USA > Massachusetts > The story of western Massachusetts, Volume IV > Part 7
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EDGAR SANBORN DeMEYER-Within ten years from the time he left college Edgar S. DeMeyer was head of a large organization of electrical ap- pliances and air-conditioning distributors, and is active in social and civic affairs of Springfield.
Mr. DeMeyer was born at Abington, on August 30. 1911. the son of John Everard and Maude (Reed) DeMeyer. John E. DeMeyer, son of John L. and Mary (Dana) DeMeyer. was born at Eastbrook, Maine, lives in Longmeadow. is president of the Related Art Services of New York City and is a thirty-second degree Mason and Shriner. He is a Republican and is a member of the First Congre- gational Church of Longmeadow. For many years he has been an important figure in his State's edu- cational life. having served as superintendent of various Massachusetts educational systems. On October 1. 1907. he was united in marriage to Maude Reed, native of Sabattus. Maine, and daughter of Charles and Vina H. (Mason) Reed. John L. DeMerer was born in Eastbrook in 1837 and died there in February. 1919. He married Mary Dunn of Frankiin. Maine. daughter of Edward Dunn. Mary (Dunn) DeMeyer also died in Eastbrook. Tohn L. DeMever was the son of John (2) and Lucy ( Maddox) DeMeyer. John (2) DeMeyer was born in Ghent. Belgium, was a drafted soldier under Napoleon. and reached Columbia. Maine. after es- caping from a British war prison on the Island of Campobello. in the Bay of Fundy. On January 4, 1820. he married Lucy Maddox of Ellsworth. who was born in 1,94 and died in 18;7. She was the daughter of John and Catherine ( Hilton) Maddox, one of eleven children.
After attending Wilbraham Academy. Edgar S. DeMeyer was graduated from Hebron Academy,
Salgan S.lDE MEure
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Hebron, Maine, in 1931. He was graduated from Bates College, at Lewiston, Maine, in 1935, when he became associated with the Milton Bradley Company of Springfield as sales representative. He resigned in 1938 to become president of the Consolidated En- gineers and at the same time served as president of the Watt Manufacturing Company and as head of the Springfield Heat Treating Company. The last named company was sold in 1944. In December, 1945, Mr. DeMeyer founded the Edlee Distributors, Inc., of which firm he now is president and treasurer. He also owns the one-thousand-acre Silver Hill Farm at Eastbrook. He breeds registered Aber- deen-Angus cattle, poultry, setters, pointers and American saddle-bred horses. Mr. DeMeyer is a Republican, a Mason and a member of the First Congregational Church of Longmeadow. He is affiliated with the Bates College Club, the University Club, and the Springfield Yacht and Canoe Club. He is a thirty-second degree Mason and Shriner. Aside from his breeding of stock and dogs, his favorite diversion is yacht racing. He was mar- ried September 1, 1932, to Winifred Merrill, a native of Hartford, Connecticut, and daughter of Frank and Frances (Pratt) Merrill. Mrs. DeMeyer was educated at Southington High School, Southington, Connecticut, and at Simmons College. She is a member of the First Congregational Church and is affiliated with the Daughters of the American Revo- lution and various Springfield social groups. The DeMeyers have two children: I. Joan Alden, born August 3, 1933, a student at Longmeadow Junior High School. 2. Nancy Everard, born January 7, 1939, a student at Converse School, Longmeadow.
JOSEPH PAUL COCO, M.D .- A leading physi- cian whose professional experience comprises medical practice in three states is Dr. Joseph P. Coco of Cheshire.
Joseph Paul Coco was born on August 8. 1005, in New York, son of James and Mary (Lo Surdo) Coco.
After graduating at Brooklyn Technical High School in 1923, Mr. Coco attended New York Uni- versity, continuing his premedical studies at the University of Virginia in the years from 1925 until 1930. At the University of Virginia Medical School he received his degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1930. Dr. Coco served as intern and resident phy- sician at Nassau Hospital, Mineola. New York. and intern at Swedish Hospital in Brooklyn. From 1930 until 1936 he practiced in New York City, where he was assistant house surgeon at two hospitals, New York Lying-In Hospital and Willard Parker Hospital.
In 1936 Dr. Coco removed to Readsboro, Vermont, where he practiced until 1938. Since 1939 he has prac- ticed in Cheshire, Massachusetts, where he is chair- man of the board of health, as well as a member of the staffs of Pittsfield's Hillcrest Hospital and House of Mercy and of the North Adams Hospital.
