(RETURN TO THE TITLE PAGE) BIOGRAPHICAL FRANKLIN AUGUSTUS SEIBERLING The inspirational value of the life history of Franklin Augustus Seiberling cannot be overestimated, neither can his force and his resourcefulness. A capitalist and an outstanding figure in the world's rubber manufacturing interests, there have been times when disaster has seemed to overtake him, but in his vocabulary there is no such word as fail, and disaster really only comes to the man who acknowledges defeat. This Mr. Seiberling has never done. He has arrayed his industry, enterprise and business judgment against obstacles and adverse conditions and has become known as "the little Napoleon of the rubber industry." Today as president of the Seiberling Rubber Company he is developing a business that is constantly growing in scope and volume, and Akron acknowledges her indebtedness to him for his contribution to the city's substantial growth and upbuilding. He certainly deserves much credit for what he has accomplished and his life record should serve to encourage others. Ohio is proud to number Franklin A. Seiberling among her native sons. He was born on the old family homestead at Western Star in Norton township, Summit county, October 6, 1859, his parents being John Frederick and Catherine (Miller) Seiberling. The family is of German lineage and was established in America by Michael Seiberling, who came from Stuttgart, Germany, in 1741 and settled near Lynnville, Pennsylvania. Since that time representatives of the name have played an important part in the development of the various communities in which they have lived. John F. Seiberling, father of Frank A., became a noted inventor and manufacturer of agricultural implements, and among his other inventions were the Excelsior and Empire mower and reaper and a twine binder. A more extended mention of John F. Seiberling will be found elsewhere in this work. At the usual age Frank A. Seiberling, as he is generally - 5 - 6 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY known, entered the public schools, supplementing his course in the grade schools by two years' study in Heidelberg College at Tiffin, Ohio, but when in his junior year, he put aside his textbooks in order that he might become an active factor in the business world, joining his father, who at that time had just entered upon the manufacture of the Empire harvester. Under his father's direction his business training was thorough and comprehensive, and with the organization of The J. F. Seiberling Company in 1884 he was chosen secretary and treasurer. He thus gained valuable knowledge in the school of experience, for in the manufacture of mowers and reapers the company employed three hundred men, while its annual business amounted to one million dollars. With the passing years his activities broadened in scope and he became identified with various important productive industries either as an organizer or stockholder, including the Akron Twine & Cordage Company, the Werner Printing Company, the Superior Mining Company, the Canton Street Railway Company, the Zanesville Street Railway Company, the Akron Street Railway Company, the manufacturers Mutual Fire Insurance Association, the Thomas Phillips Paper Company and the National City Bank. In 1894 Mr. Seiberling was one of the promoters of the first long-distance electric line in the world. It extended from Akron to Cleveland and for many years was known as the A. B. C. line. In the meantime his interest was directed to rubber manufacturing and in 1898 he decided to establish a factory. His plans saw their fulfillment in June and in December, 1898, he founded the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, establishing the business with borrowed capital amounting to thirty-five hundred dollars. The history of this corporation, now the largest of its kind in the world, is a familiar one to those who know aught of the rubber industry. For twenty-three years Mr. Seiberling remained chief executive of that company and under his direction its sales in the year 1920 amounted to two hundred and five million dollars. Then came the memorable slump in rubber in 1920 and 1921 and brought disaster to the company. In May of the latter year Mr. Seiberling resigned, but he had no intention of quitting the field. He knew that obstacles and difficulties give way to determined effort, intelligently directed, and from his experience he learned lessons of value. In November, 1921, he announced the organization of the Seiberling Rubber Company, with factories at Barberton, Ohio, and New Castle, Pennsylvania. AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 7 The success of this organization within a short space of years is one of the most interesting stories of the rubber industry and is mentioned elsewhere in this work. The losses of the Goodyear Company had left him with great indebtedness. He did not take advantage of any law that would release him from these obligations but set to work through the development of a new organization to meet all indebtedness and by January, 1928, he had accomplished the gigantic task, having wiped out obligations totaling five million, three hundred thousand dollars. When this was done he was asked if he intended retiring from active participation in the rubber industry and replied : "Not until the last bell has rung !" This was characteristic of the man. In February, 1921, his wealth had been reduced from an estimated amount of fifteen million dollars to practically nothing. Today he is again numbered among the capitalists of Ohio and one of the foremost representatives of its industrial activity, and he has come through with an untarnished name and with the added confidence, trust and respect of all. The Seiberling Rubber Company, of which he is now the head, is a prosperous and rapidly growing industry, and its trade relations are gradually expanding, while the outlook for the future is certainly bright. Moreover, Mr. Seiberling has not only been the outstanding figure in an executive capacity in connection with the rubber industry but has made other notable contributions to the business. In 1903 he invented a tire building machine and in the same year invented the straight side tire. In 1905 he perfected the detachable rim and was a pioneer in the development of the cord tire. His labors, too, along other lines have been of great benefit to business as a whole, for he was a factor in the establishment of the Associated Advertising Clubs of the World for better advertising and is a member of the national vigilance committee of the Better Business Bureau. Aside from his association with the Seiberling Rubber Company he is now general manager of the Akron Rubber Reclaiming Company, a director of the Ohio State Bank & Trust Company and the Bankers Guarantee Title & Trust Company. The world acknowledges him a man of wisdom, of notably broad vision and of unfaltering purpose, and his life story is the romance of achievement. Notwithstanding the extent and importance of his business activities Mr. Seiberling has found time for most valuable public work. During the World war he was regional director of the United States Chamber of Commerce for Wisconsin, Illinois and 8 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY Ohio. He was one of the founders and is now president of the Lincoln Highway Association and was chairman of the highways committee of the United States Chamber of Commerce, doing much to further the development of the great thoroughfare which links the east and the west. He gave to Akron the Seiberling athletic field, which, rivaling the athletic fields of the nation's largest universities, bears further witness of Mr. Seiberling's belief that business efficiency is reflected directly from physical fitness, and is but another evidence of his many philanthropies. Goodyear Heights, a model community of two thousand homes, was conceived by Mr. Seiberling and has been used by many other American industries which have entered sociological welfare work. Each home is built on a separate plan and is different from the others. Goodyear workers during Mr. Seiberling's presidency were enabled to purchase these homes and pay for them on a basis approximating rent. So inter-related and complex are the conditions of modern business that no man can be responsible to himself alone. It was due to Mr. Seiberling's realization of this important principle that Goodyear, during his presidency, introduced numberless social welfare innovations which are merely suggested by the housing program spoken of above. The welfare of the individual worker has been a cardinal principle of Mr. Seiberling's throughout his business career. He has been a stanch friend and champion of educational progress, serving as a trustee of Buchtel College and assisting in the organization of the Akron Municipal University, which succeeded the former school. He is also president of the board of trustees of the Lincoln Memorial University at Cumberland Gap, Tennessee, and a trustee of Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio. His political allegiance has always been given to the republican party. On the 12th of October, 1887, Mr. Seiberling was married in Willoughby, Ohio, to Miss Gertrude F. Penfield, a daughter of James Penfield. They have become parents of six children : John Frederick, Irene Henrietta, Willard Penfield, James Penfield, Gertrude Virginia and Franklin Augustus, Jr. The family has always occupied a prominent social position in Akron, and Mr. Seiberling is identified with the Akron City Club, the Portage Country Club and the Fairlawn Heights Golf Club. Mrs. Seiberling is prominently known in musical circles and was one of the organizers of the National Federation of Music Clubs. She has given liberally of time, effort and money toward the advancement of musical education and the promotion of a higher musical taste, AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 9 and as president of the National Federation of Music Clubs she traveled over sixty thousand miles and was largely responsible for the installation of chapters in eleven hundred cities with a total membership of more than four hundred thousand. In 1887 she aided in organizing the Tuesday Musical Club of Akron, which has brought to the city the best talent from the great musical centers, and with her retirement from the presidency of the Tuesday Musical Club she was made honorary president for life. At Stan Hywet Hall, the Seiberling home, many of the leading musicians and artists of this country and the world have been entertained and have received from Mrs. Seiberling most loyal