USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 10 > Part 31
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John F. McMahon attended the public schools, and early learned the trade of hatter in South Norwalk, which he fol- lowed for sixteen years. During the greater part of this time he was fore- man for the South Norwalk Hat Com- pany and for the Volk Hat Company. Feeling the need of living an outdoor life, Mr. McMahon changed his occupation and began to build houses and sell them on his own account. He built about twenty-five or thirty houses in this way, and is still interested in dealing in real estate. About five or six years ago, Mr. McMahon began to specialize in con- crete construction, and employs about twenty-five men on the average. He is one of the largest builders of sidewalks in Norwalk, and does a large amount of concrete construction work.
Outside of his own business interests, Mr. McMahon has found time to take a keen and active interest in the public matters of his town, has served as chair- man of the town Democratic Committee for many years, and was for years, chair- man of the committee that built the Washington street bridge between South and East Norwalk. He was a member of the Common Council of the city of South Norwalk, and of the Board of Re- lief for ten years. Mr. McMahon has served as a delegate to many county and State conventions, and has always dis- charged the duties incumbent on these offices in such a manner as to bring great satisfaction to his constituents.
Mr. McMahon is a director of the South Norwalk Savings Bank. He is a member of the Knights of Columbus, and has served several terms as grand knight of South Norwalk Council, No. 1253, and for a period of six years was district deputy of the order.
Mr. McMahon married Mary J. Mur- ray, daughter of Michael and Mary (Clune) Murray, of Norwalk, and they are the parents of the following children : 1. John F., Jr., who is a wireless operator ; during the World War he served as radio operator on submarines for sixteen months, and was commissioned ensign and transferred to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis for a course of instruction. 2. Francis V., who grad- uated from Fordham University with the degree of A. B., and is now (1921) a stu- dent in Fordham Law School. 3. Ed- ward M., a student at Fordham. 4. Mary, a student at New Rochelle College. 5. Lawrence S., a student in the Norwalk High School.
Although Mr. McMahon did not go to college in his youth, he has since learned the great value of a broad education in equipping the young man and woman for their battle in life. Consequently, he has been very particular that every one of his children should have the best advan- tages possible.
CLARK, Theodore H., Manufacturer.
Among the younger business men of Norwalk who are rapidly advancing to positions of prominence is Theodore H. Clark, the vice-president of the Norwalk Box Company, whose name heads this ar- ticle. In addition to his standing as a business man, Mr. Clark is well known as an energetic citizen and has a record of honorable service in the late World War.
The name of Clark, or Clarke, is derived
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from Le Clerc, which comes from the Latin Clericus, a learned person, or clerk. It appears in England about the time of the Conquest, but the family seems to have been seated there prior to that period. It is thought that the name which, probably from its meaning, was very highly esteemed, was then as- sumed by families which had hitherto borne a different patronymic. At an early period in Colonial history branches of the race were transplanted to New England, and from that time to the present the name has been distinguished in the annals of different parts of the American Union even as it had been and still is in the Mother land across the sea.
Henry F. Clark, father of Theodore H. Clark, was of Danbury, Connecticut. He married Elizabeth Vail, daughter of The- odore Vail, of Peekskill, New York. The Vail family is of Norman-French origin, and the name has been variously spelled. Geoffrey LeVeel came to England with the Conqueror, and Jeremiah Vail appears to have been the first in America, arriving during the Colonial period of our history. Others came from Wales, from other parts of England and from Ireland. The following children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Clark: I. Ida, married (first)
Whitlock, and (second) James Watson; one daughter Hazel by first marriage, and one son Kenneth by sec- ond marriage. 2. Mattie, deceased. 3. Jeremiah, born in Danbury, and has al- ways been identified with the Norwalk Box Company, of which he is now sec- retary and treasurer; affiliates with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks ; married Sarah Dowd and has one child, Jeane. 4. Theodore H., mentioned be- low. Mr. Clark, the father, died in 1917.
Theodore H. Clark, son of Henry F. and Elizabeth (Vail) Clark, was born No- vember 22, 1888, in Danbury, Connecticut.
