W. S. Bumbaugh

W. S. BUMBAUGH, president of the Monessen Foundry and Machine Company, and prominently identified with several other important enterprises, although. not yet forty years old, has worked his way forward to the position of affluence he now occupies among the leading business men of Westmoreland county, solely through his own personal efforts, and he is one of the few men whose past records actually justify this application of that honorable distinction.

Born in Morgantown, West Virginia, October 26, 1866, son of James and Isabelle (Peterson) Bumbaugh, W. S. Bumbaugh was deprived of a mother's care at the tender age of eighteen months, and confided to the care of his sister, who resided in McKeesport, Pennsylvanian It seems, however, to have been preordained by the inevitable degree of destiny that young Bumbaugh should work out his own salvation without the aid of parent or kindred, as when he was eight years old his sister was summoned to her final resting place, and the boy was, therefore, thrown absolutely upon his own inherent resources to obtain sustenance and education as best he could. That he was equal to the emergency and that he fully accomplished the arduous task, so harshly meted out to him by destiny, is amply attested by the success he has already attained, which, considering the almost insurmountable obstacles he was forced to overcome, seems little less than phenomenal. After the death of his sister, which occurred in 1874, young Bumbaugh set out with a will to master the somewhat difficult proposition of supporting himself, beginning by selling newspapers, and subsequently accepting eagerly any other honest employment that would contribute toward securing an existence. At the age of twelve Years he entered the foundry department of the National Tube Company's works at McKeesport as an apprentice and there obtained the knowledge and experience which ultimately enabled him to promote and establish the industrial enterprise of which he is now the official head. After mastering the foundry business in its entirety he withdrew from the employ of the National Tube Company in order to acquire additional experience in other parts of the country under different conditions, and having accomplished his object, his next move was to obtain an opportunity of using his knowledge and ability for his own advancement. Coming to Monessen in 1898, he was soon able to secure capital sufficient to organize the Monessen Foundry and Machine Company, of which he was chosen president, an enterprise which has been successful from the start. This concern, which was originally located at the West End, moved its plant in 1903 to the East End, where it occupies an area of three acres, and in addition to carrying on an extensive general foundry business it gives its particular attention to the manufacture of certain kinds of machinery for which it is provided with special facilities. At the present time it employs a force of one hundred and twenty-five hands, and there is a large and constantly increasing demand for the products of both departments. Although the Monessen Foundry and Machine Company naturally occupies his principal attention, -Mr. Bumbaugh is interested financially and officially in several other enterprises, being vice-president of the First National Bank of Monessen, second vice-president of the Monessen Savings and Trust Company, president of the Monessen Opera Company, and vice-president of the Grand View Cemetery Association, all of which he assisted in organizing. He is one of the incorporators and largely interested in the "Grand View Plan" (so called), a real estate enterprise which purchased a tract of thirty-five acres lying in the western part of the borough and has divided it into house lots. He is also otherwise interested in the development of real estate in Monessen, and has erected several fine dwelling houses as an investment. Aside from his interest in developing the natural resources of Monessen and expanding its industries, he is actively concerned in the public affairs of the borough, having served as a member of the council since 1899, and in 1904 was chosen president of that body. In politics he is a Republican. He is a member of Monessen Lodge, No. 773, B. P. O. E. His religious affiliations are with the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Bumbaugh married, November 4, 1890, Dora Taylor, daughter of Robert and Elizabeth (McFarland) Taylor, of McKeesport. They have two children, Hazel and Carl Bumbaugh.  

Source: Page(s) 233-234, History of Westmoreland County, Volume II, Pennsylvania by John N Boucher. New York, The Lewis Publishing Company, 1906.
Transcribed August 2008 by Nathan Zipfel for the Westmoreland County History Project
Contributed for use by the Westmoreland County Genealogy Project (http://www.pa-roots.com/westmoreland/)

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