George Dexter Whitcomb
Encyclopedia
George Dexter Whitcomb an American
manufacturer
and founder of the town of Glendora, California
.
Tilton) Whitcomb, George Dexter Whitcomb was the second of eight children. The family relocated to Franklin Mills, Ohio (now known as Kent, Ohio
), where Dexter worked as a shoemaker and mechanic
. Young Whitcomb attended public schools and later worked as a ticketing agent and telegraphist
for the Panhandle Railroad
to pay his tuition while at business college in Akron, Ohio
. This was the beginning of a lifelong career and association with railroading.
In 1856, he moved Saint Paul, Minnesota
, to manage a company that was trading with Indians on the frontier. There, in 1857, he met and began courting Leadora Bennett. Leadora was the daughter of Captain Abraham and Elizabeth (Barney) Bennett. Leadora's father was a well known pioneer steamboat captain and owner on the upper Mississippi River
. She was born in Wheeling, West Virginia
, and had graduated from the Young Ladies Seminary there.
Shortly after their marriage, in 1859, the Whitcombs moved to Chicago
, where Whitcomb returned to railroading and became a purchasing agent for the Chicago and Alton Railroad
. When the American Civil War
broke out, he volunteered for duty with the Union Army
, and his service assignment was production of ties and supplies for use on Union railroads. While assigned to the war construction supply, he and Leadora lost their infant son Henry, in January 1864.
and several hundred miles of track for the Panhandle Railroad. In an attempt to cheer Leadora and help them through the loss of their infant son, he built a steamboat on the nearby Mississippi River
named the Leadora, in her honor.
By 1865, Whitcomb had been promoted to General Purchasing Agent for the Panhandle Railroad and the family included George Bennett Whitcomb and Carroll Sylvanus Whitcomb. He was now moving on to ownership of his own company and relocated to Chicago. His new company was engaged in production of coal mining
machinery and coal field development to supply the railroads. In 1871, the disastrous Great Chicago Fire
destroyed most of the central city. The offices of the Whitcomb Mining and Manufacturing Company were relocated to the corner of LaSalle and Adams Street in the Loop
area of downtown Chicago. The Schlosser Block, where the company offices were located, was a four story impressive granite faced building, just doors from the famed “Rookery” building by the architects Burnham and Root
. These were heady days in Chicago. A rebirth swept the city after the fire and it was a time for men with ideas and dreams to seize potential.
Whitcomb was swept into this renaissance and continued the development and manufacture of all manner of mining machinery as well as other kinds of small machinery. With the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad
in 1869, easier quicker and cheaper methods of locating and processing coal were now in great demand. That demand drove the need for more advanced drilling and processing machinery as well as a safer method to transport the coal from the inside of the mines. Men with pickaxes and mules and wagons had long been the means of locating and moving the coal to the surface. Whitcomb recognized the need for more advanced methods and went on to invent a small battery operated locomotive that would pull coal cars safely from the mines. He also developed more precise coal drills and processing machinery that sped up as well as made safer the coal mining process.
By the late 1870s George Whitcomb had a successful company and a fine home in the Drexel Park area of Chicago and his family had grown once again to include William Card Whitcomb, Leadora Whitcomb, Elizabeth Emily Whitcomb, and Virginia Whitcomb. However, the failing health of his son Carroll and the continued health problems of his beloved wife forced dramatic changes on the family very quickly. Through his entire life, Whitcomb was a dedicated husband and family man and his foremost thoughts were always of his family’s security and wellbeing. Remembering the pain of the loss of their son, the couple was willing to do whatever the doctors advised to recover the health of both Carroll and Leadora. A milder climate such as Arizona
or Southern California
was suggested, and the Whitcombs soon began investigating the Los Angeles
area. Since the expansion of the railroads was complete, travel that before took four to six months time overland, had now been reduced to six days. The western states were now much more attractive and the more temperate climate of Southern California
was the place where people went to escape the harsh winters and humid summers of the east coast.
Using the same attention he had to previously concentrated on his company, Whitcomb scoured the Los Angeles basin and determined that he should relocate the family there. He would continue to run his company, now renamed the Whitcomb Locomotive Works
, through the means of telegraph messages and with the assistance of trusted employees in the Chicago offices. By the early 1880s the family was living in a rented home near downtown Los Angeles and Whitcomb was homing in on the location for his latest and most lasting endeavor, the creation of a new foothill town.
