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Revered Commander Maligned General
The Life Of Clarence Ransom Edwards, 1859–1931
By Michael E. Shay
University of Missouri Press
Copyright © 2011 The Curators of the University of Missouri
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-8262-1922-0
Chapter One
The Making of a Soldier
Or walk with kings—nor lose the common touch. —(Kipling, "If," stanza 4)
Early Years
There was a special joy in the William Edwards home on January 1, 1859. As the family rang in the New Year, his wife, Lucia, delivered their first child, a healthy baby boy, whom they named Clarence Ransom. The senior Edwards, whose roots lay deep within the New England soil, had come to Cleveland, Ohio, from Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1852 in order to seek his fortune. As did so many successful young men, he had begun his career as a humble grocery clerk. Through dint of hard work and a large measure of business acumen, he had prospered and was now a prominent wholesale grocery merchant in his own right. As evidence of that fact, in their home on 55 Ontario Street, William and Lucia were assisted by two servants. The future, indeed, looked bright.
William Edwards was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on June 6, 1831, the son of Elisha Edwards and Eunice Lombard. Elisha was a prominent local businessman, known throughout that community as "Doctor Edwards," since he operated a pharmacy in downtown Springfield. He died at the age of forty-five, when his son was only nine years old. Before his move to Cleveland, young Edwards worked for several years in Springfield as a grocery clerk, undoubtedly acquiring considerable knowledge concerning that line of business. In 1857, he met and married Lucia Ransom, the daughter of Harry Bolton Ransom and Eunice Tiffany of Clarence, New York. Lucia was born there on September 20, 1833. Her father was a prosperous farmer in what was then a small community in Erie County, northeast of Buffalo. Clearly, her strong family ties and affection for her birthplace were the reasons that the couple chose the name for their firstborn son. In fact, all four of their children would be given the middle name of Ransom.
Upon his arrival in Cleveland, William selected the firm of W. J. Gordon to begin his career. That establishment was then reputed to be the "largest wholesale grocer west of the Alleghenies." Within a year, the enterprising youth had saved enough money to form his own company, a partnership with a Mr. Treat, which opened for business on Canal Street. Three years later, he bought out Treat and formed a partnership with Hiram Iddings. Slowly at first, but steadily, the business grew. He was described as a man of "indomitable perseverance and imperturbable good humor." Those attributes, as well as his scrupulous honesty, assured him a large and ever-growing number of loyal customers. By the time his son Clarence was born, annual sales had reached $1 million, and William's future success was assured.
In December 1862, Julia gave birth to another son, whom they named Harry Ransom after Julia's father. Harry would go on to graduate from Harvard and gradually take over management of the family business. A stellar college athlete and a prominent Cleveland socialite, he remained a lifelong bachelor and devoted to his mother. That same year, William's business continued to grow, and he took in Amos Townsend as a partner. The latter would go on to become a member of Congress. The firm then became known as Edwards, Iddings and Company. Iddings died the next year, and after the firm took in J. Burton Parsons, it became known as Edwards, Townsend and Company. Nearly seven years would pass, until June 1869, before the birth of their third child, a daughter whom they named Lucia Ransom. Another daughter, Kate Ransom, was born in 1871, only to succumb to scarlet fever in 1873. Thereafter, her mother wore black for the balance of her long life.
In the decades immediately following the Civil War, Cleveland was considered a "commercial hub" given its location midway between the iron mines of the Mesabi Range in Minnesota and the oil and gas fields, and coal mines of Pennsylvania. Not only was it located on the shore of Lake Erie, it was also at the terminus of a canal linking the lake to the Ohio River, and was served by several rail lines. The city was literally bursting with growing businesses from steel mills to oil refineries. It was a magnet for ambitious young men out to make their fortunes, as well as for immigrants, many Irish at first, and later those from Eastern Europe, willing to toil for long hours, at backbreaking and often dangerous jobs. Enormous fortunes were, in fact, made by a number of Clevelanders who had proven to be the fittest in that commercial contest; men like Hanna, Hay, and Rockefeller. Herbert Spencer referred to the phenomenon as social Darwinism.
