Henry Hunter
The people of Ironton, Ohio, are indebted to Henry Hunter for the opportunity he has placed in their way of enjoying highclass amusement features. It has been said, and truly, that not least among the tasks allotted to men's lives are those which minister to our esthetic natures, and the successful theatrical manager is he who places before the patrons of the stage alike the humorous and the pathetic aspects of life. While Mr. Hunter is still a young man, he is experienced in the amusement business, is a veteran of the motion picture industry in Ohio, and as manager and part owner of the Empire and Scenic Theatres is giving the people clean, interesting and instructive exhibitions.
Mr. Hunter was born in Wayne County, West Virginia, September 3, 1878, and is a son of Peter F. and Amelia (DeMaro) Hunter. His father, who was born in Staunton, Virginia, in 1849, served as a member of Company K, Fifty-third Mounted Kentucky Infantry, during the Civil war, and is now a resident of Ironton, where he is engaged in business as a contracting carpenter. Mrs. Hunter was born in Lawrence County. Ohio, in 1858, and has been the mother of six children: Henry, John A., Samuel V., Charles A., James B. and May F. Henry Hunter attended the public schools of West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio until he was sixteen years of age, and at that time took up the study of engineering, to which he applied himself for two years. He then entered the employ of the Lawrence Telephone Company as a lineman and remained with that firm for seven years, being advanced to the position of wire chief and later was made manager. With C. B. Clark, he became in 1905, one of the pioneers in the motion picture business in Ohio. He has continued in this business, steadily increasing his interests, and at this time is part owner of two of the most successful amusement enterprises of the city, the Scenic and Empire Theaters, which, under his management, are attracting large and appreciative audiences. During the early days of moving pictures, one of the most dangerous features of the business lay in the liability of the films catching fire. Mr. Hunter, a natural mechanic, devised an attachment which did away with this danger, and for some time it was extensively used in various parts of the country, but has since been displaced by more recent inventions along the same line. Mr. Hunter has a most creditable military record, having been a member of the Seventh Regiment, Ohio National Guard, for nine years, and serving with Company I, Seventh Regiment. Ohio Volunteer Infantry, during the Spanish-American war. He is a great lover of motor-boating, promoting events of this character, and owning the largest motor boat on the river at Ironton. He owns his own residence at No. 69 North Sixth Street, and has a number of other interests. Fraternally he is connected with the local lodges of the Knights of Pythias and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. Mr. Hunter is a republican and a consistent member of the Episcopal Church, with which the members of his family are also connected.
On August 24, 1902, Mr. Hunter was married at Ironton to Miss Anna M. Lewis, daughter of Louis Lewis, who is employed at the rolling mills at Ironton. Five children have been born to this union, namely: Helena, Ruth, Alden F., Henrietta and Beatrice J.
From "A Standing History of the Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio" by Eugene B. Willard, Daniel W. Williams, George O. Newman and Charles B. Taylor. Published by Lewis Publishing Company, 1916