased as he has demonstrated his ability to cope with intricate legal problems. He specializes in commercial law and has an expert knowledge of this branch of jurisprudence.


On the 13th of October, 1911, Mr. Hall married Miss. Emily M. Hassett, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Hassett of this city. His political support is given to the republican party and his professional connections are with the Toledo and Ohio State Bar associations. He is also a member of the Inverness Club and is identified with the Shrine in Masonry. In a calling where advancement depends upon individual merit and ability Mr. Hall has gradually worked his way upward, his success coming to him because of his close reasoning, his clear and logical argument, his correct application of legal principles and his ability to present his contention in the strongest possible light.


HENRY P. DODGE


Henry P. Dodge, the president of The H. P. Dodge Engineering Company and the inventor of a number of electrical devices on which he has received patents, has in the course of an active business career risen to the heights of prominence and success in his chosen field. Born in Toledo on the 27th of December, 1871, he is a son of Frederick B. and Caroline (Perkins) Dodge, the latter a native of Newburyport, Massachusetts, while the former was born in Lyme, New Hampshire. They came to Toledo in 1861 and the father, who entered the educational field at an early age, became the principal of the first high school of this city. He gave strong impetus to the development of the school system and left the impress of his individuality and ability for all time upon the educational progress of the city. He later engaged in the practice of law and became one of Toledo's leading attorneys. His death occurred in 1893. His wife survived for a number of years, passing away in 1911. In their family were five children : Frederick H., mentioned elsewhere in this work ; Georgiana W. ; Mrs. Thomas H. Mills ; Henry P. ; and one who has passed away.


In the year 1889 Henry P. Dodge was graduated from the high school of Toledo and promoted his education by a course in the University of Michigan, in which he specialized in electrical engineering. He is numbered among the alumni of that institution of 1893 and with his return to his native city he entered the engineering department of the Toledo White Lime Company and since then has made steady progress in his business career, reaching a position of prominence as an electrical engineer and inventor, for he has given much time to experiments, working out his ideas, many of which have proven most effective, while his devices have gained United States patents. After a time he became manager of the Toledo White Lime Company and on leaving that position entered into active association with the engineering department of the Ohio Electric Car Company, which he organized and was its general manager until 1915. In 1915 he organized The H. P. Dodge Engineering Company, of which he is now the president and which he has developed to large proportions. This company is engaged in the manufacture of electric batteries for motor car service and battery acids. Among his most valuable inventions is the one known as the Dodge process for hydrating lime, which revolutionized the quicklime industry. Also, a storage battery plate manufactured by a new process, which it is claimed not only improves the life of the plate, but lessens the initial


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cost ; patents on the process being pending at the present time. Various other patents he has been granted on electrical devices which are now in general use. In addition to his electrical engineering business he is a director of the Walding, Kinnan & Marvin Company, wholesale druggists.


On the 25th of September, 1896, Mr. Dodge was married to Miss Gertrude Marvin, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Marvin of Toledo, the former one of the partners in the wholesale drug concern conducted under the name of the Walding Kinnan & Marvin Company. Mr. and Mrs. Dodge are parents of two children : Mrs. Carleton M. Baumgardner, whose husband is engaged in the wholesale dry goods and notions business ; and Henry Marvin, now attending school.


Politically Mr. Dodge is a republican, manifesting a citizen's interest in all questions of moment yet never seeking nor desiring office as a reward for party fealty. He is prominently known in club circles, having membership in the Toledo, Toledo Yacht, Toledo Commerce, Maumee River Yacht, Toledo Tennis and Toledo Country clubs. His interest in the cultural development of the community is manifest in his connection with the Art Institute and his efforts to further the moral progress of the community find tangible expression in his membership in the Congregational church. He is a member of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers.


COLONEL SHELDON CLARK REYNOLDS


In the death of Colonel Sheldon C. Reynolds, on November 22, 1912, Toledo lost a citizen who in a peculiarly effective way combined both faith and works. He was never a public man in the sense of being an officeholder, though his career brought to Toledo a far reaching and substantial benefit. Colonel Reynolds had vision. But his ideals were constructive, and when it came to carrying out his plans and purposes he was one of the most practical of men. A great many years ago he became identified with the flour-milling and grain business. He selected Toledo as the scene of his operations. From the first he linked his own fortunes with that of the rising city on the southern shores of Lake Erie. It was his distinction to become the first great grain merchant in the city. More than any other individual factor he made Toledo one of the chief grain ports around the Great Lakes. His career meant so much to Toledo that it is only necessary to present the facts of his career to indicate his prominence.