Dr. Coco is a member of the American Medical Association, the Massachusetts State Medical Societv. and the Berkshire County Medical Society. He be- longs to the Knights of Columbus. Dr. Coco attends the Roman Catholic Church of the Assumption in
Cheshire. His hobby is raising mink, and he is presi- dent of the Savoy Mink Ranch of Savoy, Massachu- setts.
ANTHONY .. JOSEPH MEDESKI-At sixteen years of age, Anthony Joseph Medeski was an appren- tice upholsterer in the furniture industry. At thirty- three, he was one of the founders of a furniture manufacturing concern-the Hampden Parlor Furni- ture Company of Springfield-and four years later became president of that company, a position which he holds today. He has achieved prominence not only in the furniture world but also in Springfield's public affairs and is a member of the Springfield Public Utility Board.
Mr. Medeski was born in Poland on February 6, 1897, the son of Stanley and Mary (Labunski) Med- eski. His father was a carriage maker. Brought to the United States at an early age, Mr. Medeski was educated in the elementary and high schools of Bos- ton and Springfield. For twelve years, which included some of the years he was rising in the furniture in- dustry, he went to school at night.
In 1913 Mr. Medeski went to work for the Union Parlor Furniture Company in Boston. Four years were spent in the upholstery department as an appren- tice, after which he entered the employ of the Shaw Furniture Company as a full-fledged journeyman upholsterer. Mr. Medeski remained with the Shaw Company a year and one-half and then returned to the employ of the plant in which he had made his start. This was in 1919, and his new job was that of sample maker.
In 1924 Mr. Medeski was transferred to Springfield as superintendent of the Union Parlor Furniture Company's new factory. Six years later he and his present principal partners, Arthur Joseph Leary and Max Wolf Siegel, bought out the Springfield plant and business and incorporated the Hampden Parlor Furniture Company, which quickly became one of the successful firms in its field. In 1934, Mr. Medeski was elected to his present office, that of president. At that time, also, he and his associates organized the Sheffield Realty Company, which purchased the build- ing in which the company's factory and offices are located and which owns all its other real estate. The furniture business under Mr. Medeski's leadership has expanded to five times what it was in the days when the factory in Springfield was operated by the Union Parlor Furniture Company.
Mr. Medeski is an active Democrat and has been on the Springfield Public Utility Board since 1944. He is a member of the Polish National Alliance and the Springfield Chamber of Commerce. He is a communicant of St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church in Longmeadow, where he and his family make their home. His favorite sport is golf.
Mr. Medeski and Amelia Kohn were married in Salem, on August 20, 1922. Mrs. Medeski is a daugh- ter of Karol and Eleanor (Dobrjelecki) Kohn. She and Mr. Medeski have two children-Helen, who was born in Cambridge on December 2, 1923, and Edward, born November 11, 1930, in Springfield. The daughter is a graduate of the Springfield elementary school system, of Classical High School, Springfield, and of the Katharine Gibbs School in Boston. Young Ed- ward Medeski was, in 1947, a student at Classical High School.
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DANIEL LOVE-One of the well-known busi- ness men of Western Massachusetts. Daniel Love of Holyoke and Springfield is held in high regard for the qualities of industry. initiative and integrity which have won him success in his advancement from humble beginnings to a top-level administrative posi- tion with a large and prosperous manufacturing com- pany, and for his alert interest in civic causes and his unselfish readiness to serve his community. In fra- ternal circles also Mr. Love is widely known and popular.
Born at Enfield. Connecticut, on May 12, 1891. Daniel Love is a son of the late James Love and his wife Janet (Chalmers) Love. James Love, who was born in 1862 and died in 1935, was for many years associated with the carpet manufacturing busi- ness. Daniel Love as a boy attended the public grade and high schools of his native Enfield, but as early as 1905 took his first employment with the Hartford Carpet Company, and with this concern he remained until 1916, filling various positions in the office end of the business. In 1916 he came to Western Massa- chusetts to accept the position of cashier with the Kibbe Brothers Company. In turn Mr. Love was pro- moted to be office manager, then sales manager and later purchasing agent of Kibbe Brothers, and about the year 1928 he was elected to a seat on the board of directors.
Mr. Love remained with the Kibbe Brothers Com- pany for nearly twenty years, but in 1935 he became associated with the Kamket Corporation, and after two or three months with this concern he was made vice president and general manager. The Kamket Corpora- tion are the originators of Kamket Loose-leaf bind- ing, and are affiliated with the Spiral Binding Com- pany of New York. Mr. Love's abilities have contri- buted greatly to the notable success of this firm in recent years.
