USA > Massachusetts > Hampden County > Hampden county, 1636-1936, Volume III > Part 22
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Mrs. Dwight has long been known as an active and capable public speaker, and has used both speech and print to further a num- ber of worthy movements, both in Massa- chusetts and in Florida, where she maintains her winter home "Pine Eden" at Fruitland Park. Political and social problems have, in the main, engaged her vigorous and effec- tive attention. She was a prime factor in inaugurating the public playground cause in Massachusetts, and from 1910 to 1928 was a member of the Holyoke Playground Com- mission, and its successor, the Holyoke Parks and Recreation Commission. She was a pioneer in the establishment of the Holyoke Child Welfare department chiefly as an agency to supply babies with sufficient pure milk. For more than twenty years she was a member of the board directing this department. Mrs. Dwight was numbered among the founders of the Holyoke Tuber- culosis Association and was for three dec- ades active in its leadership. For many years she has served on the board of managers of the Home for Aged People, and for a long period has been a director of the city Young Women's Christian Association, of the Hol- yoke Chapter of the Red Cross Society, the Visiting Nurses' Association, the Holyoke Hospital Association, and is a trustee of the Holyoke City Hospital and the Holyoke
Public Library. When the Girl Scout move- ment was in its infancy, Mrs. Dwight as- sisted in organizing a local unit and has served as deputy commissioner of the group since.
The list of the organizations in which she had a hand in instituting might be carried to great length, for she was of the pioneering type which, quick to perceive needs, was as prompt in endeavoring to supply them. In addition to the organizations already named, Mrs. Dwight was one of the founders of the Holyoke Community Chest ; the Hampden County Improvement League, in both of which she has been an official, and others of which later note will be made. She was for two years the Massachusetts chairman of the Women's Crusade of the National Mo- bilization for Human Needs; since 1917, as the chairman of the Home Bureau depart- ment of the County Extension she has touched the lives of thousands every year. Since its establishment, she has been a trus- tee of the County Aid to Agriculture, and is a member of the advisory council of the Women's Department of the Massachusetts State Agricultural College.
At, and even prior to, the entrance of the United States into the World War, Mrs. Dwight threw the weight of her in- fluence as journalist and humanitarian into the work this conflict initiated. She brought cooperation and harmony into the activities of her sex in Holyoke, and entered heartily into all the drives made for the disposal of Liberty and Victory bonds, War Savings Stamps, and the raising of funds for the Red Cross and other humanitarian agencies of the period. She was associated with the Massachusetts Food Administration, and was a member of the National Council of Defense. Before America entered the war, the French Government decorated Mrs. Dwight for her activities in connection with
W.G. Dwight
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relief for the war sufferers in Belgium and Northern France.
In the political field, Mrs. Dwight was again among the pioneers and an indefati- gable worker. While the equal suffrage idea was still unpopular, she joined the move- ment and in later years was president of the Holyoke Suffrage League and a trustee of the Massachusetts Women's Suffrage Asso- ciation. When women were given the right to vote, she was to the fore in persuading her sex to take advantage of the privilege. So far as her own political allegiance is con- cerned, it was given to the Republican party, although she became a Progressive when Theodore Roosevelt headed the movement, and was a member of the Progressive Con- vention, held during 1916, in Chicago, Illi- nois. From 1920 to 1934, when she with- drew, Mrs. Dwight was a member of the Massachusetts State Republican Committee, and in 1928 was a delegate-at-large from the Commonwealth to the Republican National Convention held at Kansas City, at which Herbert Hoover was nominated for Presi- dent. She also served on the Old Age Com- mission, appointed by Governor Cox, in 1922. This was the first such body of an important State to give a majority support to old age pensions, and Mrs. Dwight was one of this majority. She also was a mem- ber of the George Washington Centennial, under appointment by Governor Frank Al- len. For twelve years she has been trustee of the County Aid to Agriculture.