Sheldon Clark Reynolds was born in Essex county, New York, November 29, 1835, and was nearly seventy-eight years of age when death called him. He was the youngest son among the ten children of Jesse and Sarah (Sheldon) Reynolds. His father was born in Dutchess county, New York, September 15, 1793, and served as a soldier during the second war with Great Britain, better known as the War of 1812. By occupation he was a farmer, and a thrifty, substantial New York citizen. His death occurred December 10, 1853. Colonel Reynolds' mother was born September 6, 1794, and died July 20, 1851.


His early environment was that of a New York state farm. When fourteen years old he went to Bridgeport, Vermont, and spent the next two years in the home of his sister. At the age of sixteen he entered the employ of his brothers, W. R. and W. B. Reynolds, who were at that time engaged in a general dry goods business at Jackson, Michigan. With three years of experience there he


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bought the interests of his brother, W. R., and for one year was a partner of the other brother, W. B. Reynolds. The second brother then transferred his interests to W. R. Reynolds and the firm of W. R .Reynolds and S. C. Reynolds continued a prosperous existence at Jackson for fourteen years, or until 1869.


The advent of the Reynolds brothers in Toledo, in 1869, was much more significant when considered from the present point of view than was realized at that time. On coming to the city the brothers bought the Armanda Flouring Mills, an industry that was soon in a prosperous condition, under the firm name of Reynolds Brothers. In 1872 W. B. Reynolds sold his interest to the other brothers and in 1875 the mill property was sold to other parties altogether.


At that time Colonel S. C. Reynolds entered the grain commission business. Associated with him was Charles L. Reynolds, his nephew, a son of W. R. Reynolds. Later Colonel Reynolds' son, Frederick J., and Mr. J. H. Bowman were added to the firm. The transactions of this firm for the year 1875 totaled two thousand carloads of grain. Ten years later, in 1885, this one firm handled eighty-five thousand carloads. That was a banner year and the records show that no other individual firm in the United States handled a larger amount of grain that year.


Some idea of Colonel Reynolds' progressiveness in making Toledo a grain port is found in the statement that he was the first grain merchant to bring carloads of wheat and other foodstuffs to Toledo, from west of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. He built up a splendid and far reaching industry, with connections all over the west, covering the great grain areas north and south, and he was in close touch with the market centers of the entire globe. It should be no exaggeration to attach to Colonel Reynolds the title of captain of industry. For forty-three years he was really and truly a leader in the big affairs that made the city of Toledo what it is. His operations naturally extended to a broad field. He was a banker and a dominating influence in the general industrial and commercial advancement of the city. He not only helped to lay the foundation but to rear the superstructure of much that is considered most enduring and permanent in the present fortunes of this lake port.


Up to the time of his death at advanced years, Colonel Reynolds maintained his position of influence in financial and commercial affairs. He held large interests in the city's most important banking institutions, and his work as a founder, promoter and director could hardly be described within the space of a few pages. He was at one time the largest stockholder in the First National Bank, also was large stockholder in the Second National Bank and Toledo Savings Bank & Trust Company, and was interested in various other financial institutions. He was a member and the largest stockholder in the Produce Exchange, and among the first to start the movement which brought about the erection of the Produce Exchange building on Madison street. For more than twenty years, up to a month before his death, he was a director of the Wabash Railroad Company. He served in a similar capacity for the Hocking Valley Railway, the Wheeling & Lake Erie, the Kanawha & Wheeling & Lake Erie, and the Kanawha & Michigan railways. At the time of his death he was chairman of the board of directors of the First National Bank, which he had formerly served as president, and of which his son, Frederick J., is now chairman of the board of directors. For a number of years he was president of the Lake Erie Transportation Company, and the banner ship of that line bears his name, "The S. C. Reynolds."


Colonel Reynolds was survived by his widow, Mrs. Martha A. Reynolds, and one son, Frederick J. Colonel Reynolds and his wife had four children, three


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of whom died in infancy. Though not a member, Colonel Reynolds was for more than thirty-five years a liberal supporter of Trinity Episcopal church. Perhaps his favorite form of recreation was sailing on the Great Lakes, and his beautiful steam yacht, "The Sigma," carries him to practically every port and harbor around the circuit of these inland waters.


