USA > Connecticut > Fairfield County > History of Fairfield County, Connecticut, 1639-1928 > Part 23
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Mr. Hill's first experience in public affairs was gained as a member of the Shelton board of relief, with which he was con- nected for five years. Mr. Holmes was then registrar of voters, and it was largely owing to his efforts that Mr. Hill was selected for that position, which he has filled for a quarter of a century.
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When E. W. Kneen organized a bank he tendered his resignation as tax collector and Mr. Hill was appointed as his successor. This was two years before he severed his connection with the Inter- national Silver Company and in addition to his duties as tax collector he was a member of the town committee and also became assistant prosecutor for the town court through appointment of D. A. Nichols, judge of the court.
In 1915 the borough and town governments were consolidated, forming a city government, which came into existence January 1, 1917. In 1915 Mr. Hill had been made chairman of the town committee and when the city government began to function he was chairman of the republican town committee of Shelton. As a result of the November election E. W. Kneen became the first mayor of the city and appointed Mr. Hill poor commissioner, which position he held from 1917 until 1923, together with his other offices. In 1919 he was chosen to represent his district in the state legislature, of which he has since been a member, serv- ing for five terms, and during 1927 acted as speaker of the house. He manifests a statesman's grasp of affairs and opposes with ardor whatever he regards as useless or vicious legislation, work- ing at all times for the best interests of the commonwealth. Since 1922 he has been one of the commissioners of Fairfield county and is now chairman of the board. Following the death of Wil- liam J. Curnias in 1925, Mr. Hill was selected to succeed him as court prosecutor and is still acting in that capacity. Energetic and systematic, he makes his efforts count for the utmost and displays an unusual capacity for public service, while his probity is above question.
In 1891 Mr. Hill was married in Shelton to Miss Mary Jane Doran, who passed away in 1914, leaving a family of four chil- dren. Irene, the eldest, was graduated from Mount Holyoke College of Massachusetts and received the degree of Master of Arts from Middlebury College of Vermont, afterward taking a course in Cambridge University, one of the noted educational institutions of England. Three months after her marriage to Edward Fitzgerald, superintendent of schools of Derby, she was left a widow and is now a teacher in the Buckley high school at Hartford, Connecticut. Anna, the second daughter, entered upon religious work and is now connected with a nunnery at Water-
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bury, Connecticut. Theresa is principal of one of the public schools of Shelton and has become the wife of Dr. William J. McGrath, of Derby. Thomas Hill, the only son, was connected with the internal revenue department of the United States gov- ernment for a time but is now following the profession of a civil engineer and is engaged in road construction work throughout Connecticut. He was among the first to volunteer for service in the World war and participated in a number of important battles while at the front.
John H. Hill adheres to the Roman Catholic faith and along fraternal lines is identified with the Knights of Columbus, the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and the Royal Arcanum. In politics he is a strong republican and has been a member of the state central committee since 1920. He is a director of the Shel- ton Trust Company and manifests a deep interest in all those phases of life which have to do with public progress and pros- perity. Mr. Hill has displayed rare qualities as a public servant and is a man whom to know is to esteem and admire.
ST. MARY'S PARISH
NORWALK
The honor of being the first Catholics to settle in Norwalk belongs to Michael Cooney and family, who came from New York city in May, 1828. Mr. Cooney was a hat dyer and lived near the dock on the east side of Water street. William Donahoe followed with his family of six persons in 1829. He was a chandler by occupation and remained in Norwalk until 1832, when he re- turned to New York. Clement Burns then came and boarded with Mr. Cooney. Mr. Burns was a potter and a stanch Catholic. Four years after Mr. Cooney's appearance here the family of Farrell Gillooly and a family named Brennan arrived. Then followed in succession the family of Paul Bresnan and the families of James, John and Edmund Conners.
The Rev. James McDermot, pastor of the New Haven church, said the first mass offered up in Norwalk, in 1833, at the residence of Michael Cooney. Father McDermot visited Norwalk semi- annually until his transfer to Lowell in 1837, each time celebrat-
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ing mass in the front room of Mr. Cooney's house. "Here he met and preached to those poor, hard working pioneers of our faith, numbering in all about twenty-five persons. At his first com- ing he was cheered by their hearty welcome and encouraged on his long and weary mission in the heart of Puritanism by their fervent faith."
