USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > History of Hartford County, Connecticut, 1633-1928. Volume III > Part 97
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In January, 1924, Mr. Gannett's associates retired and he personally took over the properties. In June, 1925, the Newburgh News was purchased. In April, 1927, the trustees of the estate of the former owner chose Mr. Gannett as buyer of the Plainfield (N. J.) Courier-News. In June, 1927, Mr. Gannett took over the Beacon News, and in September, 1927, the Olean Herald. On January 24, 1928, he purchased The Hartford Times and during the same year added the Ogdensburg (N. Y.) Repub- lican-Journal, the Rochester (N. Y.) Democrat & Chronicle and the Albany (N. Y.) Knickerbocker Express and the Albany Evening News.
An evidence of Mr. Gannett's standing among the publishers of New York state is found in the fact that for seven consecutive years he was president of the New York State Publishers' Association, which he founded. In 1916 he was presi- dent of the New York Associated Dailies and he was president of the New York
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Press Association during the trying days of the war. Upon his initiative the Empire State School of Printing was established at Ithaca in May, 1922, an effective institu- tion which he has headed from the start and to which New York state publishers have contributed more than two hundred thousand dollars. The success of this school has been so great that it has been made the nucleus of the American News- paper Publishers' Institute, now in process of endowment and which will provide a complete theoretical and practical education for every branch of newspaper service, including the mechanical, business and editorial branches ..
Cornell University has bestowed double honor on Mr. Gannett. His election as president of the Cornellian Council and as trustee of the University was announced on the same day. He is associated in this trusteeship with George F. Baker of the First National Bank of New York, Charles M. Schwab, Walter Teagle, president of the Standard Oil Co., of New Jersey, Ira A. Place, vice president of the New York Central lines, and other prominent men.
Mr. Gannett has always spurned political preferment and possesses no political ambitions for either himself or his papers. He is of a family of New England stock, members of which are prominent in the New England states, his ancestors having settled in Scituate, Massachusetts, in 1640. In 1920, he married Caroline Werner of Rochester, daughter of the late Judge William E. Werner, of the New York state court of appeals. They have one child, Sarah Maria, born in 1923.
JOHN CINCINNATUS WILSON
Into a life that did not attain length of years, John Cincinnatus Wilson, of Hartford, Connecticut, placed an amount of wisely directed, productive effort that gave him high rank among New England's industrialists. The record of his business career shows him not as a specialist in a particular line of human endeavor, but as an able master of the principles of business and industrial organization, endowed with talents in the direction of men and enterprises that brought success and pros- perity to the interests with which he was identified. His consideration for others, his charm of manner, his intuitive responsiveness in cordiality to all whom he met in a social or business way placed everybody at ease and endeared him to all who were privileged to come in touch with him. Mr. Wilson brought to the solution of practical problems the force of great mentality, a deep knowledge of human nature, and keen vision into the economic laws governing the manufacture and distribution of all products. In the many offices to which he was called he bore a reputation for unquestioned integrity and stanch advocacy of straightforward methods in every business procedure, and in his death, in his fifty-fifth year, the world of affairs lost a member whose influence was constantly on the side of right and progress, and who exemplified the stanchest virtues.
Mr. Wilson was a descendant of a Maryland family founded in Georgia by George Wilson, an ensign in the Revolutionary Army. He and his wife, Rhoda (Spence) Wilson, moved from Caroline county, Maryland, to Walton county, Georgia, in 1781. His son, George Asbury Wilson, was born in Walton county, Georgia, in 1800 and followed agriculture throughout his active years. He was a democrat in political faith and a member of the Methodist church. He married Upsila Newson and they were the parents of the following named: John C., Robert, Mrs. Rhoda Burkhead, Mrs. Susan Land, Mrs. Emma Todd and A. W. N.
The last named, a son of George Asbury and Upsila (Newson) Wilson, like his father, was an agriculturist during all his active years. From 1861 to 1864 he served in the Confederate Army, leaving the service after the fighting around Vicks- burg, Mississippi, because of the loss of his right arm in action. He held the rank of first lieutenant and commanded Company C, Thirty-fourth Regiment, Georgia Infantry. Upon his return to his Georgia home, he found the territory devastated by the troops under General Sherman but with characteristic determination and vigor took up the work of reclaiming the land and became one of the leading planters of that section. His religious belief was that of the Methodist church and although he never entered public life, he was a strong democrat. A. W. N. Wilson married Susan Hindsman.