He finally settled on land that had once been part of the western end of the old Dalton Rancho. He purchased several hundred acres and became associated with John W. Cook (a Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors member) and Merrick Reynolds (owner of the San Pedro Lumber Company). The three formed the Glendora Land Company and the Glendora Water Company. Whitcomb constructed a 26-room villa at the northern most end of Vista Bonita Avenue. There he laid out his own groves of oranges
, other fruit trees and deciduous
trees. Once his residence was established and his family was settled, his work began in earnest to develop the plans for his new town. He chose the name Glendora, a combination of two words, the first being the location of his new home in a glen
of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains
, and the second was his wife’s nickname (Dora). Combined they became “Glendora.”
The company set about to establish infrastructures that would support a "family town" founded with a sense of permanence and values. The company built a comfortable hotel (the Belleview) and a land office, both were elegant structures in the Victorian architecture
style. Whitcomb donated the land and $5000 for the construction of a school. He also donated land for the Methodist Church. Drilling equipment was brought in to locate a reliable source of water. Streets were graded, laid out and named, and thousands of pepper trees were planted. Whitcomb at this same time entered into negotiations to relocate the planned railroad line to the north of the San Jose Hills, now known as the South Hills. He used his past affiliations with rail officials and could be seen assisting the survey crews to bring the line along the southern most edge of the town site. He was able to attract a newspaper (The Signal) to the new village to spread the local news and continue to attract new settlers. The town development was a vision of true foresight, designed to attract solid families as settlers looking for schools, churches and reliable businesses. The founding of Glendora represented a lifetime’s work, accomplished in less than three years time.
Whitcomb continued his untiring interest and devotion to Glendora for the next 30 years. The Whitcomb home was a center of activity during these years and guests ranged from the Bovards (of the newly established University of Southern California
) to civic leaders from the city of Los Angeles, from the county and from the state, as well as business leaders from around the country. During those years, he was able to convince Glendorans to delay the incorporation of Glendora until the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors agreed to pave Foothill Boulevard and make several other civic improvements in Glendora with county funds. He worked to bring the Pacific Electric line to Glendora. He also helped to form the Glendora School District and he served on the first board of trustees.
He and Leadora continued to travel regularly to Chicago and Rochelle, Illinois
(where his factory had been relocated) to check on his company, which was by now manufacturing locomotives, an automobile, small machinery and mining equipment. They also traveled regularly to Sacramento, California
to follow the state legislature.
continued to operate until 1930, when controlling interest was sold to Baldwin Locomotives. His beautiful home in Glendora, known as “The White House,” was destroyed by fire in the 1920s. In his honor today in Glendora there remains, Whitcomb Avenue, Whitcomb High School and The Whitcomb Courtyard at the Glendora Historical Society on Glendora Avenue. But surely the greatest tribute to his memory was the founding of the city of Glendora, California.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
manufacturer
Manufacturing
Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
and founder of the town of Glendora, California
Glendora, California
Glendora is a municipality in Los Angeles County, California, United States, east of downtown Los Angeles. As of the 2010 census, the population of Glendora was 50,073....
.
Early life
Born in Brandon, Vermont to Dexter and Emily (néeMarried and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Tilton) Whitcomb, George Dexter Whitcomb was the second of eight children. The family relocated to Franklin Mills, Ohio (now known as Kent, Ohio
Kent, Ohio
Kent is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the largest city in Portage County. It is located along the Cuyahoga River in Northeastern Ohio on the western edge of the county. The population was 27,906 at the 2000 United States Census and 28,904 in the 2010 Census...
), where Dexter worked as a shoemaker and mechanic
Mechanic
A mechanic is a craftsman or technician who uses tools to build or repair machinery.Many mechanics are specialized in a particular field such as auto mechanics, bicycle mechanics, motorcycle mechanics, boiler mechanics, general mechanics, industrial maintenance mechanics , air conditioning and...
. Young Whitcomb attended public schools and later worked as a ticketing agent and telegraphist
Telegraphist
Telegraphist is an operator who uses the morse code in order to communicate by land or radio lines. Telegraphists were indispensable at sea in the early day of Wireless Telegraphy. During the Great War the Royal Navy enlisted many volunteers as Telegraphists. Telegraphists are also called Telegraph...
for the Panhandle Railroad
Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad
The Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, commonly called the Pan Handle Route , was a railroad forming part of the Pennsylvania Railroad system. Its common name came from its main line west from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania across the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia...
to pay his tuition while at business college in Akron, Ohio
Akron, Ohio
Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...
. This was the beginning of a lifelong career and association with railroading.
In 1856, he moved Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul, Minnesota
Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...
, to manage a company that was trading with Indians on the frontier. There, in 1857, he met and began courting Leadora Bennett. Leadora was the daughter of Captain Abraham and Elizabeth (Barney) Bennett. Leadora's father was a well known pioneer steamboat captain and owner on the upper Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. She was born in Wheeling, West Virginia
Wheeling, West Virginia
Wheeling is a city in Ohio and Marshall counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia; it is the county seat of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area...
