USA > Massachusetts > Massachusetts of today; a memorial of the state, historical and biographical, issued for the World's Columbian exposition at Chicago > Part 69
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doing a Western retail and a New England jobbing trade. For nearly eighteen years he has been located near the City Hall, where his business building, two hundred and ten feet by sixty, and four stories high, is situated. Severely simple, externally, and a model of comfort and elegance within, this edifice stands by itself, with no ornamentation save the plain gold letters, A. F. Smith, above its door. It is worthy of note, as a slight index to the thoroughness of Mr. Smith's nature, that insurance folks consider this the ideal shoe factory. But Mr. Smith's chief claim, perhaps, on the attention of the business world is his inventive faculty, and one of the most valuable results of this gift is is the Smith Shav- ing Machine, which is now in use abroad as well as all over the United States. The machine whose place Mr. Smith's inven- tion took, shaved the heel of the shoe, but did not finish it, and about cight years ago, after many experiments, Mr. Smith patented a 3
ARTHUR F. SMITH.
machine with both these functions. The personal life of Mr. Smith has been very quiet. Republican in politics, he has always avoided the temptations of office. Married years ago to Miss Helen M. White, of Lynn, he was bereaved of her companionship ten years ago and left with one child. In due course of time he was married again to her sister, Miss Martha A. White, with whom he lives in a home marked with quiet elegance and unostentations hospitality. Though of a retiring dispo- sition, Arthur F. Smith has made many friends and hekdl them through his life by constant kindness and courtesy.
545
LYNN.
B USINESS and belles-lettres do not often go hand in hand. The world, however, has taken account of Samuel Rogers, the banker-poet of England in the past, and of Edmund Clarence Stedman, the poet and banker of our time. Not many people have heard of Eugene Barry, though his name often appears in periodicals appended to verse which would have done credit to Samuel Rogers and of which even Stedman need not be ashamed. Yet Eugene Barry is known to most of his townsmen and friends simply as a very suc- cessful manufacturer of morocco, for in his modesty he has not yet gathered up his vagrant verses into a book, and cast them on the waters of the world. He was born in Lynn, Oct. 12, 1843, his father, Darius Barry, being then a promi- nent morocco manu- facturer. There the son attended the public schools until 1851, when the father moved his family and business to Til- ton, N. H. While in New Hampshire the boy worked part of his time in the morocco factory and after the return of the family to Lynn, in 1857, he contin- ued working in the intervals of attend- ance at school. Despite such double duty, Eugene Barry, in 1861, at the age of eighteen, graduated at the Lynn High School with great credit, the valedictorian of his class. He at once went to work in the morocco trade as a foreman, and soon then became a salesman, the thorough knowledge acquired step by step as a boy proving of constantly increasing advantage to himself and others. In 1867 he became a partner of Charles G. Clark, and five years later began business alone.
EUGENE BARRY.
Through the long depression following the panic of 1873 he gained slowly but steadily by that patience and prudence which finally compel into their service all the deities ; for, as a famous poet remarked about nine- teen hundred years ago : Nullum Numen abest, si sit Prudentia præsens. The many changes, almost revolu- tions, in tanning methods since 1873, from sumac tan- nages to those of gambier, alum, oil, and later of chemicals, exclusively, have demanded the utmost skill and the closest atten- tion, but through all these changes Mr. Barry has succeeded in achieving excel- lence, and his fine grades in morocco and kid stock have gained for his goods a high reputation. Taking deep interest in public affairs, he has not sought pre- ferment, and, saving a directorship for many years in the First National Bank of Lynn and a two years' presidency of the Oxford Club, he has not held office. As a poet Eugene Barry is far above mediocrity. His ode for the dedication of the new high school of Lynn is full of fine feeling straight- forwardly expressed. His " Bayberry Leaf," a tristful theme that rises into trust, has a certain classic simplicity, and a humorous rhyme called a " Classic Idyl," though lack- ing technique in parts, is very pleasant. "At the Palmer House, Chicago," which appeared in the Boston Transcript, is a bit of blank verse not unworthy of Cowper. Others of his poems are equally good, and some time a modest little book containing them would be worth having. It is pleasant to find a man like Mr. Barry, amid business cares remembering the eternal verities.
