USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > History of Worcester County, Massachusetts, Vol. III > Part 9
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"The life that's lived for self alone, Shall weak become and small; But life we give to one and all, Shall never, never fall." (Poem on Unselfishness by Mrs. Graton.)
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HISTORY OF WORCESTER COUNTY
WILLIAM WALLACE HOLMES, in commercial advance in the public service and in fraternal activity, is a leading figure in Webster, Massachusetts. Active in his younger days in the grocery business and also in the shoe industry, he has for the past twenty years and more been engaged in the distribution of grain, flour, feed, and so forth, also building and masons' materials. Mr. Holmes is a son of Rev. Lucius Holmes, prom- inent Universalist minister, who held pastorates in both Massachusetts and New York State, and preached many times at Webster. The mother, Sophia ( Bates) Holmes, was the sister of A. J. Bates, the well-known shoe man- ufacturer of Webster.
William Wallace Holmes, son of these parents, was born at North Adams, Massachusetts, June 17, 1874. The family removed to Orange, Massachusetts, when he was two years of age, later removing to Charlton and thereafter to Natick, then back to Orange, as the father was called from one church to another. During these years Mr. Holmes received his education in the public schools, principally at Orange, where he attended high school and where his business life was begun as an employee in a grocery store. Coming to Webster on March 28, 1892, Mr. Holmes entered the employ of the A. J. Bates Company, shoe manufacturers, of which his uncle was the head and remained with the concern for a period of ten years. During that time he became thoroughly familiar with the business and rose to the position of foreman and eventually assistant super- intendent. In 1902 Mr. Holmes struck out in an inde- pendent business, purchasing the hay and grain store theretofore conducted by his cousin, Oscar Shumway. The business was established in 1846 by Mr. Holmes' uncle, William Holmes. Mr. Holmes has largely de- veloped and built up this business, extending its scope and increasing its patronage. He now handles besides grain, flour and feed, lime, cement, and all kinds of Masons' materials, and in his success is counting largely for the progress of construction activity in this part of Worcester County. Mr. Holmes is affiliated with the financial world of Webster as vice-president of the Web- ster Five-Cent Savings Bank and director of the Web- ster National Bank. He has for many years been an active worker in the ranks of the Republican party, and has served on the Board of Registrars. In 1914 he was elected Town Treasurer of Webster, and in this very responsible position has served since, the community realizing much benefit from his practical ability and still retaining him in this office. For the past twenty years he has been a trustee of the Webster Public Li- brary, and at all times gives his best efforts to the ad- vancement of any worthy cause. During the World War he served on all committees of the various loan drives and gave largely of his time and means to the many war activities. During the period of its existence he was very active in the Webster Chamber of Com- merce, and served as its last president. Mr. Holmes is largely prominent in the Masonic order, in which he holds the thirty-second degree, being a member of Webster Lodge, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, of which he is Past Master; the Royal Arch chapters in both Webster and Southbridge; Massachusetts consistory, and Aleppo Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine of Boston of which he is a life
member. His religious affiliation is with the First Con- gregational Church and he has been on the parish com- mittee of the church for many years.
Mr. Holmes married Mary Buell of Woburn, Massa- chusetts, daughter of Frederick and Myra Buell. Mr. and Mrs. Holmes are the parents of four children: Eliz- abeth, Barbara Sophia, Patricia, and Mary Buell.
FRANCIS HENRY LALLY, M. D .- The medical profession is represented in Worcester County by as broadly progressive a group of men as could readily be found in any section, and in the town of Milford, Dr. Lally holds a very prominent position. He is a son of Michael C. Lally, who was born in County Kings, Ire- land, and came to the United States at the age of six years. He enlisted in the Civil War as a member of Company J, 57th Regiment, of Milford, Massachusetts, Volunteer Infantry, and served throughout the period of the war, at one time being confined in Andersonville prison. He was wounded severely in more than one engagement, but survived to return to civilian life and live to an advanced age, passing away in Milford, Feb- ruary 8, 1913. He was one of the charter members of the Worcester Post, Grand Army of the Republic, in which he retained his membership until his death. The mother, Bridget M. (McManus) Lally, is now living. They were the parents of four children, of whom Dr. Lally was the eldest, and the other three were triplets, who died in infancy.
