Hampden county, 1636-1936, Volume III, Part 1

Author: Johnson, Clifton, 1865-1940
Publication date: 1936
Publisher: New York, The American historical Society, Inc.
Number of Pages: 770

USA > Massachusetts > Hampden County > Hampden county, 1636-1936, Volume III > Part 1

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Gc 974.401 H17j v. III 1.127396

GENEALOGY COLLECTION

ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 00085 0492

HAMPDEN COUNTY

1636-1936

Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2019

https://archive.org/details/hampdencounty16303john

T HIS set, "Hampden County, 1636-1936," by Clifton Johnson, is one of a series produced over the past half century by noted historians and educators, each work a distinct entity, but joined with the others to form a library of regional history that stands without parallel in the publishing field.

THE AMERICAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY, INC.

THE AMERICAN

INC.

ORICAL SOCIETY

Joseph B. Elp

HAMPDEN COUNTY

1636 - 1936

Maso

CLIFTON JOHNSON

Historian and Author

VOLUME III

THE AMERICAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY, INC. NEW YORK 1936

1127396

Hanry LaGueule

INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY RECORDS

HENRY L. RUSSELL-During his entire active career, Henry L. Russell was associ- ated with the old established hardware house of J. Russell and Company, founded by his grandfather as successor to a similar com- pany which had its beginnings at Holyoke almost a century ago. As president of the company after his father's death and as a partner in the house in earlier years he gave his every effort to continuing its progressive traditions. His success was reflected in the development of an enterprise which is known throughout all New England and in the reputation he personally bore as one of Holyoke's leading business men and citizens.

Mr. Russell was born in Chicopee on April 4, 1861, a son of Robert and Ellen (Cooley) Russell. This family boasts a dis- tinguished history tracing back to the ear- liest Colonial period. Although originally established in Virginia, its members for six successive generations, beginning with Rob- ert Russell in 1659, lived on the same home- stead farm at Andover, Massachusetts. Its members were prominent locally and were notably represented in every war of the American nation down to the present time.

Joel Russell, grandfather of Henry L. Russell, was the last of the Andover Rus- sells to occupy the old farm. He moved to Holyoke in 1855 and quickly established his place in the life of the town. In 1868 he built the Russell home on Chestnut Street, Holyoke, the second house on that street and the home of his descendants through five generations. In 1870, then a man of sub- stance and prominence, Joel Russell bought out the hardware business of Snow and

Flanders which had been established at Holyoke in 1848, when the community was still a small village. He continued as sole owner until 1875 when he turned its manage- ment over to his son, Robert, and upon his death left it jointly to Robert and another son, George A. Russell. Robert Russell, who was born at Andover on November 7, 1833, subsequently purchased his brother's interest and continued as senior member of the firm until 1919, when he died. During all these years his son, Henry L. Russell, was associated with him and upon the death of the elder Mr. Russell, he succeeded him as executive head.

Henry L. Russell spent his boyhood years at Chicopee and came to Holyoke to live in 1875 with his father's family. He attended Holyoke High School for three years and at the end of that time, in 1879, joined his father in business. His connection with J. Russell and Company continued for more than half a century and was terminated only by his death. During that time, great changes came both to Holyoke and to the business, but it always kept pace with the spirit of the times, and its remarkable growth is evidence of the courage, progressive out- look and sound judgment of its owners. The original Russell store at the corner of High and Dwight streets, where the Holyoke Na- tional Bank now stands, occupied five hun- dred square feet of floor space and employed. two clerks. Within a few years the business was moved to the Holyoke House block at the corner of Dwight and Race streets, but here again its quarters were soon outgrown and eventually the Holyoke House property,

Hampden-1

INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY RECORDS

known in later years as the Hotel Hamilton, was taken over. Finally, in order to provide adequate accommodations, it was necessary to purchase the old Parsons Hall property on the opposite corner, where the company has had its headquarters since 1925. Today, for its business needs, the organizations re- quires 75,000 square feet of floor space, in contrast to the original five hundred. A force of some seventy-four people is employed and the annual volume of business totals more than $1,000,000, drawn from a territory ex- tending from Long Island Sound to the Canadian border. These are the outward symbols of inner strength sustained by orderly evolution and the whole stands to- day as a monument to the vision, industry and creative genius of Henry L. Russell, its directing head for thirty years.

