John S. Crowell

JOHN S. CROWELL, president and general manager of the Crowell Publishing Company, of Springtield, Ohio, until February, 1906, when the business was sold to others. Mr. Crowell was the founder of that business in 1877, and has been one of the city's most active and progressive men since that date. A man of recognized business ability, he has been exceptionally successful and become widely known among publishers and advertisers throughout the United States as the founder and president of the Crowell Publishing Company, owners of the "Woman's Home Companion" and the "Farm and Fireside," two periodicals with over a million subscribers. '

John S. Crowell was born in Louisville, Kentucky, January 7, 1850, and was the seventh child born to his parents. His father, S. B. Crowell, was a member and one of the founders of the Walnut Street

Presbyterian Church, at Louisville, of which he was elected a deacon for life. John S. Crowell attended the public schools of his native city, and showed such aptitude in his studies that he was placed in classes with older pupils, among whom he ranked first. He completed an eight-year course in six years. Ajnbitious and self-reliant even in his boyhood days, at the age of eleven years, contrary to the wishes of his parents, he became a newsboy, his original capital invested being five cents, which he obtained in 1861, by holding a soldier's horse. For two years he sold papers in the early morning and attended school during the day. At fifteen years of age he secured a situation in a small printing office at $2.50 per week. This was a short time before the close of school, and so desirous was his instructor that he should take his final, or public examination, that he organized a posse of older scholars, who by force of arms conveyed him to the school-room m his work clothes, where he acquitted himself with credit. Contrary to the wishes of his parents and the advice of teachers, he refused to enter college and continued in business. Within six months a lai'ge job printing office offered him $12.00 per week, and he was soon made assistant foreman, and at seventeen years made foreman. His energy, industry and ability were so marked that his fellow-workmen at that time predicted that in the future he would have a large publishing house of his own. That he possessed rare presence of mind and was capable of quick thought, enabling him to grasp a trying situation on the spur of the moment, was demonstrated while he was employed in this printing office. A workman'i

N S. CROWELL was caught by the arm and held between the ceiling and a pulley making 150 revolutions per minute, and while others were looking on in horror, expecting to see him crushed, young Crowell grasped a belt with one hand, was instantly hurled to the ceiling, where, securing a footing, ho released his companion, who fainted in his arms. Early in the year 1868 Mr. Crowell became foreman of the Louisville Courier-Journal job printing establishment, and so continued until October, 1869, when he met with an accident which incapacitated him for work for a time. About an inch of his right thumb was mashed oflf while he was attending a power paper-cutting machine; he quickly adjusted the severed portion of his thumb while the man who had caused the accident shut his eyes and called for help, bat young Crowell was able to go alone in search of a doctor. While thus disabled he invented an elastic hand stamp, and the rubber-like material out of which It was made, and while he deemed the invention scarcely worthy a patent, commenced their manufacture. He employed his three brothers in the work, and did a very prosperous business until the panic of 1873. Then, after a visit to a ievi states and the Northern Lakes, he enter'cd the office of B. F. Avery & Sons, the well known plow manufacturers, of Louisville. He conducted the publication of their agricultural journal, "Home and Fr.rni," which prospered under his management. On a trip in the interest of "Home and Farm" he first met Mr. P. P. Mast, of Sjiringfield, Ohio, to whom he afterward suggested the idea of publishing an agricultural journal, with the result that in August, 1877, Mr. Crowell being twenty-seven years of age, moved to Springfield and established the "Farm and Fireside," which has had a long and prosperous career, and was probably the first cheap periodical, or publication, to prosper and obtain a national circulation and reputation. He may feel a just and pardonable pride in the success attained by this publication, as it was probably the pioneer to demonstrate that newspapers and magazines could be made profitable when sold at a price one-third to one-fourth the price charged previous to

The publishing house was known as Mast, Crowell & Kirkpatrick for many years. Early in its career they purchased "The Home Companion" from Cleveland parties, and changed the name or title to "The Woman's Home Companion," immer which name it grew in size and influence until it reached a circulation of nearly six hundred thousand copies.

