USA > New York > Chautauqua County > History of Chautauqua County, New York, and its people, Volume II > Part 12
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Charles William Swanson is not a native born American, although he might also be considered as such, for he was only a year old when brought to this country by his parents from Sweden, where he was born on April 6, 1870. The Swanson family came to James- town, N. Y., in 1871, and it is gratifying to learn that the parents of Charles W. Swanson are still in James- town, living in quiet retirement. His father, John M. Swanson, was a mason and building contractor, and prospered during his long residence in Jamestown. He and his wife, Christine, were the parents of ten children, of whom Charles William was the oldest.
Charles W. Swanson was educated in the public and grammar schools of Jamestown, but commenced to work early in his teens. He was only fourteen years old when he began his business life, in a local grocery, that of the New York Tea Store, in delivering groceries. Young Swanson remained with the com- pany for two years, then had an experience of two weeks' duration, in one of the local furniture factories, Y. W. Burtch and Company, during that time labori- ously sanding furniture. He apparently preferred his former occupation, for after only two weeks in the factory he again entered a store as a clerk, this time in the shoe store of J. F. Peterson. That was in 1888, since which year he has remained in elose con- nection with the retail shoe business in Jamestown. As a salesman, he was in the employ of Mr. Peterson for four years, and then became his partner, so continuing for one year, the company trading as J. F. Peterson & Company. At the end of that time the partnership was dissolved, and Mr. Swanson immediately formed partnership with another Jamestown merchant, and established the firm of C. W. Swanson & Company, opening a shoe store at No. 3 South Main street. One year later that partnership was also dissolved, and the business taken over by Mr. Swanson who, shortly afterwards, became associated with Mr. Holmberg. Until the incorporation of the Swanson-Holmberg Shoe
Company, the partners traded under the name of the C. W. Swanson & Company Shoe Store. Of the new corporation, Mr. Swanson was president, and has since so remained, notwithstanding that since 1910 he has left the management of the store to Mr. Holmberg. The company has met with considerable success, and Mr. Holmberg being a capable manager, Mr. Swanson has been able to participate in other industrial enter- prises. In 1907, the Jamestown Chair Company was organized to take up the manufacture, mainly, of that article of furniture, and Mr. Swanson was elected pres- ident. In 1910, he took up the active management of the plant, and from that year until 1920 was general manager as well as secretary and treasurer of the com- pany. On Jan. 1, 1920, C. W. Swanson was elected president and general manager of the Jamestown Chair Company, and S. G. Jacobson succeeded him as treasurer. Mr. Jacobson had been with the concern as office bookkeeper since 1910; Peter E. Larson is vice- president and Mr. Elein Holmberg is secretary.
He is a member of the Jamestown Board of Com- merce, and of the Manufacturers' Association of James- town, and throughout his life has taken much interest in the development of Jamestown. Also, Mr. Swanson has given due part to the religious duties devolving upon an earnest Christian; in fact, he has been partic- ularly zealous in church work. He is a member of the Swedish Zion church, interested himself much in Sunday school work, and has been trustee, also treas- urer of the church and secretary of the Sunday school.
Mr. Swanson was married in Jamestown, July 17, 1895, to Hilma Larson, who was born in Sweden. To them have been born three children: I. Lawrence W., who at present is employed at the Art Metal Construc- tion Company; he is a war veteran; was in France for almost twelve months, as a member of Company B, 306th Field Signal Battalion, 8Ist Division. 2. Leland H., who is now in the navy, attending yoeman's school at Newport, R. I. 3. Lucille M., who attends the Jamestown High School.
DEVILLO ASA WHITE-At the age of ninety- six, six months and three days, Devillo Asa White, Fredonia's "Grand Old Man," closed a wonderful life in the village in which it began and which he had aided so materially to create. His mind was a storehouse of facts concerning the village history, for in most of the events he had been either a participant or an observer. The coat of arms of the White family is as follows:
Arms-Gules, a chevron between three boars' heads erased argent, armed or.
Crest-Out of a mural coronet gules a boar's head erased argent, bristled or.
Chautauqua county was an infant when Dr. Squire White came in 1808, preceded by Hezekiah Barker, whose daughter Dr. White later married. These two pioneers, particularly Mr. Barker, obtained a great deal of the land which is now Fredonia, and through his generosity the park, old cemetery, and academy sites accrued to the village. The academy, given by Dr. White, after a long and useful service, passed away and in its place stands the village Town Hall. On the site of the home which Dr. White built for his bride is the handsome "White Inn," built in 1919, and new
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faces are seen where so long the pioneers reigned supreme. Devillo A. White passed away almost a centenarian, and the story of the life of himself and his honored father is herein told.