In his father's lifetime, Mr. Russell as- sumed steadily increasing responsibilities in the management of the business until at length the entire direction of its operation was lodged in him. In 1919, with his father's death, he became senior partner in name as well as in fact, and in 1923, when the busi- ness was incorporated, he became president of the company, an office he filled until his death.

Mr. Russell [it has been written of him] had that kind of a mind which is never satisfied with things as they are but is ever looking for improved meth- ods in business. He is credited with being the first in the hardware business to realize the possible ben- efits of a good catalog. Back in 1893, the first Rus- sell catalog was prepared under his direction and was published by Griffith, Axtell and Cady. It was a vol- ume of about one hundred and fifty pages. Since that time numerous other editions have been brought out and the latest edition has seven hundred pages and is the standard reference book of the kind in a thousand hardware stores scattered through the New England territory. And it is a rare case indeed to find a farm in any of the six New England states which does not have at least one piece of machinery which bears the J. Russell and Company imprint.

The many departments of the store are stocked and equipped to satisfy all demands of both the wholesale and retail hardware trade, as well as automotive supplies, includ- ing such special phases as power transmis- sion and mill supplies, builders' hardware ; painters', farmers' and blacksmiths' supplies and hand and machine tools of all types.

While he always gave the closest atten- tion to his own business, Mr. Russell had the breadth of viewpoint which enabled him to encompass the needs of the trade as a whole. He was very active in association work, in which he was a firm believer, and played a prominent part in the organization and con- tinuation of many trade associations. These include the American Steel and Heavy Hard- ware Association, the New England Retail Hardware Dealers' Association, the New England Iron and Hardware Association and the Western Massachusetts Hardware Deal- ers' Association. It was natural that his services should also be sought by other busi- ness enterprises, and to the Newton Paper Company, of which he was president, the Hadley Falls Trust Company, of which he was a director, and the Holyoke Savings Bank, of which he was a trustee, he rendered service of equal value.

In the general life of Holyoke, Mr. Rus- sell was a staunch defender of the city's interests and a generous supporter of its principal civic and benevolent institutions. His judgment was always respected by the people of the city and his influence was of wide extent, but he had no wish for public office and declined such honors on several occasions when they were tendered him. He was a member of a number of local organi- zations, including the Holyoke Canoe Club, which he helped to organize and in which he was one of the early commodores; the old Board of Trade, of which he was a direc- tor for many years; the Mt. Tom Golf Club

Closest W. Passul

INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY RECORDS

and the Holyoke Rotary Club. He was also a member of the Second Congregational Church. His personal tastes and habits were always simple. He was very fond of out- door life and sports and turned to them usually for recreation. In his school days he played on the Holyoke High School base- ball team and always retained his love for the national game. As a whole, however, his principal avocation was fishing. This was perhaps an inherited taste, since his father was a famous fisherman in his day, and as a boy Mr. Russell often accompanied him on expeditions to the North Woods. Later, his own sons were his companions on these trips to the woods which they all en- joyed so much. Mr. Russell also traveled extensively, visiting foreign lands annually for many years.

In 1886, he married Susie E. Newton, daughter of Moses Newton, who was born in Greenfield and moved to Holyoke in the period of the Civil War. He was one of six brothers who established a number of early paper mills at Holyoke and became a figure of great prominence in the conimunity life. Mr. and Mrs. Russell became the parents of the following children : I. Newton H., born June II, 1888, died April 27, 1934. His ac- tive career was spent with J. Russell and Company, of which he was treasurer. 2. Robert Henry, whose biography follows. 3. Stuart A., whose biography appears on a following page. 4. Mrs. James N. Logan, of Holyoke.

Mr. Russell died at Holyoke in 1935, fol- lowing a long period of failing health. The close of his long and notable career was a serious loss to the community, and the re- moval of so fine a citizen, neighbor and · friend, a source of the deepest regret to its people. He had many appealing personal qualities, which won him the warm regard of those with whom he came in contact, and

a spirit as generous and helpful as his vision was broad.

It can be said without fear of contradiction [ wrote a local paper at his death] that Mr. Russell disliked pub- licity and especially for the assistance he gave in so many cases of deserving cases by organized or private charity. It was only necessary to say the case was worthy and he gave. And he got a very real pleasure in thus helping others.

