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Conway, Edwin

Piano company executive, civic leader, president of Cicero Township Board.
Born March 21, 1850, McGillivray, Canada; died November 1, 1919, Oak Park, Illinois.

Although born in Canada, Conway spent the early part of his life on a small farm in Minnesota. His character was molded by his early struggles and poverty. His father left for service in the Union Army during the Civil War, placing young Edwin in charge of the farm and five siblings.

Conway attended college in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, intending to become a surgeon, and worked as a janitor to pay his tuition. He wed Sarah Rogers of Mauston, Wisconsin, and they had three children. Conway never despised menial labor, believing that "the man who cleans our drains and the woman who cooks our meals are as important as the doctor, the lawyer, and the physician."

Quite by accident, Conway became involved with selling organs to farmers and was so successful that W. W. Kimball invited him to head Kimball's wholesale piano establishment in Chicago in 1875. Once settled, he became active in politics and served as president of the Cicero Town Board from 1883 to 1888. He later served on the Republican Central Committee in Cook County.

Conway always remembered his early struggles and carried his lunch with him to the Kimball Piano Company office until he had $50,000 in the bank. He served as president of a railroad company, held top positions in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and became a leader in the Chicago Association of Commerce. He was also an early promoter of the first Historical Society in Oak Park, established in May 1898 but disbanded shortly afterwards. On his small gravestone is engraved "He loved his fellow men."