USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Municipal history of Essex County in Massachusetts, Volume IV > Part 15
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States navy. He was assigned to duty at the subma- rine base at New London, Connecticut, and was later transferred to the U. S. S. "Savannah," remaining in Federal service until August, 1919, and in the latter part of his service had a rating of first class ship- fitter. He was not forgotten by the people of Merrimac, and his civil post was only temporarily filled during his war service. He returned to Merrimac after being dis- charged from the navy, and was immediately asked to resume his former position of chief of police. Since that time he has been chief, and is widely known and popular.
Mr. Donahue is a member of the Church of the Nativity (Roman Catholic), of Merrimac, and belongs to the Knights of Columbus and the Ancient Order of llibernians. He also is a member of the American Legion and the Patrons of Husbandry. Politically he is a Republican. He is unmarried.
John J. Donahue, brother of Chief of Police Dona- hue, was born in Merrimac, Massachusetts, on July 19, 1898, and was educated in the public schools of the town. He is now an active young business man of Merrimac, following his father's line-the automobile business.
ALEXANDER ROBERTS, JR .- The name Alex- ander Roberts has been well known to business people of Haverhill for several decades in connection with paper-stock dealings, Alexander Robert, Sr. having established such a business in the city more than forty years ago, in 1880. He is now deceased, but some of his sons are still in the city, conducting a trading house which in reality is a continuation of that founded by the father in 1880.
Alexander Roberts, Jr., head of the Alexander Rob- erts Company of Haverhill, was born in Yorkshire, England, February 26, 1868, son of Alexander and Jane (Booth) Roberts, both of Yorkshire, England. The father died March 3, 1915. He was born in 1835. He was a mill spinner, which he followed for the greater part of his life, and latterly was a merchant. The mother died in 1916, in Haverhill, Massachusetts, where she had lived for so many years and was much respected. They were Protestants in religious belief, and both of estimable life, and were blessed with thirteen children, ten of whom were sons, among them Alexander, Jr. Most of the children were reared in Haverhill, and attended the local public schools.
After Alexander Roberts, Jr. left school, he joined his father in business in Haverhill, and for twenty- five years thereafter they were associates in business, the son latterly being manager of the firm. In 1910, he decided to branch out for himself, and then formed the firm of Alexander Roberts, Jr. He has maintained the business in operation on Hale street, Haverhill, ever since. While working for his father, he built the build- ing still occupied by the firm, and soon after the death of his father he and his brother, George, organized the Alexander Roberts Company, which to-day is stated to be the largest in its line in the district. In their build- ing they have 20,000 square feet of floor space, and the volume of trading has been considerably increased dur- ing the last decade. Mr. Roberts does not enter much into public affairs, but he is a member and regular
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attendant at the Riverside Congregational Church, Haverhill, and belongs to the local body of the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows. Also he is a member of the Pentucket Club.
Mr. Roberts married, September 29, 1902, at Haver- hill, Mary Brainard, who was born in Bridgewater, Massachusetts, in 1872, daughter of William and Aro- line Augusta (Thayer) Brainard, the former named a machinist and inventor. They have no children.
JOHN D. NEWALL-The marble and granite in- dustry has contributed largely to the industrial pros- perity of several of the New England states. Very often several generations of a family engage in this work and become widely known as skilled artisans. The Newall family, of whom John D. Newall, of Law- rence, Massachusetts, is a worthy scion, has been in the stone business for over a hundred years. The founder of the business, Andrew Newall, lived in Dalbeattie, Scotland, and his son, Andrew Newall, Jr., followed the same occupation there and in Liverpool, England. He married Ann Booth, of New Abbey, Scotland, and some years later came to America. Naturally, Mr. Newall located in a town where the stone industry was an important one, and for many years he lived at Westerly, Rhode Island.
John D. Newall, their son, was born in Liverpool, England, December 24, 1858. While he was yet an infant, his parents returned to Scotland, locating again at Dalbeattie. There John D. attended the Scottish public schools. In 1873 he came to Westerly, Rhode Island, where he attended school for a time. There he learned the art of stone cutting, starting in 1880, later removing to Gloucester, Massachusetts, where he was in charge of stone work. In 1902 Mr. Newall settled in Lawrence, Massachusetts, where he established him- self in monumental and building work in marble and granite. For about half a century Mr. Newall has fol- lowed this industry and is among the oldest stonecutters in New England; his present place of business is at No. 51 Blanchard street, Lawrence. He has the repu- tation of being one of the most skilled monument men in New England. Mr. Newall is a member of the Cal- edonian Lodge of Lawrence.