546
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
W HEN the son of an evicted Irish farmer becomes one of the most active men in a thriving city like Lynn, such a fact implies character. In the same county where Patrick Collins first saw the light, the famous county of Cork, and in the parish of Carrigtwo- hill, on Feb. 2, 1859, was born Richard Nagle, now the president of the Consolidated Adjustable Shoe Company of Lynn. In 1873 his father, driven to America by oppression, settled in Salem, and Richard, the oldest, went to work in a cotton mill, be- ginning with the wretched salary of $1.80 per week. There he worked three years, but find- ing no opportunity for education he sought a position in the store of Almy, Bigelow & Webber. There also he stayed for three years, study- ing hard in his spare time. Then he be- gan to learn that part of the shoe business known as lasting, and in 1885 this ambi- tious young Irish- American b e g a n manufacturing shoes at Salem under the firm name of Nagle & Condon. He re- mained in this firm two years and in 1886 was a common councilman and a member of the Board of Health. In the latter part of this year he went to Lynn and took charge of a Co-operative Shoe Company, having been interested ever since he began to think in the principle of co-operation as applied to modern industry. After a while the Taylor Adjustable Shoc attracted his attention, and early in 1887 he with others formed what is now known as the Consolidated Adjusta- ble Shoe Company. This large concern began quite small, but every year demonstrated the administrative
RICHARD NAGLE.
capacity of its president, Mr. Nagle, who in 1890 secured a patent on an adjustable shoe that retained all the valuable features of the Taylor and did away with the others. The Taylor, for instance, had a piece of exposed rubber inserted at each side of the ball, but in the Perfection Adjustable Shoe invented by Mr. Nagle this rubber is covered and the shoe thus rendered far more lasting. This is patented in Great Britain and Ireland as well as America. Mr. Nagle has also patented a plant to go on a lasting-jack, and has recently filed an ap- plication for an im- proved metallic but- ton-fastener, an invention that ladies will appreciate. Such is the activity of Mr. Nagle's busi- ness life. His home life was overshad- owed by the death, on June 17, 1892, of his wife, who left him one child. His pub- lic life in Lynn promises a success not unlike that of his business career. In 1891 he was nomi- nated for alderman on the workingnien's ticket which, con- sidering his short residence in the city, betokened his growth in popular esteem, and consid- ering that among thirty candidates he ranked thirteenth, his political beginning may be reck- oned rather remarkable. Vet is it remarkable, when we review his life, and see how this Irish lad, Richard Nagle, has secured a home for his aged parents and himself, has built up a prosperous business, has added to the comfort of mankind by his inventions, and has become a representative citizen of the great State of Massachusetts. To the land that has sent us so much good material for citizens let us give full credit.
547
LYNN.
WILLIAM G. S. KEENE.
Nº O account of Lynn could be complete without a few points from the life of William G. S. Keene, a man whose penetrative mind and strong, though never super-assertive, personality, would have made him the mark of a good deal of public attention, had he lived in a much larger sphere of civic activity. For, not merely wherever the trade of Lynn spreads the name of Keene goes likewise, but in all the local improvements, in the development of Lynn into a great civilized home as well as a vast workshop, the Keenes for several generations have played their part - an increasingly large part - with unfailing and well-deserved success. William G. S. Keene, who was born in Lynn, June 10, 1843, was the son of George W. and Mary A. (Breed) Keene. He came from old Quaker stock on both sides, and his maternal ancestry traces back to one of Lynn's first settlers. It is worthy of remembrance in connection with his Quaker ancestry, that Lynn once contained more Quakers than even Philadelphia. Mr. Keene's mother was a daughter of the Hon. Isaiah Breed, a well- known shoe manufacturer, whose tireless enterprise rendered him a figure of more than local importance. Isaiah was a long time the president of the Lynn Mechanics' Bank, and one of the leading directors of the Eastern Railroad. The father of W. G. S. Keene was likewise a shoe manufacturer and, as a natural mat- ter of hereditary bent and aptitude, it was to be expected that when his sons, W. G. S. and F. Keene, succeeded to the business under the firm name of Keene Brothers, they would continue it with the energy and talent that
solidify past successes and pave the way for fresh achievement. The career of W. G. S. Keene has been closely identified with the material and intellectual development of his native city, and perhaps the move- ments of the very house where he was born illustrate Lynn's growth as well as anything else. This house originally stood on or near the corner of Exchange and Union streets. But the pressure of business caused Mr. Keene, Sr., to move it to the corner of Willow and Oxford. In its place he built a brick business block, ornamental as well as commodious. The house was removed again to the western part of Franklin Street (where it now stands), and in its stead another brick block was erected, the beginning of a series built on Willow Street by this progressive family. Many wondered at this block on Willow Street, and were tempted to think that its builders must be blockheads, for the business tendency then seemed toward the central station, and the new block was at least one thousand feet away, and away from every kind of busi- ness. But now, within a radius of five hundred feet, there are twenty-two brick blocks, nearly all from four to six stories. To those who have accused W. G. S. Keene of being a business visionary, this fact ought to demonstrate his foresight. But perhaps they call it his good luck, for to some minds every Columbus is a vis- ionary till he has found his San Salvador, and often after his discovery, is still reckoned merely an inspired blunderer. Mr. Keene married Miss Fanny Gerry, of Lynn. His home is very attractive.
