Coming from Virginian ancestry, of English lineage and imbued with the spirit of western enterprise and progress, Dr. Robert Fulton Ellison has won a prominent place in professional circles of St. Louis and made a most creditable record in connection with his service in the World war. Born in Douglas, West Virginia, on the 26th of October, 1889, he is a son of William Madison Ellison, who is also a native of that state and comes of English ancestry. The family was founded in America by James B. Ellison, who in early colonial days settled in Virginia. An ancestor of Dr. Ellison in the maternal line participated in the Revolutionary war. His father, William Madison Ellison, was in early life an educator and taught in leading universities of West Virginia, while subsequently he turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, ground up and from every conceivable angle. One of the local papers, commenting upon his career, said: “Naturally, therefore, when the chance came for him to secure control of this business, he was fully equipped to handle every detail and to win success. Back of this experience he had the benefit of the traditions of the old house of William O. Langan, established at Tenth and Morgan streets, away back in 1879. That store was the foundation of the splendid business at Eighteenth and Washington today. Mr. Langan is a firm believer in advertising and in clever slogans. Three of his best known slogans are: `Our Location Means a Saving to You,’ ‘See Us if You Wish to Save Money,’ ‘Out of the High Rent District.’ This is the way Mr. Langan often talks to prospective customers in his advertisements.”
Mr. Langan is a member of the Catholic church. He is not a club man but finds his enjoyment in the conduct of his business and knows the keen joy of successfully solving many intricate commercial problems.