Mr. Newall married, in Westerly, Rhode Island, in 1885, Elizabeth Gilchrist, of that place, and they are the parents of two sons: James G., associated with his father in business; and John Douglas, Jr., a chemist and dyer in the textile mills. Mr. Newall and his fam- ily attend the Parker Street Methodist Church.
GORDON M. COOK-Active in his early life in different branches of endeavor, Gordon M. Cook, of Lynn, has spent the past twenty-five years in the truck- ing business. Mr. Cook is a son of Manasseh Cook, of Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. He followed the sea throughout his lifetime, and was captain of the good ship, "M. E. Cann." He died in 1918, at the age of eighty years. He married Henrietta Perry, of Yar- mouth, who died in 1911.
Gordon M. Cook was born in Yarmouth, October 25, 1868, and was educated in the public schools of that city. After completing his studies he went to work as a landscape gardener, continuing for about two years.
Later, coming to Chelsea, Massachusetts, he started to learn the plumber's trade. After working thus for two years, he was associated with Albert Burnham for two years, in connection with the construction of the Revere Water Works. Coming to Lynn in 1889, he was employed by the H. A. Pervear Company, then later handled a retail milk route for about two years, then working as conductor on the old Lynn & Boston horse car line for about a year and a half. Still later he was for three years on the Belt line, as conductor. Then about 1896, he established the trucking business which is now a leader in this line of endeavor in Lynn. He is doing an extensive business under the name of the Gordon M. Cook Trucking Company.
Mr. Cook is a member of the Lynn Chamber of Com- merce. Fraternally he is prominent, being a member of Lynn Encampment, Loyal Order of Moose, of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of Paul Revere Lodge, Knights of Pythias, of the Oriental Order of Humanity, and of the Lodge of Perfection, of which he is Vice-Grand High Secretary. He is a member of the Young Men's Christian Association, of Lynn, and of the First Methodist Episcopal Church, and is inter- ested in all progress. In 1893 Mr. Cook married Rebecca M. Watts, of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and they have one son, Raymond M., who is a member of the Boy Scouts of America. Mrs. Cook is a daughter of William and Margaret Matilda (Hart) Watts, of Cape Breton. Her father, who was a farmer, died in 1879, and her mother died in 1887.
WILLIAM ILSLEY-When a young man of eight- een, William Ilsley entered the service of the Mer- chants' National Bank of Newburyport, and the asso- ciation then formed has continued without interruption during the more than three decades which have since intervened. He rose rapidly in rank and has long been cashier and a director of the institution which he entered as messenger. He is a son of Nathan and Elizabeth (Short) Ilsley and of the eighth generation of the fam- ily founded in New England by William Ilsley, who came in the ship "Confidence," in 1638, settling in Newbury.
William Ilsley was born at Newbury, Massachusetts, March 2, 1873, and there was educated in the public schools, finishing by graduation from Putnam Free School, class of 1891. His first position was with the Merchant's National Bank as messenger, his term beginning in 1891. He passed from messenger to junior clerk, to bookkeeper, to teller, to assistant cashier and, in 1898, at the age of twenty-five, he was appointed cashier, a position he has now held for nearly a quarter of a century. Two years after being made cashier he was elected a director of the bank and still holds that place in the bank's management. He has given the best of his life to the Merchants' National and in that institution, where he is best known, his strong quali- ties as a financier are thoroughly recognized and appre- ciated.
Other corporations in which he is officially interested are: The Newburyport Building Association, which he serves as treasurer; The Newburyport Five Cents Sav- ings Bank, of which he is trustee and a member of the board of investment; and the Institution for Sav-
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ings. In civic affairs he is a public-spirited, interested citizen, serving as treasurer of the Newburyport Civic League, member of the Chamber of Commerce and a director of the Young Men's Christian Association. His fraternal order is the Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows; his clubs, the Dalton and the old Newbury Golf. With his family he attends the First Church of New- bury, and for twenty-five years has been chairman of the parish committee.
Mr. Ilsley married, June 4, 1902, Elizabeth Hale Lit- tle, daughter of Joseph and Sarah (Hale) Little. Mr. and Mrs. Ilsley are the parents of a daughter, Lucre- tia Little Ilsley, born September 20, 1906.
