USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Worcester county; a narrative history, Volume III > Part 52
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of fast driving horses, when these ranked high among the pleasures of gentlemen. He voted the Republican ticket, was an active member of the Central Congregational Church of Worcester, and was a popular figure in many forms of community life. He had the gift of good companionship, and a legion of friends mourned his death. The love of home and family was dominant in his long and useful life.
LEON E. PRIOR-Pursuing the profession of an educator Leon E. Prior of Baldwinsville, filled a number of important assignments prior to his coming to be superintendent of schools in District No. 2, composed of the towns of Temple- ton, Hubbardston, Royalston and Phillipston. His administration has shown excellent results in the improvement of the school systems in the respec- tive communities in his jurisdiction.
Born in Ludlow, Vermont, April 6, 1879, Leon E. Prior is the son of Frank and Clara (Parker) Prior. When he was twelve years old he was made an orphan by the death of his parents, and he went to Georgetown, Kentucky, where he had a sister engaged in teaching. Completing there his grade and college preparatory school work, he entered Georgetown College, finished his course and received the degree of Master of Arts in 1901. On his return to his native town of Ludlow, he at once took up educational work, teaching at the Black River Academy for two years. Thence he went to Shelburne High School as principal and filled the position for one year. He next accepted the invitation to be principal of the Richmond (Vermont) High School, where he was stationed four years. On the formation of the Superintend- ents Union in Vermont in 1909, he was chosen superintendent of the Winooski Valley schools, remaining in this capacity four years.
Mr. Prior then came to Massachusetts and was installed as superintendent of the Charlemont Union. After three years there, he removed to South Dartmouth in this State, and was superin- tendent of that town's schools for three years. There followed seven and one-half years as super- intendent of the Peterborough (New Hampshire) schools, from which town he went to West Stock- bridge, Massachusetts, of which union he was superintendent for four years. It was in 1929 that he was called to be superintendent of District No. 2, his present charge, and in October of that year he began his work here. His record as an able educator and administrator preceded his acceptance of the position. He is a member of the Worces- ter County Association of School Superintendents, the Massachusetts School Superintendents Asso- ciation, and the National Education Association. Active in civic affairs, he is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Patrons of Husbandry (Grange). His religious fellow- ship is with the Baptist Church, in which he serves as deacon.
Mr. Prior married, in July, 1906, Alice May Stone, of Andover, Massachusetts, and their chil- dren are: I. Betty, a teacher in the Winchendon public schools. 2. Miriam, a student in the Ithaca (New York) College of Music. Mrs. Prior is a member of the Baldwinsville Woman's Club and the Baptist Church.
FRANCIS ALBERT REYNOLDS, M. D .- In the practice of advanced surgery, Dr. Francis A. Reynolds, of Athol, has become well and favor- ably known to the profession and public generally in Worcester and contiguous counties. He also does a large amount of work with X-ray apparatus, and in this branch of medicine he is rated as an expert and specialist.
Born in Winthrop, Massachusetts, May 24, 1896, Dr. Francis Albert Reynolds is the son of Anthony and Teresa (Stripka) Reynolds, the former a retired grocer, of Boston, and the latter deceased in 1919. After passing through the grade and high schools in Boston, he took a premedical course at Tufts College, following with a regular course of medical studies at the University of Maryland, where he was graduated with his degree of Doctor of Medicine in the class of 1921. He served an interneship of about one and one-half years at the University Hospital, Baltimore, Mary- land, and the Mercy Hospital, Springfield, Massa- chusetts. In 1922 he opened an office for practice in Athol, where and elsewhere that he is pro- fessionally engaged he has been very successful. Desirous of perfecting himself as a specialist in Roentgenology, he took post-graduate work in this science at Harvard Medical School and has since employed it to excellent advantage in his practice in his office and in hospitals to which he is attached as a staff member.
To numerous organized bodies of the medical fraternity, Dr. Reynolds has been admitted because of his high standing in the profession. He is affiliated with the American Medical Association, New England Roentgen-Ray Society, Massachu- setts Medical Society, and Tulley Medical Society of Athol. He is a member of the medical staff of Farren Memorial Hospital at Montague City, an associate staff member of the Franklin County Hospital at Greenfield, and a member of the sur- gical staff of the Henry Heywood Hospital at Gardner. During the World War, when he was at school, he served in the Medical Reserve Corps of the United States Navy. He is a vice-pres- ident of the Athol Credit Union, president of the Athol Exchange Club, a Past Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus, and a member of the fourth degree of that order, affiliating also with Boston Lodge, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and being a member of the Elmwood Country Club of Athol. He is doing excellent work as a mem- ber of the Athol Recreation Commission. His religious connection is with St. Francis Church (Roman Catholic), of Athol.
