Orrin Henry Ingram (May 13, 1830 – October 16, 1918) was an American
lumber baron
A business magnate, also known as an industrialist or tycoon, is a person who is a powerful entrepreneur and investor who controls, through personal enterprise ownership or a dominant shareholding position, a firm or industry whose goods or ser ...
and philanthropist from
Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Eau Claire ( ; lit. "clear water") is a city in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin, Eau Claire and Chippewa County, Wisconsin, Chippewa counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the county seat, seat of Eau Claire County. It is the List of citie ...
. Orphaned at age 11, he established sawmills in
Ontario
Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
, Canada, and the
Chippewa Valley
The Chippewa Valley is a valley in Wisconsin, US.
History
The valley was first inhabited by the Ojibwe and colonized by German and Scandinavian immigrants. The region also has a large Hmong community. While the term "Chippewa Valley" technic ...
of
Wisconsin
Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...
. He was a banker and philanthropist in Eau Claire.
Early life
Ingram was born on May 13, 1830, in
Westfield, Massachusetts
Westfield is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, Hampden County, in the Pioneer Valley of western Massachusetts, United States. Westfield was first settled by Europeans in 1660. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield metrop ...
.
[ ][ ] His paternal grandfather, David Ingram, had immigrated from
Leeds
Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
, England, in 1780.
[Ingram Chronicles](_blank)
''Forbes'', 9/06/1999 He grew up in
Saratoga, New York
Saratoga is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 5,808 at the 2020 census.United States Census Bureau, 2020 U.S. Census Results, Saratoga town, Saratoga County, New York https://www.census.gov/search-results.h ...
, and he was orphaned at eleven, as his father died in 1841.
He worked on a farm from the age of eleven to seventeen.
After his mother remarried, they lived on
Lake George.
Orrin's brother,
Julius Ingram
Julius G. Ingram (May 31, 1832 – May 13, 1917) was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.
Early life
Julius Ingram was born on May 31, 1832, in Saratoga County, New York. His brother, Orrin Henry Ingram, was a lumber baron.
Career
Ingram ...
, would become a member of the
Wisconsin State Assembly
The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The Assembly is controlled by the Republican ...
.
Career
Ingram started his career at Harris & Bronson Lumber Company in New York City in 1847.
The company was active in the
Pharaoh Lake Wilderness Area.
Later, he worked for Fox & Englin, building a
sawmill
A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...
on the
Rideau Canal
The Rideau Canal is a 202-kilometre long canal that links the Ottawa River at Ottawa with the Cataraqui River and Lake Ontario at Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Its 46 Lock (water navigation), locks raise boats from the Ottawa River 83 metres (272 ...
and several sawmills on the
Moira River
The Moira River is a river in Hastings County in eastern Ontario, Canada. It travels from its source in the centre of the county to the Bay of Quinte at the county seat Belleville .
Name
Originally named the Sagonaska River by the indigenous peo ...
, both of which are in Canada.
Shortly after, he built another sawmill in
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...
, Canada, for Harris & Bronson.
He was then hired by
Gilmour & Company, another Canadian lumber company.
He invented the
gang edger
A lumber edger is a device with saws used to straighten and smooth rough lumber or bowed stock by making a cut along the sides of the boards. The result of this process is dimensional lumber.
In a saw mill the edger is next in line from the head ...
, but failed to patent it, leaving that opportunity to someone else.
In 1857, Ingram established a sawmill in the Chippewa Valley of Wisconsin with Donald Kennedy and Alexander M. Dole.
[Guide to the Ingram Family and Empire Lumber Company Papers, 1906-1934](_blank)
, University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire: McIntyre Library Their systematic deforestation led to the establishment of new towns across the valley.
They established lumber yards in
Wabasha, Minnesota
Wabasha is a city and the county seat of Wabasha County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 2,559 at the time of the 2020 census. It is on the Mississippi River, near its confluence with the Zumbro River.
Name
Wabasha is named afte ...
, and
Dubuque, Iowa
Dubuque (, ) is a city in Dubuque County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 59,667 at the 2020 United States census. The city lies along the Mississippi River at the junction of Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin, a region ...
.
By 1881, the concern became known as the
Empire Lumber Company.
It was headquartered in
Eau Claire, Wisconsin
Eau Claire ( ; lit. "clear water") is a city in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin, Eau Claire and Chippewa County, Wisconsin, Chippewa counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the county seat, seat of Eau Claire County. It is the List of citie ...
.
[Inside A $15 Billion Dynasty](_blank)
''Bloomberg Business'', September 28, 1997 Meanwhile, the lumber yard in Wabasha became the Wabasha Lumber Company and the one in Dubuque became known as the Standard Lumber Company.
Ingram served as the president of both companies.