The next priest to visit Norwalk was the Rev. James Smyth, of New Haven. During his visits to Norwalk he said mass at Mr. Cooney's house, in the basement of George F. Belden's tin store, and at the residence of Lawrence Martin, on the Newtown turnpike. Afterward when Mr. Martin had removed to Five- Mile River, Father Smyth said mass in his house there four or five times.
When Rev. Michael Lynch was given charge of Bridgeport, in 1844, he assumed jurisdiction over Norwalk and neighboring places. His first mass in Norwalk was said in the house of Brian Mahoney, at the foot of Mill hill, on Wall street and the second, in the summer of 1844, in a large tenement house occupied by John Connors, John Kelly and two other families on River street. At this second mass there were present about seventy-five persons. Possessing superior accommodations to other houses occupied by the Catholics, mass was said in Norwalk frequently afterward.
In 1848 a committee comprising Paul Bresnan, John Hanlon, John Foley, Terrence Reynolds and Farrell Gillooly was appointed to present a petition to Bishop Tyler for a resident priest. The good Catholic spirit manifested by the petitioners in their letter impressed the bishop so favorably that he visited Norwalk, said mass in Marine hall, or the town house, and delighted them with the assurance that he would in the near future send them a priest. Accordingly he appointed the Rev. John Brady to Norwalk and Father Brady began almost immediately upon his arrival to make preparations to provide his rapidly increasing congregation with a church. A site was purchased by Terrence Reynolds from a Mr. Bailey on Chapel street and work was at once started on a church thirty-six by forty feet in dimensions. Both Protestants and Catholics contributed generously toward the erection of the edifice. The church was completed in 1851 and on January 28 of that year it was dedicated by Bishop O'Reilly. Of this event the Bishop thus wrote in his journal: "1851, January 28. Made the
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visitation of St. Mary's church, Norwalk. Confirmed about twenty and preached twice. These churches (St. John's at Stam- ford and St. Mary's in Norwalk) were built by Rev. John C. Brady; are in debt about one thousand dollars, but I was pleased with his efforts."
In 1853 Father Brady was succeeded by the Rev. E. C. Cooney, who remained only until March, 1854, when his duties were assumed by Father Hugh O'Reilly, whose pastorate lasted five years, and it was during this period that the "Know Nothing" element was triumphant in the state. They manifested their insensate hostility by setting the church on fire, and at another time by sawing off the gilded cross that surmounted the church. Then came the Rev. Richard O'Gorman and the Rev. James Camp- bell. In 1859 the Rev. John Mulligan, D. D., "justly considered one of the most talented and promising clergymen in the Hart- ford diocese," assumed charge of St. Mary's parish. Among his achievements were the completion of the church at Westport in 1859, the organization of St. Joseph's T. A. B. Society and the establishment of a night school. He had also in contemplation the erection of a church on the present site of St. Mary's when death closed his brilliant, though brief, career. He passed away January 12, 1862, and his remains were interred in St. Patrick's cemetery in Hartford, his native city. Afterward came the Rev. Peter A. Smith, who was followed by the Rev. P. O'Dwyer. He . was succeeded by the Rev. John Russell and the next pastor was the Rev. William J. Slocum.
St. Mary's school is one of the most proficient in the diocese. Father Thomas J. Finn is now pastor of St. Mary's church, which is an ornament to the city as well as a source of social, intellectual and spiritual profit to its attendants.
ERNEST A. WALTHER
Ernest A. Walther is one of the veterans in the hat industry at Danbury and, as treasurer and general manager of Hum- mel-Walther, Inc., and treasurer of the Leonard Machine Com- pany, a fifty thousand dollar corporation and a subsidiary of the former company, has been an active factor in the successful
ERNEST A. WALTHER
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record which that well known concern has made. Mr. Walther was born in Danbury in 1888 and is a son of Herman and Julia (Wildt) Walther, the former of whom was born in Berlin, Ger- many, and the latter in Carlsbad, Austria. He received his edu- cation in the public schools of Danbury, after which he worked in a grocery store for a short time. Having decided to learn the hat business, he entered the employ of the Mallory Hat Company in 1904, remaining with that concern over a year, after he worked for D. E. Lowe as a finisher for a short time. In 1908 he joined the United Hatters of North America, with whom he remained until January, 1909, when he formed a partnership with his brother, Arthur Walther, who had served his apprenticeship with the Mallory Hat Company, and they embarked in their present business. They began on a modest scale, starting practically without capital, and their early business experience was marked by many discouragements and obstacles, but they had a definite goal in view and, through their persistent efforts, indefatigable industry and tireless devotion to their business, they at length found themselves on the road to success and today they command a large and profitable business.
