USA > Massachusetts > Massachusetts of today; a memorial of the state, historical and biographical, issued for the World's Columbian exposition at Chicago > Part 30
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239
BOSTON.
A MONG the most successful of the younger genera- tion of newspaper men in Massachusetts stands Fred Erwin Whiting, who is at present clerk of the cor- poration of the Boston Herald Company, and assistant business manager of that journal. He is also a director in the company, and one of three executors of the will of the late Mr. Pulsifer. He is the son of George Fred- erick and Harriet Louisa (Learned) Whiting, and was born in Brookline, Norfolk County, Dec. 21, 1857. He traces his American- ism back to 1643. His early educational training was received in private schools and the Cambridge High School. He was fitted for college matriculation in the latter school, entered Harvard College, and was graduated in the class of 1880. After leaving college Mr. Whiting was one year with the Boston Knob Company, of which his father was president. He then cast his lot with the Boston Herald, act- ing as private secre- tary to Mr. R. M. Pulsifer, its manager. This position carried with it grave respon- sibility, as during the absence abroad of Mr. Pulsifer, the young secretary's at- tention was called to the many outside interests of his employer. He dis- played such marked executive ability that in March, 1888, he was admitted as partner in the firm that owned and published the Herald. It was in May of the same year, when the entire Herald property was turned over to the present Boston Herald Company, that, in the ad- justment of matters, Mr. Whiting assumed his present positions. He became treasurer of the Cambridge Democratic ward and city committee in 1879, and acted
FRED E. WHITING.
in that capacity for three years. He is director and treasurer of the Hotel and Railroad News Company, treasurer of the Hotel Pemberton Company, and of the Tuxpan Oil Company. He is a life member of the Young Men's Christian Union, and a member of the Masonic order. Mr. Whiting was married in Cambridge Oct. 10, 1883, to Amy Estelle, daughter of Thomas T. and Clara Ophelia (Rolfe) Ferguson. Mrs. Whiting is a lineal descendant of Captain John Rolfe, who married Pocahontas, the fa- mous Indian maid of Virginia. Mr. and Mrs. Whiting have two children. The family residence is at Auburndale. Mr. Whiting is a young man of broad grasp in business methods. He is essentially modern in his ideas, and is a man of his day and generation. He possesses that executive ability which is a nat- ural gift, and an invaluable one to men engaged in the turmoil of business life. He has crowded into a few years a wide experience of men and matters, covering a broad field of activities. To his restless en- ergy and business vim the Herald owes much of its present prosperity, and the reputation of being a live newspaper, with live men in charge of its destiny. Many of its brightest ideas and its most successful features have originated in Mr. Whiting's active mind, and he is ever on the alert for opportunities to extend the already wide- spread influence of the Herald, which for many years has ranked among the foremost journals of the country. The success of Mr. Whiting is well worthy the study and emulation of all ambitious boys of Massachusetts. 1
240
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
B ENJAMIN JOHNSON, manager of the New Eng- land Grocer, is a pioneer in trade journalism in the United States ; and as the New England Grocer is the representative of the highest order of an indepen- dent trade journal, so is Mr. Johnson a representative journalist. Mr. Johnson was publishing a paper in South Reading, Mass., now Wakefield, at the beginning of the war. In 1862 he joined the navy and served under Commodore Foote and was present at the taking of Island No. 10 in the Mississippi. He also served under Admirals Davis, Walker, Porter and Winslow. He was on board the gun- boat Baron de Kalb, when it was blown up under the confeder- ate fort on the Yazoo River in the rear of Vicksburg. Mr. Johnson's experience also includes eight years' service in the Boston post-office. Founded at a time when trade journal- ism was in its in- fancy, the New Eng- land Grocer has grown until it is now the largest and most influential grocery journal in the United - States. Its policy has always been a L thoroughly inde- pendent one, guided by principle and right. The New England Grocer commenced its successful career more than fifteen years ago. June 6, 1877, was the date of the initial number, when it was founded by its present manager, Mr. Johnson. At that time it was a new venture, and the trade was slow to appreciate the value of having a paper entirely given up to its interests. In those days the value of advertising to their customers was not appreciated by merchants as it is to-day, when the trade journal exercises a potent influence for good
BENJAMIN JOHNSON.
