USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Vol. III > Part 27
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John T. Dame married Eliza Elmira Reeves, who died in 1899, and whose ancestors settled in Wayland (then Sudbury), Massachusetts, in 1675. She was a daugh- ter of Jacob Reeves, who was Town Clerk and Trial Justice of Wayland for many years. Both John T. and Eliza E. (Reeves) Dame were members of the Con- gregational church. They were the parents of six chil- dren: I. John, who died in infancy. 2. Abby E., a teacher. 3. Myra, deceased. 4. Agnes R., deceased. 5. Frances E., of Clinton. 6 Walter Reeves, of further mention.
Walter Reeves Dame, son of John T. and Eliza E. (Reeves) Dame, was born, June 22, 1861, and died January 6, 1924. He completed the courses of Clinton public schools, including high, and finished college prep- aration at Phillips-Exeter Academy. He entered Har- vard University for a classical course, and was gradu- ated A. B., cum laude, class of 1883. Deciding upon the profession of law, he spent a year in his father's office, then entered the law department of the Boston University, whence he was graduated LL. B. cum laude, class of 1886. He was at once admitted to the Suffolk County bar, and until the death of his honored father in 1894 they practiced as a firm, he the only partner his father ever had. From 1894 until 1923, Walter R. Dame practiced his profession, and all through the years was largely interested in other activities than the law. He long maintained a general insurance department, fire, life, and fidelity; was one of the organizers of the Clin- ton Cooperative Bank, and a director; was a member of the board of directors that completed the Clinton Rail- road, and became interested in public utilities in the
States of Florida, Vermont, and Massachusetts. The most important of these, the Public Electric Light Com- pany, is founded on the franchises of the Vermont Pow- er and Manufacturing Company, which Mr. Dame and his associates bought in 1916 and developed to a point where it is supplying the greater part of the power used in the northern part of the State of Vermont, includ- ing the cities of St. Albans, St. Albans Bay, Westford, Colchester, Cambridge, Jeffersonville, and Burlington. Mr. Dame, in addition to owning a large interest, was chairman of the board and managing director and chief counsel for the corporation up to the time of his passing away.
In politics Mr. Dame was a Democrat, and long served his town as Town Committeeman, first chosen in 1884; and as secretary of the Board of Selectmen, first appointed in 1887. He was also secretary of the Board of Water Commissioners, but had entirely retired from politics. Both as a lawyer and as a business man his standing was very high, and as a citizen he was public spirited and progressive. He was a trustee of the Weeks Fund of Clinton, an attendant of the Unitarian church; a member of Trinity Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons; Clinton Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Trinity Commandery, Knights Templar; Clinton Lodge, Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows; a member of the Sons of the American Revolution; of the National Electric Light Association; the Harvard Club of Boston; Pres- cott Club of Clinton; and the Owl and the Champlain Country clubs, of St. Albans, Vermont.
Walter R. Dame married (first), in 1894, Augusta Vickery, who died in 1895, daughter of Charles A. Vick- ery, one of the old established dry goods merchants of Portland, Maine. He married (second) Jennie E. Stone, who died in 1917, daughter of Judge Christopher C. and Ardella Stone. He married (third) Elizabeth Ayling, daughter of George A. and Julia (Carter) Ayling. While the family home is in Clinton, Mr. Dame had his winter home at Daytona, Florida, and there spent several months each year.
GILBERT MOSES BILLINGS-A force for prog- ress in Worcester County, Massachusetts, for more than one-half a century, the life of Gilbert Moses Billings, of Milford, stands in direct relation to the welfare of the people, his forty-two years of experience as editor and publisher of the "Milford Gazette" having linked his name with every branch of community and general advance. Mr. Billings is still active, and his tireless endeavors over this long period of time form a record of worthy concentration of energies which has been crowned with large success. Mr. Billings is a son of William L. and Eunice E. (Kelly) Billings, his father for many years active in the trucking and transfer busi- ness, also Superintendent of Streets in the town of Milford.
Gilbert Moses Billings was born in East Blackstone, Massachusetts, February 18, 1853. Receiving his early education in the public schools, he later attended the Milford (Massachusetts) High School, from which he was graduated in the class of 1869. For thirteen years thereafter Mr. Billings was engaged as a bookkeeper with local concerns, then established the "Milford Ga-
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zette," of which he is editor and publisher. Its editorial policy is progressive, endorsing every forward move- ment and holding to the highest standard of civic and social advancement. Mr. Billings has for many years been more or less closely identified personally with local affairs, and has served several terms as a member of the School Board. Taking a deep interest in all benev- olent and charitable endeavors, he has served for twenty-two years as a trustee of the Milford Hospital, and for more than twelve years was a member of the managing board of that institution. Fraternally he is affiliated with the Ancient Order of United Workmen, of which he is a Past Master Workman, and attends the Universalist parish of Milford, Massachusetts.
