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 21
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But to speak of the life of the Hon. George E. Greene: He is not a native of Connecti- cut (although having become so strongly affiliated with this state's affairs he is thought by many to have been born here), but he first saw the light of day in Kensington, New Hamp- shire, and it wasn't so very long ago either, namely, Sept. 1, 1869.
Kensington, New Hampshire, is the birthplace of many of the Greene family. for away back in the eighteenth century a colony of Quakers settled in that region from whom the subject of this sketch can trace a direct line.
When four years old, Mr. Greene's family removed to Exeter, N. H., where George E. received his early education in the public schools. Phillips Academy was his next educa- tional development venture and he entered the Academy at the age of sixteen, choosing a scientific course and graduating in four years. Not being desirous of following the train- ing he had received there, we next hear of him as a student in the business college of Bry- ant & Stratton of Boston, where he studied book-keeping in its entirety, and familiarized himself with the modern methods of accounting.
The world seemed small to this young product of the "Granite State" and a position being offered to him in Detroit, Michigan, he accepted, located there for a period, gained a practical knowledge of the modern business methods, sounded his own ability and decided that while the advice to go West and grow up with the country was all right in some instances, the East offered as good opportunities as any, and it was simply a case of whose "fire was burning brightest under ambition's strong machine."
The C. P. Merwin Brick Company of Kensington, this state. needed a bright young man of Greene's calibre at about this time, and he joined his fortune with that of this concern.
For several years he was accountant for this company, and at this point his scientific course in Phillips Academy stood him in good stead, for he introduced many innovations there, such as steam shovels, locomotives and cars for conveying clay from pits to the
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machines, etc., and in the meantime mastered the detail of the brick business to such an extent that in 1898, when the C. P. Merwin Company was organized as a stock company, Mr. Greene became a member of the firm as its secretary and yard superintendent.
Always gathering any education that might be "lying about loose" (so to speak) he gained from his employes a knowledge of the Polish and Italian languages and converses freely in both.
In local offices Mr. Greene has gained honor, for he has served in many with fidelity and ability. He was chosen as representative from the town of Berlin in the General Assembly of 1907, and here he was looked upon as a staunch and worthy member.
He is a member of the Berlin Grange and Agricultural Society and has in no small way contributed to the success of the annual fairs held by this association. Lexington Lodge, I. O. O. F. No. 72 of New Britain enrolls him as an active member and he belongs to Court of Mattabessett, F. of A. He is also a member of the First Company, Gov- ernor's Horse Guard. Mr. Greene's wife was formerly Miss Amelia Feibel, who was one of the pioneer kindergarteners of Brooklyn, New York. She is a member of the Berlin Agricultural Society, also, and is as active socially in this lodge as her time will permit.
In his home district Mr. Greene is especially popular and his popularity has been extended in a large measure to Hartford.
Should you be privileged to know the Hon. George E. Greene you will find in him a man worthy of confidence, a man of strong personality and such a man as one can be proud to own as a friend. He has been and is regarded as an enduring citizen of the . state, a person to be trusted and admired, and one who may at all times be relied upon to carry the banner of honest business methods and fair and square dealings. The admiration of his constituents he has honestly earned, and will as honestly maintain, for there is that about Mr. Greene that bespeaks the level-headedness that wins success and there are great things in store for this ambitious worker.
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HOHE 07
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Chief HENRY D. COWLES
HENRY D. COWLES, NEW HAVEN Chief of Police
There are few persons who have any conception of what it means to be a detective. We all have a general idea of the spectacular hero who can read the past life and future doings of every one he meets at a single glance. Gaborieau, Conan Doyle and others have familiarized us with that species. With all respect to the above named gentlemen as good story writers, it is to be feared that they would come under the presidential ban as "Nature fakirs." To say the least, one gets a distorted view of the detectives activities, for he sees only his successes, and only his big sensational cases, and nothing but the salient features of those,-the weary waiting, the hours of drudgery, and routine being naturally fore- shortened in the interests of a good story. The detective's lot is not an easy one, though it may be happy. There is the tracing of criminals through the multitudinous actions of days, weeks, even years. There is the constant play of memory, recalling past events, and storing up those of the moment. There is a throng of faces he must be able to recall even under disguise, and there is the constant watching for faces he knows only by written description. How difficult this may be, everyone knows who has had occasion to meet a friend's friend at the railroad station. Finally, there is the almost constant danger of attack by cornered criminals, or revengeful ones.
