George H. Frey

GEORGE H. FREY, Sr.

George H. Frey, Sr., prominent among the older residents of Springfield, was born at Philadelphia, Jefferson county, New York, December 19, 1825, and is a son of Samuel C. and Susan (Calhoun) Frey. The father was born at St. Johnsville, in what is now Fulton county, New York, and was of the fifth generation in the line of descent from Henry Frey, who settled at Paletine Bridge, New York, in 1684, having come from Zurich, Switzerland. The burgomaster of that city certified him to be a good house-builder. There were no white settlers as far up the valley of the Mohawk river as the locality im which Henry Frey took up his above. He was at the headquarters of the most warlike tribe of the Mohawk Indians and these were said to be the most ferocious of the American red men. He and his descendants, however, lived among these Indians for about one hundred years and never had any trouble with them. During all of the period of the early colonial history when the French possessed lower Canada and their Indian allies made frequent forays on the New England and New York colonies the Mohaiwk Indians were efficient protectors of the family. The next in the line of direct descent was Henry Frey, the second, and he was the father of Henry Frey, the third, who was attached to the staff of Sir William Johnson and was present at the capture of Fort Niagara, when it was taken from the French during the colonial wars. He also filled various commissions, by appointment the crown, including the position of colonel of militia and magistrate. He was likewise a member of the colonial legislature. - A man of broad learning, he had been admitted to the bar and was a prominent and influential resident of his community. ln 1774 he was appointed one of the judges of common pleas for the new county of Tryon, which embraced all the territory of the colony of New York, west of Schenectady. His frequent appointments, together with the fact that just before the Revolution he qualified as a judge, and also owing to the fact that he and associate judges declined to serve as members of the committee of public safety, led to his suffering much persecution, although his brother and his brother-in-law were both members of the committee of public safety and he was a warm personal friend of General Philip Schuyler, one of the leading patriots of the colony. His brother-in-law was General Nicholas Herkimer, but the influence of none of these men availed and neither did the fact that Judge Frey, himself, had contributed seven thousand dollars to the support of the army, for the grudges and jealousies of men, who seemed to control affairs, were manifest in the continued annoyances. He was also seized and sent to Hartford, Connecticut, and his son, Philip R. Frey, was also put under arrest, being taken from school at Schenectady and confined in the stockade at Johnstown, New York. The son, Philip R. Frey, became ill in his unhealthy place of confinement and his mother and sister procured for him permission to visit home, his arrest being an from arbitrary proceeding, for he was then only sixteen years of age when taken from school and put in confinement. As he was an only son his mother determined to put him 'beyond the reach of any further persecution and placed him in charge of some Indians of the Six Nations. Canada, where he remained until after the close of the Revolutionary war.

In the meantime Philip Frey was married in Detroit, Michigan, to Miss Marie Louise St. Martin, who, it is claimed, was a niece of General Montcalm, who fell at the head of the French troops in the battle of Quebec. On his return to the Mohawk valley Philip Frey, who was the grandfather of our subject, completed the study of law but was engaged in practice for only a few years, when he died. His first wife had previously passed away and he had afterward married Mrs. Elizabeth Howe. this union was Samuel C. Frey, the father of our subject,

Samuel C. Frey learned the trade of a watchmaker and silversmith at Canajoharie, New York, and also followed these pursuits in Syracuse, New York. He was married in the former place to Miss Calhoun, a native of Boston, Massachusetts, and a daughter of Andrew Calhoun, a native of the north of Ireland and also remotely related to the prominent Calhoun family of the south. In 1830, when the subject of this review was but five years of age, the father removed to Canada and there George H. Frey saw the first steamer that ever sailed on the waters of Lake Ontario. It was the old Niagara, which made a rate of speed of about five miles an hour. The father located at Brockville, Ontario, and took an active interest in public affairs. In 1837, when the rebellion arose, he and his immediate friends, among them Stephen Richards, the father of the late Chief Justice Richards, of the Do-

He was then taken to:

