Worcester county; a narrative history, Volume III, Part 16

Author: Nelson, John, 1866-1933
Publication date: 1934
Publisher: New York, American historical Society
Number of Pages: 700

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Numerous corporations, apart from the Norton Company, have been so fortunate as to command his services. He is president of the Skandia Bank and Trust Company, a director of the Worcester County National Bank, a director of the Wor- cester Bank and Trust Company, a trustee of the Peoples Savings Bank, a director of the Riley Stoker Corporation, a director of the Royal Wor- cester Corset Company, a director of the Charles G. Allen Company of Barre, Massachusetts, a director of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce of the United States, and a member of the Wor- cester Chamber of Commerce.

Among his learned and professional affiliations are the American Ceramic Society, American So- ciety of Mechanical Engineers, American Scandi- navian Foundation (trustee), Audubon Society, National Geographic Society, and Swedish En- gineers Society, of Chicago, Illinois. He has a definite interest in educational and charitable institutions and has served at different times as a trustee of the Worcester Boys Trade School, the Worcester Public Library, the Worcester City Hospital, the Fairlawn Hospital, Inc., and the Swedish Lutheran Old Peoples Home of Wor- cester, to which, in 1926, he gave a building, fur- nishing it completely, in memory of his father and mother. His fraternal alliances include Quinsiga- mond Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, of Wor- cester ; Massachusetts Consistory, thirty-second de- gree, Scottish Rite; and the Swedish Masonic Club, of Boston. He is a firm Republican in his politics and a member of the Republican Club of Massachusetts. Others of his clubs are the Wor- cester Club, Worcester Country Club, Worcester Economic Club, and Odin Club of Worcester.

During the World War period he served on the Worcester draft board and was active in the vari- ous drives and campaigns. He has served his party and city as a member of the Worcester city government for four years, two years of this time as president of the board of aldermen. Horseback riding and yachting are his principal recreations, and he is a member of the Eastern Yacht Club of Marblehead and the Royal Yacht Club of Stock- holm, Sweden. He is a member of the board of trustees and the music committee of the First Lutheran Church of Worcester.

George N. Jeppson married, May 10, 1911, Selma U. Swanstrom, of Worcester, and they are the

WORCESTER COUNTY

parents of three children: Britta Dorothy, John, 2d, and Betty Thilda. The Jeppson family have their town house in Worcester, and a country place, "Oakholm," in Brookfield, where Mr. Jepp- son maintains a farm of one hundred and fifty acres and a herd of choice Guernsey cattle.

GEORGE E. WELLS-The entire business career of George E. Wells which he has thus far achieved has been identified with the insurance field. During the quarter-century he has main- tained this association, he has risen steadily in the esteem of the Aetna Life Insurance Company and affiliated companies, of Hartford, Connecticut, of whose casualty department office in Worcester, he is the manager.

Mr. Wells was born in Winthrop, Massachusetts, February 24, 1892, a son of George E. and Kath- erine E. (Healey) Wells, both parents natives of this State, the former having died in 1926 and the latter in 1930; the father was associated with the railroad industry for many years. After passing through the public schools of his home town, the son, George E., went to Boston in 1908 and obtained a position with the Aetna Life Insurance Company. He was advanced from one grade to another as his merit was recognized, and in 1920 was sent to Worcester as the successor of Forest Shea as man- ager of the casualty department in the company's Worcester branch office. In this position he has attained an excellent reputation, having become one of the most widely known insurance representa- tives in this section of the State.

During the World War he served on various boards and committees in connection with the pro- secution of the conflict to a successful conclusion, and for his work he received the thanks of the Federal Government. He is a member of the Wor- cester Chamber of Commerce, affiliates with the Worcester Lodge, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and is a member of the Economic Club of Worcester and the Wachusett Country Club. He is a student of history, and has many intellectual and social friends in Worcester city and county.

Mr. Wells married, in 1920, Helen Gormley, of Chicago, Illinois, and they have one daughter, Helen. Mr. Wells has his insurance office at No. 390 Main Street in this city.

ELMER L. POWERS-Beginning in 1907 in a clerical capacity in the employ of the Washburn- Garfield Company, of Worcester, Elmer L. Powers has risen through various grades to the position of general manager. The Washburn-Garfield Com- pany is one of the oldèst concerns of its kind in Worcester and one of the pioneer organizations identified with the manufacture and distribution of steamfittings in New England.

