USA > Massachusetts > Massachusetts of today; a memorial of the state, historical and biographical, issued for the World's Columbian exposition at Chicago > Part 64
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506
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
A' RTHUR H. HALL was born at Savoy, Mass., Nov. 9, 1851, his parents being George and Jane C. Hall. He received the advantages of a common-school education in his native town, after which he entered the store of the Lanesboro' Iron Company, at Lanesboro', Mass., as clerk. Here he remained from Jan. 1, 1866, to June 1, 1872, during which time he developed ability as an accountant. Upon leaving his Lanesboro' position, he became book-keeper for Rice, Robbins & Co., of Pittsfield, which place he re- tained only a few months, resigning to accept a similar post with the firm of Prince & Walker, of the same town. Two years later he moved to Boston and be- came book-keeper for A. H. Miller, serving in that capac- ity considerably more than a year, when, an opportunity being offered him to re- turn to Pittsfield, he determined to ac- cept, as he was much attached to the big Berkshire town and closely identified with its interests. Accordingly, he re- turned and became accountant for the concern of Robbins, Gammell & Co., Oct. 1, 1877. This con- nection was contin- ued until March 1, 1888, when he was admitted to part- nership in the firm, which has long carried on an extensive business in steam-heating apparatus, iron piping, boilers, engines, pumps, sprinklers, etc., on West Street. Mr. Hall still remains a member of this house, which is one of the oldest and most successful not only in its line, but of Pittsfield's varied concerns. Mr. Hall is particularly well known through his active efforts in behalf of the Republican party, the principles
ARTHUR H. HALL.
of which he has ever loyally supported. He has been a member of the Pittsfield Republican Committee con- tinuously since Jan. 1, 1881, having served as chairman since 1883, still retaining the directorship. Although the exacting cares of business make heavy demands upon his time, he has given the interests of his party careful supervision, and it is more to his energy than to that of any other one member of the committee that the excel- lent Republican showing of recent campaigns has been due. Fitting recog- nition of Mr. Hall's work was made a year ago, when he was elected a mem- ber of the Republican State Committee, representing the Berkshire district. His principal service has been as a mem- ber of the Finance Committee, where the value of his work has been as much appreciated as on the city board, and that is saying much, for Pittsfield is noth- ing if not political, and many are the war-horses of both parties who have done valiant service. Mr. Hall was married to Miss Ellen M. Stewart, of Pittsfield, June 29, 1873, and they have two daughters, one aged eighteen, and the other eleven. Mr. Hall is a good specimen of the modern business man, prompt and exact in dealings, who applies business methods to everything he under- takes. This is the secret of his success. While deeply engaged in commercial pursuits Mr. Hall has yet found time to mingle somewhat in less material matters which deeply underlie the prosperity of any community, and is counted among the most progressive of Pittsfield's citizens.
507
PITTSFIELD.
T THE Commonwealth of Massachusetts takes good care of its disabled firemen, the State Legislature voting annually the sum of ten thousand dollars for their relief. This fund was secured largely through the efforts of George S. Willis, of Pittsfield, who for years has interested himself actively in behalf of the firemen, at the same time attending to the duties that devolve upon him as secretary and treasurer of the Cornelius Callahan Company of Boston, the largest firm in the country dealing in fire department sup- plies. Mr. Willis was born, July 27, 1847, at Pittsfield, Mass., the son of Colonel George S. Willis. His mother's maiden name was Louisa Packard. Mr. Willis is the grandson of General Nathan Willis, who attained prominence in the War of 1812, and who was one of the first settlers of Pittsfield. He was one of the leading men of the town, organizing its first bank and being the first president of the Berkshire Mutual Fire Insurance Com- pany. He was also active in the politi- cal life of his day, representing Pitts- field for many years in the State Legisla- ture. He was the Democratic candidate for lieutenant- governor year after year for a long period, and would have been elected if he had accepted the nomination the last time it was offered to him. His son, Colonel Willis, was at one time high sheriff of Berkshire County, and at one time or another filled nearly all the county offices within the gift of his fellow-citizens. George S. Willis was educated in the public schools of Pittsfield and at St. Paul's School, Concord, N. H. In his six-
GEORGE S. WILLIS.
