Clark County OhArchives Biographies.....Thomas, John H. October 4, 1826 - January 23, 1901
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Carolyn Golowka cgolowka@prodigy.net 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.

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