Born in Worcester, November 25, 1890, Elmer L. Powers is a son of Henry L. and Abbie L. (Bos- worth) Powers, the former a native of Spencer and the latter of Massachusetts, the father pursu- ing the trade of a millwright. After passing through the public schools, the son, Elmer L., as a boy in his 'teens, entered the service of the Wash- burn-Garfield Company, and with this concern he has been associated all of his business career. Apt, willing and ambitious, he discharged with increas- ing ability the tasks set him and from time to time

was made the subject of merited promotion. When he was appointed to the office of general manager, it was felt by his superiors and associates that the right man had been called to the position, and subsequent events in the history of the company have demonstrated this forecast as accurate.

He is a member of the Worcester Chamber of Commerce, the Commonwealth Club and Wachu- sett Country Club. Among his fraternal affilia- tions are Quinsigamond Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, Eureka Chapter, Royal Arch Masons ; and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. His reli- gious preference is Protestant.

Mr. Powers married, in 1915, Millie M. Smith, a native of Massachusetts. They have their resi- dence at No. 178 Whitmarsh Street, and the busi- ness address of Mr. Powers is the Washburn-Gar- field Company at Foster and Commercial streets, Worcester.

HENRY C. WALSH-An active member of the Worcester County bar since 1926, Henry C. Walsh has risen rapidly in his profession. He has built up a substantial practice and is widely known as an attorney throughout this section of the State.

Mr. Walsh was born at Worcester, September 10, 1894, a son of Patrick J. and Mary (Sheehan) Walsh. Both parents were natives of Ireland. The father, who was born in County Mayo, was a moulder by occupation. He died in 1923. Mary (Sheehan) Walsh, his wife, was born in County Cork and died in 1921.

Henry C. Walsh, of this record, received his pre- liminary education in St. John's parochial schools and subsequently entered Holy Cross College, from which he was graduated in 1915 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. In 1917 he took the further degee of Master of Arts at Clark University. A number of years later Mr. Walsh took up the study of law. He was graduated from Northeastern Uni- versity with the degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1926 and in the same year was admitted to the bar. Previously he had been an instructor in law and at the present time he teaches law in the Commer- cial High School, Worcester.

After his admission to the bar, Mr. Walsh estab- lished himself in general practice at Worcester, and became associated with John D. McGrath, Esq., in the State Mutual Building. His thorough training and diligence on behalf of his clients won him favorable attention and he has made steady prog- ress in his profession. He is considered one of the ablest of the younger attorneys at Worcester. Mr. Walsh is a member of the Worcester Bar Asso- ciation and the Massachusetts State Bar Associa- tion. Apart from his professional connections he is active in other phases of the life of this city and has always remained in close touch with his alma mater, serving at present as president of the Worcester County Holy Cross Alumni Associa- tion. He is a member and past president of the Washington Club of this city; a member of the University Club; is affiliated fraternally with the Knights of Columbus, the Benevolent and Protec- tive Order of Elks and the Ancient Order of Hibernians; and is secretary of the Blessed Sacra- ment Conference of the St. Vincent de Paul So- ciety. In religious faith he is a member of the Roman Catholic Church. Mr. Walsh makes his home in Worcester at No. 20 Abbott Street.

WORCESTER COUNTY

HANS TRULSON-Founder of the nation- ally known Swedish newspaper "Svea" published in Worcester, Massachusetts, Hans Trulson was a leader among the Swedish people of this city for many years. In building up the paper, which has since remained in possession of the Trulson fam- ily, he rendered a very valuable service to those among his compatriots who have taken up their home in America.

Mr. Trulson was born in Sweden on August 25, 1846. He was educated in his native land, and came to America in 1869, seeking the larger opportunities of a new land. For three years he lived in Kansas City, Kansas, but in 1872 he re- turned East and settled at Worcester, Massachu- setts, being one of the first half dozen of a nation- ality which has since won an honored place in Worcester life to locate here. For a time he was employed by the Washburn and Moen Company, now the American Steel and Wire Company, and during the last five years of his connection with that concern was foreman of the plant. In 1880, however, he established the first Swedish grocery store in Worcester, located in the Salisbury Build- ing, Lincoln Square, and for sixteen years carried on a successful and prosperous trade. He was a man of fine character and attainments and of gen- erous spirit. It was natural that the Swedish people of Worcester should look up to him as a leader, and his store became a gathering place for all of this nationality. Strangers in the city were given his name as a reference and with the invari- able kindness which always distinguished him he helped to make them comfortable and find them friends in their new home.

