George Edward Bardeen Sr. (10 Nov 1850 – 26 Jan 1924), a long-time resident of

Otsego, Michigan Otsego is a city in Allegan County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,956 at the 2010 census. The city is within Otsego Township, but is administratively autonomous. Otsego is situated on M-89 about three miles (5 km) w ...

, USA, was a businessman and state-level politician. He owned and operated the Bardeen and the Mac-Sim-Bar paper mills in Otsego, the Otsego Independents semi-professional baseball team, and was financially instrumental in the founding of

Olivet College Olivet College is a private Christian liberal arts college located in Olivet, Michigan. The college is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It was founded in 1844 by missionaries from Oberlin College, and it followed Oberlin in becom ...

. Bardeen and other investors started up the city of Otsego's first paper mill in 1887, reducing the availability of spring water and thus shutting down the town's ''Mineral Springs Bath House''. In 1900, Bardeen was the state's 4th District delegate to the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...

; attending the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...

in Philadelphia that year. In 1907, he served as a member of Michigan's Republican State Central Committee. In 1901, Bardeen entered a venture to help start the Kalamazoo Stove Company. His partners in this venture were Edward Woodbury, son of the late Jeremiah P. Woodbury, Kalamazoo's wealthiest 19th-century industrialist and banker; the Dewing brothers: William S., James, and Charles; and other prominent local businessmen. Taking advantage of the recently established Rural Free Delivery postal service that brought mail-order catalogs to rural homes, these investors sold their products directly to customers, without retail middlemen. The company slogan was "A Kalamazoo ~ Direct to You." In 1902, Bardeen was among the first team owners in white baseball to allow African-American players to be integrated. He signed

Negro league baseball The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be ...

pitching star Andrew Rube Foster, who had just been released from the

Chicago Union Giants The Leland Giants, originally the Chicago Union Giants, were a Negro league baseball team that competed independently during the first decade of the 20th century. The team was formed via a merge of the Chicago Unions and the Chicago Columbia Gian ...

following a performance slump, to play for him that season. Foster's performance in Otsego led to his being signed the following season by the Philadelphia

Cuban X-Giants The Cuban X-Giants were a professional Negro league baseball team that played from 1896 to 1906. Originally most of the players were former Cuban Giants, or ex-Giants. Like the Cuban Giants, the original players were not Cuban (though the team woul ...

.Phil Dixon, 'Andrew Rube Foster: A Harvest on Freedom's Fields'; http://baseballhall.org/hof/foster-rube; http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/fcf322f7

Family and progeny

George Bardeen, son of William and Mary Ann (Farnsworth) Bardeen, was born in

Fitchburg, Massachusetts Fitchburg is a city in northern Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The third-largest city in the county, its population was 41,946 at the 2020 census. Fitchburg is home to Fitchburg State University as well as 17 public and private e ...

. He married first in 1871 to Abbie Harriet Carder (1853–1910), daughter of Edwin Alexander & Sarah Anne (Green) Carder, and second in 1911 to Florence B. Geib (1877–1949), daughter of John Jacob and Sarah Elizabeth (Feller) Geib. Abbie bore him a daughter, Margery (29 May 1872 – 23 Mar 1924), whom he pre-deceased by only 2 months, and two sons, Ralph Howard (1881–1883) and George Edward Bardeen Jr. (1888–1963). Margery married Minet Burton McClellan (1863–1921), son of W. W. and Mable J. (Ferguson) McClellan. He was one of her father's partners in the Mac-Sim-Bar paper company. They had two daughters, Margery Bardeen McClellan (1898–1958) and Dorothy McClellan (1901–1950). Neither ever married. George Jr. married Lucille Lane (1888–1977), daughter of Moses Henry and Ida E. (Lay) Lane. They had two children, named eponymously George Edward (1913–1977) and Lucille, and a third named Burton Lane (1918–1981) after George Sr's father (who was known by his middle name). George III married Eleanor Jane Settle (1912–1976), daughter of Jesse Ewing and Daisy Elizabeth (Oliver) Settle. Burton served in World War II 1941–1946, getting married while on a furlough in 1943 to Anne Trenor Hannan (1917–1993), daughter of Michael and Mary (McElroy) Hannan.

References

External links

Article on Kalamazoo Stove Company
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bardeen, George American manufacturing businesspeople 1850 births 1924 deaths People from Otsego, Michigan