Gilbert Moses Billings married, in Milford, Massa- chusetts, November 26, 1874, Edith L. Blake, daughter of George B. and Harriet C. Blake, and they have one son, George William, born September 18, 1878, who married Adeline C. Teele, and they are the parents of one son, Robert Teele, born May 7, 1910.
JOSEPH PALMER HOLMAN, son of Joshua Reed and Nancy (Palmer) Holman, was born in Harvard, Massachusetts, January 16, 1850, and there attended the public school until becoming a wage earner at an early age. In 1868 he first came to Leominster, Massachu- setts, and there has since continuously resided.
He obtained employment with F. A. Whitney, as a driver of Mr. Whitney's horses, which were used both for factory hauling and carriage driving. Through this introduction to Leominster and its great manufacturing plant, Mr. Holman began his career, and the years have brought a wonderful rise in fortune, he being now the honored president of the F. A. Whitney Carriage Com- pany, the same firm with which he began as a driver. In 1870 he was given a position in the factory, where he worked in a subordinate capacity for fifteen years, but made such good use of his opportunities to gain an intimate knowledge of the business in all its details, that in 1885 he became a stockholder, and was made superintendent of the plant. In 1888 he was elected a member of the board of directors, and advanced to the rank of general manager. Mr. Holman continued as director with general supervision of the plant until 1898, when F. A. Whitney resigned as president of the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company, and on July 19, 1898, Mr. Holman was elected his successor.
During the period of his active administration of the duties of the executive office, June, 1898, to June, 1920, the business was wonderfully expanded, and attained its greatest development, being now the largest of its kind in the world. In June, 1920, Mr. Holman retired from the more active duties of president, but he is still the executive head of the company he entered in his youth, and of that business, in the creation of which he has been such an important factor. Mr. Holman, although deeply engrossed in his work, always gave liberally of his time to civic affairs and his achievements were many, which he fostered, and notably helped to a realization.
He was intensely interested and active in acquiring the site for a new post office for Leominster, to be located at the corner of Merriam Avenue and Main Street, and this site is now government property. He served as a member of the committee which built the
new city hall, and the lights at the West Street entrance are a part of his personal contribution. He was trus- tee of the Leominster Hospital Association and a mem- ber of the building committee. He was a charter mem- ber of the Leominster Country Club, and for many years its president, and he took an active part in organ- izing and in the building of the club house of the Monoosnock Country Club, and was a member of the club. He is also a member of the Leominster Club, the Fay Club of Fitchburg, and Boston Athletic Asso- ciation. He was one of the promoters and past presi- dent of the Leominster Cooperative Bank; was a di- rector in the Leominster National Bank, Fitchburg Safe Deposit and Trust Company, and later the Fitchburg Bank and Trust Company. During the World War he was chairman of the finance committee of the Public Safety Committee. In politics Mr. Holman is a Re- publican, but political preferment was not a part of his scheme of life and he never sought public office. His fraternity is the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Holman was a great lover of nature and outdoor life. It was characteristic of him to rarely be without a button hole bouquet. His hobby was horses, and he was often seen driving a fleet-stepping steed both on the highway and race track.
Joseph P. Holman married, November II, 1873, Emma Jane Potter, born October 12, 1850, died November 10, 1896, aged forty-six years. Mr. and Mrs. Holman were the parents of two children: William E., a sketch of whom follows; and Edith, a graduate of Leominster High School, and who also attended Smith College. She married Fred A. Russell, of Leominster, June 25, 1907.
WILLIAM E. HOLMAN, only son of Joseph Pal- mer and Emma Jane (Potter) Holman, (q. v.) was born in Leominster, Massachusetts, May 2, 1875. He was educated in the public grammar and high schools, finishing with a course in business college. In 1894, at the age of nineteen, he entered as a clerk the office of the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company, manufacturers of baby carriages in Leominster, the city of his birth. Nearly three decades have since elapsed, and there has been no change in business connections, the only change having been in relationship. During that entire period he has been a contemporary with his father in the same corporation. He advanced rapidly, and in 1895 was ad- mitted to the corporation and elected clerk. In 1903 he was made a director, and in June, 1920, upon the retire- ment of his father from the active duties of the presi- dency, he was made manager by the board of directors. In 1921 he was elected vice-president, general man- ager and acting president.