The first child born of minion of Canada, were threatened with arrest for suspected sympathy with the res hellion. Mr. Frey escaped without arrest and came to the states in December, 1837, settling at Morristown, New York, where he remained until 1838, when on account of supposed hostility to British interests and violation of the neutrality laws he was again threatened with arrest. He then went to Canton, Ohio, with his family, where he remained for nearly twenty years and from 1857 until 1870 he was a resident of Springfield. In the latter year he went south to: Decatur, Alabama, where he died in February, 1877, his wife passing away in March,

George H. Frey received his preliminary education at Brockville, Ontario, and later studied under the instruction of private tutors, receiving excellent educational advantages for those days. With the intention of becoming a member of the legal profession, he then entered the office of Hiram Griswold, of Canton, Ohio, and read law until admitted to the bar in Xenia, in June, 1847. - At that time he came to Springfield, which was then a town of about thirty-six hundred. He opened an office, entering into partnership with a man who was also the editor of the Republic, the leading Whig paper of the county. In 1849 Mr. Frey took ` charge of the office of the Cincinnati & Sandusky Telegraph Company, in this city, as operator for one year. In 1850 he was elected superintendent of the company and in 1852 he was elected president, so continuing until about 1859, when the company was absorbed by the Postal and Western Union Telegraph Companies, each purchasing a portion. During this time Mr. Frey had become one of the owners of the Republic printing office, having purchased an in- ` terest im 1854, about the time of the beginning of the agitation of slavery. He continued one of the editors and chief owners of the Springfield Republic until 1861, when, on account of ill health, he withdrew from the business and turned his attention to the quarry business, in the manufacture of lime on an extensive scale, having large quarries north of Buck creek in the city limits. This enterprise claimed his attention until about 1889, and the business was increased to a considerable extent, giving employment to many men. In 1889, however, Mr. Frey withdrew and has since lived in retirement. For a number of years he has been one of the directors of the Second National Bank and has other excellent investments in stock and property. -

In 1851 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Frey and Miss Jane Quigley Ward, of Springfield, a daughter of Isaac and Mary Ward. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Frey were born twelve children, of whom five are still living: Isaac Ward, George H., Albert C., Robert R. and Susan H. Robert is connected with the John Deere Plow Works, of Moline, Ilinois. The wife and mother died in April, 1881,in the faith of the Presbyterian church, of which she had long been a member. Mr. Frey has held membership with the First, the Second and the Third Presbyterian churches, joining these successively, as the churches have been divided and new ones formed in order to meet the demands of the growing population. He served as an elder in the Second church. In politics he has long been a stalwart Republican and the history of the Republican Party of Ohio said of him: “There is no one in the state of Ohio, who has done more for the city of Springfield and the county of Clark than has the gentleman whose name appears at the head of this sketch and no one is better posted than he in the early politics of Ohio. As a journalist his. pen has supported the principles of the grand old party, and his intelligent advocacy of its principles has been an important and effective factor in holding public sentiment. His firm ‘convictions om matters of public policy have led him to. stand loyally by the party through the period of its darkest gloom as well as its brightest days and to carry forward its work until many of its principles have been impressed upon the statute books of the nation. Today he stands as one of the pioneers of Republicanism in the state, a patriotic, devoted citizen, who earnestly cherishes the welfare of the country, and believes that the greatest good will come to the nation through the adoption of Republican policy. In 1856 he was appointed one of the delegates to the convention held at Pittsburg, February 22d, for the purpose of organizing” the national Republican party and to provide for the selection of delegates to the first Republican. national convention (for nominating presidential candidates) which was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 19, 1856, to which Mr. Frey was also a delegate. He was widely known in political circles and. was on intimate terms with many of the: early leaders. He was a personal friend of Horace Greeley, and when that eminent journalist was a candidate for president of the United States, Mr. Frey gave him a complimentary vote, as did all the voting members of the family.” He has made an untarnished record and unspotted reputation as a business man. In all places and under all circumstances he is loyal to truth, honor

‘and right, justly valuing his own self-respect as infinitely more preferable than wealth, fame and position. In those fine traits of character which combine to form that which we term friendship, which under and attach man to man in bonds which nothing but the stain of dishonor can sever, which triumph and shine brightest in the hour of adversity, —in those qualities he is royally endowed.