Francis Henry Lally was born at Milford, Massachu- setts, March 14, 1875. The family later residing in the city of Worcester, he attended the Worcester High School, then later entered Holy Cross College, from which he was graduated in the class of 1898. Thereafter taking up his professional studies at Dartmouth College Medical School, he was graduated from that institu- tion in the class of 1902. Before the close of the same year, Dr. Lally took up his practice in Milford, and in the twenty years and more which have since elapsed he has won large success. He now has a very extensive practice along general lines of medicine and surgery and both in the profession and among the people generally, he is considered one of the progressive and leading physi- cians of the day. During the World War Dr. Lally enlisted at Boston, in July, 1918, in the Medical Corps of the regular army and was transferred to Camp Oglethorpe, Georgia, where he served until his dis- charge on December 27, 1919. With this added ex- perience Dr. Lally returned to Milford, then again took up the practice of his profession there. He now serves as a member of the Milford Board of Health, and is affiliated with the American Medical Association, the Massachusetts State Medical Society, the Worcester County South Medical Society, the Association of Mili- tary Surgeons, and the Thurber Medical Society. He has been a member of the Board of Health for eighteen years, United States Bureau physician since his discharge from the army, and volunteer medical examiner after his discharge from the army with the rank of captain. Fraternally Dr. Lally is a life member of the Benev- olent and Protective Order of Elks, of Milford, and is also a member of the Knights of Columbus, and the Foresters of America. He served as the first executive officer of the Sergeant John Bowers Post, No. 59,
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BIOGRAPHICAL
American Legion, and is still a member. Politically Dr. Lally is an independent in politics, but except along the line of his profession, he has never thus far accepted public responsibilities. He is a member of the Roman Catholic church.
Dr. Lally married, in Milford, Massachusetts, on August 3, 1906, Beatrice Bourne, daughter of William H. and Ucelia (Walker) Bourne, and they have one son, Robert Francis, born February 8, 1909.
GEORGE CROMPTON, SR .- When, in 1851, the late George Crompton, Sr., with Merrill E. Furbush, established the original fancy loom works in the city of Worcester, a most valuable contribution to the economic life of the city was made, and during the seventy years which have passed since that time, the industries founded by him have been of increasing importance in the life of the city. The service of George Crompton, Sr., was not limited to the city of Worcester, however, for, like his father, he was an inventor, and his improved loom quadrupled production and revolutionized the textile industry.
William Crompton, father of George Crompton, Sr., was born in England, where he became thoroughly ac- quainted with the textile industry. He came to this country and settled in Taunton, Massachusetts, where in 1836 he invented the first fancy power loom. The power loom invented by Edmund Cartwright in 1785, was a cam motion loom and could be used for weaving plain fabrics only, all fabrics of complicated design were woven on hand looms. The principal improve- ment in William Crompton's loom was the use of harness motion. In his loom the figure or pattern could be set up on what is known as a chain or series of bars con- nected by links. On the bars were rollers or pins, placed in such positions that as the chain revolved it lifted, at predetermined intervals, levers, which in turn caused the harnesses to be raised in such order as to produce the required design. The success of this loom was demonstrated in 1840, when the first piece of fancy woolen cloth ever woven by power in the world was woven at the Middlesex Mills on looms equipped with William Crompton's device. William Crompton mar- ried Sarah Low, and among their children was George, of further mention.
George Crompton, Sr., son of William and Sarah (Low) Crompton, was born at Holcombe, near Bury, Lancashire, England, March 23, 1829, and died in Wor- cester Massachusetts, December 29, 1886. He came to Taunton, Massachusetts, with his parents in 1839, and was educated in the public schools of Taunton and Worcester. He also attended Millbury Academy. On completion of his schooling he worked in his father's office and later was connected with the Colt Pistol Fac- tory, in Hartford, Connecticut. In 1851, having by a personal visit to Washington secured an extension of his father's patent for seven years, he formed a partner- ship with Merrill E. Furbush, and this new firm began the manufacture of looms in the Merrifield Building, in Worcester. The first looms built by this concern were like the looms made by those who manufactured under licenses granted by William Crompton. They were narrow looms and ran at a speed of forty-five picks per minute, that is, each minute forty-five weft or cross
threads of the fabric were woven. In 1857 George Crompton, Sr., constructed and patented an improved loom nearly double the width of the old loom, and demonstrated that this new loom could be run at the then extraordinary speed of eighty-five picks per minute, thus quadrupling the production, for both the width and speed of the loom had been doubled. This was a great improvement. No improvement before or since has so increased the production. Moreover, this loom was the first fancy loom made in the general form and proportions which have since proved, by experience, to be the most satisfactory. Shown at the great Paris Exposition of 1867, this machine, in competition with, the products of the best textile machine manufacturers of England, Germany, France, and Belgium, was awarded the only medal. Its proportions and princi- pal mechanisms were from that time to a considerable extent adopted by most European manufacturers.