He was also the founder and president of the Rice Lake Lumber Company in
Rice Lake, Wisconsin
Rice Lake is a city in Barron County, Wisconsin, Barron County in northwest Wisconsin, United States, on the shore of Rice Lake (Barron County, Wisconsin), the lake with the same name. The city is a commercial and tourist center for the surround ...
.
Additionally, he was an early investor in
Friedrich Weyerhäuser
Friedrich (Frederick) Weyerhäuser (November 21, 1834 – April 4, 1914), also spelled Weyerhaeuser, was a German-American timber mogul and founder of the Weyerhaeuser Company, which owns sawmills, paper factories, and other business enterprises ...
's timber investments, later known as the
Weyerhaeuser
The Weyerhaeuser Company ( ) is an American timberland company which owns nearly of timberlands in the U.S., and manages an additional of timberlands under long-term licenses in Canada. The company has manufactured wood products for over a c ...
corporation.
Ingram played an active role in the development of Eau Claire. He served as the President of the Eau Claire Water Works Company.
He also served as the President of the Eau Claire National Bank and the Union National Bank.
In Canada, Ingram served as the Treasurer of the Anthracite Coal Company, which operated in
Anthracite, Alberta
Anthracite is a ghost town located within Banff National Park in southern Alberta, Canada. It is named after the anthracite variety of coal.
History
Anthracite existed from 1886 to 1904, during which time extensive coal mining operations wer ...
.
[ ]
Ingram published his autobiography.
Philanthropy
Ingram was an active philanthropist in Eau Claire, where he was a member of
YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...
locally and paid for the construction of its headquarters.
He donated the statue of
Adin Randall which stands in Randall Park, a public park in Eau Claire.
He served on the board of trustees of the Wisconsin Congregational Church and
Ripon College, as well as on the
Wisconsin State Capitol
The Wisconsin State Capitol, located in Madison, Wisconsin, houses both chambers of the Wisconsin Legislature along with the Wisconsin Supreme Court and the Governor of Wisconsin, Office of the Governor. Completed in 1917, the building is the ...
commission.
He made financial contributions to the
American Red Cross
The American National Red Cross is a Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Humanitarianism, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. Clara Barton founded ...
.
Upon losing his son Charles, he built the
Charles H. Ingram Memorial Congregational Church in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
[Corner-Stone Laid By Taft: Officiates At Church Given By Wisconsin Man](_blank)
''Urbana Daily Courier'', 12 July 1909, Illinois Digital Newspaper Collections Its foundation stone was laid by President
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...
, when he was joined by Senator
Robert M. La Follette
Robert Marion La Follette Sr. (June 14, 1855June 18, 1925), nicknamed "Fighting Bob," was an American lawyer and politician. He represented Wisconsin in both chambers of Congress and served as the 20th governor of Wisconsin from 1901 to 1906. ...
and Congressman
John J. Esch.
The church included a school and a swimming pool.
Ingram rationalized the presence of a swimming pool by stressing, "Cleanliness Is Next to Godliness."
The church still stands today on the corner of
Massachusetts Avenue and 10th Street, across from
Lincoln Park
Lincoln Park is a park along Lake Michigan on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. Named after US president Abraham Lincoln, it is the city's largest public park and stretches for from Grand Avenue (500 N), on the south, to near Ardmore Avenu ...
The building was purchased in March 1986 by the Capitol Hill Seventh-day Adventist Church congregation.
After he was widowed, Ingram established the Cornelia Pierce Ingram Memorial Community House in honor of his wife.
Personal life
He married Cornelia Pierce Ingram on December 11, 1851.
They had two sons, Charles H. Ingram, who predeceased him, and Erskine B. Ingram, as well as two daughters, Fanny, who predeceased him, and Miriam, who married Edward S. Hayes.
They resided on Third Avenue and Hudson Street in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
His wife predeceased him, dying in 1911.
Death
He died on October 16, 1918, at the age of 88,
leaving an estate estimated to be worth over one million dollars.
[ ] He was buried at the
Lake View Cemetery
Lake View Cemetery is a Private property, privately owned, Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Rural cemetery, garden cemetery located in the cities of Cleveland, Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Cleveland Heights, and East Cleveland, Ohio, East Cleveland ...
in Eau Claire.
Secondary source
*Charles Twining. ''Downriver: Orrin H. Ingram and the Empire Lumber Company''. Madison, Wisconsin: Wisconsin Historical Society. 1975.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ingram, Orrin Henry
1830 births
1918 deaths
People from Westfield, Massachusetts
People from Eau Claire, Wisconsin
People from Saratoga, New York
American company founders
American businesspeople in timber
Businesspeople from Wisconsin
American bankers
Philanthropists from New York (state)
American autobiographers
American Congregationalists
Ripon College (Wisconsin)
American people of English descent
Ingram family
Writers from Massachusetts
Writers from New York (state)
Writers from Wisconsin