USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > A History of Bristol County, Massachusetts, vol 3 > Part 36
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and Boston clubs, being known in the last-named club as the incarnation of Socrates. He is also a charter member of the Lions Club of Attleboro. His religious affiliation is with the Swedish Luth- eran church.
Mr. Mossberg married, April 10, 1886, Jennie D. Polsey of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, daughter of J. N. Posley, her father a manufacturer. Mr. and Mrs. Mossberg are the parents of one child: Flor- ence M., now the wife of Chester A. Vander Pye, treasurer of the Mossberg Pressed Steel Corpora- tion.
E. ELLSWORTH LINCOLN-In the manufac- ture of paper Mr. Lincoln has spent his entire career and has been identified with only one concern, the long established firm of L. Lincoln & Company at North Dighton, Massachusetts. Thus his activities could be summed up in a few words, yet the per- severance, patience, and tireless industry which have carried him to his present position as one of the heads of this concern have been a matter of large significance not only in his own life and in the prosperity of the organization, but as an example to the young men of the city in faithful service and well deserved success. Mr. Lincoln is a son of Edward Lincoln, who was born in Taun- ton, Massachusetts, and died in 1912, after having also spent his lifetime in the manufacture of paper. The mother, Ann (Codding) Lincoln, who was also born in Dighton, died May 18, 1923, at the age of eighty-two years.
E. Ellsworth Lincoln was born at Dighton, Massa- chusetts, July 21, 1861. His education was acquired in the local public schools and upon the comple- tion of his studies he entered the offices of the firm with which he has been connected continuously since. This firm, which has during the greater part of its existence been known as L. Lincoln & Company, was founded in the year 1850 by C. M. and L. Lincoln, brothers, and upon the death of C. M. Lincoln, which occurred only about two years after its establishment, the present title was adopted, that of L. Lincoln & Company. The busi- ness has grown and developed through the years and from time to time other members of the family have assumed the management, E. Ellsworth Lincoln becoming identified with the organization in the late seventies. Mr. Lincoln learned the various phases of paper manufacture through the practical method of experience in each department and even- tually filled a position of executive responsibility, taking over the concern in association with Na- thaniel Lincoln upon the death of their father in 1912. The business is a co-partnership and they manufacture paper of all grades and qualities. The plant consists of a large main building and several smaller buildings used for storage, the aggregate floor space being about 25,000 square feet. Employ- ing thirty people, they send their products to all parts of the United States. This is one of the oldest paper mills in this part of New England, and has long upheld an enviable reputation for quality
and product and business integrity. Mr. Lincoln is further interested in the commercial life of Bris- tol county as a director of the North Dighton Co- operative Bank.
Mr. Lincoln married, in 1887, Bridget Maher, and they have one son, E. Ellsworth, Jr., born May 22, 1890.
FRANK E. SMITH-Professionally active as an attorney and counselor-at-law, well known in fra- ternal circles and a veteran of the World War, Frank E. Smith, of Taunton, Massachusetts, is a noteworthy figure in the younger group of lawyers of Bristol county. Trained in the institutions of his native State, and a life-long resident of Taunton, his interests center here, and he is winning success among the people who have known him from his boyhood. Mr. Smith is a son of Thomas E. and Catherine E. (Heflin) Smith, both of Taunton, the father a stationary engineer by occupation and a progressive and highly esteemed citizen.
Frank E. Smith was born in Taunton, Massa- chusetts, January 12, 1892. He was graduated from the Taunton High School in the class of 1910, and later entering Boston University School of Law, he was graduated from that institution in the class of 1913, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. Admitted to the bar of his native State within the same year, Mr. Smith began practice in the city of his birth and for five years went forward under his own name. He then became associated with Harold T. Hathaway, which association continued from 1919, after his return from military duty, until August, 1922, when it was dissolved. He has since practiced independently, with offices in the Taylor building, in Taunton, and is winning his way to large success. During the World War Mr. Smith was assigned to duty with the Detached Infantry Corps at Camp Lee, Virginia. His fraternal affilia- tions are with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the American Legion, of Taunton, of which he is commander; and the Boston University Alumni Association. His religious affiliation is with St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church.
