Harvey Cooper Williams was born in Marshall, Dane County, Wisconsin August 13, 1874, the son of Harry Chauncey Williams and Julia Ann Cooper. He lived with his family in Marshall and completed an eighth-grade education.
In the winter of 1892-93, Harvey came to Naperville to work for his Uncle Willard Scott Jr. in the shoe and men’s furnishing department.
He married Della Augusta Wunder on July 26, 1894, at the Presbyterian parsonage in Downers Grove, Illinois, and they were the parents of three children. Their daughter Julia Marie married James Lawrence Nichols II. Their sons were Harvey Keith and John Carlton. Harvey bought out the men’s furnishing department from Scott and operated it with a partner by the name of Musselman and Williams. The business venture was short-lived and Harvey then operated a bowling alley in 1909 for a short while. He then became a traveling salesman for eight years, selling rubber footwear in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.
Harvey bought an ice cream and confectionary parlor in Naperville in 1905. It was located in the Old Main Grocery Store. Harvey made his own ice cream and later consolidated the ice cream business with an ice company. His ice cream business was so successful that he operated a wholesale delivery route to neighboring communities by horse and wagon.
Harvey moved the business to South Washington Street near the DuPage River on the site that would become the forerunner of the Prince Castle Ice Cream Company. (Today Fredenhagen Park with the Exchange Club Memories Fountain sits there.) At this time, the company was called the Naperville Consumers Company and he was one of the original stockholders and general manager.
In 1917, Harvey organized the National Bag Company to manufacture cloth specialty bags. The bags were most often used to enclose small metal parts for automobiles, furniture, stoves, etc. Bull Dog Mailing Bag was the trade name of the bags. The company was first located in Aurora, then above the Boecker’s Men’s Wear Store while a new building was being constructed. Harvey operated for many years at the corner of Spring Avenue and Webster Street.
The business employed ten ladies to sew the bags and James L. Nichols II, Harvey’s grandson, was the production manager.
During the depression, Harvey helped operate a soup kitchen to feed the hungry and he served as chairman of the War Price Rationing Board during the Second World War, where he earned the title of “Old Stonehearted.”
Harvey helped organize the Naperville National Bank in 1934 and served on its Board of Directors continuously until his death. He was also active on the Boards of Health, and Zoning as well as the YMCA. He was a school board member from 1912 to 1914.
Harvey was one of the original members of the Knife and Fork Club and served as its first president. The club was established in 1924, and consisted of a group of Naperville residents who met on Tuesdays for lunch to discuss improvements to the town. He was a member of the Congregational Church, the Naperville Country Club, and the Rotary Club of Naperville.
Harvey was raised a Master Mason March 6, 1900, and exalted a Royal Arch Mason December.
