USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > The story of Essex County, Volume IV > Part 5
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George Wittamibtel-
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member of Tyrian Lodge, Free and Ac- clearly demonstrated by many years of suc- cepted Masons, and of Ocean Lodge, Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows. He is a member of the Massachusetts Lions Club.
On April 3, 1915, Allen F. Grant married G. Carol Brown of Gloucester, and they are the parents of four children : C. Paige, Pris- cilla A., Allen F., Jr., and Dorothy L. Allen.
GEORGE W. HAMBLET, prominent manufacturing executive and citizen of Lawrence, started his career as a college instructor, but he left his academic environ- ment to enter the fields of industry and com- merce, finding in these activities a broader use for his technical knowledge and evident business ability. Born in Dracut, May 14, 1865, he is the son of Warren C. and Helen F. (Clement) Hamblet, natives of Dracut. On his mother's side Mr. Hamblet is de- scended from a family of pioneers in Haver- hill, and through his father, who was a miller and later engaged in business in Law- rence as a manufacturer of bobbins, he comes from an early family in Watertown.
After attending public schools in Law- rence, Mr. Hamblet specialized in mechani- cal engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, graduating with the class of 1888. He remained at his alma mater as an instructor in mechanical engineering for seven years, and, had he continued, would probably have become a distinguished mem- ber of the faculty, but the appeal of an active business career caused him to employ his efforts in this pursuit. In 1899 he purchased the interests of the Dustin Machine Com- pany, of Lawrence, and became a manufac- turer of paper mill machinery and a job- ber of grey iron products. The Hamblet Machine Company's plant occupies more than an acre of ground and employs between fifty and sixty persons. Mr. Hamblet has
cessful operation that he possesses business ability and executive qualities of a high order, having steadily increased his trade and established a reputation for his products that has made the Hamblet name synony- mous for the best in its field.
In addition to the Hamblet Machine Com- pany, Mr. Hamblet is active in other busi- ness interests, being president of the Law- rence Lumber Company, a director of the Bay State Merchants' National Bank, and the Morris Plan Bank and is a trustee and member of the investment committee of the Broadway Savings Bank, all of Lawrence. The Young Men's Christian Association of Lawrence has long been one of his major interests, and also the Boys' Club of Law- rence, of which he is president. His partici- pation in the work of these organizations is not merely the response to a vague urge that he should support them as a matter of citizenship, but springs from an understand- ing of the problems of youth and of a genuine and sincere desire to help them to grow into men and citizens of honor and usefulness. His reward is their respect, their confidence and their friendship. As a true citizen, Mr. Hamblet has willingly and intel- ligently cooperated with all worthy move- ments for community betterment and has generously contributed to those organiza- tions that care for men and women in un- fortunate circumstances. Besides his resi- dence in Lawrence, Mr. Hamblet maintains a summer camp at Windham, New Hamp- shire, where he engages in his favorite hobby, boating, being the owner of several craft.
On January 24, 1893, he married Kate M. Clark, of Lawrence, and they are the parents of six children: I. Helen E., who married Stephen Dyer, a chemist of the Jersey Ice
Essex-30
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Cream Company. 2. Marion Clark, wife of Ernest R. Greene, professor of romance lan- guages at Dartmouth College. 3. Theodore C., now associated with his father in the Hamblet Machine Company. 4. Katherine G., who is engaged in physiotherapy in Law- rence. 5. George Warren, Jr., mechanical engineer for Hamblet Machine Company. 6. William P., teacher in the public schools of East Hartford, Connecticut.
CORNELIUS BERNARD MEAGAN- To the people of North Andover, Massa- chusetts, Cornelius Bernard Meagan stands out for his close association in business with George H. Perkins, who, for nearly a third of a century held the office of town treas- urer. Mr. Meagan has recently succeeded to this public office following the death of Mr. Perkins. Cornelius B. Meagan has lived in North Andover for about thirteen years. He is a native of Lawrence, born July 2, 1896, son of William A. and Ellen E. (Mahany) Meagan, both of whom were born in New York State. William A. Mea- gan was associated with the Champion In- ternational Paper Company for some years.
