Worcester county; a narrative history, Volume III, Part 98

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

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Father L'Eveque, the first resident Catholic priest in Spencer, was ordained by the Rt. Rev. Bernard Claude Parret, second Archbishop of Que- bec, on January 6, 1831. He spent the first years of his ministry in Canada and thereafter was pas- tor of several churches in France, but finally re- turned to Canada. In 1852 he came to the United States, spending most of his time in Worcester County. Following the dedication of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary, Father L'Eveque resigned his pastorate for one year in order that he might collect funds wherewith to pay back those who had helped him finance the building of the church. He returned the following year with what he had gathered and made payment so far as the resources at his disposal permitted, arranging there- after that revenues of the church should be used for this purpose until the deficit was met. Father L'Eveque then spent six years at Gethsemane, Kentucky, returning to Worcester County in 1861. He died in New Jersey on February 13, 1862.

Father L'Eveque was succeeded as pastor of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary by Father

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Meigneault, who came from Webster and had charge until December, 1857. In his time the first Catholic Cemetery was opened and the body of Michael Mead was interred there on February 20, 1857. In August, 1858, Father Quan assumed charge of the parish and some time afterwards, he made an offer to the Jesuit Priests of Holy Cross College to exchange the mission of Southbridge for that of Spencer. The Jesuits, among whom were Father J. C. Moore, Father Charles Kelly and Father Thomas Sheerin, thenceforward at- tended services at Spencer regularly until January, 1871. Father Quan was succeeded in September, 1864, by Father Vigilant. He purchased a new cemetery and in 1867 erected a transept and vestry to the church.

In 1872, when there were about 2,500 Catholics in the town, Spencer was made a parish and the Rev. Julius Cosson became the first resident pas- tor of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary. He purchased a small strip of land along Prospect Street from the old cemetery to the new cemetery, and here erected a rectory which he occupied in 1872. In May, three years later, he also purchased property on the south side of Proctor Street and in January, 1878, bought a house and land adjoin- ing the West End property. Father Cosson died on July 25, 1878, and was succeeded two days after his death by Father Thomas Beaven, later Bishop of Springfield, who had been his assistant since January 25, of the preceding year. In 1882 Father Beaven purchased land adjoining the orig- inal purchase and on May I, 1883, began the erec- tion of a new church. The corner stone was laid on August 5, 1883, and the exterior walls were up and the building roofed by the following De- cember. The new church was dedicated on Rosary Sunday, 1887, by the Rt. Rev. P. T. O'Reilly. It embodied the Gothic style of architecture and has since been a source of great satisfaction to the people of the parish.

The Church of Our Lady of the Rosary is the fortunate possessor of a rare series of richly color- ful windows. They represent a triumph in the art of stained glass window production and have been declared by many visitors to the church to be unsurpassed in New England. These windows were imported nearly half a century ago from Bavaria, which has been the world center for win- dow art production for seven hundred years. The figures stand out with a vivid clarity and an almost photographic distinctness and accuracy. When the setting sun gleams through, working its magic alchemy, the countenances portrayed by the artists glint with a glittering grandeur that suggests liv- ing gold and incites reverence for those unknown craftsmen who perpetuated in glass such beauty of thought and marvelous harmony of color. The windows, seventeen in number, commemorate and illustrate with inspiring vividness outstanding events in the life of Jesus Christ and of his Blessed Mother, Mary. The subjects are: "The Annun- ciation," "The Visitation," "The Nativity," "The Presentation in the Temple," "Christ, as a Boy, Teaching in the Temple," "The Prayer in the Gar- den of Gethsemane," "The Flagellation," "The Crowning with Thorns," "The Carrying of the Cross," "The Crucifixion," "The Resurrection," "The Ascension," "The Pentecost," "The Assump- tion," "The Coronation," "St. Mary, as Mother of Mercy," and "Our Lady of the Rosary." The

church is open daily to reverent visitors, thus affording an opportunity for meditation and prayer in a rarely beautiful setting.

During the pastorate of the Rev. Thomas Beaven, the parish of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary was divided and the Rev. C. R. Viens, an assistant to Father Beaven, was appointed pastor of the new parish composed of the French- Canadian people of Spencer. Father Beaven was succeeded on December 5, 1888, by the Rev. Gar- rett Dolan, who remained until 1899 and was fol- lowed by Father O'Grady. After him came Father McCaugham, who was pastor of the church for nineteen years. The next pastor of the church was Father Patrick A. Mannion, who died here after eight years of service. He was succeeded by the Rev. John S. Boland, who remained until 1933, when he resigned because of ill health. These priests all carried forward the work of the parish with vigor, fidelity and piety.

