The Autobiography of Dr. Edward A. Rumely: the La Porte Years, 1906-1914

The Autobiography of Dr. Edward A. Rumely: The La Porte Years, 1906-1914 Edited by Philip Morehouse McGarr* Contributed by Mrs. Fanny Scott Rumely** The first four completed chapters of the Edward A. Rumely autobiography, “The Formative Years, 1882-1900,” were presented in the Indiana Magazine of History in March, 1970. In these chapters Rumely included an account of the events and activities of his early life and his recollection of pioneer days in La Porte, Indiana. He noted the successful establishment of an agricultural implement business by Grandfather Meinrad Rumely, the wholesome and positive atmosphere in the Rumely home which stimulated his desire to learn, his early parochial education and attendance at Notre Dame from 1898 to 1900, and finally his decision and plans to continue his education in Europe. The next four completed chapters of the Rumely autobiography, “Student Days Abroad, 1900-1906,” were published in the Indiana Magazine of History in September, 1970. Rumely here described his impressions, observations, and experiences as a medical student in England and Germany. His first year was spent at Ruskin Hall in Oxfo d, England ; a second year at Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Gerxi any; and the last four and one half years at Freiburg Univer- sity, Freiburg, Baden, Germany. Of particular interest were Rumely’s comments on the work-study program at Ruskin Hall ; his discussion of the cooperative British labor movement; his mention of corre- spondence with Leo Tolstoy on proper diet and educational philoso- phy; his discussion with Rudolph Diesel, the inventor and design engineer ; his close friendship with Gerhart von Schulze-Gaevernitz, internationally known professor of economics and government ; and his reflections on German culture, education, and government. In the spring of 1906 Rumely received an M.D. degree magna cum laude and completed the requirements for a degree in economics at Freiburg University. While in medical school at Freiburg Rumely held a part time job at the Licht und Luft Heilandstalt (Light and Air Sanitarium). One of the patients there was Julius G. Giitermann who visited the sanitarium twice a week for treatment of psoriasis. A rapport developed between Giitermann and the young medical student; their association proved exceptionally rewarding and developed into a lifetime friendship. Rumely became a frequent weekend guest at the Villa Orehta, * Philip Morehouse McGarr is assistant professor of history, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida. *+ Mrs. Fanny Scott Rumely is the widow of Edward A. Rumely. 2 Indiana Magazine of History the Giitermann family home, which was located on a ten acre estate near Gutach, northeast of Freiburg. Rumely formed a close bond with the entire family, and in particular with the three older boys to whom he was both companion and counselor.’ In the eight years following his graduation from Freiburg Rumely saw the fulfillment of two of his dreams: the building of Interlaken School for Boys and the development of the Rumely OilPull farm tractor. The final installment in this series, “The La Porte Years, 1906-1914,” chapters 12-15 in the autobiography, is primarily con- cerned with these two endeavors. The author describes his return to the serenity of La Porte, Indiana, in 1906. Many men in his posi- tion would have been content to settle down to a comfortable medical practice and raise a family, but not Rumely. As he indicates in the installment which follows, Rumely practiced medicine in La Porte for six weeks upon his return, but this was merely a prelude to other activities. Since his days at Notre Dame and the reading of Jean Jacques Rousseau’s Emile and Herbert Spencer’s Education: Intel- lectual, Moral, and Physical he had dreamed of establishing a school where he could experiment with progressive educational methods. In the spring of 1907 Rumely located a suitable site in La Porte, the former private estate of S. B. Collins, to begin his boys’ school. He rented the estate property which included a half mile of shore line on Clear Lake, a spacious three story brick building with thirty- five rooms and a large basement adaptable for shop classes, a two story barn, and an ice house.2 The school opened in September, 1907, with thirteen students. Rumely made his school a model institution. He integrated the more traditional classroom subjects with shop and farm activities and created an environment conducive to learning. Rumely hoped to in- fluence the entire American public school system, which he regarded as wholly inadequate for a world in flux. He felt that unless in- 1 The Gutermann children included: Oskar, Richard, Ehrich, Hedwig, Thea, and Annie. The Gutermann family, which was of dual Swiss-German nationality, owned Gutermann Schapp Seide Company, an international silk manufacturing and spinning concern with factories in Germany, Italy, Austria, France, and later Belgium, Poland, Hungary, Argentina, and