James Simpson Conwell (July 4, 1859 – December 15, 1917) was a

businessman A businessperson, businessman, or businesswoman is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial or industrial) for th ...

inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...

and local

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

and

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

Personal and business life

Conwell was born on July 4, 1859, in

Winona, Minnesota Winona is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, in the state of Minnesota. Located in bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf. The city is named after legendary figure Winona, who ...

, the son of the Rev. F.A. Conwell and wife. He was educated in

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...

, and Lake View, Illinois, then earned a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

, Evanston, in 1882."Councilman Conwell Is Called by Death," ''Los Angeles Times,'' December 16, 1917, image 10
/ref> He moved to Los Angeles after graduation and in 1885 became a partner in the men's furnishing business of Evans & Conwell. From 1889 to 1894, he was associated with Folmer, Clogg & Co. in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, and the following three years he was engaged in the bicycle industry. From 1897 to 1900 Conwell was the

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

, manager of the Indiana Bicycle Company, then in 1900 became president of the Wilke Manufacturing Company in

Anderson, Indiana Anderson, named after Chief William Anderson, is a city in and the county seat of Madison County, Indiana, United States. It is the principal city of the Anderson, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses Madison County. Anderson is ...

. Moving to Los Angeles, he was secretary of the

United Motors Company ACDelco is an American automotive parts brand owned by General Motors (GM). Factory parts for vehicles manufactured by GM are consolidated under the ACDelco brand, which also offers aftermarket parts for non-GM vehicles. Over its long history i ...

from 1907 to 1913. In 1899, he built the first Waverly electric pleasure car. He was also the inventor of a

gasifier Gasification is a process that converts biomass- or fossil fuel-based carbonaceous materials into gases, including as the largest fractions: nitrogen (N2), carbon monoxide (CO), hydrogen (H2), and carbon dioxide (). This is achieved by reactin ...

to permit the use of

distillate Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heat ...

in motor engines. Conwell and Mae Hopkinson were married in 1891. They had two daughters, Larooka and Delsey.Buella Sawyer, "City Officials," Los Angeles Municipal Reference Library, December 5, 1934
/ref> In 1909 they lived at 347 Mount Washington Drive,

Mount Washington, Los Angeles Mount Washington is a historic neighborhood in the San Rafael Hills of Northeast Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1909, it includes the Southwest Museum, the world headquarters of the Self-Realization Fellowship, and Eldred Street, one of the ...

, and in the 1910s at 871 Gramercy Drive or Place in today's

Koreatown A Koreatown (Korean: 코리아타운), also known as a Little Korea or Little Seoul, is a Korean-dominated ethnic enclave within a city or metropolitan area outside the Korean Peninsula. History Koreatowns as an East Asian ethnic enclave have ...

.1910 U.S. Census
/ref> Conwell died in

Blythe, California Blythe is a city in eastern Riverside County, California, United States. It is in the Palo Verde Valley of the Lower Colorado River Valley region, an agricultural area and part of the Colorado Desert along the Colorado River, approximatel ...

, while on a motor trip and

vacation A vacation (American English) or holiday (British English) is either a leave of absence from a regular job or an instance of leisure travel away from home. People often take a vacation during specific holiday observances or for specific festi ...

."Tribute Paid City Official," ''Los Angeles Times,'' December 19, 1917, image 17
/ref> His body lay in state in the Los Angeles

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

, and then a funeral service was held at St. John's Episcopal Church, Los Angeles, with city and county officials in attendance.

Cremation Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a Cadaver, dead body through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India ...

followed. "Never before at the funeral of a city official was there such a profusion of floral offerings and tribute," said the ''Los Angeles Times.'' "The Council chamber was a mass of flowers, and so was the church."

Public life

Conwell was a

town clerk A clerk is a senior official of many municipal governments in the English-speaking world. In some communities, including most in the United States, the position is elected, but in many others, the clerk is appointed to their post. In the UK, a To ...

in Evanston in 1881 and 1882 and was a member of the United States Life Saving Crew. In San Francisco, he was a member of the Charter Committee of One Hundred in that city and president of the Motor Dealers Association there in 1911 and 1912. He served a term as president of the city's Cycle Board of Trade. He was elected to the

Los Angeles City Council The Los Angeles City Council is the legislative body of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles in California. The council is composed of 15 members elected from single-member districts for four-year terms. The President of the Los Angeles City Counc ...

in 1913 and reelected in 1915 and 1917, leading a fight for a

city ordinance A local ordinance is a law issued by a local government. such as a municipality, county, parish, prefecture, or the like. China In Hong Kong, all laws enacted by the territory's Legislative Council remain to be known as ''Ordinances'' () af ...

that would exclude

billboards A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

from residential areas. He was

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of the council. Conwell was a member of the University Clubs of Los Angeles and San Francisco, the

Society of Automobile Engineers SAE International, formerly named the Society of Automotive Engineers, is a United States-based, globally active professional association and standards developing organization for engineering professionals in various industries. SAE Internatio ...

Phi Kappa Sigma Phi Kappa Sigma () is an international all-male college secret society and social fraternities and sororities, fraternity. While nicknames differ from institution to institution, the most common nicknames for the fraternity are Skulls, Skullhous ...

, the

Los Angeles Athletic Club Los Angeles Athletic Club (LAAC) is a privately owned Sports club, athletic club and social club in Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles, California, United States. Established in 1880, the club is today best known for its John R. Wooden Award pr ...

, the

Automobile Club of Southern California The Automobile Club of Southern California is the Southern California affiliate of the American Automobile Association (AAA) federation of motor clubs. The Auto Club was founded on December 13, 1900, in Los Angeles as one of the nation's first mo ...

, Gamut Club, Annandale Country Club and the

Methodist Episcopal Church The Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) was the oldest and largest Methodist denomination in the United States from its founding in 1784 until 1939. It was also the first religious denomination in the US to organize itself on a national basis. In ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conwell, James Simpson 1859 births 1917 deaths American automobile designers Presidents of the Los Angeles City Council 19th-century American inventors Northwestern University alumni City and town clerks United States Life-Saving Service personnel