Dr. Reynolds married, August 20, 1923, at Brockton, Massachusetts, Pauline Nellie Abraczin- sky, daughter of Michael and Ursula (Green) Abraczinsky, of that city, where both her par- ents are living. Dr. and Mrs. Reynolds have two children : I. Patricia Marie, born May 7, 1925. 2. Francis Albert, Jr., born September 20, 1928.
CHARLES H. BRYANT-A representative citizen of the county, the late Charles H. Bryant, of Worcester, made a success of his agricultural enterprise, with which he combined a milk busi- ness. He was a substantial citizen of the com- munity, progressive in his own affairs and ever seeking the best interests of the community.
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The progenitor of the family of Bryant (Briant) in England was Sir Guy de Briant, who, accord- ing to family history, lived in the reign of Edward III. John Bryant, of Scituate, Plymouth Colony, is claimed as the immigrant ancestor of Charles H. Bryant. He married (first) Mary Lewis, (sec- ond) Elizabeth Witherell, and (third) Mary High- land. The line of descent is through Lieutenant John Bryant, eldest son of John and Mary (Lewis) Bryant, and Mary, his wife; their son, David, and Hannah Church, his wife; their son, Jacob, and Abigail, his wife; their son, Jonathan, and Anna Warren, his wife; their son, John, and Fanny Smith, his wife; their son, Charles, and Mary Jane (Bryant) Bryant, his wife; to their son, Charles H., of whom further.
Charles H. Bryant, third child of Charles and Mary Jane (Bryant) Bryant, was born in Holden, Worcester County, January 10, 1854, and attended the common schools, concluding his education at Howe's Business College, Worcester. His farm- ing and milk interests were conducted on a large scale, and in these lines he was one of the best known men of the city. His farm was one of the most valuable in the county, situated on the Hol- den Road, on the outskirts of the city proper. Politically he was aligned with the Republican party and he was an active member of Worcester Grange, Patrons of Husbandry.
Mr. Bryant married, March 15, 1881, Lizzie Hattie Allen, daughter of Asa Mixter and Eliza- beth A. (Richardson) Allen. Her father came to Worcester with the Worcester Wire Mill Com- pany, being at the time one of fourteen men who were the first to engage in the wire industry. About 1830 he purchased a farm, which is now the site of No. 165 Holden Street, Worcester. He was a member of the old Massachusetts State Guards. He died in 1880. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Charles H. Bryant follow: I. Fannie Elizabeth, born December 21, 1881, who served as a graduate nurse in Worcester City Hospital. 2. Nellie Jane, born December 5, 1883, a teacher in the public schools of Worcester. 3. Flora Allen, born October 13, 1894. 4. Esther Louise, born February 5, 1898, died April 20, 1898.
In his fifty-fourth year, Charles H. Bryant died at his home, No. 165 Holden Street, Worcester, August 2, 1907, and his loss was widely regretted in Worcester and throughout the county, where he was known for his sterling qualities of char- acter and business integrity.
CHARLES P. GEMME-As vice-president of the Worcester Lunch Car Company, Charles P. Gemme has performed a valuable work in the business world. A native Canadian, he has richly contributed to the prosperity of the Worcester community and of his adopted country and is highly esteemed among his associates, customers and all who know him.
Mr. Gemme was born on April 30, 1884, in the Province of Quebec, Canada, son of Paul and Julienne (Tisdell) Gemme. His father was a farmer and lived in Canada, until he came to Worcester and opened a butcher's store. Here remaining until 1874, he returned to Canada, but in 1895 again came to the United States, this time settling in New Bedford, Massachusetts, there taking a position in the cloth works of the Wam- sutta Mills. After fourteen years there, he came
again, in 1910, to Worcester, where he lived with his son until death came to him in 1927 at the age of eighty-two years. His wife, Julienne (Tis- dell) Gemme, was a Worcester woman. They had fifteen children, twelve of whom, seven of them sons, are still living. Mrs. Gemme died in 1910.