EDMOND P. TALBOT-Election to office is not always evidence of fitness or popularity, nor is defeat evidence that a man does not possess the neces- sary qualities to fit him for the office he seeks. But election at the hands of those politically opposed may safely be accepted as evidence of popularity and fitness relevant, competent and convincing. Three times Edmond T. Talbot submitted his claims to be chosen mayor of Fall River, Massa- chusetts, to be passed on at the polls, and three times the verdict was against him-as was to be expected, for he was the candidate of the Demo- cratic party asking for election to the chief magis- tracy of a Republican city. Another attempt won the favor of the voters and he is now occupying the mayor's chair in one of the great cities of the commonwealth of Massachusetts, and in some respects, the greatest. As a business man he has
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also a record of victories won and position at- tained, being a registered pharmacist and the owner of a prosperous drug business.
Mayor Talbot is of French-English blood, born in Canada, his father born in the city of Quebec, as was his grandfather. He is a son of Charles and Celina (Vidal) Talbot, his father leaving Canada when a young unmarried man, settling at Haver- straw, New York. He did not long remain, but returned to Canada and married, although sub- sequently he came again to the United States and located at East Kingston, New York. In 1895 he came to Fall River, Massachusetts, and there for many years he has been engaged in the bakery business.
Edmond P. Talbot was born in Tingwick, Canada, April 21, 1884. He was educated in St. Mary's Parochial School at Rondout, New York, Notre Dame College, New York, and St. Anne's Commer- cial College, Fall River, Massachusetts. His first position was with the Davol Cotton Mills, as a weaver, but later he was employed on Sundays, holidays and evenings in the drug store owned and conducted by A. S. Letourneau. There he also studied pharmacy with such assiduity and purpose that in 1904 he passed the State examining board for Rhode Island and was registered a pharma- cist in that State. In 1905 he appeared before the examining board in pharmacy for Massachusetts, successfully passed their tests, and received a Massa- chusetts registry as a competent pharmacist, receiv- ing an authority to follow his profession. In 1906 he purchased the established family drug store on Lindsey street, Fall River, a store in which he had been employed as prescription clerk for a short time. From that time until the present, 1923, he has been continually in the drug business at Fall River, has prospered, and now owns his own store at No. 34 East Main street, corner of Ham- let street. He is a thoroughly capable and well informed pharmacist, also an excellent business man.
From youthful manhood Mr. Talbot has taken an active part in politics, his own party preference being Democratic. In 1907, at the age of twenty- three, he was appointed park commissioner, and for nine years he efficiently filled that office. In 1914, while still serving as park commissioner, he was elected from a Fall River district to the Massa- chusetts House of Representatives, an office he filled for one term. He was four times the candi- date of the Democratic party for mayor of Fall River, and on December 5, 1922, he was elected to that high office, being inaugurated January 2, 1923, being now in the first months of his term. He has made a good impression during these few months, and has maintained his reputation for saying the things he feels must be said and saying them well, for he is reputed eloquent of speech and one of the city's silver-tongued orators. His popularity is more than a passing fancy and will endure, for it is based on good citizenship, public spirit, and a sincere regard for his fellowmen and their wel-
fare. As mayor, he is also chairman of the Reser- voir Commission, and of the Board of Overseers of the Poor.
Mayor Talbot is a member of Fall River Lodge, No. 118, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; Fall River Council, Knights of Columbus; the League Des Patriots; The Union of St. Jean de Baptiste of America; Catholic Order of Foresters; Franco-American Order of Foresters; Fall River Chamber of Commerce; King Philip's Boat Club; honorary member of the Fall River Yacht Club; and a communicant of the Roman Catholic church.
Mayor Talbot married, September 11, 1905, Alma M. L. Beaupre, of Fall Fiver, but born in Crooks- ton, Minneapolis, her parents moving to Fall River about 1893. Ten children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Talbot; Roland E .; Henrietta L .; Anita F .; Germaine A .; Maria Alma, deceased; Marie Madelaine; Edmond P. (2); Loretta M. L .; and Philip and Arthur, twins, deceased.
Mayor Talbot has fairly won the honors he bears, and is giving the people who have passed him to municipal prominence the best that is in him in the matter of good government, well administered. He is not a novice in civic government, but has had wide experience in governing, and brings to his task zeal, tempered with knowledge.