The present pastor of the Church of the Lady of the Rosary, Father James T. Reilly, succeeded Father Boland in July, 1933. He was born at Grafton, Massachusetts, and received his prelimi- nary education in the grammar and high school there. Subsequently he attended Holy Cross Col- lege, Worcester, and later the Grand Seminary at Montreal, returning at the end of that time to Springfield, where he was ordained to the priest- hood on July II, 1905. Father Reilly was as- signed to missionary work and sent to different stations throughout the United States, visiting missions in forty states and traveling extensively over the whole country. During his career of twenty years as a missionary priest, he preached in the archdioceses of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Toronto, Cincinnati, New Orleans and Santa Fé, New Mexico; and in the dioceses of Springfield, Trenton, Cleveland, Columbus, Fort Wayne, Indianapolis, Hamilton, Toledo, Buffalo, Syracuse, Brooklyn, Burlington, Fall River, Los Angeles and Seattle. After more than two dec- ades of service as a missionary, he was appointed pastor of the church at Otter River, Worcester County, and from that community came to Spencer as pastor of the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary. In his labors here, Father Reilly has won the affection of his parish and the respect of the city at large. He is an able administrator and true pastor of his flock-their friend and counselor as well as their spiritual leader.

DR. FRANK HALL WASHBURN-One of the best known and most successful surgeons in Massachusetts is Dr. Frank Hall Washburn, chief of staff of the Holden District Hospital, who is also consulting surgeon of the Rutland State Sana- torium and the Harrington Memorial Hospital of Southbridge, and thoracic surgeon of the Worcester County Sanatorium.

Lorenzo Stone Washburn, father of Dr. Wash- burn, was born in Paris, Maine, moving at the age of seven to Falmouth, Maine, where he re- ceived his education and spent the earlier half of his life, later moving to Portland. He early engaged in the brick-making business in Falmouth and afterwards in Westbrook, Maine. He was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Ancient Brotherhood and attended the Free- will Baptist Church of Falmouth, Maine. He died in Portland, Maine, at the age of seventy-eight. He

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married Mary Maria Barker, who was born in Hansport, Nova Scotia, Canada, and died at the home of her son, Dr. Washburn, at the age of seventy-five. She was a member of the Freewill Baptist Church of Falmouth, Maine, and for many years was superintendent of its Sunday school. They became the parents of four children : I. Free- land, who died in infancy. 2. Ida M., of Holden. 3. Harriet M., who married Fred M. Genthner of Gorham, Maine. 4. Dr. Frank Hall, of further mention.

Dr. Frank Hall Washburn was born in Fal- mouth, Maine, September 21, 1871, and received his early education in the public schools of that town. After attending Westbrook Seminary two years, he took a course in Gray's Business College at Port- land, later attended Massachusetts College of Phar- macy and became a registered pharmacist, practic- ing that profession in Boston for a time. With this preparation he entered Tufts College Medical School and in 1899 was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. In 1922 he was made a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.

After graduation from Tufts he began practice, but after a few months entered the Lynn Hospital where he served an interneship in 1899-1900. He then located in Jefferson, Massachusetts, coming to Holden seven years later where he has actively and successfully continued in practice to the pres- ent time. During the first year in practice in Holden he did the pathological laboratory work at the State Sanatorium in Rutland.

From the beginning Dr. Washburn has naturally been interested in hospital work, where the facilities for surgical operations are most complete. As the years passed his interest in hospital organization and equipment increased, and, like all men of crea- tive ability, he cherished a desire to aid in the creation and organization of a hospital which should approach as nearly as possible his ideal for such institutions. In course of time his dream came true. Back in 1912, Mrs. George Jenkins opened a small hospital of five beds in a private house which she owned, known as Holden Cottage Hospital. Its opportunities for usefulness out- grew its capacity, and in this small privately owned hospital Dr. Washburn recognized the possible be- ginnings of the hospital of his dreams. An asso- ciation was formed, with Dr. Washburn as one of the most active promoters of the project. It pur- chased the plant from Mrs. Jenkins, renamed it the Holden Hospital, Inc., and proceeded to enlarge and develop its resources. In 1922 Rutland and other neighboring towns became interested and the name was changed to Holden District Hospital. In 1923 the present beautiful hospital building was erected. Artistically designed, built of brick, and equipped with every possible convenience and ap- pliance, Holden District Hospital, offering accom- modation for about forty patients, is one of the finest of its size in Massachusetts. Its staff, per- manent and consulting, of which Dr. Washburn is chief, includes twenty-five of the most skilled specialists in Worcester and near-by towns. Hol- den Clinic, of which Dr. Washburn is head, with its staff of five expert specialists, each having his own office, and with its consultation room and Dr. Washburn's public and private offices, is, so far as is known, the only complete clinic in any town in Massachusetts. This clinic was founded by Dr. Washburn in 1920, in association with Dr. George

