USA > New Jersey > Monmouth County > History of Monmouth County, New Jersey, 1664-1920, Volume II > Part 36
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In 1901 he left Wilmington and came to New Jersey, selecting Eatontown, Monmouth county, the birthplace of his wife, as his location. There he entered the employ of the Tintern Manor Water Company of Long Branch, resigning in the fall of 1902 to become accountant with the Consolidated Gas Company of New Jersey, located in Long Branch, New Jersey. His position with that cor- poration has been permanent, he having filled the position of accountant, auditor, office manager, and is the present secretary of the company.
Since becoming a resident of Eatontown, two de- cades ago, Mr. McKaig has taken an active part in town affairs, and has taken position with the progressive, public-spirited men of Eatontown, who through the Citizens' Improvement Society and its successor, the Eatontown Board of Trade, have ac- complished so much in the way of modern town improvement. This involved a campaign of vigor- ous propaganda for street lighting, first gas and
Harry M. Mich aiq. 1
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then electric, for curbing sidewalks and paving of the main streets, in all of which Mr. Mckaig took an active part. About 1910, when the Citizens' Im- provement Society was formed, he was elected secre- tary. That society bore an active and an important part in organizing the Eatontown and Oceanport Building and Loan Association, in 1910, and in 1911, after much effort, succeeded in effecting the organi- zation of the First National Bank, of Eatontown. After the Citizens' Society gave way to the Board of Trade, Mr. McKaig served as vice-president and as president, that organization being still active in aiding to secure local improvements. Mr. Mc- Kaig is a member of the Eatontown Board of Trade, of which he was president in 1920, becom- ing a director in 1921; second vice-president and director of the Eatontown National Bank; secre- tary of the Eatontown and Oceanport Building and Loan Association; and for several years has been a member of the Eatontown Board of Education.
On December 9, 1896, Mr. McKaig married Mary Hulick, daughter of John Edwin and Hannah (Jack- son) Hulick. Her father was born January 26, 1844, died April 19, 1913, for many years a nur- seryman of Eatontown; her mother was born July 9, 1843. Mr. and Mrs. Hulick were the parents of four children: Henry, now at the Norfolk, Virginia, Naval Base; Frank, a nurseryman at Eatontown; Mary, now Mrs. Harry N. Mckaig; and maude, de- ceased. Harry N. and Mary (Hulick) McKaig are the parents of five children: Willard Hulick, now a student in chemical engineering at the University of Wisconsin, class of 1922, and a member of the Alpha Chi Sigma fraternity; Norma Marie, born October 5, 1903; Frank Carlton, born October 22, 1905; William Vaughn, born November 27, 1908; and Warren Lathrop, born October 20, 1912. Mrs. McKaig was educated at Red Bank Seminary, a private school presided over by Miss Perkins, and prior to her marriage was a teacher in the pri- mary grades of West Long Branch schools. She is a member of Eatontown Women's Community Club, and interested in other organizations. The family are members of the Adventist church.
MATTHEW SCHUETZ-Filling a very practical place in the economic welfare of the borough, Mat- thew Scheutz, of Red Bank, is moving forward to his individual success, in his efficient attention to the needs of the people in his chosen line of activ- ity, automobile and general vehicle repairs.
Mr. Schuetz was born in Frankfort-on-the-Main, Germany, April 18, 1870, and is a son of George Philip and Catherine (Miller) Schuetz ,both natives of Germany, and both now deceased. The elder Mr. Schuetz was a successful carriage builder in his native land. As a boy, Matthew Schuetz at- tended the public schools in the city of his birth, later attending the trade school and the art school. Thereafter he learned the trade of carriage builder with his father, spending three years in apprentice- ship. He then worked for different carriage makers in his native land, until 1900, when he came to the
United States, and landing in New York City, re- mained there for six years. Then going to Chi- cago he spent a year there, and in 1907 made a trip to Germany, where he stayed for four months. Returning, however, to the United States, he was in New York City until 1913, when he came to Red Bank. He was first employed here at David- son's shop, and remained there until 1915. At that time Mr. Schuetz opened his own automobile and carriage repair shop, securing a good location on Monmouth street, and has been very successful since, commanding a generous share of the best patronage in this vicinity. He is still located in his original place, and is widely esteemed both as a citizen and as an expert mechanic.
Mr. Schuetz served in the Merchant Marine of his native country in 1892, and was then transferred to the German Naval Reserve. He has been a member of the Independent Order of Foresters for the past five years. He is a member of the Ro- man Catholic church.