The man whose name heads this review, Charles P. Gemme, received his early education in the public schools. He spent much of his early life in Canada, and the rest of it in New Bedford, Massachusetts, whither he came at the age of eleven years. After school hours he was employed in the distribution of newspapers. Later he en- tered the New Bedford textile mills, rising to the position of spinner and weaver of cotton and silk and continuing in this work for four years. His first real opportunity for advancement came in 1904, when, aged twenty years, he came to Wor- cester and took a position with Thomas Buckley, a pioneer manufacturer of dining and lunch cars. These cars, then new, have made their appearance throughout the United States, scarcely any town or hamlet being without them. Mr. Gemme's asso- ciation with Mr. Buckley lasted a little more than a year. He was then connected with the Osgood- Bradley Company, famous car builders of Wor- cester, with whom he completed his studies of the art of fine finish on car work.
There followed a period of practical work with the Worcester Lunch Car Company, whose force he joined on January 17, 1907. Eight months later, on October 1, 1907, he was given charge of all construction work in the manufacture of the beau- tiful and highly serviceable lunch cars which made that company famous from coast to coast. In 1921 he was elected vice-president of the company and he still retains the responsibilities of design- ing the company's cars and overseeing their mak- ing. Wherever these modern "diners," as they have come to be known, are found as the output of the Worcester Lunch Car Company, they are known to be the result of Mr. Gemme's artistic and designing skill. Every community has them, and some of them cost as much as $25,000. They are beautifully decorated and finished and equipped with the most up-to-date devices and furniture for the satisfaction of the eating public. In addition to being chief designer and overseer of construction on these cars, Mr. Gemme is the originator of the combination door, a combination of screen door and winter door, now in universal use throughout the country. The neat panels of these doors may be removed at will and replaced by screens in the summer months. So practicable did this device prove that almost every designer of "diners" throughout the country adopted it in some form or other. When Mr. Gemme came to this young industry, it employed seven or eight men who did all kinds of work, including repairing and gen- eral blacksmithing. The company was then housed in a building at No. 70 Franklin Street, but after- ward, in 1917, removed to the present quarters at No. 4 Quinsigamond Avenue. The early cars were no larger in dimensions than seven by sixteen feet. Now they measure twenty-three to sixty feet in length and ten and a half to fourteen feet in width, and cost from $7,000 to $25,000, and more. The company, by far the largest and oldest engaged in this special line of business in the United States, now employs forty men. It was originally estab- lished by Philip H. Duprey, who organized it and
Chas. J. Femme
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became its president; but its growth in more recent times has been in a large measure the result of Mr. Gemme's effective work.
In addition to his activities with this company, Mr. Gemme is active in such groups as the St. Joseph's Club, the St. Jean Baptiste Society, the Harmony Club, and the Chamber of Commerce, all of Worcester. He is a member of St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, of this city.
Charles P. Gemme married (first), in 1911, Alma M. Lacasse, of Montreal, Province of Quebec, Canada. The children of this marriage were: I. Gertrude, who died at the age of four years. 2. Cecile, born March 17, 1914; she was graduated from St. Joseph's Grammar School and Commer- cial School and Becker's Business College; she then took special work in shorthand and typewriting and in the operation of the Dalton Adding Ma- chine and for her expert work in this particular branch she received first prize, a very beautiful pin, for her ability to write and add nine hundred and sixty-one numbers in four minutes; afterward she attended the Convent of the Sisters of St. Anne, Lachine, Quebec, returning then to Wor- cester and being given an important position in the office of a leading lawyer ; she is now in the employ of the Ware Pratt Company, and attending the Northeastern University Evening School classes. 3. Rita, born July 18, 1916, graduated from St. Joseph's Grammar School in French and English and Commercial School before she was sixteen years of age, and from Becker's Business College ; now a senior at the North High School, she is also employed by a Worcester lawyer. 4. Mar- garet, who died at the age of one year. 5. Lucie, born December 13, 1922, attending St. Joseph's Grammar School. 6. Yvette, born March 16, 1925, also attending St. Joseph's Grammar School. 7. Claire, who died at the age of five months.
