Howard Melville Hanna
Howard Melville Hanna (1840-1921) was an American Civil War veteran, businessman, philanthropist and plantation owner.
Biography
Early life
Howard Melville Hanna was born on January 23, 1840 in New Lisbon, Ohio.[1][2] His father was Leonard Hanna (1806-1862) and his mother, Samantha M. Converse Hanna (1813-1897).[1] His brother Mark Hanna (1837-1904) served as Republican United States Senator from Ohio from 1897 to 1904.[1] He had another brother, Leonard C. Hanna (1850-1919), and three sisters, H. Gertrude Hanna Hubbell (1836-1891), Seville S. Hanna Morse (1846-1927) and Lilian Hanna Baldwin (1852-1948).[1] He moved to Cleveland, Ohio with his family at the age of twelve.[2]
He graduated from Union College in Schenectady, New York.[2]
Civil War service
He served in the American Civil War of 1861-1865.[1] On June 11, 1862, he became Paymaster of the Union Navy.[1] He served on USS Agawam from March 9, 1864 until he resigned and was discharged on February 13, 1865.[1]
Business career
After the Civil War, he invested in shipping and later in the oil business.[2] He eventually sold his oil concerns to the Standard Oil of Ohio.[2] He later invested in the American Ship Building Company.[2] He was one of the original stockholders of the Glenville Race Track, a race track in Cleveland.[2]
Philanthropy
A philanthropist, he was President of the Charity Organization Society in Cleveland.[2] He also donated to the Lakeside Hospital and to the Western Reserve University.[2] Additionally, he was a member of the Western Reserve Historical Society.[2]
Personal life
He married Kate Smith Hanna (1843-1919) on December 28, 1863.[1] They had six children: Bessie Hanna, Helen Hanna, Kate Benedict Hanna Harvey (1871-1936), Howard Melville Hanna (1877-1945), Leonard Hanna (1881-1881), and Howard Melville Hanna (1909-1936).[1] They purchased the Pebble Hill Plantation in Thomasville, Georgia in 1896, where they wintered.[3] They also purchased the Winnstead Plantation and the Melrose Plantation in Thomasville.[3] He was a harness racer.[3]
He died on February 8, 1921 in Thomasville.[1] He was buried in the Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio.[1]