, and had graduated from the Young Ladies Seminary there.
Shortly after their marriage, in 1859, the Whitcombs moved to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, where Whitcomb returned to railroading and became a purchasing agent for the Chicago and Alton Railroad
Alton Railroad
The Alton Railroad was the final name of a railroad linking Chicago to Alton, Illinois, St. Louis, Missouri, and Kansas City, Missouri. Its predecessor, the Chicago and Alton Railroad , was purchased by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1931 and was controlled until 1942 when the Alton was...
. When the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
broke out, he volunteered for duty with the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
, and his service assignment was production of ties and supplies for use on Union railroads. While assigned to the war construction supply, he and Leadora lost their infant son Henry, in January 1864.
Career
After the war, Whitcomb continued to push railroad development. He saw the potential for westward continental expansion and he threw himself into work with the railroads. His endeavors included a construction contract for a major bridge across the Ohio RiverOhio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
and several hundred miles of track for the Panhandle Railroad. In an attempt to cheer Leadora and help them through the loss of their infant son, he built a steamboat on the nearby Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
named the Leadora, in her honor.
By 1865, Whitcomb had been promoted to General Purchasing Agent for the Panhandle Railroad and the family included George Bennett Whitcomb and Carroll Sylvanus Whitcomb. He was now moving on to ownership of his own company and relocated to Chicago. His new company was engaged in production of coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
machinery and coal field development to supply the railroads. In 1871, the disastrous Great Chicago Fire
Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned from Sunday, October 8, to early Tuesday, October 10, 1871, killing hundreds and destroying about in Chicago, Illinois. Though the fire was one of the largest U.S...
destroyed most of the central city. The offices of the Whitcomb Mining and Manufacturing Company were relocated to the corner of LaSalle and Adams Street in the Loop
Chicago Loop
The Loop or Chicago Loop is one of 77 officially designated Chicago community areas located in the City of Chicago, Illinois. It is the historic commercial center of downtown Chicago...
area of downtown Chicago. The Schlosser Block, where the company offices were located, was a four story impressive granite faced building, just doors from the famed “Rookery” building by the architects Burnham and Root
Burnham and Root
Burnham and Root was the name of the company that John Wellborn Root and Daniel Hudson Burnham established as one of Chicago's most famous architectural companies of the nineteenth century....
. These were heady days in Chicago. A rebirth swept the city after the fire and it was a time for men with ideas and dreams to seize potential.
Whitcomb was swept into this renaissance and continued the development and manufacture of all manner of mining machinery as well as other kinds of small machinery. With the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad
Transcontinental railroad
A transcontinental railroad is a contiguous network of railroad trackage that crosses a continental land mass with terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single railroad, or over those owned or controlled by multiple railway companies...
in 1869, easier quicker and cheaper methods of locating and processing coal were now in great demand. That demand drove the need for more advanced drilling and processing machinery as well as a safer method to transport the coal from the inside of the mines. Men with pickaxes and mules and wagons had long been the means of locating and moving the coal to the surface. Whitcomb recognized the need for more advanced methods and went on to invent a small battery operated locomotive that would pull coal cars safely from the mines. He also developed more precise coal drills and processing machinery that sped up as well as made safer the coal mining process.
By the late 1870s George Whitcomb had a successful company and a fine home in the Drexel Park area of Chicago and his family had grown once again to include William Card Whitcomb, Leadora Whitcomb, Elizabeth Emily Whitcomb, and Virginia Whitcomb. However, the failing health of his son Carroll and the continued health problems of his beloved wife forced dramatic changes on the family very quickly. Through his entire life, Whitcomb was a dedicated husband and family man and his foremost thoughts were always of his family’s security and wellbeing. Remembering the pain of the loss of their son, the couple was willing to do whatever the doctors advised to recover the health of both Carroll and Leadora. A milder climate such as Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
or Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
was suggested, and the Whitcombs soon began investigating the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
area. Since the expansion of the railroads was complete, travel that before took four to six months time overland, had now been reduced to six days. The western states were now much more attractive and the more temperate climate of Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
was the place where people went to escape the harsh winters and humid summers of the east coast.
Using the same attention he had to previously concentrated on his company, Whitcomb scoured the Los Angeles basin and determined that he should relocate the family there. He would continue to run his company, now renamed the Whitcomb Locomotive Works
Whitcomb Locomotive Works
Whitcomb Locomotive Works was founded by George Dexter Whitcomb , of Chicago, Illinois, who started a modest machine shop in 1878, and began the manufacture of coal mining machinery, laying the foundation for the concern that became known as The Whitcomb Locomotive Company.-Beginnings:Mr. Whitcomb...