East of Public Square, the area encompassing Euclid Avenue and the surrounding streets, was fast becoming the fashionable section of town, home to many of the prominent Cleveland families. A recent history of Cleveland described Euclid Avenue in the "Gilded Age" as, "one of the most beautiful streets in America ... with stately mansions, with arching elms lining the street and graceful fountains set amid impeccably manicured lawns." Dubbed "Millionaires Row," the mansions were set well back from the wide street. Those who occupied these homes, with names like John D. Rockefeller Sr., John Hay, Amasa Stone, and Marcus Alonzo Hanna, were a "close-knit" group that "entertained each other [and] summered together."
By 1864, the Edwards family was very comfortably situated in a large home at 298 Prospect Street (later re-designated as an avenue) which ran parallel to Euclid Avenue and was also considered a fashionable address. The Edwards household had a coachman and three other domestic servants. By 1880, that number had increased to five, including two long-serving and loyal servants, Catherine Nulty and Maria Skiffington. William and Lucia would play host to numerous local and national persons of prominence. The former was described as "a prince of hosts," particularly during racing week when the home was crowded with out-of-town guests.
Each winter brought the sleigh races, one of the most popular pastimes which were enjoyed by Clevelanders of all stripes in a carnival-like atmosphere. The races were begun in 1865 by William Edwards, Frank Rockefeller, Amos Townsend, and several others and were carried on for decades afterward. The mile and a half course encompassed a section of Euclid Avenue between Case (East 40th) and Erie Streets (East 9th), and the races, often with dozens of sleighs participating, reportedly drew thousands of spectators. In addition to the senior Edwards, other participants included John D. Rockefeller, Sr., and his brother Frank, Mark Hanna, and Amos Townsend.
Animals played a prominent part in the life of the Edwards family. An early photograph of young Clarence shows a boy of about six or seven years of age sitting next to a Boston terrier named "Tip." Both Clarence and Harry each had a pair of goats, which they hitched to small carts and conducted races against each other. However, horses by far held the most prominent position. The senior Edwards had an absolute passion for horses and racing, and he was said to be one of the finest horsemen in the state. He passed this love along to Clarence, but not to Harry. Photographs of Clarence while in uniform later in life show a man clearly comfortable astride a horse.
By far the most curious addition to the household was that of Laura Hilliard. Known as "Aunt Laura" to the children, the young woman from a prominent Cleveland family had accompanied Mrs. Edwards on a European trip and remained a permanent houseguest and companion for more than thirty years. Bright and beautiful, she had an attentive coterie of male admirers, including J. P. Morgan.
With financial success came a sense of community responsibility which remained with William throughout his entire life. During the Civil War he was appointed by the governor to be a member of the Cuyahoga County Military Committee, one of 88 such county committees, which was charged with oversight for voluntary enlistments in the Cleveland area, as well as relief for families of those local men already in the service. The men of Cuyahoga County flocked to the colors, and eventually around 100,000 would serve in uniform during the war. Of those, 1,700 would give their lives. As a result of his service on this committee, he acquired the honorific title, "Colonel," by which he was popularly known. To his intimate associates, though, he was "Billie." He was a staunch Republican.
On April 28, 1865, the city was the site of a memorial tribute to the late President Lincoln, as his body, which had arrived first at the Union Depot earlier that day, paused in Cleveland on its homeward journey. Since Amos Townsend was on one of the committees making the arrangements, Edwards would most likely have marched with other members of the Board of Trade in the official procession from the Euclid Street station. Although there is no record of it, at some time during the day, he may also have taken young Clarence, and possibly Harry, to pay their last respects to the slain president, whose open casket lay in state beneath a covered pavilion in Public Square, where it is said that an estimated crowd of 100,000 mourners braved a drenching rain to view.