encouragement and support. Thus the name of Seiberling figures in connection with the cultural and intellectual as well as material progress of Akron, and the activities of Mr. Seiberling have made him a world figure in the rubber trade. His career in its achievements, in its comeback after disaster, in its scope of purpose and broad vision, is a most notable one and all of his fellow townsmen are proud of what he has accomplished. FRED W. ADAMS Fred W. Adams, secretary and treasurer of the Mayfield-Adams Company, is one of the best known men in investment security circles in Akron, where for more than a decade he has been prominently identified with the city's investment and financial interests. Mr. Adams was born in Toledo, Ohio, January 20, 1893, a son of William C. and Alice (Metzger) Adams, both of whom were also natives of that city, where they always resided, the father having been engaged in the wholesale grain trade to the time of his death. The mother is still living. She has two sons and a daughter : Willard, who is a resident of Auburn, Indiana; Fred W. ; and Mrs. John F. Reeder, of Detroit, Michigan. Fred W. Adams acquired his early education in the public schools of Toledo, and received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Pennsylvania, with the class of 1916. He began his business career with Prudden & Company, a municipal bond house of Toledo, but in 1917 his activities were interrupted by his enlistment in the artillery branch of the United States Army, in which he was commissioned a second lieuten- 10 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY ant. He was stationed at various camps, including Camp Hancock, Camp Taylor and Fort Shelby, and remained in the service for one year. After receiving his honorable discharge from the army Mr. Adams again entered the employ of Prudden & Company, with whom he remained until September, 1919, when he came to Akron, here entering into active association with the Borton & Borton Company, handling municipal bonds and investments. He remained in that connection until 1922, at which time he became associated with Fred A. Mayfield in organizing the Mayfield-Adams Company for the purpose of handling investment securities and municipal bonds, with Mr. Mayfield as president and Mr. Adams as secretary and treasurer. This has become one of the outstanding firms in its line in Akron and enjoys one of the most representative clienteles of any investment security house in the city. Among his other interests, Mr. Adams is a director of the National City Bank of Akron, of the Mogadore Insulator Company and the Biggs Boiler Company. He has a wide acquaintance among financial men and investors in this part of the state and has gained a high reputation in general business circles. He is accorded a most creditable position among Akron's best citizens. On the 15th of February, 1919, Mr. Adams was married to Miss Ferne Langmade, of North Baltimore, Ohio, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Loren D. Langmade. Mr. and Mrs. Adams have two daughters, both natives of Akron : Eugenia H., born January 17, 1922 ; and Barbara Lee, born June 29, 1926. In religious faith Mr. Adams is a Presbyterian. He belongs to the University Club, of which he is a past president, and is also a member of the Portage Country Club and the Akron City Club. His residence is on Wheaton road, Fairlawn. ANDREW HALE NOAH There is no story which so thrills and inspires the American public as does that of the man who has made his way from obscurity to prominence and success. This is due undoubtedly to the fact that each individual knows that opportunity in the new world is never hampered by caste or class and that persistent effort, intelligently directed, will gain its full reward. Andrew AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 13 Hale Noah is numbered among those who as architects of their own fortunes have builded wisely and well, and, moreover, he commands the respect, confidence and gratitude of the public by reason of the generous use which he has made of his wealth, particularly in the matter of assisting young men to gain an education and thus qualify for life's practical and responsible duties. Mr. Noah was born on a farm in Bath township, Summit county, February 18, 1858, and is a representative of one of the pioneer families of this section of the state, his grandfather, Joshua Noah, having located here during the period of early settlement and development. His son, Elmas H. Noah, was born at Oak Hill in Summit county and during the Civil war enlisted in a Michigan regiment for defense of the Union, giving his life to the service of his country. His wife bore the maiden name of Esther Mott. Andrew H. Noah was a very little lad when his father died, leaving the family a good name but nothing else. His educational opportunities were those afforded by the country schools until he earned the means wherewith to meet the expenses of an advanced course. For three years he taught school in the winter months and in the summer seasons attended Oberlin College, which at that time had its long vacation during the winter months, and throughout his entire life he has utilized every means that would promote his knowledge and advance his efficiency, being ever an apt pupil in the school of experience. After spending two years as a teacher at Steel's Corners, another year at Boston and a third as a teacher at Chittenden's Corners, all in Summit county, he turned his attention to the real estate and abstract business in 1885, becoming a member of the firm of Wilcox & Noah. Each step in his career has been a forward one, bringing him a broader outlook and wider opportunities. His experience in the real estate field brought him something of an understanding of the banking business and in 1886 he organized the Akron Savings & Loan Company. From that time forward he has figured more and more largely in the financial circles of this section of the state. It was also in 1886 that he organized the Bruner, Goodhue, Cooke, Cranz Company and thus promoted one of the largest fire insurance agencies of the state. He remained the secretary of the Akron Savings & Loan Company from its organization until 1897, when he resigned to enter the manufacturing field by becoming general manager of the Diamond Rubber. Company, of which he was later elected treas- 14 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY urer. When that corporation merged with the B. F. Goodrich Company he was offered the office of treasurer of the latter but declined, although he still remains one of its directors. He was formerly a representative of the directorate of the First-Second National Bank and of the Peoples Savings & Trust Company and he still retains his connection with the Akron Savings & Loan Association as its vice president. He was formerly president of the Cleveland Hotel Company, a director of the Portage Hotel Company, the Jahant Heating Company and the Jahant Foundry Company and was also president of the Rubber City Clearing House Company. His cooperation has been eagerly sought because of the recognition of his sound judgment and enterprising spirit. In determining the value of a business situation or its possibilities his opinions have seldom, if ever, been at fault and his wise counsel has been a potent element in the success of many of the leading business interests of Akron and Summit county. On the 29th of December, 1880, Mr. Noah was united in marriage to Miss Kittie B. McGill, of Urbana, Ohio, who is a daughter of James and Susannah McGill and is of Scotch lineage. Her grandfather became one of the early settlers of Champaign county, Ohio, and her father was a well known manufacturer of Urbana. Mr. and Mrs. Noah became the parents of one son, Robert, who is a well known architect of this city, and has a son, Robert Andrew, born April 21, 1922. In his fraternal relations Mr. Noah is a Mason, having attained the thirty-second degree in the order. He has membership in the Portage Country Club, the City Club, the Shaker Heights Country Club and the Congress Lake Club. He maintains a winter home in Florida, as well as his beautiful home in Akron, and one of his recent benefactions was a gift of one hundred thousand dollars to Oberlin College, where he had studied many years before, this sum to be used in the promotion of a plan for the erection of residential halls for men at Oberlin. For several years he was a trustee and also treasurer of Buchtel College and later was elected a member of the board of trustees of Oberlin College. Mr. Noah established the first fund at Oberlin to be loaned to worthy and needy students in finishing their studies. In matters of citizenship his attitude is one of progressive helpfulness and at all times he has labored consistently to promote Akron's upbuilding not only along commercial and industrial but also along intellectual and moral lines. In every great movement for the betterment of the city he has responded. His purse AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 15 has been open at all times for hospitals and the appeals of charity. A contemporaneous writer has said of Mr. Noah : "He is a great friend of the boys and is ever helping them. One of his biggest contributions to boyhood is the purchase and gift of ten acres at the Big Reservoir for a camp for the boys of the entire county. This property has a lake frontage of eleven hundred feet. Nothing gives him more real pleasure than to visit the camp and mingle with 'his boys.' In all his work for the boys he remembers the time when he was a boy down in the valley. And even now he loves that old valley. ‘I like to go down there once in a while and look around,' he said. 'There are many memories down there for me. It's a beautiful valley and there should be a great boulevard through the valley connecting up Cleveland with Akron. I have seen many beautiful places but there are few valleys more beautiful than the Cuyahoga.' " His influence has been a potent factor in furthering high standards and ideals and particularly in stimulating young manhood in the attainment of that which is best in life. Mr. Noah is regarded as a strong man, strong in his ability to plan and perform, strong in his honor and his good name. ERNEST A. BROWN The manifold branches of trade and commerce and the complexity of business life in the present age make it almost essential that those who would attain success must have thorough and systematic business training, and by reason of this condition there have been established at various places in the country institutions of learning that are prepared to give the young efficient instruction in business methods and procedure. It is in this connection that Ernest A. Brown has become widely known, for through seventeen years he has been the president of the decades ago. Under his direction many students acquired Actual Business College of Akron, which was founded three knowledge that has enabled them now to hold outstanding positions in commercial and financial circles and Mr. Brown is widely recognized as a leader among educators. In every way he keeps in touch with the spirit, the thought and the progress of the times and his progressive methods are manifest in the school. 