Cornelius B. Meagan was graduated from the Lawrence High School with the class of 1914, and gained some experience in the drug business during his summer vacations and while attending school. He also com- pleted courses in a College of Pharmacy at Boston, and became associated with George H. Perkins as a silent partner in a drug business in North Andover. Upon the de- mise of Mr. Perkins on April 25, 1927, Mr. Meagan took over the business as sole owner, and under his operation the store has prospered and expanded in its services. In the meanwhile the United States entered the World War, and Mr. Meagan enlisted in the army, in 1918, and for the most of his time with the military corps was stationed
at Camp Devens, Massachusetts. Mr. Mea- gan is a member of the American Legion ; is a charter member of the North Andover Chamber of Commerce, and a member of the North Andover Club. In March, 1934, he was elected town treasurer, the office held by Mr. Perkins for more than thirty- two years. Although he has been a mem- ber of the community for a comparatively few years, his personal qualities have won respect in commercial, civic and social ac- tivities.
On August 14, 1922, Cornelius Bernard Meagan married Faith Redman, of North Andover, and they are the parents of two sons : I. Cornelius Bernard, Jr., born August 7, 1925. 2. Richard W., born March 14, 1927.
HAROLD R. RAFTON-The president of Rafton Laboratories, Inc., of Andover, Harold R. Rafton, is a native of Boston, born December 21, 1890, and since 1916 has lived in Lawrence. Prepared for college in the schools of his birthplace, he matricu- lated at Harvard University, from which he was graduated in 1910, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He specialized in chem- istry, in the practice of which profession he has engaged continuously since his gradu- ation. Mr. Rafton served in the World War as first lieutenant in the Chemical Warfare Service, was assigned to the de- velopment division, and was stationed at Cleveland, Ohio, in a manufacturing war gas plant.
Upon his return to civilian activities, Mr. Rafton continued in the work in which he had been previously engaged, and in 1928, organized the Rafton Laboratories, Inc., which made Andover, Massachusetts, its headquarters instead of Lawrence. The chief purpose of the "Laboratories" is chem- ical research, particularly in the paper in-
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dustry and with the commercial develop- ment of products resulting from research. There are four other companies affiliated with the "Laboratories," several of which own various groups of patents which have eventuated from work in paper and allied fields. Some of the companies also handle some of the products made under these pat- ents. The officials of the Rafton Labora- tories, Inc., are: President, Harold R. Raf- ton; vice-president, Arthur M. Brooks, of Andover; vice-president, Elmer J. Bryan; treasurer, Mrs. Harold R. Rafton; clerk, Robert C. McKay, of Boston.
Mr. Rafton is a member of a number of technical and scientific societies, and num- bered among his clubs are the Harvard, of Boston; the Chemists of New York; and the Andover Country Club. He is presi- dent (1934-35) of the Harvard Club of An- dover.
JOHN E. SULLIVAN-The continued connection of John E. Sullivan, of Peabody, with the Josiah B. Thomas Hospital of that Massachusetts city has been noteworthy for a complete devotion to the interest of the institution, and of a well-earned rise from a humble position to that of superintendent. He is a native of Peabody, born February 21, 1891, son of Timothy J. and Bridget (Vale) Sullivan, both of whom came from Ireland in their youth. Timothy J. Sulli- van has long been a stationary engineer and a useful citizen of the community.
John E. Sullivan attended the schools of his birthplace, and night schools at various times, and thus secured an education that has stood him in good stead in his later years. As a young man he accepted a post in the Josiah B. Thomas Hospital as gen- eral man, and in a quiet but forceful way made himself useful beyond the require- ments of his work. Ultimately this attracted the attention of the trustees of the insti-
tution, and Mr. Sullivan was in succession, a foreman, engineer, and laboratory techni- cian. In 1926 he was made superintendent of the hospital and has since so continued. Altogether he has been associated with the Josiah B. Thomas institution for twenty- six years, and has constantly increased the value of his services, and received recogni- tion of them in a far larger field than local.
In July, 1916, John E. Sullivan married (first) Mabel Hunter, who died in 1927, and they were the parents of two children: Robert and John. He married (second), on July 5, 1934, Isabel Waters, superintendent of nurses in the hospital.
HORACE CHARLES RAMSDELL-
As treasurer of the Saugus Trust Company and the Saugus Cooperative Bank, Horace Charles Ramsdell is in an outstanding posi- tion in the financial and business life of Es- sex County, where, for over three decades, he has centered his energies and through his own efforts has risen to his present posi- tion. Apart from his professional activities he is widely known for his activities in the social and civic life of his surroundings, be- ing prominently identified with many of the leading organizations in this vicinity.
