Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Part 125

Author: Biographical Review Publishing Company, Boston, pub
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Boston, Biographical review publishing company
Number of Pages: 1238

USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts > Part 125

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On the paternal side Mr. Fanning is a de- scendant in the seventh generation of Edmund Fanning, who settled at what is now Groton, Conn., in 1653. The line of descent is as fol- lows : Edmund'; his son, Lieutenant John Fanning,2 who married Margaret Culver; John, 3 who married Deborah Park; Captain Thomas, + who married Elizabeth Capron ; Thomas, 5 who married Susannah Faulkner; Henry Wilson6; David Hale. 7

David Hale Fanning was educated in the common schools of his native town. When sixteen years old he went to Clinton, Mass., where he worked in a cotton-mill two years ; and during the next three years he served an apprenticeship at the machinist's trade in Worcester. Going to Groton Junction, now Ayer, Mass., in 1853, he was engaged in mer- cantile business for a time. Afterward he spent a year in the West; but in 1857 he re- turned to Worcester, where for the succeeding four years he was employed as a salesman. In 1861 he established the Worcester Skirt Company, which manufactured hoop-skirts for several years, and in 1862 added the manufact- ure of corsets. In 1870 the name of the con- cern was changed to the Worcester Corset Company, the enterprise in 1888 being incor- porated under the same style.

On September 28, 1859, Mr. Fanning mar- ried Rosamond Hopkins Dawless, of Sterling, Mass., daughter of Young S. and Adeline Dawless. The only son born to Mr. and Mrs. Fanning died in infancy. They have two daughters living : Agnes Maria, wife of John E. Lancaster, of Worcester, and mother of two sons and a daughter; and Helen Josephine, who resides at home. Miss Fanning and her sister, Mrs. Lancaster, were educated at the Mount Holyoke Seminary.

The story of the growth of the Worcester Corset Company, of which Mr. David Hale Fanning is president, is a story of tireless business enterprise, of steady progress and prosperity. Two years ago, in the summer of 1896, the business was removed to its present location in one of the pleasantest and most healthful parts of the city of Worcester, at the junction of Wyman, Hollis, and Grand Streets, into buildings owned and erected by

the company, and constituting the largest and best equipped corset factory in the world. "The model factory of America " it has been called, and with good reason, as will appear from the following description of this ideal house of industry.

In the midst of spacious grounds, with green lawns, flower beds and shrubbery, and an abun- dance of good light and pure air, stands the new substantial five-story brick and stone building, practically fire-proof, two hundred and sixty feet long and fifty feet wide, with ells at each end, one extension being ninety- six feet long and of the same height and width as the main building. Adjoining this is a spacious power-house for the steam and electric plant, also a brick well-house. In construc- tion and equipment this mammoth factory is an embodiment of the most advanced ideas of modern times, the design throughout being to ensure to employees perfect safety for life and limb and to provide the best conditions for health and comfort. Among other devices and appliances there are outside iron fire es- capes, automatic doors and sprinklers, brick and iron towers with stairways for quick exit in case of danger, and an electric thermostat fire alarm connected directly with the city fire department headquarters ; while a well-trained fire brigade made up of employees is ready to man long lines of hose which are available on every floor for instant use. The second floor is waterproof, thus protecting the valuable stock stored below in case fire should break out in the upper stories. An abundance of pure water is supplied from the city reservoir and from the company's own artesian well, which is three hundred and sixteen feet deep. The company operates its own electric lighting plant, which includes an auxiliary storage battery, that enables the watchman at night to light the factory and make his rounds without the use of a lantern, gas having been dispensed with for illuminating purposes and kerosene not being allowed on the premises. The en - gine, dynamo, and boiler rooms, bright with shining brass and nickel, and walls finished with tinted tile, are models of cleanliness, as is every part of the factory. The latest im- proved machinery is used. The factory is

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heated and ventilated by the fan-blower proc- ess, and has hot and cold water on each floor. Its drainage and sanitary arrangements are of the latest and most improved kinds, and such as are found in the best appointed hotels and private residences.

A dining-room about ninety feet long by fifty feet wide has been fitted up with tables and comfortable chairs for the use of the women employees of the company. Among its furnishings are a large steam oven for the heating of food and a tank for warming tea and coffee. All is kept in order by a regularly employed housekeeper. Adjoining this is a small room for reading and writing, provided with magazines and other literary matter for entertainment and improvement. A room for temporary use in case any employee is injured or taken ill is provided with a comfortable cot and a medicine chest. It is the custom of the company to furnish medical attendance in case of accident or sudden illness. Few, if any, of our large manufacturers have considered the comfort and well-being of their help or ex- pended as much in brightening their toilsome lives as has Mr. Fanning.