JAMES P. WHITTERS-Successful in a line of manufacturing endeavor which has given to the world a broadly useful product, James P. Whitters has the distinction of being the originator of his own business, having developed a large and pros- perous interest in the manufacture of a widely used antiseptic. A native of the State of Rhode Island and familiar with the drug business from his youth, Mr. Whitters brought to bear upon his daily activi- ties the force of a constructive and ingenious mind, and the result was the product which has since become universally known as "Alkalol." Mr. Whit- ters is a son of Edward Whitters, who was born in County Enniskillen, Ireland, and is now de- ceased. Edward Whitters was a harness-maker by trade and a veteran of the Civil War, having come to the United States in his youth. He enlisted in Company F, 39th Regiment, Massachusetts Volun- teer Infantry. The remainder of his life was spent in the States of Massachusetts and Rhode Island and he was esteemed by all who knew him. He married Martha Maxwell, of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, who died in 1922.
James P. Whitters was born at Pawtucket, Rhode Island, October 11, 1866. His education was ob- tained in the public schools of this city, where he gained a practical grounding in the fundamentals of learning. Following the completion of his studies, he entered the employ of a leading druggist of Taunton and was active in this connection until 1895, when he established his own interest. Found- ing his success upon his experience in the drug business, the young man devised a secret formula for an antiseptic, which was broadly efficacious in the cleansing and healing of wounds. This he named
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"Alkalol," and it was soon recognized by the medi- cal profession as a product of great and perma- nent value. Many of the leading physicians of the day adopted this product, and through their recom- mendation it was made a part of the standard of equipment of hospitals and other institutions not only in the United States, but in all parts of the civilized world. It is considered indispensable wherever it is used and the demand for it has grown so great that Mr. Whitters now stands at the head of a very prosperous and lucrative busi- ness. His plant consists of three floors, aggregat- ing about 12,000 square feet of space, and he em- ploys about twenty-five hands. The business was incorporated in 1907, Merle T. Barker becoming president, and Mr. Whitters, treasurer and general manager. Taking a deep interest in all that per- tains to the general welfare, Mr. Whitters served as a member of the District Draft Board during the World War. He is a member and past presi- dent of the Taunton Chamber of Commerce, a member of the Manufacturers' Association of Taun- ton, and fraternally is a charter member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. His clubs are the Rotary Club, the Winthrop Club, the Boys' Club, of which he is president; the Segregan- sett Country Club, the Pomham Club of Rhode Island, the Seapuit Club, and the Bristol Club, of which he is president. He is further a member of the Social League and the Young Men's Christian Association. His religious affiliation is with the Unitarian church.
Mr. Whitters married, in 1912, Florence M. Wal- ters, of Syracuse, New York, daughter of Hugh M. and Sarah Walters. Mr. and Mrs. Whitters are the parents of two children: Amarie, born in 1913; and James P., Jr., born in 1917.
JOHN J. NICHOLS-For many years the name of John J. Nichols has stood for constructive effort along various lines of commercial and industrial endeavor in New England, with interests centering in Taunton, Massachusetts. With large executive ability and the genius which takes hold of the en- terprise cast in his way by the accident of circum- stance and makes of it a matter of large importance, Mr. Nichols has long taken rank with the lead- ers of progress. He is a son of John J. Nichols, who was born in England and came to the United States as a young man, settling in Taunton. He was for many years a contractor in sand and gravel in Taunton, also doing teaming, and all his opera- tions were on a very extensive scale. He died in 1902. The mother, Mary M. (Corr) Nichols, was born in Ireland, and also died in 1902. Their sons, John J., and Charles J., are now widely prominent men of Taunton, and the third generation is taking a useful part in the life of the city.