Mr. Holman has largely confined his energies to the business of the corporation with which he has spent his mature life. This does not mean, however, that he has not been actively interested in the civic and social life of the city, for he has always given liberally of his time and means to such affairs. During the World War he was actively associated with the several drives, and was also chairman of the volunteer aid and emergency fund committee of the Committee on Public Safety. He was a member of the committee which had charge of the building of the new Leominster Hospital, and is one
2. P. Holman
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William o. Holvan
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BIOGRAPHICAL
of the trustees of that institution. Mr. Holman is affiliated with several clubs, being a member and presi- dent of the Leominster Country, member of the Leo- minster, Monoosnock Country of Leominster, Worcester Country, Fay and Oak Hill Country clubs of Fitchburg, and Old Colony Club at Boston. He is also a member of the Congregational church, Leominster Chamber of Commerce, and the Leominster Lodge of Elks. He is a director in the Merchants' National Bank of Leomin- ster, and the Safety Fund National Bank of Fitchburg. Mr. Holman is exceedingly fond of outdoor life, his hobby being horseback riding. In politics he is a Re- publican.
Mr. Holman married, on October 9, 1899, Alice Rock- well, daughter of Edward M. and Martha (Smith) Rockwell. Mr. and Mrs. Holman are the parents of two children : Lois R., born October 5, 1900, educated in Leominster Grammar and High schools, Walnut Hill Preparatory School, and Vassar College, now residing at home; and Paul R., born February 22, 1904, now (1923) preparing for college. The family home is in Leominster.
(F. A. Whitney Carriage Company).
Leominster has long been the seat of the baby car- riage industry, in fact, before the Civil War, the indus- try started which was the beginning of the F. A. Whit- ney Carriage Company. At that time, over sixty-five years ago, there were in Leominster two cousins, F. A. and F. W. Whitney, who were of an inventive and re- sourceful turn of mind. It happened that one day while he was in Greenfield, F. W. Whitney was attracted by what to him was an unusual sight, a baby carriage of a' much more pleasing design than that of the prevailing pattern with which he was then familiar. The old style of baby carriage was rude in shape and construction. The one which he saw in Greenfield was so graceful, and had so many new ideas of construction that it set him thinking, and by the time he had returned to Leo- minster his ideas had so far crystallized that they were soon to bear fruit in an industry in the town in which he lived. Feeling confident that the manufacture of such carriages would be a profitable undertaking, upon his return to Leominster, he discussed with his cousin, F. A. Whitney, the probable success of a company en- gaged in manufacturing similar carriages in Leomin- ster, and also talked over the details necessary to the or- ganization of such a company. As a result of this, they began in 1858, under the firm name of F. W. & F. A. Whitney, the industry now known as the F. A. Whit- ney Carriage Company, which to-day is the largest of its kind in the world.
They hired the basement of the old Lockey shop, a' building where corn planters and apple parers were manufactured, on the easterly side of the railroad crossing on Mechanic Street, and started with half a dozen employees. Seventy-five carriages, two-wheeled and with a long tongue and a supporting standard in front, were made during the first year. The new busi- ness met with a severe loss in 1862 when fire destroyed the building which it occupied. Both stock and equip- ment, except for one planer, which was still in use until a few years ago, were completely swept away. The cousins had begun with very little capital, and as there
was no insurance, they were only able to reestablish the business by borrowing from their friends. Their sec- ond beginning was in the small building now standing near the track on the right of Water Street as one crosses the New York, New Haven & Hartford Rail- road, on the way to the present plant of the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company at the foot of the hill. For several years they occupied this building in connec- tion with two other buildings across the street, where the passenger station now stands, which were used for upholstering and finishing.
