• Parents are Henry Weber and Caroline Donistriech.122

• Otto Weber and Emma Weber are siblings.154

• Alfred Kiefer, who was one of the principal promoters of the company [The Port Huron Sulphite and Paper Company] and its treasurer, then suggested a reorganization. The main stockholders…invested some more money and put the mill in charge of a young college graduate, O. L. E. Weber, who admittedly knew nothing of the business. Weber spent six weeks visiting other mills and noting their methods, then came back, made some changes and started up. He made such a success of the business that it soon was paying 6% dividends on its share capital. This it continued to do through the “gay nineties” but the going became increasingly difficult in the early years of this century.
In 1910, the paper mill was started as a separate company composed of Frank Haynes, who became its president, O. L. E. Weber, E. W. Kiefer and John Daley, its first superintendent.155, pp 109-110

• I was able to locate an obituary for Otto which was difficult as he died overseas, but I found it!129, p 1

• Otto’s funeral was held in Detroit, Michigan. I suggest you contact a historical society or researcher in Detroit and see if they can find Otto’s gravestone and see if Bertha is buried with him.129, p 2

• O. L. E. Weber, general manager of the Watab Paper company at Sartell from 1915 to 1935, died suddenly in Rome on Memorial day, May 31 [sic]. Mr. and Mrs. Weber sailed from New York on May 6 for a three months visit in Europe.
Mr. Weber was 71 years old, born in Michigan on March 14, 1867. He was educated in the schools of Michigan taking his degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor in 1893.
For a time he was with his father in the furniture business, and later became general manager of the Port Huron Sulphite and Paper company, Port Huron, Michigan, a position which Mr. Weber’s nephew Edward Kiefer now holds. From there he went to the Forest Products Laboratories in Madison, Wisconsin, and in 1915 came to St. Cloud.
Numbered among the directors of the Technical Association of Pulp and Paper Industry, Mr. Weber was recognized as a leader in his field.
Mrs. Weber survives. A nephew, Edward Henkel, and a niece, Mrs. Louis Wurzer, live in Detroit, Michigan. Francis and Edward Kiefer are nephews living in Port Huron.
No information has been received as to Mrs. Weber’s plans for the funeral.129, p 3

• Word has been received that the body of O. L. E. Weber, who died Memorial Day in Rome, will arrive in New York on June 16. The funeral will be in Detroit, Mich., on June 18.129, p 3

• Notification sent to Edward Henkel, 1068 Berkshire Road, Detroit, Mich., Nephew, by Mrs. Weber by telegraph on 30 May 1938.151

• [excerpt] Funeral services for O. L. E. Weber, who died suddenly in Rome, Italy, May 30, while on a European tour with his wife, will be held at 2 p. m. Monday at the Charles H. Curtiss Chapel, 8045 Jefferson avenue east. Burial will be in the family lot in Elmwood Cemetery.
Besides his widow, Bertha Goodier Weber, formerly of Port Huron, he leaves a niece, Mrs. Louis C. Wurzer, of Detroit, and Edgar W. and Francis Keifer, of Port Huron.156

• [excerpt] Services for Mr. Weber, native Detroiter, who died May 30 in Rome while on a European tour with his wife, will be held at 2 p. m. Monday.
Mr. Weber was the son of the late Henry Weber, who two generations ago operated one of the largest furniture factories in the Middle West. The salesrooms occupied an entire building adjoining the Majestic Building on Woodward Ave. and the factory occupied a square block on High St., just east of Woodward Ave. The family home also was on High St., where O. L. E. Weber was born 71 years ago.
He attended Detroit private schools and the Orchard Lake Military Academy, and was graduated in 1893 from the Engineering Department of the University of Michigan. A few years later he became manager and a director of the Michigan Sulphite Fiber Co., Port Huron, where he remained until 1913.
For the next two years he carried on experimental research in paper-making at the University of Wisconsin, and later became manager and director of the Watab Paper Co., Sartell, Minn. He retired a few years ago and had since made his home in St. Cloud, Minn.
He leaves his wife, Bertha Goodier Weber, formerly of Port Huron, and two nephews, Edgar W. Kiefer and Francis Kiefer, of Port Huron.157

• I received your email requesting information on Otto Louis Edgar Weber. I have searched our archived files for 1938 and unable to locate anything under that name. I have also checked under the name Henkel with no results.158

• 1870 Census: Detroit, Wayne, Michigan. Age 3, b MI.159
• 1900 Census: Port Huron, St. Clair, Michigan. Age 32, b MI. Single. Lodger. Parents b Germany.160
• 1910 Census: Port Huron, St. Clair, Michigan. Age 43, b MI. Manager; [unclear] Works. Parents b Germany.135
• 1920 Census: St. Cloud, Stearns, Minnesota. Age 52, b MI. Paper Maker; [unclear] Paper Co. Parents b Germany.136
• 1930 Census: St. Cloud, Stearns, Minnesota. Age 60, b MI. Parents b Germany.137