The "Svea," intended as a source of news and information for Swedish people, was a natural outgrowth of Mr. Trulson's position in Worcester. He recognized that there was a place for such a publication, and when he disposed of his grocery business in 1897, he established a printing office from which he issued the "Svea," at first as a monthly publication, printed in the Swedish lan- guage. Later the publication was changed to a weekly publication, now managed by his son, An- ton Herman Trulson (q v.). Two disastrous fires destroyed the work of years of toil, but Mr. Trul- son, with fine courage persevered, using his per- sonal financial means to the limit, and eventually succeeded in building up a valuable property. The "Svea" acquired a large circulation in Worcester and other New England centers, and Swedish peo- ple everywhere looked to it for news and opinion. In addition to current news, and special items of interest to Swedish people, not only from Wor- cester but from other towns where there were large Swedish communities, the "Svea" made it its policy to present much miscellaneous reading matter.

The first location of the "Svea" plant was in the building at No. 274 Main Street, of which the "Worcester Spy" occupied the ground floor of the same building. When fire destroyed this prop- perty, Mr. Trulson moved to a fine new plant in the Poli Building on Front Street, but again, in March, 1905, fire wiped out his property. Then he moved back to the new building of John E. Day erected in the rear of the plot at No. 274 Main Street. All three of Mr. Trulson's surviving sons became interested in the management of the paper. Francis, the oldest, was associated with his father from the time he graduated from high school, and

as business manager largely built up the property and played an important part in its rehabilitation after the two fires. His early death in 1906 was a severe loss to the paper as well as to his family.

On September 20, 1873, Hans Trulson married, in Worcester, Anna Carlson, daughter of Nils Carlson of this city. They became the parents of seven children: I. Albert, who died in infancy. 2. Francis, mentioned above. 3. Hulda, who was Mrs. Hulda Osterberg, of Worcester, now deceased. 4. Clara, now Mrs. Clara Fredin, of Worcester. 5. Anton Herman (q. v.). 6. Harold H., one of the present owners of the Svea Publishing Company and an active figure in the management of the paper. 7. Flora, who died in 1906.

Mr. Trulson died on March 26, 1908, in his sixty-second year. He was active until the last in the work which had come to mean so much to him and his death was a source of wide regret not only to the city of Worcester, which well appreciated the value of his citizenship, but to the hundreds of his personal friends and acquaintances elsewhere throughout the country. "In every movement in- augurated by the Swedish residents here," a pre- vious biographer has written of him, "he took an active part, and he was a charter member of almost every Swedish club and society organized in the city. He came to know the Swedish people of Worcester almost without exception, but to the end of his life, even after the number had reached into the thousands, he made friends among all classes of people. He was essentially a man of large public spirit, though modest in manner and bearing, and not at all ambitious for distinction on his own account."

ANTON HERMAN TRULSON-As editor and publisher of the "Svea," Anton Herman Trul- son has continued very successfully the paper founded by his father and has maintained the fine traditions so long associated with the family name in Worcester life.

He was born in this city on February 6, 1885, son of Hans Trulson (q. v.), and of Anna (Carl- son) Trulson. He received his education in the public schools of Worcester and following his graduation from the English High School here, entered the office of his father's printing business. Under the capable guidance of the elder man, he learned all details of the business, step by step, gradually assuming larger responsibilities in con- nection with the publication of the paper and the general work of the shop. After his father's death he succeeded him as manager and head of the Svea Publishing Company. At that time the com- pany was incorporated, all the stock being held in the family.

Mr. Trulson is a newspaper man of wide experi- ence and distinguished record. He has greatly enhanced the value of the property which he man- ages, building up the circulation of the "Svea," and increasing its prestige and influence. Every effort has been made to maintain the highest jour- nalistic standards, not only in editorial departments, but in the matter of correspondents and reporters. Today the "Svea" has no fewer than fifty cor- respondents throughout New England and enjoys a wide circulation in this entire section. Branch offices are maintained at Boston and Providence in addition to the main offices in Worcester. The growth of the paper has been accompanied by a

WORCESTER COUNTY

general growth in the printing business carried on by the company. A very complete and modern plant is maintained, and not only does the company receive a large share of the job printing in Swedish done in New England, publishing many pamphlets and books in that language, but also much job printing in English. This is executed according to the same high standards of quality.