At an early age John S. Crowell became a member of the Walnut Street Presbyterian Church, at Louisville, and during his residence there, was active in church and Sabbath-school work. At the age of seventeen years he was elected ]il)marian, at twenty became assistant superintendent and at twenty-one years became superintendent of the Sabbathschool. At twenty-five years of age he was chosen a deacon for life of the Walnut Street Church. He and his wife are now, 1908, members of the First Presbyterian Church, of Springfield, which they joined in November, 1877. Our subject, at the age of twenty-seven, was joined in marriage, November 20, 1877, with Miss

Ella C. Mangold, who comes of an old and prominent Louisville family.

Since coming to Springfield, Ohio, on August 17, 1877, Mr. Crowell has beer actively identified with many religious, educational, charitable and business of*- ganizations, and also has been an active advocate of the improvement and betterment of Springfield. His activities have resulted in his being chosen to occupy many positions of trust and honor, such as director of the First National Bank, of Springfield; also a director of the Columbia Life Insurance Company, of Cincinnati, and president of the board of trustees of the Western College lor Women, at Oxford, Ohio; also president of the board of trustees of the new Cily Hospital, of Springfield; elder of the First Presbyterian Church, and director of the Y. M. C. A., all of the foregoing positions being held by him at this time, 1908. He has also been president of the Springfield Board of Trade, and a director of the Associated Charities, and fir five years was president of the Springfield College and Seminary, and for two years president of the Young Men's Christian Association, and president of the Men's Literary Club. He was also elected superintendent of the Sundayschool a number of times, for a term ot one year each, and for nine successive terms of three years each, to the position of elder of the First Presbyterian Church, and is elder of the First Church at the present time, 1908.

A College Endowment.

When Mr. J. S. Crowell became a trustee of the Western College for Women, at Oxford, Ohio, it had existed for fifty years without an endowment, and no effort was being made to secure an endowment, therefore the college labored under many disadvantages. At the suggestion and earnest solicitation of Mr. Crowell, the board of trustees decided to employ a financial secretary or agent, whose duty it would be to give hi.s entire time and attention to the subject and work, solely and only for an endowment, and present the merits of the Western College to philanthropists, and others, interested in educational matters. Up to the present time over $260,000.00 has been subscribed, or pledged. This includes two gifts of fifty thousand dollars each from Andrew Carnegie and the General Education Board, which was founded by John D. Rockefeller. These two latter gifts are endorsements of the highest character of the "Western College for Women" and its trustees, as Mr. Carnegie and the General Education Board do not give such large amounts without careful investigation of the merits and standing of an institution.

Fifty Thousand Dollaes a Year Saved FOR Many Years.

In 1887 Mr. Crowell instituted an investigation of the Presbyterian Board of Publication, which is located at Philadelphia, Pa. This resulted in learning that the board was paying far more than it should for much of its printing, binding, folding, stitching, etc. When a report was made to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, of the United States, it ordered a change in the methods of the Board of Publication, as suggested by him, which resulted in a saving of over fifty thousand dollars each year, for many years, to the Presbyterian Church. The Presbytery, of Dayton, sent Mr. Crowell as a delegate to the General Assembly four years in succession, in order that he might attend to and report upon the investigation which resulted in such a great benefit to the Presbyterian Church.

The First Complete Steam R.railroad in Ameeica.

