Lewis B. Houck

LEWIS B. HOUCK.

Whether the elements of success in life are innate attributes of the individual or whether they are quickened by a process of circumstantial development, it is impossible to clearly determine. 'Yet the study of a successful life, whatever the field of endeavor, is none the less interesting and profitable by reason of existence of this same uncertainty. One of the well known citizens of Mt. Vernon, Knox county, who deserves distinctive prestige among the enterprising men of affairs is Lewis B. Houck. He has earned the right to be called one of the progressive men of this locality, having fought his way onward and upwards to a prominent position in the circles in which he has chosen to move, and in every relation of life his voice and influence are on the side of right as he sees and understands the right.

Mr. Houck was born on April 19, 1867, in Bladensburg, Knox county,

Ohio. He is the son of Washington and A saline (Bebout) Houck. Grandfather William Houck was a resident of Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, and was a Revolutionary soldier. His son. Washington Houck, father of the subject of this sketch, was born in that county and in 1822 he came with the early settlers to Knox county, Ohio, locating in Jackson township, having made the entire journey from his old home in the Keystone state on foot. Here he became very well established, and later laid out the town of Bladensburg on his farm and built the first home there. In connection with general farming Mr. Houck conducted a general store in Bladensburg for a number of years, being regarded as an enterprising and public-spirited citizen of that community, filling many offices of trust and responsibility there. In 1822 he organized a Disciples church in his own home in Bladensburg, which was the first Disciples congregation in Ohio, and he was later made an elder in that church. His uncle, Jacob Houck, laid out the town of Centerburg, Knox county, in 1817, and thus the family was active and prominent in the progress and development of this locality. Mrs. Houck’s parents, Lewis and Elizabeth Bebout, came from Greene county, Pennsylvania, to Clay township, Knox county, in 1826.

Lewis B. Houck, of this review, spent his childhood and youth in his native village of Bladensburg, and there attended the public schools, later entering the normal school at Martinsburg, then Oberlin College, at Oberlin, Ohio. With this broad and liberal foundation, he took up the study of law in the office of H. D. Critchfield at Mt. Vernon, who afterwards became general counsel for the United States Telephone Company at Cleveland.

In 1892 Mr. Houck was admitted to the bar and immediately opened offices in Mt. Vernon. Well grounded in the principles of jurisprudence and with an industry which knew no bounds, he immediately began to acquire a good, practice, his clientage soon embracing those whose business was of most j important character and his practice extending to all the courts of the district and state. A safe counselor and an able advocate, he has won many notable cases, has kept fully abreast of the times in all matters pertaining to his;

profession and won a place in the front rank of the legal lights of this section of the state, being an earnest, painstaking, far-seeing and cautious lawyer who always has the interests of his clients at heart and spares no pains in furthering their interests.

Before Mr. Houck began his career as an attorney he engaged successfully in teaching in the district schools of the county for a period of eight years, and for nine years, from 1888 to 1897, he was a member of the, county board of school examiners for Knox county, this being a longer time than that of any other official in the same office. In 1898 he was elected to the Mt. Vernon city council and was re-elected in 1890 and 1892. He has always been active in the Democratic party, making his influence felt in local and state politics. He served on the county central committee and as chairman of the executive committee of the county and for years he has rendered efficient service to the Democratic cause. He was elected to the Ohio State Senate in 1903 and while a member of that distinguished body he made his influence felt for the good of his native community and the state in general. He served on many important committees, including the judiciary, taxation, labor, fees and salaries and various others, eleven in all. It was during his term that the Ohio state sanatorium for tuberculosis patients was authorized and its location secured for Knox county. In the state campaign of 1905 he was nominated by his party as its candidate for lieutenant-governor, and while John M. Patterson, the candidate for governor, was able to overcome the great Republican majority, the remainder of the Democratic state ticket was defeated. When Governor Patterson was inaugurated he selected Mr. Houck as his private secretary, which responsible and difficult position he filled with such ability and fidelity that it brought much credit to himself and the hearty commendation of the governor, continuing his duties in this capacity until after the death of his chief, who was succeeded by Lieutenant-Governor Andrew L. Harris, a Republican, and Mr. Houck retired.

In fraternal circles Mr. Houck is a member of the various Masonic bodies and he is past chancellor of Timon Lodge No. 45, Knights of Pythias; past grand of Ouindaro Lodge No. 316, Independent Order of Odd Fellows; and he is regent of Mt. Vernon Council No. 11, Royal Arcanum. He served as grand master of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows in 1908 and 1909, and has been representative to the grand lodge of both the Odd Fellows and Royal Arcanum. He is also a member of the Improved Order of Red Men. He has long been prominent in fraternal circles of this section of the state.

Few men are more generally known throughout the state than Mr. Houck through his fraternal and political acquaintances, and he has won the confidence and esteem of all who know him.

In religion Mr. Houck’s views are in harmony with the doctrines and teachings of the Disciples church, in which he was reared.

Mr. Houck was married on December 12, 1894, to Aria B. Nicholls. the refined and talented daughter of Daniel and Caroline ( AlcCamment) Nicholls. Grandfather Thomas Nicholls was a soldier in the war of 1812 and he came from Brooke county, Virginia, to Knox county Ohio, in the

G8o very early history of this county, about 1810. The maternal grandfather, John S. McCaiument, was also a pioneer here, having come from Greene county, Pennsylvania, in the early years of the last century and here both families became well established and known. The elder McCamment took considerable interest in public affairs and served as county commissioner in the early days and for three terms as infirmary director. For thirty years he was a justice of the peace in Jackson township and won high regard for his equity and justice.

One son has been born to Mr. and Mrs. Houck, Lewis Daniel, now thirteen years of age and a pupil of the Mt. Vernon high school, where he is making a splendid record.

Mr. Houck has won an enviable place among men, a leader in his profession and in the political party to which he has ever been loyal, also in fraternal and social circles. He has little time for leisure, always being busy with some important matter. He has been faithful to every trust reposed in him, is systematic in his work, painstaking and untiring, accomplishing what would astonish many men. He is pronounced in his views, always having the courage of his convictions, but is fair and considerate to his opponents. His pleasant, hospitable home is one of the most imposing in the city, located at No. 107 North Main street, and here the many friends of the family frequently gather, never failing to find here good cheer and oldtime friendliness.

As printed in Past and present of Knox County, Ohio (1912). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.