Mr. Love has long been a leading member of the Holyoke Kiwanis Club, of which he served as presi- dent in 1944. He belongs to the Traffic Club of Springfield. One of his great interests is the Holyoke Family Welfare Society, of which he is an active supporter. He is particularly well-known in Masonic circles, being a member and past master of Esoteric Lodge. Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. meeting in Springfield: and also past D. D. G. M. of Chicopee eighteenth Masonic district. His religious interests center in the Union Church of Springfield. In poli- tics Mr. Love is a member of the Republican party. His hobby is golf.
At Enfield. Connecticut, on March II. 1914. Daniel Love was married to Selena Wing, a daughter of Ed- ward and Zerah (Carson) Wing. Of this marriage there are two children, both daughters: I. Jean. who is now the wife of Frank Kristoff, and by him the mother of one son. James. 2. Ruth, who is now Mrs. Richard Cushing.
JOHN DUDLEY-One of the outstanding busi- nessmen of Pittsfield. John Dudley comes of farming ancestry, long settled in Western Massachusetts: but doubtless the rigors of farm life, which curtailed his formal education and made it necessary for him to go to work at an early age. had something to do with forming in his young mind an ambition and deter-
mination to succeed in other fields of endeavor, an ambition which he has notably realized.
The first Dudley to settle in Western Massachusetts was John Dudley's great-great-grandfather Caleb Dudley, who established himself in the vicinity of Adams about the year 1740. From him was descended John Dudley, a farmer, whose son also carried on farming in this vicinity all his life. This son of John Dudley married Mary Moore, and to them the son who is the present John Dudley was born at Adams on July 1. 1885. He grew up on his father's farm and attended public school in Adams, but it became neces- sary for him to leave school at the age of fourteen. He remained on the Dudley farm, however, until 1914. In that year he entered the retail grain and feed business, which continued to be his occupation until 1920. In 1920 his father died, and later John Dudley sold the family farm.
Prospering in the grain and feed business, and de- veloping a marked business ability, Mr. Dudley in 1926 entered the stock brokerage field. becoming a co-partner in the firm of Goodbody and Company of Pittsfield. This has been his principal interest since that time, but he has also become a factor in banking affairs in Berkshire County, being vice president and a member of the board of trustees of the South Adams Savings Bank of . Adams.
Mr. Dudley remembers how as a lad of sixteen years of age. he was a member of the old Company M of the National Guard of the State of Massachu- setts. He is a man not much addicted to widespread joining of societies and organizations, but he enjoys his membership in the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. His religious affiliation is with the Adams Methodist Church at Adams. His favorite recreation is fishing.
On September 12, 1907. John Dudley was married at Adams to Lillian A. Amell, who died in 1943. In 1945 Mr. Dudley married a second time. the bride being Elmore Loomis of Sandgate. Vermont. The present Mrs. Dudley is a descendant of the Loomis family who were among the prominent settlers of Connecticut in pioneer days. It is for this family that the Loomis School is named.
By his first wife Mrs. Lillian A. (Amell) Dudley, John Dudley of Pittsfield is the father of one child. a son. John Larkin Dudley, who was born at Adams. in 1909. He is a graduate of the Adams High School. and is now associated with the Foster Brothers Com- pany of Utica. New York, of which he is employment manager. John Larkin Dudley married Alice Groves of Adams, who is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Groves, and of this marriage there are two children. namely Constance Groves Dudley, who was born at Adams on November 27. 1938. and John Larkin Dudley, Jr., born also at Adams in July. 1943.
JACOB RICHMOND-Attorney Jacob Richmond. a noteworthy figure in the younger professional coterie of Springfield. is nevertheless an attorney of twenty years experience. He is a native of Spring- field, born June 6. 1902. son of Isaac and Lena (Solomont) Richmond. His mother was born in Bos- ton and died in Springfield, on September 9. 1932. Isaac Richmond, born in Russia. died in Springfield, September 8. 1943. aged seventy-one years. He was a retired wholesale grocery merchant and realtor, a
Jacob Richard
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Republican, and fraternally was affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He was one of the ten building committeemen of Beth Israel Syn- agog at No. 565 Chestnut Street, and also a mem- ber of Kodimoh Synagog, at No. 17 Oakland Street.