A force of from seven hundred to eight hun- dred hands, mostly women, are employed in the manufacture of the Royal Worcester Cor- set, which is sold extensively throughout the United States and Canada, and also in Hawaii, Australia, Jamaica, and South Africa. Sales- rooms are located in Boston, New York, Phil- adelphia, San Francisco, and Chicago, the last-named city being one of the principal dis- tributing points; and the concern is repre- sented by twenty travelling salesmen. Al- though the Royal Worcester sells easily on its merits, it is one of the best advertised articles in this country, and the plant is kept running to its utmost capacity in order to meet the demands made upon its products.

UGUSTUS E. PECK, whose art store, established in Worcester in 1854, was the first of its kind opened in this section of Massachusetts, was a true benefactor to the city, and by his enterprise did more probably to develop the artistic

tastes of its people than could have been ac- complished in any other manner. He was born in Royalston, Worcester County, March 16, 1822, the son of Benoni and Eunice (Rogers) Peck. Both his parents were of English ancestry, and his mother was a direct descendant of John Rogers, the martyr, who was burned at the stake at Smithfield, England, in 1554. Benoni Peck was a successful farmer, and one of the prominent citizens of Royals- ton. He was well endowed mentally and a man of literary tastes. He undertook at one time to compile a genealogy of the Peck fam- ily ; but, as people then were less interested in family history than at present, he failed of proper assistance, and so gave up the enter- prise after spending much time in research.

Augustus E. Peck attended the district school in his boyhood days, and remained on the home farm until, when a young man, he went to Boston as clerk in a retail clothing store. He remained there until 1853, when he accepted a similar position in Worcester, and was here connected with a clothing house for several years. He worked hard, and saved his earnings, and, when he had accumulated a considerable sum, embarked in an enterprise that must have seemed visionary to his closest associates. But the result of his venture proved that his foresight was keen, his judg- ment correct, and his firm faith in the city's future well founded. On the corner of Main and Central Streets he founded an art store that was destined to cater to the æsthetic tastes of a large number of patrons. Much interest was manifested in his undertaking, and as the years rolled by he built up an extensive trade, one of the largest and most lucrative in Central New England. As his patronage increased, more room was needed for his collections, and he moved into the Sinclair House block on Main Street, where he had commodious quarters, that included a handsome gallery in the rear. Quick to recognize talent, he encouraged its possessors in every possible way; and in his periodical exhibitions pictures of merit exe- cuted by local artists occupied a conspicuous position among those of home and foreign mas- ters. He took great delight in his business, and his store became a favorite place of resort

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for the art lovers of the city. He succeeded well financially, and continued in business until his death, April 30, 1896, when a vacancy was left in his profession that cannot well be filled. He was an active member of the Royal Arca- num and of the Worcester County Mechan- ics' Association. Though interested in local politics, he never aspired to public office.

On December 19, 1850, Mr. Peck married Miss Nancy Smith, daughter of Williams and Abigail (Doane) Smith, of Orleans, Mass., who survives him.

DWARD WARREN, a prominent farmer and lumberman of Leicester, is a native of this town. He was born February 24, 1846. A son of Henry E. and Mary (Whittemore) Warren, he traces his lin- eage to a common ancestor with General Jo- seph Warren, of Bunker Hill fame, who, we are told, was a cousin of Ebenezer Warren, the founder of the Leicester branch of the Warren family, and who settled in Leicester in 1746. Ebenezer's son, Elijah, grandfather of Edward and a Revolutionary soldier, purchased the farm that his grandson occupies to-day. Henry E. Warren succeeded his father, Elijah, on the ancestral estate, and in addition to farming he carried on a successful tanning and currying business. He was prominent in town affairs, and rendered efficient service as a Se- lectman. In politics he was a Republican; in religion, a member of the Unitarian Congrega- tional church. He died in 1866, and is sur- vived by six of his eight children, namely : George H., in California; Edward, of Leices- ter; Eliza, wife of David H. Barnes, of Spen- cer, Mass. ; Catherine, wife of Henry Sugden, of Spencer; Sarah, wife of Clarence A. White, of Sumner, Wash. ; Ellen, wife of W. E. Drake, of Worcester.