Mr. Trulson has many other connections in Wor- cester. He is affiliated with Athelstan Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and in this order is a mem- ber of many higher bodies, including Worcester Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Goddard Council; Princes of Jerusalem; Worcester Lodge of Per- fection; Lawrence Chapter of Rose Croix; Aleppo Temple, of the Shrine; and Massachusetts Consis- tory, Scottish Rite. He is affiliated in addition with John Erickson Lodge, No. 10; Thule Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows; and is a mem- ber of the Swedish Masonic Club of Boston, and the Svea Gille Association. In politics he is a Republican.

On June 27, 1913, Anton Herman Trulson mar- ried Gertrude Erickson, daughter of Carl P. Erick- son, of Worcester. They have two children: I. Dorothy E. 2. Anton Herman, Jr.

ARTHUR OSGOOD YOUNG-Among the families who have performed important services in business and civic life in Worcester, Massachu- setts, that of Young must stand out prominently in the city's records. Arthur Osgood Young was for many years a leading figure in the fuel indus- try here, bringing the Claflin-Sumner Coal Com- pany, of which he was president, to a position of distinction in this region of New England, and at the same time winning the warm esteem and re- spect of his fellowmen for his capable handling of large commercial affairs. He was loved also for his kindly and generous personal qualities, his de- votion to high civic ideals, and his warmth of human sympathy and understanding. His was a vision of rare character, an insight that served as a guiding light in his public and private relation- ships alike, a career of usefulness and a life finely lived.

Mr. Young, who came to be so honored for his achievements in the business world in Worcester, spent most of his life in this city. In the public schools, he received his early education, and, im- mediately upon completing his formal studies, he began his connection with the company with which he was associated for the rest of his life. He worked at first with Charles L. Claflin, the founder of the business, who, coming to Worcester, estab- lished a coal yard in Central Street in the early 'seventies of the last century. Charles L. Claflin, who was a partner in the original firm of C. W. Claflin and Company, was placed, in 1875, at the head of the Worcester branch of the business; and at that time a wholesale department was set up in Boston. For many years the company was composed of C. L. Claflin, Mr. Young, and Ed- ward W. Pierce, of Brookline, Massachusetts, Mr. Pierce having charge of the Boston office.

With the passing of years, the company ex- panded, though several reorganizations and changes of name took place. The old firm of C. W. Claflin and Company retained the wholesale business and the retail business evolved into the

Claflin Coal Company. On April 1, 1910, the Claflin Coal Company was merged with the Sum- ner Coal Company to form the Claflin-Sumner Coal Company, which corporate name was re- tained thereafter. The company headquarters were established at No. 9 Pleasant Street, Worcester; and yards were built at Nos. 241 and 401 South- bridge Street, No. 301 Shrewsbury Street, and No. 215 Ludlow Street.

As president of the Claflin-Sumner Coal Com- pany, Mr. Young contributed vastly to the ad- vancement of its interests, which materially bene- fitcd from the ability and skill that he directed into the company's affairs. But he did not confine his business endeavors to this one organization, having been also a member of the board of directors of the Worcester Bank and Trust Company. He was also president of the C. W. Claflin Company, of Boston; president of the Massachusetts Wharf Coal Company of Albany, New York, and vice- president of the William McEwan Coal Company. His membership in the Worcester Chamber of Commerce enabled him to take part most help- fully in general business activities in his city and in projects for increasing prosperity among its people. He kept always in close touch with the economic situation in Worcester and the world at large; and, indeed, there was almost no phase of local or national life with which he was not deeply concerned. He was, in his political views, a staunch Republican and a supporter of his party's policies and principles; and his memberships in such groups as the Commonwealth Club, the Tat- nuck Country Club, and the Worcester Country Club gave him a place of high standing in Massa- chusetts social life. His fine energies and enthusi- asm were productive of beneficial results in many branches of Worcester life, and were a proof of his public spirit and personal excellence. Mr. Young was a vestryman of All Saints' Church.