16 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY Mr. Brown was born in Logan, Ohio, May 28, 1884, and is a son of Albert M. and Salome (Welty) Brown, who were also natives of Ohio, where the father has spent his entire life, devoting many years to public school teaching but now living retired. The mother has passed away. In their family were five children : Joseph and Jessie, both residents of Logan; Jennie, living in Barberton, Ohio; and Mrs. Emma Hyatt, of Oak Hill, Ohio. The other member of the family is Ernest A. Brown, who after attending the public schools of Logan spent one year as a student in the Ohio State University, while later he pursued his college course in Columbus, Ohio. He then entered upon the profession of teaching in connection with the public schools but after a year thus passed became a teacher in the Canton Business College, where he remained for a year. He came to Akron on the 1st of August, 1907, and entered into active connection with the Actual Business College, which at that time had only a few students and now has an enrollment of between four hundred and fifty and five hundred. A keen student of business administration and practice, he has carefully built up his college, keeping courses of study and training always in gear with improved business methods. Through constant endeavor to increase the effectiveness of business training Mr. Brown has had the satisfaction of seeing the Actual Business College made an early member of the National Association of Accredited Commercial Schools for which rigid standards of training are laid down and supervised by the United States Bureau of Education at Washington. In this school every branch of learning may be pursued that has to do with actual business management, control or service and today its students are filling important clerical, secretarial or executive positions in various parts of the country. On the 13th of October, 1906, Mr. Brown was married to Miss Millie I. Guthrie, a daughter of James M. and Elizabeth Guthrie, of a prominent family of Logan, Ohio. They have two children : Jane Guthrie, born in Akron, March 30, 1919; and Donald Ernest, born June 13, 1921. Both are attending school. The family residence is on Overwood road, Fairlawn, Ohio. The parents are members of the First Methodist Episcopal church and Mr. Brown is identified with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks at Akron and also has membership with the Kiwanis Club, the Fairlawn Country Club, the Akron Automobile AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 17 Club and the Akron Chamber of Commerce. He is interested in all that has to do with the city's development and with the advancement of municipal standards, and he has contributed in large and effective measure to the public good through the conduct of the institution of which he has long been the head and in which he has ever maintained the highest standards of service and of excellence. EVA FOWLER BECK, M. D. In no profession has woman demonstrated her ability to a larger degree than in the practice of medicine, for here not only her intellectual power but her natural intuition and broad, kindly sympathy have full play, leading to results that are most desirable. Dr. Beck is a native of Churchville, New York, and a daughter of Elmer and Jennie (Fitch) Fowler, the former a general contractor. Through the Fowler family her ancestry is traced back to Benjamin Scott, who served as a sergeant under Captain. Jim Parker with the Minute Men in the Revolutionary war. This Benjamin Scott, born in 1724, was a minute man and marched forth on the Lexington alarm which was sounded on the 19th of April, 1775. He was an uncle of General Winfield Scott. In the district school of Churchville, New York, Eva Fowler began her education and later she attended the grammar and high schools at Buffalo, New York, while subsequently she became a student in the University of Buffalo, which in due course of time conferred upon her the M. D. degree, as she had completed the prescribed course with the class of 1911. She then served as interne for one year in the Erie County Hospital of Buffalo and later went to Philadelphia, where she did postgraduate work. Subsequently she went abroad and in London devoted a year to taking special work on the treatment of diseases of the eye. Following her return to her native land she entered upon the general practice of medicine in Buffalo, where she remained until 1918, when she came to Akron. She had a most interesting experience in industrial work, having been a physician for four years at the Goodrich plant and for two years at the Firestone plant. She not only practiced internal medicine in this connection but was able to respond to the call of any department for 18 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY medical or surgical assistance. She is still frequently called in for emergency work, although at the present time she is devoting her attention to a general private practice. Another interesting experience in her career covered the period from 1916 until 1918, when she was teaching in a medical school in Canton, China, prior to entering upon her work with the rubber companies of Akron. She was compelled to learn the Chinese language in order to properly administer medical aid, and she gained most comprehensive understanding of the Chinese people, their methods and their motives, during her residence in the Orient. It was after this that she devoted two years to practice as representative of the Firestone Company and four years to the Goodrich Company, during which period she gave full time to the plants, having no outside practice. Today her work is steadily increasing in the private practice of medicine and surgery and her patronage is continually growing. It was in 1919 that Eva Fowler became the wife of J. Arnold Beck and she has one son, Preston Ellsworth, born May 2, 1921. Dr. Beck is a member of the Woman's Benefit Association, of the Business Women's Club of Akron and of the Eastern Star, while along strictly professional lines she is associated with the Summit County Medical Society, the Ohio State Medical Society and the American Medical Association, thus keeping in touch with the trend of modern professional thought and methods. ALLAN FARRELL AYERS Allan F. Ayers, president of the Ohio State Bank & Trust Company, is one of Akron's best known bankers and occupies a foremost position among the city's leading bank executives. His experience as a banker began at the very outset of his business career more than twenty-eight years ago and includes a prominent connection with financial institutions of the middle west before coming to Akron. Mr. Ayers was born in Cass county, Illinois, April 18, 1880, and comes from two of the real pioneer families of that state, as well as two that include three generations of bankers. His parents, Walter and Mary A. (Farrell) Ayers, were both natives of Illinois, and the Ayers family was established there in 1800, when settlement was made at Jacksonville, Illinois. Walter AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 21 Ayers became a prominent figure in banking circles at Jacksonville, as was his father Marshall P. Ayers, who opened the fourth bank in Illinois. Walter Ayers is still living, but his wife has passed away. They were the parents of a son and two daughters : Allan F. ; Mrs. Margaret A. Eaton and Gertrude. Allan F. Ayers was reared in Jacksonville, Illinois, and received his early education in the schools of that city, later graduating from Whipple Academy, and he concluded his education at the Illinois College of Jacksonville, where he obtained his A. B. degree in 1900. He began his business career with the F. G. Farrell & Company, bankers of Jacksonville, where he remained for a decade, in the position of cashier. He later went to Denver, Colorado, where he became vice president of the Continental Trust Company and remained in that connection until early in 1916, when he came to Akron, to become secretary-cashier of the newly organized Ohio Savings & Trust Company. This institution was opened for business on the 31st of March, 1917, with a capital of one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars. In 1922 it was consolidated with the State Savings & Trust Company, into the Ohio State Bank & Trust Company, Mr. Ayers becoming president of the new bank, and he has since remained in that capacity. The growth and development of the Ohio State Bank & Trust Company, with its more than fourteen millions of resources, is one of the outstanding achievements in Akron's banking circles and is a magnificent tribute to its management. A more extended review of its activities will be found under its own caption in the chapter on Financial Institutions. Mr. Ayers has other banking and industrial connections, being president of the Mogadore Savings Bank, president of the Macedonia-Northfield Banking Company, a director of the Akron Morris Plan Bank, a director of the Akron, Canton & Youngstown Railway Company, a director of the Akron, Canton & Youngstown Terminal Properties Company, vice president and director of the A. C. & Y. Company, president and director of the Akron Standard Mold Company, president and director of the State Foundry and Pattern Company and a director of the Fageol Motors Company. His interests and activities are broad and varied and have been a contributing factor to the steady growth and business development of this section of the state. On the 3d of June, 1905, Mr. Ayers married Miss Lucy Hamilton, a daughter of General E. B. Hamilton, of Quincy, Illinois, 2-VOL. 2 22 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY and of a family widely known in that section. Mr. and Mrs. Ayers have a son and daughter, both born in Jacksonville, Illinois : Mary Hamilton,- now attending school in Boston ; and Allan F., Jr., who is a student at Amherst College, member of the class of 1930. The family are Episcopalians and well known in Akron's best social