Mr. Ramsdell was born in Saugus, Sep- tember 29, 1893, the son of Frank M. and Jennie E. (MacKeen) Ramsdell, the former a native of this town and the latter of North Lovell, Maine. His father is engaged in the leather trade and his grandfather, who was born in Lynnfield, was a shoemaker who early settled in Saugus.
Mr. Ramsdell received his early educa- tion in the public schools of his native com- munity, graduating from the high school there in 1910. After completing his studies he attended the Burdett Business College and completed his work in this institution in I911. He then became associated with the Security Trust Company of Lynn and
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thereby started on a financial career that has steadily broadened. He was employed by this banking house until the United States entered the World War, when he re- signed his position as head teller, and en- listed in the United States Army. He be- came a member of the 312th Machine Gun Battalion of the 79th Division, went over- seas with this unit and served at the iront for one year, seeing action in the Argonne sector. During the spring of 1919 he was returned to this country and was honorably discharged at Camp Dix in June of that vear.
Again a civilian, Mr. Ramsdell returned to his position of head teller of the Security Trust Company in Lynn, and served in this capacity until 1928, when the Saugus Trust Company was formed and he became, and has been since then, treasurer of this insti- tution. In July, 1921, he was elected treas- urer of the Saugus Cooperative Bank, then a small institution, and he has held that po- sition until the present. This latter com- pany has grown to be a large and substan- tial part of the financial structure of Sau- gus, and it is a tribute to Mr. Ramsdell's judgment and ability to find that these two banks, while small at the time he joined them. have become important links in the banking facilities in this section.
Mr. Ramsdell has always maintained a keen interest in the affairs of his native community. He is a member and treasurer of the Lions Club, secretary of William Sutton Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons; a member of Saugus Post. No. 210, of the American Legion, and the Knights of Pythias.
On November 11, 1922, Mr. Ramsdell married Martha C. Mackay, of Saugus, and they are the parents of three children: I. Chadwick Donald. born March 29. 1924. 2 and 3. Jason Alan and Judith Ann, twins, born September 28. 1930.
TONY A. GAROFANO-"A man of the people" well describes Representative Tony A. Garofano, who during an interesting and colorful career, has risen to become a prom- inent civic leader of this section. To fully appreciate the success he has attained as a legislator we quote in part from an edi- torial dispatch written shortly after Mr. Garofano was appointed a new member of the Massachusetts Board of Registration for Barbers :
Rep. Tony A. Garofano, new member of the Mas- sachusetts Board of Registration for Barbers, has much to look back upon. For thirteen years he has served the Tenth District, and that he served it well and faithfully is recorded by the very fact that he served so long. . . He proved his merit and his worth. He iought for his constituents at every point and never approved one single piece of legislation or
introduced any legislation, without first thinking of its influence on the large body of people he represented. Tony is a man close to the people's heart because he is so definitely of the people. .... His legislative career found him to be a conscientious, courageous man. .... His success will continue in his new position.
Representative Garofano was born in Montemiletto, Italy, May 28, 1885, the son of Frank and Concetta Garofano, who brought him to this country in 1887, and settled in New York City. Mr. Garofano received a general education in the paro- chial schools of Boston and upon finishing his studies began to work his way. He was in humble circumstances and for a period sold papers, shined shoes and became clerk in a grocery store. During this time he was learning the barber trade in Boston and at the age of thirteen he struck out for him- self. establishing a shop of his own in Hyde Park Square of that city. In 1902 he opened a barber shop in Lynn, an enterprise which he still conducts.
Throughout his life he has manifested a keen interest in the civic and political af- fairs of his surroundings and as the result
Ha Utey
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THE STORY OF ESSEX COUNTY
of his activities in this direction, was elected a member of the Massachusetts State Leg- islature in 1920, serving a one-year term. He was reelected to this body in 1922 and has served continuously since that time. As a representative he has been favorably known as one of the most active members of the Legislature, serving many important committees, including motor vehicles and highways, public safety, harbors and land, mercantile affairs and taxation. During his career he has been sponsor for twenty-one legislative bills and three resolves all of which became law. In the past few years he has been particularly active in proposing the damming of the Saugus River at East Sau- gus and the beautification of the river basin. Mr. Garofano is credited with being respon- sible for the widening and illumination of Salem turnpike and naming the Pines River Bridge one of the most beautiful bridges in Massachusetts in honor of the memory of the late General Clarence R. Edwards, war- time commander of the 26th Division.
