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L. R. LEWIS, who conducts the leading plumbing establishment in the village of Cortland, also carries on tinning, steam and gas fitting, deals in furnaces, and manufactures the Perfection Milk Cooler and Aerator, of which he is the inventor. He was born January 28, 1858, in Friendship, Allegany County, N. Y., and is a son of Salmon and Sarah (Welch) Lewis.
His paternal grandfather was Nicholas Lewis, who spent most of his life at Chenango Forks, N. Y., where he followed the trade of a cooper. He was a faithful member of the M. E. Church, and often preached before the local congregation.
Salmon Lewis, the father of our subject, was born at Chenango Forks, Broome County, N. Y., where he received a common school education. In 1849, when the gold fever had just begun to spread over this country, he caught the craze and departed for the El Dorado. He stayed in California a short time and then came back to his native county, but soon after took up his residence in Allegany County, where he opened a hardware store in the town of Friendship. Later he moved to Titusville, Pa., where he engaged in making oil-barrels. After following the trade of a cooper for a short time, a company of which he was a member, purchased a large hotel and made him manager. He successfully conducted this hostelry until he moved to South Bend, Indiana, where he is now living a retired life. In politics, Mr. Lewis is a firm supporter of the Republican party, and during the war he stumped the county in its interest. Religiously, he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He has been twice married, and is the father of six children, whose names are as follows: James; Abiah, widow of Lucien B. Main; Jasper; Cassius C., deceased; Florence, also deceased; and our subject.
L. R. Lewis received but little school education, but is a well informed and intelligent man, as a result of constant contact with the world. His first work was that of a driver on the canal, which occupation he continued to follow for five years, after which he learned the trade of a tinner. In 1887, he moved to Marathon, N. Y., where he plied his trade for several years. November 14, 1881, he came to Cortland and entered the employ of Smith & Kingsbury. At the expiration of two years' time he was engaged to work for Newkirk & Hulbart, with whom he remained until August, 1888, when he purchased Smith & Bale's plumbing business. He still conducts this business on Main Street, and does nearly all the first-class work of the town of Cortlandville. He is an honest and straight-forward man, and has made many friends both in private and business life.
His wife's maiden name was Emily Phelps, and they were married December 22, 1882; they have the following children: Paul; Ralph; and Florence. Politically, Mr. Lewis is a stanch Republican. In religious belief, he is a Methodist, and is a charter member of the Homer Avenue M. E. Church of Cortland.
Mr. Lewis is inventor and manufacturer of the Perfection Milk Cooler and Aerator, which has a large sale throughout the dairy sections of the United States, and although it is of recent origin, he has had orders from New Zealand, and other remote parts of the world. The article was patented August 3, 1897, but already, such is the superior excellence of its construction and its simplicity in handling, it has won for itself a sure place in the regard of the dairymen of all sections. We take pleasure in presenting Mr. Lewis' portrait on a preceding page, for he is a live, enterprising business man, and merits the success with which he is meeting in all departments of his business.
Source: pages 495-496
All biographies are from Book of Biographies - Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens of Cortland County, NY
Biographical Publishing Company - Buffalo, NY - 1898
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Cortland Co, NY Page
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