ROBERT HENRY RUSSELL-Born in Holyoke on April 7, 1893, Robert Henry Russell was the son of Henry L. and Susie E. (Newton) Russell (see accompanying biography). He was educated in local pub- lic schools, graduating from Holyoke High School in 1910, and in the following year went on to Worcester Polytechnic Institute, where he took the degrees of Bachelor of Science and Electrical Engineer in 1915. On the completion of his technical training he became associated with the Westinghouse Electric Company, taking the graduate stu- dent course, through which that organiza- tion prepares its young engineers for future responsible service. With the entry of the United States into the World War, however, he enlisted in the aviation corps and after being stationed at the ground school at Mas- sachusetts Institute of Technology, received his flying training at Gerstner Field, Lake Charles. He was overseas with the Amer- ican Expeditionary Forces for sixteen months, serving during this time as engi- neering officer of the 9th Aero Squadron and participating in the engagements in the St. Mihiel sector and in the Meuse-Argonne offensive. After the Armistice, these troops formed a part of the Third Army of Occupa- tion and were stationed at Trier, Germany. Mr. Russell was then transferred on courier service, which took him to all parts of Ger- many. In due course he returned to the United States, and in July, 1919, received

INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY RECORDS

his honorable discharge at Camp Devens, with the rank of second lieutenant.

Resuming the affairs of civil life, Mr. Rus- sell then became associated in business with his father, joining the hardware and auto- motive supply house of J. Russell and Com- pany at Holyoke, in which he represented the fourth generation of his family. On January 1, 1920, with his two brothers, New- ton H. and Stuart A., he was admitted to partnership in the firm, and when the busi- ness was incorporated on March 1, 1923, they became joint stockholders with their father. Robert Henry Russell assumed the office of vice-president and in that capacity shared the responsibility for the company's operation, and took upon himself many ac- tive executive duties which he has since ef- fectively discharged. With the death of the father in 1935, control of the company re- mains with the two surviving sons, Robert H. and Stuart A.

Mr. Russell is also a director of the Hol- yoke National Bank, a trustee of the Hol- yoke Savings Bank and a director of the Newton Paper Company. He has been much interested in the Young Men's Christian Association, serving at one time as presi- dent of the local branch, and is now vice- president of the State Committee and a member of the council. He has also been active in Scout work, and is vice-president and past commissioner of Holyoke Council. In addition to these connections, Mr. Rus- sell is a member of the executive committee of the Holyoke Library Association and a member of the executive committee of the Holyoke Canoe Club. He is vice-president of the Western Massachusetts Engineers Society and past president of the New Eng- land Retail Hardware Association; a mem- ber of the American Legion and of several fraternities at Worcester Polytechnic Insti- tute, including Phi Gamma Delta, Tau Beta Pi and Sigma Xi. In his student days he

was a member of the varsity track and foot- ball teams at Worcester Polytechnic Insti- tute, was president of the local branch of the Young Men's Christian Association, a mem- ber of several school societies, and was hon- ored by his election as president of the Senior Class.

On August 28, 1919, at Magnolia, Missis- sippi, Robert Henry Russell married Flor- ence Thelma Lea, who was born in that place, daughter of the late Charles Lea and granddaughter of Captain Hanes Lea. She is a graduate of Mississippi Agricultural and Mechanical College, where she took the de- gree of Bachelor of Arts, and is a member of the Daughters of the American Revolu- tion, to which she is eligible by virtue of her Colonial descent. Both Mr. and Mrs. Rus- sell are members of the Second Congrega- tional Church of Holyoke, in which Mr. Russell serves as deacon. They have four children: 1. Dorothy Lea, born August 4, 1920. 2. Florence Jean, born January 4, 1925. 3. Robert Henry, born September 2, 1926. 4. Henry Lea, born January II, 1931.

STUART A. RUSSELL-Third son of Henry L. and Susie E. (Newton) Russell (q. v.), Stuart A. Russell was born in Hol- yoke on May 9, 1895. He attended local public schools, including the high school; Worcester Academy, from which he was graduated in 1915; and Dartmouth College, where he was a student for two years. At the end of that time he withdrew to enlist in the army, on May 1, 1917, for World War service, and was in training at Fort Ethan Allen, Burlington, Vermont, and at West- field Plains. In September, 1917, he went overseas with the American Expeditionary Forces, as a member of the 104th Massa- chusetts Infantry, a National Guard regi- ment incorporated in the 26th Division. He was in France for eighteen months, partici- pating in five major offensives. He also at-

INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY RECORDS

tended the A. E. F. Artillery School and was commissioned second lieutenant of artillery, serving in that branch thereafter. He re- ceived his honorable discharge with the rank of second lieutenant at Camp Devens on May I, 1919, and returned to Holyoke to be- gin his business career.