Mr. F. A. Whitney sold his interest to Mr. F. W. Whitney in February, 1865, to enter the service in the Christian Commission of the Civil War, but bought back his interest upon his return the following July. In November he purchased Mr. F. W. Whitney's share, thus becoming in his turn sole owner of the business. In 1865 he was requested to vacate this location, and then arose a problem difficult to solve; where should he next locate, as the industry was growing rapidly. The water privilege to be obtained upon a tract of land at the foot of the hill settled the question, and he at once erected a building situated where the westerly group of present buildings now stand. From the woods on this land, known as "Paradise," and formerly a part of the old Houghton estate, came Leominster's first flag pole, which was placed on the Common soon after the Civil War, where it stood for many years. Mr. Whitney's original two and a half story building measured sixty by thirty-two feet. Additions and alterations have been made nearly every year since the time of its erection to keep pace with the growth of the industry. During the first two years, carriages ready for shipment were hauled half a mile in a roundabout way through the woods, to the freight station, but at Mr. Whitney's urgent appeal, the town finally decided, on October 16, 1867, to build a wooden bridge across the stream on Water Street, although the Selectmen doubted at the time whether the new industry could ever pay enough in taxes to give interest on money thus expended. An iron bridge, which replaced the wooden one in 1890, was followed by the present steel structure eleven years ago at the time of the construction of the "Loop Line," a part of the Worcester Consolidated Railway which now passes the plant.
About 1870 Mr. F. W. Whitney, who had decided to begin a business of his own, bought a strip of land bor- dering on Mr. F. A. Whitney's purchase, from Caldwell & Miller, tub manufacturers, and erected a building for the making of baby carriages, two and four-wheeled wagons, and toy carts. Associated with him were F. A. Whitney's younger brother, William, and Sumner M. Frost, a brother-in-law. This separate manufacture did not have a long existence, for Mr. F. A. Whitney induced its promoters to enter his business, and in 1871 incorporated the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company with F. A. Whitney, president; F. W. Whitney, treasurer ; Sumner M. Frost, secretary and salesman; and William B. Whitney, superintendent of the wood and iron de- partment. These four men were also the directors of the organization and owned the entire stock. The new company continued the manufacture of carts, but, although this business proved a prosperous one, it came
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HISTORY OF WORCESTER COUNTY
to an end after seven or eight years, as space was lim- ited and the firm had become more interested in the making of baby carriages.
The purchase of a water right from Caldwell & Miller in 1876 added a nineteen-foot dam to the original six- foot one of the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company. For several years the company sold power to four separate industries which were connected with its water wheel by cables. The first hydraulic elevator in the plant and also the first in Leominster, was installed during the summer of 1881. Before then it had been necessary to carry everything up and downstairs. There are now five elevators in the plant, four hydraulic and one elec- tric. It was also in 1881 that Mr. William Look made the first reed carriage built by the company, from a pat- tern designed by Mr. Frank H. Shaw. Sumner M. Frost retired in 1885, and William C. Burdett, Joseph P. Holman, Philip Lothrop, and Frank H. Shaw, em- ployees of the company, became stockholders. Mr. Hol- man, who had begun work at eighteen as chore boy for Mr. F. A. Whitney, was also made superintendent of the entire plant. In 1886 William B. Whitney with- drew from the business and George W. Foster, formerly of Foster Brothers & Kenney, entered the company. Soon after Mr. F. H. Shaw sold his interest and retired.
In 1888 the organization consisted of F. A. Whitney, president and treasurer ; William C. Burdett, secretary ; George W. Foster, salesman; W. C. Burdett, G. W. Foster, J. P. Holman, P. Lothrop, F. A. Whitney, and F. W. Whitney, directors. The output of the plant that year was 35,000 carriages, a large number then, but small when compared with the present figures. The organization remained the same from 1888 to 1891, when Mr. Foster died. The yearly output of carriages had increased to nearly 40,000, and the employees numbered about two hundred. In 1895 W. E. Holman, son of J. P. Holman, was admitted to the company as secretary, and W. H. Cropper, of Fitchburg, became treasurer. Mr. F. J. Shaw was admitted as a stockholder of the company and elected a director. Mr. F. W. Whitney had died the previous year, leaving the directors W. H. Cropper, J. P. Holman, P. Lothrop, F. J. Shaw (super- intendent of the reed department), and F. A. Whitney. These directors remained the same until Mr. Lothrop retired in 1899, three years before his death. In the summer of 1898, Mr. F. A. Whitney, who for a num- ber of years had been interested in Wachusett Shirt Company, resigned as president of the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company, and on July 19, Mr. J. P. Holman was elected to succeed him. During Mr. J. P. Holman's administration the business expanded to an extent be- yond all expectation, and achieved its greatest develop- ment under his management. He associated with him- self in the business men of capabilities in their various lines, and it was this keen sightedness in organization which contributed largely to the development of the in- dustry, which he managed up to June, 1920, when he retired from active duties. Mr. W. E. Holman became a director of the company in 1903. Two years later Mr. F. A. Whitney severed his connection by selling to Mr. J. P. Holman the remainder of his holdings, some of which he had sold the previous year.
