Author: Joseph Burke
ISBN-10: 1934938505
ISBN-13: 978-1934938508
Publisher: Langdon Street Press

Click Here To Purchase William H. Miner - The Man and the Myth

Straightforward, honest, hardworking and quite direct, William H Miner was a man to be reckoned with from an early age. Orphaned at age 10, sent live on a farm owned by his Uncle John and Aunt Hulda, he learned the meaning of hard work. Working on their farm and learning about the farming and how to make it one prosper, William became not only a valuable asset to both his Uncle John and Aunt Hulda but to the success of the farm too.

As a young man he made many mistakes and often did not think about the consequences of his actions and thoughts. Working for the Lafayette Car Works as a chief draftsman and Superintendent at Lima, and the Department of Bridges and Building on the Wabash Railroad, he learned invaluable information and more about how to build cars for railroads, fix them and keep the nightmares of being in charge and having a boss whose concern was not the quality of his railroad cars, but the quality produced within short time periods.

One attribute that I admire about William Miner was his work ethic. Williams devotion to quality, safety and creating a product that was defect free at both the manufacturing and design level, would make him someone that major businessmen today would want to have on their team. Refusing to compromise his ethics and lower his standards, he realized that he would have to make a change in his life and go out on his own. Excelling in customer development and service and in produce design and improvement he also realized his shortcomings too. His managerial skills needed work and he failed in production planning and in managing men in manufacturing mainly because the quality of worker was inferior to his standards and not properly trained or compensated for their work by his employer.

With an older sister, who was critical of him from the start, and rarely praised him for his accomplishments, William worked hard to please himself and his Uncle John and his brother-in-law John Mitchell. Both of these men came to his aide with advice and encouragement when things became tough and he needed someone to put things in the proper perspective. Added into the mix was a new wife named Alice and a sister who resented her presence and that of her family. William become immersed in the handling all of his sisters finances, his extended families and his own. Getting many patents and hoping that they would prove profitable, he spent little time at home and much on the road working for different companies and hoping to become successful. With a wife that encouraged him and a sister who was only concerned with her own needs both financially and educationally, William Miner often stretched himself to the limit, yet managed to play mediator and handle all of the diversity diplomatically.

William Miner had a dream. He wanted to bring technology to Chazy and the Champlain Valley. He needed to use power and electricity to provide the new energy of the day. His Heart’s Delight Farm was at the center of his life at this time and required this new technology in order to flourish even more. With the help and guidance of Clarence E. Hamilton his farm manager, he was able to create projects and accomplish many of his goals. After the deaths of his uncle and his brother-in-law, Hamilton, unwittingly took over the role of advisor and more in order to help smooth the ways when things became rough for Miner.

William H. Miner spent his whole life living up to his own standards of excellence both at home and in business. With so many accomplishments, I have decided to highlight the ones that I found most interesting. As an educator I really loved reading about the Chazy Rural School that focused on teaching agricultural skills and other life skills that students in the elementary and middle schools would need. Agriculture was stressed and working with George Mott his dream came alive. The Alice T. Miner Museum brings the reader and the visitor back into the Colonial Time Period.

A legacy so great it would take another book to write it. Chazy, Clinton County in Champlain was blessed and fortunate to have this man who gave them a state of the art hospital, truly rural school, two historic museums, research education and much more. But, what he really gave them was man who worked, whose image on the outside looked austere, but underneath was kind, great host at his farm, and a wonderful husband, brother and so much more. Quality not quantity: Is what he stands for!  Read this informative book.

Click Here To Purchase William H. Miner - The Man and the Myth