John J. Nichols was born in Taunton, Massa- chusetts, June 21, 1863. His education was acquired in the local public schools, and his first experience in the world of men and affairs was in the meat business, in the employ of William H. Alger. After
four years of experience in this connection Mr. Nichols went into business for himself in the same field, peddling from a wagon for twelve years. During this period he became more or less widely familiar with other lines of business activity, and his next venture was in the buying and selling of horses and carriages. His success in the meat business had placed ample capital in his hands, and he went into the new enterprise on a very extensive scale. He was the first to ship a car load of horses by express into Taunton, and he would average the greater part of the time three car- loads per week. Occasionally a carload of cattle would be sent to him for disposal, and from the early years of this activity he would have stock shipped to various points, going here and there to sell these consignments at auction. He followed this general line for more than thirty years, and in the course of that period traveled all over the New England States as an auctioneer. For this purpose Mr. Nichols owned a specially-built con- veyance after a type similar to a circus wagon, which he named the "Band Wagon," and there is scarcely a hamlet or village in New England which was not visited by him in this vehicle. The fame of the' "Band Wagon" spread all about in various States and Mr. Nichols recalls many pleasant remi- niscences of those days.
For the past few years Mr. Nichols has been as- sociated with the H. O. Rogers Silver Company, of Taunton, as treasurer and general manager. This company was originally known as the Cohannet Silver Company, but was reorganized with the pres- ent title in the year 1911, then incorporated about two years later. The company manufacturers silver- plated hollow-ware, and in this special line is counted as one of the leaders in the United States. With about 100,000 square feet of floor space, they employ about 350 people, and their product is shipped from coast to coast, also being exported to Canada and Cuba. They are at present (1923) car- rying forward many improvements, materially en- larging the plant and increasing its capacity, and these improvements, shortly to be completed, will give the plant a maximum of forty plating tubs. They now melt about fifteen tons of metal weekly, and with their own carpenter and machine shop, are dependent on the outside world only for their raw material. The growth and development of the organization and its activities has attracted wide attention since Mr. Nichols took over its manage- ment. Mr. Nichols is also engaged very extensively in the real estate business in Taunton, buying, sell- ing and also building. In 1923 he erected a music hall, located, on Broadway, 100 x 135 feet, the largest of its kind in the city. He also owns the Nichols block on Postoffice square, occupied by the Perry Auto Company and other tenants, and also other valuable real estate. With few interests out- side his business, Mr. Nichols turns to outdoor recreations in his leisure hours, and for many years was president of the Wampanoag Cycle Club. He is a member of the Roman Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception.
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Mr. Nichols married, in 1890, Sarah A. Falvey, of Taunton, who died in 1920. She was a daugh- ter of Thomas O. and Anna T. (King) Falvey. Five children were born to this union, of whom only two grew to maturity: Albert J., a sketch of whom follows; and John J., Jr., now a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
ALBERT J. NICHOLS-One of the foremost young men of the day in Bristol county, Massa- chusetts, is Albert J. Nichols, president of the H. O. Rogers Silver Company, of Taunton, one of the leading concerns of the United States in the manu- facture of silver-plated hollow-ware. Mr. Nichols has been identified with this enterprise since the completion of his enducation, and his progress has been steadily forward and upward, with the inter- ruption of the World War, it is true, but in that connection he distinguished himself in the radio service, leaving the permanent mark of his genius. Mr. Nichols is a son of John J. and Sarah A. (Fal- vey) Nichols (see preceding sketch).
Albert J. Nichols was born in Taunton, Massa- chusetts, July 22, 1893. His education was begun in the local public schools, and after completing the usual course he attended La Salle Academy, at Providence, Rhode Island. Upon the completion of his studies the young man identified himself with his father in the plant of the H. O. Rogers Silver Company, of which John J. Nichols had then re- cently become the head. For the purpose of gain- ing a thorough knowledge of the business Mr. Nichols served through the various departments of production, rising in the usual course to the posi- tions of foreman and eventually superintendent. In 1918 Mr. Nichols was elected to the office of presi- dent of the organization, of which his father is the principal owner, the older man desiring to turn over into other hands the responsibilities of this office. John J. Nichols is still manager.
In another field also Albert J. Nichols has won renown. During the World War he enlisted in the United States Navy, and was assigned to duty at Newport, Rhode Island. He was later transferred to the Boston Navy Yard, and thence was sent to Harvard University as an instructor in radio. In this connection he won a world-wide reputation as the inventor of the system known as the Nick Radio System, which is universally used at the present time. Mr. Nichols made the drawings and plans for the Great Lakes District, and his work in this field was broadly constructive and of perma- nent significance. He was discharged from the service with the rank of chief electrician. Fra- ternally Mr. Nichols is identified with the Knights of Columbus, and he is a member of the Roman Catholic Church of the Immaculate Conception.