On January 1, 1909, Mr. Schuetz married Mary Stuher, who was born in Germany, September 4, 1869, and is a daughter of John Stuher, a farmer of that country. Both her parents are deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Schuetz have had one daughter, Catherine, who was born March 9, 1910, and died September 3, 1918.
JOSEPH SCHMERER, who is a native of Aus- tria, is prominent in the business and fraternal world of Sea Bright, New Jersey, and interested in the progress of the community.
Mr. Schmerer is a son of Hirsch and Annie (Flig- ler) Schmerer, who were both born in Horodenka, Austria, in 1861. The mother died in 1920, in Brooklyn, New York. The elder Mr. Schmerer was for many years widely known in his native city as a buyer of merchandise, and in early life served in the Austrian army. He came to the United States in 1920, and has since been connected with the office of Rabbi in New York City.
Joseph Schmerer was born in Horodenka ,Aus- tria, November 28, 1886, and attended the public schools of his native place for a period of four years. He was employed in the hardware business there for one year, then in 1903, came to the United States, landing in New York City, where he re- mained for four years, working in a grocery store. In 1907 he came to Sea Bright, and was employed first by J. Wertzel, and later by W. W. Miller, as grocery clerk. In 1914 he established his own business on Ocean avenue, and has developed a very prosperous interest, commanding a wide patron- age.
In public matters Mr. Schmerer takes a pro- gressive interest, and in political affairs supports the Republican party. He is a member of the In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows ,has been a mem- ber of the Knights of Pythias for the past ten years, and is a member of the Independent Order of Brith Abraham.
Mr. Schmerer's younger brother, Albert, who was
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born in Austria in 1898, came to the United States in 1914, and is now in his older brother's employ. The three sisters resides in Brooklyn, and the fam- ily are all members of the Orthodox Synagogue, of that city.
FRANK M. SMITH, one of Monmouth's young and enterprising farmers of the Allentown district, was born in Freehold, New Jersey, August 26, 1890, son of Thomas A. and Lydia Matilda (Conover) Smith, his father a man of business ability, superin- tendent of the Joseph Brakely Company, Inc., of Freehold. After public school courses in Freehold grade and high schools he further prepared at Mer- cersburg Academy, going thence to Amherst Col- lege. After completing his education he was vari- ously employed until 1916, when he located on his present farm at Allentown.
Mr. Smith is a Republican in politics, a mem- ber of the Presbyterian church, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and Delta Upsilon is his college fraternity.
Mr. Smith married, January 1, 1916, at Freehold, Alice H. Hafeman, born in Hutchinson, Kansas, October 20, 1892, daughter of Richard and Eliza- beth (Dickhut) Hafeman, her father a road con- tractor. Mr. and Mrs. Smith are the parents of two children: Lois Miriam, born November 10, 1916; and Frank Monroe (2), born April 30, 1919.
JAMES H. BAIRD-The Baird family, of which James H. Baird, of Marlboro township, Monmouth county, New Jersey, was representative, is one of the old families of New Jersey, and is traced to John Baird, born in Scotland, who left his native land in 1683, he then being eighteen years of age. Family records and tradition state that he landed in Perth Amboy, New Jersey, and that soon after- ward he settled in Monmouth county. In 1684 he married Mary Hall, whom he had rescued from a sinking vessel in Raritan bay, and they were the parents of sons and daughters. John Baird died in April, 1755, aged ninety years, and was buried at Toponemus Cemetery, Marlboro township, Mon- mouth county, New Jersey.
James J. Baird, a descendant of the Scotch an- cestor, John Baird, and his wife, Mary (Hall) Baird, was born in Marlboro township, Monmouth county, New Jersey, in 1791, spent his life there, a farmer, and died March 1, 1848. He married Emma Birch, who died March 10, 1861, and they were the par- ents of five children: Elizabeth, John, David K. N., Henry Q., and Caroline, all of whom were farmers or farmer's wives.
John Baird, eldest son of James J. and Emma (Birch) Baird, was born on his father's farm in Marlboro township, Monmouth county, New Jersey, May 5, 1822, and died suddenly in Marlboro home, July 10, 1898. He attended public school during the winter months, and early became his father's assist- ant at the old farm, which he never left and later owned. He was a prosperous farmer, and until the end of his long and useful life retained the con-
fidence and respect of his community. Both he and his wife were members of the Marlboro Dutch Re- formed Church.