Jacob Richmond was educated in the Chestnut Street Grammar School, and graduated from the Technical High School in 1920. He then matriculated at Boston University, majoring in business admin- istration, and remained with his alma mater to gradu- ate in 1927, from its Law School, with the degree Bachelor of Laws. Admitted to the bar in 1927, he initiated a practice of his profession, without part- ners, in Springfield, which he has continued to the present writing. He has been admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States of America.
During World War II, Jacob Richmond served in the American Armed Forces for more than a year, as a member of the United States Army Air Corps, stationed at the air base in Richmond, Virginia. He has not lost his interest in the military affairs of the United States as is indicated by his membership in the American Legion, and his prominence as Commander of the Jewish Veterans of the United States, Post No. 26, of Springfield. Fraternally he is affiliated with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the B'Nai B'rith Lodge, the Beth El Brotherhood, Tau Delta Phi Fraternity, Epsilon Chapter Boston University and is a member of the Oxford Country Club. He worships in the faith of the Kodimoh Synagog and is notably liberal in his support of charitable projects. For recreation he enjoys swimming, horseback riding, and also in- door and outdoor sports of all kinds.
On July 9, 1943, Jacob Richmond married Cecile Grevior, a native of Manchester, New Hampshire, daughter of Edward and Rachael Grevior. Prior to his decease in Manchester, her father had been en- gaged there as a retail furniture dealer. Mrs. Grevior resides in Manchester, New Hampshire. Mrs. Rich- mond, a graduate of Manchester grade and high schools, is also a graduate from Georgetown Uni- versity. She takes an active interest in religious, civic and social affairs in Springfield, being a member of Kodimoh Synagog, the Women's Hadassah Club, a member of the Council of Jewish Women, the Woman's Club, the Oxford Country Club, and other organizations of Springfield.
DR. STEPHEN WOLANSKE-A native of the Berkshire area, Dr. Stephen Wolanske received his medical training in his home state, and has devoted his professional services to the welfare of its people. His offices are located on Main Street in Greenfield, in which city he has practiced for over twelve years, and where he fills several staff appointments.
Dr. Wolanske is a son of Walter and Alice (Pol- icks) Wolanske, and was born in Gardner, Massa- chusetts, April 28, 1909. He graduated from the high school in that city, and entered St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, where he received the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1931. Then returning to his home state, he enrolled for his medical studies at Tufts Medical College in Boston, from which he re- ceived the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1935. He
then began his internship at Worcester Memorial Hospital, in Worcester, after which Dr. Wolanske interned at the Mattapan State Hospital.
The scene of Dr. Wolanske's entire professional career has been Greenfield, and he has practiced there without interruption except for a period during World War II when he held the rank of captain in the Army Medical Corps. Dr. Wolanske was in the uniform of the United States Army from August, 1943 to August, 1946. He is a member of the staffs of the Franklin County Hospital at Greenfield, and the Farren Men- orial Hospital at Montague.
Dr. Wolanske is a member of the Massachusetts Medical Society, the Franklin County Medical So- ciety, and is a diplomate of the National Board. As a specialist in anethesiology, Dr. Wolanske is a mem- ber of the American Society of Anesthesiologists and of the New England Society of Anesthesiology.
REV. WILLIAM F. FINNERAN, S. J .- One of the prominent ecclesiastical figures of New England, Rev. William F. Finneran, S. J., since 1936 has con- tributed significantly toward the maintenance of religi- ous standards in this section of the country.
After completing his preliminary formal education, William Finneran, in the summer of 1924, entered the Society of Jesus at Shadowbrook, where he re- mained four years. At the end of this period, in 1928, he was sent to England for studies in classical lan- guages and scholastic philosophy. Returning to the United States, he studied theology at Weston College and was ordained to the priesthood in 1936. He then spent a year in ascetical study at St. Robert's Hall, Pomfret Center, Connecticut, and attended Fordham University for more advanced philosophical study.
In 1943, Father Finneran returned to Weston Col- lege, where he conducted philosophical courses until his appointment as rector of Shadowbrook, the Jesuit Novitiate near Lenox. This institution, at the time of Father Finneran's appointment was twenty-five years old, and he became its sixth superior. He suc- ceeded Rev. Peter J. McKone, S. J., who had served at Shadowbrook from March 18, 1942. The predeces- sor of Father McKone had been Rev. John J. Mc- Eleney, who later became provincial of the Society of Jesus in New England.
Since his appointment to the position of rector of Shadowbrook, Father Finneran has devoted himself with vigor to the work of the novitiate. His faith- ful congregations and growing reputation have at- tested to his excellent work for the church.