• His name given as O L E Weber.122

• Codicil [to Nelson Mills Will] appoints son David W. Mills as joint executor with Myron W. Mills.90, p 6,91, p 50, #172

• SUIT INVOLVING OVER $1,500,000
[excerpts] A suit was begun in the circuit court on Monday afternoon which involves real and personal property amounting to a million and a half dollars. Myron W. Mills and David Mills, executors of the estate of the late Nelson Mills are the complainants, and Mary M. Mills and Hannah E. Mills, administratrixes of the estate of the late Barney Mills, are the defendants. The suit is a friendly one, and is begun for the purpose of winding up the co-partnership of N. & B. Mills.
Judge Law ordered that Myron Mills and David Mills continue the business, sell the property, and close the estate as soon as possible.92

• The marriage of Miss Maud Merrell, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. E. G. Merrell, to Mr. David Williams Mills, of Marysville, was quietly celebrated yesterday. The ceremony took place at the home of the bride's parents, Commonwealth Avenue, and Rev. William T. Jaquess officiated. Only the immediate families were present. After the ceremony Mr. and Mrs. Mills left for a trip south, where they will pass the remainder of the winter.93

• David W. is vice president of the Mills, Gray, Carleton Lumber Company, and makes his home in Cleveland. He was married in 1909 to Miss Maud Merrell, of Detroit, and they have one son, Nelson.12, p 684

• The David W. Mills was a typical Great Lakes cargo vessel of the late 19th century. This wooden “steambarge” could carry over one million board feet of lumber. The vessel was originally named Sparta and was launched at Cleveland, Ohio on April 11, 1874. The vessel was renamed in 1910 after the manager of the Port Huron Navigation Company, the firm that owned the ship.
The Mills ran aground on Ford Shoals on August 11, 1919 in dense smog created by forest fires in Canada. Attempts to free the boat failed and it broke apart during a violent October storm.94, p 2

• Lived in Cleveland, Ohio, Santa Cruz, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Pasadena, Calif.95

• Resided at 14186 Euclid Avenue, East Cleveland.1

• D. W. Mills, of Northern Ohio Lumber & Timber Co., Cleveland, Ohio, on his recent visit to California stated his company handled principally southern pine and Douglas fir, with small quantities of California sugar and white pine and red cedar siding.
Mr. Mills says the general feeling is towards a better business than last year.96, p 2

• It is a good question why David W. Mills picked up and moved to California? I don’t know for sure, but I think I know some reasons why that might be the lumber business was changing…lumber products were becoming more mechanically produced, and that likely meant it became even more of a commodity-priced product. (The high margin days…were likely behind him…in a significantly developed and mechanized market like Cleveland. Plus, going into the 1900s…steel was king.) But in California…it was still highly undeveloped. And the lure of going west where you can lead in an immature market likely had something to do with it as well. He probably had a good payday too…and like all business owners, perhaps seized upon “an exit strategy opportunity.”97

• Mr. Mills, father of the injured young man, formerly was president of the Monterey Bay Lumber company, resigning several months ago.13

• Dear Beth
We arrived here Tuesday afternoon, Bertha having decided she would like to have another look at St. Cloud, something we had decided not to do when we left home. However, we are leaving for Duluth this afternoon and hope to be in Mackinaw Friday night and Leland early Saturday. Expect to leave Leland early next Monday and should be passing through Ogemaw sometime around noon that day and in Port Huron late afternoon.
A fine trip so far.
Love,
Dave98

• MILLS – Mr. David W. Mills, beloved husband of Mrs. Bertha Mills, father of Nelson M. Mills, grandfather of Nelson E., David W. and Donald C. Mills. Service Friday at 1:30 p.m. in the “Wee Kirk O’ the Heather,” directed by Forest Lawn Mortuary. Friends may send flowers to Stanford Convalescent Home, Palo Alto, Calif., or make contributions to the American Heart Assn.99

• David W. Mills
Funeral services for David W. Mills, 78, retired lumber executive and father of Nelson M. Mills, president of Pacific Outdoor Advertising Co., will be conducted at 1:30 p.m. today in Forest Lawn’s Wee Kirk o’ the Heather under the direction of Forest Lawn Mortuary. Mr. Mills lived at 615 E California Ave., Pasadena. He died Tuesday at Huntington Hospital, leaving his widow Bertha, his son Nelson, and three grandsons.100

