BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF DAVID
WILSON LATTA (1 Jul 1881 - 25 Jul 1956)
One of the
schools David attended was Fox
Hollow. We have his report card signed by his brother Tom, the teacher, from
1894. Dave also passed an examination and received a Teacher's Certificate valid for one year in
Monroe County, dated November 5, 1898. All of his brothers got a teaching
certificate in their late teens. He would have been 17 years
old. He then went by bicycle to Cornell in Ithaca, New York.
He found work with bees to pay for his living expenses. At some time in
Ithaca he had a bicycle accident and broke his leg which gave him problems the
rest of his life.
David
strongly in the two-party system, and because of that, he would insist on
voting even if it were a moot point. Apparently, he had strong political
feelings even as a youth. Two of his editorials were published in the Saturday
Evening Post.
Editor,
Saturday Evening Post:
Shall we
give up our legends? Emphatically we shall. Legends are untruths nine times out
of ten,---merely fiction. We shall soon get into fiction altogether. Legendism
and sensationalism are one and the same. Mr. Skinner says in his editorial,
history and legend are the same, only legend is much broader. Webster defines
legend as "a remarkable story" and history as "a record."
What a difference between the two! At any rate, there are enough truths in this
life to believe without going to extremes. Honor heroes, but do not make gods
of them. Do not hold them up as such for posterity. While we live in this life
all men are equal. In conclusion, embellish facts if you will, but do not make
legends out of them.
Miltonsburg,
Ohio
D. W. L.
Editor,
Saturday Evening Post:
The able
treatment of the editorial, Our New Midway Plaisance, has caused it to be read with
more than passing interest. It seems to me that there is danger of becoming an
Imperial Republic. If there is not, how can we face expansion? Can we hold out
the Monroe Doctrine, on the one hand, and say to the Powers, Keep off the
grass, and on the other deliberately trample upon it ourselves? No. There is
danger of becoming vain because of our achievements. Look at the tone of our
ultimatums to Spain and note the Imperialistic command that is implied. It
seems that almost every man of office who has any influence whatever is trying
to climb on some person's shoulders and then push him down as he springs
upward, that he can give Imperialistic commands. For instance, look at
General Miles' military bill. It provides for a Lieutenant-General. Who will that
Lieutenant-General be? Look at the International Bimetalism scheme and see what
a snare that was. The time seems fast approaching when the officials at
Washington will lay off their cloaks and, swaggering round in their seeming
importance, say to other nations, "You shall."
Miltonsburg,
Ohio
D. W. L.
In 1913 David
began working with the Kuehn-Wilson Electric company for $3.50, a day and he
worked ten hours every day. He was working for this company on the Timken
building in Canton when he fell two stories and broke his jaw. That
newspaper article said "the accident was due to the breaking of the
concrete pole near the place where the cross arms were attached."
Another article with headlines LEAPS IN AUTO, BEATS FOREMAN OF ELECTRIC CO,
related: "D.W. Latta Thinks Effort to Break Strike Caused the
Attack." "THREATS WERE MADE," Foreman Thinks Man Who
Injured Him was Hired Thug." After Kuehn-Wilson he worked as an
electrician for Hilscher-Clark.
In June 1918 he
was hired by the Hercules Motors Company. Later he became a designing
engineer. In 1944 he received the Ordinance
Distinguished Consulting Service Award for his contributions to the war
technology. Although he officially lived in Canton, Ohio, his office was
in Chicago. He took the train back home on available weekends when
all five kids would go over for Saturday dinner.
Another
Article: PATENTS OBTAINED
Frease
& Bishop, patent attorneys, list these patents as granted during the week:
. . . and Hercules Motors Corp. assignee of David Wilson Latta, patent on
governor controlled compression ignition.
A feature
of many newspapers are notes of important things that happened 100 years ago,
50 years ago, etc. In the 1981 Canton Repository was this note: "25 YEARS
AGO---David W. Latta,
vice president of the Hercules Motors Corp. since 1947 and
associated with the firm for 38 years, died unexpectedly in his home at 2200 Broad
Ave. NW. He was 75.'
Provided by Betty Latta Kitchen
e-mail: Betty Kitchen
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