On August 1, 1859, the firm of Furbush & Crompton was dissolved, with the understanding that the terri- tory covered by the patents owned by the firm should be divided, Mr. Crompton to hold the New England States with New York, Mr. Furbush to have all the rest of the territory of the United States. Mr. Crompton continued manufacturing looms, bought the Red Mill property, and in 1860 erected a new building with room to expand up to sixty hands. During 1861-65 he added to his line of manufacture, tools for making gun stocks, but after the Civil War curtailed the production of guns he again directed his energies to building weaving machinery. He took out over one hundred patents for improvements on looms and for devices outside of his own business. In 1876 he won a medal by exhibiting his improved loom at the Centennial Exposition in Phila- delphia. In the late seventies he introduced the Keighley Dobby to the American manufacturer, and in associ- ation with Horace Wyman, improved this harness mo- tion, simplifying it and changing its position from the centre of the arch, as on English looms, to the end of the arch. Also in association with Mr. Wyman he in- vented and improved the Crompton gingham loom, now the standard gingham loom in the country. Few men have accomplished more important and useful work for mankind than George Crompton, Sr. At his death, the Crompton Loom Works employed nearly 1,000 men.
Not only was George Crompton, Sr., deeply concerned in his own private affairs, but he also reached out and aided in Worcester's development. He was the founder and president of the Crompton Carpet Company, the predecessor of the Whittall Mills, now one of the largest carpet mills in this country, and one of Worcester's fore- most industries. He was for many years a director of the Worcester National Bank, also director of Worces- ter General Freight Company, and was one of the founders and directors of the Hartford Steam Boiler Insurance Company. In public affairs he always stood for progress and good government. In 1863 and 1864 he was an Alderman of the city, and in 1871 he was Republican candidate for the office of Mayor. He was chairman of the Soldiers' Monument Committee, and it was largely through his efforts that Randolph Rogers was secured as the designer of this monument. At its dedication, July 15, 1874, he nade the presentation speech.
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HISTORY OF WORCESTER COUNTY
At the time of Mr. Crompton's death the Worcester "Spy" said :
George Crompton was one of the foremost of Wor- cester manufacturers. He came of a race of mechan- ics and inventors, and was as ingenious and success- ful as any of them. His sagacity as a man of business was as remarkable as his mechanical faculty, and his uprightness and fidelity to his engagements were not less conspicuous traits of his character. He had not much time for public affairs, but he was for some years an active and useful member of the board of aldermen, and in other ways his influence was dis- tinctly felt in the business of the city. But in general, his life was that of a private citizen, active and strenuous in business, having not many intimate friends beyond his home circle, but enjoying domestic pleasures with a keen zest and having a cultivated taste for art in all its forms. He will be sadly missed in the business circles of Worcester, and as to his family his death is an exceedingly sore blow.
George Crompton, Sr., married, January 9, 1853, Mary Christina Pratt, daughter of Charles Pratt, of Hart- ford, Connecticut. They were the parents of nine chil- dren : Isabel M., Cora E., Stella S., Georgietta F., mar- ried Albert D. Wood; Mary K., Charles, Mildred M., married Harry W. Smith; George, whose sketch fol- lows; and Randolph.
GEORGE CROMPTON-The name Crompton has been identified with the industrial and civic life of the city of Worcester for nearly three-quarters of a cen- tury, and during that time has stood for progress. It was Mr. Crompton's father, the late George Crompton, Sr., a sketch of whom precedes, who in 1851 established the first fancy loom business in this country with Mer- rill E. Furbush, in Worcester, which has since been such an important element in the development of the city.
