USA > Connecticut > New Haven County > New Haven > Noted men of Connecticut as they look in life : as published in the columns of The Evening Leader of New Haven : being a collection of portraits and biographical sketches of representative men of Connecticut who have made and are making the history of the states > Part 12
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William Franklin Henney was born in Enfield, Hartford County, Connecticut, on November 2, 1852. As has been said, his ancestry is Scottish on both sides. His first American progenitor is John Henney, a Presbyterian clergyman, who came from Scotland in 1816, to settle near Philadelphia, while the first of his mother's family in America is John Barclay, whose arrival was a few years subsequent.
Mr. Henney's father was John Henney of Paisley, Scotland, but for many years connected with the Hartford Light and Power Co. His mother was Mene' Barclay. It was chiefly from her that he inherited his literary tastes, while to both he owes his moral strength. He followed a college preparatory course in the Hartford public high school. As his parents were in comfortable circumstances, he was left free to devote himself to his all devouring hunger for books, ranging through poetry, history, philosophy, biography and fiction. He has always been a deep student of the Bible. He entered upon his course at Princeton with the Class of 1874, well fitted by his reading for the tasks before him there, and left with the degree of B.A. and M.A. He immediately entered upon the study of law with the late Hon. H. C. Robinson, and was admitted to the bar after two years' study, in 1876.
His career as a lawyer has been highly successful, both from an intellectual and a money point of view. Mr. Henney cared to handle only cases of a high grade, and put into the discrimination between desirable and undesirable clients a conscientiousness that was not of the law, but Gaelic. Mr. Henney had been practicing hardly a year when he was made a member of the Hartford Common Council. Then, from 1877 to 1883, he was clerk of the Hartford Police Court. At the end of that time, he was deemed worthy to sit on the bench in that court. This position he graced until 1899, when he was moved along another notch and made city attorney. This place was his for two years, and again in 1895.
While city attorney, he had an opportunity to show the people the stuff there was in him in connection with considerable very important corporation litigation. Usually in
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such cases, a $1,500 city attorney takes the people's part against a $20,000 corporation law- yer, and "the law's delays" are more dilatory than when Hamlet upbraided them. Under Judge Henney's skillful management, however, the people fared exceedingly well, and the young attorney added new laurels to his brow, "bearing his blushing honors thick upon him."
In 1904, and by re-election in 1906, the city of Hartford bestowed upon him the may- oralty, which post he fills with his customary good judgment and capability. In 1906, Trinity College, Hartford, conferred on him the degree of LL.D. Mayor Henney has always been a staunch supporter of the Republican principles.
Mr. Henney's fraternal bonds are numerous. He belongs to the Knights Templar, the Sphinx Temple, the Royal Arcanum, Scottish Clans, Hartford Club, Hartford Country Club, and the Twentieth Century Club. He keeps in trim for his exhausting legal and official duties by frequent indulgence in his favorite sports of walking, riding and boating.
As a lawyer, Judge Henney has won for himself a place high among the men of his profession. His fellow lawyers have confidence in him for his clear-sightedness, sagacity, and the masterful success of his cases. Before the jury, his eloquence, coupled with his dignified bearing, never fail to impress the jury.
As a public man, he has the esteem, not merely of his party followers, but of all who appreciate astute judgment and conscientious devotion to duty, whether found in friend or foe.
In his private life Judge Henney is like the Chevalier Bayard, "sans peur et sans reproche," fearless in the pursuit of his chosen way, strong in the consciousness of high motives.
His ideal as a citizen and as a man is "To cultivate a genuine public spirit-an inter- est in all the affairs of city, state and nation-an ardent love of country, a disposition neither to seek nor shirk public office, and, if it comes, a disposition to use it as an opportunity for service and not for the salary it offers." To what extent he has lived up toward his ideal, let the reader of this hastily limned sketch decide.
We cannot read the future, except in the light of the past. From the past, it seems less probable that Judge Henney's public service should stop when he ceases to be mayor, than that he should go on upward winning new honors for himself in return for valiant ser- vice rendered.
