Читать книгу Memoirs of Milwaukee County, Volume 5 - Josiah Seymour Currey - Страница 35

Leo Glueckstein, vice president of the S. Heller Elevator Company of Milwaukee. was born in Appleton, Wisconsin, January 7, 1891. For generations the Gluecksteins were extensive grape growers in the vicinity of Coblenz. Germany. The father, Henry Glueckstein, was born at Coblenz and came to the United States when twenty-one years of age, settling at Two Rivers, Wisconsin. He was a painting contractor and after following that business for about twenty years in Two Rivers he removed to Appleton. He died in Milwaukee in 1920, when seventy-two years of age. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Helen Jermain, is a sister of Dr. Louis F. Jermain of Milwaukee and she is still living in this city.

Leo Glueckstein pursued his early education in the public and parochial schools of Appleton, Wisconsin, and also attended night school there. He made his initial step in the business world as an electrical apprentice with the firm of Kurz & Root of Appleton, with whom he remained for six years in all. He then turned his attention to the automobile business, with which he was identified at Appleton for six months and in 1910 he removed to Milwaukee, where he entered the employ of the Otis Elevator Company, with which he was associated until 1919. Steadily he was advanced in that connection, winning various promotions until he became superintendent of construction. He left the company, however, to engage in business for himself and organized the Alliance Engineering Company of Milwaukee for the work of repairing and remodeling freight and passenger elevators. In April, 1920, this company was consolidated with the business of S. Heller and took the name of the S. Heller Elevator Company, of which Mr. Glueckstein became the vice president with Siegfried Heller as the president. The company builds and installs freight and passenger elevators and dumb waiters and finds a market for its output from Minnesota to New Orleans, east as far as Buffalo and west to Butte, Montana. The business is now one of substantial proportions and is steadily growing. In 1919 the capital of the S. Heller Elevator Company was one hundred thousand dollars and in 1920 this was increased to two hundred thousand dollars. The firm is now putting up a four-story addition to its works, sixty by one hundred and twenty feet, of the most modern type of construction, the location being at the corner of Buffalo and Milwaukee streets.

On the 7th of May, 1912, Mr. Glueckstein was married to Miss Alma Kusterman, a daughter of J. C. Kusterman of St. Nazianz, Manitowoc county, Wisconsin. She passed away April 14, 1919, leaving four children: Theresa, Henry, Robert and Rosemary. Mr. Glueckstein gives his political allegiance to the republican party but has never been active in politics. He is a Catholic, belonging to St. Sebastian parish and he has membership with the Catholic Knights of Wisconsin and with the Milwaukee Lodge of Elks. He also belongs to the Electric Club of Chicago and the Builders Club of Milwaukee. He is interested in motoring and enjoys long automobile trips. Hunting and fishing are also among his pastimes and all manly outdoor sports are matters of enthusiastic interest to him. His business, however, comes first and his close application, thoroughness and capability have enabled him to achieve a notable measure of success.