circles. Fraternally Mr. Ayers is a Knight Templar Mason and Shriner and also belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. Appreciative of the social amenities of life, he is a member of the Portage Country Club, the Akron City Club, the University Club, and Portage Riding Club. Mr. Ayers is a man of well balanced capacities and powers, whose sound judgment and even paced energy have carried him steadily forward to an outstanding position in his field of activity, and he is an excellent example of the type of banker developed in the present age, quick to perceive an emergency and equally quick in devising a plan to meet it. He is one of the forceful and resourceful figures in Akron's banking circles and has a wide acquaintance among financial men throughout the country. His residence is at Fairlawn Heights, Akron. HERMAN FERBSTEIN If one could turn back the hourglass of time for more than a half century to the year 1871, he would find among the emigrants to the new world a youth who had come from Hungary without capital other than his resolve to try his fortune in America and win success if it could be accomplished through industry, perseverance and determination. With the lapse of years this emigrant boy has become one of the notably successful business men of Akron, controlling extensive interests as a tobacco dealer. Such in brief is the life history of Herman Ferbstein, but it tells little of the struggle against difficulties and obstacles that has resulted eventually in supremacy for position and prosperity. Born in Hungary, December 25, 1856, he is a son of Leo and Betty, (Rosenberg) Ferbstein, who were natives of that country, where they spent their entire lives, the father devoting his attention to the occupation of farming. There were two brothers in the family, David and Herman, who came to the United States. The latter attended school in his native land and made the AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 23 long voyage across the Atlantic in 1871. He was then fourteen years of age and he traveled steerage. His people were proud people and had access to the homes of the nobility, but their fortunes were depleted and Mr. Ferbstein came to this country in the hope of having better business opportunities than he could secure in his native land. The voyage lasted two weeks and he landed in New York, where he was put on an immigrant train for Cleveland, where he was to be met by his brother, David, who had preceded him to the new world. That immigrant train was four days in getting from New York to Pittsburgh, where Mr. Ferbstein got off the train and, being exceedingly hungry, started to look for something to eat. He knew not where to go, nor could he speak any English. A man stepped up to him, however, talking to him in German, and when told by the lad that he was hungry bought for him some food, not allowing him to pay for it. Mr. Ferbstein's cash capital was thirty-two dollars. The train stayed on the tracks in Pittsburgh until the next day and then started for Cleveland, where he was met by his brother, David, who said he was selling goods from a pack carried on his back and who obtained for Herman a pack filled with notions. They then went about the country, selling their wares, but those were hard days for Herman Ferbstein, as he had difficulty in making people understand him. The first night he crawled under a haystack to sleep and there were many days when he was hungry, but at times he found people who were kind to him and finally those days of bitter experience passed. In the meantime his brother established a little wholesale tobacco house in Akron and after a year he became a partner of his brother, David Ferbstein, in the wholesale tobacco business here and through the intervening period down to the present time has been associated with this commercial undertaking. His trade has increased with the growth and development of the state until it has assumed mammoth proportions, being one of the foremost enterprises of this kind in Ohio. The brothers were associated in the conduct of the business until 1898, when David Ferbstein retired from the business, since which time Herman Ferbstein has been sole owner of the business and has attained a gratifying measure of wealth, resulting from his careful and reliable business methods and his wise investments. His course would at all times bear the closest investigation and scrutiny and he has not only won wealth but has also gained the unqualified respect and esteem of his fellowmen. At different periods he has been active in con- 24 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY nection with various industries of Akron and is still a director of the City Laundry Company. In 1884 was celebrated the marriage of Herman Ferbstein and Miss Bertha Sicherman, of Hungary. He returned to his early boyhood's home for his sweetheart, who was a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Sicherman, and establishing their home in the new world, they soon made for themselves an enviable position in the social circles of Akron and here they have reared their family of four children, the eldest being Mrs. Fannie F. Greiff, who was born at Akron, was educated at Wellesley College near Boston, Massachusetts, and now resides in New York with her husband and one child, Robert. Harry, the second of the family, was born in Akron and after attending the public and high schools continued his education in the Case School of Applied Science, pursuing a course in mining engineering, but is now with his father in the wholesale tobacco and cigar business. He wedded Josephine Riegelhaupt, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and they have two daughters, Betty Lee and Joan Evelyn. Sidney J. Ferbstein pursued a high school course in Akron and afterward attended Cornell and Pennsylvania universities, completing his education in 1915. He is now associated in business with his father. He married Bessie Epstein, of Akron. The fourth member of the family is Leopold J., who is also a high school graduate of Akron and who after attending the Harvard Law School is now filling the position of assistant prosecuting attorney in Summit county. Mr. Ferbstein is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, of the Akron Chamber of Commerce and of the Akron Automobile Club. He is always social, genial and approachable and he possesses many sterling traits of character which have won him the admiration and good will of all who know him. He has been especially interested in the welfare of his city and has given generously to the furthering of many projects for the public good. Coming to the United States in his youth, he has never had occasion to regret his determination to establish his home on this side of the Atlantic, for here he found the opportunities which he sought and, steadily advancing, he has reached a position among the prosperous residents of his adopted state and has also gained the confidence, good will and high esteem of all with whom he has been associated. One thing that his early experience did for him was to awaken his sympathy with others who are struggling to make a start and on AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 25 many occasions he has reached out a helping hand to those who have needed assistance. For more than a half century he has resided in Akron and has witnessed its substantial and continuous growth. He was among the first to show faith in the future of Main street, and when he removed his business from Howard, then the chief commercial thoroughfare of Akron, he met the criticism of friends who prophesied that such a move would never pay. Main street at that time was little more than a canal or ditch, and Mr. Ferbstein is among those who have transformed it into Akron's greatest commercial center. His memory goes back to the time when there were no telephones here and when there was little to indicate that great changes were coming. With remarkable prescience he foresaw much of what the future had in store for the city and he builded according to his belief in its future. Akron owes much to him and gained a most valued resident when he decided to take up his abode within its borders. His upright life, as well as his marked industry and notable business management, has gained for him the honor and the friendship of all. RAY EMERSON MORTON An able and successful lawyer and loyal and public-spirited citizen, Ray E. Morton is numbered among the leading and influential citizens of Barberton, where for fifteen years he has been actively engaged in the practice of his profession. He was born at Sherman, Summit county, Ohio, on the 4th of September, 1889, and is a son of W. A. and Sarah (Boden) Morton, who are now living in Barberton. Mr. Morton secured his early education in the public schools, graduating from the high school at Barberton, and then entered the law school of Ohio State University, from which he was graduated in 1912. In June of that year he was admitted to the bar and immediately entered upon active work of the profession at Barberton, in which he has continued with marked success to the present time. He conducts a general practice and is regarded as a forceful and effective pleader and sound and safe counselor. On June 17, 1914, Mr. Morton was united in marriage to Miss Eva M. Wyre. He is a democrat in his political views and has served two terms as city solicitor of Barberton. Fraternally 26 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, in which he has attained the degree of Knight Templar; the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He is likewise a Rotarian and a member of the Brookside Country Club. He also belongs to the Summit County Bar Association and the Ohio State Bar Association. His career has been marked by a strict adherence to the ethics and traditions of his profession and his success therein ranks him with the able members of the Summit County Bar. He has not been unmindful of his obligations to the community in which he lives and has been an earnest champion of those things which most contribute to the advancement of public interests. Because of this, as well as for his splendid personality, he has a large circle of warm and loyal friends and is greatly esteemed by all who know him. FRANK A. WILCOX The late Francis Albert Wilcox was one of Akron's notable men—notable for what he accomplished in business matters and in social and civic affairs. For nearly a quarter of a century he was closely identified with every movement inaugurated for the benefit of the city and her institutions, and he was a vital force in the progress and