teenth year he left St. Paul's to enlist in the Eighth Massachusetts Regiment. At the close of the war he returned to Pittsfield, and for ten years was engaged in the manufacture of tacks and nails. In 1879 he was appointed chief engineer of the Pittsfield Fire Depart- ment, and served in that capacity until 1886. In 1885 he established the Cornelius Callahan Company of Boston, and was chosen its secretary and treasurer, a position which he has held ever since. The company manufac- tures patent special- ties in great variety, including rubber- lined cotton hose, relief valves, shut- off and spray noz- zles, flexible play pipes, hydrant gates, hose couplings, gongs, strikers and door openings. Pre- vious to January, 1893, Mr. Willis had been a member of the Democratic State Central Committee for thirteen consec- utive years, having been a member at large for the last seven or eight years, and taking upon his shoulders the burden of much active po- litical work in every campaign. Upon his resignation he was the oldest mem- ber of the committee in point of service. Mr. Willis helped to organize the Massachusetts State Firemen's Association, and was its first president. He has been a member of its legislative committee ever since its organization, and in this capacity has been enabled to accomplish much for the benefit of the firemen of the State. He is a mem- ber of Post 196, Grand Army of the Republic. Mr. Willis is unmarried, and lives at home with his mother in Pittsfield, though his principal business interests are in Boston.
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LOK ENG.COM
BROCKTON
B ROCKTON was formerly known as the North Parish of Bridgewater, and as such was first settled, and the first houses were built a few years before the year 1700. The Howards and the Keiths are believed to have been the earliest settlers, but before 1725 there were probably fifty owners of land in the parish. It was all very primitive in those days. Many houses were built of logs, squared, and with the cracks between filled with moss and clay. But within a few years there was a noticeable improvement. Saw-mills and brick-kilns gave opportunity for decent houses to replace the log huts of the early settlers, and occasional improvements were noted in the manner of living generally.
From that time on, the life of a citizen of the North Parish of Bridgewater was no different from the life of the other dwellers in small places elsewhere. He had the same difficulties to contend with that were common in those days, and he surmounted them with the courage and persistence which were every-day virtues in those times. The citizens made their first important move on May 31, 1738, when fifty-five householders put in a peti- tion to the General Court, and asked that the parish be set off as the North Parish of Bridgewater. The population at that time was, perhaps, 300. After the General Court had granted the petitioners' prayer, things moved on quietly with the North Parish. The population increased but slowly, and in 1764 there were but 120 houses in the place, and a population of 833. In 1810 there were 1,354 dwellers in the place ; in 1820, only 1,480. In 1821 the parish became the town of North Bridgewater. Up to 1850, twenty-nine years after the parish became a town, the population had only reached 3,939.
From 1830 to 1840 the town first began to take on a measure of business prosperity. The manufacture of boots and a few shoes was begun, and it is told how Micah Faxon first took the manufactured product over the road to Boston on horseback. A few small manufactories had started in the western part of the town, and more down town. Population and factories began to increase, however. In 1860 there were 6,584 people in town ; in 1870, a little over 8,000 ; in 1880 it had 13,608, and in 1890 it showed 27,272, an increase of over one hundred per cent, and the most marvellous of any city in Massachusetts. It has long since shaken off the name and the fetters that bound it to Bridgewater, and has prospered since 1874 as the town and city of Brockton. It adopted the city form of government in 1881.
Brockton has grown on leather. It is now the greatest producer of men's fine and medium grades of shoes of any city in the world. Women's shoes are not made at all, and men's cheap shoes are made to but a limited extent. Shoes were made here in 1811, but they were few. In 1837 the yearly output was but 100,000 pairs ; in 1855 it was 762,000 pairs. Then the production grew rapidly. In 1889 it had reached a yearly valuation of $18,000,000. In 1892 the shipment of shoes from this city was 428,241 cases, a gain of 166,584 cases over the shipments of ten years ago. The average number of pairs of shoes to a case is figured at twenty-one pairs, so it is seen that Brockton in 1892 sent out about 9,000,000 pairs of men's shoes, a marvellous total, indeed. There are over 70 shoe mannfactories in the city, employing over 8,000 hands.
The present population, at a conservative estimate, is 30,000, though the State Board of Health places it at 32,000. The valuation is $19,000,000. There are 4,593 dwellings in the city, of which 232 were erected within the year 1892. The new buildings include a $250,000 City Hall that is well under way, a new brick police station, and several handsome residences that would ornament any city. New blocks and new residences are in contemplation, and improvements are the order of the day everywhere. The greatest that is now in view is a system of sewerage for the city.
The city is well built and business-like in appearance, with a large number of brick business blocks, gas and electric lights, a fine system of electric street car lines running through the city out into the suburbs, a school system which this year will cost over $88,000, a good water system, and a good fire department and efficient police force. There is not a liquor saloon in the city, and there has not been for over five years.