Stephen B. Crowell, the father of John S. Crowell, was a mechanic of more than ordinary ability. When he first came west, about 1825, he settled in Lexington, Kentucky, and became superintendent of his Uncle Joseph Bruen's Foundry and Machine Shop. In 1828 parties in Lexington requested Joseph Bruen to devise, or invent, some method to carry freight on land, so that Lexington, which was an inland town, could compete with river and seaport cities. Joseph Bruen turned the whole matter over to his nephew, Stephen Bruen Crowell, who designed the plans and made the drawings, and also the difficult parts of the patterns and hastings and machine work, and built a locomotive, a train of three cars, also a track in the form of a circle, on which the train traveled round and round. This train carried ears, passengers and freight, and was able to ascend an incline having a grade of eighty feet to the mile. The histoi'ian says, "The railroad and cars created the belief that carriages and heavy freight could be drawn as easily and certainly by steam power upon railroads as boats could be propelled by steam power through water." The whole outfit was exhibited in Lexington in 1829, and in Frankfort in [arch, 1830. and afterwards in Louisville, and it was so convincing to those who saw it, that the full amount of the estimated cost of a railroad from Lexington to Louisville, one million dollars, was soon subscribed and the building of the railroad commenced, with great military pomp and civic and religious ceremony. It is now a part of the Louisville and Nashville system. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad used horse power until 1832, which was four years after Stephen Bruen Crowell decided that steam was the proper power for railroads. A study of the history of railroads will not leave any doubt that Stephen Bruen Crowell, the father of John S. Crowell, was the first man in America to invent, design, build and operate a complete steam railroad, with locomotive, cars and track, that carried passengers and freight.

W. 0. PADEN, owner of eighty acres of farm land in Green Township, was born November 29, 1848, in German Township, Clark County, Ohio, and is a son of James and Catherine (Whitmer) Paden, and a grandson of James and Nancy (Beard) Paden.

James Paden, grandfather, was a native of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and after coming to Clark County, he operated a woolen mill near Lagonda until his death, which was caused by accidental drowning while crossing Buck Creek, on a foot log. He married Nancy Beard, who married (second) William Overpeck, a life-long resident of German Township and one of the largest landowners in this locality. She died at the advanced age of ninety-four years. Her marriage with

James Padeu resulted in the birth of three children, of whom James, the eldest, was born near the present site of Lagouda. After the death of his father he went to live with Peter Sintz, by whom he was reared and for whom he worked until the time of his marriage. He then settled at Springfield, where he conducted the Western Hotel and livery barn for some time, it being the best hotel the city then afforded. He subsequently located on Market Street and operated the Union Hotel, and he opened the first ice-cream parlor in the city of Springfield, and later built an ice house in Springfield, another innovation. His death occurred shortly after the completion of that building. He married Catherine Whitmer, who was born and reared near Tremont and was a daughter of Jacob Whitmer. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Paden. One daughter, Susan, died in young womanhood. David, the eldest of the family, was a soldier in the Union army during the Civil War. After his return home he bought a farm in Shelby County. Ohio. In 1875 he was accidentally killed while fighting a fire, a burning tree falling on him.

W. 0. Paden was reared in German Township and at the age of fourteen started out in the world for himself. He worked on farms by the month for two years, after which he attended school at Lebanon, having ol:)tained his primary education in German Township, and after completing his higher course he taught school for eighteen years. Mr. Paden then went to the South, where he engaged in the lumber business for twenty years. Upon his return to Clark County, Ohio, he purchased his present farm in Green

Township, where he has since followed farming in a general way.

Mr. Paden was united in marriage with Laura J. Garlough, a daughter of W. H. Garlough, a life-long resident of Green Township. Mr. and Mrs. Paden have had two children: Gertrude and Jimis P. The former married Irvin G. Hamma, who was born and reared in Green Township and is a son of Andrew Hamma. They have three children: Clarence, Thelma, and Gretta. Mr. Hamma formerly followed farming, later conducted a restaurant, after which he was proprietor of a hotel m Kentucky until his removal to St. Louis, where he at present resides and owns a hotel. Junis P. Paden died aged fourteen months. The 'mother of Mrs. Paden is still living at the advanced age of eighty-four years, making her home with Mr. and Mrs. Paden.

In politics Mr. Paden is a Democrat, and although an active worker in the interests of his party, has never cared to hold office. He is a Mason and an Odd Fellow and also belongs to the Grange. He is a member of the Presbyterian Church.

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.