in the special field which it occupies. Not timorously, but with becoming modesty, the New England Grocer started. Its first number had a total of but twelve pages, but by an intelligent, independent course, and by an earnest devotion to the best interests of its constit- uency it gained the confidence of the trade. Thus it grew, and the business pressure upon its columns neces- sitated constant additions to its pages, until at the present time its regular weekly issue never falls below sixty pages, but runs at seventy-two pages a large part of the time ; and it some- times reaches a hun- dred. Its circulation and influence have fully kept pace with its mechanical ex- pansion, until now it reaches each week practically the entire trade in every sec- tion of the country, penetrating the re- motest hamlets of New England. It was with the New England Grocer that the idea of forming a grocers' associa- tion originated, and to-day flourishing or- ganizations exist in nearly every impor- tant city in the United States. Mr. Johnson is amply qualified for the work to which he devotes his life. He has a thoroughly practical knowledge of the business in all its branches, and is active, energetic, enterprising and pro- gressive. In October, 1890, a stock company, under the title of the New England Retail Grocers' Publishing Company was formed, the idea being to extend the influence and usefulness of the paper. Of the present prosperous corporation Mr. Johnson was appointed the general manager, a position which he holds at the present time.
24I
BOSTON.
S AMUEL ROADS, JR., was born in Marblehead, Mass., Oct. 22, 1853. He is the eldest son of Samuel and Emma L. (Woodfin) Roads, and is the sixth of the name in direct descent from one of the earliest settlers of that town. His family traces its lineage back to several of the most prominent families of New England, Dr. Elisha Story, an eminent physician and surgeon in the Continental Army during the War of the Revolution, being one of his ancestors. Captain John Harris, who
commanded the ship in which one of the first emissaries of the Continental Congress was conveyed to France during the Revolution, and who subsequently lost his life in the patriot cause, was another. Major John Ruddock, a prominent ship- builder, selectman of Boston, and a conspicuous charac- ter during the colo- nial era, is included in the list, as are also the Ornes, the Roundys and Wood- fins of Marblehead, families well-known among the sturdy yeomanry of that his- toric old town. Mr. Roads received his early education in the public schools. He early developed a literary talent and . a taste for journal- ism, in which latter profession he has become widely known. Before coming of age he demonstrated his ability in this line of work in the conduct of a local paper published in his native town. He soon formed connections with the Boston Post, Boston Globe, and other metropolitan papers, and has since been engaged in this and other literary work. Mr. Roads is the author of the interesting and widely read "History and Traditions of Marblehead," a work published by
SAMUEL ROADS, JR.
Houghton, Osgood & Co., in 1880, which has been aptly termed by reviewers " a model history of an American town." His first public office was as a mem- ber of the Board of Trustees of Abbot Public Library of Marblehead, to which he was elected in 1883. In November of that year he was elected a member of the House of Representatives, and served by continuous re-elections during the sessions of 1884, 1885 and 1886. In 1887 and 1888 he was a member of the State Senate, representing the second Essex dis- trict, comprising the city of Salem and the towns of Marble- head and Beverly. The district has a large Republican majority, but Mr. Roads, though a Democrat in poli- tics, was twice elected by phenom enal majorities. In 1888 he received the honor of a unani- mous nomination for representative in Congress by the
Democrats of the seventh congres- sional district, and though defeated at the polls after a most spirited contest. demonstrated his popularity as a can- didate by receiving nearly one thousand votes ahead of his party ticket. Mr. Roads has shown marked ability in the public positions to which he has been called, and while in the Legisla- ture was recognized as one of the leading members of his party. He commanded respect and won merited encomiums for his strength and force as a debater, and the tact and talent exhibited in the management of the many important measures in which he took a lively interest. In 1891 he was appointed private sec- retary to the governor, a position which he still holds.