Ernest A. Walther is a member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks and the Arion Singing Society. He enjoys the unique distinction of being the only man in Danbury who is able to cut and make a lady's hat while it is on her head, and shows much artistic ability in this line. He is a man of many fine personal traits and a genial and unaffected manner which has gained for him the friendship and good will of all who know him, while throughout the business circles he is held in high regard.
WILLIAM DOUGLAS MACDONALD, D. D. S.
Well equipped for the work of his profession, Dr. William Douglas Macdonald is classed with the leading dentists of New York city. He resides in Glenbrook, his native town, where he was born March 22, 1884, in the house he now owns and occupies at the corner of Middlesex road and Holmes avenue and is deeply attached to this old and attractive home. In this dwelling his mother was born and it was here that his parents, William Henry
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and Helen Leila (Holmes) Macdonald, started housekeeping. His great-grandfather, Launcelot Graves Macdonald, was born in Scotland and spent the latter part of his life in the United States, passing away in Bedford, New York. His son, Philip Lewis Mac- donald, was a lifelong resident of Bedford and devoted his energies to agricultural pursuits. His political support was given to the republican party and he was a member of the Episco- pal church. He married Amelia Robertson and they were the parents of William Henry Macdonald, who was born May 31, 1857, in Bedford. He engaged in the wholesale clothing business in Stamford and died at Glenbrook in October, 1896. In politics he was a republican, and his life was governed by the teachings of the Union Memorial church. His widow was born December 14, 1858, and still resides in Glenbrook. Her grandfather; John Holmes, was a lifelong resident of Darien, Connecticut and a prosperous farmer. His son, John Holmes, Jr., moved from Dar- ien to Glenbrook and also followed agricultural pursuits. His political allegiance was given to the republican party and his pub- lic spirit was expressed by service on the Darien school board. He was a charter member of the First Presbyterian church of Stamford and one of its founders. His wife, Catherine (Seeley) Holmes, was also born in Darien, and both passed away in Glen- brook.
Dr. William D. Macdonald began his studies in Glenbrook and in 1901 was graduated from the Stamford high school. He then matriculated in the University of Pennsylvania, from which he received the degree of D. D. S. in 1904, and located in New York city, where he has successfully followed his profession for nearly a quarter of a century. During the World war he pro- moted the sale of Liberty bonds and for a time was a member of the Home Guard. After his honorable discharge he was ordered to Camp Taylor for artillery training but was not called upon for service owing to the signing of the armistice.
Dr. Macdonald was married June 22, 1921, in Danbury, Con- necticut, to Julia Andrews Clark, who was born October 2, 1891, in that city, and in 1910 was graduated from the Danbury high school. In 1915 she received the degree of Bachelor of Arts from Vassar College at Poughkeepsie, New York. For eighteen months she was secretary of the music department of the college, after-
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ward doing secretarial work in New York city, and for two years was engaged in war camp community service. Her parents, Dr. Frank P. and Mary Katherine (Benjamin) Clark, were lifelong residents of Danbury and highly respected by its citizens. Dr. Clark was graduated from the College of Physicians & Surgeons and practiced successfully for thirty-five years. He was a mem- ber of the First Congregational church.