He received his education in public schools of his native town. On complet- ing his course of study he came to South Norwalk, where he was associated with his father in the paper box business. The concern was incorporated in 1899 under the name of the Norwalk Box Company and entered, in a modest way, upon the manufacture of paper boxes. Prosperous from the outset, the growth of the busi- ness was more rapid after Theodore H. Clark brought his youthful enthusiasm and aggressiveness to bear upon the con- duct of its affairs. This was about 1905, and upon the death of his father he be- came a director of the company, succeed- ing in 1920 to the office of vice-president. The business is now in a very flourishing condition, the establishment being equipped with the most approved modern machinery, disposing of its product to local manufacturers and giving employ- ment to about fifty persons. The frater- nal affiliations of Mr. Clark include the Senior Order of United American Me- chanics, and the Benevolent and Protec- tive Order of Elks. He is a member of the South Norwalk Club.
The business career of Mr. Clark was interrupted for a time by the call of the Federal government for volunteers when the United States entered the conflict of nations. He enlisted in Headquarters Company, 304th Infantry, 76th Division. On leaving Camp Devons he sailed for Halifax, going thence to London, Eng- land, and then proceeded to Le Havre and Chateau Neuf. Throughout his term of enlistment he remained with the same di- vision. He was one of those selected for the very responsible duty of standing guard at the door of the Armistice Con- ference. On April 5, 1919, he was dis- charged from the service of the govern- ment.
Mr. Clark married, June 6, 1907, Anna
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Smith, daughter of Charles B. and Bessie (Miller) Smith, and they are the parents of one child, Theona Clark.
While still a young man, Mr. Clark has laid the foundation of a successful and honorable business career, and he has also proved himself, in overseas service, a brave soldier and patriotic citizen.
GRANGER, Walter, Merchant.
In the few years during which he has been a resident of Greenwich, Mr. Gran- ger has fully convinced his fellow-citizens that the town has no more enterprising or successful business man than himself. He is personally popular, being known not only as the head of one of the most flourishing mercantile concerns in the place, but also as a citizen who can al- ways be depended on to do his part in the promotion of any movement which, in his judgment, makes for the best interests of his home city.
Septimus Walter Granger, father of Walter Granger, was born June 17, 1853, in Burton, England, and as a boy was brought by his parents to the United States. They settled first in Albany, where he attended the public schools and a military academy, afterward learning the brewing business. Mr. Granger mar- ried Estella Hare. The name of Granger, derived from the word grange, means a dweller thereon, hence, a farmer.
Walter Granger, son of Septimus Wal- ter and Estella (Hare) Granger, was born May 4, 1881, in New York City, where he received his education in the public schools. He entered upon his business career in the office of the Granger Brew- ing Company, the business founded and conducted by his father, where he re- mained five years, becoming thoroughly familiar with every detail of its various departments.
Being thus fully equipped, Mr. Granger took a position as general manager for the Norwich Brewing Company, Norwich, New York, retaining this office eleven years and a half, or until 1914. In that year he removed to Greenwich, where he purchased a small business which he has since developed into one of the important mercantile establishments of the city. He handles a large line of house furnishings and has the only toy business in the town. This department, the very existence of which is a striking proof of Mr. Granger's originality and enterprise, has developed into an important branch of the business.
The sphere of politics is one which Mr. Granger has never entered, finding full scope for his activity and energy in the conduct of the large and flourishing mer- cantile concern of which he is the head. He affiliates with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and the Frater- nal Order of Eagles, both of Norwich, New York. He and his wife are members of Christ Protestant Episcopal Church of Greenwich.
Mr. Granger married, January 17, 1901, in New York City, Effie Agnes Eugenia Shattuck, whose family record is ap- pended to this biography.
Walter Granger has shown himself to be a man abounding in initiative, and fear- less in obeying its promptings. He has already established a business reputation which is certain to increase rapidly as the years go on.
(The Shattuck Line).
The name of Shattuck is another form of Shaddock, derived from Shadd, which was, probably, in the beginning, a nick- name from the Old English fish-name, sceadd.
(I) William Shattuck was born in Eng- land, in 1621 or 1622, as a young man emi- grated to the American colonies, and died, in 1672, at Watertown, Massachusetts.
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His numerous descendants have always been worthy citizens, wherever found.
(II) Daniel Shattuck was born in Mas- sachusetts, and lived many years in St. Louis. Tradition says that he was at one time editor of the New Orleans "Pica- yune." He married Anise (or Anastacia) (Crooks) Roane, born in Sheffield, Eng- land, who had previously married, about 1849, Lieutenant Roane, of the navy. Mr. Shattuck, too, had been married previ- ously, and was the father of a daughter by his first wife. This daughter is now living in Lynn, Massachusetts. Mr. Shat- tuck died in 1884, in New York City.