As is to be expected, Mrs. Dwight did not in her ardent promotion of the American women's active interest in public affairs, neglect to ally herself with women's clubs of many kinds. She was one of the founders and for two years president of the Hamp- den County Women's Club, and was among the organizers of the Holyoke Women's Club, and its first president. She is a char-
ter member of the Holyoke Business and Professional Women's Club, and was chair- man for education for the International Quota Club, as a member of the Holyoke Quota. Among her other clubs are the Hol- yoke Garden, Holyoke Delphian Chapter, the Leesburg, Florida, Women's Club, and the Business and Professional Women's Club and the Garden Club, also of Leesburg. A charter member of the Massachusetts Women's Republican Club, she has been an official, and is a member of the Women's Roosevelt Memorial Association. Her re- ligious affiliations are with the Episcopal Church.
On November 5, 1896, the marriage of William G. Dwight and Minnie Ryan was performed, and they became the parents of three children: I. Helen Mary, who was graduated from Wellesley College in 1919, and in 1921 from the Columbia School of Journalism. She married Oscar Edmund Schoeffler, on October 5, 1923, and they have three children: Dwight, born in 1924; John William, born in 1929, and Edmund Schoef- fler, born in 1930. 2. Laura Sluyter, who was graduated from Vassar College in 1921, and attended the Columbia School of Jour- nalism. On October 25, 1924, she married Richmond Lewis, of Springfield, and they have a son, Larry Lewis, born in 1929. 3. William Dwight, educated in Phillips-An- dover, 1921 ; Princeton University, 1925, and the Columbia School of Journalism, 1927; married Dorothy Rathbun, in 1928, and they have two sons, William Monk Dwight, born in 1929, and Donald Rathbun Dwight, born in 1931.
EUGENE GEORGE BOSS, M. D .- The city of Springfield prides itself on the out- standing corps of physicians and surgeons that minister to its medical needs. Promi- nent among this group is Dr. Eugene George
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Boss, eye, ear, nose and throat specialist, who during the short space of eight years has come to be recognized as one of the fore- most men in his field. Establishing himself here in 1927 he has since built up a large and lucrative practice and is associated with several of the leading medical institutions of this community.
Dr. Boss was born in Turners Falls, Sep- tember 25, 1898, son of George E. and Julia C. (Murphy) Boss, both natives of this Commonwealth. For many years his father was associated with the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad. Dr. Boss re- ceived a general education in the public schools of this city and after completing his studies in 1916 at the Springfield Central High School matriculated at Georgetown University in Washington, District of Co- lumbia, where he received a degree of Bach- elor of Science in 1920, and later, in 1932, was awarded a degree of Master of Science. After finishing his academic training he de- termined to pursue a medical career and entered the Georgetown University Medical College, studying here until 1923, when he received his degree as a Doctor of Medicine. The four years that followed he spent as an interne and it was during this period that he began to specialize in the work he is carry- ing on with such outstanding distinction and success in Springfield. At this time he served one year at the St. Francis Hospital in Hart- ford, Connecticut, was with the United States Veterans' Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut, for a like period, and then went to the Boston City Hospital where he spent two years.
In 1927 he came to Springfield and estab- lished himself in practice, specializing from the outset on diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. Through the work he accom- plished he soon won the recognition of his colleagues and the public-at-large. He serves
as a member of the staff of the Wesson Memorial Hospital, the Mercy Hospital and is on the affiliate staff of the Springfield Hospital. He has been certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology and is a Fellow of the American College of Sur- geons. He is a member of the American Medical Association, the American Acad- emy of Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology, the New England Ophthalmological Soci- ety, the New England Otological and Laryngological Society and the Springfield Academy of Medicine.
Socially Dr. Boss is identified with several of the leading organizations in this vicinity, among them the local post of the American Legion and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. During the World War he enlisted in the Medical Corps of the United States Army and served with this unit from September to December, 1918, when he re- ceived an honorable discharge.
On June 3, 1921, Dr. Boss married Joanna C. Daly of Washington, District of Colum- bia, and they are the parents of four chil- dren : Julia Margaret, Eugene George, Rich- ard Allen, and Thomas.