John Cincinnatus Wilson, son of A. W. N. and Susan (Hindsman) Wilson, was
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JOHN C. WILSON
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born at Moreland, Coweta county, Georgia, July 22, 1864. After preparatory educa- tion he entered Emory University at Oxford, Georgia, and completed the studies of his junior year. Ill health prevented his return to college, and he began business life as a retail merchant of Columbus, Georgia, disposing of his interests in this place to accept a position as traveling salesman for the Clark Thread Company in January, 1889. Mr. Wilson remained with this company until April, 1895, resigning to go to London, England, and after his return to the United States located in Hartford, Connecticut, in May, 1897. Here he identified himself with the Hartford Rubber Works Company, was also connected with the Seamless Rubber Company of New Haven and later was made president of the India Rubber Company of New Brunswick, New Jersey. In 1904, Mr. Wilson was elected vice president and treas- urer of the Pickering Governor Company of Portland, Connecticut, and in 1913 he became president and treasurer of the Smyth Manufacturing Company of Hartford, Connecticut, also the Sigourney Tool Company of Hartford. He was identified with these last three organizations at the time of his death in 1919, and had promoted their development and increasing prestige. Mr. Wilson was a director of the Fidelity Trust Company of Hartford but aside from the offices named acquired few inter- ests, concentrating the full force of his powers upon these enterprises and bringing them to commanding positions in their respective lines. By his business associates Mr. Wilson was held in enduring respect for outstanding executive qualities, while his pleasing and cordial personality gained him their close cooperation.
In young manhood he became a member of the Masonic order at Luthersville, Georgia, and was elected to the Kappa Alpha fraternity chapter at Emory College. His clubs were the Union League of New York, the Hartford and the Farmington Country, while his religious faith was manifest in his membership in the Methodist Episcopal church, South.
On the 7th of October, 1903, in Hartford, Connecticut, John Cincinnatus Wilson married Grace Loines Hall, daughter of John Henry and Sarah Garrett (Loines) Hall. Their children were four in number, namely: Grace Jean, born August 1, 1904; John Hall, who was born December 1, 1907, and died July 5, 1908; Elizabeth, whose natal day was March 7, 1910, and who passed away two days later; and John Cincinnatus, who was born February 28, 1913.
John Cincinnatus Wilson, manufacturer and financier, died in Hartford, Janu- ary 23, 1919, in the fifty-fifth year of his age. The story of his life is one of achievement along lines of service to mankind, and the accomplishments of his career were worthy.
FRANK P. MOULTON
Frank P. Moulton, writer of several textbooks on Latin and also prominently known as an educator, his capability and outstanding qualities giving him high rank, was a native of the state of Maine, born on the 11th of June, 1851, his parents being Joseph and Judith (Moulton) Moulton, who were also born in the Pine Tree state. In his youthful days Frank P. Moulton attended the Maine State Seminary, a preparatory school, and afterward entered Bates College, from which he was graduated with valedictorian honors in the year 1874. On the completion of that course he became principal of the high school of Littleton, New Hampshire, and after spending some time in that connection accepted the position of assistant principal and teacher of Latin in the New Hampshire Literary Institution, with which he remained for a period of seven years. He then accepted the proffered position of head of the Latin department in the Waltham high school of Waltham, Massa- chusetts, where he continued for a number of years. He then came to Hartford in 1892, and entered into active association with the Hartford high school in the Latin department, in which he remained for twenty-four years, where the service which he rendered was of the highest standard. In fact he was regarded as one of the foremost Latin instructors of New England. He also prepared and published several textbooks on Latin which were largely used in our high schools and in England. The recognition of his keen mentality and of his contribution to the educational field was indicated in the fact that he received the degrees of Bachelor and Master of Arts from Bates College and also the degree of Doctor of Literature.
