Boone County, KY - Bios: Souther, Chester and Chas. Friday, June 29, 2001 Submitted by: Buddy & Linda Harbin Grubbs lharbing@worldnet.att.net ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ************************************************ Supplement To The Boone County Recorder, Illustrated Historical Edition, R. E. Berkshire, Publisher, Burlington, Kentucky, Thursday, September 4, 1930 Chester and Chas. Souther Boone County has produced many notable men, but none have gone farther in their chosen professions than the two subjects of this sketch--Chester A. and Dr. Chas. Souther, twin sons of Albert Clifton and Rose Ashby Souther, who were born on March 10, 1876. As they grew up they attended the local schools of their neighborhood as well as the private school conducted by Mrs. Kirtley. From there on the lives of these two brothers began to separate as far as business and future professions were concerned. However, they have never lost the close personal association usually found in twins. First of all the writer will take up a short resume of their family ancestry. Their father, Albert Souther was a tailor by trade and was born in Boone County on Sept. 14, 1851 and died October 14, 1928. His parents and the boys’ paternal grandparents were Linville C. and Margaret Conner Yeager Souther. Linville was born in Boone County. The old Allen farm on Price Pike in 1815 and the house still stands there today. His wife, Margaret was a daughter of an old Boone County family and he was born in Florence in 1827. They had three sons---Louis, Frank and Albert. The great grandfather of these two brothers was John Souther who married a girl by the name of Wilhoit. This ancestor was born in Virginia and he died in 1866 at the age of eighty-four. They had ten children who grew up to marry. The mother of Charles and Chester Souther, Rose Asby was born on September 20, 1847 and died July 19, 1929. Her father was a doctor, dying at the comparatively early age of thirty-five from an infection received in his profession. We will now take up in a brief way the lives and accomplishments of the twin subjects of this sketch. Chester Arthur Souther started his life work as a bookkeeper at the age of sixteen with the old Hammond Typewriter Co. in Cincinnati at a wage of $26.00 per month. To get as varied an experience as possible and to more or less find himself for his work he had made several changes during the next few years; first with the Bradstreet Commercial Agency, then with the American Express Co., Davis Carriage Co., Dash and Carriage Good Co., and later with the American Oak Leacher Co., where he served as pay master. After submitting a cost accounting system as a test of his accounting ability he accepted a position with the American Audit Co., and became secretary of it shortly thereafter. This was about 1909. Mr. Souther had charge of the audit of Fayette County, Ky., covering a period of five years, and requiring the services of four men five months to complete. Some idea of the scope of this audit can be gained when it is known that six hours of consecutive reading was necessary in making the report to the Fiscal Court at Lexington. Shortly after this Chester entered business for himself as a certified public accountant. While in business for himself he was sent to Flint, Mich., to make a special investigation of the Chevrolet Motor Co., and while on this work met William C. Durant, the president of the Chevrolet Motor Co. Mr. Durant was so impressed with his work that he gave him the job devising and installing a complete accounting system for all Chevrolet plants besides looking after his own extensive business interest. In 1898 he was united in marriage with Keturah Corwin, daughter of Jesse and Fannie Swetman Corwine, who were residents of Florence. Mr. Souther is a member of the Masonic Lodge and of the Detroit Golf Club, and the Pontchartrain Club. Although he has achieved success far beyond the dreams of his youth, Mr. Souther is modest and unassuming in this private life, and will tell you (and probably prove it to you, too) that it was all just luck. Although his twin brother, Chester probably attained greater financial independence than Charles, the latter has assumed a place high in the regard of others in the profession of medicine and is today recognized as a leader in all kinds of surgery and a specialist in the surgical treatment of hernia. After leaving the private school of Mrs. Kirtley at Florence, Charles took a business course in 1889 and ‘90 at the old Cincinnati Business College, located where now is the Sinton Hotel. In 1894 he was assistant bookkeeper at the Davis Carriage Co., in the West End, later entering the retail grocery business