Socially he has been honored by his col- leagues who served overseas in being named an honorary member of Post No. 6, of the Yankee Division and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. This tribute was paid to him in recognition of his help to soldiers overseas. Mr. Garofano is a member of the North Shore Sporting Club and the Sons of the Veterans of Lynn. He fraternizes with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Fraternal Order of Eagles, and the Knights of Columbus.
In June, 1924, Mr. Garofano married Gladys L. Brander and they reside at No. 61 Summer Street, Saugus, where Mr. Gar- ofano has lived since 1913.
HENRY ADAMS UTLEY-One of the best known men in the United States con- nected with the laundry industry, Henry Adams Utley had visited many of the lead-
ing cities and town of the country in the course of his work. An expert in his field, especially with regard to laundry machinery, he installed the plant that is in use in the White House, Washington, District of Columbia.
Mr. Utley was born at Southbridge, Mas- sachusetts, on June 7, 1859, son of George Dexter and Jane (Emerson) Utley. His father, a Massachusetts man, went to Southbridge to live and was there engaged in the trucking business, doing extensive loading and trucking for the Hamilton Mills. Later he went to Ware, this State, to take up the same type of business. He made the first steel rake that was marketed, as well as the first steel pitchfork, and was one of the pioneers in the trucking business. He remained active in many enterprises un- til his death, which occurred in Ware. His wife, Mrs. Jane (Emerson) Utley, was a native of New Hampshire.
In the public and high schools of Ware, Henry Adams Utley received his education and after his graduation from high school he attended and was graduated from Rock- point Cadet School. Then, going westward, he was engaged in the butter and egg trade in Dexter, Iowa. Coming once more to Ware, he started his work in the laundry business there. Beginning in a small way and with somewhat crude equipinent, he was able to expand his operations and branch out as an expert in his industry. Traveling from Texas to Montreal, he was a man of many attainments of importance in his special field. Among his other ac- complishments was the installation of the laundry plant in the White House at Wash- ington, referred to above; and he also in- stalled the plant at Royal Victoria Hospital, Montreal, and laundries in numerous other places. He conducted a laundry in Amherst for twenty years, beginning in 1900, and in 1920 he came to Shawsheen Village. Here
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he took charge of the Shawsheen Laundry, which was owned by William Wood, presi- dent of the American Woolen Company. For about four years he managed that laun- dry, and then purchased the business. Since that time until his death he carried on this work in what is one of the best equipped laundries of its size in the whole of New England.
Henry Adams Utley married Lillian All- bee. Their two living children are: I. Lewis S., who is associated with the du Pont Fabricoid Company. 2. Henry Lester, who is connected with the laundry business of the Shawsheen Laundry, Inc., of which their father was president.
MYRON HENRY DAVIS, M. D.,-Dr. Myron Henry Davis, of Saugus, can look back upon nearly a half-century of medical practice in the Commonwealth with a justi- fiable feeling of pride. He has always been a student of his profession, alert to keep in touch with each advance in knowledge as it came. That he applied skillfully what he learned is attested by the multitude of pa- tients he has treated, who could also testify that he has given largely of his time to the welfare of the communities of which he has been a resident.
Dr. Davis was born in Belchertown, Mas- sachusetts, February 20, 1862, the son of Amos and Lucy Jane (Tisdale) Davis. His mother came from an old and well-known Vermont family, and the Davis name is as old in Massachusetts. For many years Amos Davis kept a general store in Belcher- town, lending the money he made and saved, and investing part of it into real estate. He was to the community one of its substantial men and leaders. Myron Henry Davis attended the local schools, and was graduated from the Hitchcock Free Acad- emy. He studied for the profession he had chosen in Harvard Medical School, and in
1885 began to practice in Palmer, Massa- chusetts. Four years later he established himself in Hardwick of the same State, where he continued until 1911, when he located in Saugus.