All this pertains to the newest detective on the force. When we consider the addi- tional capacity for shouldering responsibility, for guiding and directing those in his charge that is a requisite of the Chief, we appreciate better what the community owes to a man of this stamp.
Henry D. Cowles, who entered upon his duties as Chief of the New Haven Police on November 1, 1907, is an excellent example of this type of public servant. For seventeen years prior to his promotion to the position left vacant by the retirement of Ex-Chief James Wrinn, Mr. Cowles was at the head of the Bureau of Detectives, insuring by his zeal and efficiency in that capacity, his ultimate advancement when the opportunity arrived.
Mr. Cowles is a native of Connecticut, having been born in the town of Avon on Jan- uary 19, 1850. His youthful days were spent in Hartford, however, whither his family removed when he was still quite young. He received his education in the public schools of Hartford. The busy world claimed him at an early age, and we find him in New Haven in 1863 learning the painting and decorating trade. He followed his trade for a number of years, living the happy but uneventful life that belongs to a successful workman. But there was an extra quantity of red blood in the veins of the future Chief, and he longed for an employment that would occupy an active brain as well as skilful hands. This he believed he would find in the police service, and he obtained an appointment thereto in 1878. April 26th marks the date of his entry into the service. Efficient service as a patrolman brought him a promotion as sergeant on March 4, 1891. On January 2, 1892, he became a detec- tive sergeant in recognition of his peculiar adaptability to that branch of the service. In six years he had developed such an aptitude that the commissioners considered him the proper man to head the bureau. This appointment dates from May 4, 1897.
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The duties of this office made Mr. Cowles a great traveler. His trips in search of crim- inals have taken him from Maine to California, and have won him many valuable acquaint- anceships among the heads of big city departments all over the country. Notable arrests which he has made in this long distance hunting are the capture of Frank Tateo, whom the Chief found in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1893; George Whitfield, who had got away as far as Detroit, Mich., in 1894; John Morse, wanted in 1896 for arson, and run to earth in Colun- bus, Ohio; and finally, Harry Clark, the embezzler who caused the Chief the longest trip of all, to San Francisco, Cal. Many other similar trips have added to Mr. Cowles' experience and general knowledge of men and places, a detective's most valuable resource.
Chief Cowles has become a dread to wrong-doers by the unerring instinct with which he ferrets out the right party and the swiftness with which he descends upon his prey. For this reason, many of the crooks and sneak thieves who ply their nefarious craft in other parts of the State have not honored New Haven with their expensive presence-the pun was unin- tentional-feeling that the game is hardly worth the candle while the Chief's sharp eyes con- tinue to scan the horizon on the lookout for just such gentry.
One of Mr. Cowles' first "big jobs," one which demonstrated his skill as a detective, was in connection with the well-known Dewell blackmail case. Sidney Coe and his wife had been trying to get some money out of former Lieutenant-Governor James D. Dewell. Complaint was made to the department. Mr. Cowles got after them and landed his game within 24 hours. He met them, disguised as Mr. Dewell himself. His disguise and his acting were so clever that he completely fooled two very sharp persons, and he soon had them in the toils of the law, to their great disgust.
Chief Cowles has several times been commended for meritorious service by the com- missioners.
He was one of the promoters of the New Haven Mutual Aid Association, which was organized in 1893, and he has served as director and president of the same ten years.
Outside of the department, Mr. Cowles has numerous interests. He is a Knight Teill- plar, a member of New Haven Conclave No. 323, Mystic Shrine, and of the Independent Order of Heptasophs. He is a consistent Republican, and a member of the Young Men's Republican Club. With his family, he attends the Church of the Ascension.
Chief Cowles has barely entered upon his new duties of head of the City Police. Long service in the department has made him familiar with them, and the qualities which have brought him up through the ranks will certainly not fail him, now that he is at the top.