242
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
T THE oldest newspaper editor in New England, and perhaps in America to-day, is Patrick Donahoe, owner of the Boston Pilot. His life has been a long series of successes and reverses, of struggles and victo- ries, until to-day he stands at the head of the most influential, among the distinctively Catholic, newspapers of the United States, and is the most respected and widely known among the Irish American newspaper men of this Republic. Thoroughly, though not obtru- sively Irish and Cath- olic in his opinions, he enjoys the good- will and esteem of his fellow-citizens and countrymen without distinction of creed, and is looked upon as one of the best and truest types of his race and religion. Mr. Donahoe is seventy-seven years old, having been born in Mummery, parish of Kilmore, County Cavan, Ire- land, March 17, 1815. When a lad he came to Boston, and learned the type-setting business in the office of the Columbian Centinel. Soon after he took charge, in conjunc- tion with Mr. Deve- reaux, of a paper called the Jesuit, which had been pub . lished for a short time by Bishop Fenwick, and changed its name to the Literary and Catholic Sentinel. Later on, in 1836, Messrs. Donahoe and Devereaux estab- lished the l'ilot, which after more than half a century of existence, is still the great exponent of Catholic doctrines in New England. By Mr. Donahoe's exer- tions the Pilot was made an extraordinary success, and so it remained up to the disastrous fire of 1872, when Mr. Donahoe's splendid building and printing materials
PATRICK DONAHOE.
were destroyed a second time, resulting in a loss to him of $300,000. Soon after he was burned out a third time. The panic followed, and the friends who had loaned him money were compelled, reluctantly, to with- draw their assistance from him. But with sublime faith in the goodness of Providence, he placed his property at the disposal of his creditors, although it had so depre- ciated in value that it did not realize anything near its proper value. Archbishop Williams and John Boyle O'Reilly, however, purchased the entire plant of the Pilot, between them, and Mr. Donahoe's creditors were paid off in yearly instal- ments. The national fame of the Pilot was maintained, and its circulation increased, under the editorship of the lamented O'Reilly, until, on his death, it once more passed into the hands of the man who had founded it, and is to-day conducted by him with all the fire and enthusiasm of his youth. Fifty years ago Mr. Donahoe established a foreign exchange and pas- senger agency which he still conducts, and in 1878 founded " Donahoe's Monthly Magazine," which . has attained wide circulation and popularity. It has recently passed into other hands. Mr. Donahoe was twice married ; first in 1836, and again in 1853. One son, Mr. Chrysostom P. Donahoc, survives, of the first marriage, while of the three sons and a daughter, the offspring of the second marriage, perhaps the best known is Mr. J. Frank Donahoc, organist of the C'athe- (ral of the Holy Cross, a prime favorite in Boston's musical circles.
243
BOSTON.
R EV. DENNIS O'CALLAGHAN, pastor of St. Augustine's Church, South Boston, Mass., is one of the most able and eloquent priests in New England, while he has as well that cordiality of manner that wins the love of his own people and the respect of all. Father O'Callaghan was born in Ireland about fifty-three years ago, but when he was very young his parents emigrated to this country and settled in Salem, Mass., where the subject of this sketch received his early edu- cation. Later he entered St. Charles College, near Balti- more, Maryland, and from thence went to St. Mary's Seminary, Mt. St. Mary's, Mary- land, where he com- pleted his theological studies, being or- dained priest by the late Archbishop Bayley, of Baltimore, June 29, 1865. Coming immediately to Boston, Father O'Callaghan served for two years as as- sistant priest of SS. Peter and Paul's Church, South Bos- ton, at the end of which time the Catholic population had grown to such proportions as to de- mand the formation of another parish in that district. There- fore to Father O'Cal- laghan was com- mitted the task of organizing and caring for the new parish, and he entered upon the work Aug. 22, 1868. The only place of worship available for the new congre- gation was the little mortuary chapel of St. Augustine, which, for the second time in its history, had to serve the purposes of a parish until such time as more suitable accommodation was provided. Father O'Callaghan has that happy faculty of winning the hearty co-operation of his people, because he believes in them and they in him,
DENNIS O'CALLAGHAN.
and it was not long before pastor and people set to work unitedly and enthusiastically to provide themselves with a parish church and property in every way credit- able to them. This united work crystallized in the pur- chase of the land on Dorchester Street, and the erection thereon of the magnificent church, costing over two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and which is one of the most attractive and beautiful in the State, con- structed of brick, with granite trimmings, and of the Gothic order of ar- chitecture. This beautiful church was dedicated Aug. 30, 1874, and two years later, being entirely out of debt, it en- tered the list of the very few consecrated churches in the city of Boston. In addi- tion to this church, through the labors of Father O'Callaghan, the parish enjoys a beautiful parochial residence, and a splendid parish hall, the latter built in 1888, at a cost of thirty-five thousand dollars. The inde- fatigable pastor is now engaged in the erection of a schoo' building, which will be one of the finest in the State, and will cost upwards of one hundred thousand. As a preacher, Father O'Callaghan's fame extends far beyond the limits of the Boston archdiocese, and he is in eager demand when the pressure of his parish duties admit of his appearance outside his parish pulpit. A zealous priest, a broad-minded, cultured gentleman, and a public- spirited citizen, he is respected by all classes of people in South Boston, among whom he has lived and labored with such distinguished success for more than a quarter of a century.