Arnold Rice (q. v.), a surgeon and specialist in diseases of the ear, nose, and throat, who is still associated with the clinic. Three more specialists have been added, raising the clinic staff at pres- ent to five skilled specialists. There is an excellent laboratory and a splendid medical library, and in every detail the Holden Clinic has been made thor- oughly efficient and up-to-date. Dr. Washburn and his associates have good reason to be proud of Holden Clinic and also of Holden District Hospital.

In addition to the numerous and exacting pro- fessional duties mentioned above, Dr. Washburn was health officer of the town of Holden for thirty years. He is a preceptor at Tufts College Medical Schools and a member of the American Medical Association; Massachusetts Medical So- ciety, of the council of which he is a member; Worcester District Medical Society, of which he is a past president; Wachusett Medical Society ; American Urological Association; New England Urological Society; Trudeau Society ; American Society of Regional Anaesthesia; and New Eng- land Roentgen-Ray Society. He is also a mem- ber of the National Society of Puritan Descendants. During the period of the World War he served as examiner on the draft board. Fraternally, he is well known in Masonic circles, being a member and Past Master of Boylston Lodge, Free and Ac- cepted Masons; Worcester Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Worcester County Commandery ; Knights Templar ; and Aletheia Grotto, Mystic Order Veiled Prophets of the Enchanted Realm. He is also a charter member and past patron of Wachusett Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star, of Holden, and a member of the Asnebuncket Tribe of Red Men. He was the first president of the Holden Trowell Club, and is a member of the Wachusett Coun- try Club, a past president of the Worcester Fox Club, a member of the Worcester County Fish and Game Association, the National Rifle Associa- tion of America and several other sportsmen's organizations. He is also an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Kappa Greek letter society of Tufts College Medical School.

Dr. Frank Hall Washburn married, May 10, 1892, Bessie M. Carter, of Portland, Maine, daugh- ter of Captain James Carter, of that city, and of Lucy W. (Johnson) Carter. Dr. and Mrs. Wash- burn became the parents of four children: I. Agnes M., died January 17, 1929, a graduate of Worces- ter City Hospital Training School for Nurses ; married Percy H. Bedell, and they had three chil- dren : Ralph, Shirley, and Olive. 2. Frank H., Jr., a manufacturer of orthopedic appliances, with offices in Worcester; married Dora Veitch and they have three children: Frank H., Elaine, and Doris E. 3. Lorenzo S., employed in the laboratory of the Norton Grinding Company of Worcester, at present with their plant in England; married Mar- garet Henderson, and they have two children : Channing and Paul. 4. Edith Mildred, a nurse in Philadelphia.

JOSEPH S. WESBY-Identified for prac- tically his entire business life with J. S. Wesby and Sons, one of the oldest binding establishments in Worcester County, Joseph S. Wesby, grandson of the founder, of the same name, of the concern, is general manager of the business. He has been instrumental in promoting its success and carrying

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forward its high reputation for superior work in its different departments.

Joseph S. (1) Wesby, in 1842, started in busi- ness on his own account, doing boodbinding and maintaining a retail bookstore adjoining the Star Theatre Building, Worcester. The store was de- stroyed, when the theatre burned, January 29, 1854. As the business increased in volume, larger quarters were occupied, and two sons of the senior Mr. Wesby, Herbert and Edward, came into the firm, the title of which was later changed to J. S. Wesby and Sons, by which name it has since been known. The two sons, progressively inclined men, were active in the erection of the Graphic Arts Building, on Foster Street, where the business was housed until it was transferred to the company's new location in its modern plant at No. 44 Port- land Street, where it has one of the best-equipped establishments in the trade. A staff of about forty- five persons is employed, most of whom are highly skilled hands, and the products have a wide repu- tation for artistic tone and generally superior qual- ity. Its bookbinding and ruling features, especially, are considered to be of particularly high grade. The output is distributed throughout New England, which is classified by the company as its territory of operations. Joseph S. (1) Wesby married Anne E. Puffer, a member of an old Leicester family. Of their two sons, Herbert and Edward, see the following paragraphs.