The citizens of New Haven can look with tranquility for the continued efficiency of a well organized service, and Chief Cowles' personal friends may rest assured that he will add honor to himself and to the department as the years go by.
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MEN HADEAS
Chief OF
ZIPOLICE
Ex-Chief JAMES WRINN
JAMES WRINN, NEW HAVEN
Ex-Chief of Police
The visitors to Central Police Station of New Haven will find seated at the Chief's desk a man well past the noon of life, of rather slight proportions, but clean-limbed, trim and military in his bearing. As for that, one Philip Sheridan bears testimony as to the amount of spirit and chvialry can be put up in small packages.
A large featured face marked by lines of care and hard work, with the firm jaw of a born leader and the deep forehead of a man who thinks, is mellowed by the Hibernian twinkle of his kindly eye. Can you not read there the life of constant struggle, the winning of degree after degree in the university of hard knocks?
Such in fact has been the career of James Wrinn, who is so soon to go into retirement from the position of Chief of Police of New Haven.
Behavior is a mirror in which every one shows his image. Look at the acts of a man, if you would learn what his heart is like. They confirm or refute the impression we gain from his personal appearance and his words.
To quote a bull of one of his countrymen, Mr. Wrinn was "born a poor man" in Ire- land, April 27, 1836. When but nine years old he was left without a father, and it was practically at that time the struggle against obstacles began.
He came to America with his mother at the age of twelve. His rather perfunctory and, of course, elementary education on the Old Sod was supplemented by a brief course at the Reuben Curtis' School in Southford, that famous moulder of sturdy men.
As his mother needed his aid, he soon left the school to enter the family of Augustus Russell Street, founder of the Yale Art School. Since then his studying has been in the school of life; he has learned well what he knows. Next he worked for John B. Cooley in the dry goods business. Then for sixteen years, he painted houses, often travelling about the State to ply his trade.
He entered the police service as a supernumerary on January 2, 1867, and has served continuously from that time. He became a sergeant in 1881, a second lieutenant in 1884. He reached the office of captain in June of 1891.
He was given the opportunity to become Superintendent of Police when the late Treadwell Smith was promoted to that office, 1891. He declined it, however, as he believed that Supt. Smith, who was his senior, was entitled to that place. On the latter's resignation in 1897, Mr. Wrinn accepted the position, the title of which was changed in 1901 to Chief of Police.
Under his management the Police work has been modernized, and has gained a degree of efficiency which gives it rank with the best police departments of the country. He has especially developed the detective branch of his department, putting it on an equality with the patrol branch, and proving it to be of constantly increasing usefulness in the detec- tion and prevention of crime.
Chief Wrinn was married in 1860 to Miss Mary Tiernan. Of their seven children, four are now living, one son being Dr. Frank Wrinn of Long Island City.
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Aside from his career as a policeman, he has served in the National Guard. He was an officer in Company C, of the Washington Guard, which no longer exists. He was for some time Captain of the Emmett Guards, made up of former members of the Washing- ton Guards. He is also a member of the Church of the Sacred Heart, and of the Knights of St. Patrick, of which organization he was Vice-President in 1898.
In the preparation of feldspar for use in glazing porcelain, the already ground stone is placed in a large steel cylinder, with a quantity of cubes of hard quartz. As the cylinder revolves, the cubes roll on each other and reduce the powdered feldspar to a very fine dust. Incidentally the corners of the cubes are worn off, and in time they become perfect spheres. True, their surface is dull, like sanded glass, but split one open, and its heart shines forth in its pristine lustre.
Life has done as much for our chief. The knocks and bangs of the early struggle for bread, the later bumping up against all grades of humanity in his public career, have worn off the corners, making of the uncouth Irish lad, an experienced, suave gentleman. Was it not Jean Paul Richter who said that "Men, like bullets, go farthest when they are smoothest?"
Time, too, the traitor, has put his hand upon Mr. Wrinn, as he will upon the fairest and spryest of us. But it is a fact worth jotting down in your diary, that you may bang an Irish- man about as much as you please-or as much as he pleases-and Time lay a heavy hand on his shoulder ; the surface may become glazed; yet the old Celtic nature flashes just as bright within.