WILLIAM A. McBRIDE-One of the attorneys of the city of Springfield who has become a widely known figure in municipal affairs is William A. McBride. Directly after having been admitted to the Massachu- setts State Bar in 1930, he established him- self in this city and today carries on a gen- eral practice in association with William P. Hayes. Prominently identified with the Democratic party of this section, the en- thusiasm he has displayed in a professional and civic capacity has won him the recogni- tion and esteem of his colleagues and the admiration of the public-at-large.
Mr. McBride was born in Brooklyn, New York, March 23, 1905, son of Francis J. and
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Mary E. (Ford) McBride, the former a na- tive of Springfield, the latter of his birth- place. His father was a printer by trade and worked on several of the larger publications of this vicinity. Mr. McBride received a general education in the public schools of his native community, completing his studies in 1923. He then matriculated at Holy Cross College from which he was graduated in 1927, and later attended Boston University where he received his degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1930. The following October he was admitted to the Massachu- setts State bar and has since been associated with William P. Hayes in practice.
Throughout his life here he has taken a deep interest in civic and political affairs and through his contributions and efforts has risen to become a dominant figure in the Democratic party of this section. To- day he is treasurer of the Democratic City Committee and belongs to the John J. Col- lins Lodge, Massachusetts Catholic Order of Foresters. Socially he is a member of the Charter Club and in his fraternal affiliations belongs to the local council of the Knights of Columbus. During his collegiate career Mr. McBride was an associate editor of the "Boston University Law Review."
THEODOR R. GEISEL-Never before in American affairs have the parks of our cities been so much to the fore and received such careful attention for the communal benefit. The present superintendent of the Park Department of Springfield, Theodor R. Geisel, was a member of the park board over a very long period and was largely in- strumental in shaping its activities and aims. In recognition of public services ably rendered he was appointed to his present post in 1930, and has shown rare skill, vision and efficiency in the discharge of his duties. It is such men as he who rank high among
the builders of a community, who by their sterling qualities and steadfast devotion stand out as constructive factors in the bet- terment of conditions under which a city thrives.
Mr. Geisel was born in Springfield June 28, 1879, son of Theodor and Christine (Schmaelzle) Geisel, both natives of Ger- many, who settled in Springfield during Civil War times. The father was in the brewing business in the city for many years. As a youth, Theodor R. Geisel entered the employ of the Highland Brewing Company, and was made assistant secretary and assist- ant treasurer of the Springfield Breweries Company, upon its organization, and ulti- mately became president of the corporation, an office he still holds. He is one of the in- corporators of the Hampden Savings Bank.
In the early years of the present century the park system of Springfield was of little genuine service to the community. In 1904 Theodor R. Geisel was appointed a member of the park board and straightway endeav- ored to improve the properties already owned by the city, encourage their use by the people, and to persuade the authorities to plan for an extension of the parks. The progress made over a span of years was slow, but was far greater than made in other cities. The park movement was given a new impetus a few years after the end of the World War, and Springfield remained in the van of this movement in Massachu- setts. When, in 1930, Mr. Geisel resigned from the board to assume the duties of superintendent of the Park Department, he took on his shoulders an unusually heavy burden, for the department has charge of some seven hundred acres in parks, and con- trols more than two thousand acres com- prised in over one hundred properties.
Mr. Geisel has been president of the Springfield Kiwanis Club and long a popu-
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lar figure in the organization. Fraternally he is affiliated with the Masonic Order, be- ing a thirty-second degree Mason, member of Melha Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He served the Springfield Fish and Game Club as president, and held a like post with the Springfield Revolver Club. For several years he was regimental adjutant of the 2d National Guard Regiment, and a former in- spector of rifle practice. Rifle shooting has been his hobby since youth, and he has won numerous medals and prizes for his skill with this weapon in many parts of the United States and Europe. Many will re- call him as a champion, at one time holding the record of one hundred shots at a two hundred yard target.
On August 31, 1901, Theodor R. Geisel married Henrietta Seuss, of Springfield, who died on March 8, 1931. They were the par- ents of two children : Margaretha, and Theo- dor S., a well-known cartoonist who signs his drawings, "Dr. Seuss."
JOHN EDWARD DWYER, M. D .- of Springfield is Dr. John Edward Dwyer, who for nearly fifteen years has maintained a large and lucrative practice in this com- munity and during his professional career has come to be associated with many of the leading medical institutions of this vicinity. Apart from his professional activities he is is also interested in social and civic affairs holding memberships in several of the larger organizations of this city.