CHARLES NORTH BELLMAN


Among the large commercial enterprises of which Toledo is justly proud, none confers greater prestige upon the city than that of the Franklin Printing & Engraving Company, of which Charles North Bellman is the vice president, general manager and founder. The trite quotation, "Great oaks from little acorns grow," is particularly applicable to this business, which had its inception some forty years ago, when an ambitious school boy persuaded his father to invest the sum of ten dollars for him in a small hand press and a font of type. With these as a beginning, the boy worked after school hours and in the evenings, and that this was more than a passing fad is shown in the fact that a year or two later a press operated by a water motor was installed in the family woodshed at No. 1138 Huron street, from which was finally evolved a printing establishment that ranks with the best in the country.


Charles North Bellman was born in this city on the 8th of December, 1864, and his parents were William H. and Charlotte (Meredith) Bellman, the former a native of the state of New York, while the latter was born in Ireland. In early life they came to the United States, locating in Toledo, and the father became prominently identified with business interests of the city as a member of the firm of Crabbs, Bellman & Company, wholesale dealers in grain and seeds. He continued to make his home in this city until his demise. The mother has also passed away. In their family were five children : William M., Charles North and Mrs. Charles S. Ashley, all of whom are residents of Toledo ; Alfred D., who is living in Santa Barbara, California ; and Lawrence S., a member of the firm of Mills, Rhines & Bellman, well known architects of Toledo.


The public schools of this city afforded Charles N. Bellman his educational advantages and in 1882 he completed his high school course, after which he engaged in the grain business with his father, with whom he was associated for four years. In the meantime he had learned the printer's trade, in which from childhood he had been deeply interested, and in 1887, in association with his brother, he opened a small plant on the second floor at No. 264 Summit street, over Birkencamp's undertaking rooms. Two years later the business was established at the corner of St. Clair and Oak streets, the present site'of the Navarre Hotel, and the firm name was changed to the Bellman Brothers Company. They continued at that point for eight years, when another removal became necessary, and a store at No. 327 Superior street was leased. In 1895 the present style of the Franklin Printing & Engraving Company was adopted in honor of the illustrious and patriotic Franklin, the leading printer of his day and one of America's foremost men, and on the 30th of September, 1899, the business was incorporated. In 1898 the firm erected a building at No. 321 Superior street, which they continued to occupy until April 1, 1922, when they removed to their present location at Nos. 226-36 Huron street. This is a substantial modern structure four stories in height, containing between


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sixty and seventy thousand square feet of floor space and is conceded to be one of the finest and most complete printing establishments to be found anywhere in the United States. The first floor is devoted to office supplies, stationery and pictures and the second floor is occupied with a large stock of office furniture, while it also contains the general offices. The composing room, pressroom and bindery are found on the third floor and the fourth floor is given over to steel die and copper plate engraving. The large basement has ample storage space for surplus stock for all departments and also houses the picture framing department. Since its inception the business has grown steadily, keeping pace with the development o f the city, and from one hundred to one hundred and twenty-five people are now employed in its operation. The success of the undertaking is largely attributable to the capable management and untiring efforts of Mr. Bellman, who is vice president and general manager of the company, and he is endeavoring to give to Toledo a printing establishment of which, were Benjamin Franklin alive today, he would feel justly proud.


On the 27th of October, 1886, Mr. Bellman was married to Miss Kate Foley, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. B. Foley of this city. Mr. and Mrs. Bellman have a daughter, Marguerite, who attended the Smead school of Toledo. She is now the wife of Lucius J. Sears of this city, and they have three children, Lucius Jackson, Jr., Kate Bellman and Henry B. Sears.


Mr. Bellman is a member of the Collingwood Avenue Presbyterian church and his high standing in the line of work in which he specializes is indicated in the fact that he has twice served as president of the National Association of Stationers & Manufacturers of the United States of America. He is identified with the Masonic fraternity and is also a member of the Toledo Yacht Club, the Inverness Club, the Rotary Club, the Toledo Commerce Club and the Toledo Club, being a director of the last named organization. Mr. Bellman is a self-made man who has been both the architect and builder of his fortunes and he exemplifies in his life the spirit of enterprise and progress which has been the dominant factor in Toledo's upbuilding and development. His entire life has been devoted to the printing business, in which he has attained that position of leadership which follows superior ability and concentrated effort, and he is a native son whose record reflects credit and honor upon the city. His residence is at No. 2230 Fulton street.