Devillo A. White was a son of Dr. Squire White, and a grandson of William White, a descendant of Peregrine White, the first child born to the Mayflower Colony after their arrival at Plymouth. William White was a graduate of Kings College, now Columbia University, New York, and served in the Revolution. He married, May 12, 1767, at Rutland, Mass., Eunice Rogers, daughter of Abijah Rogers, a descendant of John Rogers, the English divine.
Dr. Squire White was born in Guilford, Vt., Nov. 20, 1785, died in Fredonia, N. Y., where he had practiced medicine for half a century, April 2, 1857. He was a graduate of the medical department of the now Colum- bia University, New York, and after receiving his M. D., he came to Western New York, settling in Fre- donia, Chautauqua county, in 1808. For a time he taught school in the town of Sheridan in a log house on the edge of the town line, but reserved the right to dismiss school if he had a call to visit the sick. His practice soon increased to such an extent that it required all his time to attend to it, and the school was given up. For fifty years he continued in medical practice, be- coming one of the best known physicians of the county, calls coming to him from as far east as Buffalo. At the time of the burning of Buffalo in 1814, he was there on business and was impressed into service as a surgeon. He was highly esteemed as a professional man but his unfailing kindness, his open-handed benev- olence, and his upright character endeared him to all.
In 1804 Hezekiah Barker bought 400 acres, now the site of the village of Fredonia, and in 1811 his son-in- law, Dr. Squire White, bought 25 acres of that tract, part of which is now included within the limits of Forest Hill Cemetery. In 1811 Dr. White built a frame dwelling on the corner of now Main and White streets and in that house all his seven children were born. In 1868 the old White homestead was moved back on White street and later was demolished. On the site of the old house in which he was born, Devillo A. White, the doctor's son, built the home in which he spent the remaining forty-five years of his life. Dr. Squire White was the first educated licensed physician to practice in Chautauqua county, and was a positive force in the community. He was a Democrat in politics, and on Feb. 9, 1811, was appointed the first surrogate of Chautauqua county by Governor Daniel D. Tomp- kins. He filled that office with fidelity for two years, and in the court room of the county court house at Mayville hangs an oil portrait of the pioneer physician and surrogate, done by Bradish. In 1830 Dr. White was elected assemblyman, with Abner Hazeltine of Jamestown, and in 1831 and 1832 he was reelected. His useful life closed April 27, 1857, he then being in his seventy-second year.
Dr. White married (first) at Fredonia, in 1813, Sarah Barker, born Feb. 1, 1795, died July 13, 1823, daughter of Hezekiah and Sarah (Wood) Barker. Hezekiah Barker came to Fredonia in the fall of 1806, and its ample beautiful common was his gift to the village, as was the old cemetery and the ground for the academy.
Dr. and Sarah (Barker) White were the parents of four children: William D., Devillo Asa, to whose memory this review is dedicated; Julia Scully, married Francis Edwards; Edward, died young. Dr. White t married (second) Lydia Cook Cushing, born March 14, 1798, died Jan. 2, 1886, daughter of Judge Zattu Cushing. They were the parents of three children: 1 Ellen Douglas, George Hinckley, and Mary Sturgis, : the last named dying young.
Devillo Asa White, second son of Dr. Squire and Sarah (Barker) White, was born at the home, corner of White and Main streets, Fredonia (built in 1811), July 2, 1816. He was educated in the public school and . Fredonia Academy, the latter institution built on . ground donated by Hezekiah Barker, and an institu- tion which attained high rank, enrolling students from - every State in the Union except South Carolina. He : studied medicine under the preceptorship of his father t' but made pharmacy his specialty, and opened one of ! the first drug stores in that section of the county. He . continued in the drug business in Fredonia until within 1 a few years of his death, then retired, although even 1 when bearing nonagenarian honors he was wonderfully ' well preserved bodily and mentally. He also dealt t extensively in real estate, built several houses in the ' village, and part of his holding in now included in Forest Hill Cemetery. His entire life was spent in Fredonia with the exception of a short time in 1849, , when he joined the "gold seekers" and journeyed to , California, but soon returned.