George Crompton, son of George, Sr., and Mary Christina (Pratt) Crompton, was born in Worcester, June 7, 1872. After attending private schools in Wor- cester, he prepared for college at the Worcester Acad- emy, from which he graduated in 1891, and then entered Harvard College in the fall of the same year, gradu- ating in 1895. Shortly after his graduation he entered the employ of the Crompton Loom Works, of which he had been for several years a director, and in 1896 he was elected president and treasurer of the Crompton Associates, a real estate corporation. In 1897, upon the formation of the Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, he was elected treasurer and a director of the corpora- tion, from which positions he resigned in the fall of 1900, when the Crompton interest in the Crompton & Knowles Loom Works was sold. In May, 1903, he entered into a partnership with Edward D. Thayer, William B. Scofield, and his brother, Randolph Cromp- ton, and under the name of the Crompton-Thayer Loom Company this partnership began the manufacture of looms. In 1907 the Crompton-Thayer Loom Company was sold to the Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, and Mr. Crompton again became a director of the Cromp- ton & Knowles Loom Works. In 1912, upon the con- solidation of the F. E. Reed Company and Prentice Brothers' Company, both manufacturers of machine tools, into the Reed-Prentice Company, Mr. Crompton was elected a treasurer and director of the new corpora- tion. He resigned from this position on January I, 1916. Mr. Crompton is a director of the Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, the Merchants' National Bank, the Worcester Gas Light Company, and a trustee and
member of the board of investment of the People's Sav- ings Bank. He is vice-president of the board of trus- tees of St. Vincent's Hospital, a member of the board of trustees of Worcester Academy; a corporator of the Clarks School for the Deaf, Northampton, Massachu- setts ; vice-president of Worcester Welfare Federation; vice-president of the Associated Charities of Worces- ter ; a member of the Commission of Public Welfare of the State of Massachusetts; and trustee of Rural Cem- etery. He is well known in club circles, being a mem- ber of the Worcester Club; Tatnuck Country Club; the Worcester Country Club, of Worcester, Massachusetts ; the Union and Harvard clubs, of Boston, Massachusetts ; the Harvard Club, of New York; and the Pocasset Golf Club, Pocasset, Massachusetts. Politically he gives his support to the Republican party, and his religious affili- ation is with the Roman Catholic church.
Mr. Crompton married Alice Hastings, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. William H. H. Hastings, of Boston, April II, 1896. He has two sons: I. George, Jr., born May 7, 1897, holds the rank of lieutenant, senior grade, in the United States Naval forces. He married Nancy Earle Smith, daughter of the late Frank Bulkeley, of Worcester, and Nancy (Hacket) Smith, and they are the parents of a son George (3), born March 14, 1921; and a daughter, Nancy Earle, who was born July 3, 1922. 2. David Hastings born February 6, 1909.
ROMEO E. ALLEN-Along those lines of endeavor and general advance which count most definitely and practically for the general welfare, Romeo E. Allen has for many years been active, and in his professional capacity as civil engineer, he has done much work, the permanence of which will extend his usefulness far into the future. A native of the town of Shrewsbury, Massa- chusetts, Mr. Allen is a son of Henry E. W. and Cyn- thia B. (Whitney) Allen, for many years residents of this community and both members of old and honored families of New England. Mr. Allen now occupies the old homestead settled by Elnathan Allen in 1725. The descent is through his son Elnathan, Jr., who fought in the Revolution, and his son, Israel Allen, his son, Liberty Allen, who was born in 1776, just as the Declaration of Independence was signed, and was therefore named Lib- erty. His son, Henry E. W. Allen, was the father of our subject.
Romeo E. Allen was born in Shrewsbury, Massachu- setts, October 17, 1852. His education was begun in the local public schools, and after the completion of the high school course, Mr. Allen secured employment under Charles A. Allen, a noted civil engineer of the city of Worcester. He served an apprenticeship covering a period of three years (1872-1875) ; then deciding that he wished to identify himself permanently with the progress of his native place, he returned to Shrewsbury, where he has since been professionally active. In this period of nearly half a century Mr. Allen has handled many important commissions not only in this immedi- ate section, but in many parts of his native State and more distant points in New England. He holds a very eminent position in engineering circles in New England.