John Baird, in 1848, marrie ' 'arah DeNise, born in Freehold, New Jersey, October 15, 1829, and they lived to celebrate their golden wedding on the farm to which she came as a bride. She was a daughter of Daniel and Ann (Wycoff) DeNise, her father born in Marlboro township in 1795, died in 1885, a descendant of Teunis DeNise, born in Gelderland, Holland, came to New Jersey, settled in Freehold township, Monmouth county, and there died in 1663. His descendants were soldiers of the Revolution and of the War of 1812. Ann Wycoff was born in Freehold township, Monmouth county, New Jersey, in 1797, and died in 1890. Daniel and Ann (Wycoff) DeNise were the parents of five daughters, born between the years 1817 and 1831: Jane Maria, married Lester Buck; Alice, married Henry Buck; Catharine, married John DeBois; Mary G., married Sylvester Buck; and Sarah, married John Baird, whom she survived, as she did all her sisters. John and Sarah (DeNise) Baird were the parents of five children: James H., of further men- tion; Daniel DeNise, deceased; David, deceased; Robert Cook, residing on Long Island; Carleton H., deceased.
James H. Baird, eldest son of John and Sarah (DeNise) Baird, was born on the homestead farm in Marlboro township, Monmouth county, New Jer- sey, September 24, 1849, died in Marlboro village, New Jersey, May 13, 1921, and is buried in the "Old Brick Churchyard." He was educated in the public schools of the district and in a private school in New York City, but poor health caused him to leave school. His health did not improve and he made a trip to California, selling sewing machines there for a time. He returned to Monmouth county, greatly improved, engaged in the lumber business, and a year after, in 1874, he married and worked a farm for Mrs. Baird's uncle. He con- tinued farming for twenty-five years, then retired, and located in the village of Marlboro in 1900. There he engaged in the produce commisison busi- ness with E. P. Loomis & Company, of New York City, also having a connection with Oscar From- mell & Brother. In addition to his commission business, Mr. Baird dealt in fertilizers and farm machinery, becoming an extensive dealer. He was a pioneer in the potato business in Monmouth county, and it is, perhaps, largely due to his in- fluence that Monmouth county has attained such prominence as a potato raising district.
Mr. Baird was a man of happy, jovial disposition and liked by everybody. He joined the First Re- formed Church, of Freehold, when ten years of age, and always retained his membership and inter- est in that church. That is the "Old Brick Church" and he sleeps in the churchyard nearby. He served that church as elder, Sunday school teacher and superintendent. He was a member of the Junior Order of United American Mechanics of Marl- boro; ex-member and master of the Monmouth
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County Grange at Freehold, in which Mrs. Baird is also very active; member of the New Jersey State Grange; and in politics was an acting working Re- publican.
Mr. Baird married, October 21, 1874, Huldah C. Millspaugh, daughter of Rev. Alexander C. and Sarah Ann (Barriclo) Millspaugh, her father a pastor of the Middletown Reformed Church for twenty-five years. Mrs. Baird was educated at the Freehold Seminary, and is also a graduate of Al- bany (New York) Female Academy, now Albany Girls Academy. She is the eldest of a family of six children: Huldah C. (Mrs. James H. Baird) ; Charles H., deceased, of Bloomfield, New Jersey; Harriet S., a resident of New York; John B., a hardware merchant of Spokane, Washington; Sarah E., married Willam Conger, of Albany, New York; Catherine, died in infancy. Two children were born to James H. and Huldah C. (Millspaugh) Baird: Alexander M., now conducting the commission busi- ness in Marlboro, New Jersey, established by his honored father; Carleton H., cashier of the Bank of Matawan, New Jersey. Mrs. Baird survives her husband and continues her residence in Marlboro Village, New Jersey.
.CHRISTOPHER DOUGHTY CHANDLER- Among the enterprising business men who have aided in building up the commercial interests of Fair Haven, Mr. Chandler must certainly be num- bered, and the fact that he has recently retired from the postmastership, which he held for about twenty years, testifies to his zeal in the public ser- vice. He has filled other local offices of trust, and 1s a figure of prominence in fraternal circles.
Jeremiah Chandler, grandfather of Christopher Doughty Chandler, was a native of Fair Haven and followed the calling of a mariner. John Henry, son of Jeremiah Chandler, was born at Fair Haven and became the captain of large sea-going schooners, spending the greater part of his life on the ocean. He married Margaret Doughty, daughter of Captain John and Elizabeth (Llewellyn) Doughty, the lat- ter of Welsh descent, and they became the parents of the following children: Wlliam Henry, Louis Or- lando, Benjamin Doughty, Robert Doughty, Mar- garet Louise, Charles Wesley, and Christopher Doughty, mentioned below. Captain Chandler died at Fair Haven in 1895, at the age of seventy-seven.