at Erlanger. He was also proprietor of a general store at Bracht- Station and Burgin, Ky. He spent the year of 1897 at home farming. At this time he had the urge to take up nursing as a profession, and through his employment in a hospital came in contact with Dr. M. B. RIcketts, Ph. B., M. D., and L. L. D., who encouraged him to study medicine, ridiculing the excuses of Charles of insufficient money, etc. Dr. Ricketts was his preceptor and instrumental in the success Dr. Souther has since attained. Dr. Souther started his study of medicine with the insignificant sum of $30.00, paying his tuition throughout the next four years by helping out Dr. Ricketts in his surgical work. Dr. Souther’s first two years in college were at the Cincinnati College of Medicine and Surgery and two years at the Ohio Medical School on Clifton Ave., now a part of the University of Cincinnati. He graduated with high honors in 1902 and was given his degree of Doctor of Medicine. He spent one year at Christ hospital as an interne and another year at the Wichita Hospital, Wichita, Kansas, there they were a little more ----- -- their remuneration (not legible). In March 1904 Dr. Souther started a private practice with an office at 424 Broadway. Considering the fact that he was just starting out for himself, his first year was most successful, and had several cases for surgery and was called in consultation many times during the first two months. That year he visited the Eastern clinics at Washington, D. C., Philadelphia, New York, and John Hopkins Hospital at Baltimore, where he saw operations performed and received much data of great profit to his profession. In 1906 he made his first visit to the Mayo Clinic for study and has been there every two or three years since. The next year in 1907 he moved his office to 17 E. Ninth St., where he also lived. That year he became Gynecologist at St. Mary’s hospital and also again as general surgeon on the staff. In 1914 he was clinician at the General Hospital and surgical instructor on faculty of the Ohio Medical College. He entered the service of the Government on May 7, 1917, just a little over a month after war was declared and by reason of his experience and prestige was commissioned a captain. He remained in service seventeen months. Before going over seas he spent some time at Camp Sherman, and his next service was eight months at Base Hospital No. 25 at Allerey, France. The last two months of this time he was chief surgeon at this hospital and cared for between 1500 and 2,000 patients, most of which were surgical cases. He was in the St. Mihiel sector until after the signing of the Armistice and a few months later he was mustered out at Camp Dix on February 27, 1919. When he went to the army he gave up everything including a very lucrative practice and on his return it was like starting all over again. At this time he opened up offices in the Groton Bldg., 7th and Race, where he is now located. Soon after he was made a member of the staff on the Seton hospital that was later merged with the Good Samaritan. Former patients and friends were soon seeking his services, and as was said before he is recognized as a leader in the surgical treatment of hernia and most proficient in all other surgical cases. He performed over one thousand cases altogether. In 1919 he became a member the Bethesda hospital and the next year he was taken in on the staff of the Deaconess Hospital. In 1927 he was made a member the staff of the Booth Memorial Hospital of Covington and last year was made consulting surgeon of the Whitlatch Clinic at Milan, Ind. He has the extreme distinction of a fellowship in the American College of Surgeons, and was present at the organization of this college at Washington in 1912. He is affiliated with the county state and national associations under the head of the American Medical Association. He was president of the Cincinnati Academy of Medicine in 1916 and served as an officer in various capacities for eight years, being secretary for three years. Dr. Souther is a member of the Ohio Valley Medical Society, Western Surgical Association, and Clinical Congress of Surgeons of North America. They say that "a prophet is not without honor save in his own country etc." but probably the greatest tribute that has ever been paid to Dr. Souther is that he has operated on literally hundreds of people in Boone--those he was raised with, went to school with, and who in all probability stood higher in their classes, could out-run and out-wrestle him and were his superiors in all boyish games and contests. On December 29, 1924 Dr. Souther was united in marriage with Emma Cook. They reside in a beautiful home at 3817 Winding Way, Avondale.