Franklin Millard

September 7, 1831 (age 77)

Hampton, New York, United States

Franklin Millard, along with his wife, Annie Catlett Millard, and baby, Courtney, made the journey to Burlington, Iowa, and made it his home for the remainder of his life. The very spirit that drove him westward provoked his entrepreneurial endeavors in the fuel industry. Frank’s older brother George had preceded him. When Franklin Millard arrived, the two entered the lumber business along with William E. Thompson under the name Frank Millard & Company. In the 1860s lumber was a lucrative business. Burlington was well placed on the Mississippi River to receive tremendous rafts of logs from the northern forests. The Millard brothers’ lumber company thrived along with those of other early Burlington lumber firms. In 1879 Franklin Millard sold his interest in the company and began a new trade: paint and oil. Two years later he purchased the interest of Gilbert, Hedge & Company in the Cascade Lumber Company and became president and treasurer. The company’s mill was located at the river’s edge and at the foot of the bluff upon which Burlington’s notable Crapo Park would later sit. The Keokuk branch of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad ran through the yard. Franklin Millard spent 15 more successful years operating the Cascade Lumber Company. During seasonal peaks, the firm, with an annual capacity of seven million feet of lumber, employed as many as 50 to 60 men. Then, in 1896, a fire destroyed the plant. Although he was 65 years of age in 1896, Franklin Millard was not yet ready for retirement. Instead, he became identified with J. D. Harmer & Company, which was located on 26.5 acres on the north side of town. Young Harmer was operating a 20-million-foot-capacity lumber and planing mill and manufacturing various innovative wood products, including dovetailed window sash and nonshrink doors for which the materials were tempered in a dry kiln. Millard furnished significant funding for the enterprise and managed the business. Nevertheless, it soon failed. Having already withdrawn from the business, Franklin Millard was appointed receiver, and the business was sold. In his retirement, Franklin Millard financed the formation of a new Frank Millard Company in 1901, this time with his son-in-law John A. MacArthur as manager. With the northern forests depleted, the new company conducted a wholesale and retail business in lime, coal, and cement. Still operated by descendants in the 21st century, the Frank Millard Company is headquartered in Burlington and has satellite offices in Fort Madison, Mount Pleasant, and Keokuk. Its business has expanded to include heating, air conditioning, electrical, plumbing, carpentry, plant relocation, sheet metal fabrication, excavation, and other concerns. In retirement, Franklin Millard was able to enjoy his circa 1878 home, one of the finest in the city. Still occupied by descendants MacArthur and Connie Coffin, Prospect Point sits atop the Prospect Hill bluffs and commands a spectacular view of downtown Burlington, the Mississippi River, and Illinois on the opposite shore.

Franklin Benjamin Millard

Edit Profile

lumberman

Background

Franklin Millard was born on September 7, 1831, in Hampton, New York, United States.

Career

Franklin Millard, along with his wife, Annie Catlett Millard, and baby, Courtney, made the journey to Burlington, Iowa, and made it his home for the remainder of his life. The very spirit that drove him westward provoked his entrepreneurial endeavors in the fuel industry. Frank’s older brother George had preceded him. When Franklin Millard arrived, the two entered the lumber business along with William E. Thompson under the name Frank Millard & Company.

In the 1860s lumber was a lucrative business. Burlington was well placed on the Mississippi River to receive tremendous rafts of logs from the northern forests. The Millard brothers’ lumber company thrived along with those of other early Burlington lumber firms. In 1879 Franklin Millard sold his interest in the company and began a new trade: paint and oil. Two years later he purchased the interest of Gilbert, Hedge & Company in the Cascade Lumber Company and became president and treasurer. The company’s mill was located at the river’s edge and at the foot of the bluff upon which Burlington’s notable Crapo Park would later sit. The Keokuk branch of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad ran through the yard. Franklin Millard spent 15 more successful years operating the Cascade Lumber Company. During seasonal peaks, the firm, with an annual capacity of seven million feet of lumber, employed as many as 50 to 60 men. Then, in 1896, a fire destroyed the plant.

Although he was 65 years of age in 1896, Franklin Millard was not yet ready for retirement. Instead, he became identified with J. D. Harmer & Company, which was located on 26.5 acres on the north side of town. Young Harmer was operating a 20-million-foot-capacity lumber and planing mill and manufacturing various innovative wood products, including dovetailed window sash and nonshrink doors for which the materials were tempered in a dry kiln. Millard furnished significant funding for the enterprise and managed the business. Nevertheless, it soon failed. Having already withdrawn from the business, Franklin Millard was appointed receiver, and the business was sold.

In his retirement, Franklin Millard financed the formation of a new Frank Millard Company in 1901, this time with his son-in-law John A. MacArthur as manager. With the northern forests depleted, the new company conducted a wholesale and retail business in lime, coal, and cement. Still operated by descendants in the 21st century, the Frank Millard Company is headquartered in Burlington and has satellite offices in Fort Madison, Mount Pleasant, and Keokuk. Its business has expanded to include heating, air conditioning, electrical, plumbing, carpentry, plant relocation, sheet metal fabrication, excavation, and other concerns.

In retirement, Franklin Millard was able to enjoy his circa 1878 home, one of the finest in the city. Still occupied by descendants MacArthur and Connie Coffin, Prospect Point sits atop the Prospect Hill bluffs and commands a spectacular view of downtown Burlington, the Mississippi River, and Illinois on the opposite shore.

Connections

Franklin Millard was married and had two daughters and a son. In 1864, at the age of 33, Frank, along with his wife, Annie Catlett Millard, and baby, Courtney, made the journey to Burlington, Iowa, and made it his home for the remainder of his life.

Frank Millard's wife, Annie, died in 1868 at her father's home in New York only a few years after the couple had moved to Burlington. In the meantime, two children had arrived: son Homer and daughter Emma. Three years later he remarried. Ellen Blannerhasset (Hewson) Millard helped raise the children and, during his several years of poor health, nursed Frank until his death on February 1, 1909. Frank, Ellen, and Emma were all buried in Aspen Grove Cemetery in Burlington, as was his brother George, who died two weeks after Frank's death.

Franklin had a brother, George, a son-in-law, John A. MacArthur, a grandfather, Abiathar Millard, which was a physician, and a great-grandfather, Robert Millard, was a Baptist minister. Both were born in Rehovof.

Spouse:: Annie Catlett Millard
Daughter:: Courtney
Daughter:: Emma
Son:: Homer
Brother:: George
son-in-law:: John A. MacArthur
Grandfather:: Abiathar Millard
Great-grandfather:: Robert Millard

References

Hudson, D., Bergman, M., & Horton, L. (Eds.) The biographical dictionary of Iowa
2009

Main Photo

School period

College/University

Career

Achievements

Membership

Awards

Other Photos

Connections

Connections

Franklin Benjamin Millard

Background

Career

Connections

References

Born

Died

Resting place

Nationality

Career

1860 - 1879

1879

1881 - 1896

1896

1901