Mr. Gemme married (second), in 1931, Mrs. Marie Anne LeBlanc, of Worcester, who had two sons by a former marriage: I. Laurence, born No- vember 17, 1917, a graduate of St. Joseph's Gram- mar School, now in the commercial class of 1934. 2. Omer, born December 13, 1920, in the seventh grade at St. Joseph's. The Gemme residence is situated at No. 179 Pilgrim Avenue, Worcester, and Mr. Gemme's business headquarters are at No. 4 Quinsigamond Avenue, this city.
WILLIAM E. TAFT-Well known for his inventions of various devices for the burning of oil for heating purposes, William E. Taft, founder and former president of the Taft Oil Burner Com- pany, Inc., of Athol, developed this business to a point where it distributes its products all over the United States and to some foreign countries. This comparatively infant industry is a fine addi- tion to the commercial lines of Athol and this part of Worcester County.
This family of Taft has long been identified with the manufacture of machinery and appliances in Worcester County. George C. (1) Taft, grand- father of William E., was for many years a man- ufacturer of shears, punches and drills, also of general machinery equipment, in Worcester. He was prominent in the Masonic Order, having ad- vanced to the thirty-third degree in the Scottish Rite. Among his inventions was the Coe monkey- wrench. His father came from Wales to this county. George C. (2) Taft, son of George C.
(I), worked as a machinist in the employ of his father. He married Adella E. Hubbard.
William E. Taft, son of George C. (2) and Adella E. (Hubbard) Taft, was born in Rutland, Massachusetts, February 28, 1884. After passing through the public schools, he entered the Mas- sachusetts Institute of Technology, where he took courses in steam and mechanical engineering. For a time after leaving college he operated garages in Athol. About 1925 he began perfecting his invention of an oil burner, on which he received letters patent in April, 1932. He has since made improvements on which there are patents pending or applied for. Being a natural, as well as a trained mechanic, he has added to this talent his well known qualifications for business procedure. In 1928 he established the Taft Oil Burner Com- pany, Inc., at No. 74 Fletcher Street, Athol. The articles of incorporation were not, however, ap- proved with a certificate until 1930, Mr. Taft becoming president, George H. Hadley, secretary and treasurer, and Herbert B. Hadley, vice-pres- ident. The company set about the production of the Taft oil-burning devices, the line including complete outfits for kitchen ranges, furnaces, heat- ing stoves, and hot-water heaters. It manufactures the distillate and pressure type oil burners. Em- ployment is given to between thirty and forty per- sons. The products of the company find their way to customers in different parts of this coun- try, Canada, South America and other foreign lands. In Canada there is a branch factory at No. 5016 Papaneau Avenue, Montreal, under the man- agement of S. D. Machand.
Mr. Taft resigned his position as president of the Taft Oil Burner Company on December 4, 1933, to accept the presidency of the Valley Man- ufacturing Company, Inc., which he recently formed for the purpose of manufacturing and merchandis- ing a new line of oil burning equipment. He will continue his research work with the new company, but will retain his stock interest in the Taft Oil Burner Company, as well as continuing as chief engineer and director of both companies.
Mr. Taft is active in Masonic circles, affiliating with Morning Star Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons; Union Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Harris Council, Royal and Select Masters; and Athol Commandery, Knights Templar.
William E. Taft married, in 1916, Vina E. Rich- ards, and they have a daughter, Christine Edna. The family lives in Brookside Park, Athol.
EUGENE LEGRAND-By improving his equipment and service, Eugene Legrand has devel- oped the Athol Ice Company, Inc., to a prosperous concern, of which he is treasurer. In the modern- ization of his plant and delivery service, he has motorized a fleet of five trucks and carries on both a wholesale and retail business. He is an overseas veteran of the World War with the rating of corporal.
Born in Belchertown, Massachusetts, October 2, 1893, Eugene Legrand is a son of Frank and Marie (Noel) Legrand. Both parents were born in Can- ada, each coming to the United States at the age of eleven years. In due time they married and went to live in Holyoke, later removing to Belcher- town, and in 1909 they went to live in South Had- ley Falls, across the Connecticut River from Hol- yoke. The father, who died in June, 1933, was a
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farmer. The son, Eugene, received his education in the public schools of Belchertown and South Hadley Falls, graduating from high school in the latter town in IgII.
He first engaged in the ice business in South Hadley Falls, doing a retail business in his own name. In 1926 he disposed of the business to his brother and came to Athol, purchasing from its then owner the Athol Ice Company, which had been established in 1912. He proceeded without delay to incorporate improvements in the plant, delivery system and office. One of the most appeal- ing and useful features of the new ownership is the motorized truck department by which deliveries are facilitated to an increasing number of cus- tomers.