One outstanding characteristic of Devillo A. White was his uncompromising honesty, another his hatred of debt, his invariable rule being payment at once for everything he bought. He was staunch in his devotion to the Democratic party, always voted that ticket and in 1912 got up from a sick bed to go to the polls and cast his vote for Woodrow Wilson, the Democratic candidate for President of the United States. He never sought political office for himself but was keenly alive to his responsibilities as a citizen and in a public- spirited way aided in all that promised to advance the interests of his village.
The home he built in 1868, on the site of the house in which he was born, and in which he died, was a substantial brick building, one of the best in the county. He was known and beloved by all, and when his deatlı was announced, a wave of sadness passed over the community, and general regret was expressed on every hand. It was a remarkable coincidence that the clock which stood in his father's house and marked the hour of his birth, stood in his own bed room, on the same site but not the same house, nearly a century later and told the hour of his death, eight-forty A. M., Jan. 5, 1913.
Devillo A. White married Lamira Jones, who died Dec. 20, 1892, daughter of Harry and Laura (Tucker) Jones, her mother a daughter of Samuel Tucker, a soldier of the Revolution. Mrs. White was of that beautiful type-a Christian mother, and devoted to her home. She was a member of the Episcopal church and interested in church and charitable work. She was buried with her husband in Forest Hill Cemetery. Mr. and Mrs. White were the parents of three daughters: I. Catherine Margaret, who died in 1843. 2. Mary C.,
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Y.
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who married George S. Josselyn, a nurseryman of Fre- donia; Mr. Josselyn died June 17, 1912, and on Sept. 3. 1912, she too passed away; they are buried in Forest Hill Cemetery. 3. Isabelle, yet a resident of Fredonia. Miss White is a member of Benjamin Prescott Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, and for fifteen years has been its efficient registrar. The Chapter was organized in the White home and to its interests she gave much of her time, but her aged father was her first great care and interest. Five of her ancestors were Revolutionary soldiers, and she was eligible to the Society of Colonial Dames and to the Society of May- flower descendants. She has in her home many heir- looms that have descended to her, the last of her branch, she a granddaughter of Dr. Squire White, who came in 1808, granddaughter of Hezekiah Barker who came in 1804, and only living child of Devillo Asa White, who was born in Fredonia in 1816. Miss White sold the old homestead on Main street in 1919, and on the site (the third building to occupy it) stands ja handsome hotel known as the "White Inn." Miss White resides on White street, Fredonia, the land for the street having been given to the village by her father, and named in his honor.
FREDERICK HERBERT NICHOLS, M. D .- Among the prominent and successful physicians of Jamestown, N. Y., and the surrounding region, is Frederick Herbert Nichols, whose residence is at No. 517 Pine street. Dr. Nichols is not a native of this place, having been born at Beekmantown, N. Y., on his father's farm, Jan. 5, 1876. He is a son of Clifford W. and Lillis M. (Allen) Nichols, the elder Mr. Nichols having followed the occupation of farming and iron ore mining, living retired in the latter years of his life. Mr. Nichols, Sr., is deceased, but Mrs. Nichols makes her home at West Chazy, N. Y.
Frederick Herbert Nichols received his early educa- tion in the district schools of Beekmantown, N. Y., and later attended the schools of Plattsburg, a neighboring community. Upon graduation from these institutions, young Mr. Nichols went to Syracuse, N. Y., to continue his studies. The Nichols family had for five generations been physicians, and it was this fact, coupled with a natural tendency toward the medical profession, that caused the young man to enter the medical department of Syracuse University. He completed the course in 1903, winning the degree of Doctor of Medicine, and he then became an interne in the Hospital of the Good Shepard at Syracuse, remaining there for two years. Dr. Nichols then came to Jamestown and began practice here on his own account, in 1905. He has since gained considerable prominence as a capable surgeon, making special study of surgery and entirely gives himself over to work of this character. Dr. Nichols has lectured in both of the Jamestown hospitals, and many of the other practitioners come to hear him for advice in difficult matters of surgery and medical problems of a delicate nature. Dr. Nichols inherits the qualifications necessary for the capable physician from his ancestors. He is a self-made man in every sense of the word. He came to Syracuse penniless, but was determined to study medicine, and he did not let his greatly impaired
finances hinder him from doing so. He worked at anything that presented itself in order to finance his education from his own pocket, and it is men like Dr. Nichols who can be looked up to and admired. He is now one of Jamestown's most renowned surgeons, and his rise in fame, as well as his progress while at college, may well be said to have been dne to his own efforts, with no outside assistance whatsoever. Dr. Nichols is a member of the American Medical Society; the New York Medical Association; the Chautauqua County Medical Association; and the Jamestown Med- ical Association. In politics he is an independent voter; and is a Baptist in his religious belief.