Edward Warren has always had his home on this farm. In boyhood he attended the public schools and Leicester Academy, where he was graduated. Up to the age of nineteen he as- sisted his father on the farm and in the tan- nery. His father dying about that time, he took full charge of the farm, which then con- tained about one hundred and forty acres. As

opportunity offered, he has purchased addi- tional land, so that to-day the estate contains nearly five hundred acres. In connection with his farm work he has for a number of years, during the winter seasons, engaged in lumber- ing ; and he also has a milk route in Spencer.

On April 14, 1870, he married Ida V. Lip- pett, of Boston, Mass. Seven children are the fruit of their union; namely, Mary W., Robert L., Henry W., Rachel C., Edward E., Bertha M., and Anna C.

Mr. Warren has been prominent in organiza- tions for the promotion of the agricultural in- terests of the community, being a charter member of Spencer Grange, No. 79, P. of H., in which he is serving his fourth year as Mas- ter; and for the past three years he has been a member of the Massachusetts State Board of Agriculture. He is also a vice-president and trustee of the Spencer Farmers' and Me- chanics' Association. He has served as Sur- veyor of Highways in Leicester for twenty-five years. In his political and religious views Mr. Warren has been faithful to the principles held by his father, being a Republican in pol- itics and a Unitarian in religion.

ANIEL W. BEMIS, former steward and treasurer of the Hospital for the Insane at Worcester, now living on his farm in Shrewsbury, Mass., where he is a citizen of influence, was born in Charlton, this county, in 1835, son of Samuel Flagg and Betsy (Bigelow) Bemis. His fam- ily has been settled in this country for several generations; and two of his great-uncles, Ebenezer and Daniel Bemis, fought at the battle of Bunker Hill, being at the time mere boys. Their brothers, James and Abijah, were also soldiers in the army of the Revolu- tion.

His grandfather, John Bemis, then only twelve years old, afterward became a promi- nent farmer in Brookfield, and died there a little over fifty years ago, at the age of eighty- six. Samuel Flagg Bemis, son of John, car- ried on general farming at Sturbridge and Charlton and later at Brookfield. He died in 1869, at the age of seventy-five years, having

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been the father of the following-named chil- dren : Merrick, Freeland, Fitz Henry, Ann Elizabeth, Samuel Flagg, Jr., Marie Louisa, Frances Emily, and Daniel W. Bemis. The eldest son, Merrick Bemis, studied at Nichols Academy at Dudley, Mass., and Amherst Academy, expecting to enter Amherst Col- lege and pursue his studies there. A long and severe illness prevented. Later he stud- ied medicine, and after graduating was eight years assistant physician and seventeen years superintendent at the Worcester Lunatic Hos- pital. He is now a well-known specialist in his chosen profession, and is conducting a private hospital in that city. Freeland Bemis, who died in 1881, was a coal dealer at Sturbridge. Fitz Henry resides at Meadville, Pa., where he is engaged in the insurance business. Ann Elizabeth Bemis is now Mrs. E. T. Brooks, of Sturbridge. Samuel Flagg Bemis, Jr., is a farmer at Sturbridge, and also carries on a meat business. Marie Louisa married Henry C. Storrs, and died during the Civil War, while her husband was in the army. Frances Emily married Marvin Clark, a farmer and stone-mason of Sturbridge.

Daniel W. Bemis obtained his education in the public schools of Brookfield. He began his working life as steward of the Hospital for the Insane at Worcester, and held the po- sition twenty years. For seven years he also held the office of Treasurer. He then came to Shrewsbury, this being about twenty-five years ago, and has since lived quietly on his farm. He has taken a warm interest in all affairs of importance to the town, especially in educational matters, having a record of twenty years' service as a member of the School Board. He has also served as Select- man, and he was three years on the Board of Assessors. He is a Deacon of the Orthodox church, and is keenly interested in the Sun- day-school.

For many years Mr. Bemis has been a mem- ber of various Masonic bodies, and is at pres- ent connected with the Royal Arch Chapter, the Encampment, the Consistory, and the Scottish Rite organizations. He has been High Priest of the chapter, and has held all other elective offices in that body. Mr.

Bemis at one time represented the city of Worcester in the legislature, and was deeply interested in the passage of the bill for the location of the Bloomingdale Hospital at Worcester. This site is now conceded to be the best that could possibly have been chosen.