At this time, Mr. Russell became associ- ated with his father's firm, J. Russell and Company, an old established hardware house, dealing at wholesale and retail. He started as clerk, rising gradually within the organization as he learned the details con- nected with its operations and demonstrated his own capacity for larger responsibilities. When the company was incorporated in 1923 he became a joint stockholder and di- rector, and subsequently was elected pres- ident of the company, an office he now fills.

Mr. Russell is also a director of the Green- field Tap and Die Corporation and the White and Wyckoff Manufacturing Com- pany. He is a director of the Holyoke Chamber of Commerce ; a member and past president of the Holyoke Rotary Club ; a director of Holyoke Hospital; president of the Boys' Club ; a member of the Holyoke Canoe Club and the Mount Tom Golf Club. For his war-time service, Mr. Russell re- ceived two citations, one from General Ed- wards, commander of the 26th Division, and the other from General Pershing, com- mander-in-chief of the American Expedi- tionary Forces. He has continued his in- terest in veterans' affairs, and is a member and Past Commander of Holyoke Post, American Legion. Mr. Russell is a Repub- lican in politics; and a member of the Sec- ond Congregational Church of Holyoke. Fishing and golf are his favorite recreations.

On October 20, 1919, Stuart A. Russell married Dorothy Ludlum, of Port Jervis, New York, daughter of Fred Ludlum, de- ceased, and Cordelia (Branch) Ludlum, now Mrs. Wright. Mrs. Russell was educated in

the public schools of New York City, Port Jervis High School and the New England Conservatory of Music. She is also a mem- ber of the Second Congregational Church, and has been active in women's organiza- tions of this city. Mr. and Mrs. Russell have three children: I. Barbara, born De- cember 25, 1920. 2. Laura Newton, born July 13, 1925. 3. Susan, born June 10, 1932.

JUSTICE DAVID F. DILLON-With his appointment to the bench of the Superior Court in 1926, Justice David F. Dillon entered upon a new phase of a career which has brought him prominence at the bar and in the public life of Hampden County. He was born October 5, 1874, at Palmer, where he still maintains his residence, and is de- scended in both the paternal and maternal lines from early Irish families of the county. His great-grandfather, Michael Dillon, born at Aniskall, County Kerry, Ireland, was the founder of this branch of the Dillon family in America. He came to the United States in middle life and settled at Thorndike, in the town of Palmer, Hampden County, in 1844, when he was forty-eight years old. Here he worked as a stone mason on the construction of the old Thorndike Mill. Mary (O'Conner) Dillon, his wife, was also born in Aniskall, Ireland, in 1785, daughter of John and Johanna O'Conner. Their mar- ried life together covered upwards of three- quarters of a century and was terminated by the death of Michael Dillon at Springfield on August 8, 1883, in his ninety-sixth year. His widow survived him until January 4, 1888, when she passed away at Belchertown at the age of one hundred and three. Both are buried in St. Michael's Cemetery at Springfield.

Their son, David Dillon, grandfather of Justice Dillon, was born in 1827 at Aniskall, Ireland, and came to America with his par- ents when a small boy. He was a black-

INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY RECORDS

smith by trade, residing successively at Hol- yoke, at Manchester, New Hampshire, where he was employed in the construction of the Manchester and Nashua Railroad, and fi- nally at Chicopee Falls, where he died Aug- ust 22, 1864, at the age of thirty-seven years. On November 3, 1848, in Chicopee Falls, he married Mary Nelligan, daughter of Thomas and Honora (Moriarty) Nelligan, natives of Aughanagan, County Kerry, Ireland. She was born in 1835 and died May 5, 1895.