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Hon. MICHAEL KENEALY
. HON. MICHAEL KENEALY, STAMFORD
Politics. How often have we heard that word? Politics. What does it signify to the layman? To one who is not versed in this "national" game it signifies little as com- pared to its real depth. We hear of a nomination,-a man aspiring to an office ; we hear of his election to the office, and then ofttimes, should we be asked the name of the man occu- pying such an office,-we have forgotten or cannot recall that person's name.
That is usually all that the ordinary voter knows about the game of politics,-that is all that he is supposed to know. He does not hear of the enormous amount of work that is behind the nomination,-the great amount of mental thought that it requires for the elec- tion of a candidate, and should he be informed of just how a campaign is carried on, the various plans that must be made and the system upon which such plans are carried out,- he would stand aghast and his first thought would be, "Who has the brains to do all this planning ; the candidate ?"
Whether or not the candidate does the planning (and it is very seldom that such is the fact), it must be conceded that this is the main part of an election-the planning and the execution of a campaign.
The Hon. Michael Kenealy of Stamford, Conn., has in this capacity gained for him- self the title of "The Wonder Worker in Connecticut Politics."
A man of foresight, able to calculate the effect of a movement long before the move- ment is established, he has planned and carried to completion the last gubernatorial cam- paign for the Republican party in a manner that is bound to place him as a leader amongst men who are versed in politics.
The system employed by Mr. Kenealy is a system, which as he saw, is the true solu- tion of the political game.
The secret seems to be and the watchword was, "Organization,"-organization of the whole Republican party, and to show how thoroughly he planned and executed-to show how thoroughly in touch he was with the whole situation, let it be said that shortly before election he predicted the result would be favorable to the Republican party by a plurality of twenty thousand votes. Governor Woodruff, in fact, was elected by approximately twenty thousand, eight hundred and fifty votes, and many people have been curious to know how a campaign manager could so nearly estimate the correct outcome.
The secret is simple, especially to anyone who knows Mr. Kenealy personally. A man who does everything thoroughly, who is at all times willing and ready to undertake any task, of no matter what magnitude, no better choice could have been made for manager of the Republican campaign than he.
Brass bands and pyrotechnical displays are not a feature of his mode of working, but quietly and unostentatiously he made of the Republican party during the campaign an organ- ization of strength, the innermost movement of which he was fully in touch with, and dur- ing which time he was regarded as truly-"A wonder worker."
During the campaign he worked day and night,-he spent his time in building up the Republican party and acquainting the organization with the kind of work that must be done
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if victory was to be the goal, and at all times he inspired his fellow workers with confidence and ambition, two most important factors in any campaign.
He achieved results in a clever way-a clean way-and his methods were at all times above criticism.
But to speak of Mr. Kenealy's life,-he is a native of Stamford, being born in that city on July 6, 1854. His early ability to express his thoughts verbally, combined with his natural ambition to rise above the general level, prompted him to enter the law office of J. H. Olmstead of Stamford, where, after three years devoted to the study of law, he was admitted to the bar.
Stamford has honored Mr. Kenealy in various ways since beginning his law prac- tice. He has served as prosecuting attorney and corporation counsel for several years, and has always taken a deep interest in the upbuilding of his home city. He was a valuable member of the commission to revise the general statutes of the state. In 1897, he was a member of the House, creditably serving on the judiciary nominations.
In 1899 his previous valuable experience and judicial training made him the natural choice of the Speaker for the important position of Chairman of the Judiciary Committee and leader of the House. In 1901 he again had the honor conferred upon him of Chairman of the Judiciary Committee. He was unanimously elected Speaker of the House in 1903, and in that position made a record creditable to himself and an honor to the state of Con- necticut. In 1905 he was again elected a member of the House and again chosen as Chair- man of the Judiciary Committee. His recognized ability as a sound thinker, logical reasoner, fluent and convincing speaker, and his accurate knowledge of parliamentary law made him a valuable and capable legislator and presiding officer.
In all the offices to which he has attained he has won the high regard of his associates and the sincere approval of the people of Connecticut.
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Senator ALLAN W. PAIGE
SENATOR ALLAN W. PAIGE, BRIDGEPORT
In the various walks of life to which different men attain, the power to think and to be original in thought, to hew new paths in the workings of the mind,-to be able to take an idea that has been generated to a certain point and bring it to a conclusion,-that is the . power that makes leaders,-that qualifies one man to dictate to his comrades.
