J. H. Miller Co.

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An early Huntington business, the J.H. Miller Co. was a
 wholesaler of china, glassware and Queensware.

 File photo | The Herald-Dispatch

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One of Huntington’s early businesses was the J.H. Miller Co., a wholesaler
of china, glassware and Queensware. (Developed by Josiah Wedgewood,
Queensware was a light white earthenware with a brilliant glaze.
 Wedgewood named it for its patroness, Queen Charlotte.)

The 1910 edition of the Huntington City Directory listed James H. Miller
 as the company’s president and manager, R. Quinn Flaugher
as secretary and Mathias W. Dugan as treasurer.

 In 1913, Dugan moved to another Huntington firm, the
 Emmons-Hawkins Hardware Co., where he
ultimately rose to become its president.

According to a trade journal from the era, the Huntington Paper and
Woodenware Co. purchased the J.H. Miller Co. in 1918, retaining
most of its product line. The 1920 City Directory identified
John H. Cullen as the president of Huntington Paper,
 which was located on 13th Street near 2nd Avenue.

Records in the West Virginia Secretary of State’s office
show that in 1923 the Cullen firm changed its name
 to the Huntington Paper and China Co.

A circa 1910 photograph of the J.H. Miller building at 1053rd Ave.
is a diagonal shot of the two-story brick building, showing
not only its front but also its considerable length.

Five men and a boy can be seen standing on the loading dock.
Four of the men are in work clothes while the fifth man is
 wearing a white shirt and a boater hat. Presumably
he’s in charge. Who knows? Maybe
it’s J.H. Miller himself.

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Note:  This Article and picture appeared in the Herald-Dispatch Newspaper on May 23, 2023..

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