509
BROCKTON.
Z IBA C. KEITH, the mayor of the city of Brockton, was born there in 1842, when it was the town of North Bridgewater. He obtained his education in the schools there and at the Pierce Academy at Middle- boro', and after graduating became book-keeper and salesman for a business firm. In 1864 Mr. Keith opened a store at Campello, in company with Embert Howard. It was a general store, in which everything was kept, from groceries to silks. The store was kept up by Mr. Keith un- der various firm styles until 1883, when he sold out the business. Mr. Keith can assuredly justly claim that he is a "favorite son" of Brockton. In 1875 he was sent to repre- sent the city in the Legislature, where he remained two years. In 1879 he was chosen as a member of the Board of Selectmen. In 1881 he was a member of the Com- mittee on Drafting the City Charter. When the town be- came a city he was chosen as its first mayor. Hewas chosen again, after a year of retirement, in 1884 and 1885. Again in 1891 and 1892 the Republi- cans called upon him to lead them, and he was triumphantly elected. He is at present serving his sixth term as mayor of the city. Even when he was not acting as mayor of the city he was serving it in other capacities. He represented the district in the State Senate in 1887 and 1888; and was the city's tax collector in 1887, 1888 and 1889. He was an incorporator of the Campello Co-operative Bank, the Brockton Savings Bank and the Brockton National Bank, and has held office in each corporation. He is
ZIBA C. KEITH.
president of the Plymouth County Safe Deposit and Trust Company, and was chosen at the election in the fall of 1892 a member of the governor's council. There is no more genial and approachable man in the city of Brockton to-day than Mayor Keith. While his politics are, of course, not popular with one section of the community, his personal enemies are very few and of no importance. He has been a figure of public importance practically for seventeen years. He has been an able legisla- tor. His repeated elections to the office of mayor of the city show that he is re- garded as an able and thoroughly in- corruptible occupant of the mayor's chair. Wherever he has been placed, he has served to the satis- faction of the great mass of citizens, and therefore with honor to himself. Mayor Keith is a very good musician and a gen- tleman of good taste and a nice apprecia- tion of life, as is evinced in his speeches upon all sorts of topics and on all sorts of occa- sions. They are al- ways well written and befitting the time and place. No small share of the city's prosperity is due to the able and most energetic part which Mayor Keith has always taken in municipal affairs. He is, in fact, as thoroughly identified with Brockton as any other man. The citizens of Brockton deem themselves exceptionally fortunate in possessing in Mr. Keith a mayor who adds to a wide knowledge of men and affairs a pleasing and courteous personality which has endeared him to his fellow-townsmen. His acquaintance with public affairs is supplemented with a ripe culture. 1
510
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
J JOHN J. WHIPPLE is among the best-known and most influential and successful men in Massachu- setts. In business, political and society circles he is a power, and numbers his personal friends by the legion. He is president of the Wildey Savings Bank of Boston. He was born in Worcester, Mass., Dec. 31, 1847. After attending the public schools of Hopkinton and Milford, he went to Marlboro' and learned the drug business, and in 1886 started in business for himself in North Bridge- water (which has since become the city of Brockton), and for a quarter of a cen- tury he conducted a successful business as a druggist. In 1876 he was elected to the School Committee, serving on that board for nine years, and, while still a school committeeman, was elected on the Board of Selectmen and to a number of impor- tant town offices. After the town be- came incorporated as a city, Colonel Whip- ple was elected to the Board of Alder- men. In 1885 he was sent as a repre- sentative to the State Legislature, and dur- ing the years 1886- 87 was mayor of the city. He was secre- tary of the Republi- can State Central Committee in 1884-85, doing efficient work during the memorable Blaine campaign, while Henry Cabot Lodge was chairman of the committee. Governor Robinson appointed Mr. Whipple his personal aid on his staff, with the rank of colonel, and he served as such in 1883, 1884, 1885. Governor Ames appointed him a member of the Massachusetts Board of Pharmacy for a term of three years, and at the expiration of that term he was tendered a re-appointment by Governor Russell,
which was declined. Colonel Whipple was the princi- pal mover in establishing the first savings bank in Brockton, and was made the first president of the institution. Through his influence the present commo- dious bank building was erected. He was president for ten years, and in 1892 resigned the position to accept the presidency of the Wildey Savings Bank. He built up the Brockton Savings Bank to one of the most suc- cessful in the State, and when he left it there were deposits in it amount- ing to over $1,500- 000. He is one of the proprietors of the Brockton City Thea- tre, one of the hand- somest outside of Boston. He was one of a company of four that introduced elec- tric lights in the city. He was chairman of the Board of Wage Arbitration, the first board of its kind in the State. He is president of the New England Club, one of the largest chibs in Boston. In secret societies Colonel Whipple has a na- tional reputation. In Odd Fellowship he is past grand patriarch and a representative to the sovereign grand lodge. He 1 was a member of the Board of Trustees that built the new Odd Fellows' Home at Worcester. In Masonry he is a Knight Templar. He was one of the founders of the New England Order of Protection, and is now serving his third term as supreme warden. In 1892 he was grand prelate in the grand lodge of the Knights of Pythias, and has just been elected grand vice-chancellor. He is president of the Odd Fellows' Accident Company and is interested in many benevolent and financial enter- prises in the State.