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On the 27th of January, 1880, Mr. Moulton was united in marriage to Miss Rachel E. White, a daughter of Thomas G. and Mary (Stinson) White, of Maine. He had four children: Harold C., who passed away at the age of forty-three years; Carl F., who is now associated with the Aetna Fire Insurance Company; Marion J., wife of J. N. H. Campbell of Hartford; and Jasper R., teacher of mathematics in Wel- lesley high school of Wellesley, Massachusetts. On the 22d of March, 1928, Mr. Moulton was called to his final rest. He was held in the highest respect for his outstanding qualities and pronounced characteristics. He was an able master in his chosen field of work, concentrating the full force of his powers on instruction and the preparation of adequate textbooks. He showed the keenest interest and enthusiasm for every- thing that he undertook and his labors were comprehensive in their scope and most valuable in result.
WILLIAM A. KNOFLA
In the year 1910 Adolph and Mary (Quoos) Knofla came to Manchester, Con- necticut, from Nanticoke, Pennsylvania, bringing with them their family of nine children, numbering six sons and three daughters. These children were educated in the public schools of Manchester and William A. Knofla, who was born in Nan- ticoke, Pennsylvania, November 15, 1891, after completing his education returned to the Keystone state, where he worked as a carpenter's apprentice. After rounding out the full time of his apprenticeship he again came to Manchester and here entered the employ of George M. Barber, with whom he remained until 1915, when he started out in business on his own account and has since been engaged in building operations here, being accorded many contracts, some of which have been of an important character. Passing years have chronicled the constant growth of the business which he founded in 1915 and which is now carried on under the name of the Manchester Construction Company, with William A. Knofla as president and treasurer and Albert F. Knofla as secretary of the company. They operated for a considerable period, however, under the name of Knofla Brothers and the firm became well known in connection with the building interests of this district. In the year 1919, however, it was decided to incorporate in order to have the advantages offered by larger capital, which would enable them to handle greater contracts. At the close of the year 1920 the business interests of the corporation were all acquired by William A. Knofla, Albert F. Knofla and Esther C. Knofla. Since the incorporation the company has constructed many of Manchester's prominent buildings, including the Nathan Hale school on Spruce street, the Watkins Brothers furniture store, the South Metho- dist Episcopal church, the Manchester State Armory, the Manchester Masonic Temple and many others. In the year 1915 the company's business amounted to twelve thousand dollars and then William A. Knofla entered into active association there- with, his qualities as a leader, his undaunted enterprise and his business sagacity being demonstrated in the fact that today the annual business of the company amounts approximately to three quarters of a million dollars. On the 23rd of February, 1926, its capital was increased to one hundred thousand dollars. The Manchester Construc- tion Company has membership with the Associated General Contractors of America.
Mr. Knofla was married in the year 1919 to Esther K. Clemson, of Manchester, daughter of Andrew and Mette (Faborn) Clemson. Mr. and Mrs. Knofla have one child, Earl William, who was born in this city February 14, 1926. For a considerable period William A. Knofla has been active in civic affairs, especially concentrating his efforts upon those projects which are fathered or fostered by the Manchester Chamber of Commerce, of which he has been a director for several years and was president in 1925. He is likewise a member of the Kiwanis Club of Manchester and was its president for the year 1927. He is likewise affiliated with the Manchester Masonic lodge, has attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish Rite in Connec- ticut Consistory, S. P. R. S., and has crossed the sands of the desert with the Nobles of Sphinx Temple of the Mystic Shrine. His wife is active in the Order of the Eastern Star and both are members of the Second Congregational church, interested in its work and also in the social activities of the city. They hold membership in the Manchester Country Club and Mr. Knofla is a member of the City Club of Hart- ford and the Shelter Harbor Country Club of Rhode Island. He served in the
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ALBERT F. KNOFLA
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World war in the chemical warfare division and he is a member of the Army & Navy Club and of the American Legion, while his wife is identified with the ladies' auxiliary of the Legion. His political endorsement is given to the republican party and he manifests a keen and helpful interest in the civic welfare of the community, serving for one term as a member of the board of assessors. The cause of education also finds in him a warm friend and his cooperation can always be counted as a factor in efforts to achieve higher standards in manhood and citizenship.