The World War record to the credit of Mr. Legrand starts with orders received to proceed to Camp Devens, Ayer, Massachusetts, where he was enrolled as a private. After a period of intensive training, he went overseas in July of the same year as a member of the 76th Division, American Expeditionary Forces. Transferred to the 314th Motor Supply Train, he was at the front until the signing of the Armistice. Afterward he continued on duty in France. On his return to the United States in July, 1919, he was promoted to corporal. Holding this warrant, he was honor- ably discharged at Camp Merritt in August, 1919. He then resumed his ice business in South Hadley Falls, whence he subsequently transferred his inter- ests to Athol.
Mr. Legrand married, November 26, 1917, at South Hadley Falls, Ellen Beeler, daughter of John and Mary (Glover) Beeler. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Legrand are: I. Francis Eugene, born June 21, 1918. 2. Faith, born July 9, 1920. 3. Joyce, born November 15, 1921. 4. Junior, born June 14, 1924. 5. Lester, born October 20, 1927. 6. Ronald Earl, born October 31, 1933. The first four were born in South Hadley Falls, the last two in Athol.
HERBERT C. FISHER-As a successful realtor, Herbert C. Fisher of Worcester was well known throughout the State. His achievements in the development of residential sections about his adopted city were substantial factors in the larger growth and prosperity not only of Worcester, but also of several places in the county. He was a native of Holliston, Massachusetts, born October 21, 1869, son of George Brayton and Sarah Louisa (Clark) Fisher and a member of distinguished Colonial families.
On the paternal side, the grandparents of Her- bert C. Fisher were Willard and Olive (Brayton) Fisher, of Killingly, Connecticut. The father, George Brayton Fisher, was a prominent merchant and the postmaster of East Medway, Massachu- setts. He enlisted and reënlisted in the Federal forces during the Civil War, so that in all he served for more than three years with the Union armies. In the siege of St. Petersburg, Virginia, he was seriously wounded. George B. Fisher mar- ried Sarah Louisa Clark, daughter of John and Marietta (Thompson) Clark, of Medway.
After being graduated from the high school, Her- bert C. Fisher followed the example of other ambitious and intelligent youths of his day by hunting a job by which he could at least support
himself. It was one of those periodical times of depression when work was scarce and poorly paid. He tried his hand at what he could get in his own town and then went to Worcester for larger opportunity. He was connected with the In- solvency Court, now called the Bankruptcy Court, for awhile and by the time he was twenty-four had accumulated enough funds to purchase what was known as the William Merrifield estate. This was in 1893, and was the first important piece of property that Mr. Fisher developed as a residential project. He laid out streets and built houses, sell- ing both homes and lots at reasonable prices and at terms which made their purchase easy. While this way of doing of real estate business is no longer a novelty, it was a new thing forty years ago, and Mr. Fisher was somewhat in advance of his day and generation. He handled the Wetherill estate in a similar fashion. He was in charge of the razing of the old Catholic Cemetery, an unpop- ular but necessary event. He developed, among other enterprises, the Fuller estate in Brighton and the Nonantum Hill property in that same section. In more recent decades his real estate operations were carried on in many parts of the State from and including Boston to west of Worcester. One of Mr. Fisher's almost forgotten projects goes back to 1905, when he bought the old Wauchacum Picnic Grove, now a part of the Metropolitan Water System. This was a favorite resort of picnickers, and parties came from all over Massa- chusetts and parts of New England. It was greatly improved and made very attractive. A large power boat was placed upon the pond or lake for the use of pleasure seekers. It is probable that Mr. Fisher had more fun from this enterprise than from many which were more profitable, for he found genuine pleasure in work and business and was of a genial friendly disposition that enjoyed contacts with people in all walks of life.
A different phase of his commercial activities had to do with the rise of modern systems of heat- ing. Mr. Fisher secured the agency in Worcester for the Duplex Gas Heater and was successful in its distribution. He also invented, perfected, made and sold the Fisher Gas Radiator, the first to be passed by the board of insurance under- writers for use in garages and other buildings. He was a director of the Guenther Manufacturing Company, of Buffalo, New York, manufacturers of gas heating systems. Mr. Fisher was finan- cially interested in several commercial and indus- trial companies and was a large holder of real estate.
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