Herbert Wesby, the elder son of Joseph S. (1) and Anne E. (Puffer) Wesby, was born in Worces- ter, August 30, 1855, and was educated in the public schools of the city. He married Elizabeth A. Bullock, of Worcester. Since young manhood he has been a member of J. S. Wesby and Sons. He is affiliated with the Free and Accepted Masons and all of the Scottish Rite bodies, including the Consistory, in which he has attained the thirty- second degree, also with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

Edward Wesby, younger son of Joseph S. (1) and Anne E. (Puffer) Wesby, was born in Wor- cester and received his education in the local pub- lic schools. Since entering J. S. Wesby and Sons as an aid and partner of his father, the founder, he has been uninterruptedly associated with the concern. He is a life-member of the Free and Accepted Masons and a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He married Edna W. Earle, of Massachusetts. Their children are: I. Maude E., a graduate of Smith College. 2. Joseph S. (2), see a later paragraph.

Joseph S. (2) Wesby, son of Edward and Edna W. (Earle) Wesby, was born in Worcester, March 20, 1891, and attended the public schools of this city. He graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts at Amherst College in the class of 1913. Shortly thereafter he became associated with J. S. Wesby and Sons and was made general manager, which office he has since filled. He is a contribut- ing force to the success of the establishment. In the civic life of Worcester he takes a keen inter- est and is a member of the Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of Morning Star Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and also of the Consistory, in which he has attained the thirty-second degree, and of a member of other societies, including the Wor- cester Country Club and the Kiwanis Club.

Joseph S. (2) Wesby married, in 1916, Mary J. Macgowan, of Worcester, and they have a son, Joseph S. (3) Wesby, Jr., born December 9, 1917.

REV. G. H. DOLAN-The account of St. Louis' Church, Webster, will be better understood by a review of the history of this parish and the work of the Catholic Church in this community. The first Mass in Webster was said probably by Father A. Williamson, of Worcester County, in 1844. In 1847 Father Logan, of the Society of Jesus, from Holy Cross College, Worcester, was assigned to look after the Catholic people all along the line to Norwich. This continued until his death, at New London, Connecticut, in 1850. The work was then taken up by the Rev. Peter Blenkin- sop, of the same college, who was in charge until the erection of the church. The excavating for the church was done by the members of the parish after their day's work, thus showing their great inter- est in the new church. The corner stone of this church was laid on September 2, 1851, by Bishop Fitzpatrick. The church measures 100 by 50 feet. Father Gibson superintended the work of build- ing, while Father Blenkinsop attended the spiritual needs of the people.

In 1853 Webster was made a separate parish. The first resident pastor was the Rev. Napoleon Meigneault, who came to Webster in 1853. This pastor was very active and had charge of the Cath- olics in ten towns. The church, which cost $80,000, was completed and dedicated in 1853 by the Rev. John Boyce, of Worcester. Two years later a bell was placed in the tower. The second pastor, Father Quan, took charge August 31, 1858, and he served until his death on October 7, 1893.

Those years constituted a period of marked devel- opment and growth. Father Meigneault had strug- gled hard, and Father Quan, in continuing the work, made certain changes in order to meet the needs of the times. In 1864 ground was purchased for a cemetery. This was dedicated November 25, 1864. In 1866, at an expense of $20,000, he enlarged the church edifice to double its previous seating capacity, and also arranged for a rectory, which was built at a cost of $7,500. The rectory was later made into a convent for the sisters who teach in the school and is still used for this pur- pose. In 1870 he built a chapel known as St. Patrick's. The parish school was opened in the basement of the church, August 31, 1882, and Sisters were employed as teachers. Later he pur- chased the Amadon estate, on which if necessary a convent might be placed. In 1893 he built a fine school in Negus Street, Webster, opened in Sep- tember of that year. He also built a new altar and frescoed the interior of the church and chapel at a cost of $14,000. The new church was dedi- cated on November 15, 1894 after his death. This was greatly regretted by his hosts of friends who had hoped to see him present at the dedication.

This new edifice is of splendid Gothic archi- tecture, and on the church lawn stands a monument to Father Quan. The monument bears the fol- lowing inscription :

To the Memory of Father Quan b. Aug. 15, 1814-d. Oct. 7, 1893 Requiescat in pace.

