BONE, JOHN HERBERT ALOYSIUS (J.H.A.) (31 Oct. 1830-17 Sept. 1906) upheld literary standards on 2 Cleveland newspapers for half a century. The son of a British army officer, he was born in Penryn, Cornwall, and diverted from a similar career by a boyhood accident which left his right arm crippled. He married Ellen Carpenter and brought her directly to Cleveland in 1851. First settling in OHIO CITY (CITY OF OHIO) as a bookkeeper, Bone then moved to the east side and began contributing articles to the CLEVELAND HERALD. He joined the paper's staff as city editor in 1857 and soon became its lead editorial writer. Bone also contributed articles to such national publications as the Atlantic Monthly, Knickerbocker Magazine, and Godoy's Lady's Book. Noted locally as an Elizabethan scholar, he wrote a series on English history for Our Young Folks. In the late 1850s he published a small volume of poems, followed in 1865 by Petroleum and Petroleum Wells, a book on the oil regions. When the Herald was sold to the CLEVELAND LEADER and the PLAIN DEALER in 1885, it fell to Bone to write his paper's obituary. He then went to work for the Plain Dealer, serving as managing editor to 1893 and thereafter as editorial writer and literary editor. A close friend of Cleveland's scholar-philanthropist LEONARD CASE, JR.†, Bone belonged to the Cleveland Library Assn. and the WESTERN RESERVE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. Afflicted with cancer, he retired from active duties in March 1906, although he continued to send book reviews to the Plain Dealer from his Vienna St. residence until his death. He was survived by a daughter, Estelle J. Bone, who also worked for the Plain Dealer, and a son, Aubrey.
Last Modified: 14 Jul 1997 03:27:26 PM- Related Article(s)