Then to combine with this ability to place the thought in language, to be able to write it upon paper, or, better still, to deliver it to your associates verbally,-these powers given to a man invariably stamp him as one who commands respect.
Both the power to think well and deeply and the ability to put the thought in lan- guage has been given (and in a wonderful degree) to Senator Allan W. Paige, of Bridge- port.
Senator Paige needs no introduction to the people of Connecticut. A man of in- domitable will, whose vocabulary does not contain the word "Can't" and to whom defeat is a stranger, he has made for himself a reputation as a "fighter."
Owen Meredith has given us a beautiful thought in his poem "Lucille."
"Let any man once show the world that he feels Afraid of its bark, and 'twill fly at his heels ; Let him fearlessly face it, 'twill leave him alone, But 'twill fawn at his feet if he flings it a bone."
Senator Paige is a man who never hesitates to "fearlessly face the world." With a reputation for integrity, decisiveness of views, strength of character and straightforward- ness in his dealings, both business and social, he is rapidly carving for himself a name in Connecticut history that will, for years to come, be the standard by which the coming gen- erations will gauge their efforts.
Allan Wallace Paige was born in Sherman, Fairfield County, Conn., on February 24, 1854, being the son of John O. and Cornelia Joyce Paige.
He attended the Russell Military School and the Hopkins Grammar School, in New Haven, and in 1881, graduated from the Yale Law School. In the year 1887 he was mar- ried to Elizabeth D. Downs.
Since his early school days his ability to think, and think deeply, and to express his thoughts in such a manner as to carry them convincingly to his hearers, has earned for Senator Paige the wholesome respect of those who have taken pleasure in his acquaintance.
After graduating from Yale, Mr. Paige began his active career in South Norwalk, subsequently residing in Danbury, and later locating in New York City. The call of the good old State of Connecticut for the return of her loyal sons was at all times sounding in the ears of Mr. Paige, however, and eventually he returned, took up his residence in Bridgeport, and since that time has been largely instrumental in promoting the won- derful growth of that city.
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Senator Paige can boast of an extraordinarily large business acquaintance, and at present holds important offices in many well-known business concerns throughout the State of Connecticut, as well as in other parts of the East.
He has been for some years Director of the General Counsel for the Connecticut Rail- way and Lighting Company. He is a Director of the Pequonock National Bank, Bridge- port; Director of the Meriden, Southington and Compounce Tramway Company ; Director of the New England Engineering Company, Waterbury; President of the Derby Rubber Company, Shelton; President of the Nazareth Cement Company, Nazareth, Pa .; Director of the International Banking Corporation, New York; Director of the Automatic Bending Company of New York, and also Director of the Automatic Bending Company, Ltd., of Great Britain.
Allan Wallace Paige, however well known in business life, can probably figure among his acquaintances a far greater number who, on hearing his name mentioned, would think of him in a political light rather than in a business way.
He has always been a ready and convincing speaker, quick at repartee, and as a parlia- mentary leader stands second to none in the State, while it can truly be said of him that his knowledge of the Statute laws of Connecticut comprises about all that has ever been pub- lished. He has held several political offices, among them being Republican Assistant Clerk of the Connecticut House of Representatives in 1883,-Clerk of the House of 1884,-Clerk of the Senate in 1885. He was a member of the House in 1882, and also the session of 1891 and as a member of the Senate of 1905 served as Chairman of the Judiciary Committee.
Senator Paige is a well-known figure in club life throughout the State, being a mem- ber of the Seaside and Algonquin Clubs of Bridgeport, President of the Brooklyn Country - Club of Bridgeport, a member of the Hartford Club, the Waterbury Club, the Union League Club of New Haven, besides several Hunting and Fishing Clubs. In all the clubs in which he is a member his enthusiasm, good-fellowship and helpful disposition are highly prized. He is a Thirty-Second Degree Mason and an Odd Fellow, is a liberal supporter of the Church and Charitable Institutions, and his charity in individual instances is extensive and unpretentious. i
Persistency has always been a feature of the life of Senator Paige, and those who know him best claim that the harder the task he has undertaken to accomplish, the more pleasure he will find in completing.