(III) Charles Albert Shattuck, son of Daniel and Anise (or Anastacia) (Crooks-Roane) Shattuck, was born, about 1855, in St. Louis, and as a child was brought by his parents to New York City, where he attended the public schools. After leaving school he was em- ployed as a messenger by James Fiske, the financier. He married Elizabeth Van- der Poorten, born December 2, 1864, in New York City, daughter of Abraham and Rozetta (Vanden Berg) Vander Poorten, both natives of Holland. At the time of his death, which occurred about June 5-12, 1886, in New York City, Mr. Shattuck was in the service of the Second Avenue Elevated Railroad Company.
(IV) Effie Agnes Eugenia Shattuck, daughter of Charles Albert and Elizabeth (Vander Poorten) Shattuck, was born September 8, 1883, in New York City, ed- ucated in the public and high schools of the metropolis, and became the wife of Walter Granger, as stated above.
MATTHEWS, Sidney A., Agriculturist.
A prominent resident of Springdale, Connecticut, where he is engaged in busi- ness as a civil engineer and also carries
on extensive agricultural operations, is Sidney A. Matthews, a native of Mount Pleasant, Westchester county, New York, where his birth occurred June 24, 1854. He is a son of Isaiah Solis, Jr., and Han- nah M. (Angevine) Matthews, and comes of a family that has long been identified with that region.
Isaiah Solis Matthews, Sr., grandfather of Sidney A. Matthews, was a resident of Mount Pleasant, where he was engaged in business as a farmer and drover. His operations in buying and selling cattle extended over a wide area, and he would take long trips in which he collected large droves, which he took to New York City and disposed of in the markets there. He married Mrs. Susan (Miller) Fisher, a member of the old Miller family of West- chester county, a brief account of which is appended hereto. One of their chil- dren was Isaiah Solis Matthews, Jr., who is mentioned below.
Isaiah Solis Matthews, Jr., was born at Mount Pleasant, New York, March 14, 1827, and died January 21, 1919. As a youth he learned the trade of shoemaker, and worked at that craft in the intervals of caring for his farm. He was an expert agriculturist, and eventually gave up shoemaking to specialize in tree grafting and budding, a work for which he had a natural aptitude. At that period the art of grafting had not received so much sci- entific study as has since been devoted to it, and Mr. Matthews' skill came from his own keen perceptions and love of the work, together with a long experience in its details, but he was so unvaryingly suc- cessful in his attempts that he gained a wide reputation throughout the region as an expert propagator. In following his specialty, however, in which he was consistently employed, by the agricul- turists of the district, he did not neglect his own farm, but continued to raise gen-
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eral crops on a very considerable scale. About the year 1870, Mr. Matthews re- moved from Mount Pleasant to North Castle, New York, and about five years later went to White Plains. His next move was to East Chester, New York, where he continued to reside until 1898, when he came to Springdale, Connecticut. Here he acquired possession of a fine farm of some ninety-six acres and continued to make his home on this property until the time of his death, gradually turning over its cultivation more and more to his sons as he grew older.
Mr. Matthews married Hannah M. An- gevine, a daughter of Isaac and Elizabeth (Matthews) Angevine, of Mount Pleas- ant, where the former carried on a thriv- ing trade as blacksmith. Isaiah Solis, Jr., and Hannah M. (Angevine) Mat- thews were the parents of five children, as follows : Sidney A., of further mention ; Ella J., who became the wife of William Ackerson, of Rockland Lake, New York, to whom she has borne one son, Gifford H., who married Tillie Lemkan, and re- sides in New Haven ; Gifford J., who re- sides on the family homestead at Spring- dale, Connecticut, where he carries on agricultural operations; Seymour S., of Scarsdale, New York, married Ida Coxon, by whom he has had two children, Ralph and Lida; Lida, who became the wife of Charles Kingsbury, of Yonkers, New York. The elder Mr. Matthews and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal church, although in childhood they had both been reared in the Quaker belief. He was active in church affairs, holding many offices, especially in the matter of missionary work, and was a life member of the Foreign Missionary Soci- ety. As a young man, in his early forties, he was a member of the New York Militia.
