L. J. A. Lesser    

L. J. A. LESSER, dealer in rubber stamps, etc., Ridgway, was born in Warren county, Penn., December 21, 1863, a son of Philip and Caroline (Leonhart) Lesser, natives of Sundhausen, Alsace, Germany. They were married in 1862, and with their parents settled in and about Warren, where are now many of their descendants. Philip Lesser is a blacksmith, who moved to Ridgway in 1868, and first occupied the house on Centre street, now owned by E. E. Willard; then he lived in a house on South street, now owned by B. E. Wilcox, afterward building a home of his own on Centre street, directly opposite the place he first occupied. Mr. and Mrs. Lesser have four sons living, viz.: L. J. A., Charles Edward, Franklin Theodore and Leonard Luther.

L. J. A. Lesser was reared in the faith of the Lutheran Church, of which his parents are members, and was confirmed April 15, 1881, by Rev. John Sander, A. M., then pastor of the First Evangelical Lutheran Church at Ridgway, of which church Mr. Lesser is still an active member. For five years he was superintendent of the Sunday-school; in 1886 was elected a member of the church council, and is now the teacher of the Bible class in the Sunday-school. He attended different select schools, and was one of a class of four, which was graduated from the Ridgway High School, May 30, 1882, the graduating feature being introduced after he left school, and he returning to receive this additional honor. In October, 1880, Mr. Lesser obtained a situation as clerk in the store at Brockport, owned by the Keystone Lumber Company, and after remaining there for two months, returned home and was immediately employed by the Northwestern Mining & Exchange Company of Dagus Mines, as an agent at the Daguscahonda Railroad terminus, remaining here one month, when he was transferred to the central office at Dagus Mines, where he remained one year, when he returned to Ridgway for the purpose of graduating, as already referred to. August 15, 1882, he became engaged in the manufacture and sale of proprietary medicines for D. B. Day, of Ridgway, in whose employ he has since remained. Mr. Lesser married, June 7, 1888, Miss Annie, a daughter of George and Mary Ann Truman, of Sigel, Penn., and they have one child, Clyde Truman Lesser, born July 13, 1889. March 18, 1886, he was initiated in Ridgway Lodge, No. 969, I. 0. 0. F., and has served as trustee for more than three years consecutively, being the present secretary; has passed all honors in the subordinate lodge, and is a member of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, having been representative to the same. In March, 1888, he joined Ridgway Council, No. 1081, Royal Arcanum; he was also a member and secretary of the Laurel Hook and Ladder Company, from its organization to its abandonment. Mr. Lesser is an ardent Republican, and was corresponding secretary for the “Harrison and Morton Club,” that performed such effective campaign work in 1888. He established his present rubber stamp and stencil business in 1881, and has a fine and. growing trade in the manufacture and sale of these goods.

History of the counties of McKean, Elk, Cameron and Potter, Pennsylvania with biographical selections, including their early settlement and development, a description of the historic and interesting localities, sketches of their cities, towns and villages, portraits of prominent men, biographies of representative citizens, outline history of Pennsylvania, statistics.. Chicago. J.H. Beers & Co.. 1890, page 732-733. Read this book on line - Free Trial Search Hundreds of 1880s-1890s Pennsylvania County History Books for biographies and historical information on your ancestors.  View the book page images on line and print them out for your genealogy file!  Free Access to the old history books - plus birth & death records, census images and ALL other records at ancestry.com

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