Bridgeport points with pride to Senator Paige, and well it might, for his best efforts have been for the betterment of that city ;- and while the town of Sherman boasts of him as its native son (and any city may well be proud to foster such an offspring), the State of Connecticut will always claim him as its own, for such men as Senator Paige cannot but rise to the very best that the State, as a whole, has to offer.
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Senator SAMUEL HODGKINSON
SENATOR SAMUEL HODGKINSON, WALLINGFORD
In "bonny" England, the land of blue skies, long stretches of velvety grass, dotted with soft tinted blossoms, Samuel Hodgkinson, the present Senator from the Twelfth District, was born 57 years ago, January 9, 1851. He is a native of Congleton and was the son of Thomas and Annie Hodgkinson. He grew to young manhood and studied at the public schools of the town and was graduated. Like most healthy, hearty young Englishmen, he was strongly attached to the military service, and when he attained the proper age, enlisted in the famous Earl of Chester's Cavalry, where he served for two years.
Later he enlisted in the Fifth Cheshire Volunteers, in which he served for three years.
At the age of twenty-two years, Mr. Hodgkinson became attracted to the United States of America. He had heard much of the vast and countless opportunities for advancement offered in this new country for a piring and ambitious young men, and he deter- mined that he should seek his fortune across the Atlantic. So determination was quickly succeeded by action; and he embarked for America, and on arriving here proceeded to the little town of Wallingford, where he has made his home ever since.
The town has always been a manufacturing community, and young Mr. Hodgkinson entered the employ of one of these firms, displaying wonderful executive ability and con- centration of mind.
Promotion came to him rapidly and for many years he has been a contractor at Simp- son's factory. In his position as contractor he has had mich experience with men and has learned to deal with them very successfully. He is possessed of natural tact and his diplo- matic style of treating with people has materially advanced him in the world.
Politics has always held his attention and he joined the Republican party soon after coming to Wallingford. An earnest worker in the ranks, he commended himself to the party leaders by his devoted loyalty and unflagging zeal. He was a tireless worker and counted no sacrifice too great for his party and his party's candidates.
His clever mode of management, his skill and foresight during his years of service on the Republican town committee, delighted his associates, and he was chosen chairman, a position which he has held for many years.
As chairman of the town committee he has managed the affairs of his party with great success, and his counsel was frequently sought by the prominent Republicans of the town.
He was elected to a place on the borough board and served the interests of the borough with fidelity, and gave valuable service.
In the year 1897 Mr. Hodgkinson was nominated by the Republicans of the town as Representative at the General Assembly, and his personal popularity aiding greatly in the campaign, he was elected by a substantial majority. He served the town with faithful zeal and his constituents rewarded his service by re-election.
His townspeople kept him in mind for higher honors, and the Republican voters in the surrounding towns comprising the Twelfth Senatorial District, the towns of Branford, East Haven, Guilford, Hamden, Madison, North Branford, North Haven, and Wallingford, nom-
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inated him as their candidate. The citizens took kindly to the nomination and Senator Hodgkinson was elected.
During the term he held the very important post of chairman of the excise committee. The last session of the General Assembly was notable for the work of the temperance forces. Countless bills bearing on the sale of liquor and the saloons were introduced and the excise committee was one of the busiest in the entire legislative body. Senator Hodgkin- son was a very active and zealous chairman.
He is not inclined to oratory and participates but little in debate, but is a conscientious and efficient worker, his great power lying in his knowledge of men and his genial, pleasant manner.
He is fond of social and fraternal life and has united with several clubs and fraternities, among them Accanant Lodge of Odd Fellows, Friendship Encampment, Sassacus Canton of New Haven, New England Order of Protection, and Silver City Lodge, United Order of Workmen. In several of these he has been honored with office, and in all he is a popular and cordially welcomed member.
Senator Hodgkinson is married, having been united in marriage to Miss Sarah Laverine Averill of Branford, January 16, 1879. They have one son, who resides in Wallingford.