development of Akron and thus won for himself a place among the city builders—those men who have served notably and have gone to their reward. He was born in Richfield township, Summit county, Ohio, May 17, 1852, and died at Akron, Ohio, November 16, 1916. He came of good old Puritan stock and had the blood of several prominent English families mingled in his veins. His great-grandfather, Sadoce Wilcox, was ensign of a company from Connecticut in the Revolution. There is an ancient document appointing him to this office signed by Jonathan Trumbull, captain general of the English Colony of Connecticut, bearing date of June 20th Anno Domini 1776. The mother of Frank A. Wilcox had a facsimile of the document made and framed and was very proud of it, as well as of the original document as a family relic. At Simsbury, Connecticut, the Wilcox estate granted by the government to the early settlers of that family was held by some of its members up to the year 1900. AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 29 The grandfather, Dr. Jeremiah Wilcox, was born in December, 1760, in Simsbury, Connecticut, and engaged in the practice of medicine at Hartford for some time. He was one of the commissioners sent from Connecticut under the leadership of Moses Cleaveland in 1796 to lay out lands in Ohio granted by the government to Connecticut to compensate for the loss of lands and property during the Revolutionary war. These lands, called "the fire lands," formed a part of the Western Reserve. The land owned by Dr. Wilcox, known as the Wilcox tract, comprised sixteen thousand acres in the Western Reserve. He drew a large tract in Summit county and another in Trumbull county. On his removal to this state in 1806 he located at Vernon in Trumbull county, and there he died in 1824. Dr. Jeremiah Cullen Wilcox, son of Dr. Jeremiah and father of Frank A., was born in Hartland, Connecticut, December 6, 1790, and died in Richfield township, Summit county, Ohio, January 26, 1873. He was graduated from Jefferson College in 1813; prepared for the medical profession under his father and for twenty years was a successful practitioner in Trumbull and Summit counties. At length he gave up active practice on account of failing health and removed his family to Hudson, Ohio, where he engaged in mercantile business. He was twice married, first to Lorena Bushnell, who died in 1832. On the 1st of October, 1839, in Ravenna, Ohio, he married Mrs. Julia A. (Wilder) Pettee, who was born in Johnstown, New York, September 19, 1814, and died in Akron, September 6, 1906. She was a woman of strong personality and remarkable attainments. In early womanhood she became a teacher of French and mathematics at the seminary in Granville, Ohio, then the foremost institution of education for young ladies in this section of the country. It was there that she became acquainted with Dr. Wilcox. In the spring of 1840 they located on a farm in Richfield township, Summit county, which had descended to Dr. Wilcox from his father, this being part of a grant of land in the Western Reserve drawn by the latter from the government. This farm was located on what is now called "East Hill," two and a half miles east of Richfield Center. Among the maternal ancestors of Frank A. Wilcox were the Robinsons, the Websters and the Wilders, all of whom together with the Wilsoxsons (later spelled Willcox and later Wilcox) emigrated to America between 1634 and 1700. Among the Robinsons was Samuel Robinson, a captain of Provincials who served in the French and Indian war and in the Revolutionary war. 30 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY When it was ascertained by the settlers in New Hampshire that their lands were being granted from under them by the governor of New York a petition signed by over one thousand citizens was prepared and Captain Robinson was appointed agent to bear the important document and lay it before the King of England. He accomplished his mission but never reached home, having died of smallpox in London. While in London he purchased a Bible, written in old English and bound in brown leather, which was sent, together with his other effects, after his death to his widow. This ancient volume of the Scriptures had descended from mother to daughter through successive generations down to the present and is now owned by Mrs. Stella H. Plate, a sister of Frank A. Wilcox. Among the members of the Webster family through. whom Mr. Wilcox traced his descent were Noah Webster, compiler of the dictionary, and Daniel Webster, statesman and orator. Among those of less renown was Captain Isaac Webster, great-grandfather of Mr. Wilcox, who took part in the battle of Bennington, Vermont, August 16, 1777. An interesting account of his capture by Indians during the war is also part of the family records. Among the Wilders from whom Mr. Wilcox was directly descended through his mother was Nicholas Wilder, a military chieftain in the army of the Earl of Richmond, subsequently King Henry VII, who for valiant service at the battle of Bosworth Field, 1485, rewarded him with a landed estate and a knighthood. The history of the Wilder family in this country dates back to the year 1636, when the ship Confidence sailed from Southampton, England, with emigrants for Massachusetts Bay. On the list of passengers was Martha, widow of Thomas Wilder. Thomas Wilder was one of Mr. Wilcox's ancestors. Frank A. Wilcox spent his early life on the home farm, attended district schools and the academy at Richfield Center. Later he attended Oberlin College, from which he was graduated with the class of 1878. He paid his way through college with money earned by teaching in the country schools. Leaving college, Mr. Wilcox began reading law in the office of Hon. Theodore E. Burton at Cleveland, and after a year's study accepted the position of superintendent of the Glenville public schools near Cleveland, and continued at the head of those schools for three years, during which time he also served as a member of the village council. His sister Miss Stella Wilcox was AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 31 a student with him in school work there, and his mother and sister had moved from the farm to Glenville in 1880. Mr. Wilcox came to Akron in 1882 and bought a half interest in the Summit county abstract books. Three years later he became sole owner of the books, and for fifteen years following he did the abstract business of Summit county. Forming a partnership with Andrew H. Noah, Mr. Wilcox engaged also in the real estate and insurance business under the firm name of Wilcox & Noah. In 1896 Clarence I. Bruner was admitted to the firm, which then became Wilcox, Noah & Bruner, which firm was in time succeeded by the Bruner-Goodhue-Cranz Company. From active participation in this business Mr. Wilcox withdrew in 1898 and became secretary of the India Rubber Company at Akron and thus became identified with the rubber industry of the city. In 1899 he withdrew from the India Rubber Company to accept the position of vice president, treasurer and general manager of the Pennsylvania Rubber Company at Erie, Pennsylvania, and he removed his family to that city. Three years later that company was removed to Jeannette, Pennsylvania, Mr. Wilcox going with it. Leaving the Pennsylvania Rubber Company in 1907, Mr. Wilcox returned to Akron and engaged in the general contracting and real estate business. He erected a number of fine business blocks and dealt extensively in city and farm property. He plotted and opened "Overlook Heights" additions to the city and opened Belvidere street and erected several residences thereon. Mr. Wilcox served from 1885 to 1887 as a member of the Akron city council. He was an official member of the Maccabees and one of the founders of that order in Akron. He was past grand of Akron Lodge No. 547, I. 0. 0. F., and was a member of the Order of Elks. He was vice president of the International Wilcox Association and attended the annual reunion of that body in Rhode Island the summer before his death. He was also active in the Chamber of Commerce and as a member of the First Congregational Church taught a boy's class in the Sunday school. Mr. Wilcox was recognized as one of Akron's progressive and influential men and patriotic citizens. He was popular in all circles, for his characteristics were such as win and hold friendships. His business associates had implicit confidence in his judgment and integrity; his intimates loved him and the people in general respected and admired him. His life was so full of activity and so unselfishly lived that he left his impress upon the history 32 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY of the city of the present generation, and his death was universally regarded as a public loss. On November 23, 1893, Mr. Wilcox was united in marriage with Miss Della M. Doyle, daughter of the late William B. Doyle and sister of Judge Dayton A. Doyle and former Mayor William B. Doyle of Akron. Mrs. Wilcox was educated in the city schools and at Westminster College at New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. Mr. and Mrs. Wilcox had a son, Doyle, who died at Erie, Pennsylvania, when but five years of age, and a daughter, Margaret, who is now Mrs. Donfred Gardner. Mr. and Mrs. Gardner have one child, Ann. Margaret, born April 17, 1927. Mr. and Mrs. Wilcox also reared an adopted daughter, Elizabeth L., who was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dean L. Doyle. JUDGE AUGUSTIN FRANCIS O'NEIL Judge Augustin Francis O'Neil, attended Columbia Law School, entered upon the active practice of his profession in Akron in 1914 and through the intervening period has enjoyed an enviable reputation as a member of the bar, while his work in the courts has also included service as judge of the first municipal district. Moreover, he deserves mention as a worthy representative of one of the most prominent families of this city. He was born here April 20, 1887, his parents being Michael and Patience Jane (Mahar) O'Neil. His father was one of the foremost merchants, manufacturers and business men of this section of the state and is mentioned at length on another page of this work. After attending the parochial schools Augustin F. O'Neil entered Holy Cross College at Worcester, Massachusetts, and following his return to his native city spent two years in connection with the extensive dry goods business of which his father was proprietor. It was his desire, however, to become a member of the bar and he later entered the Columbia Law School, from which in due course of time he was graduated. He then passed the required bar