Dr. Dwyer was born in Cambridge, Jan- uary 3, 1890, son of Dr. John E. and Frances C. (McManee) Dwyer. His father, who died in May, 1929, was a graduate of the Bellevue Medical School in New York City and dur- ing his career maintained an extensive prac-
tice in the city of Cambridge, where he was well known in various activities of the city. The elder Dwyer was a member of the Cam- bridge school committee, served on the Park Department of that community and was the president of many organizations there.
Dr. John Edward Dwyer received a gen- eral education in the public schools of his native community, where he attended the Cambridge Latin School and then studied at the Boston College High School. After completing his course at the latter institu- tion he matriculated at the Tufts College Medical School from where he was gradu- ated with a degree of Doctor of Medicine in the class of 1911. The year after he finished his training he served an interneship at the Cambridge Hospital and after completing his term entered the Harvard Medical School where he took a post-graduate course in pathology and bacteriology. His pro- ficiency on the subject of pathology is evi- dent when we find him becoming an in- structor in the department of pathology at the Harvard Medical School. During this period he also served as pathologist for the Long Island Hospital in Boston and the
Among the prominent physicians of the city . Boston Tubercular Hospital at Mattapan.
He then returned to his alma mater and oc- cupied the post of instructor of pathology and bacteriology, until the outbreak of the World War. Directly after the United States entered the conflict in 1917 he en- listed in the Medical Corps and was dis- patched to Washington, District of Colum- bia, where he was made an instructor of pathology at the Army Medical School with the rank of lieutenant.
In 1919, after his military career, Dr. Dwyer came to Springfield and initiated a medical career which has been distinctive for its success. He soon built up a large and lucrative practice in this city and became widely recognized for his ability by the med-
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ical fraternity of this vicinity. Today he is a member of the staff of the Mercy Hospital where he also is director of the laboratory, and is a director of the Springfield Cancer Group, which comprises a body of five phy- sicians from each of the three hospitals in the city for diagnosis at the cancer clinic. He is also president (1935-36) of the staff of the Springfield Isolation Hospital and serves on the staff of the Providence Hos- pital in Holyoke. Professionally he belongs to the American Medical Association, in which he is listed as a registered patholo- gist, the Massachusetts State Medical So- ciety and the Springfield Medical Society. Socially he confines his activities to the local post of the American Legion, and frater- nizes with the Springfield Lodge of the Be- nevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and is a member of the Springfield Country Club.
On June 14, 1916, Dr. Dwyer married Margaret D. Couig of Boston, and they are the parents of six children: Eleanor, who was graduated from the Classical High School, 1935; Frances, Barbara, John E., Jr., Catherine, and Dalton. The family resi- dence is at No. 115 Kimberly Street.
WELLINGTON GEORGE REYNOLDS
-The paper and stationery industry of Hampden County has furnished Wellington George Reynolds, of Holyoke and South Hadley Falls, ample opportunity for useful service to his fellow-citizens. Not only is he treasurer and manager of the Reynolds Manufacturing Company, but he is defi- nitely a contributor to the well-being of the trade with which he is associated and of all the users of its products. He has distin- guished himself by developing certain inno- vations, such as a special scientifically pre- pared paper to prevent glare and obviate eye strain, called "No Glare" paper, and a great deal of special machinery to carry out the
Reynolds company's manufacturing pro- gram.
Mr. Reynolds was born in Stanstead, Province of Quebec, Canada, October 14, 1880, son of George L. and Louisa (Mc- Gregor) Reynolds. His maternal grand- father, the late George McGregor, of Irona, New York, was a large land owner, lumber- man and produce dealer. George L. Rey- nolds, who was born in Clinton County, New York, and died in Stanstead, Province of Quebec, Canada, was a traveling sales- man and the owner of a farm. He gave a part of his time to agricultural pursuits, and was for a time, early in his life, a merchant in Clinton County, New York. Politically he supported the Liberal party in Canada, and he was a member of the Methodist Church. His wife, Mrs. Louisa (McGregor) Reynolds, was born in Irona, Clinton County, New York, and died in Stanstead, Quebec.