In Hardwick, Dr. Davis had entered ac- tively into all phases of the town life and affairs. If in Saugus he has been less active it is because of the press of his professional duties. He has always taken a constructive interest in public health work, and has done most of this class of service for the Welfare Society and the Board of Health. He is also the school physician and a member of the courtesy staff of the Lynn Hospital. Among the professional societies of which he is a member are the Essex County Medical So- ciety, the Massachusetts State Medical As- sociation, and the American Medical Asso- ciation. Fraternally he is affiliated with the Free and Accepted Masons and the Knights of Pythias.
On December 28, 1886, Myron Henry Davis married Mary L. Walker, of Hard- wick, and they are the parents of three chil- dren : I. Robert W., engaged in the shoe in- dustry in Chelsea. 2. Clarence M., a builder. 3. Susan W., wife of Francis C. Henderson, of Watertown.
JOSEPH J. DeACUTIS-Shawsheen Village, founded in 1919, is greatly admired by those who travel Essex County by mo- tor, as a bit of old England placed in a beau- tiful setting. In the midst of a group of Georgian-Colonial homes and public build- ings is preserved the old and dominating mansion of the new village which is known as Shawsheen Manor, "the villager's inn, the traveler's resting place, the pleasure- seeker's destination." Joseph J. DeAcutis is the host of the manor, which he owns and operates. He is a native of Italy, born in Rome, July 22, 1881. His education abroad was carried as far as the third year in a
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technical school, before he began his busi- ness career.
In 1897 Mr. DeAcutis went to Paris, France, attended an institution for the study of mechanics while at this same time he plied his trade, but remained here but a short period before leaving for London to enter the employ of a motorcycle firm which was introducing this means of rapid trans- portation in England. After some eighteen months, Mr. DeAcutis went with a French automobile manufacturer, in London, and remained for a number of years thereafter connected with leading French motor car concerns having agencies in Great Britain, such as the Fiat, Isotta-Frashini, Itala, and others. Still a young man, Mr. DeAcutis helped to introduce the first motorcycles in the English Isles and the first shaft driven automobiles. In 1915 he enlisted in the 13th Regiment, Royal Field Artillery and served for three years and nine months in the World War, receiving two medals for spe- cial service and bravery. As a non-com- missioned officer he was at the front in eleven of the more noted engagements, re- ceived a shell wound and was confined to a hospital for some time. He completed his war activities with the same gun he started out with and was one among three soldiers who returned home with their original weapons.
While an employee of the Fiat Automo- bile Company he met William Wood, woolen magnate from Andover, who was purchasing a Fiat car. In 1919 Mr. Wood, Jr., bought a Rolls Royce car through Mr. DeAcutis, who was asked to bring the car to America and teach him and his chauffeur how to take care of the automobile and how to drive it. Subsequently he returned to London, spent a year settling up his affairs, and returned to Shawsheen. Here he was placed in charge of the American Woolen Company's cafeterias, succeeding so well in
this position that he was given the manage- ment of the Hotel Manor, Martha Wash- ington Lodge and Boxford Camp, the latter accommodating about six hundred children during the camping season. In December, 1930, the Shawsheen Manor Hotel was pur- chased by Mr. DeAcutis, which he has since conducted very successfully.
CHARLES M. BOYLE-Among the outstanding public figures of the city of Peabody is Charles M. Boyle, a civic and political leader of this community who has been entrusted by the citizenry with im- portant and responsible positions in the local government. During his official life he has acquitted himself in a highly exem- plary fashion and his achievements and ac- complishments have won the confidence of the public. In conjunction with his official activities he has taken a deep interest in the social and civic life of this city and is prominently identified with many of the leading organizations.
Mr. Boyle was born in Peabody April 29, 1892, a son of Michael A. and Catherine F. (Rahilley) Boyle, the former a native of Newburyport and the latter of this city. He is of Irish ancestry on his paternal side, the Boyle family having come to this country during the nineteenth century and settled in Newburyport, where his grandparents were married in 1863. His father is deceased while his mother, who is now (1934) sixty- seven years of age, still resides here. Mr. Boyle was educated at St. John's Parochial School and in the public schools of this com- munity. After completing his studies he worked in a leather factory for some years. When the United States entered the World War he enlisted in the United States Navy, joining the service on December 14, 1917, and becoming a first class seaman. During this period he was stationed in Boston.
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