Dr. Nichols married, at Chazy, N. Y., Aug. 8, 1906, Elizabeth McCuen, daughter of John and Caroline (Brown) McCuen. One child has been born of this union, Frederick Walton, March 4, 1910.
HENRY TAYLOR WILBUR-Surrounded by twenty acres of lawn and vineyard within the limits of Fredonia, stands the beautiful residence of Henry Taylor Wilbur, a spacious mansion in the Colonial style, built many years ago, but improved and modern- ized by Mr. Wilbur, one of Chautauqua's leading grape growers and substantial citizens. He is a native son of Chautauqua, born in the village of Villenova in the town of the same name, his father, Orlando Wilbur, coming to Chautauqua from Steuben county, N. Y., about 1840, and engaging in carriage and wagon making. For about twenty years, Henry T. Wilbur engaged in mercantile life, finally, however, appreciat- ing the wonderful opportunities that were offering, began buying Chautauqua farm lands in Pomfret, and now has 225 acres of which 135 acres is in bearing vine- yards with more coming into bearing each year. Twenty acres in addition is comprised in the home estate in Fredonia, a place of beauty and comfort. While building up his own private interests, Mr. Wilbur has been one of the progressive, public-spirited men who have been concerned in the upbuilding of Fredonia and her institutions, Mr. Wilbur's individual efforts being responsible largely for the coming to Fredonia of the immense plant of the Red Wing Man- ufacturing Company, owned by the Cudahy Packing Company of Chicago.
Henry Taylor Wilbur, son of Orlando and Polly M. (Judd) Wilbur, was born in Villenova, Chautauqua county, N. Y., Aug. 22, 1856. He attended the village schools until he was twelve years of age, his parents moving to Fredonia in 1869. He continued study in the Fredonia public schools and after finishing high school entered Fredonia State Normal School, but did not graduate, leaving to begin his business career. His first position was in a grocery store in Fredonia, where he spent three years, followed by a similar period of service in a furniture establishment. He then became a commercial traveler, remaining "on the road" for fourteen years. He had in the meantime been acquiring some good pieces of land suitable for grape culture, and finally he abandoned commercial life and for twenty-five years he had been growing grapes and adding to the area of his farms and vineyards. He has 225 acres in the town of Pomfret, as stated, 135 acres being fine bearing vineyards, while the home
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estate in Fredonia is the pride of its owner and of the town.
Some years ago Mr. Wilbur manufactured grape juice and wines, and the large buildings occupied then are still standing, but are used for other purposes. He now confines himself to his grape growing and the development of his vineyards. He has made a success of his life from whatever angle viewed, and that which he possesses has come to him as the result of his own labor and business, his capital in the beginning, his own personality and determination to succeed. He holds the esteem and respect of the community in which nearly his entire life has been spent, and in that community his name is a synonym of honor and uprightness.
Mr. Wilbur married (first) Nellie C. Roberts, of Fredonia, who died Oct. 20, 1880, leaving two children: Edith, now the wife of Henry Lehman, of Franklin, Pa., and the mother of Esther and Louise Lehman; Nellie, now Mrs. Dennis Crocker, of Fredonia, and the mother of a son Charles. Mr. Wilbur married (second) Kathryn C. Hartzell, of Philadelphia, Sept. II, 1884. Children: Harry; and Marion, who married Allen D. Warner, one of the production managers of the Buick Motor, of Flint, Mich. These children were all educated at Fredonia State Normal School, and the youngest daughter, Marion, is a graduate of Beechwood Conservatory of Music, near Philadelphia, Pa.
REV. JOSEPH C. LINSMEIER-There are few figures so well known and so greatly beloved in the city of Dunkirk, Chautauqua county, N. Y., as that of Father Joseph C. Linsmeier, rector of the Church of the Sacred Heart at Dunkirk, Chautauqua county. N. Y., who in the three years of his pastorate has become intimately identified with the religious life of the community and with many important movements for the welfare of his fellows.