A photograph of the Colonel taken later in life shows a still-youthful face hidden behind a large handlebar mustache and Van Dyke, both white. He also had dark eyebrows, a high forehead, and a full, but thinning head of white hair. All served to frame his most prominent feature—a pair of sparkling dark brown eyes. The Colonel gave generously of both his time and his wealth to the city of Cleveland, which owed many of its institutions to his driving force. He lent his name and energies to the Greater Cleveland Growth Association which would later become the Board of Trade, and ultimately, the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce, as well as to the Work House and House of Correction. The senior Edwards also served on the board of directors of two banks and The Lake View Cemetery Association, and was, as well, a commissioner to the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. His charity was described as "unostentatious but substantial."
Given his passion for horses, it is not surprising that he was also instrumental in the establishment of the Glenville Racing Track by the Cleveland Driving Park Association in 1870. The track was situated across from the Northern Ohio Fairgrounds on St. Clair Street (between E. 88th and E. 101st Streets). Within two years it joined in the Quadrilateral Circuit (the other participants were Buffalo, Utica, and Rochester), and the very next year, the track became one of the principal stops on the "Grand Circuit" of harness racing during the summer months. The oval was said to be a "dominating influence" as well as "a model turf, one of the cleanest and most sportsmanlike ovals in all the circuit." John D. Rockefeller Sr. and his brothers Frank and William were stockholders. In 1895, the Gentlemen's Driving Club Company became the successor to the Cleveland Driving Park Association. When the Colonel was present on the track for the start of the races, a dangerous act at best, he was quick to stop any race he thought unfair, with a stern warning to the offending driver. Lucia, although present, demonstrated her disapproval of her husband's "hands-on" approach, by making a point of knitting during the racing. The nearby Roadside Club was a place for fans to relax with a meal and drinks. Catering to the racing elite, the Edwardses' home was the locus of large daily luncheons and dinners throughout race week. The last trotting race at the track was run in 1908.
The Edwards family was politically active with men of both local and national stature, which would serve Clarence well, as they were not above using their influence, particularly where their eldest son's military career was concerned. As we have seen, Congressman Amos Townsend had been a business partner of William Edwards. No less a figure than Senator Marcus A. Hanna, a family friend, was of the opinion that Lucia Edwards was "one of the great politicians of the country." Even Edwards's father conceded the point when he confessed to Clarence in a letter dated May 2, 1898, that he had, "telegraphed Mark Hanna, a good strong despatch, and signed your mother's name...."
Brooks Military Academy
Young Clarence did not take the logical path and follow his father in business. If this was his choosing, perhaps he had been inspired as a child by stories of his uncle, Gen. Oliver Edwards, who had achieved his measure of fame in the Thirty-seventh Massachusetts Infantry during the Civil War. Perhaps the Colonel experienced a twinge of regret that, unlike his brother, he did not take an active part in the fighting, and he seized the opportunity to vicariously make up for his perceived failure. For sure, Edwards's father had decided that his son, even at a young age, did not have a head for the family business. A distinct possibility is that he had a learning disability, and it was felt that the discipline and structure of the military was the answer. The fact that his academic performance was poor, and, even as an adult, he was considered a poor time manager, had a high energy level, and was given to impulsive speech, could well have been an indication of this. In any event, it was clear that young Clarence was destined instead for a military career, an idea wholeheartedly embraced by both of his parents.
The Brooks Military Academy (at various times also known as the Brooks School, Brooks Academy, Brooks Military School, and Brooks Academy & Military Institute) was founded in 1874 as a college preparatory school offering military classes for Cleveland's upper-class boys ranging in age from seven to twenty years. It was named in honor of the Reverend Frederick Brooks, a popular Episcopal minister who had drowned earlier in the year while on a trip to Boston. The initial list of subscribers was a virtual Who's Who of Cleveland, including Col. William Edwards. Charles A. Otis, later Clarence Edwards's brother-in-law, also attended the school, and he gives us a brief look at the institution in his memoir, Here I Am.
