William N. Whiteley

William Needham Whiteley, Springfield (Ohio), 1880

William Needham Whiteley (born August 3, 1834 in Springfield (Ohio) ; † February 7, 1911 there ) was an American industrialist in the 19th century and a technical pioneer in the construction of agricultural machines.

Life

William N. Whiteley was born on August 3, 1835 near Springfield, Ohio. Wanting to become a machinist, he left the home and entered a workshop in Springfield, Ohio. During his apprenticeship he devoted his free hours to his passion for the construction of new technical devices and facilities. His first invention was a “breech-loading rifle”, a rifle with a new locking technology.

Soon he turned his efforts towards developing better agricultural mowing and cutting machines. In 1855 his first prototype of a new mowing and cutting machine was created, which he continuously developed and improved. He confidently named her “Champion Reaper and Mower”, which then lived up to its name in the famous comparison test of mowers and reapers at the Centennial Exposition and prevailed against all competitors. In 1856, Whiteley entered into a partnership with the gifted mechanic Jerome Fassler , whom he had known for several years , to manufacture the Champion machine in large numbers. The new company produced twenty machines in the first year, but could not meet demand.

With the addition of another partner, Oliver S. Kelly , also a qualified mechanic, who contributed a few thousand dollars to the share capital; the production capacity was expanded significantly in the autumn of the same year. When all obstacles were overcome in 1860, the business skyrocketed and the demand for the Champion grew faster than the supply every year. Whiteley's bold ambition to make the Champion one of the best mowers in the world had come true. The fact that it was also the most successful in sales was achieved through a clever division of labor and an increase in production capacity.

For production, four companies were contractually merged or founded one after the other, which separately manufactured the common product, the Champion machine (divided according to different markets). The companies were the pre-existing Whiteley, Fässler & Kelley, the Champion Machine Company, of which his brother Amos became president in 1868, Warder, Mitchell & Co. and the Toronto Mower and Reaper Company, Toronto, Canada. After all, each of them had extensive plant facilities with a total capacity to manufacture between fifty and sixty thousand machines a year. There was also the Champion Malleable Iron Company (Champion Malleable Iron Company) as joint property and supplier, whose foundries were considered the largest in the country and which delivered two thousand tons of castings per year on schedule. To complete this gigantic group of companies at the time, called Champion Interest , the Champion Bar and Knife Company were organized on the same basis (joint participation and personal responsibility), which also established itself in the American industrial world as the most complete and extensive model company in its class.

The business, which was initially limited to the region of origin Clark County (Ohio), not only extended across the entire United States during its heyday, but also served overseas needs.

Whiteley family tribe list

The list is essentially based on the family chronicle of Amos Whiteley.

1. John Whiteley (born November 1780 in North Carolina, † June 1845 in Springfield (Ohio))
   ⚭ Christian Hall (born March 8, 1784 in Kentucky); 7 children (Andrew, Freelove, William, Abner, Joseph, Nancy, and Sally) including
   1. Andrew Whiteley (born May 31, 1812 in Harrison County, Kentucky, † January 30, 1897 in Clark County (Ohio))
      ⚭ Nancy Catherine Nelson, (born February 28, 1812 in Tioga County, New York, † February 15, 1884 in Springfield (Ohio)
      1. William N. Whiteley (born August 3, 1834 in Springfield (Ohio); † February 7, 1911 ibid) [1]
         ⚭ Mary Catherine Gove († April 3, 1917 Springfield (Ohio)), important American industrialist in the 19th century.
      2. Amos (Nelson) Whiteley (born March 14, 1838 in Clark County (Ohio)), brother of William N. and also an important American industrialist in the 19th century with managerial positions within the Champion Interest group
         ⚭ 1860 Josephine Ferrell († May 23 1906 in Springfield (Ohio)).
   2. William Whiteley (born January 16, 1815 in Clark County (Ohio); † January 1896; also "Uncle Billy" ) inventor and manufacturer of various agricultural implements and machines; he was involved in the construction of the "Springfield & London Railroad" ; for a number of years he was commissioner for Clark County and after appointment by the governor he represented the state of Ohio as one of the commissioners at the great Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia in 1876.
      ⚭ 1847 Mary Ann Stickney (born August 25, 1822; † January 21, 1901) 1 child (Mary Elizabeth)
   3. Abner Whiteley (born February 13, 1816 in Clark County (Ohio), † June 24, 1908 in Kansas City (Missouri)) teacher, farmer, inventor, entrepreneur; Teacher of his nephews William N. and Amos in Springfield and co-owner of the iron foundry and mechanical workshops company Hatch & Whiteley
      was seriously injured in an assassination attempt as a staunch opponent of slavery in Kansas and still lived to be 92 years old; sold several of his inventions to William N. Whiteley;
      1⚭ 1839 Mary Ann Bennett (3 children Bennett, John "and Mary Jane)
      2⚭ 1859 Ann Silvers († 1873; 2 children Benjamin Franklin and Charles Addison)
   4. Joseph Whiteley (born January 18, 1818 in Clark County (Ohio); † January 30, 1902 ibid)
      ⚭ 1839 Mary Ann Hempleman (born October 22, 1821 in Clark County (Ohio); † January 21, 1888 ibid) 12 children

literature

• Amos Whiteley: Whiteleys in America , 1907 and 1922 full text in the internet archive English; Reference name = "AmosWhiteley1922"
• Benjamin F. Prince: A standard history of Springfield and Clark County, Ohio , The American Historical Society (Chicago and New York, 1922) full text in the Internet archive, English; Reference name = "Prince1922"

Web links

Commons : William N. Whiteley  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Steel engraving portrait and short biography at ART 330 Antique Prints Plus for William Needham Whiteley

Notes, details, individual documents

1. ↑ ^{a b} see web link steel engraving portrait and short biography at ART 330 Antique Prints Plus
2. ↑ see literature Amos Whiteley: Whiteleys in America
3. ↑ see literature Dr. B. Prince: Springfield and Clark County; An illustrated history (Chicago, 1922)