STODDARD, BALL & BARTLETT-The law firm of Stoddard, Ball & Bartlett of Greenfield has had a high reputation in Greenfield and Franklin County since it was first established some twenty- seven years ago, in 1921.
The members of the original firm were the late Charles N. Stoddard, who was associated with it from 1921 to 1939, the late Philip H. Ball, who was associated with it from 1921 to 1938, and Joseph T. Bartlett, who has been practicing law as a member of this firm from its beginning in 1921 to the pre- sent time.
The firm engages in the general practice of law, with specialization in the field of probate and tax law, in which it has built up a well satisfied clientele.
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Charles N. Stoddard, Jr., was admitted to the firm in 1936 and has been a member from that date to the present time. Paul A. Trudel was admitted to membership in the firm on January 1, 1948, and Philip H. Ball, Jr., was made an associate member in October, 1947 and has practiced as such from that date to the present time.
ARTHUR L. WELCOME-One of the most dis- tinguished personalities among the educators of West- ern Massachusetts, Arthur L. Welcome of Lee, Berk- shire County, is a New Englander by birth, himself a product in the main of New England educational institutions, and his long and varied experience was acquired during service in New England schools, a fact which peculiarly fitted and eminently recom- mended him for the responsible post he now fills, that of superintendent of schools in the town of Lee, Monterey, Otis and Tyringham in the Berkshire Hills.
Mr. Welcome's father, Edward L. Welcome, is a Vermonter, a native of Brattleboro in the Green Mountain State, a successful farmer who is now living in retirement from active life. Edward L. Welcome married Clara Stoddard, who was born in Chesterfield, New Hampshire. That Granite State village was also the birthplace of Arthur L. Welcome, who first saw the light there on January 26, 1901. Although the family had settled in Chesterfield, New Hampshire, the young Arthur L. Welcome attended high school in Brattleboro, Vermont, and graduated therefrom in 1920. For his collegiate courses he returned to his native State, and graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1924 with the degree of Bachelor of Science. Subsequently as a result of postgraduate study at Boston University he received the degree of Master of Education in 1937. Knowing like all competent educators that a teacher's own education is never finished, Mr. Welcome has been pursuing further postgraduate studies at Columbia University in the city of New York, in preparation for securing the degree of Doctor of Education.
In 1924 Mr. Welcome began his active career in education in the post of sub-master of the Haverhill Academy at Haverhill, New Hampshire. Remaining at this academic institution through June, 1926, in that year he accepted appointment as principal of the consolidated schools of Wilmington, Vermont. This position he held through 1929. From 1930 to 1935 Mr. Welcome was headmaster of the high school at Hills- borough, New Hampshire. In 1935 he returned to Massachusetts to become principal of the junior and senior high schools at Pembroke in this State. In 1940 he relinquished his position at Pembroke to accept the post of superintendent of schools on Block Island, Rhode Island.
Mr. Welcome remained on Block Island until 1944, when he accepted appointment to the position of su- perintendent of schools in the town of Lee, Monterey, Otis and Tyringham, Berkshire County, Massachu- setts. This office he has continued to fill to the present time, with a well-informed and mature ability suitable to the guidance of the rising generation in some of the oldest and finest communities in the Berkshires. Mr. Welcome is a member of the Massachusetts Superintendents Association; of the New England Superintendents Association; and of the New England Educational Council. He also holds
membership in the National Education Association. He takes an active interest in the business and civic affairs of his community, through his membership in the Lee Rotary Club, and he has long been a promoter of the work of the Boy Scouts of America, being the president of the local Council of the organization. His religious affiliation is with the Congregational Church of Lee.
At Salem, on December 30, 1924, Arthur L. Wel- come was married to Florence Tilford of that ancient city. Mrs. Welcome is a daughter of Leland O. and Agnes (Toby) Tilford. To Arthur L. and Florence (Tilford) Welcome, one son has been born, namely Allan, at Concord, New Hampshire, on June 20, 1931. At this writing this young man is a student at the high school in Lee, Massachusetts, and a member of the class of 1948 in that school.
JAMES BAKER WILLIAMS-In the matter of birth, of ideas and enterprises, James Baker Williams is a man of the present century, who carries on in his business career in Springfield the traditions established by his families and ancestors in New England. After a varied experience in New York, he came to Spring- field, less than a decade ago, where he later was elected president and treasurer of the Cheney-Bigelow Wire Works, which under his leadership did im- portant work in the production of military weapons tor the United States Army during World War II.
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