William Rath
William Rath | |
|---|---|
 1912 | |
| Born | January 28, 1849 |
| Died | August 10, 1916 (aged 67) Ludington, Michigan, U.S. |
| Resting place | Cartier Memorial Park, Lakeview Cemetery Ludington, Michigan |
| Nationality | German |
| Education | German public schools |
| Occupation(s) | businessman, lumberman |
| Known for | developing Mason County and Ludington, Michigan |
| Title | General Manager, Mayor |
| Spouse | Lucy Rickhoff |
| Children | 3 |
| Signature | |
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William Albert L. Rath (January 28, 1849 – August 10, 1916) was a German expatriate living in the United States who helped develop Ludington, a harbor town on Lake Michigan in Mason County, Michigan. He was in the lumber business and also was involved in banking and watchmaking businesses. He was mayor of Ludington for one term and a member of the town's board of trade and board of aldermen as well as the county's board of supervisors. He is memorialized in Ludington by a street, a building, and a mural.
Early life
William Rath was born in Hamburg, Germany on January 28, 1849.[1] His father, Hans, lived his entire life in Germany, while his mother, Mary, eventually came to America.[2] Rath grew up in Hamburg and attended public schools there.[1] He served as an apprentice locksmith, but did not complete his apprenticeship.[3] He then assisted his father, who was a mason, and learned to stucco buildings.[3]
Rath emigrated to America at the age 21, and arrived in Ludington in June 1870.[4]
Mid life
Rath married Lucy Rickhoff, who was also of German descent, on July 17, 1870[5] following a courtship that began in Germany.[3] They had a daughter and adopted two daughters.[5] The couple were active members of the local German Lutheran church, St. John's Lutheran.[1][3]
Rath worked initially as a laborer in Ludington sawmills, and was eventually promoted to lumber inspector.[1]
Rath was a member of the Ludington Board of Trade from its beginning,[2] becoming the board's president for two years in the mid-1910s.[6] He was also a collector of customs beginning in 1895.[4] One of his other duties was to keep records on the number and tonnage of train ferries coming through the port.[7]
Rath became a part of the firm Weimer & Rath by 1880.[1] In 1890, he filed for bankruptcy after falling victim to a copper mining investment fraud.[8] He was able to recover from this setback,[8] and developed a partnership with Ludington businessman Warren Antoine Cartier; together they formed the lumber business of Rath & Cartier.[9] In 1901, Rath started the Ludington State Bank with Charles G. Wing.[10][2] Rath and Wing also founded another bank in Mason County called Fountain Bank.[10] Rath was also involved with Cartier in the Star Watch Case Company,[1][9] and was president of the Manistee Watch Company.[11] Rath, often with Cartier, was involved in other corporations.[3]
Rath was a Republican.[12] He was a member of the Ludington board of aldermen for ten years[2] and served on the county board of supervisors representing Ludington.[2] He was elected mayor of Ludington in 1910 for a one-year term.[5] He ran for a second term in 1911,[13] but was defeated by one vote.[5]
Rath owned a number of properties in Mason and Manistee counties,[2] including a cottage on the south beach at Epworth Heights, a Ludington summer resort.[14] He was the first president of the resort's country club.[15] Rath also owned commercial property in Chicago. Through these real estate holdings he became a wealthy man.[5]
Later life
Charles Street, which had been named for a relative of James Ludington's, was renamed Rath Avenue.[when?][16] Rath and Antoine E. Cartier bought the Cartier Park land near Lincoln Lake and gave $25,000 for its improvement.[10]
Rath died at his home, from suspected heart failure, on August 10, 1916.[3] His remains are interred at Lakeview Cemetery in Ludington.[17] He is memorialized in a mural showing him drinking from a Fountain of Youth.[10] The mural is located at 106 N. Rath Ave; it was painted by Ludington artist Therese Soles.[10]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Powers 1912, p. 778.
- ^ a b c d e f "William Rath". Mason County History Companion. Retrieved September 12, 2019. Note this is essentially a reprint of the biography in Powers.
- ^ a b c d e f "William Rath, Public Spirited Citizen, is Called to the Beyond". Ludington Daily News. August 11, 1916. pp. 1, 6.
- ^ a b Cabot 2005, p. 43.
- ^ a b c d e Powers 1912, p. 779.
- ^ "The Mason County Business Association". The Herald Press. St. Joseph, Michigan. February 16, 1915. p. 4 – via Newspapers.com
.
- ^ Ludington's Carferries 1997, pp. 5, 6, 11.
- ^ a b Cabot 2005, p. 68.
- ^ a b Cartier, Morgan E. (December 7, 1957). "Cartier Family". Ludington Daily News. p. 5 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ a b c d e "The Colorful Murals of Ludington". West Michigan Business Directories. Advantage Marketing & Publications, Inc. March 16, 2019. Archived from the original on September 14, 2019. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ Cabot, James L. (June 5, 1999). "A look at the history of the Manistee Watch Company". Ludington Daily News. Retrieved June 24, 2014.
- ^ "Ludington Record-Appeal March 30, 1911". Ludington Daily News. March 27, 1971. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ "Michigan News in Brief". The Unionville Crescent. Unionville, Michigan. May 12, 1911. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com .
- ^ Cabot 2005, p. 104.
- ^ Olney, F. B. (July 22, 1931). "Country Club House Built by Late William Rath in 1912, Served Epworth Golf Course". Ludington Daily News. pp. 1, 8 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Malburg 2019, p. 11.
- ^ "Cemetery Records" (PDF). City of Ludington, Michigan (Lakeview Cemetery). January 21, 2015. Retrieved September 22, 2019.
Bibliography
- Cabot, James L. (2005). Ludington: 1830–1930 (Paperback). Images of America. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7385-3951-1.
- Malburg, Sandra Lewis (2019). Lost Towns of Mason County Michigan (Paperback). Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 1-4671-4265-4.
- Ludington's Carferries: The Rise, Decline & Rebirth of a Great Lakes Fleet, 1874–1997. Ludington Daily News. 1997.
- Powers, Perry F. (1912). A History of Northern Michigan and Its People. Vol. 2. Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company.
Further reading
- Historic Mason County, Michigan 1980. Ludington, Michigan: Mason County History Society. 1980. OCLC 7429821.