Sidney A. Matthews, eldest child of
Isaiah Solis, Jr., and Hannah M. (Ange- vine) Matthews, was born June 24, 1854, at Mount Pleasant, Westchester county, New York, and as a child attended the public schools of his native town. He early began to assist his father with the work on the latter's farm, and in that manner learned agricultural methods, thoroughly advancing as time went on to such work as was appropriate to his age. He remained as his father's assistant until about 1894, when, deciding to make his own career in the world, he engaged in the real estate and insurance business on his own account. He located at East Chester, New York, and there opened his office, after which his success came rap- idly. He also did considerable surveying in that region, and made it his specialty to develop sub-divisions. Mr. Matthews remained in this business until 1915, when he retired from it in order to devote his entire attention to his farming interests, which he had always continued to some degree. Since then he has made his home uninterruptedly on the farm at Spring- dale, where his brother, Gifford J., also makes his home, and is actively engaged in agricultural occupations of various kinds. For a number of years Mr. Mat- thews conducted a cider mill with his fa- ther and brother, and since the former's death, has continued it with the latter. The business of this enterprise has been largely custom milling, but they also turn out large quantities of cider vinegar, which is disposed of principally at wholesale. Mr. Matthews is a Methodist in his religious belief. He is a member of the National Geographic Society.
(The Miller Line).
(I) The ancestor of the Miller family, from which Mr. Matthews is descended through his paternal grandmother, was James Miller, in whose person the name
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was brought to the New World. He was born sometime between 1635 and 1640, and died in 1708. He was the father of John Miller, who is mentioned below.
(II) John Miller, son of James Miller, was born about 1688, and is said to have possessed all the land to the north of Rural Cemetery at White Plains, West- chester county, New York, containing about one hundred acres, and which in- cluded the site of Washington's headquar- ters in the Revolution. He was the father of Anthony Miller, who is mentioned be- low.
(III) Anthony Miller, son of John Miller, was born about 1735, and died be- fore 1790. He was rent collector for Colonel Phillips, whose patent extended from the Harlem river to the Croton river. He took part in the Revolutionary War, and in 1775 held a commission as second lieutenant in the company of Joshua Hatfield, recruited from Scarsdale, White Plains and Brown Point. On Jan- uary I, 1776, he held the rank of captain in the regiment of Colonel Thomas Thomas. He married Hester Davids, daughter of William and Nellie (Storms) Davids, born May 8, 1743, and died Octo- ber 5, 1834. They were the parents of William Miller, mentioned below.
(IV) William Miller, son of Anthony and Hester (Davids) Miller, was baptized September 13, 1760, and died April 5, 1825. He removed from Westchester county to North Pittstown, Rensselaer county, New York, where the remainder of his life was spent. He married Martha Miller, daughter of Elijah and Ann (Fisher) Miller. She was born about 1763, and died about 1855. They were the parents of James Miller, mentioned below.
(V) James Miller, son of William and Martha (Miller) Miller, resided at Pitts- town, Rensselaer county, New York,
where his death occurred September 10, 1849, and his will was probated Decem- ber 10, 1849. He was the father of Susan Miller, who is mentioned below.
(VI) Susan Miller was the daughter of James Miller, of Pittstown, New York. She married (first) Elijah Fisher, and (second) Isaiah Solis Matthews, Sr., grandfather of Sidney A. Matthews, of this sketch.
HAWXHURST, Charles Henry, Business Man.
The surname of Hawxhurst is of Saxon origin and is taken from the word "Hurst," or Hawkwood. As a surname it is very ancient, record being found of one John Hawkherst being appointed Abbott of St. Augustine's in Canterbury, January 25, 1427. The ancestor of the family in America is Christopher Hawx- hurst, who was an early settler in Oyster Bay, Long Island, and was in Matinecock, in 1653. He made many purchases and sales of lands, and his name appears often in the land records with many different spellings. The family has long been es- tablished in Westbury, Long Island, and it was there that Nathaniel Hawxhurst, grandfather of Charles H., passed his life. He was a member of the Hicksite branch of the Society of Friends.
Henry W. Hawxhurst, son of Nathan- iel Hawxhurst, and father of Charles H. Hawxhurst, was born in Westbury, March 25, 1837, and died January 9, 1894. He grew to manhood in his native town, and from his boyhood was accustomed to help in the labors of the home farm. At an early age he went into the milk busi- ness in Brooklyn, New York, on his own account and for sixteen years followed this occupation. In the spring of 1875, Mr. Hawxhurst sold out his interests and removed to Norwalk, Connecticut, where
Conn-9-15
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for three years he was engaged in truck- gardening. Subsequently, he purchased a milk route and followed this line of business for the remainder of his life.
