Reese James Llewellyn (30 August 1862 – 15 December 1936) was a

Welsh-American Welsh Americans ( cy, Americanwyr Cymreig) are an American ethnic group whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in Wales. In the 2008 U.S. Census community survey, an estimated 1.98 million Americans had Welsh ancestry, 0.6% of the total U.S ...

businessman. He was the co-founder and president of Llewellyn Iron Works, a company based in Los Angeles, which provided iron works and steel for the construction of buildings in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...

, the Western United States, Mexico, and South America.

Early life

Llewellyn was born in the parish of Llangiwg near

Pontardawe Pontardawe () is a town and a community in the Swansea Valley (Welsh: ''Cwmtawe'') in Wales. With a population of 6,832, it comprises the electoral wards of Pontardawe and Trebanos. A town council is elected. Pontardawe forms part of the county bo ...

in Glamorganshire,

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, the third of six sons born to David and Hannah (née: James) Llewellyn. His father was an engineer and fitter at an iron works.''1880 United States Federal Census'' He emigrated to the United States, first settling in San Francisco, California.

Career

Llewellyn was the co-founder of Llewellyn Bros with his brothers in Los Angeles, California in 1889. Llewellyn served as its president, while his brother William was vice-president and his other brother David was secretary. The firm provided the ironwork inside the

Bradbury Building The Bradbury Building is an architecture, architectural landmark in downtown Los Angeles, California, United States. Built in 1893, the five-story office building is best known for its extraordinary skylit atrium of access walkways, stairs and el ...

in Los Angeles in the early 1890s. By 1905, it had provided ironwork and steel work in Southern California, but also in Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico as well as abroad in Mexico and South America. Many skyscrapers in Los Angeles were built with steel from the firm. In 1929, the company merged with the

Consolidated Steel Corporation Consolidated Steel Corporation (formed 18 December 1928) was an American steel and shipbuilding business. Consolidated built ships during World War II in two locations: Wilmington, California and Orange, Texas. It was created in 1929 by the merg ...

. Additionally, Llewellyn served as the president of the Helsby Red Sandstone Company in 1895. He also served on the board of directors of the Home Savings Bank of Los Angeles in 1905.

Civic life

Llewellyn was a member of the Business Men's Association of Los Angeles, alongside businessmen Walter Newhall, Frank Hicks, John H. Norton, Hancock Banning, Joseph Schoder, James Cuzner, H. E. Graves, and William Lacy. Together, they opposed the closing of saloons in 1905. By the 1920s, Llewellyn served as the vice president of the

Better America Federation The Better America Federation was a pro-business, anti-communist political surveillance organization based in California, U.S. in the 1920s. History The organization was founded on May 7, 1920, in Los Angeles, California by Harry Marston Haldeman ( ...

for Los Angeles County.

Death

Llewellyn suffered a stroke onboard the

Grace Line W. R. Grace and Co. is an American chemical business based in Columbia, Maryland. It produces specialty chemicals and specialty materials in two divisions: Grace Catalysts Technologies, which makes catalysts and related products and technologies ...

ocean liner An ocean liner is a passenger ship primarily used as a form of transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). Ca ...

on her trip between

Valparaíso Valparaíso (; ) is a major city, seaport, naval base, and educational centre in the commune of Valparaíso, Chile. "Greater Valparaíso" is the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Valparaíso is located about northwest of Santiago ...

and New York City, where he died in 1936. His remains are interred, alongside his parents and siblings, in the

Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Forest Lawn Memorial Park is a privately owned cemetery in Glendale, California. It is the original and current flagship location of Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks & Mortuaries, a chain of six cemeteries and four additional mortuaries in Southern Ca ...

References

External links

* Berkeley Squar

Historic Los Angeles * Behind the Scenes in the Oviatt Building: Llewellyn Iron Works Elevator Mechanis

YouTube * Brynamman's Llewellyn brothers building backbone of L

South Wales Guardian * Early Los Angeles Street Light

Water and Power Associates * How Iron & Steel Helped Los Angeles Forge a Modern Metropoli

KCET * The Huntington Librar

Llewellyn Iron Works (photo) * Llewellyn Apartment

Downtown Los Angeles News * Llewellyn Apartment

Llewellyn Apartments * Llewellyn Iron Works Elevator

Archives.org * Reese James Llewelly

FindaGrave * Smithsonia

Trade catalogs from Llewellyn Iron Works {{DEFAULTSORT:Llewellyn, Reese J. 1862 births 1936 deaths Welsh emigrants to the United States People from San Francisco Businesspeople from Los Angeles People from Glamorgan