Mr. Bemis married first Jennie Learned, of Underhill, Vt. She lived only about a year. Later he married his second wife, Maria T. Wood, daughter of Joel Fay Wood, of Graf- ton, and is the father of three daughters, as follows: Agnes T., Leigh Jannette, and Mabel G. Agnes, after completing her stud- ies, taught in the Castine Normal School and elsewhere. She is at present superintendent of the domestic department at Mount Hol- yoke College. Leigh Jannette, a graduate of Mount Holyoke in the class of 1894, married the Rev. Frank B. Doane, a graduate of Am- herst College and of the New Haven Divinity School and now pastor of the Congregational church at Cheney, Wash. Mabel G., a gradu- ate of the high school, is the wife of Ned Wesley Parker, who is in business in Worces- ter. Mr. and Mrs. Parker reside with Mr. Bemis.

REDERICK H. C. BERGER, a well- known resident of Webster and the foreman of the burling department of the Slater Mills, was born in Wiedelah, Han- over, Germany, February 17, 1836, son of Henry and Caroline (Dietrich) Berger. His father was also a native of Hanover. Of his parents' three children, Frederick is the only one living. He was educated in the German public schools. At the age of thirteen years he entered his father's shop and served an ap- prenticeship to weaving lasting four years. In 1853 he came to America. After landing in New York City he came to Webster, reaching this place on June 9, 1853. Securing employ- ment in the finishing department of the Slater Mill, he worked there for some time. Subse- quently he was transferred to the weaving de- partment, remaining until 1859, when the fac- tory closed. After that he was employed in a shoe shop until 1861. On July 25 of that year he enlisted as a second-class musician in

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the band of the Twenty-first Regiment, Massa- chusetts Volunteers, and went to the front at Annapolis. He was with General Burnside during his memorable expedition and later in Virginia with the Army of the Potomac. In August, 1862, the band was discharged. Re- turning to Webster then, Mr. Berger built the house which has since been his home. After- ward he was engaged in shoemaking until De- cember 17, 1863, when he again enlisted, this time in Company D of the Fifty-sixth Massa- chusetts Infantry, under Captain George S. Todd and Colonel Griswold. Going at once to the front, he took part in the battle of the Wilderness, and was subsequently at Spottsyl- vania Court House, Cold Harbor, and the siege of Petersburg, remaining with the Army of the Potomac until the surrender of Lee. He was then mustered out at Alexandria, Va., and, after the Grand Review at Washington in June, 1865, returned home. Here he had charge of the weaving department of the Slater Mills, which were again in operation, until 1 889. Then he removed to Conway, Mass., in order to take charge of a weaving-room there. After remaining in Conway a year he returned to Webster and assumed his pres- ent position, in which he has since rendered his employers important service.

The maiden name of Mr. Berger's wife, whom he married on September 29, 1863, was Louisa Elizabeth Redemann. She is a daugh- ter of Godfrey and Joanna (Link) Redemann, of Webster. Her children were born as fol- lows: Frederick Henry, on May 12, 1866; Elizabeth Matilda, May 1, 1868, who died August 3, 1893; Augustus Joseph, June 26, 1870, who is now a compositor on the Web- ster Times, residing with his parents; Henry John, April 16, 1874, who graduated from the Webster High School and is now a stu- dent in Dartmouth College, class of 1899; and Joseph William, April 24, 1879, who is now a student in the Webster High School, class of 1898. Mr. Berger has always taken a great interest in music, especially in vocal music. For thirty years he was the choirmas- ter in St. Louis's Catholic Church, of which he is a member, and for two years in the French Catholic Church. He is a comrade

and the Quartermaster of Nathaniel Lyon Post, No. 61, G. A. R.

REDERICK H. BERGER, eldest son of Frederick H. C. Berger, is a well- known lawyer in this town. After graduating from the Webster High School in 1882, he spent a year at Nichols Academy in Dudley, and then until 1889 assisted his father. In that year he began the study of law with P. T. Carroll, of Worcester, and about a year later entered Boston University Law School. He graduated from the latter institution in June, 1892, having been ad- mitted to the Suffolk County bar in Decem- ber, 1891. Afterward he followed his pro- fession in Webster with P. T. Carroll, his former preceptor, until the death of the latter in July, 1894. Mr. Berger has a general practice, having clients from Worcester, Web- ster, and the surrounding towns. He has been Register of Votes and up to the present time from 1894 chairman of the Board of Overseers of the Poor. He is a member of the Worcester County Bar Association. On June 19, 1895, he married Minnie E., daugh- ter of Redmond and Mary (Farrington) Roach, of Pawtucket, R. I. During 1896, 1897, and 1898 Mr. Berger was Town Counsel for Dud- ley, and he is now serving Webster in the same capacity. Appointed May 11, 1898, he has been Clerk of the First District Court of Southern Worcester since June 1, 1898.