Did I say suave? Chief Wrinn is a natural diplomat. Let some disgruntled citizen go to him with a temperature of 140 degrees rising, and the storm signals out; does the Chief wave the red flag, mount a chair and cry "Erin go bragh?" Oh, no, gentle reader, no! He never gets his Irish up in the common acceptation of the word. He has it rather up his sleeve, so to speak. He places a little ice on the fevered intellect by allowing that the matter is open to debate; that, as Sir Roger de Coverly often remarked, much might be said on both sides of the question ; brings into play his native wit and cajolery and, having won the citizen's confidence, shows him, step by step, that his (Wrinn's) point of view is right, and he goes away thinking what a good fellow that Wrinn is, after all.
It is his shrewd knowledge of human nature, his ability to size a man up, that has made him through forty years, a force increasingly to be reckoned with, and a terror to the evil-doer.
We remember Portia said, "It is a good divine that follows his own instructions; I can easier teach twenty what were good to be done, than be one of the twenty to follow mine own teaching."
Chief Wrinn has far more than twenty to whom he may say go, and he goeth ; he has also learned the harder lesson of following his own precepts. Perhaps it would be truer to say that because he has always exercised self-control, and obtained the mastery of mind and body, he has worked his way from the bottom to the top. He who knows how to serve may lead. The man who feareth not to climb to a roof at night to search for armed burglars
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may insist on a high standard of physical courage in his men, and will get it. To the clean- ness of his life, the fact that he has so few enemies bears ample testimony. It is thought that the attendance at the coming testimonial dinner on the event of his retiring, will be the most largely attended in the history of the city.
As he returns to private life, the gratitude of the whole city goes with him. As he enjoys the rewards of faithful service in life's peaceful evening, he will realize that he labors best who labors not for self.
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Representative ALFRED D. CADY
REPRESENTATIVE ALFRED D. CADY, PLAINVILLE
A man who makes himself strongly felt in the body where he is a member of the hope- less minority is possessed of a stalwart strength of character and has qualities which are unusual, for the tendency in political life has ever been to throw the limelight on the men on the majority side, since theirs are the votes which shall determine the success of the candi- date, the triumph of a measure.
Therefore, when one finds one of these men of the minority party whose advice is fre- quently sought and whose spoken word carries weight, one knows that he is a man of power. In the last session of the Connecticut Legislature, a Democrat who was rated thus high was Alfred D. Cady of Plainville, who is capable and faithfully served his town as Representative.
Mr. Cady is a descendant of an old Connecticut family, his father's ancestors having lived in Stafford, Ct., but his birthplace was in Kent, Ohio, the Buckeye State having been much sought by Connecticut people and Ohioans frequently styling themselves children of the Nutmeg State.
He was born June 19, 1849, the son of Isaac and Susan A. (Tinker) Cady and the family remained in Kent until he was eight years old. The family then moved to Eliza- bethtown, Kentucky, and during the civil strife lived in that center of war, the territory of much bloodshed.
Mr. Cady received further education here and at the close of the war went to Peoria, Ill., remaining one year, after which he journeyed to Stafford, Ct., his father's old home.
His life in Plainville dates back to June 15, 1887, when he entered the employ of the New York and New England R. R. Co. as a clerk. He was clever, capable and willing to work and was early marked for promotion, so in 1892 he was advanced to the post of agent, serving four years.
It was at this period that the N. Y., N. H. and H. R. R. Co. absorbed the N. Y. N. E. road and Mr. Cady became an employe of the new company and has been successful in this line ever since.
He married Lucy A. Burley, September 1I, 1871, and two children were born to them, Inez M., born January 21, 1874, and Bertha E., born in 1880. His wife died in 1884, and December 24, 1894, he married Margett A. Gleason.
He has always voted the Democratic ticket and taken an active part in Democratic politics and for twelve years has served as Democratic Registrar of Voters. In politics he is a trustworthy ally, a man of strong and positive connections, amenable, however, to reason, and is loyal to the core. He is a good citizen, striving to further the cause of his town, and like most good citizens, is a good partisan, ever striving for the success of the party.