examination and entered upon active practice in 1914. Through the intervening period he has devoted his labors untiringly to professional interests and duties, and a recognition of his ability on the part of his fellow men is indicated by the fact that he was chosen to serve as one of the first judges of the municipal court, occupying that bench for a term of four years. In 1920 AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 33 he sought the nomination for the supreme court and was defeated by only eighty votes. Not only has his record reflected credit and honor upon his chosen calling but in other ways, too, he has rendered able service in a public capacity. He is a director and president of the First Savings & Loan Company at Fivepoints and is attorney for the General Tire & Rubber Company. In 1917 he enlisted for service in the World war and in 1918 was called to duty with the United States naval aviation forces, being on duty with the navy as ensign and as junior lieutenant, receiving his honorable discharge in 1919. On the 17th of November, 1915, Judge O'Neil was married to Miss Marie A. Kramer, of Canton, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John G. Kramer, of a prominent family of Canton and of Steubenville. There are now six children in the family: Mary, born in 1917; Robert, in 1920; James, in 1922; Patience Jane, in 1923; Donald, in 1925; and Alice Marie, in 1927. The religious faith of Mr. O'Neil is that of the Roman Catholic church and he is a fourth degree member of the Knights of Columbus. He belongs to the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Fraternal Order of Eagles and to the American Legion. His social nature finds expression in his connection with the City Club and the Portage Country Club. He is also identified with the Chamber of Commerce and is a stanch advocate of all the projects instituted by that organization for the city's benefit and improvement. He belongs to the American Bar Association and he is a thorough student of the law and of the cases entrusted to him. He is equally a thorough student of the vital questions and issues of the day and his attitude concerning such is a progressive one based upon thorough understanding of conditions, of obligations and of opportunities. He possesses marked oratorical ability and is frequently called upon to deliver public addresses. His attitude to his country is shown in the following brief excerpt from a speech which he made at the unveiling of the Soldiers' Monument in Rose Hill cemetery : "Though the heavens fall right must prevail and wherever the flag of America goes, there goes victory, there goes right and there goes peace. Along the frontiers of freedom, our Star Spangled Banner floats today. It floats as of old, ever proudly and triumphant. The blue of its field, the color of the azure firmament, always holds the stars of hope. The red of its folds still speaks the blood of our heroes and the white of its bars the color of God's sunlight, the tint of the lily and the texture of the snowflake still means the sweet word- 34 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY Peace." He has been particularly earnest in his efforts to arouse public opinion against inequitable and overburdening taxation and also to awaken the public conscience as to child labor. In fact his entire career has been marked by intense, intelligent and effective effort in the lines of progress, reform and improvement. JOHN FREDERICK SEIBERLING No history of Akron and of Summit county would be complete without extended reference to John Frederick Seiberling because of the important part which he took in the development of manufacturing interests and commercial upbuilding here. Moreover, the qualities which he displayed in his business career and in his social connections made him a man whom to know was to esteem and honor, for in every respect he measured up to the highest standards of both manhood and citizenship. For almost a century the Seiberling family has been represented in this section of the state, for it was in 1831 that Nathan Seiberling took up his abode in Norton township, Summit county. He was born in Northampton county, Pennsylvania, on the 14th of April, 1810, and was a son of John F. Seiberling, a grandson of Frederick Seiberling and a great-grandson of Christian Seiberling, all of whom were natives of the Keystone state. As in Pennsylvania, so in Ohio, the family has taken prominent part in the substantial upbuilding and progress of this section. Nathan Seiberling devoted his attention to agricultural pursuits, developing an excellent farm, and thereon John F. Seiberling was born on the 10th of March, 1834. The first twenty-two years of his life were passed on the old homestead with the advantages of a public school education and with thorough training in the work of the fields, but agricultural pursuits were not altogether to his liking and in 1856 he took up his abode in Akron, where he secured a clerkship in a drug store. Three years later he returned to the home farm and while operating his father's sawmill he invented the Excelsior mower and reaper, on which he secured a patent and to which he afterward added another invention of his own—a "dropper." Believing that he had perfected a machine of value to the agricultural world, he established a factory at Doylestown, Ohio, in 1861, and began the manufacture of his mower and reaper there. The AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 37 enterprise prospered from the beginning and with the steady growth of the business he established an additional plant at Massillon, Ohio, in 1864, while in 1865 he came to Akron and organized the J. F. Seiberling Company, which took over the entire manufacturing of the Excelsior mowers and reapers in this plant. In 1873, having disposed of his interest in that machine, he organized the Empire Mower and Reaper Works, having in the meantime invented and patented the Empire mower, reaper and binder, which he continued to manufacture as the head of the company until 1896, when he withdrew from that undertaking. His inventive genius was of great worth and his efforts were a vital element in the promotion of agricultural interests. In other fields, too, he took an important part in developing the business enterprise and trade relations of Summit county. In 1871 he was associated with others in organizing the Akron Strawboard Company and was active in its management until the sale of the business to the Strawboard Trust in 1887. In 1884 he had organized the Seiberling Milling Company in East Akron, which afterward became the Akron Cereal Company and which eventually sold out to the trust operating under the name of the Great Western Cereal Company and which was later absorbed by the American Cereal Company, now known as the Quaker Oats Company, Mr. Seiberling remaining one of the stockholders in this corporation to the time of his demise. Moreover, he was closely associated for a number of years with the development and control of the Akron City Railway, in which he acquired a controlling interest in 1888, occupying the presidency thereof for ten years and largely promoting its success during that period by reequipping, expanding and improving the system. In 1898 he disposed of his holdings to the Northern Ohio Traction & Light Company and withdrew from that field. Mr. Seiberling was moreover enrolled among the financiers of Ohio through his connection with the Bank of Akron, which later merged with the Second National Bank, of which he was vice president for many years. All through his life his inventive genius expressed itself in activity that resulted in the patenting of one hundred and fifty practical inventions. On the 6th of September, 1857, Mr. Seiberling was united in marriage to Miss Catherine L. Miller, of Norton township, and they became the parents of eleven children, of whom John Frederick and Maud M. died in infancy. The others are : Anna A., the wife of Samuel Miller; Frank A. and Charles W., president 38 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY and vice president, respectively, of the Seiberling Rubber Company; Cora D., the widow of Lewis T. Wolle ; Harriet M., the widow of Lucius C. Miles; Grace I., who became the wife of Dr. William S. Chase; Catherine G., the wife of Luther H. Firey; Mary B., who wedded. Henry B. Manton; and Ruth J., the wife of Ernest A. Pflueger. In 1866 Mr. Seiberling erected a handsome residence on Market street, where the family resided for nearly a half century. He passed away September 3, 1903, and was survived by his wife until May 10, 1911. In his death Akron and in fact the entire state mourned the loss of an honored and representative citizen. Not only as an inventor, manufacturer and financier did he contribute to the city's growth and improvement but took a most helpful interest in its cultural development and in the advancement of its civic welfare. In 1871 he built the Akron Academy of Music and he bore half the cost of erecting the Trinity Lutheran church on Prospect street, of which society he was a member from its organization. He gave generously to the poor and needy and to the benevolent and philanthropical institutions of Akron. In a word the world is better for his having lived. He fully met every duty and obligation as well as every opportunity of life and he was a splendid type of that class of citizens who laid broad and deep the foundation upon which the present progress and prosperity of Akron rests. ALFRED HERBERICH Passing years have chronicled the continual advancement of Alfred Herberich, member of the Akron bar, whose capability and loyalty to the interests of his clients have brought him to a position of distinction as an Akron attorney. He is also a representative of a family that has made valuable contribution to the development and upbuilding of city and state, representatives of the name having through many years done much to further the welfare of Summit county. Born in Akron on the 28th of January, 1892, he is a son of David and Lena (Fuchs) Herberich, both of whom were natives of Germany, whence they came to America in early life, settling in Akron in 1882. The father engaged in the insurance business here for thirty-five years and is mentioned at further length in connection with the sketch of AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 39 his son, Charles Herberich, on another page of this work. He passed away in 1923, having for a decade survived his wife, who died in 1913. They were the parents of twelve children, of whom eight are yet living: Charles, Walter, Mrs. J. C. Glather and Mrs. John Metzger, all