Mrs. Macdonald is a member of the First Congregational church of Danbury. She has served as secretary of the Woman's Club of Stamford, is an ex-president of the Woman's Republican Club of Darien and a member of the republican town committee of Darien. For three years she was a member of the public board of recreation in Stamford. She has been active in Girl Scout work and lends the weight of her support to those move- ments which make for intellectual and moral progress and for good citizenship. Dr. Macdonald is a republican and served for many years as chairman of the Darien school board. He is af- filiated with the Union Memorial Church of Glenbrook. He has been identified with the Wee Burn Golf Club for an extended period and has been connected with the Woodway Golf Club for ten years. He was one of the organizers of the Ox Ridge Hunt Club and also belongs to the University of Pennsylvania Club of New York city and the University Glee Club of that city. He is a fellow of the Academy of Dentistry and is a member of the First District Dental Society of New York city, the New York State Dental Society and the American Dental Association. His indus- try and ability have won for him success and prominence in his profession and during his hours of leisure he enjoys golf, polo and horseback riding. By nature he is genial, sincere and com- panionable and has a wide circle of loyal friends.
REV. THOMAS J. FINN
One of the ablest and most highly esteemed clergymen of Norwalk is the Rev. Thomas J. Finn, pastor of St. Mary's Roman Catholic church, to which congregation he has ministered faith- fully and efficiently for eighteen years. He was born in Winsted, Litchfield county, Connecticut, on the 3d of November, 1862, and is a son of Michael and Mary (Fitzgerald) Finn, natives of Ire-
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land and both deceased. He received his early education in the Franciscan school in Winsted, after which he prepared for the priesthood, pursuing his philosophical and theological studies in St. Bonaventure's College, of Allegany, New York, from which he was graduated with the class of 1878.
Father Finn was ordained to the priesthood at the cathedral in Hartford, Connecticut, September 18, 1886, and his first ap- pointment was as assistant pastor to St. Mary's parish at Derby, where he served until February, 1900, when he was made pastor of the church at East Port Chester, Connecticut. He remained there until July, 1910, when he was appointed by Bishop Nilan to the irremovable pastorate of St. Mary's church in Norwalk. Here he has done splendid work, building up the church in all of its departments, so that it is now one of the most prosperous and influential religious organizations of this community.
Father Finn is an able sermonizer and a forceful and graceful speaker, his sermons attracting large congregations, while in his pastoral work he has shown a devotion, a tactfulness and a degree of efficiency that has been productive of large results. Personally, he is kindly and gracious in manner, is an optimist in disposition and is deservedly popular among his parishioners, while through- out the community he commands uniform confidence and respect.
GEORGE T. SMITH
George T. Smith, chairman of the board of selectmen, with offices in the town hall at New Canaan, was formerly closely identified with the contracting business but from that field of labor has retired. He was born in New York city, September 25, 1868, his parents being George B. and Lucinda E. (McMasters) Smith. The public school system of his native city accorded him his educational privileges and he was a youth of sixteen years when he became a Connecticut citizen, taking up his abode in Stamford, to work. He was ambitious, carefully saved his earn- ings and when twenty years of age bought a milk route, which he conducted for two years, selling the business at the end of that time. In Stamford he learned the painting trade and in 1894 removed his business to New Canaan, where as a painting con- tractor he was active for thirty-five years. The thoroughness
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and excellence of his work and his reliable business methods secured to him a liberal patronage until his business was one of very substantial proportions, returning to him a gratifying an- nual income.
In 1920 Mr. Smith was called to public office in his election to the office of selectman, to which position he has been reelected each succeeding year, twice having received the endorsement of both parties, and he has served as chairman of the board during the entire nine-year period. No higher testimonial of his capa- bility and his faithfulness could be given than the fact that his course has won him the support of both parties and the entire con- fidence and good will of his fellow members of the board, who have expressed this in selecting him as chairman. He has also render- ed other public service, having been made, in 1922, chief of the fire department, in which capacity he served for two years.
In July, 1890, Mr. Smith was married in Stamford to Miss Florence Mae Toms, and they have become parents of three sons and two daughters: Florence Mae, who is the wife of W. K. Mil- ler and has two children, Florence and Kendall; Walter Franklin; Harold Mansfield, who married Esther Malroy and has two chil- dren, Carol and George T .; Hazel Adele, who is the wife of Howard Ruckel and has two daughters, Joan and Jane; and George Howard, who is the youngest of the family.