ALBERT F. KNOFLA
Albert F. Knofla, associated with his brother, William A. Knofla in the Man- chester Construction Company, which is operating extensively in building lines in Manchester, was born in Nanticoke, Pennsylvania, August 16, 1896, and was a youth of about sixteen years when his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Adolph Knofla, brought their family to Connecticut. Here he continued as a public school pupil and later began work at the carpenter's trade, serving a regular apprenticeship and gaining intimate and accurate knowledge of the business. The period of his apprenticeship was passed in his native state, after which he returned to Manchester and for one year was in the employ of his elder brother, William A. They then formed a partnership under the firm style of Knofla Brothers and so operated until 1919, when they incor- porated under the name of the Manchester Construction Company. The following year the entire business of the company was taken over by William A., Albert F. and Esther C. Knofla. Albert F. is the secretary of the company and general super- intendent of construction, and his broad experience well qualifies him for the duties and responsibilities that thus devolve upon him.
Mr. Knofla was married November 4, 1918, to Miss Ethyle Gallagher, of Man- chester, daughter of Arthur L. and Minnie M. Gallagher Mr. and Mrs. Knofla have one son, Robert A., who was born November 19, 1922. They are members of the Second Congregational church and also of the Manchester Country Club, while Mr. Knofla is connected with the Manchester Chamber of Commerce, the City Club of Hartford and the Shelter Harbor Country Club of Rhode Island. In Masonry he has taken the various degrees of the York Rite, becoming a Knight Templar, and of the Scottish Rite up to and including the thirty-second degree, and is a Noble of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of the Directors Association. Mrs. Knofla is affiliated with the Order of the Eastern Star. Such in brief is the life history of Albert F. Knofla, who enjoys the unqualified respect and confidence of his fellowmen and who in his business career has made a most creditable record, being entirely responsible for the execution of many of the large and important contracts which are awarded the company of which he is now secretary.
ARTHUR AUGUST KNOFLA
Arthur August Knofla, engaged in the real estate and insurance business at South Manchester, with offices at 875 Main street, was born in Nanticoke, Pennsyl- vania, October 15, 1900, and was therefore a little lad of but ten years when the family removed from the Keystone state and took up their abode in South Man- chester, Connecticut. His education was pursued as a public school pupil of Man- chester to the time of his graduation from high school with the class of 1918. After putting aside his textbooks he managed a confectionery store owned by his brothers for a period of two years. At the end of that time his brothers disposed of the store and he became associated with them as an employe in the building contracting business. Soon thereafter he went to Seymour, Connecticut, as manager of a chain store for the Globe Grocery Company and three months later was transferred to Man- chester. It was not long, however, before he resigned this position to again go to work for his brothers. On the 1st of August, 1921, he opened a real estate and insurance office in the House & Hale block. His business began to grow and two years later he moved his office to the Farr block. When two more years had passed he moved
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with his brothers to the old Foresters Hall, which had been remodeled and where he occupies a spacious suite of offices adequate for the demands of his rapidly growing business.
On the 8th of October, 1925, Mr. Knofla was united in marriage to Alice M. Peterson, of South Manchester, daughter of Oscar and Deborah (Hulander) Peterson. Mr. Knofla has been an active member of St. Mary's Young Men's Club, also belongs to the Chamber of Commerce and to the Kiwanis Club, of which he is a director, and fraternally is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and with Manchester Lodge, No. 73, F. & A. M .; Delta Chapter, R. A. M .; Adoniram Council, R. & S. M .; Washington Commandery, K. T., and Sphinx Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S.
DUDLEY SEYMOUR INGRAHAM
As a member of one of the oldest and most prominent families of Bristol, Dudley Seymour Ingraham is widely and favorably known and ably assists in the conduct of the business established by his great-grandfather, who was regarded as one of the foremost clock makers of this country. Dudley S. Ingraham was born August 14, 1890, in this city and is the younger of the two sons of William S. and Grace (Sey- mour) Ingraham, a sketch of whom is published elsewhere in this volume.
In the acquirement of an education Dudley S. Ingraham attended the local schools and was next a pupil in Andover Academy. His studies were completed in Cornell University, from which he received the degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1913. After his graduation he returned to Bristol and became connected with the E. Ingraham Company, gradually advancing until made vice president in 1915, being active in man- agement of the company and a forceful factor in its success.