HENRY B. LANE, one of the prominent men in industrial and public matters in Lawrence, Massachu- setts, has been identified with the business of E. Frank Lewis, of that city, for almost half a century, and now holds the office of superintendent of this plant, which is the largest of its kind in the country. During the years Mr. Lane has been engaged in this business, he has seen many changes and many advances along the lines of progress, but with the progressiveness and the aggressive spirit which has characterized his career, he has kept in constant touch with each new method.
Henry B. Lane was born September 15, 1864, at Sharon, Massachusetts, son of Patrick Lane, a native of County Cork, Ireland, whose death occurred in 1896, and Catharine (Murphy) Lane, also of County Cork, and who died in 1907.
Mr. Lane's education was obtained in the public schools, and after one year in high school he went to work in the plant of which he is now superintendent. Their business is wool-scouring, and the plant was then located at Walpole, Massachusetts. Mr. Lane began at the very bottom as an operative, and steadily and con- sistently advanced to the position he now holds. Under his supervision Mr. Lane has 450 men, and he is held in high esteem by all those with whom he comes in contact.
In politics Mr. Lane is a Republican. He has always been active in public affairs and has been honored with the offices of councilman and alderman, serving in these offices in 1898, and 1899 to 1902, respectively. His fra- ternal connections are with the Knights of Columbus; the Foresters (Catholic Order), and the St. Vincent de Paul Society.
Mr. Lanc married, in 1899, Bridget E. Dooley, of Lawrence, and they attend St. Patrick's Roman Cath- olie Church.
WILLIAM N. BROWNE-Known throughout Essex county, Massachusetts, and drawing much of his business, which is one of the largest in his line in the district, from other places than Newburyport, Wil- liam N. Browne, a sign painter of that place, has no reason to be dissatisfied with the business he has devel- oped since he opened in Newburyport.
William N. Browne was born in Gloucester, Massa- chusetts, on August 4, 1865, son of James and Mary (Nichols) Browne, both of that historic and romantic place. His father, as might have been expected, took to seafaring or fishing occupations as he grew to man- hood. Indeed, he was only nine years old when he
first went to sea, and he was master of a Gloucester vessel before he was nineteen. His wife died in 1881, but he lived until 1899, active almost until the year of his death. They were the parents of four children, two of whom were sons, William N. being the elder.
William N. Browne was given a good education in his native place. He passed from the elementary into the high school of Gloucester, Massachusetts, being of the class of 1880. Soon, thereafter, he went to work for Mr. Hall, of Gloucester. Later he came to New- buryport, and there entered into the sign-painting busi- ness, remaining in the place for six years. Apparently business was not quite as good as he had hoped, so he went to Boston, Massachusetts, where he worked at his trade. Next, he was in business in his home town, Gloucester, and later went to Lawrence, where he remained for eleven years, and then went to New Lon- don, Connecticut, for a short time, following his trade in each place. In 1913 he again came to Newburyport, and for the last eight years has steadily and satisfac- torily followed his trade in that place, developing a worth-while business throughout the county, and under- taking much outside work. When he first came, in 1913, he took quarters in the old Sears-Roebuck build- ing, but soon had to find larger quarters, his business having expanded very much. Finally he took the place he now has on Merrimac street, and there finds good facility for his work. He has a good reputation, both in business and personally, and his handiwork is con- spicuously evident in many places.
Mr. Browne married, in 1906, Delia Corey, of Law- rence, Massachusetts, daughter of Nelson and Olive (Agnew) Corey; her father, who was connected with railroad work, was of the Province of Quebec, Canada. Mr. and Mrs. Browne have three children: William, born in 1900; Arthur, born in 1913; and Olive, born in 1921.
HERBERT W. PORTER, merchant, partner in the Haverhill firm of Porter & Wicks, electrical contractors and dealers, is a native of Haverhill, Massachusetts, and is giving indications of succeeding well in business in his home town. He was born on March 26, 1893, son of Wilbur S. and Ella M. (Pyne) Porter, then of Haverhill. His father is an upholsterer by trade, and is now in business in the State of New Jersey; his mother is of a Nova Scotian family.
Herbert W. Porter received the whole of his academic education in public schools of Haverhill, graduating from the high school with the class of 1912. Soon, thereafter, he entered the employ of H. W. Kimball, of Haverhill, with whom he remained for three years. Then followed five years of service with D. G. Fox, after which young Porter formed a business partner- ship with E. B. Wicks, the two, in 1920, locating at No. 14 West street, as electrical contractors and dealers in electrical supplies. The partners are enterprising, ener- getic young men, and have good chance of succeeding.