of Akron; Mrs. Charles Sprague, living in Brimfield, Ohio; Mrs. James Black and Mrs. G. C. Walker, also of Akron; and Alfred, of this review. The last named attended the Spicer School of Akron and the Central high school, after which he entered Buchtel College, from which he received his Ph. B. degree in 1911. He next entered Harvard University as a law student and at his graduation in 1914 the LL. B. degree was conferred upon him. He then returned to Akron, where he immediately entered upon active practice following his admission to the bar. Since that time he has given his attention to the duties of a constantly growing practice. In November, 1916, he entered into partnership with Edmund Burroughs and later the firm became Herberich, Burroughs & Bailey. For some years Mr. Herberich's practice has been extensive and of an important character, connecting him with much of the important legal business in the community. Aside from his chosen profession he has connection with a number of the leading business enterprises of the city, being a director and assistant secretary of the Depositors Savings & Trust Company, a director and vice president of the Herberich-HallHarter Company, a director of the Guarantee Acceptance Corporation, a director and assistant secretary of the Herberich Realty Company and a director and vice president of the Ohio General Fire Insurance Company. He is a director and secretary and treasurer of The Villa Groves, Inc., a Florida corporation, and is a director and secretary of The Endowment Association of the University of Akron, an organization formed by Mr. Herberich in cooperation with former President Dr. Parke R. Kolbe for the benefit of the University. On the 25th of May, 1916, Mr. Herberich was united in marriage to Miss Agnes LaRoe, a daughter of James Albert and Katie LaRoe, representatives of a prominent family of Terrell, Texas. Mr. and Mrs. Herberich have become parents of three sons, all born in Akron : Edward Alfred, who was born October 19, 1920; Robert Walter, November 5, 1922; and Frederick David, November 8, 1925. They have resided at 1322 West Exchange street since 1923. Mr. Herberich is well known in the social organizations of 40 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY his city, being a member of the Akron City Club, the University Club, the Portage Country Club and the Turkey Foot Lake Club. He is also a thirty-second degree Mason, a member of the Grotto and of the Shrine and a member of the Masonic Club. His religious belief is indicated by his connection with the First Church of Christ Scientist. Along strictly professional lines he is identified with the Summit County, Ohio State and American Bar Associations and his professional duties and activities claim the major part of his time and attention, his thorough study, devotion to duty and a conscientious regard for the highest ethical standards of the profession having gained for him an enviable position among Akron's leading attorneys. WILLIAM H. EVANS, JR. Various business interests have felt the stimulus and profited by the cooperation of William H. Evans, Jr., one of the well known figures in Akron's financial and business life, his interests being of wide extent and importance and at all times of a character that contributes to public progress and prosperity as well as to individual success. He is widely known as the president and organizer of the Dime Savings Bank and for more than thirty-seven years has been identified with the financial life of the city. William H. Evans, Jr., was born in this city, August 8, 1878, a son of William H. and Carrie May (Ranney) Evans, the former a native of Herkimer, New York, while the latter was born in Boston township, Summit county, Ohio, a daughter of Luther B. Ranney, and a granddaughter of Comfort Ranney who was one of the real pioneers of Boston township, where he settled in 1820. William H. Evans came to Summit county in early life, worked his way through college, and in entering on his business career in Akron attained a position of prominence in financial circles that ranked him with the city's strong and able business men. He established and successfully conducted the Dime Savings Bank, also the William H. Evans Building & Loan Association. He was also the founder of the business now carried on under the name of the William H. Evans & Sons Company and was associated with many other worthy enterprises which were AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 41 a direct force in the substantial development and progress of his adopted city. He likewise contributed to the intellectual and moral progress of the community, was a member of the board of education and held other offices of trust and responsibility. He passed away June 14th, 1923, at the age of seventy-five years, having for several years survived his wife, whose death occurred on the 1st of March, 1916. They were the parents of five children: David R., Clyde A., Ethel E., now Mrs. H. 0. Hazard, all residents of Akron; Lida, the wife of A. S. Veirs of Boston township, Summit county; and William H. Jr. William H. Evans, Jr., was reared in Akron, attended the grade and high schools, and concluded his education at Buchtel College where he pursued his studies for two years. It was then that he made his initial step in the business world by entering the employ of the William H. Evans Building & Loan Association in 1891. He was associated with that business until 1900, when he perfected plans that resulted in the organization of the Dime Savings Bank, of which he has been president since 1925. The growth and development of this institution is a fine tribute to its management, and its classification as a Roll of Honor Bank is one of the reasons why it is accorded a prominent position among Akron's strong and ably managed financial institutions. A more extended mention of the Dime Savings Bank will be found elsewhere in this work. Mr. Evans' activities, however, cover a much wider scope and at all times he has proven a man of good sound business judgment, of keen discrimination and unfaltering enterprise. He is the executive head of the William H. Evans & Sons Company, doing an extensive business as real estate, loan and steamship agents. He is also the president of the Evans Agency Company, and vice president of the William H. Evans Building & Loan Association—organizations that are important factors in the city's business development. On the 29th of August, 1901, Mr. Evans was married to Miss Flora J. Goodwin, daughter of Alfred D. and Lucina C. Goodwin, of a prominent Akron family. Mr. and Mrs. Evans have six children, all born in Akron : Robert W., born in 1904, is a graduate of the Culver Military Academy and took a four-year course at the University of Arizona; Maurice G., born in 1906, is a graduate of Colgate University; Flora Josephine, born in 1908, is a graduate of Highland Hall, Miss Mason's school for girls at Tarrytown, New York; Ruth L., born in 1910, is also a 42 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY graduate of Highland Hall; May Helen, born 1918; and Elizabeth May, born 1920. Fraternally Mr. Evans is connected with the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, while socially he is well known as a member of the Portage Country Club and the Akron City Club. He is also a member of the Akron Automobile Club. His religious connection is with the First Congregational church. Mr. Evans' interest in civic welfare and progress is manifest in his connection with the Akron Chamber of Commerce and his support is readily extended to every plan and project for the general good. Gifted with a keen business insight and a ready grasp of affairs, Mr. Evans has had a career of unusual activity and success. The elements were happily blended in the rounding out of his nature; for he unites the refinements of life with the sterner qualities of manhood and his efforts have been resultant factors in every thing that he undertakes. His residence is at No. 40 Byers avenue, Akron, Ohio. ALEXANDER ADAMSON For forty-five years Alexander Adamson has been a resident of Akron and throughout the entire period has contributed to the business development of the city, where for many years he has conducted a successful industrial enterprise as president and general manager of the Adamson Machine Company. Steadfast purpose, indefatigable energy and laudable ambition have carried him far and success in substantial measure has been his for many years. Moreover, his life illustrates what can be accomplished by determined purpose, for he started out in the business world empty-handed and has steadily worked upward through sheer force of character and the development of his innate powers and talents. Mr. Adamson is a native of Scotland, his birth having occurred in the land of hills and heather November 20, 1861. His parents, William and Janet (Beveridge) Adamson, were also natives of Scotland, where the father engaged in business as a stationary engineer until 1869, when he came to the new world, settling in Mercer county, Pennsylvania, where he continued to follow his trade throughout his remaining days, his death occur- AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 45 ring in 1900. He had long survived his wife, who passed away in Scotland in 1867. In his youthful days Alexander Adamson joined his father in America, crossing the Atlantic when a lad of nine years. He attended the schools of Mercer county, Pennsylvania, and under the direction of his father learned the engineering trade. His identification with Ohio dates from 1876, at which time he took up his abode in Palmyra, where for seven years he was employed as a coal mining engineer. In 1883 he came to Akron, being at that time a young man of twenty-two years. Here he entered upon an apprenticeship to the machinist's trade with Webster, Camp & Lane Company and continued to follow the trade in the employ of others until March 1, 1892, when he determined to engage in business on his own account and did so, forming a partnership with J. W. Denmead, a shopmate. On the present site of the Doyle block on South Main street they opened a machine shop and the business prospered from the beginning, so that after eight months Mr. Adamson was able to purchase his partner's interest. Not all days in his career, however, have been equally bright. At times he has seen the storm clouds gathering, but he has managed to turn threatened failures into victories and the passing years have chronicled the steady growth of his business. In 1897 he erected a brick block, fifty by one hundred feet, on West Exchange street, and later