JOHN J. WHIPPLE.
5II
BROCKTON.
T THE Keiths of Campello, the southern section of the city of Brockton, have ever been important factors in the business and social life of the town of North Bridgewater and the city of Brockton, which fol- lowed it. One of the best-known and most successful has been George Eldon Keith, who is probably to-day the largest manufacturer of shoes in the city of Brock- ton, and that is saying a good deal. George Eldon Keith is the son of Franklin and Betsy Keith, and was born Feb. 8, 1850. He ob- tained a good edu- cation, and was a member of the first class that graduated from the Brockton High School. In many of the hours when school was not in session, he worked at the bench, and after graduating con- tinued at the work as a practical shoe- maker till July 7, 1874, when he began the manufacture of shoes in company with William S. Green. In 1880 he sold out his interest to Mr. Green, and built a large factory on Perkins Avenue for his own occu- pancy. Success was his from the start, and a phenomenal success at that. It was not long before he had the biggest factory in Brockton, did the biggest business, and em- ployed the largest number of hands, making a good and stylish line of footwear. This supremacy it is believed that Mr. Keith still retains. A glance at Mr. Keith's business offers some idea of its magnitude. At present between six hundred and seven hundred hands are em- ployed, and the shipments aggregate three quarters of a million pairs of shoes a year. Within a comparatively short time Mr. Keith has adopted the idea of catering
to the retail trade exclusively, his products being favor- ably known to dealers from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and from Maine to Texas. In addition to the respon- sibilities of his business, he finds time to do his share as a director of the Third National Bank of Boston, one of the largest banking institutions of that city, and as director of the Brockton National and Brockton Savings banks. He is also treasurer of the Howland Falls Pulp Company, of Howland, Me., this being one of the largest institutions of the kind in the country. The mill alone cost $300,000. Mr. Keith is widely popular. He made the inter- ests of the people who worked for him his interests. He is active in religious matters, and has ad- vanced in every way the interests of the South Congrega- tional Church, of which he is a mem- ber. He was the first president of the Y. M. C. A. in Brock- ton, and labored ar- dently to promote its cause in every possible way, so that its success is largely attributable to his efforts. He has gen- erally kept out of politics. The Re- publicans wished to make him their standard-bearer in the mayoralty contest two years ago, but he declined to allow the use of his name. He was the alderman from Ward Four the first year that Brockton was a city, and that is the extent of his political service. Personally, Mr. Keith is of bright and pleasant temperament, a good fellow socially, and without the angles and rough edges of many self-made men. In connection with his factory he has established a good restaurant, the profits of which are shared by the employees.
GEORGE E. KEITH.
512
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
IT is a question with many people, whether Mr. Harvey F. Crawford has made the "Crawford shoe " what it is to-day, or whether the "Crawford shoe " has made Mr. Crawford. A brief review of his business life, as herewith given, will settle this doubt beyond question, proving conclusively, as it does, that Mr. Crawford has not only made the "Crawford shoe," but himself also. Like so many other successful men of affairs in this Commonwealth, Mr. Crawford is a native of the State of
Maine. His first venture in the shoe industry was made in 1879, when with Mr. Holman Gould as a partner he be- gan manufacturing in the Horace Keith Building in Brockton. That was about thir- teen years ago, and on the smallest foun- dation he has built up since then one of the great industries of this State. The total capital of the firm at the start was fifty dollars. At the expiration of four months Mr. Craw- ford bought his part- ner's interest, entire, for twenty-four dol- lars. This original bill of sale Mr. Craw- ford still keeps among his treasures. His next venture was with Mr. E. J. Fletcher, and after a few months, during which time the firm met with indifferent success, he again purchased his partner's share. Still later we find him in company with Mr. Charles A. Eaton, who was later of Eaton & Terry and is now in business alone. This firm was located on Montello Street, Brockton, and was burned out. Busi- ness was then recommenced in the Shaw Building. After two years' affiliation with Mr. Eaton, the latter disposed of his interest to Mr. Crawford, who continued
HARVEY F. CRAWFORD.