Mr. Porter married, in 1915, Ethel Leighton, daugh- ter of Charles S. and Abbie L. (Goss) Leighton, of Newburyport, Massachusetts, where the former is in business as a shoe-cutter. Mr. and Mrs. Porter have three children: Kenneth Wilbur, now four years old; Eleanor Elizabeth; and Shirley Priscilla. Mr. and Mrs. Porter are members of Grace Church, Haverhill.
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HAROLD S. STUART, paymaster and cashier of the E. Frank Lewis Mills, Lawrence, Massachusetts, is one of the younger citizens of that town who has achieved success early in life. Mr. Stuart was born May 19, 1890, at Calais, Maine, son of Augustus Stuart, also of Calais, where he was engaged in mill work, and Emma A. (Prescott) Stuart, whose ancestry can be traced to Colonel Prescott of Bunker Hill fame. She died in 1897 and is survived by her husband.
Harold S. Stuart attended the public schools of Calais, and was a member of the high school class of 1908. His first important work was as an accountant with the Boston & Maine Railroad Company, for five years. At the end of this time on December 7, 1917, he enlisted in the United States army and was sent to Fort Slocum, Jacksonville, Florida, being assigned to the Quarter- master's Corps. Thence he went to Philadelphia, Penn- sylvania, and was discharged May 1, 1919, at Baltimore, Maryland, with the rank of second lieutenant.
After his return to civil life, Mr. Stuart entered the employ of E. Frank Lewis, as paymaster, and after the death of Mr. Stratton, the cashier, he was appointed to this position, which he holds in connection with his other duties. Mr. Stuart is a member of Monadnock Lodge, No. 145, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and of Phoenician Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons of Law- rence.
Mr. Stuart married, November 3, 1920, Florence G. Burnham, of Lawrence, and they attend St. Augustine's Episcopal Church.
HARRY LINCOLN RICHARDSON-One of the foremost undertaking establishments of Lynn is that of H. L. Richardson, which is located at No. 170 Union street, and commands a wide patronage among the leading families of this vicinity.
Mr. Richardson, who has for the past four years been owner and manager of this business, has been identified with it since the year 1900. He was born in Lynnfield, Massachusetts, May 15, 1865, and after completing a common school education, assisted his father in the meat and provision business in Lynnfield for about two years. Then, at the age of eighteen years, he went to New York City, and there was employed for four years in the carpet industry. This work not appealing to him as a permanent field of effort, he returned to his native town, and was associated with his father until 1900, when his uncle, Earl A. Mower, offered him a position in his undertaking parlors, which he accepted. He con- tinued in this business as assistant, up to the time of Mr. Mower's death, which occurred October 13, 1917. He then succeeded to the business, and has since conducted it alone, with constantly increasing success.
Mr. Richardson is a member of Mount Carmel Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, also of Mount Carmel Lodge of Masons. He attends the Central Congregational Church. On Octo- ber 15, 1890, Mr. Richardson married Jessie Mower, niece of Earl A. Mower, and they are the parents of seven children.
A. W. DANIELS was born at Rowley, Massachu- setts, on April 15, 1873, and is a son of Amos B. and Lucy M. (Neilan) Daniels. His father, who was a
native of Vermont, was engaged in the business of manufacturing shoes during the greater part of his lifetime. He died in 1904. Mr. Daniels' mother, like himself, was born at Rowley, Massachusetts.
Mr. Daniels received his early education in the public schools of his native State. When his school days were over, he embarked upon a business career by associating himself with F. L. Burke, with whom he remained for ten years. After leaving Mr. Burke, he entered into the service of various firms at Lynn, Massachusetts, and finally came to Haverhill, where, with Mr. Trainor as a partner, he established the firm of Daniels & Trainor. Later, he founded the Haverhill Heel Company, which afterwards became known as A. W. Daniels & Son. In course of time, Mr. Daniels disposed of this business to good advantage and in 1920 bought out the Slipper City Top Lift Company, establishing his place of business at the rear of No. 24 Main street, Haverhill, Massa- chusetts, where he was located from April, 1920, when the company passed under his control, until November, 1920, when he sold the business and now resides in Orlando, Florida, where he is engaged in fruit raising.
Mr. Daniels married Charlotte Belmont, of Boston, Massachusetts, in 1891, a daughter of John De Belmont, an accountant, of Bordeaux, France, and his wife, Elinor (Locke) De Belmont. Her father now lives in the United States. Her mother was born at Marblehead, Massachusetts. Mr. and Mrs. Daniels had eight chil- dren : Leroy G .; Rhoda Ella; Louis A .; Wyman M .; Elsie M .; Burrill Belmont, deceased; Doris B .; and Gilbert H. Daniels. Wyman M. Daniels enlisted in the United States army and served for eighteen months in France. He was assigned to Battery A, 102nd Field Artillery. He received his discharge from the service in April, 1919.