, through the means of telegraph messages and with the assistance of trusted employees in the Chicago offices. By the early 1880s the family was living in a rented home near downtown Los Angeles and Whitcomb was homing in on the location for his latest and most lasting endeavor, the creation of a new foothill town.
He finally settled on land that had once been part of the western end of the old Dalton Rancho. He purchased several hundred acres and became associated with John W. Cook (a Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors member) and Merrick Reynolds (owner of the San Pedro Lumber Company). The three formed the Glendora Land Company and the Glendora Water Company. Whitcomb constructed a 26-room villa at the northern most end of Vista Bonita Avenue. There he laid out his own groves of oranges
Orange (fruit)
An orange—specifically, the sweet orange—is the citrus Citrus × sinensis and its fruit. It is the most commonly grown tree fruit in the world....
, other fruit trees and deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
trees. Once his residence was established and his family was settled, his work began in earnest to develop the plans for his new town. He chose the name Glendora, a combination of two words, the first being the location of his new home in a glen
Glen
A glen is a valley, typically one that is long, deep, and often glacially U-shaped; or one with a watercourse running through such a valley. Whittow defines it as a "Scottish term for a deep valley in the Highlands" that is "narrower than a strath."...
of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains
San Gabriel Mountains
The San Gabriel Mountains Range is located in northern Los Angeles County and western San Bernardino County, California, United States. The mountain range lies between the Los Angeles Basin and the Mojave Desert, with Interstate 5 to the west and Interstate 15 to the east...
, and the second was his wife’s nickname (Dora). Combined they became “Glendora.”
The company set about to establish infrastructures that would support a "family town" founded with a sense of permanence and values. The company built a comfortable hotel (the Belleview) and a land office, both were elegant structures in the Victorian architecture
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
style. Whitcomb donated the land and $5000 for the construction of a school. He also donated land for the Methodist Church. Drilling equipment was brought in to locate a reliable source of water. Streets were graded, laid out and named, and thousands of pepper trees were planted. Whitcomb at this same time entered into negotiations to relocate the planned railroad line to the north of the San Jose Hills, now known as the South Hills. He used his past affiliations with rail officials and could be seen assisting the survey crews to bring the line along the southern most edge of the town site. He was able to attract a newspaper (The Signal) to the new village to spread the local news and continue to attract new settlers. The town development was a vision of true foresight, designed to attract solid families as settlers looking for schools, churches and reliable businesses. The founding of Glendora represented a lifetime’s work, accomplished in less than three years time.
Whitcomb continued his untiring interest and devotion to Glendora for the next 30 years. The Whitcomb home was a center of activity during these years and guests ranged from the Bovards (of the newly established University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
) to civic leaders from the city of Los Angeles, from the county and from the state, as well as business leaders from around the country. During those years, he was able to convince Glendorans to delay the incorporation of Glendora until the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors agreed to pave Foothill Boulevard and make several other civic improvements in Glendora with county funds. He worked to bring the Pacific Electric line to Glendora. He also helped to form the Glendora School District and he served on the first board of trustees.
He and Leadora continued to travel regularly to Chicago and Rochelle, Illinois
Rochelle, Illinois
Rochelle is a city in Ogle County, Illinois, United States. The population was 9,574 at the 2010 census, up from 9,424 at the 2000 census. Rochelle is about west of Chicago and south of Rockford...
(where his factory had been relocated) to check on his company, which was by now manufacturing locomotives, an automobile, small machinery and mining equipment. They also traveled regularly to Sacramento, California
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
to follow the state legislature.
Death
On June 21, 1914, after a lifetime of achievements, George Dexter Whitcomb died at his home in Glendora, at the age of 80. He is buried in Inglewood Cemetery, in Los Angeles. He left his beloved wife Leadora, three surviving sons and three daughters. His company, the Whitcomb Locomotive WorksWhitcomb Locomotive Works
Whitcomb Locomotive Works was founded by George Dexter Whitcomb , of Chicago, Illinois, who started a modest machine shop in 1878, and began the manufacture of coal mining machinery, laying the foundation for the concern that became known as The Whitcomb Locomotive Company.-Beginnings:Mr. Whitcomb...
continued to operate until 1930, when controlling interest was sold to Baldwin Locomotives. His beautiful home in Glendora, known as “The White House,” was destroyed by fire in the 1920s. In his honor today in Glendora there remains, Whitcomb Avenue, Whitcomb High School and The Whitcomb Courtyard at the Glendora Historical Society on Glendora Avenue. But surely the greatest tribute to his memory was the founding of the city of Glendora, California.