The base is of Quincy granite, surmounted by large stone of similar substance, beautifully polished. Above is the beautifully carved bust of Father Quan, in white marble, and on each of the four corners at this point, just outside the figure, are four polished granite posts. Topping them is a large stone upon which is carved a Mal-

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tese Cross, which is surmounted by a cap stone upon which rests an unfinished granite Cross about four feet high. The land for the church ceme- tery was also purchased during Father Quan's pastorate. He was a man much beloved by his people through the thirty-five years of his labors.

On October 7, 1893, upon the death of Father Quan, the Rev. John T. Madden took charge of the parish affairs. He remodeled the church and organ gallery, built the sacristy back of St. Pat- rick's Chapel, and made other improvements for all of which he was held in the highest affection and esteem by his parishioners. On November 3, 1903, Father Dolan came to assume charge of St. Louis' Church.

Rev. G. H. Dolan, the late pastor of St. Louis' Church, Webster, was born at Worcester on March 4, 1848. He was the son of Lawrence Dolan, who came with his wife from Ireland in 1847 and settled in Worcester, among the early Irish settlers of this region. They reared a family of eleven children. His father lived to the age of eighty-seven and the mother to the age of eighty- nine years. Two of their sons became priests, the Rev. James Dolan, who is now pastor of a church at Mittineague, Massachusetts, near Springfield, and Rev. G. H. Dolan, of this review.

The Rev. G. H. Dolan had come to occupy a place of leadership in his church and in the com- munity of Webster. He was reared in Worcester and lived in early life near Lake Quinsigamond. Educated in the public schools, he then attended Ellicott College in Maryland, where he spent four years. Then, returning to Worcester, he became a student at Holy Cross College, where he was grad- uated in 1878. He next studied at the Grand Seminary, Montreal, Province of Quebec, Canada, and on September 28, 1881, was ordained a priest. Assigned to Springfield, Massachusetts, he re- mained for eight years in that city, then went to Spencer, where he was made a pastor and remained for thirteen years. His next pastorate was in Pittsfield, where he continued his work for two years until he took over his last charge on Novem- ber 3, 1903. During his pastorate, the church membership of St. Louis' parish had increased, until in 1933 there were 2,600 souls in the parish. In 1929 Father Dolan built a school of four- teen rooms, containing all the latest and most mod- ern equipment. The building is strictly fireproof and is one of the finest in Massachusetts. This school has a seating capacity of seven hundred and fifty pupils and cost $225,000. There are now four hundred eighty-four pupils and classes are taught by twelve Sisters.

Father Dolan was the oldest man in this diocese engaged in active work in the church, having been a priest for more than half a century. He had two curates, the Rev. F. C. Leahy and the Rev. Joseph Lacey. He took a lively interest in the general affairs of the parish, including its societies : The Holy Name Society, the Ladies' Sodality, and the Children of Mary.

In the course of his long years of service, Father Dolan had earned the honor and love of his flock and of the entire Webster community. He had a wide acquaintance and had carried his spiritual leadership beyond the boundaries of the parish. His friends were many and loyal. Webster was, indeed, fortunate in having such a man as the

priest of St. Louis, and an example of the higher type of Christian manhood.

The curates of the church have been the follow- ing: Rev. John B. Purcell, 1867 to 1868; Rev. Charles F. Grace, 1873 to 1877; Rev. James Dona- hoe, 1878 to 1880; Rev. T. F. Murphy, 1880 and 1881; Rev. John F. Redican, 1882 to 1886; Rev. T. E. Purcell, 1886 to 1891; Rev. L. J. Derwin, 1891 to 1892; Rev. P. J. Griffin, 1892 to 1893; and Rev. P. J. O'Malley, 1893.

TIMOTHY F. DAILEY-All his life, Timothy F. Dailey, of Athol, general insurance representative, has been up and doing, ever taking time by the forelock. His characteristic of alert- ness was manifested soon after the 1932 Presiden- tial election, for hardly was the ink dry on the printed returns, showing the overwhelming Demo- cratic victory, than he announced himself his party's candidate for the office of postmaster of his town. At the time, the appointment to suc- ceed the Republican incumbent was three years in the offing, but he informed his friends of his aspiration and solicited their support. He based his appeal on his work as Democratic leader in his district for several years.

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Worcester county; a narrative history, Volume III, Part 98

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