VES
T "HE pretty and enterprising town of Westfield entered upon the Columbian year with two marks of distinction. The first was that of being the largest town in Hampden County ; the second, that it is the largest whip manufacturing community in the world. Both have their value and both go to increase the fame of the town, which is everywhere known as the " Whip City."
Westfield was settled some time previous to the year 1641, although there appears to be a considerable difference of authorities on this point, and various dates, embracing the years between 1641 and 1662, are sup- ported by various arguments, as the correct time of settlement. Legendary history says that it was the former date, and that a colony of adventurers from Connecticut were the earliest settlers, and adds that they conceded the territory to Massachusetts in 1649. But the first really authenticated settlement occurred in 1658, at which time a grant of land was made to Thomas Cooper, and this was followed two years later by another grant to Deacon Chapman. In 1661 a permanent settlement was effected and a trading post established, Captain John Pynchon, of Springfield, being granted a monopoly of the fur trade of the new settlement by the General Court. The fur trade in those days was a very lucrative one, and even a century later one of the vastest fortunes now menacing the stability of this Republic, that of the Astors, had its foundation laid by dealing in the skins of beasts. The early inhabitants of Westfield, besides their peltries, also did a large business in the gathering of turpentine, and grants of land were often made for that purpose.
At this early day the town was known by the Indian name of Woronoco, but as the time for incorporation drew near, the residents decided to change it. Among the titles suggested was Streamfield, on account of the fact that the town was located between two streams, -the Westfield and Little rivers of the present day. This name was not selected, however, but Westfield was chosen instead, because the town was almost directly west of Boston, and was at that time the most westerly town in New England.
The Westfield of to-day is beautifully situated, geographically, and could hardly be better located for pur- poses of trade. The site of the town is a level, sandy tract, - the bed of an early lake, -and is on the direct line of the Boston & Albany Railroad, the New Haven & Northampton Railroad and the Holyoke & Westfield road. Two rivers run through the town, the Westfield dividing the village almost into two equal parts. Around the northern and western boundaries of the town stretch a line of low hills, the highest of which is Mount Tekoa, a pretty elevation from which a very fine view of the surrounding country may be had. The town is a capital place for residential purposes, the streets being broad, well shaded by magnificent trees, and lighted at night by electric lights. Many elegant houses grace the streets, while Park Square, a beautiful green in the centre of the town, with its pretty soldiers' monument, adds not a little to the attractiveness of the place.
The chief business, as has been stated, of the town, lies in the manufacture of whips, although the making of cigars forms a large part of the town's industrial life. Other important industries are the manufacture of paper, organs, machinery, undertakers' supplies, thread and heating apparatus. The town has two national banks with an aggregate capital of four hundred thousand dollars, and two savings banks.
A thing in which this town especially glories is her educational eminence. Her institutions of learning are well known. The principal of these is the State Normal School, which in the year 1890 moved into a new and elegant building. This school, which was the second chartered by the State, was originally located at Barre, but was removed to Westfield in 1844. Designed to educate young men and women as teachers, it has been very successful in its field, especially of late years, and the teachers drilled in Westfield have always reflected credit on their alma mater. The Westfield Athenaeum is another institution in which the town takes particular pride. The Athenaeum was incorporated in 1864 for the purpose of maintaining a library and reading room. The former now has about eleven thousand volumes. The public schools of the city include high, grammar and primary institutions.