THOMAS ALFRED WADE


Thomas Alfred Wade, vice president of the B. F. Wade & Sons Company, printers and binders of Toledo, was born in Mansfield, Ohio, June 25, 1871, his parents being Benjamin F. and Margaret Jane (Tate) Wade. In the attainment of his education he attended the public schools of his native city and afterward became a student in Notre Dame University at South Bend, Indiana. He subsequently spent three years as an architect and then devoted four years to the government service in his professional capacity. On the expiration of that period he joined his father in conducting business under the name of the B. F. Wade Company, while later the present style of the B. F. Wade & Sons Company was assumed. Thomas A. Wade became the vice president of this corporation and has since served in this connection. The name of Wade has long been synonymous with the highest standards of business practice.


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In October, 1896, Mr. Wade was married to Miss Catherine Franklin of Washington, D. C., and they are parents of three children: Benjamin F., Alice Rebecca and Margaret Jane.


Mr. Wade is a member of the Lions Club and he also belongs to the Sylvania Golf Club, and is popular among his fellow members of these societies. His genial disposition and his social qualities have gained for him many friends.


THOMAS BENTLEY


For or more than fifty years members of the Bentley family have figured conspicuously in business circles of Toledo as building contractors and on all sides are seen evidences of their skill and handiwork, three-fourths of the prominent buildings in the city having been erected by The A. Bentley & Sons Company, of which Thomas Bentley is the president.


Thomas Bentley was born in Toledo, November 23, 1873, and his parents were Anderton and Elizabeth (Horner) Bentley, the former a native of Bradford, England. When a young man Anderton Bentley came to the United States, first locating at Adrian, Michigan. In 1872 he arrived in Toledo, where he established his permanent residence, entering commercial life as a contractor and builder. He was one of the pioneers in this field and at first conducted his interests under the style of A. Bentley, then as A. Bentley & Son, and later as A. Bentley & Sons, while since 1907 the business has been operated under the title of The A. Bentley & Sons Company. His progressive spirit, combined with his executive ability and comprehensive knowledge of the business, placed him in a position of leadership and as the years passed the enterprise steadily developed and the firm name became well known throughout the middle west. Anderton Bentley became recognized as one of the foremost business men of Toledo and his demise on the 23d of September, 1916, deprived the city of one of its chief upbuilders and promoters. He was seventy-two years of age at the time of his death, his birth having occurred on the 22d day of April, 1845, and the mother passed away in this city in 1912, also at the age of seventy-two years. They were the parents of three children: Ethel, James and Thomas, all of whom are living in Toledo.


After completing his grammar school course Thomas Bentley spent one year as a high school student and then served a three years' apprenticeship to the plumber's trade under John A. Waite, but abandoned that line of activity in 1894 to enter the contracting business with his father, with whom he was associated until the latter's death. In 1907 the business was incorporated as The A. Bentley & Sons Company and Thomas Bentley has since served as its president, the other officers being James Bentley, vice president ; L. S. Hillebrand, secretary and treasurer; and R. B. Daudt, chief engineer. Thomas Bentley also has other important business interests, being a director of the Richardson Company, investment bankers of this city ; the Toledo Steel Products Company ; the Second Mortgage Company of Toledo; the Commonwealth Building Company of this city, owners and builders of the Secor Hotel: His interests are varied and important and he is characterized by his ability to think in large terms.


During the more than half a century of its existence the firm of which Mr. Bentley is the head has not merely kept abreast of the times, but has been well in advance of them and these years have witnessed more progress in building con-


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struction than was shown in the entire century, which preceded them. In 1883, when A. Bentley undertook the rebuilding of the Hall block at the corner of St. Clair street and Jefferson avenue, the word "skyscraper" was unknown and buildings of steel and tile construction had not been dreamed of. The Hall building, five stories in height after it was rebuilt, was regarded as almost the last work in business blocks. A little more than twenty-five years later the steel workers of this same firm could look down from the twenty-first story of the Second National Bank building, then being erected, and see the Hall block as merely a low, flat-roofed structure with scarcely an outer characteristic in keeping with present-day ideas. The main shops of the company are located at the intersection of Thirteenth street and the Clover Leaf Railway and in the busiest season of the year it employs from four to five thousand workmen, in addition to its large force of shop employes. Here are located the machines that are used in fabricating the steel rods employed in concrete work, a process specially devised by the firm, and the special machinery utilized in making and repairing the tools and appliances needed in construction work. Jobbing and painting departments are maintained and in the engineering and estimating departments from six to eight men are constantly at work, the company being prepared to initiate work and carry it through all of its successive stages. The firm is especially skilled in concrete work, one of its most notable examples of this type of construction being the plant of the General Electric Company at Pittsfield, Massachusetts, the building being one hundred feet wide, eight hundred feet long and four stories in height. Three handsome concrete structures erected by the company in Toledo are the Secor Hotel at Superior street and Jefferson avenue, the Thompson-Hudson Company's building at Summit and Adams streets, and the Bostwick-Braun building at Summit and Monroe streets, eight stories in height. The firm also erected the Second National Bank building, which has twenty-one stories, is two hundred and eighty-seven 'feet in height and is one of the most imposing edifices in Toledo. In addition to its extensive operations in Toledo, the concern has been entrusted with the erection of many notable structures in the central and eastern states, and besides its main offices in this city, it also maintains a permanent office at Jacksonville, Florida, from which it directs its work in the southern portion of the United States. In 1917 the Bentley Company was selected by the United States government to build at Chillicothe, Ohio, one of the large national cantonments at that time so urgently needed to house the troops who had been drafted for service in the World war. Thomas Bentley devotes his entire time to work within the city, while James Bentley is in charge of all outside operations. As the executive head of the business Mr. Bentley displays the same enterprising spirit and administrative powers which characterized its founder, greatly enlarging the scope of its operations, and the business is not only a source of individual profit, but has also been of incalculable value to the city, contributing in a notable degree to its improvement and upbuilding.