244
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
J.F EDWARD ADDICKS, president of the Boston Gas Light Company, was born in Philadelphia, Nov. 21, 1841, son of John E. C. O'S. and Margretta McLeod (Turner) Addicks. He is a lineal descendant of Donal O'Sullivan Beare, of Dunboy Castle, County York, Ireland. O'Sullivan was chief of Beare and Ban- try, and leader of the Munster forces in the religious war against Elizabeth. He died, Earl of Bearhaven, in 1604, at the age of fifty-seven, in Spain. Mr. Addicks is the grandson of Barbara O'Sullivan, who married John Edward Charles Ad- dicks, German con- sul to Philadelphia. She was the friend of John Marshall and Daniel Webster, and wrote, among other works, a series of es- says on "Education, treated as a Natural Science," the first of which was read at the Franklin Insti- tute, Philadelphia, in January, 1831. Her father was Major Thomas Herbert O'Sullivan Beare, of Bearhaven, Ireland. Of the same blood was Owen Sullivan, born in Limerick, in 1692, and father of Major-General John and Governor James Sullivan, of Revolu- tionary fame. Mr. Addicks's name, which he uses only among his books, is John Edward Charles O'Sullivan Addicks. He wears the ancient family ring, cut with the arms of O'Sullivan Beare. His great-great-grandmother on his mother's side was Lady Arabella Galbraith, of Scotland, who incurred her father's displeasure by marrying a plain gentleman, a Mr. McNeilus. They came to this country and settled in Philadelphia. In 1864 Mr. Addicks married Laura Wattson, eldest daughter of Washington and Mary
Elizabeth Butcher, of Philadelphia. By her he had one daughter, Florence. Three years after his wife's death he married Rosalie, second daughter of the same parents. Mr. Addicks was educated in the public schools of Philadelphia, entering the high school num- ber one, and graduating when fifteen years of age. Until he was nineteen years old he was in a wholesale dry goods house, when he entered the flour business of Levi Knowles, and was made a partner on attaining his majority. The energy which subse- quently characterized him brought him great success, mak- ing him the foremost man in his line in Philadelphia, when, three years later, he commenced business alone. He waslargely instrumental in intro- ducing the spring wheat flours of the Minnesota region to the Eastern sea- board. Mr. Addicks afterward became prominent in real es- tate operations in Philadelphia. Early in 1877 he removed his residence to Clay- mont, Del., a suburb of Philadelphia, of which place he has since been a citizen. Shortly thereafter his attention was called to the use of water gas for illumination, then an infant industry. In connection with this indus- try Mr. Addicks has become widely known throughout the United States, and has been closely identified with its progress. He built gas works in Jersey City, also for the Consumers' Gas Company, of Chicago, the lat- ter leading to the formation of the well known Chicago Gas Trust. In 1884 the Bay State Gas Company of Boston was organized, Mr. Addicks being its originator and the first to establish water gas works in that city.
J. EDWARD ADDICKS.
245
BOSTON.
H ENRY MELVILLE WHITNEY is the president of the West End Street Railway Company of Bos- ton-a system more comprehensive than any other street railway system in the world. He was born in the small town of Conway, Franklin County, Mass., Oct. 22, 1839. At that time his father, General James S. Whit- ney, kept an old-fashioned store. General Whitney was a Democrat of the Jacksonian school, and the idol of his community. His vote when in the Legislature decided the election of Charles Sumner to the United States Senate; subse- quently, from 1854 to 1860, he was su- perintendent of the United States Armory at Springfield, and was then appointed collector of the port of Boston. His death occurred Oct. 24, 1878. Young Whit- ney's home was made happy and charming by the presence of a good mother, Lau - rinda ( Collins) Whitney, who is still living. He acquired the rudiments of his education in the pub- lic schools which he completed with a course of study at Williston Seminary, at Easthampton. Shortly after the re- moval of his father from Springfield he returned to Conway as clerk in the Conway Bank, which position he held for three years. In 1860 his parents removed to Boston, where General Whitney became identified with important enterprises ; notably the Bos- ton Water Power Company and the Metropolitan Steam- ship Company. The son in the meantime had passed two years in the Bank of Redemption, some time as a clerk in the Naval Agent's office, and afterwards was engaged in the shipping business in New York. In
HENRY M. WHITNEY.