added thereto, doubling the capacity of the plant. He also built a foundry and in 1907 incorporated his interests under the name of the Adamson Machine Company, of which he has since been president and general manager. In 1910 he built the first unit of his present large manufacturing plant, the initial building being a two-story brick structure eighty by one hundred and sixty feet. In 1912 this was enlarged by an addition two hundred and forty feet in length and in 1915 the size of the foundry was doubled. The equipment of the plant is thoroughly modern and in the foundry iron and steel castings are made, while the Adamson Machine Company manufactures all kinds of rubber machinery, molds, general machinery and castings. It has the largest capacity for making molds and cores of any factory in the world and from two hundred to three hundred skilled workmen find employment in the plant, which stands as a monument to the ability and enterprise of Mr. Adamson, whose success is as honorable as it is enviable. On the 3d of July, 1881, Mr. Adamson was united in marriage to Flora Ellen Burnett, who was born at Mineral Ridge, Ohio, a 46 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY daughter of Calvin Burnett. They have two children, Cecil F., and Vera. The latter is a graduate of the University of Michigan and is now a missionary at Laoag, in the Philippine islands, where she has been for ten years. Cecil F. Adamson, who was born in Palmyra, Ohio, June 25, 1882, founded the Adamson Manufacturing Company at East Palestine, Ohio, and under his management this industry has been developed into one of the foremost in his line in this part of the country, that of building electrically welded steel tanks from five to twenty-five thousand gallon capacity. He married Mary Harris of Salem, Ohio, and they have four children, all born in East Palestine : Alex W., born May 21, 1911; Jean, September 27, 1914; Shirley Ann, July 3, 1921; and Adele Marie, July 8, 1926. In his fraternal relations Mr. Adamson is a Mason. He is interested in all of those organizations which ameliorate the hard conditions of life for the unfortunate and is president of the Old Folks Home, having previously served as chairman of the executive committee. For twelve years he was president of the Akron Charity Organization Society. He has also been president and a director of the Young Men's Christian Association and his religious belief is indicated in his membership in the First Christian church, in which for many years he has been an elder. Those projects which have for their object the civic development and upbuilding of Akron also receive his strong endorsement and support. He belongs to the Chamber of Commerce, which he has represented on its directorate, and he gives his allegiance to all measures calculated to advance the general good. He has long been accounted one of the substantial and valued citizens of Akron, not only through his contribution to its industrial progress but also by reason of what he has done to uphold the civic, benevolent and moral interests of the city. Mr. Adamson resides at 1178 East avenue, having erected his home there in 1903. NATHAN M. BERK Among the well known business men and popular citizens of Akron who have risen through their own unaided efforts to success in a chosen field of labor is numbered Nathan M. Berk, the senior partner in the firm of Berk, Berk & Harvey, attorneys. He was born in Mozar, Austria, January 1, 1870, and is AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 47 a son of Israel and Esther (Balilos) Berk, who were also natives of that land, where they spent their entire lives, the father being engaged in professional work as an educator in one of the prominent colleges of Austria. He died in 1901, at the age of sixty-eight years, having for a considerable period survived his wife, who passed away in 1887. Nathan M. Berk was the youngest in a family of fourteen children. He began his education in the public schools of his native land and afterward continued his studies in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Akron. He later pursued a course of study in the Cleveland Law School, which numbers him among its alumni of 1909. In the meantime, however, he had worked along various lines, for it was necessary that he provide for his own support. All through his career, however, he had been actuated by a laudable ambition and each step in his business life has been a forward one, bringing him a broader outlook and wider opportunities. For twenty-six years he had devoted his attention to the conduct of a private banking business on Howard street and it was subsequent to that period that he pursued his law studies and entered upon active practice. He has since continued in general practice, winning a place among the representative lawyers of Akron. On the 7th of August, 1894, Mr. Berk was united in marriage to Miss Anna Whitelaw, of Akron, a daughter of Joseph Whitelaw, and they have become parents of three children. S. Bernard was born November 5, 1896, and since graduating from the John B. Stetson University has engaged in law practice. He wedded Miss Violet Greenhut, of Cleveland, and has two children, Roger G. and James Lawrence. Irving Stanley, the second son, born in Akron in 1901, was graduated from the law school of the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, was admitted to the Ohio bar in January, 1928, and married Miss Rosalind Schwartz, of Atlantic City. The other member of the family is Mrs. Eleanor Nobil, who was born in Akron in 1904 and is a graduate of a private school in New York. Mr. Berk is a director of the Rosemont Country Club and is a member of Temple Israel. He is also a member of the Summit County Bar Association. For many years he applied himself closely to his business affairs and his unfaltering diligence and earnest purpose at length gave him a place among the men of affluence in Akron. His strong purpose has never been swayed by indecision, his activities have never been hampered 48 - AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY by uncertainty, for his plans have ever been carefully formulated and he never stops short of their successful accomplishment. Thus it is that his business interests have been carefully managed, while in the field of his profession he has also attained a creditable place. He enjoys in full measure the respect and good will of those who know him and his friends throughout this section of Ohio are legion. WILLIAM L. DE LEONE Among the younger representatives of the Akron bar who have given evidence of capability and thorough training and are rapidly forging their way to the front is William L. De Leone, who for six years has been numbered among the alert and progressive young attorneys of this city. His birth occurred in Ravenna, Ohio, June 5, 1896, his parents being James F. and Theresa (Couzzo) De Leone, both of whom were natives of Italy but left that sunny land at an early age to become residents of the new world. This is one of the oldest Italian families of Ohio and the oldest in Ravenna, the parents settling there in 1880. The father was for many years engaged in the retail grocery business at Ravenna, Ohio, where he passed away January 8, 1916, his widow still making her home in that city. They were the parents of five children : William L.; Professor Francesco B. De Leone, of the University of Akron, and a well known composer-pianist; Joseph and Albert, who are residents of Ravenna; and Mrs. Laura De Niro, who is living in Youngstown, Ohio. The public school system of his native city accorded William L. De Leone his early educational opportunities and when his high school course was completed there he entered the Ohio Northern University as a law student and won his LL. B. degree at his graduation as a member of the class of 1920. Soon afterward he opened an office in Ravenna, where he continued in practice for two years, when he removed to Akron, where he has now remained in the general practice of law through a period of six years. His success in a professional way affords the best evidence of his capabilities in this line. He is a strong advocate with the jury and concise in his appeals before the court. He prides himself upon never urging a client into a suit for the sake of fees and he enjoys an enviable reputation among lawyers AKRON AND SUMMIT COUNTY - 49 by reason of the wide research and provident care with which he prepares his cases. He is a member of both the Summit County and Ohio State Bar Associations. Mr. De Leone was married in Columbus, Ohio, April 17, 1922, to Miss Grace F. Cianflona, of that city, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Michael Cianflona, well known in that city. Mr. and Mrs. De Leone have two children : Marilyn Theresa, born in Ravenna, February 17, 1923 ; and James F., born in Akron, February 18, 1926. Their residence is at 198 Kenilworth drive. There is an interesting military chapter in the life record of Mr. De Leone, inasmuch as he enlisted for service in the World war at Ravenna and was on duty at Camp Sherman as a member of the One Hundred and Fifty-eighth Depot Brigade and later served in the Thirty-first Company of the Central Officers Training School at Camp Gordon. He had qualified for a commission when he received his discharge. He was a member of the Ohio National Guard, serving as a private of Troop L of the First Ohio Cavalry. Fraternally he is connected with the Delta Theta Phi law fraternity and the Theta Nu Epsilon society. He also belongs to the Fraternal Order of Eagles, to the Sons of Italy, to the Mercator Club and the Espevia Club. He is well known and is highly esteemed by all with whom he has come in contact. ANTONIO MASINO Antonio Masino was a self-made man who wisely used his time, talents and opportunities and became one of the substantial citizens of Akron, where he took up his abode when the city contained a population of but fourteen thousand. As the years passed he figured prominently in its musical and commercial circles and success crowned his labors. Born in Naples, Italy, on the 16th of April, 1851, he pursued his education in the schools of that country while spending his youthful days in the home of his parents, Frank and Carmela Masino. When twenty years of age he crossed the Atlantic, coming to the new world for the purpose of playing the harp in an orchestra. He had received thorough training in that branch of music and was very skillful. Making his way to Akron in 1883, he first became a member of the Italian Royal Orchestra and played with that organization until an accident caused him the loss of a hand