Originally located at the corner of Prospect and Brownell Streets (East 14th), one year later, the school moved to a new structure on Sibley Street near Hayward Street. The building, described as "Anglo-Swiss," was beamed on the outside and painted chocolate and vermillion. In addition to classrooms, it contained a gymnasium, drill hall, armory, and a chemical laboratory. John S. White was the first headmaster, and Capt. F. A. Kendall, a Civil War veteran, was assigned to head the Military Department, and while there also taught mathematics.
The student body, or battalion, was divided into three companies, A, B, and C, representing the oldest, middle, and youngest boys respectively. They wore uniforms modeled on those of West Point, and the students were issued weapons for drill—Springfield rifles for the older boys and short carbines for the younger ones. Given the social prominence of the Edwards family, perhaps it is not surprising that young Clarence was selected as the major, or ranking student officer. Otis recalled that, "Clarence was a great drillmaster and the boys were devoted to him, although he was a very strict disciplinarian." During the annual parade on Decoration Day (Memorial Day), the battalion marched just behind the Cleveland Grays, a volunteer militia company which had seen action in the Civil War. The history of the school was short-lived, as it closed its doors in 1891. Later, in 1908, the building was destroyed by fire.
"Sept"—The West Point Years
In June 1879, Clarence traveled to Highland Falls, New York, there to join the West Point Class of 1883. Young Edwards had been the successful candidate out of twenty-nine who had taken the examination, and he was appointed from the 20th Ohio Congressional District, which at that time was represented in Congress by Amos Townsend, a close friend and former business partner of William Edwards. In addition, it did not hurt that future president and close ally of Mark Hanna, William McKinley Jr., also a congressman from Ohio, was a member of the Board of Visitors at West Point. This would not be the last time that his family connections would serve him well.
However, after Edwards reached the school, he was informed that he was deficient in both math and grammar, and that he would not be admitted unless he demonstrated improvement in those areas. He worked hard that summer, and when he returned to West Point on August 28, he was admitted on September 1. As a result, he was given the nickname "Sept," short for September. At age twenty, he would be one of the older members of his class, which began the academic year with eighty-eight Plebes. He was listed as one of only two of his classmates whose parents' circumstances were considered "affluent," so money was not a problem for the young cadet. His account book for his Plebe year shows an initial deposit of $150.00, which he used for textbooks and other items such as uniforms, a wash bowl, a broom, and a mattress.
Edwards would not distinguish himself academically at West Point. Throughout his four years, he would hover at or near the very bottom of his class. The rigid curriculum, with its emphasis on math and science probably did not help. In fact, when he graduated on June 12, 1883, he stood dead last in his class (52/52). As a result, he had the "distinction" of being considered as one of the "Immortals," and what later classes would refer to as the "Goat." Several classmates would also become general officers and play prominent roles in World War I, including Omar Bundy, Harry Clay Hale, and George H. Cameron. One bright spot for Edwards occurred as a member of the First Class, when he was selected as a lieutenant in the Battalion of Cadets, effective June 12, 1882. The battalion was organized into four companies and was the unit utilized to teach infantry tactics, military police, and discipline. Cadet officers were selected from among those cadets "who have been most studious, soldier-like in the performance of their duties, and most exemplary in their general deportment." While Edwards took pride in being a West Point graduate, the system of ranking cadets also instilled in him, and others like John J. Pershing and Robert Bullard, a lifelong compulsion to "fight for rank," turning would-be colleagues into competitors. In the small, prewar army, this trait often caused jealousy and ill-will toward him and those others who were successful in playing that game.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Revered Commander Maligned General by Michael E. Shay Copyright © 2011 by The Curators of the University of Missouri. Excerpted by permission of University of Missouri Press. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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