Mr. Smith has various fraternal, social and trade connections. He belongs to the Fairfield Planning Association, of which he is a director, is a member of the Men's Association and belongs to Fellowcraft Club of New Canaan, of which he was president for two years. He is a faithful follower of Masonic teachings, having membership in Harmony Lodge, No. 67, F. & A. M .; Washington Chapter, R. A. M., of Norwalk, Connecticut; and Washington Council, R. & S. M., of Stamford. His name is on the membership roll of Worcester Lodge, No. 37, I. O. O. F., in which he has filled all of the chairs, and he has likewise served in every office in Wahackma Encampment. He is a past district grand patriarch of the encampment, a member of Rebekah lodge and of the Eastern Star. He likewise belongs to Onyx Tribe of the Improved Order of Red Men at New Canaan, is an honorary member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen and a member of the volunteer fire department. He is an honorary member of
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the Veterans of Foreign Wars and during the World war period he served with the intelligence department of the United States government on private assignments. He has done much active committee work in connection with civic betterment and public progress. His public spirit is one of his pronounced characteris- tics. He has labored consistently and earnestly for the general good and while holding to high ideals has always employed the most practical methods in their accomplishment. His labors have indeed been far-reaching and beneficial and New Canaan num- bers him among her representative residents.
J. EMORY STEVENS
J. Emory Stevens, who conducts the South Norwalk store of Rogers & Stevens, of which firm he is the senior member, is recognized as a business man of more than ordinary ability and, being essentially a self-made man, his success reflects creditably on his determination, industry and sound judgment.
Mr. Stevens was born in Norwalk in 1872 and is a son of Joseph M. Stevens, who died in 1876 after having served for many years as foreman for the J. T. Prowitt Company. The son attended the public schools of his home city until thirteen years of age. When he was nine years old he began to earn his own way by selling newspapers after school hours and on Satur- days, and later secured a position as cash boy and wrapper in Henry Van Hooser's dry goods store, where he worked after school hours until eight o'clock at night. In July, 1886, Mr. Stevens secured a position with the clothing firm of Comstock Brothers, of South Norwalk, the store having originally been established by Henry B. Rogers and William T. Comstock. The Norwalk store was later sold to Arthur C. Wheeler, who conducted it under the name of the Comstock Clothing Company. In 1903 Mr. Stevens formed a partnership with Charles D. Rogers, under the firm name of Rogers & Stevens, and bought the Norwalk store from Mr. Wheeler. They now operate two up-to-date clothing and furnishings stores, one at 29 Wall street, Norwalk, which is managed by Mr. Rogers, and the one at 14 South Main street, South Norwalk, of which Mr. Stevens has charge. They carry a large and complete stock and cater closely to the tastes of their
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customers, so that they have built up a large and representative patronage and are numbered among the leading merchants of the city.
In 1893 Mr. Stevens was united in marriage to Miss Alice F. Hallock, of South Norwalk, and they are the parents of two daughters, namely: Elizabeth, the wife of Warren T. Mayers, who is engaged in the advertising business in New York; and Alice Hallock, the wife of Winfred T. Long, who is also in the advertising business in New York, and they are the parents of a son, Winfred T., Jr.
Mr. Stevens has been a director of the New England Retail Clothiers Association since its inception and was its president in 1926. For two years he also served as a director of the Na- tional Retail Clothiers Association. He is a member of Old Well Lodge, F. & A. M .; the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, the Royal Arcanum, the Improved Order of Red Men, the South Nor- walk Club, the Norwalk Country Club and the Shorehaven Golf and Country Club. He is a man of strict integrity in motive and action, has been guided by the highest of business ideals and all who have come in contact with him hold him in high esteem for his sterling qualities, his ability and his cordial and unaffected manner.
3/17/19 DANIEL KEOGH
Connecticut has drawn a large percentage of her able attor- neys from her native sons, and in this classification belongs Dan- iel Keogh, a prominent member of the Norwalk bar. He was born in New Haven in 1876, a son of Daniel and Frances (MacMacken) Keogh, and owes his keen intellect and strong physique to his Celtic and Caledonian ancestors. His forbears in the paternal line were early settlers in the vicinity of Dublin, Ireland, and it was there that his father was born. About 1868 he sought the opportunities of the United States, first locating in New York, and was next a resident of New Haven, Connecticut. Later he removed to Norwalk and here passed away in 1904. His wife, who was a native of Glasgow, Scotland, died in 1906.
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