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549
WESTFIELD.
JAMES C. GREENOUGH, eminent as a teacher, was born in Wendell, Mass., Aug. 15, 1829. In 1860 he inarried Jeanie Ashley, daughter of Hon. William G. Bates, of Westfield, by whom he had four children ; three of these are living. One of Mr. Green- ough's ancestors was a member of the committee of safety that provided for the defence of Boston at the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. Rev. William Greenough, for fifty years pastor in Newton, Mass., was Mr. Greenough's grandfather, and Ralph Waldo Emer- son was his kinsman. The boyhood of Mr. Greenough was main- ly spent on a farm in Wendell and in Deerfield, in which places he attended school, and also in Portland, Me. In the spring of 1854 he entered Westfield Normal School, but in the autumn taught a select school in Heath, and the Bea- con Street Grammar School in Glouces- ter during the win- ter. He became principal of the high and grammar schools in Rockport in 1855, and was called from thence to take charge of the Hacker Gram- mar School in Salem, early in 1856. In September, 1856, Mr. Greenough was appointed first assistant in the Westfield Normal School and held the position for fifteen years, being absent one year only in order to complete his four years' college course at Williams College. In 1869 he declined to accept the position of principal of the normal school of Connecticut, and in 1871 a similar position in the State Normal School at Emporia, Kansas, to which he had been unanimously elected. Accept- ing the principalship of the Rhode Island State Normal
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JAMES C. GREENOUGH.
School, he opened the school in Providence in Septem- ber, 1871, and for twelve years conducted it with marked success. The school rapidly rose to the first rank. Brown University conferred upon him an honorary degree, and he was enrolled in its Phi Beta Kappa chapter, and made one of the examining board of the college. During this period he had a full share of public educational work, as a writer and lecturer. He was one of the four who, as teachers, inaugurated the Teachers' School of Natural Science in Boston, in 1871. While in Rhode Island he declined the presi- dency of Illinois Col- lege and the unani- mous call of the School Committee of Boston to the posi- tion of supervisor of schools. In 1883 he became president of the Massachusetts Agricultural College at Amherst, and for three years directed the policy of the col- lege, improving its financial condition, erecting admirable buildings, making important changes in its course of study and in its educational appliances, and securing for the col- lege a generous ap- preciation by the people of the State On Feb. 4, 1887 he entered upon his duties as principal of the Westfield State Normal School. During his administration the commodious boarding hall has been much improved, important changes have been made in the course of study, the standard of scholarship has been raised, a kindergarten and training school of several grades has been added, and a school building costing, including the site, $150,000 has been erected. The school's previous high reputation has been well maintained.
550
MASSACHUSETTS OF TO-DAY.
JOHN HOYT LOCKWOOD was born in Troy, N. Y., Jan. 17, 1848, and resided in that city with his parents, Charles N. and Mary Elizabeth (Frye) Lockwood until his sixteenth year, during this time attending the public schools and Troy Academy, a private institution, in which he fitted for college. He entered Williams College at the age of sixteen, in the class of 1868, graduating with the degree of A. B., besides winning the degree of A. M. by a three years' course in the study of literature. Upon admission to col- lege he was elected to membership in the Kappa Alpha Frater- nity, the oldest Greek letter society in the United States, of which he has been ever since an enthu- siastic member. After the completion of his course at Wil- liams, he enrolled himself, in the fall of 1868, as a student in Princeton Theo- logical Seminary, graduating in the class of 1871. He was licensed to preach by the Pres- bytery of New York, in the spring of 1870, and spent that sum- mer in Southern Minnesota, doing home missionary work. During his work there he organ- ized a Presbyterian church in the town of Wells. Imme- diately after graduating he was called to the pastorate of the Reformed Church in Canastota, N. Y., and begun work there Sept. 1. He was ordained and installed by the classis of Cayuga, N. Y., Nov. 15, 1871, remaining there until May, 1873, when he was called to the pasto- rate of the New England Congregational Church in Brooklyn, N. Y. He remained in charge of the Brook- lyn church until Jan 1, 1879. In April of that year he
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JOHN H. LOCKWOOD.