At Defiance, Ohio, on the 30th of November, 1898, Mr. Bentley was married to Miss Katherine Lewis, a daughter of E. N. and Abigail Lewis of that city, and two sons have been born of this union : Anderton Lewis, who was born December 10, 1900, and acquired his education in a private school and in Yale University ; and James Edmond, who was born March 18, 1906, and is now attending a private school at Pottstown, Pennsylvania.


When national issues are at stake Mr. Bentley gives his political support to the republican party, but at local elections he votes for the candidate whom he deems best qualified for office without regard to party ties. He is a director of the


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Associated General Contractors of America and a trustee of the Toledo Chamber of Commerce. He is an Elk and a thirty-second degree Mason, and is also connected with the Toledo Club, the Inverness Club and the Toledo Country Club. No detail of his business is too unimportant to receive his attention, and he is a dynamic force in the field in which his activities are centered.


CHARLES A. SEIDERS


Charles A. Seiders, one of the best known members of the Toledo bar, whose successful practice, extending through more than forty years, has been marked by an observance of the highest ideals and standards of his profession, was born June 1, 1857, in the village of East Texas, near Allentown, Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, where his ancestors had lived for many generations. In April, 1866, his parents moved to the village of Flat Rock, Seneca county, Ohio, and after two years moved to a farm in Adams township, that county, and five years later to another farm in the same township.


While but a boy Charles A. Seiders began to take a great interest in reading, which he indulged by such books as he could borrow from the neighbors and teachers, and soon subscribed to young folk's inexpensive magazines and weekly papers. His first subscription to a weekly was to the Cincinnati Weekly Times, the first copy received by him containing an account of the Chicago fire, which copy he still retains. In moving to the second farm he came into a neighborhood where great interest was taken in books and education. To procure these Mr. Seiders had to rely on his own efforts, his father being financially unable to help him, and not having the fortune of good health he was unable to graduate from college. Having made up his mind at the age of sixteen to become a lawyer, he commenced reading for that profession in the fall of 1878, but, having to work his own way, his studies were often broken into, and he was not admitted until March, 1882, when he passed the examination of the Ohio supreme court. In the meantime, and as a means of livelihood, he had in July, 1879, established and edited the Greenspring Times in the village of Greenspring, Ohio, and the two starved and struggled along together for eight months, when they parted company.


In April, 1883, Mr. Seiders began the practice of the law in Paulding, Ohio, the county seat of Paulding county, which was then just being developed, up to that time having been largely covered by a dense growth of timber. A few years later he became the attorney for the New York, Chicago & St. Louis Railway Company for that county. The general offices of that company being at Cleveland, and Paulding county being hard to get at, General Williamson, then general counsel, entrusted all of the work to Mr. Seiders, and for twenty-five years he performed it, having continued to do so after his removal to Toledo and after Hon. John H. Clarke, late associate justice of the United States supreme court, had become general counsel. In the meantime there was soon added a large general practice which extended into other and surrounding counties. In the fall of 1888 he also became the local counsel for the Cincinnati, Jackson & Mackinac Railway Company, and continued to represent that company until his removal to Toledo. On November 15, 1897, he went into the office of Doyle & Lewis, Toledo, Ohio, and remained with that firm until January 1, 1902, when he went into practice for himself. He is