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In 1818 James Heaton built this house on the southwest corner of what is now Robbins Avenue and Cleveland Avenue.

In 1834 he sold it to Ambrose Mason and it became known as the Heaton-Mason Homestead, being occupied by five successive generations of the Mason family. It was an imposing white brick structure with wooden pegs that held the timbers in place. Its cherry circular staircase and numerous spacious rooms with fireplaces were features of the landmark.

 

Heaton-Mason Homestead

William and Sarah Ward had eight children. They came to America in 1817 and went directly to Pittsburgh, Pa. William Ward was a practical iron worker and his sons obtained knowledge of the business from their association with him.

Their son, James Ward married Eliza Dithridge in 1835. Her family was also involved with the iron manufacturing in Pittsburgh. In 1841 James Ward and his brother, William built the first rolling mill in Niles. The firm was destined to play a prominent part in the history of Niles, as well as the entire Mahoning valley.

Just as the Heaton family founded the village of Niles, and the industries that nourished it, so the Ward family provided the industrial leadership that transformed Niles from a diminutive village of 300 inhabitants and a single furnace in 1840, to a thriving industrial town with a population of around 3,000 by 1870.

The first Ward plant stood on the north bank of the Mahoning River, east of the viaduct. In 1859 James Ward built the Elizabeth Furnace to supply the pig iron for his rolling mill. It was located on the east side of the Mosquito Creek, about where East Park Avenue crosses the creek.

In 1862 James and Elizabeth Ward built the house at 503 Brown Street. A lot of thought obviously went into the building of the house. The front entrance holds double doors with glass windows which open to allow the air to flow into the house and up the stairs which are in the main hallway. This allows for the cooling of the house in the summer.

Of course this was before window screens as we know, so grates for the windows were installed to prevent birds from flying inside. These were probably made at the Ward factory and have the same motif as the frosted glass window above the double doors. We were told that the windows also held a frosted glass insert with the same motif, but they were removed some time ago. The frosted glass panels were made by Eliza’s brother, Edward Dithridge, who was a glass cutter and engraver in Pittsburgh.

James Ward, pioneer ironmaster of the Mahoning Valley, was born November 25, 1813 in Staffordshire, England. He came to America in 1817 and to Niles from Pittsburgh in 1841.

He built puddling plants, founded James Ward & CO, The Falcon Nail and Iron Company and the Russia Mill for manufacturing steel. He was shot to death on July 24, 1864.

A photo of William Ward, Sr. who was the brother of James Ward Sr., builder of the Ward-Thomas House and co-founder of the Ward Iron Mills. He was born in 1806 and died in 1888.

By 1834 the settlement had reached the proper proportions of a village so James Heaton planned the streets, marked off the lot division and named the village. Until 1834 the settlement was appropriately called “Heaton’s Furnace”, but James Heaton gave it a new name “Nilestown” in honor of Hezekiah Niles, editor of the Niles Register, a Baltimore paper, who’s Whig (early political party) principals Heaton greatly admired.

Nilestown remained the name until 1843 when Ambrose Mason, Postmaster, for convenience shortened it to “Niles” and that is how Niles got its name.”

Ambrose Mason led the line of Masons here in 1835. He started the first mercantile store with Josiah Robbins, who had married Mason’s daughter after the death of his first wife, Maria Heaton. Maria Heaton was the daughter of James Heaton, founder of Niles, who built the first iron furnace in 1809. Heaton prospered and built a stately home on the southwest corner of Robbins and Cleveland Avenues.

Harry H. Mason, Ambrose's distinguished son, was born in New York in 1819. In 1842, he also opened a mercantile store, which served the Heatons, James Ward, William McKinley Sr. and others. He was assistant postmaster and succeeded his father as Postmaster.

Harry Mason was elected as the first Mayor of the Village of Niles after it was incorporated in 1866. The mayor's salary was $100.00 per month at that time.

The city building then was a tiny wooden structure on the land which would later become the McKinley Memorial grounds.

 

He was one of the builders of the Mason block at the southeast corner of Main and State streets (built prior to 1882). He became president of the City National Bank in 1893.