Albert J. Nichols married, in 1919, Alice Kather- ine O'Brien, of Somerville, New Jersey, daughter of James and Ellen O'Brien, and they have one daughter: Mary Margaret, born December 30, 1922. Two children died in infancy.
ELLSWORTH AVERY HATHAWAY, LL.B. -In legal circles in Bristol county, Massachusetts, Ellsworth Avery Hathaway is gaining an assured footing, although he has taken up the practice of his profession only since the recent World War. Trained in the institutions of his native State and endowed with marked ability, he is considered one of the promising young men of the profession in Taunton, Massachusetts, and his progress is being watched with interest by his many friends who are confident of his success. He is a son of Roy E. and Bertha E. (Thompson) Hathaway, who both trace their ancestry back to the landing of the Pil- grims. His father is actively engaged in the indus- trial world of Taunton as foreman of the Whitten- ton Manufacturing Company of Taunton.
Ellsworth Avery Hathaway was born in Taunton, Massachusetts, November 6, 1898. His education was begun in the local public schools, and he was graduated from the Taunton High School in the class of 1917. Then entering Boston University Law School, he was graduated in the class of 1920, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. Mean- while, during the period of the World War, he served as a member of the Student Army Training Corps. Admitted to the bar of the State of Massa- chusetts in 1920, Mr. Hathaway began his profes- sional career as a member of the well known law firm of Hathaway & Hathaway, with offices in the Rand building, at No. 1 Broadway. Although his start was made at a comparatively recent date, Mr. Hathaway has thus far given every evidence of the ability and energy which will carry him to large success. He has few interests which do not align with his profession, and is a member of the Bos- ton University Law School Alumni Association, the Taunton High School Alumni Association, the American Legion, and the Young Men's Christian Association. His religious affiliation is with the Winslow Congregational Church of Taunton, and he is an active and popular member in the social organizations of the church. He is a member of the Bristol Club, and Alfred Baylies Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, of Taunton.
ALLEN E. PADELFORD-Standing at the head of an enterprise of which he is the founder, the Taunton Planing Mill Company, Inc., Allen E. Padelford, a man of progressive spirit and energy, is one of Taunton's successful business men. He is a son of Samuel C. Padelford, of Taunton, who died in the year 1920, and Julia F. (Adams) Padel- ford, born at Easton, Massachusetts, who died in 1921.
Allen E. Padelford was born in Taunton, Massa- chusetts, February 23, 1867. His early education was received in the public schools of the city, and at Bristol Academy. His first business experience was in the offices of the White Warner Company, where he remained for about three years, after which he served an apprenticeship in the wood- working factory of Booth & Luther. He was later with the Huber-Hodgeman Company for a number
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of years, until the year 1905, when he founded his present business, the manufacture of builders' finish of every kind. The plant, now comprising about 6,000 square feet of floor space, is modernly equipped and gives employment to about fifteen men, the product of the plant being distributed principally within a radius of about one hundred miles. Mr. Padelford has been treasurer and general manager of the company since its incorporation and has few interests outside of his business. He is a member of the Taunton Chamber of Commerce, and is affiliated with King David Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons. He is a member of the Uni- versalist church.
Mr. Padelford married, in the year 1893, Hattie W. Woodward, who was born in Taunton, Massa- chusetts, daughter of Alfred W. and Harriet A. (Hall) Woodward, of that city.
ALBERT S. ELDRIDGE, of John H. Eldridge & Company, is one of the most prominent in in- surance circles in Bristol county, Massachusetts, and handles a general line of insurance, with headquar- ters in the city of Taunton. Mr. Eldridge is doing a large business, gaining large success, and at the same time contributing in a marked degree to the economic security of the people. Mr. Eldridge is a native of Taunton, and a son of Eli H. Eldridge, who was also born in this city and became one of the prominent manufacturers of Bristol county. Eli H. Eldridge founded the interest, of which he was for many years the head, in 1849, and became widely noted in the manufacture of casket hard- ware. He developed the business from its infancy to an enterprise of wide importance, and continued at its head until his death. He married Lydia A. Thrasher, who was also born at Taunton, Massa- chusetts.
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