Michael Dillon, father of Justice Dillon, and son of David and Mary (Nelligan) Dil- lon, was born at Manchester, New Hamp- shire, September 16, 1849. He was still in infancy when his parents moved to Palmer, thence to Holyoke, and a number of years later accompanied them to Chicopee Falls, where he received a common school educa- tion. He obtained his first employment in the mills of the Dwight Manufacturing Company, a local enterprise, and subse- quently learned the trade of bricklayer and plasterer. Industrious and frugal, he at length accumulated sufficient capital from his savings to enter general contracting work and in 1872 removed to Palmer, where he resided until his death. Here he was en- gaged successfully as a contractor and builder, executing many important contracts successfully in the town and the neighbor- ing district. He always maintained the high- est standards and won an enviable reputa- tion for probity, excellence of workmanship and the fine quality of his materials. Michael Dillon also took an active part in movements for the betterment of his community. He served as a member of the town committee, the board of selectmen, the board of health and as superintendent of streets, bringing to his public duties the fidelity and efficiency which always distinguished him. He was a · strong believer in temperance and in addi- "tion to his other connections served for a number of years as president of the Father

Mathew Temperance Society. During earlier life he was a Democrat in politics, but when his former teacher and good friend, the Hon. George D. Robinson, opposed General Ben Butler for Governor on the Republican ticket he espoused his cause and thereafter became a supporter of Republican principles.

Michael Dillon married, January 3, 1874, Mary J. Dwyer of Palmer, daughter of Dan- iel and Julia (Breen) Dwyer. Her father was born in 1821 at Kenmare, County Kerry, Ireland, son of Daniel and Mary (Hurley) Dwyer, and came to Palmer in 1842. On May 29, 1848, he married Julia Breen, . daughter of John and Mary (O'Sullivan) Breen, who was born in Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland, and came to this country in 1847. Her mother, Mary O'Sullivan, was one of three sisters famous throughout County Kerry for their beauty. Daniel Dwyer went to California during the Gold Rush of 1849 and again in 1853, returning east after a brief interval. He was the first Irish Roman Catholic to hold title to land in Palmer, where he was recorded as the owner of a farm at Bondsville in 1854. Like other Irish families of the county, the Dwyers strongly supported the Union cause during the Civil War. Michael, a brother of Daniel, served in the Mexican War, as an orderly to Colonel Robert E. Lee, later the famous Confederate general.

Mary J. (Dwyer) Dillon died December 4, 1914, at the age of sixty-five. Michael Dillon survived his wife ten years, passing away October 12, 1924, at the age of seventy- five. They were the parents of eight chil- dren : I. David F., of this record. 2. Daniel W., a merchant at Worcester. 3. Lula A., wife of John T. Fitzpatrick of Arlington, Massachusetts. 4. Frank L., president of the Dillon Construction Company of Lodi, New Jersey, and a resident of Montclair. 5. Michael J., deceased, who was a successful physician and surgeon at Springfield. 6.

INDIVIDUAL AND FAMILY RECORDS

Mary B., wife of John E. Gibbons, associ- ated with the Dillon Construction Company of Lodi. They reside at Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey. 7. Hazel A., wife of John J. Prindiville, of Framingham Center. 8. Bea- trice L., principal of the Park Street Gram- mar School at Palmer.

Justice David F. Dillon was educated in the public schools of Palmer, completing the high school course in 1891. As a young man he became a bricklayer and plasterer, work- ing with his father for several years in order to help finance his further education. Sub- sequently he entered Tufts College, where he was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity and from which he was gradu- ated in 1896 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. Justice Dillon prepared for his pro- fessional career in the law school of the University of Michigan, where he also par- ticipated actively in college life and became a member of the debating team which met the University of Chicago in 1898. He re- ceived the degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1899 and immediately returned to Palmer, where he entered the practice of law. Shortly afterwards he formed a partnership with Ernest E. Hobson under the firm name of Dillon and Hobson, an association which continued for three years. Thereafter he practiced alone until he went on the bench. Through the merits of his services he firmly established his position at the Hampden County bar and successfully participated in many important cases.

Justice Dillon's judicial service dates from his appointment as a special justice in 1902. In 1923, upon the death of Judge Thomas W. Kenefick, he succeeded him as presiding justice and in the following year became judge of the District Court of Eastern Hampden County. In 1926 he was appointed by Governor Alvan T. Fuller to the bench of the Superior Court, on which he has since served without interruption. For this im-

portant office he is well qualified by his ex- perience, temperament and broad legal scholarship, and his administration of its duties has reflected credit both upon him- self personally and upon the judiciary of the Commonwealth.

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Hampden county, 1636-1936, Volume III, Part 1

Author: Johnson, Clifton, 1865-1940 Publication date: 1936 Publisher: New York, The American historical Society, Inc. Number of Pages: 770

Author: Johnson, Clifton, 1865-1940
Publication date: 1936
Publisher: New York, The American historical Society, Inc.
Number of Pages: 770