• 1880 Census: Marysville, St. Clair, Michigan. Age 11/12ths, b MI.101
• 1884 Michigan Census: Port Huron Township, St. Clair, Michigan. Age 3, b MI.102
• 1894 Michigan Census: Port Huron Township, St. Clair, Michigan. Age 15, b MI.103
• 1900 Census: Marysville, St. Clair, Michigan. Age 20, b Jul 1879, MI. At school. Father b Canada (Eng); mother b MI.104
• 1900 Census: Ann Arbor, Washtenaw, Michigan. Age 20, b Jul 1879, MI. Student. Father b Canada (Eng); mother b MI.105
• 1910 Census: East Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio. Age 30, b MI. President, lumber co. Father b Canada Eng; mother b MI.18
• 1920 Census: Cleveland Heights, Cuyahoga, Ohio. Age 40, b MI. Corporation official/retail lumber. Father b Nova Scotia; mother b MI.19
• 1930 Census: San Francisco, San Francisco, California. Age 50, b MI.Partner.Occupation Code 97 91: “Retail dealers: other specified dealers.” Father b Nova Scotia; mother b MI.20
• 1940 Census: Pasadena, Los Angeles, California. Age 60, b MI. Widower. 4 years of college. Has lived in same place 5 years.106
• 1950 Census: Pasadena, Los Angeles, California. Age 70, b MI. Married. Residing at 1550 Oakdale Street.107

• The Wreck of the David W. Mills [excerpts]
The “David W. Mills” was a typical Great Lakes cargo vessel of the late 19th century. Measuring 202 feet by 34 feet by 13 feet, this wooden “steam barge” could carry over one million board feet of lumber. Built by Thomas Quayle and Sons Shipyard, the vessel was originally named “Sparta” and was launched at Cleveland, Ohio on April 11, 1874. The vessel was renamed in 1910 after the manager of the Port Huron Navigation Company, the firm that owned the ship. Captain Frank J. Peterson bought the “Mills” in 1919.
The “Mills” ran aground on Ford Shoals on August 11, 1919 in dense smog created by forest fires in Canada. Attempts to free the boat failed and it broke apart during a violent October storm.108, p 2

• I thought you might enjoy the knowledge that your family’s history is still actively operating in Cleveland. That’s just a great thing, I think. So I’m sending this note to share that.
NORTHERN OHIO [Lumber & Timber] is the oldest lumber company and sawmill in the State of Ohio, founded in 1864, and has been operating for 156 continuous years in downtown Cleveland. The Company (around 12-15 employees) is a wholesale, commercial lumber and building materials supplier…for Professional Contractors, not a retail lumberyard with walk-in homeowner customers. We’re still a sawmill…and cut custom heavy timber stock on a Mershon Timber Saw and an AM Timber Moulder-Planer, bought new at the time in Saginaw, Michigan — we assume by Nelson Mills — and installed here at NORTHERN OHIO in 1893. (Yes, they still operate on our Millhouse deck…we cut heavy timbers on them for other retail lumberyards and mostly commercial projects. I have attached some pictures of those machines. They were originally steam powered, but were converted to electric power in 1910.) We do other things now too…make heritage wood tabletops, doors, flooring, things like that. I joke that 156-year old companies have clearly learned to adapt. But that is totally accurate.
…with a lot of foresight and smarts, he [Nelson Mills] began assembling collaborative and timber supply partnerships (and shareholders in NORTHERN OHIO LUMBER in 1864 with Caleb Jewett and George Carleton) with multiple, local lumberyards and mills in what was then known in Cleveland as “The Lumber District,” riverfront land on a bend in the Cuyahoga River just upstream from Lake Erie called Scranton Peninsula. NORTHERN OHIO strictly milled and supplied lumber for other Yards, not the public. That didn’t stop him from also opening a local yard too though, N&B Mills. His son, David W. Mills (always signed his name DW Mills), was also a principal of NORTHERN OHIO up until the mid-1920’s or 1930’s when the company would eventually buy out all of the other Yards in the Lumber District.
We mention Nelson Mills in our history section. You can see it here: https://noltco.com/about/#history109

• find his will and probate in Los Angeles County.

• Mrs. Weber To Marry Former Local Resident
Interesting in today’s social news is the announcement from California of the approaching marriage of Mrs. Bertha Goodier Weber, St. Cloud, Minn., and David Williams Mills, Pasadena, Calif., former local resident. They will be married at a ceremony Saturday at Las Vegas, Nev. Mrs. Weber is well known in Port Huron. She has been a frequent visitor at the Stanley McFarland home. Mr. Mills is the brother of Mrs. Emeline Elliott, Huron avenue, and Myron Mills, Marysville.
The news was announced at a buffet luncheon Sunday at the home of Mr. Mills’ son and daughter-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Mills, San Marino, Calif. The luncheon followed the christening of the Mills’ infant son, David William.139

• On Sunday, April 6, following the christening of their infant son, David William, Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Mills of San Marino, California, entertained at a buffet luncheon honoring Mrs. O. L. E. Weber of St. Cloud. Announcement was made at the luncheon of the approaching marriage of Mr. Mills’ father, David Williams Mills and Mrs. Weber, which will take place in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Saturday, April 12.141