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Subject: Oh-Clark Co. Bios (Thomas)
Date: 14 Jul 2005 20:32:20 -0000


Clark County OhArchives Biographies.....Thomas, John H. October 4, 1826 - January 23, 1901
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Carolyn Golowka July 14, 2005, 4:32 pm

Author: Hon. William M. Rockel

Hon. John H. Thomas. The death of John H. Thomas, which took place at his home
on East High Street, Springfield, January 23, 1901, removed from this city a
man whose business success, public spirit and sterling character, identified
him for all time with the agencies which contributed largely to the upbuilding
of this section. Mr. Thomas was born October 4, 1826, at Middletown, Maryland,
a son of Jacob and Sophia (Bowlus) Thomas.

After satisfactorily completing the public school course, Mr. Thomas entered
Marshall College, at Mercersburg, Pennsylvania, where he graduated with the
class of 1849. He then turned his attention to the study of law, entering the
office of Hon. S. W. Andrews, at Columbus, Ohio, and, in 1851, that of William
White, then the leading attorney at Springfield. For two years after admission
to the bar, he continued to practice law at Springfield, and was then chosen
county recorder, a rather unusual token of appreciation, as Mr. Thomas has so
recently become a resident of Clark County. In the meanwhile this sections was
just awakening to the possibilities afforded in the direction of manufacturing,
and Mr. Thomas was one of the first to take advantage of the situation. He
entered into partnership with P. P. Mast and they founded the well known
agricultural Implement firm of Thomas and Mast, and upon so sound a foundation,
that it weathered the storms of financial depression in 1857, continued to grow
in importance, and within a few years ranked with the largest in the state.
Mr. Thomas remained a member of this firm until 1872.

In 1874, after two years of rest, Mr. Thomas re-entered the manufacturing field
in partnership with his two sons, William S. and Findlay B. They erected the
large plant which stands on South Limestone Street and there The Thomas
Manufacturing Company began, which still continues the extensive manufacture of
all kinds of agricultural implements, having established a reputation second to
none in the specialties of hay machinery, harrows and grain drills. William S.
Thomas is president of the above mentioned company, as well as its treasurer,
and Findlay B. is also associated in the business of manufacturing farm
implements.

For very many years, the late John H. Thomas stood as one of Springfield’s most
public-spirited citizens. He served on the City Council with marked usefulness
and was chosen a member of various civic boards, at the time of his death being
a member of the Snyder Park Board. He was a stanch member of the Democratic
party and was held in such esteem by its leaders that in 1868 he was nominated
for Congress and still later was made the Democratic standard-bearer for the
United States Senate against Hon. Calvin S. Brice. The duties of every office
he held were performed with the ability and capacity which marked the
management of his private affairs.

In 1854, Mr. Thomas was married to Mary Bonser, who was the youngest daughter
of Hon. Jacob Bonser, of Chillicothe, Ohio, and they had four children, namely:
William S., who is president of the Mad River National Bank of Springfield and
of The Thomas Manufacturing Company; Findlay B., who is prominent also in the
business life of Springfield; Nellie, who is the wife of Judge A. N. Summers;
and Mable, who is the wife of L. P. Matthews. Mr. Thomas was a member of the
Presbyterian Church and was always a liberal supporter of its many charitable
enterprises. His private philanthropies were numerous and one of these, a
notable one, may be mentioned – the Mitchell-Thomas Hospital, which was a joing
gift to the city for the benefit of its sick and afflicted, from Ross Mitchell
and John H. Thomas.


Additional Comments:
Source of this Biography:
"20th Century History of Springfield, and Clark County, Ohio and Representative
Citizens," edited and compiled by Hon. William M. Rockel; Published by
Biographical Publishing Co., Chicago, Illinois, 1908, pages 549-550.

File at: http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/oh/clark/bios/thomas85bs.txt

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