Christopher Doughty Chandler, son of John Henry and Margaret Llewellyn (Doughty) Chandler, was born October 18, 1854, at Fair Haven, New Jersey, and received his education at the "old red school- house" in his native town. On April 13, 1867, being then but twelve years of age, he entered the service of Allen & Trofford, grocers of Fair Haven, re- maining with them until 1875.
In that year, being possessed of a little capital and much enterprise, Mr. Chandler opened a small store of his own in Fair Haven for the sale of fruit, candy and similar articles. The venture proved so successful that, about five months later, in Decem- ber, 1875, he found himself in circumstances which
justified him in opening a first class grocery. After conducting the store for three years he closed it and until 1898 devoted himself to the carpenter's business.
It was to the support of the principles upheld by the Republican party that Mr. Chandler gave and still gives his influence and vote, and in 1901 he suc- ceeded his brother as postmaster of Fair Haven, an office which he retained until 1920. In 1875 he served as clerk of the election board, and sub- sequently he was one of the committee appointed to secure borough government for Fair Haven. In conjunction with the post office he kept a general store which he still conducts. In his various under- takings he has given evidence of the possession of original ideas, one of the most successful of these being the adornment of picture post-cards with local views, remarkable either for beauty or for historical associations.
The fraternal connections of Mr. Chandler in- clude affiliation with Navesink Lodge, No. 39, In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows, of Red Bank, New Jersey, and United Council, No. 141, Junior Order of United American Mechanics. In the last-named or- ganization he was for fourteen years financial secre- tary.
Christopher Doughty Chandler married, Septem- ber 15, 1878, Mary Elizabeth Greene, born June 19, 1858, in New York City, daughter of Peter and Margaret Greene, and they became the parents of a daughter and a son: 1. Nettie, born July 1, 1879, in Fair Haven, married James LaBau, of that place, and is the mother of two children: James Christopher and Elizabeth Chandler. 2. Lester, died in childhood.
While he has not, like his father and grandfather, "followed the sea," Mr. Chandler, as a landsman, has proved himself possessed of equal boldness and determination, and has made for himself, both as business man and citizen, a place in his community, both conspicuous and honorable.
JOHN ELY TILTON-Among the children of Amos and Mary Ann (Allen) Tilton, was a son, John Ely Tilton, who was born at the home farm at Hamilton, Monmouth county, New Jersey, his father the owner of a large farm there. Amos Til- ton was a mason by trade, but was also a land owner and a man of influence in his community.
John Ely Tilton was born, December. 16, 1866; died July 5, 1910. He was educated in the public schools of Hamilton and early learned the car- penter's trade. Later he located in Asbury Park, where he conducted a contracting business until twenty years prior to his death. He then returned to Hamilton, where he conducted the Summerfield farm until his passing. He was a man of energy and integrity, taken away just in the prime of life. He was a member of the Methodist Epis- copal church of Hamilton, and in politics a Re- publican.
John E. Tilton married at Hamilton, New Jersey, March 1, 1891, Augusta Shafto, daughter of De Witt
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C. and Hannah (Morris) Shafto. Five children were born to John E. and Augusta (Shafto) Tilton: Alma Marion, born December 31, 1892; Helen Augusta, born August 5, 1895; Gladys Allen, born December 21, 1898; Margaret, born December 8, 1904; and Amos, born August 5, 1908.
CHARLES ROLAND TILTON-The Tiltons are an old Monmouth family, the original settler com- ing from Scotland, settling along the shore near the head of Barnegat Bay at about where the vil- lage of Manasquan has since been built. The farm on which Charles Roland Tilton resides at Hamilton in Neptune township, was owned by his father, John Patterson Lewis Tilton, son of Amos Tilton, a farmer of Wall township. Amos Tilton had four children: Amos, Mary, Thomas and John P. L. Til- ton. John P. L. Tilton left the home farm and learned the blacksmiths' trade, but did not like it and moved to a farm at Hamilton in Neptune town- ship, where his after life was spent, the old farm now the home of his son, Charles R. Tilton. John P. L. Tilton married Sarah Fleming Ely, who died in 1866, aged fifty-five, he surviving her until 1896, when he passed away at the age of eighty-six.