At the outbreak of the World War the supply of reeds which had been imported from Germany, and from
which practically all of the carriages in use at that time were made, was cut off. It became necessary for the company to develop the splitting of reeds from rattan which was imported from China and the British East Indies. Special machinery had to be built to convert the rattan into reeds. Up to this time there were but three concerns in America doing such work, and Mr. J. P. Holman realized the immediate necessity of de- veloping this source of raw materials, which has grown into a very important department of the business to-day, and by his prompt action at that time the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company was able to supply its customers dur- ing a period when it would, otherwise, have been prac- tically impossible to do so. The weaving of twisted paper into fiber, a substitute for reed, patented by Mr. F. J. Shaw in 1904, has become a large part of the business, the lack of German reeds during the war bringing this new material into great prominence. Other manufacturers, upon using it, found it so satisfactory that its weaving, on looms made at the plant, is now an industry in itself. Seventy-five per cent of the car- riages shipped by the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company are of fiber, which has replaced the equally large reed business of five years ago. Other inventions of value have also been patented. A reversible handle for baby carriages, devised by William Whitney in 1876, was used for many years. When the inch-wide leather straps, which formerly ran from one gear of the car- riage to the other as in the old stage coaches, were changed to steel, William Whitney practically orig- inated the steel spring for this purpose, learning how to temper it successfully. Perhaps most important of all is the anti-friction wheel fastener, a simple device, patented in 1898 for fastening wheels on axles without the use of a nut, thus making it very easy to assemble the parts after shipment.
The company had about seven hundred employees in 1906, its business for that year amounting to nearly $1,000,000. The manufacture of doll carriages for the Christmas season was begun just before this time as a solution to the problem of retaining employees and keep- ing the plant busy through the summer months, when orders for baby carriages were few. Thirty-five dif- ferent styles of doll carriages are now made, resembling the baby carriages in every detail. The company has had several losses in property, but has continued bravely on its course. The first large fire of consequence in nearly fifty years, since the burning of the Lockey shop, occurred on April 18, 1909, when the paint shop was burned. The fire was on a Sunday morning, and the following Monday was a' holiday, but on April 20, this department of the plant was in full working order in an unused basement cleared out for the purpose. A second fire on February 26, 1910, destroyed the mill room, a wooden building, which was immediately re- placed by a brick one. With the exception of a short period during the war, additions to the plant have been made each year. The third and last fire was on January 5, 1918, when one of the storehouses burned to the ground. Over four thousand carraiges ready for ship- ment were destroyed, but the filling of orders was not interrupted by this unfortunate circumstance.
Mr. C. E. Potter became a director in 1908, and from that year until 1917, when Mr. F. J. Shaw died, the
Hh Butter
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officers remained the same, the longest period without change in the history of the company. Harold F. Shaw, son of F. J. Shaw, was elected a director and stock- holder in 1918, and George B. Ambler, George H. Roukes, and Bertram H. Hayes became stockholders the same year. In 1921 W. E. Holman was made vice- president and general manager. F. L. Butler, now now treasurer, came to the company in 1922 to fill the position when Mr. Cropper retired. The present offi- cers are: J. P. Holman, president; W. E. Holman, act- ing president and vice-president ; F. L. Butler, treasurer; J. P Holman, W. E. Holman, F. L. Butler, C. E. Potter, and H. F. Shaw, directors. From its single unit which comprised the plant in 1858, the F. A. Whitney Carriage Company has grown to an industry which requires for its production and housing over twelve acres of land and twenty-nine distinct buildings. So admirably are these buildings placed and so efficiently are the machines arranged that the raw material in the shape of wood, reed, iron, and steel can be said virtually to come into one part of the plant, go through in the process of manufacture the buildings which are arranged in a circle, and come out in the shipping department, the finished carriage ready for transport. From this plant baby carriages go to nearly every city and hamlet in America that is reached by railroad or by mail, and to the most distant points of the world. One aim has been constant during its sixty-five years of production, and that is to improve and make more beautiful its prod- ucts, and to-day the vehicles of the F. A. Whitney Car- riage Company go into the homes of the most exclusive, as well as into the homes of the most humble.
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