Herman Daniel Umbstaetter (February 26, 1851November 25, 1913) was an American businessman and founder of the magazine '' The Black Cat''.

Early life

Umbstaetter was born on February 26, 1851, in Parma, Ohio the son of Charles Umbstaetter and Helen Hege. He later moved to Cleveland.

Career

Umbstaetter had become wealthy in the advertising and publishing business in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...

by the late 1880s. Mott (1957), pp. 428–431.Bessom (1920), pp. 84–85.Anonymous (1898), pp. 99–103. In 1886, he attempted to start a magazine in Boston, proposing to price it at ten cents, but was unable to get funding. He worked in the United Kingdom for a while, but lost his fortune and returned to the US, spending some time in California before settling in Boston in 1891. He again attempted to find capital to start a magazine and was again rebuffed. He finally launched '' The Black Cat'' in 1895, having saved enough money to start it on his own account. He began to have health problems in 1912, and that year he sold ''The Black Cat'' to Samuel Cassino, the publisher of ''

Little Folks ''Little Folks'' was a monthly United States children's magazine for young readersKelly, R. Gordon, ''Children's Periodicals of the United States'', pages 282 - 285, Greenwood Press, 1984 from three to twelve years-old. It was founded by publi ...

''.Mott (1957), pp. 428–431.Anonymous (May 1912), pp. 79–80.

Personal life

He married artist Nelly Littlehale in Boston in 1893. They had a daughter called Amo.

Death

On November 25, 1913, Umbstaetter and Howard Palmer went on a hunting expedition on the shore of Kezar Lake in the Maine woods. Umbstaetter stumbled as he tried to cross a stone wall and fell, resulting in his rifle accidentally discharging and a bullet passing through the left side of his body. He was taken to a cottage and a surgeon and trained nurse were obtained. He died at two o'clock in the afternoon from his wounds.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Umbstaetter, Herman 1851 births 1913 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople American magazine founders Businesspeople from Cleveland Deaths by firearm in Maine Firearm accident victims in the United States Hunting accident deaths People from Parma, Ohio Sports deaths in Maine