In Ipswich, Massachusetts, Mr. Ingraham was married July 30, 1923, to Miss Marion E. Morton, and they now have four sons: Seymour Morton, Joseph Theo- dore, Dudley Seymour, Jr., and Robert Alexander.
In May, 1918, Mr. Ingraham enlisted in the service of his country and was assigned to duty with a hospital unit; later was transferred to a gun officers camp, and in November, 1919, was honorably discharged. He is a zealous member of the First Congregational church and superintendent of the church school. In politics he is a republican and his public spirit has been expressed by three years' service on the Bristol board of education. He is secretary of the executive committee of the Bristol Hospital and chairman of the home committee of the Visiting Nurses, chairman of the building committee of the Nurses Home and Boys Club, and chairman of the Com- munity Chest drive.
LEWIS HAWLEY HODGE
From newsboy to the office of assistant treasurer of the Society for Savings in Hartford constitutes the business record of Lewis Hawley Hodge, who from the outset was actuated by a determination to earn an honest living and gain advance- ment step by step. The years have chronicled his steady progress until he now occupies an enviable position in financial circles of Connecticut's capital. He was born in Glastonbury, this state, January 31, 1881, a son of Charles Hawley and Emma R. (Hollister) Hodge, both natives of East Glastonbury, Connecticut. They represented early families of Hartford county, each family being of English lineage, while settlement was made in Glastonbury during the period of early development there. The Hollister family was planted on American soil about 1642 and Lieutenant John Hollister was one of the influential residents of Wethersfield, Connecticut, where he and other representatives of the name were connected with agricultural interests. He entered into the public life of the community and held various offices, taking active part in the civic affairs of that period. The great-great-grandmother of Mr. Hodge was Eunice Hale Hollister, who lived to the notable age of one hundred and one years and four months, passing away in East Glastonbury, Connecticut, December 26, 1885. Charles H. Hodge, the father of Lewis H. Hodge, became a prominent
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business man of Glastonbury, where he died September 23, 1925, his widow still making her home in that city.
After attending the public schools Lewis H. Hodge continued his education in a business college. From an early age he was compelled to earn his own living, owing to the fact that his father was not in affluent circumstances, and he became a newsboy, delivering the Hartford Times and also working in the tobacco fields as opportunity offered for ten cents an hour. He also accepted various other jobs in order that he might earn a few dollars. A realization of the value of educational training led him to enter business college and following his graduation there he worked at various places, trying to better himself. A laudable ambition prompted him to make the best possible use of every opportunity that offered and on the 1st of March, 1901, he entered the bank of the Society for Savings as a stenographer. From that position he gradually worked upward until he became general assistant and on the 1st of June, 1921, was elected assistant treasurer. Close application, thoroughness and reliability have constituted the basis of his advancement and he justly deserves the praise implied in the term-a self-made man. He is also a director and vice president of the Glastonbury Laundry. At various times he has been called upon for cooperation in matters of public moment and is a past president of the Chamber of Commerce of East Hartford and was chairman of the World War Memorial Fund. He was also treasurer of the East Hartford Nursing Association for several years, was treasurer of the Parent-Teacher Association for several years and at the present writing, in 1928, is a member of the school building committee. All projects which have to do with the development, improvement and upbuilding of East Hartford receive his endorsement and earnest support.
On the 22d of October, 1902, Mr. Hodge was married to Johannah M. Bentley, of East Hartford, and they have two children: Earl Hawley, born July 7, 1905; and Marjorie, born March 15, 1914. The son is a graduate of the East Hartford public and high schools and also of the Connecticut Agricultural College, and he is now employed by the state department of agriculture. The family residence is at 50 Tower road in East Hartford and they also have a summer home at Bolton, Connecticut. Mr. Hodge enjoys life in the open and is a member of the Manchester Rod and Gun Club. He belongs to Orient Lodge, No. 62, A. F. & A. M., of East Hartford and his has been a well spent life in which sterling traits of character have won him warm regard, while his forcefulness, laudable ambition and capability have constituted the rounds of the ladder on which he has climbed to success.
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