1866 he became Boston agent of the Metropolitan Steamship Company, and in 1870, after he had obtained possession of the stock which had depreciated in value, he became president, a position which he still holds. From that time Mr. Whitney has been regarded as a keen and far-seeing business man. In 1886 Mr. Whit- ney quietly purchased large tracts of land along the line of Beacon Street, Brookline. He invested nearly a mil- lion himself and formed a syndicate, which has resulted in the building of one of the most beau- tiful suburban boule- vards in the country. The scheme was financially very suc- cessful. Mr. Whitney was next instrumen- tal in building the railway connecting Boston and Brook- line, which was called the West End Street Railway. His next great achievement was the consolidating of this system with all the street railways centering in Boston, forming a splendid system, of which he is the efficient head. His study of the elec- tric systems for street cars, and the adop- tion of the trolley system in Boston, with the result of the appreciation of sub- urban property one hundred per cent, are matters of record. Mr. Whitney is also president of the Neverslip Horse Shoe and Hancock Inspirator com- panies, trustee of the West End Land Company, and chairman of the Board of Park Commissioners of Brook- line. Mr. Whitney owns a magnificent place on Jerusa- lem Road, Cohasset, but makes Brookline his home. In this town he met Miss Margaret Foster Green, whom he married in 1878. This union was blessed with a son and four daughters.
246
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
THE colossal express business of the United States - had its birthplace in Massachusetts, and was de- veloped by the genius of Alvin Adams. Mr. Adams was born in Andover, Vt., June 16, 1804, where he lived until his parents died, when he was eight years of age. He was then cared for by an elder brother, a farmer, until sixteen years old, when he obtained permission to seek his own living. He went to Woodstock, at that time a great centre of travel by stages, where he re- mained about four years, and then came to Boston. He en- gaged in business ventures with varying success until, in 1840, he started the express business that has since borne his name. There was another in the field, and friends advised the venturesome Adams that he would surely fail in his scheme, for there could not be sufficient business between Boston and New York for two lines ; but he fore- saw the great possi- bilities in the enter- prise and devoted all his energy to increase them. Previous to the existence of ex- press companies, those who had occa- sion to send packages or valuables to other places entrusted them to the care of acquaintances or friends, whom they bur- dened with the responsibility of delivery. It was a daily sight at the stations to see would-be senders searching for passengers willing to accommodate them by taking charge of their parcels. Mr. Adams apprecia- ted the absurdity of this okl-fashioned system and set resolutely to work to reform it. He seized his oppor- tunity and, starting with limited patronage, gradually won the confidence of the people and concentrated in
himself the business of forwarding for all. The first express to New York left Boston, May 4, 1840. The convenience was soon appreciated by the public, and in a short time he was entrusted with goods by merchants and money packages by banks. He associated himself with Ephraim Farnsworth, under the name of Adams & Co. Farnsworth took charge of the New York office, but soon retired, and was succeeded by William B. Dinsmore, a valued friend of Mr. Adams and a zealous officer of the com- pany. For several years the business was limited to Bos- ton, Norwich, New London and New York City. In 1850 the line was ex- tended to Califor- nia, with agencies in every town and camp. It increased so rapid- ly, that in 1854 the Adams Express Com- pany was formed by the union of Adams & Co., Harnden & Co., Thompson & Co. and Kinsley & Co., with Alvin Adams as president. During the Civil War the Adams Express Company was of great assistance to the government in forwarding military supplies, and was the recognized agent for transporting all gov- ernment securities and money. Its employees were at the front to receive from soldiers their pay, and take it to their families and friends. The company employs about nine thousand five hundred men, and owns three thousand horses and two thousand wagons. Its offices number about six thousand, and its mileage is about forty-five thousand. Mr. Adams died Sept. 1, 1877, at Watertown, Mass., which had been his place of residence for very many years.
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