Brazil. Information on the Gutermanns may be found in the Edward A. Rumely autobiography, Chapter 10, Edward A. Rumely Papers (Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington) . This chapter is not being published in the Indiana Magazine of History. Also not to be published is Chapter 11 which deals with Rumely’s close association and friendship with three prominent German faculty members at Freiburg University: Profes- sors Bernh Kroenig, surgeon; Kraske, a biologist; and Kliniks, the developer of twilight sleep. *Dp. S. B. Collins’ estate was located on Pine Lake Avenue in La Porte. When Rumely purchased the Collins Building in 1907, it was the old Interlaken Sanitarium. The building is now part of the Community Hospital in La Porte. Michigan City News Dispatch, October 13, 1964. VILLAOREHTA GUTEB~~ANNFAMILY HOME, NEAR FBEIBURG, GEBMANY. Courtesy Lilly Library. Indiana University, Bloomington. 4 Indiana Magazine of Histow novative educational techniques were adopted, America’s youth would be unprepared to “meet the problems of its environment.”S To expand Interlaken to accommodate between 125 and 150 boys Rmely needed capital. Therefore, the story of the La Porte years is also the story of Rumely’s involvement with his grandfather’s agricultural implement business, the M. Rumely Company. Edward as- sumed direction of the company shortly after his return to La Porte when his father’s health deteriorated. Rumely brought his gifts for innovation, organization, management, and salesmanship to the business. He saw the need for the development of a heavy duty traction engine that would use a fuel such as kerosene for combustion. There- fore, he persuaded John Alstyne Secor, inventor of a kerosene burn- ing engine, to join the corporation’s engineering department. Swr came to La Porte and developed a method of adapting his engine to the Rumely farm tra~tor.~Rumely coined the descriptive trade name, OilPull, for Secor’s adaptation. The Rumely OilPull tractor helped to revolutionize American farming practices and made possible exten- sive farming of the sod prairies of the Great Northwest and Canada. As he describes it in the chapters which follow, success in the implement business provided Rumely with the capital to expand Interlaken. He found an ideal new site for the school near Rolling Prairie, northeast of La Porte. The property included 720 acres of beautifully wooded land and a lake. He moved Interlaken to this location in 1911. Rumely’s description of the beginning of Interlaken and his account of the expansion of the M. Rumely Company conclude the por- tion of the autobiography published in the Indiana Magazine of His- tory. The great length of the memoirs combined with space limita- tions for documents make it impossible to print chapters 16-23 of the manuscript which Samuel Thurston Williamson helped Rumely to prepare. These chapters include the author’s recollections of Henry Ford’s visits to Interlaken ; his courtship and marriage to Miss Fanny Scott of La Porte; his friendship with Hugo Junkers, German aero- dynamics engineer; the failure of the M. Rumely Company due in part to the economic conditions caused by World War I ; his purchase of the New York Evening Mail and subsequent move to New York 3 Edward A. Rumely, “The Dearth of Skilled Labor, Our National Problem and the Interlaken School Movement,” Interlaken rSchool Bulletin (La Porte, Ind., n.d.), 4-6, Rumely Papers. 4 John A. Secor was born June 28, 1847, in New York City. His father, Samuel Secor, was an eminent marine engine designer, as had been his grandfather. After moving to La Porte in 1908 where he resided until his death June 2, 1935, John Secor invented an adaptation of his kerosene combustion engine to the Rumely farm tractor, known as “Kerosene Annie” or the Rumely OilPull Farm Tractor. Both Henry Ford and Thomas A. Edison hailed Secor’s invention as an important step in power development. See La Porte Herald-Argus, “The Story of John A. Secor,” July 1, 2, 1969. Rumely Autobiography 6 City; his close association with the Progressive party and Theodore Roosevelt; and the problems resulting from America’s role as a neu- tral during World War I. In addition, a number of uncompleted chapters of the autobiography may be found in the Rumely Papers, Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington. These chapters contain Rumely’s account of other business interests such as Vitamin Foods, Inc., which pi- oneered in the introduction of vitamins and vitamin containing foods to the retail market, and the Agricultural Bond and Credit Corpora- tion, which aided farmers in purchasing farm implements and sup- plies. Rumely also describes his involvement with national political questions and the problems of deflation, including his service as ex- ecutive secretary to both the Committee for the Nation and the Na- tional Committee to Uphold Constitutional Government and his help in establishing the Committee for Constitutional Government.

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