George Amos Poole (March 20, 1843 – September 7, 1918) was an American printer and industrialist. He was a founding member of
Rand McNally and Company
Rand McNally is an American technology and publishing company that provides mapping, software and hardware for consumer electronics, commercial transportation and education markets. The company is headquartered in Chicago, with a distribution c ...
and became the organization's first treasurer. He later parted with the company to start his own venture with his brother. This was the start of his company,
Poole Brothers Printing.
Early life
He spent quite a bit of his childhood in Milton, Massachusetts and came west in 1866, for certain years representing the apparel firm of
Philip Wadsworth
Philip Wadsworth (March 7, 1832 – September 12, 1901) was an American dry goods merchant, politician, and military leader. Born to the prominent Wadsworth family in New Hartford, Connecticut, he attended private academies until he was sixteen, ...
and Company, of Boston. His obligations took him over a decent piece of what was then the "wild" west, quite a bit of which west of the Missouri River he was obliged to cover by the antiquated stage coach or by stream vessels when the waterway was sufficiently high.
Career in Chicago
Several years later, with his uncle, William H. Rand and
Andrew McNally
Andrew McNally (1836–1904) was an American publisher and co-founder of the company Rand McNally.
Early life
On March 4, 1836, McNally was born in Armagh, Ireland.
Career
A printer by trade, he moved to Chicago in 1858 and got a job in a ...
, he formed an association which acquired the job printing plant of the
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
. This organization was later consolidated under the name of Rand McNally and Company, of which concern he was treasurer until 1879, when with his brother, William H. Poole, he established the printing house of Poole Bros.
For a long time the work of the firm was limited to printing for transportation organizations, with a support that included for all intents and purposes nearly every railroad in the nation. The concern had the refinement of being the largest one in the United States solely occupied with transportation printing, yet in later years the business was extended until it appreciated an enormous commercial support too. George Amos Poole was constantly intrigued with the welfare of the printing business, just as in the notoriety and achievement of his own business. In 1887, together with Andrew McNally, J. M. W. Jones, D. R. Cameron, and C. A. Knight, well-known Chicago printers at that time, he addressed to a call to the printers of the whole United States to assemble in Chicago as they considered the conditions around then ripe for the development of a national printers' association. This gathering was held, and in it the
United Typothetae of America had its origin.
Retirement
After his retirement from the dynamic administration of the business in 1912, he invested his energy primarily at his summer home near
Holland, Michigan, and at his winter home in
Coconut Grove, Florida, holding his residence in Chicago. He was especially interested in yachts and yachting, and was prominent in that field. He was a Mason and a member of the Union League,
Flossmoor Country, Windsor Golf, and
Biscayne Bay Yacht, clubs.
See also
*
Poole Bros., Inc.
*
George Amos Poole, III; grandson
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poole, George Amos, I
1843 births
1918 deaths
People from Milton, Massachusetts