Senator Hodgkinson is held in high esteem by all who know him, and his townspeople are glad to do him honor. He is of a pleasant, affable manner and has countless friends who rejoice in his well-merited honors. He is progressive in business and is a successful citizen in every line.
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Hon. HENRY LEE
MAYOR HENRY LEE, BRIDGEPORT
Henry Lee, the new Republican mayor of Bridgeport, is a man whose record is indeed one to be proud of.
Born in Coventry, Tolland County, he received his education in the public schools. When a boy of twenty he went to Bridgeport, where he entered the factory of the Union Metallic Cartridge Company. This was in 1868 when Bridgeport had a population of but seventeen thousand.
After ten years spent in the Cartridge factory, Mr. Lee entered into a partnership with Mr. George M. Robertson in the grocery business. Later the firm was dissolved and Mr. Charles J. Ketcham became associated with Mr. Lee in the same business. The firm prospered and it was not long before they maintained two stores in Bridgeport. Mr. Lee remained in partnership with Mr. Ketchan for fourteen years.
He began his real political career in the early eighties, acting as registrar of voters in the old sixth ward, now the eleventh district and part of the tenth district.
In 1885 he was made selectman. This was before the consolidation of the towns and city governments which gave Mr. Lee charge of both the highways and the poor outside the city.
There are many who still remember the present mayor's kindness to the unfortunates with whom he was constantly brought in contact at that time. Re-elected selectman in 1886 he declined to run again the following year, but the people loath to let him retire from ser- vice, elected him a member of the board of aldermen.
This office he held from 1887 to 1889. In 1889 he was nominated for mayor by the Republican party, but was defeated.
During W. H. Marigold's mayoralty, Mr. Lee was a fire commissioner for about a year and resigned. From 1895 to 1903 he served as a county commissioner and 1901, 1905 he represented Bridgeport in the General Assembly. During all of his political holdings he has worked in the interest of the city and the people rather than his party.
It was due largely to his efforts while acting as alderman that that portion of the almshouse now occupied by women was built.
Another of his achievements was the building of the Danbury court house without the issuance of bonds. This was during his term as county commissioner, when all his influence was brought to bear in the accomplishment of it.
Mayor Mulvihill, a life long admirer of Mr. Lee, yet representing a different political faith, when he wanted a good man on the re-building of the City Hall, appointed Mr. Lee on the committee.
Mr. Lee distinguished himself in the legislature in 1901, when his influence and power were again put to good use. His plea for the law which compels the trolley companies to pay every city $500 a year for every bridge over which a car passes, helped largely in put- ting it through. Since then a bill has been passed increasing the tax to seven hundred and fifty dollars on each bridge.
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Another of his splendid achievements, and one that has increased the city's income about eight thousand a year, was having the town clerk and tax collector put on a salary basis, the money saved being received by the city in fees in excess of the salaries. During the session of the legislature in 1901, Mr. Lee was chairman of the committee on constitu- tional amendments which reported to increase the Senate and to make the electing of state officers by plurality instead of majority. In 1905 he was chairman of the committee on cities and boroughs. Remembrance of his long and wise record as a public servitor helped give Mr. Lee tremendous prestige, when last October the Republican party again nominated him for Mayor of Bridgeport. It was pretty generally conceded that there was no one so strong, no one so well liked as a possible candidate for the office as Henry Lee.
Praise of him was loud on every side. The intelligent voters of Bridgeport recog- nized in him a man of unimpeachable integrity, of approved ability and unsullied charac- ter, a man who if elected would give a clean, reputable and able administration to his city affairs. This tribute was paid the present mayor in one of the campaign speeches last autumn. Charles McMahan, formerly business agent of the Iron Moulders Union and for many years an active member of that body, said in his address at one of the Republican ral- lies, "Henry Lee has learned one of the most difficult words in the dictionary. It is the little word 'No.' He can say 'No' and that is what we can't say about many mayors. They promise, promise and promise, but don't make good. If Henry Lee can't grant your request he will tell you so and will not mislead you. His word is as good as his bond."
On November 20, 1907, Mayor Lee married Mrs. Catherine W. Kelly, the widow of the late Dr. J. E. Kelly. He and the bride's father, the late John Walsh, had been life-long friends, their friendship covering a period of over thirty years.
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