Charles Roland Tilton, son of John Patterson Lewis and Sarah Fleming (Ely) Tilton, was born at the home farm at Hamilton, Neptune township, Monmouth county, New Jersey, May 7, 1853, his birthplace also his life-time home and the birth- place of his children. He was educated in Hamil- ton public schools and when school years were over he took his place as his father's farm assistant. When the years grew heavy the elder man allowed the burden to rest upon the younger shoulders of his son, who in 1896 at the death of the father, be- came the owner. Mr. Tilton now a man of sixty- eight, yet resides at the old farm which to him is more than a farm, more than a home. It is a shrine around which cling memories of an entire life-time, too sacred for mention. Mr. Tilton is an Independent in politics; a member of Glendale Lodge, Junior Order United American Mechanics, and in religion is a sincere member of Hamilton Methodist Episcopal Church.
He married in Freehold, New Jersey, October 27, 1875, Frances Marion Williams, born in New York City, January 22, 1853, daughter of Elihu and Jane (Goodrich) Tilton. Mr. and Mrs. Tilton are the parents of four children, all born at the homestead in Hamilton: Charles Reginald, born February 26, 1877; Frances Sarah, born August 11 ,1880; Arlina, born February 17, 1887, and Walter, born June 23, 1890.
REV. WILLIAM JAMES McCONNELL-The St. Rose Roman Catholic Parish, of Belmar, New Jersey, numbering five hundred souls, has since 1905 been under the charge of Rev. William James McConnell, and as pastor Father McConnell fills a responsible post, one that intimately concerns the lives and welfare of each of these souls.
James McConnell, father of Rev. William James McConnell, was born in Ireland, in 1841, and died in Lambertville, New Jersey, October 4, 1907, at the age of sixty-six years. During the Civil War he served on the ship, "Wanuski," and was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, Company A, Angell Post, No. 20. He married Susan Bloomer, a native of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, who is now (1921) a resident of Belmar. Mr. and Mrs. McCon- nell were the parents of eight children: William James, of further mention; Mary, deceased, was a school teacher; Sarah, wife of Alonzo J. Green, of East Orange; John C., a resident of Brooklyn, and United States appraiser for imported and exported goods; Charles a justice of the peace of Belmar; James J., air brake expert with the Pennsylvania railroad; Joseph, formerly a student of Mt. St. Mary's College, Emmitsburg, Maryland, now of Newark; Leo, baggage master of the Long Branch railroad.
Father McConnell was born in Lambertville, New Jersey, November 12, 1869. His early education was obtained in the public and parochial schools of his native place, after which he entered Sacred Heart College, Vineland, New Jersey, where he spent two years, 1886-88. He then spent one year in St. Charles College, after which he matriculated in Mt. St. Mary's College, Maryland, graduating with the class of 1893 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. Two years later he won from this institution the degree of Master of Arts, and in 1918 the de- gree of Doctor of Laws. Upon completing his studies in Mt. St. Mary's College, he went to Austria, where he entered the Royal Imperial University at Innsbruck and was ordained there, July 26, 1896, by Bishop Simon, of Batzen. Upon returning to this country, he was assigned to the parish of St. Michael's, West End, thence to St. Mary's, Bordentown, and later became pastor of St. Rose, Oxford, at which place he erected the church edifice. In 1905 he came to his present church as permanent rector, and subsequently built as a mission St. Elizabeth's Roman Catholic Church, Avon, which was dedicated in June, 1909. He was for eight years superintendent of the parish schools in this diocese, Diocese of Trenton, covering four- teen counties and fifty schools. In 1921 he erected a school in his Belmar parish, opened for use, No- vember 7, 1921.
Father McConnell is a member of the National Board of Edccation; Catholic Educational Associa- tion, and is secretary for the Peter Fenelon Collier Home, Incorporated, being the official resident for the project. Father McConnell is a great lover of tennis. He is beloved by his people, and highly esteemed by those outside his parish who are fam- iliar with the work he is doing for his church and for his countrymen.
ELWOOD SMITH, one of the younger men in the agricultural districts of Monmouth county, New Jer- sey, is well known as a progressive and public- spirited citizen. His family has long been promi-
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nent in the county, his grandparents having been Levi and Sarah (Boyce) Smith. James Smith, their son and Mr. Smith's father, was long a resident of West Freehold, and widely known in this section. He married Ida Matilda Jamison, and they were the parents of six children, of whom Mr. Smith was the fifth, the others as follows: Minnie, Morris, Carrie Elizabeth, Mary Ella, Levi, and Jennie May.
Elwood Smith was born in West Freehold, New Jersey, September 20, 1886. Acquiring a thorough- ly practical training in the fundamentals of edu- cation in the public schools of Freehold, Mr. Smith as a young man, did teaming with his own horses on neighboring farms around Colts Neck, always helping out in haying and harvest time. Later, in 1915, coming to Glendola, in Wall township, Mr. Smith purchased the Willett place, and since that time has continued operations here with gratifying success.
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