GEORGE BURTON STILES, of Groveland, Mas- sachusetts, and also well known in the Haverhill district, was born in Andover, Massachusetts, on December 23, 1889, son of George W. and Susan C. (Simonds) Stiles. His mother was born in Middleton, Massachusetts, and died in 1915. His paternal descent, however, is from one of the prominent Colonial New England families. Stiles Pond and Stiles Grove at Boxford, Massachusetts, were so named early in the Colonial settlement in honor of the grand ancestor of the Stiles family, which since that time has given several prominent men to the eastern states and the Republic. Ezra Stiles, licensed to preach in 1749, preached to the Stockbridge Indians, and later, for more than twenty years, was president of Yale Col- lege. He was a historian, and his diary and bound manuscripts, preserved at Yale, fill forty-five volumes. George W. Stiles, father of George B., was a carpenter and mechanic, and for sixteen years was head mechanic at Phillips Andover Academy. He is still living at Andover.
George B. Stiles spent his early years at Andover, and attended the elementary public schools there, later going to Lawrence, where he attended a commercial school, in 1907. Soon, thereafter, he came to Haverhill, and opened a plumbing and heating shop on Grand street. About a year later, however, he went to Elm Park, Groveland, where he did good business until Labor Day of 1918, when he removed to his present location, No. 282 Main street, Groveland. However, he no longer works at the
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plumbing and heating trade, finding that there are better opportunities in the automobile business. For the last two years he has devoted the whole of his time to auto supplies, accessories, repairs, gas and oil, and has worked up quite a satisfactory business in those years.
Mr. Stiles is a member of the Knights of Pythias, and the Junior Order of American Mechanics. During the World War he was for a short period in the United States Merchant Marine, working up and down the coast on a collier, but later went to Annatol, New Jer- sey, in the capacity of a steam fitter, serving there, until the signing of the Armistice, in a T. N. T. shell-loading plant.
Mr. Stiles married, in August, 1920, Lillian Keighley, daughter of William H. and Sophia (Townsley) Keigh- ley, an English family, the father a cabinet-maker until ' he died in 1920.
WILBUR A. LITTLEFIELD-Owning a good business which finds employment for twenty-five people, Wilbur A. Littlefield, of the Littlefield Family Laundry, has reached a satisfactory place among the successful people of Newburyport, Massachusetts. His business record indicates that he is a man of good executive capacity, of versatility, initiative and enterprise.
Mr. Littlefield was born on August 19, 1873, at New- fields, New Hampshire, son of George S. and Abbie M. (Smith) Littlefield, of that place, and has shown during his business career much of the steady characteristics of his father, an iron moulder, who worked for forty-two years in one shop, that of the Swampscott Machinery Company, of Newfields, New Hampshire. George S. Lit- tlefield died in 1911, ahout thirty-four years after the demise of his wife, Abbie M. (Smith) Littlefield, who was born in Newmarket, New Hampshire, and died in 1877, Wilbur A. then being only four years old.
Wilbur A. Littlefield was educated in the public schools of Newfields and Newmarket, New Hampshire, eventually graduating from the Newmarket High School in the class of 1891. Almost immediately thereafter he found employment in the plant with which his father was con- nected, the Swampscott Machinery Company, though he served in clerical capacity. He was five years in the employ of that company, for the greater part of the time as bookkeeper. Next he became connected with the Gale Manufacturing Company, of Exeter, New Hampshire. He remained with them for fifteen years, and proved that he was not only a good office man but a capable factory executive. At the outset he was bookkeeper for the Gale Company, but successively and successfully he became foreman in the plant. He left them in order to enter the printing business, and for eight years he asso- ciated with Leonard J. Hunt, a printer of Exeter, New Hampshire. Mr. Littlefield taking the commercial end of the business. In 1913 he came to Newburyport for the purpose of establishing a laundry, which he thought would be successful in the place. Mr. Littlefield has conducted the laundry business, which bears his name for eight years, with increasing success. His is said to be the largest laundry in Newburyport. It is situated at No. 48 Kent street, and there uses about 6,000 square feet of floor space. The equipment is the most modern he could buy, and Mr. Littlefield has given many indications of his thoroughness, and of his determination to give good
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