LEO NUSBAUM.
Faithfulness to duty and perseverance invariably bring their reward. Give a truly ambitious young man an opportunity to advance himself, and he will succeed. The opportunity was given to Leo Nusbaum, vice-president of the Dolan Mercantile Company of Atchison, and he has made a success of the business in which he began at the lowest rung of the ladder. Entering the employ of the firm of which he is now one of the important heads, he worked his way steadily upward until he is now one of the recognized business factors in the city of Atchison.
Leo Nusbaum was born in Poweshiek county, Iowa, December 6, 1877, and is the son of Frederick and Eva (Link) Nusbaum, both natives of Germany. Frederick Nusbaum was born in the Fatherland in 1855, and came to America in 1869, when a boy fourteen years of age. He worked as a farm hand in Iowa, and eventually owned a farm of his own. From Iowa he moved to Nebraska where he purchased and operated a farm. From Nebraska he removed to St. Joseph, Mo., where he was employed in a grain elevator. He died in St. Joseph in 1903.
He, with whom this review is directly concerned, was educated in the schools of Council Bluffs, and St. Peter’s parochial school, and came to Atchison in 1898. On coming here he entered the employ of the Dolan Mercantile Company as office boy and packer. His first work consisted of preparing orders for shipment. After attaining proficiency in this department, he was promoted to the position of billing clerk and made a success in this department. being next advanced to the position of city salesman for the concern. All the while he was studying the wholesale business, and gaining such a knowledge as would best fit him to take a more responsible position in the affairs of the company. His next important service was as the secretary of the company. From this place it was but a step to the sales managership. Upon the demise of William F. Dolan, the founder of the wholesale business, in the year 1913, Mr. Nusbaum became vice-president and one of the managers. He and his associates, in charge of the Dolan Mercantile Company’s affairs, are capable and energetic men who are building up a more extensive business upon the broad and stable foundation erected by its late founder, whose example has been an inspiration and guide to the young men whom he took into his employ and educated in the details of his extensive business. Mr. Nusbaum has justified the confidence and faith held in his ability by his employer, and is an able and dignified executive.
Mr. Nusbaum was united in marriage with Gertrude Delaney, at Atchison, Kan., in 1900. She is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Martin Delaney. To this union four children have been born, who are the pride of their parents, namely: Leo, Mary Clare, Robert, and Frances. Mr. and Mrs. Nusbaum are members of the Catholic church and have a host of friends who esteem them for their many excellent qualities. Mr. Nusbaum is a director of the First National Bank of Atchison and a vice-president of the Atchison Commercial Club and the Atchison Hospital. He is politically allied with the Democratic party. His primary interests, however, are mainly concerned with the growing success of his firm, and the welfare and growth of his home city, and he is universally recognized as a citizen of worth and standing in the community. He was the most active force in the organization of the Atchison Commercial Club, called its first meeting and has been continuously one of its most aggressive members.