the business alone until the failure of F. Shaw & Broth- ers of Boston. This swept Mr. Crawford, with others, into insolvency. Nothing daunted by reverses, he again began at the bottom of the ladder. It was about this time that he invented the French welt, which gave the cheaper grade of shoes a smooth inner sole, a result which up to that time had never been obtained. This immedi- ately proved a success and brought Mr. Crawford a hand- some return. In 1887 the present partnership with Mr. George F. Bouvé, at that time a promi- nent leather dealer in Boston, was -7 effected. Recog- nizing the inequality of the struggle be- tween the smaller manufacturers of shoes and the large concerns, and shrewdly surmising that a manufacturer should get as near to the consumer as pos- sible, thus saving one profit, at least, Mr. Crawford conceived the idea of establish- ing retail stores in the principal cities throughout the coun- try. Many of his friends tried to dis- suade him from what they deemed certain failure, but with con- fidence in his scheme he proceeded to put it to the test. Its success was instanta- neous, and it has been widely copied by other manufac- turers. At the present time two large factories are required to produce the shoes sold by Crawford, Bouve & Co., and the firm's success is known throughout the land. Personally, Mr. Crawford is pleasant to meet and respected by all with whom he comes in contact. Hc will soon occupy a beautiful new home in Brockton, which stands as a monument to his perseverance and pluck.
513
BROCKTON.
W HEN you speak of the most valuable men in a community, the " self-made " men who have attained success may, with propriety, be placed in the front rank. No better example of the self-made man can be found in Brockton to-day than is visible in the person of the Honorable William L. Douglas. The name of Douglas is a household word throughout the United States, and his picture, representing a keen busi- ness-like citizen, still young, with far-seeing eyes and a general look of vigor and enterprise, is to be found in nearly every important newspaper in the land. For he is the man who makes the great "$ 3 shoe." Mr. Douglas was born in Plymouth, Aug. 22, 1845. His father died while William was a child, and at the age of seven he was bound out to his uncle to learn the shoemak- er's trade. He was an apprentice till he was sixteen years old and at that age could turn out a complete pair of brogans un- aided. In 1870 he went to Brockton to act as superintend- ent of Porter & Southworth's factory, and in 1876, on $875 capital, he began to manufacture in a single room. In a year or two he was in a well-equipped factory on Spring Street, and in 1882 he put up a fac- tory four stories high, two hundred and twenty-eight feet long and with a capacity of one thousand four hun- dred and forty pairs of shoes daily. In 1888 and 1889 additions were made to the factory. Even then the con- stantly growing business was too great for the big shop, although seventy cases, the full capacity of the shop, were turned out daily during 1892. In the autumn of
WILLIAM L. DOUGLAS.
1892, the W. L. Douglas Shoe Company, which had been incorporated in March of that year, moved into a new and fine factory which had been erected at Mon- tello in the northern part of the city. The building is three hundred feet long, forty feet wide, four stories high, and with a capacity of three thousand six hun- dred pairs daily .. The amount of the sales this year will aggregate. $1,500,000, and the advertising contract calls for the expenditures by the company of $150,000 in the same time. There are twenty- four salesmen out canvassing for orders all over the Union. The $3 shoe idea was the scheme that gave Mr. Douglas his greatest success. In a few years he built up a trade on that shoe that taxed his factory's capa- city. He gave up the jobbing trade, sent out his own drummers, spent $100,000 in a single year for advertising, and sold his shoes and is still selling them everywhere. Mr. Douglas was a member of Brock- ton's Common Coun- cil in 1882 and 1883 : was a representative to the General Court in 1883 and 1884 : sat in the State Sen- ate in 1886, being the first Democrat elected from his district in a long term of years ; and was mayor of Brockton in 1890. He is a prominent member of the Universalist church. While acting as mayor Mr. Douglas started a movement for the adoption of a system of sewerage for Brockton, but was unable to push the matter to success, owing to the unpopularity of a sewerage commission, but it has now been adopted and is being carried on practically accord- ing to his plans.
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