The Democrats of Plainville owe much to his generalship, since the Registrar of Voters generally does occupy a high place among the leaders of the party, and his natural qualities would make him a leader among men, irrespective of office. He has a happy faculty of making friends and commands the respect of all with whom he is associated.
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A citizen of the best type, of the kind whom American men delight in calling their representatives, Mr. Cady was borne in mind as a candidate for the post of Plain- ville representative in the General Assembly, and in the campaign of 1906, received the Democratic nomination.
He was triumphantly elected and was a highly valued member of the committee on1 legislative expenses and constitutional amendments.
The fraternal life holds charm for Representative Cady and he is at present filling the position of Recording Secretary of the Odd Fellows, Financial Secretary of American Mechanics and of the Masons.
In church circles he is well known and greatly esteemed. He has long been a mem- ber of the Episcopal Church of Plainville and has served for several years as its junior warden.
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Among men of worth, of stamina and dependable character, he has a rank and a reputa- tion. His judgment is backed by deep thinking and the weight of reflection, and his habit of refraining from a hasty expression of his thoughts not only reveals his character, but has earned him the reputation of wisdom. Personal popularity founded on such an opin- ion, is a great power and a power which Plainville's Representative wields to the ends best for his town and his people.
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THOMAS H. MOLLOY
ALDERMAN THOMAS H. MOLLOY, NEW HAVEN
Sheer force of personality, backed by strong, clear convictions and the ability to formulate decided opinions, have contributed in no small measure to the success which has crowned the life of Thomas H. Molloy, one of New Haven's best known and most thoroughly representative citizens. American to the finger tips, the very embodiment of the progressive spirit, and alert, wide-awake methods of thought and speech, he is a man of force and ability and one with a large following in whatever undertaking he projects.
Mr. Molloy is a Connecticut boy and was born in the town of Berlin, June 2, 1858. When he was a tiny boy, his parents moved to New Haven, where his entire life has been spent ever since.
He attended Wooster Grammar School and it is a noteworthy fact that it was within these same walls that all of his children received their early schooling.
In those days boys became men in life and at a tender age were admitted to the facto- ries and stores as employes. Well for their employers that the laws of Connecticut were less rigid four or five decades ago than in the present generation and that factory inspec- tion meant much less then than now, else many factories would lose some of their clever boy employes.
Mr. Molloy was only in his eleventh year when he took his place in the army of indus- try and he has been a monument of zeal and enthusiasm ever since.
In the foundry of the O. B. North Company he served his apprenticeship, and from there he went to Winchester Repeating Arms Company where he spent several years.
His experiences have been varied and have developed a natural versatility in his char- acter. He worked on the horse cars, later for the steam road.
Wishing to advance himself and to get more closely in touch with the outside world, he accepted a position as a commercial traveller and for five or six years followed this calling.
In the meantime he decided to become a business man himself, as he plainly saw that it was for the business life that he was naturally equipped and toward which his entire experience had been tending.
So in 1885 he established himself at 99 Water Street, and here he remains to-day, maintaining a saloon and a fancy grocery shop. Into his business dealings he has thrown his personal magnetism, his cordial manner, his hearty greeting of all who come and as a matter of course success has come to him in bountiful measure.
A thorough man of the world, the breadth of character to be found in the man is demonstrated by his two notable hobbies, flowers and music.
Next to his home at No. 4 Brown Street is a large conservatory and handsome flower beds. In a section of the city where flowers are scarce, his bloom all the brighter and many an hour does Mr. Molloy pass in loving care of his blossoms.
He is also strongly musical and delights to be surrounded by musical friends. One of his sons is quite well known as a singer and the entire atmosphere of the home is musical.
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Mr. Molloy is absolutely devoted to his home. He married Miss Ellen Brennan of New Haven and there are four children, Thomas Jr., Walter, Joseph and Gertrude Molloy.
Although a valued and zealous worker in the ranks of the Democratic party and long since recognized as a leader of men, it was not until two years ago that Mr. Molloy con- sented to stand as a candidate for office. He was elected a member of the Board of Alder- men and quickly demonstrated that he was no lay figure in public life.
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