Mr. Hawxhurst was an active and pub- lic-spirited citizen, taking a keen interest in all public affairs. In politics, Mr. Hawxhurst was a Republican, and served on the town committee and on the school committee. For some years he served as assessor, and was also several times en- gaged to settle estates. He was a man of high integrity, possessed of fine business judgment, and absolutely trustworthy. Fraternally, Mr. Hawxhurst was a mem- ber of a Masonic order in Brooklyn. He married Elizabeth Hawkins, daughter of Captain Benjamin Hawkins, of Southport, and they were the parents of eight chil- dren: 1. Benjamin Nathaniel, of Sacra- mento, California. 2. Charles Henry, of further mention. 3. Mary J., married Horace Fisher, of Norwalk. 4. Orlando W., of Norwalk. 5. Phoebe, deceased, wife of John Guyer. 6. Washington Irv- ing, of Wilton. 7. Florence, wife of Frank Guyer, of Norwalk. 8. Anna, wife of Nathaniel Fisher, of Norwalk. Mr. and Mrs. Hawxhurst were members of the Methodist Episcopal church.
Charles Henry Hawxhurst, son of Henry W. and Elizabeth (Hawkins) Hawxhurst, was born March 4, 1865, in Brooklyn, New York, and was educated in the public schools of that city and of Norwalk. At the age of fifteen years, he went to work for his father in the milk business and continued thus employed until he was twenty-six years old, when he succeeded his father as owner of the business. It is the oldest and largest business of its kind in Norwalk, and is conducted under the name of the Clover Leaf Dairy. With the exception of four years, Mr. Hawxhurst has been continu- ally in the business; during the latter
period he was employed in the interests of the Holmes, Keeler, Kent Company, wholesale grocers, in which Mr. Hawx- hurst had an interest. After this period of four years, Mr. Hawxhurst returned to his milk business, which he has contin- ued with gratifying success to the present time.
In politics, he is a Republican, and takes much interest in the affairs of that party. He is a member of Our Brothers Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and of the encampment, of which he is past chief patriarch; he is also a member of the Independent Order of Red Men.
Mr. Hawxhurst married Minnie Fran- ces Lockwood, born March 9, 1869, daughter of John and Sarah Isabelle (Tuttle) Lockwood, and a direct de- scendant of the immigrant, Robert Lock- wood. The mother of Mrs. Hawxhurst was a daughter of Anson and Almira (Abbott) Tuttle. Mr. and Mrs. Hawx- hurst are the parents of a daughter, Elizabeth Isabelle, and one son, Kenneth, deceased. They are attendants of the Methodist Episcopal church, of which Mr. Hawxhurst is a member of the official board.
McLEAN, William O.,
Insurance Actuary.
The origin of the name, McLean, is lost in the mists of ancient tradition. Wil- liam Buchanan, an old authority on the origin of Scottish surnames, states that the patronymic, McLean, is "descended from that of Fitzgerald, in Ireland, being once the most potent surname of any other of English extract in that kingdom." Irish genealogists claim that the Fitzger- alds or Geraldines, were of Italian origin. Certain it is that the family was estab- lished in Normandy, before the Conquest. Seignior Giraldo was a principal officer
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under William the Conqueror, from whom he received the Lordship of Wind- sor. In 1169, Maurice Fitzgerald, grand- son of Giraldo, was sent to Ireland, at the head of English troops to quell a rebellion against the King of Leinster. Large grants of land were given him as a re- ward for his success, and thus the Fitz- geralds became established in the "Emer- ald Isle."
The name, McLean, is a contradic- tion of McGillean, said to be a promi- nent branch of the Fitzgerald sept or clan. From Ireland, the family emi- grated to Scotland at a time when the history of that country was still tradition- ary. They were among the most loyal at Largs and Bannockburn. MacLean be- came lieutenant of MacDonald, Lord of the Isles, and this association led to the MacLeans becoming by the close of the sixteenth century, one of the most power- ful of Scottish clans. Later, by its ad- herence to the house of Stuart, the clan lost much of its lands and power. The chieftainship of the clan descended to the eldest son, and the seventh in the suc- cession from the first chief, MacGillean, had a younger son, who was very power- ful and enterprising. In response to his demand for an inheritance, he received the island of Coll, and other lands, and became the first "Laird of Coll." The sixth "Laird of Coll" was the great-grand- father of Dr. Neil and Allan McLean, who founded the McLean family in this coun- try. Their grandfather, Neil, the third son of Lachlan, the Laird, was an officer in one of the Highland regiments that fought for Prince Charlie against Crom- well. He was severely wounded in the battle of Inverkeithing (1651), in which it has been said by historians that, of the eight hundred McLeans engaged, only forty came out alive.
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