A staunch Republican by political affiliation since at- taining his majority, Mr. Allen has served the town of Shrewsbury in various official capacities. He was active
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as a Selectman for several years, for fourteen years was Town Auditor, and acted as moderator for a full quarter of a century. In 1895 he represented the town of Shrewsbury in the Massachusetts Legislature, and his usefulness and distinguished service brought about his return to that body in 1898. His broad familiarity with business conditions and his excellent judgment on all current affairs made him one of the useful members of the legislative body and gave to his service in an official capacity the usefulness which contributes to the general welfare and prosperity of the commonwealth, as well as to the location in which he was individually interested. In all his services in local town affairs the welfare of the people is his highest consideration, and he has done much to promote local progress and prosperity. Mr. Allen is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and also of the Patrons of Husbandry. He is a director of the Grafton Cooperative Bank, and inter- ested in all that pertains to the economic progress of the community. Identified with the Congregational church since his youth, he has for thirty-three years been clerk of the parish, and has also for a long period served in the Sunday school as treasurer.
Mr. Allen married Abbie R. Green, daughter of Charles O. and Maria (Abbott) Green, at Shrewsbury, and they are the parents of two children: I. Charles Edward, born in 1878, who married Helen E. Harlow, daughter of Henry Harlow, their two sons being, Charles E., Jr., born February II, 1906; and Stuart H., born December 28, 1910. 2. Lee C., a sketch of whom follows :
LEE C. ALLEN-In the engineering world of south Worcester County, Massachusetts, Lee C. Allen is a largely noteworthy figure, his long association with his honored father, Romeo E. Allen, of Shrewsbury, form- ing one of the really noteworthy partnerships in this field in this part of the State. Trained with special at- tention to his purpose of entering his present profession, Mr. Allen took up his work with fine personal equip- ment, and his success followed in an entirely natural way.
Lee C. Allen was born at Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, February 21, 1883, and is a son of Romeo E. and Abbie R. (Green) Allen (see preceding sketch). Attending first the local public schools, Mr. Allen covered the high school course, then secured a position in the employ of A. W. Woods, a prominent civil engineer of the city of Worcester, and was active in that connection for a period of eight years. During that time he gained a broadly practical familiarity with the profession, mas- tering its intricacies and accumulating a large fund of experience. In 1907 Mr. Allen returned to Shrewsbury to become associated as a partner with his father, who had long held a leading position in local engineering affairs. First as his father's associate and assistant and later as a partner of the interest, Lee C. Allen has steadily risen in the profession until now he holds a leading position in the engineering world of Worcester County. He does all the engineering work of the town of Shrewsbury, and is otherwise active in local affairs, having been elected within the past few years to respon- sible offices. In 1922 he was elected Selectman and was reelected in 1923. In 1923 he was also a member
of the local Board of Health. Mr. Allen is a trustee of Shrewsbury Cemetery, also a trustee of the Howe Memorial Library, and is a prominent member of the Shrewsbury Historical Society. Interested in many phases of public progress, he is identified with the Pa- trons of Husbandry, and keeps in close touch with the movement of affairs in many fields of advance. His religious connection is with the Congregational church.
Mr. Allen married, at Worcester, May I, 1907, Alice Carlson, daughter of John and Carolina L. (Swenson) Carlson. Mr. and Mrs. Allen are the parents of three children : Roger E., born in Shrewsbury; Carolyn B., and Howard C., born December 21, 1919.
HON. CHARLES HENRY HARTSHORN-The career of the Hon. Charles Henry Hartshorn is one of remarkable achievement, revealing the tenacity of pur- pose which overcomes all obstacles and dominates con- ditions, adverse though they may be. It might almost be said that his private career has been a definite and comprehensive preparation for his public career. Cer- tain it is that in the struggles by which he has achieved success, Mr. Hartshorn has gained a strength of mind and spirit which during his public activities has meant much to the people of Gardner and of the State, Massa- chusetts. He is a son of Charles Hartshorn, of an old Massachusetts family, who was born in Townsend, Massachusetts, June 6, 1819, and as a young man came to Gardner, where he resided for over fifty years, dur- ing the most of which time he was in the employ of Heywood Brothers & Company. At about the time of his coming to Gardner, he married Frances Elizabeth Walker, June 30, 1842, who was born in New Ipswich, New Hampshire, and died in Gardner May 14, 1873, at the age of fifty-four years. Charles Hartshorn died January 27, 1895, at the age of seventy-five.
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