As printed in A Biographical Record of Clark County Ohio (1902). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.

GEORGE H. FREY, SR., owing to his prominence in the business, political and social life of Springfield for so many years, is rightly numbered with the city's representative men. He was born December 19, 1825, at Philadelphia, Jefferson County, New York, and is a son of Samuel C. and Susan (Calhoun) Frey.

The Frey family is an old one in America and has had many distinguished members. History tells of their connection with matters of the greatest public interest even prior to the Revolutionary War. Philip Frey, the grandfather of George H., was born in the Mohawk Valley, New York, but went to Canada when sixteen years of age. His last years, however, were spent in his native place, where he was engaged in the practice of law. He was married, fir.st, to Marie Louise St. Martin, of Detroit, Michigan, who was a member of the family of General Montcalm, and, secondly, to Mrs. Elizabeth Howe.

Samuel Challott Frey, father of George H., was born of the second marriage. He followed the trade of jeweler and silversmith at Canajoharie and at Syracuse, New York, until 1830, when he located at Broekville, Ontario, in the Dominion of Canada, where he resided until 1837. He then returned to the United States and settled for a few months at Morristown, New York. In 1838 he removed to Canton, Ohio. In 1857 he came to Springfield, where he was engaged in business until 1870, when he removed to Decatur, Alabama, in which place he died in 1877.

George H. Frey was afforded excellent educational advantages, and in June, 1847, after some time spent in the study of law, he was admitted to the bar at Xenia, Ohio, and immediately afterward opened a law office in Springfield. Here, soon after, he became interested in the "Republic," which was then the leading Whig journal of Clark County. In 1854 Mr. Frey became one of its owners and editors, retaining his interest therein until 1861. Mr. Frey had previously acquired a knowledge of telegraphy, of which he made practical use when, in 1849, he was placed in charge of the office of the Cincinnati & Sandusky Telegraph Company, at Springfield. In 1850 he was elected superintendent of the line, and two years later he became president of the company and served as such until it lost its individuality through its absorption by the Western Union corporation. After retiring from newspaper work, in 1861, Mr. Frey began developing a valuable quarry property which he had acquired along Buck Creek, and which became, in his hands, a very important business. Among other enterprises with which Mr. Frey was connected were the S. M. & P. Ry., in the organization of which he was a prime over, and which is now a part of the Big Four system; and the Jackson & Pomeroy Railway, now known as the D., T. & I.

In 1879, after over forty years of activity, Mr. Frey retired from the business field, taking with him the respect and esteem of his fellow-citizens.

In 1851 Mr. Frey was married to Jane Quigley Ward, who was a daughter of Isaac and Mary AVard, of Springfield. Mrs. Frey died in April, 1881, having been the beloved mother of twelve children, the following of whom survive: Isaac Ward, residing at Joplin, Missouri; George H., Jr., residing at No. 297 East High Street, Springfield, who is president of the Springfield, Wilmington & Cincinnati Railroad Company; Albert C, residing at No. 204 North Fountain Avenue, who is an extensive real estate dealer; Robert R., who is manager of The Grrand Detour Plow Company, at Dixon, Illinois; and Susan H.

Mr. Frey is a stanch Republican and for many years was active in political life. While serving as county commissioner, some important additions and improvements were made in the county buildings, among them the county Court House and Jail, the Children's Home, the County Infirmary (main building); also several turnpikes and many bridges throughout the county were constructed. Mr. Frey was also president of the board of trustees of the water-works department which, in 1881-83, constructed the present water-works system.

Mr. Frey was an elder in the Second Presbyterian Church at Springfield. His name is associated with many of the city's benevolent enterprises and charitable organizations.

As printed in 20th century history of Springfield, and Clark County, Ohio, and representative citizens (1908). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.