accepted the call of the First Congregational Society of Westfield, and was installed as pastor of the church May 14 of the same year. During his pastorate, which continues at this writing, the church has enjoyed a healthy and steady growth, and is one of the leading churches of the denomination in this section of the State. Rev. Mr. Lockwood is a preacher of ability, and delivers his messages fluently and forcibly. He is also deeply interested in matters local, benevolent and missionary, and has an attractive person- ality that greatly aids in drawing people into his fold. In 1879 the church cel- ebrated its bicenten- nial, and Rev. Mr. Lockwood preached the historical sermon, which was afterward printed in book form. He is also very pop- ular among his fellow- workers in the church and in 1888 was chosen president of the Connecticut Valley Congrega- tional Club, an or- ganization composed of the leading Con- gregational clergy- men and laymen of the valley. Outside of his pastoral duties he is largely inter- ested in educational matters. He has served a three years' term as alumni vis- itor at Williams College, is an active member of the Westfield School Committee, a trustee of the Westfield Athenaeum and of the academy fund. Rev. Mr. Lock- wood is married, his wife being Sarah 1 .. , daughter of Dr. Ezra P. and Sarah M. Bennett, of Danbury, Conn., to whom he was united July 19, 1871. Mr. and Mrs. Lockwood have three children : William A., who is now a student at Williams College, Annie E. and Lucy B. Lockwood.
55I
WESTFIELD.
H OMER BEMIS STEVENS, well known as a lawyer of ability, was born in the town of Norwich, now Huntington, Mass., Sept. 9, 1835. His parents were Washington and Ruth Simons (Bemis) Stevens, his father being a farmer in that mountain district. Homer Bemis Stevens spent his boyhood on the farm, attending the public schools, from which he obtained his early education. Having completed his course in the schools of the town, he began to teach in them at the age of fifteen, meanwhile preparing hinself for a higher education. With this purpose in view, he entered Williston Seminary, at Easthampton, Mass., where he de- voted his every en- ergy in fitting him- self for entrance at Williams College. He entered this lat- ter institution in 1853, graduating four years later, the salutatorian of his class. Judge Stevens began the study of law immediately after leaving college, and was admitted to the bar of this State in February, 1859, hav- ing in the meantime served a term as principal of the Westfield High School, and for a short time as teacher in the old Westfield Academy, to pay in part the expenses of his education. After his admission to the bar he practised his profes- sion in Boston for a few months, but gave up his resi- dence there and moved to Westfield, where he formed a law partnership with the Hon. E. B. Gillett, under the title of Gillett & Stevens. Judge Stevens has lived in Westfield for thirty-five years, and for twenty-five re- tained these relations with Mr. Gillett. When the Dis- trict Court of Western Hampden was established, in
1886, he was appointed justice by the governor, and has held the office since that time, the term being for life. Judge Stevens, in his political faith, is Republican to the backbone, and although he has never held any office he has done valiant work for the party of his affiliation. He has never cared for political honors, being too much devoted to, and too busy with, his law practice to seek them, although he might have had them had he so desired. He was debarred from enlisting in the Federal army during the late war on ac- count of a lameness with which he has been afflicted since childhood. Judge Stevens's only brother was killed while fighting for the flag. Even with all of the labor incident to a large legal prac- tice, Judge Stevens has found some time to devote to other objects, such as cul- tivating his love of music, and inci- dentally leading a choir for twenty-five years. He has also done something in a literary line, although he has never written any books. He is an ardent admirer of the game of chess, and spends many a pleasant evening in studying the differ- ent positions of the queens, rooks and bishops. Judge Stevens takes more than the ordinary amount of pleasure and comfort out of his home life. He married Mariette, daughter of Moses and Juvenilia Hannum, April 10, 1861. They have an adopted child, Bella Horton Stevens. No man in Westfield stands higher in the estimation of his fellow- citizens than Judge Stevens. He is appreciated for his genial and sociable nature as well as for his many attainments of an intellectual character.
HOMER B. STEVENS.
552
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