Mr. Young's chief devotion was, however, to home and family; for, in the domestic circle, he found a happiness and inspiration that were not forthcoming elsewhere, but that radiated through every department of his life. Arthur Osgood Young married, on January 16, 1890, Mary Valen- tine Claflin, born at Hopkinton, Massachusetts, on November 3, 1855, daughter of Charles Winslow and Anna Maria (Valentine) Claflin. Mrs. Young, a member of an old and honorable family, was descended from Robert Claflin, a Scottish soldier who was captured by Cromwell and sent with other prisoners of war to New England about 1650, settled in Wenham, and died September 19, 1690. The name was originally spelled McClaflin, McLaughlin, and so forth. Daniel Claflin, son of the pioneer, was born in Wenham, but afterward removed to Hopkinton; he married Sarah Ed- wards, and from about 1715 to the time of writing, the Claflins have been one of the leading families of Hopkinton. Isaac Claflin, of the fifth genera- tion, was a soldier in the War of the American Revolution. In all her lines of ancestry, Mrs. Young was descended from early English settlers in the Old Bay Colony.

Mr. and Mrs. Young became the parents of the following children: I. Charles Claflin Young, who was born on December 5, 1893, received his cducation in Worcester, and is at the time of writ-

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ing a director and the president of the Claflin- Sumner Coal Company; he is also prominent in civic and social life, being a member of the Tat- nuck Country Club, the Worcester Country Club, Worcester Club, the Commonwealth Club, and the Kiwanis Club; he married Edna T. Smith, of Worcester, who is a member of the Worcester Country Club and the Tatnuck Country Club, and they live at No. 221 Burncoat Street. 2. Mar- garet Valentine Young, who was born on February I, 1897. 3. Arthur Osgood Young, Jr., who was born November 5, 1898; he is at the time of writ- ing treasurer of the Framingham Coal Company, of Framingham, Massachusetts.

The death of Arthur Osgood Young, the father, in 1929, was an occasion of widespread and pro- found regret in Worcester and wherever he was known. For he had contributed liberally to busi- ness and civic improvement in his city and State, had taken an interest in every worth while project introduced in his community, and had merited by his record the high regard that was undeniably his. Honored for accomplishment, loved for character and personality, revered for his life of service, he was one whose memory could not but survive his physical residence on earth, serving as a source of satisfaction, joy and encouragement to others, and as a guiding light in years yet to come.

C. CLAFLIN YOUNG-Associated through- out practically the whole of his business career with the Claflin-Sumner Coal Company, of Wor- cester, Massachusetts, in which he succeeded his father as president, C. Claflin Young has main- tained, in his own career, the distinction of the family of which he is a member.

Charles Claflin Young, born on December 5, 1893, at Worcester, Massachusetts, was named after his maternal grandfather, Charles Winslow Claflin, who was long connected with the Claflin business interests in Worcester. On the Claflin side of his house-his mother was Mary Valentine (Claflin) Young,-Mr. Young was descended from Robert Claflin, a Scottish soldier captured by Cromwell and sent with other prisoners of war to New England about 1650, settling in Wenham and dying September 19, 1690. The name was originally spelled McClaflin and McLaughlin. The pioneer's son, Daniel Claflin, was born in Wen- ham, afterward going to Hopkinton, where the Claflins have since been among the leading fami- lies and where Mrs. Mary Valentine (Claflin) Young was born on November 3, 1855, daughter of Charles Winslow and Anna Maria (Valentine) Claflin. Isaac Claflin, of the fifth generation of the American Claflins, was a soldier in the Revo- lution; and, in all branches of her ancestry, Mrs. Young was descended from early English settlers in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

C. Claflin Young's father, Arthur Osgood Young, who was for many years president of the Claflin-Sumner Coal Company, with which he was associated all his life, was also prominent in civic and social life. His life and works are recorded elsewhere in this volume. He married, on Jan- uary 16, 1890, Mary Valentine Claflin, referred to above; and they had children: I. Charles Claflin Young, of this review. 2. Margaret Valentine

Young, born February 1, 1897. 3. Arthur Osgood Young, Jr., born November 5, 1898, now treas- urer of the Framingham Coal Company, of Fram- ingham, Massachusetts.

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Worcester county; a narrative history, Volume III, Part 16

Author: Nelson, John, 1866-1933 Publication date: 1934 Publisher: New York, American historical Society Number of Pages: 700

Author: Nelson, John, 1866-1933
Publication date: 1934
Publisher: New York, American historical Society
Number of Pages: 700