From: Taylor, William A. Centennial History of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio. Chicago: S.J. Clarke Pub. Co, 1909.
Hugh Kennedy Lindsey
Hugh Kennedy Lindsey is the junior partner of the firm of Jennings & Lindsey, civil engineers and surveyors, who
are doing an extensive business in Columbus. He is yet a young man and the future undoubtedly holds in store
for him greater successes than he has already achieved. He was born in Middleport, Ohio, September 22, 1881,
a son of John B. and Mary (Kennedy) Lindsey. His paternal grandfather was one of the earliest settlers of Meigs
county, Ohio, and was of Scotch descent. He devoted his life to farming and in following that occupation took an
active and helpful part in reclaiming the wild land of Meigs county for the purposes of civilization. In the maternal
line Mr. Lindsey is a direct descendant of Mary, Queen of Scots. The historic name of the family, which is of
Celtic origin, was Ceanna Thighe, meaning the head of a sept or clan. The family descends from the ancient
earls of Carrick in Ayrshire, who seem to have changed their name from Carrick to Kennedy in the fourteenth
century. The present King of England is also the present Earl of Carrick and traveled on the continent under that
title. Representatives of the family came to this country in 1830 and settled in Bucks county, Pennsylvania.
John B. Lindsey, the father, was born in Meigs county, Ohio, in 1856, and is a railroad contractor, having done
much of the work of the Ohio Central & Hocking Valley Railroad Company. He is also very prominent in politics,
being recognized as one of the leaders of the republican party in Meigs county. He wedded Mary Kennedy, who
was born in Middleport, Ohio, in May, 1856, and was a daughter of a druggist of that place.
Reared in the town of his nativity, Hugh K. Lindsey pursued his elementary education in the public schools of
Middleport and afterward entered the Ohio State University. He was about eighteen years of age when in 1899
he started upon his business career as a civil engineer in the service of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company.
He has also been employed by the Ohio Central Railroad Company and in the city engineering department of
Columbus. In November, 1906, he entered into partnership with N. D. Monsarrat, under the firm style of
Monserrat & Lindsey, civil engineers and surveyors. In August, 1907, he bought ought his partner and combined
with F. W. Jennings, under the name of Jennings and Lindsey, civil engineers and surveyors. Their business is
scarcely equaled by that of any other firm or individual in this line in the city and their extensive patronage is
indicative of the public confidence reposed in them professionally.
Mr. Lindsey has become widely and favorably known during his residence in the capital city and has gained
many friends here. He is a charter member of the Ohio state chapter of the Delta Upsilon and is a Jungle Imp.
In November, 1908, he was elected county surveyor on the republican ticket, the first republican ever elected
to that position in the county, and also the youngest man ever elected to a similar position. His term begins
in September, 1909, and will expire in September, 1911. He is very active in politics, his opinions carrying
weight in party councils, while his political influence is widely felt. He is a member of the Republican Glee
Club and also a member of the Ohio Society of Civil Engineers.