Their son, Wellington George Reynolds, was graduated from the Stanstead district schools and from Wesleyan College in the class of 1899. He then taught in the district schools for one year, after which he was a traveling salesman and at the same time a helper to his father on the home farm of the family. It was in 1900 that he came to Hol- yoke, where he arrived with less than $5 in his pocket and with no friends in the city. Soon he was able to find employment, how- ever, with Fenton and Sons, carriage manu- facturers, on Hampden Street, and with that organization he did assembling, delivering and collecting and learned much about busi- ness life and methods. At the end of that year the company went out of business. A little later Mr. Reynolds became connected with the Holyoke Ice Company, remaining for one summer with this business and then spending a short time with the Deane Steam Pump Company, in Holyoke.
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It was in South Hadley Falls that he first entered the paper industry, obtaining em- ployment as assistant shipping clerk with the Hampshire Paper Company. A year later he was promoted to head of the ship- ping department, and he continued for three years with the company. He then associ- ated himself with the Taylor Burt Company, of Holyoke, as head of their shipping depart- ment, afterward serving as head of the fin- ishing department and then winning promo- tion to office manager. He spent nine years with that firm, then became manager of the Highland Manufacturing Company under the direction of Patrick J. Judge, treasurer of the organization, and continued for nine years with that company.
Now in a position to go into business for himself Mr. Reynolds bought the plant of M. J. Losty and Sons, Inc., on Main Street, Holyoke, manufacturers of school supplies and blank books. The business was situated in the Whiting Steel Building, and here Mr. Reynolds did much to develop it, incorporat- ing it under the name of the Reynolds Man- ufacturing Company and becoming its presi- dent, treasurer and general manager. After- ward August Hoffman was made president, so continuing until his death. They were engaged in business for only two years when they bought the old Essex Pad and Tablet Company, then known as the Cleary Manu- facturing Company and operated by James Cleary. Taking over the stock, equipment and five-year lease of this firm, housed in a building in North Summer Street, they moved into the Cleary quarters, which af- forded them greater space and effectively combined the work of the two plants. Both plants now operated together under the name of the Reynolds Manufacturing Com- pany. After Mr. Hoffman's death, Charles D. Coe, who had been sales manager for a year, was elevated to the presidency of the
company, and George H. Brown, who had been factory superintendent, was made vice- president. H. D. Reynolds, brother of Well- ington George Reynolds, was made assistant treasurer, and Mr. Reynolds himself became treasurer and general manager. Three years later they bought the New England Tire and Rubber Company's new building, at No. 728 Main Street, Holyoke, moving the plant into it and here continuing operations since that time. At the same time, in 1928, they added new equipment and machinery, and today they make a very fine line of blank books and school supplies.
Mr. Reynolds' development of his own machinery and special paper has done much to promote the success of the Reynolds Manufacturing Company. Despite the fact that he is one of Holyoke's busiest men, he takes time to serve as treasurer of the Paper- crafters' Public School Division, Inc., and as president of the Jennings Silk Company, of Holyoke. He was a member of the Code Authority of the Paper, Stationery and Tab- let Manufacturers' Association, Inc., and be- longs to several important business groups, among them the United Commercial Trav- elers and the Holyoke Chamber of Com- merce.
Social and civic aspects of Hampden County life have received fresh impetus from his enthusiastic participation in public affairs. Men who have time to be leaders in certain branches of life usually become leaders in many branches, and Mr. Reynolds is no exception to the rule. He is a member and treasurer of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of South Hadley Falls, where the Reynolds family has its residence, and also serves on the board of stewards and the board of trustees of his congregation. He is a director of the Holyoke Young Men's Christian Association and of the Good Will Industries, of Springfield. At South Hadley
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Falls he is a member of the school commit- tee and a leader in educational and cultural affairs. In spare time he interests himself in political matters, though never from a self- seeking point of view. He is a Republican. Fond of fishing, hunting, swimming and all healthful outdoor recreations, he devotes as much time to such activities as his busy schedule permits.
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