ENRY W. TAYLOR, who during his comparatively brief business ca- reer won a distinguished reputation as an artist of talent and ability, died at his home in Worcester, Mass., Decem- ber 15, 1888. He came of English ancestry, and was a direct descendant of Nathaniel Tay- lor, who was living in Plymouth County in 1734. Henry Taylor, father of Henry W., married Lucy Clark Hall, and for a while thereafter resided in Gardiner, Me. He after- ward returned to Plymouth County, and open- ing a dry-goods store built up a prominent and

WILLIAM A. GARNO.

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successful trade, which he managed during his years of activity.

Henry W. Taylor was bred and educated in Mattapoisett, and, having manifested some ar- tistic ability while yet a school boy, he came to Worcester at the age of sixteen to learn the sign painter's art. He acquired proficiency under the instruction of Dexter Rice, and in the course of a few years the master willingly acknowledged himself excelled by his appren- tice. In June, 1873, Mr. Taylor started in business on his own account, locating at first on Waldo Street, and later removing to a place on Main Street. He rose rapidly in his pro- fession, and became unquestionably the finest sign artist in Worcester County. Making a specialty of designing, his originality devel- oped new ideas, and his signs attracted atten- tion for their artistic and unique beauty. He was kept busily employed in his chosen occu- pation, and, although an adept at other branches of art, continued work as a sign painter because the profits were sure and constant. He painted in both oil and water colors, producing land- scapes and marine views of real merit, and also did much fine work with pen and ink, includ- ing designs for ornamental, artistic, and maga- zine purposes. A man of sterling character, whole-souled and genial, a loyal citizen, a true friend, and a devoted lover of his home and family, he was a man of whom the community in which he lived and labored was justly proud, and whom it could scarce afford to lose. He left a large circle of warm friends, who deeply deplored his loss. Fraternally, he was an active member of Worcester Lodge, No. 56, I. O. O. F.

On May 28, 1880, Mr. Taylor married Matilda G. Fall, of Garland, Me., who, with her two children, Jennie L. and Harrison G., survives him.

ILLIAM A. GARNO, one of the leading business men of Fitchburg, Mass., was born in New Ireland, Megantic County, P.Q., Canada, on February 6, 1852, son of Moses and Elizabeth (Mitch- ell) Garno. His father, who was a native of Point Levi, P.Q., was a farmer of that place,

and died there at the age of fifty-eight years, William, the eldest of six children, being then twenty years of age. Two other sons, Henry J. and John E., are living. The mother, Mrs. Elizabeth M. Garno, who was a native of England, died in December, 1863.

William A. Garno received his school train- ing in Canada and in Vermont. Leaving home when fifteen years of age, he went to Kirby, Caledonia County, Vt., and lived with Joseph Nickerson, a farmer, working on the farm for nine months of the year and attending school for the three months' winter term. After remaining in Mr. Nickerson's employ for three years, he came to Fitchburg in De- cember, 1872, and for four years following worked at farming during the summers and at cutting off wood lots for other parties in the winter seasons. Finally he bought a team and did teaming, and subsequently bought a

wood lot, from which he sold lumber. About 1882 he purchased a portable saw-mill, and then devoted his time to operating that, locat- ing successively in Milford, N. H., at Lunen- burg, Mass., and lastly on Townsend New Road, where the mill was burned. The fol- lowing year, on January 12, 1886, he leased his present building lots for five years, and repaired the old mill, which was again burned nearly to the ground in the spring of 1890. He rebuilt it, however, and operated it till 1893. In the fall of that year he commenced the building of a new mill to be used for the manufacture of boxes and for planing and sawing. Mr. Garno has been very success- ful in this undertaking. He now employs seventy-five men during the busy season and over forty during the summer. In 1896 he opened a grocery business, which he still suc- cessfully manages. With a keen appreciation of the values of real estate, he has invested quite largely in this kind of property, and now has eleven houses in Fitchburg. He also owns wood lots in Ashburnham, Royalston, Lunenburg, Hubbardston, and Westminster. He still carries on lumbering business, and during the winter of 1896-97 cut over two million feet of lumber, two thousand five hun- dred cords of wood, and ten thousand railroad ties.

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Biographical review containing life sketches of leading citizens of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Part 125

Author: Biographical Review Publishing Company, Boston, pub Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Boston, Biographical review publishing company Number of Pages: 1238

Author: Biographical Review Publishing Company, Boston, pub
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Boston, Biographical review publishing company
Number of Pages: 1238