Father Linsmeier was born in the city of Baltimore, Md., and early in life felt the call to the high ministry in the Catholic priesthood. His early education was directed to this end, and as a young man he entered the Jesuit College at Baltimore, then entered the Theological Seminary at Alleghany, where he finished his classical course and subsequently, was ordained a priest by Bishop Colton, of Buffalo, N. Y., and was appointed assistant at the Church of St. Agnes in that city. His ability as an organizer was soon appreciated, and he was placed in charge of the Roman Catholic Orphan Asylum at Buffalo, and did much for the advancement of the institution, increasing its sphere of influence and the scope of its work. From there he was sent to New Oregon, N. Y., as pastor of St. Mary's Church, and after remaining a number of years filled the same position at St. Mary's Church at East Eden. It was in the year 1917 that he received his appoint- ment as pastor of the Church of the Sacred Heart at Dunkirk, and has since served in that capacity to the benefit of his parish and the edification of his flock.
The history of the Church of the Sacred Heart has been an interesting one since its dedication in 1858, and the part that it has played in religious affairs here has always been a highly important one. In 1857 the
Catholic residents of Dunkirk, who had previously worshipped in St. Mary's Church, at Buffalo, held a meeting at the home of Jacob Stahler at which it was determined to build a church for themselves at Dunkirk, a determination in which they were strongly supported by the Rev. Father James Nagel, C. SS. R., pastor of St. Mary's, who delivered an inspiring address to them. The result of the meeting took practical shape a little later, when a lot measuring 60 by 100 feet and located on Ruggles street near Lion was purchased for the sum of $300. A frame church building was completed there in 1858, at a cost of $1693, seventy feet long and thirty- five feet wide, and this was dedicated in honor of St. George by the Rev. A. Heiter, of St. Louis' Church, Buffalo. The membership at that time was but thirty- five or forty families, and the youthful parish was indebted almost for its existence to the liberality of George Dotterweich, whose most generous donations helped it over many difficulties. Mass was first offered in the church by the Rev. Father Dominic Geyner, who came every other Sunday from the Franciscan Monastery at Allegany, N. Y. He was later relieved by the Rev. Father J. N. Arent, of Hamburg, N. Y., who attended the mission until November, 1860, when he in turn gave place to the Rev. Father Andrew Pfeifer. In March, 1863, the Rev. Father Luke Baudi- nelli gave the first mission in the church, after which it passed into the charge of the Passionist Fathers, and Rev. Father Frederick Lang, C. P., attended it until December, 1866. The first parochial school was built in 1865 at a cost of $1,200, and various lay teachers were installed there until 1873, when it was placed in the charge of the Sisters of St. Joseph. At first the attendance numbered from ninety to one hundred children in winter, and from seventy to eighty in summer, but the numbers grew rapidly. The Rev. Fathers, Philip Birk, Henry Esler, F. Stanislaus, and Daniel Rimmels, succeeded each other in attendance upon the church, and in 1874 the Passionist Fathers withdrew from the church and their place was supplied by the Jesuits temporarily until Nov. 18, 1874, when the Rev. Father Ferdinand Kolb was appointed first . resident pastor. Father Kolb was born Oct. 17, 1847, , at Baden, Germany, and was ordained, May 30, 1874, , at Louvain, Belgium. There had already been some talk of a new and more adequate church edifice, and this was revived under his pastorate and finally resulted in removing the old structure and the erection of a new one of brick which was completed and dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Nov. 18, 1877, the ceremony being performed by the Rt. Rev. S. V. Ryan, bishop of Buffalo. The new church is of Gothic style, measures 117 feet long by 52 feet wide, and is crowned by a tower rising to a height of 130 feet. The architect was Mr. Beebe, of Buffalo, the pews and confessionals being executed by Julius Mayer and the interior decor- ations by G. Rosa, of Pittsburgh. Four bells, weighing respectively, 2,500, 1.400, 1,200, and 850 pounds, were donated by the Dotterweich family, as were also the marble altar and communion rail, the organ and tower clock. A new school was also begun by Father Kolb, who was, however, appointed pastor of the Church of St. Boniface, Buffalo, before the completion of this work, and his place taken by Rev. Father Andrew
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THE HOME OF HENRY T. WILBUR OF FREDONIA, N. Y.
I. S. Johnum
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Frey. Under him the new school was erected at a cost of about $1,800. Father Frey left to become pastor of a church at Lancaster, N. Y., and was succeeded by the Rev. Father F. N. Sester, one of the pioneer priests of the Diocese, a native of Alsace, his birth occuring there in 1826, and his death in this parish, July 26, 1896. The next rector was the Rev. Father Joseph M. Thies, who was born at Rochester, N. Y., and ordained at Ratisbon, Germany, and during his pastorate the church debt was liquidated and large improvements and repairs carried out. He was in turn succeeded by the Rev. Father Henry Laudenbach, who was the immediate predecessor of Father Linsmeier.
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