USA > New York > Chautauqua County > History of Chautauqua County, New York, and its people, Volume II > Part 15
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The young hero had had a premonition that ere long his life would be required of him and in his last letter
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of both
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home he wrote to his loved ones: "In case I should get 'knocked off,' as they say over here, I want you all to bear it as bravely as those heroic French people do." What an inspiration do these words contain for the sorrowing father, mother and sister !
Of the grief of Lieutenant Peterson's old friends in Jamestown and of his associates in his chosen work it is difficult to speak. His companions-in-arms, many of whom had become strongly attached to him, sincerely mourned his loss. He was a young man of fine appear- ance, and an athlete of prowess. His face and manner were the expression of a noble character and a warm heart. He belonged to the Epsilon Pi fraternity.
The religious membership of Lieutenant Peterson was in the Swedish Methodist Episcopal church and he was also connected with the Sunday school. On the large service flag of the church his star was embroid- ered when, with his comrades, he went to the front. That star was the third to become golden, and its radiance, together with that which beams from the pages of his record, is a beacon to those who follow after him.
CHARLES STUART ABBOTT-Member of a family founded in America in the earliest days of Colonial New England, Charles Stuart Abbott was a native of Chautauqua county, N. Y., where two gener- ations of his line had made their homes before him. To the world of business he was known as the vice- president of the Eastman Kodak Company, a strong and able executive who had made his way to that responsible place through an ambition and steadfast- ness of purpose that could not be denied. The historian of the Abbott family has written that "the name has stood for quiet dignity, consideration, kindness of heart," and so well does this apply to Charles S. Abbott that the writer might easily have been describing his qualities of mind and heart. In him were met the attri- butes of the keen, alert man of affairs and the cultured gentleman, and he was a man who contributed largely to the achievement and progress of his day and genera- tion.
Only child of Edwin Elisha and Mary (Sanderson) Abbott, Charles Stuart Abbott was born in Panama, Chautauqua county, N. Y., Dec. 11, 1858. So he was a native Chautauquan, although his parents took him to New York when he was sixteen months old, and there he passed his boyhood days. He obtained his early education in the public schools of New York and at Flushing Institute, Flushing, Long Island, and was preparing to enter Columbia University when his father's financial reverses compelled him to give up these plans. From that time on the struggle was his own, and he made many ventures before entering upon the one that was to make his career so successful. Coming from New York to Jamestown, Mr. Abbott began the study of law, which he later continued at Warren, Pa., but before completing his preparation he became identified with Colman A. Bishop in the publication of "The Country-side," a weekly paper devoted to agricultural and educational interests of Chautauqua. Mr. Bishop was the editor and Mr. Abbott was the business man- ager, but their earnest efforts did not bring profitable re- turns and they abandoned the enterprise. Mr. Abbott
moved to New York to enter the employ of the Allen Brothers' Advertising Agency, later becoming a partner in the concern, which was established in Jamestown, and here for a time remained in business. In 1889 he en- gaged with the Hon. Porter Sheldon in the manufacture of photographic paper by a new process, which revolu- tionized the photographic business and brought fame and fortune to the originators. Of the original company, known as the American Aristotype Company, Mr. Sheldon was president and Mr. Abbott secretary and treasurer. In 1889 the General Aristo Company was formed, combining a number of photographic con- cerns, including the American Aristotype Company. This company in turn was consolidated with the Eastman Kodak Company, of which Mr. Abbott was vice-presi- dent at the time of his death. He was also president of the Seed Dry Plate Company, of St. Louis, Mo., and a director of the Chautauqua County Trust Company. For a number of years before the merger with the Eastman interests, Mr. Abbott was president of the American Aristotype Company, of Jamestown, N. Y.
Mr. Abbott's kindly and warm-hearted nature lent itself readily to social enjoyment in his home and in his organizations. He was a member of Mt. Mo- riah Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and James- town Lodge, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He was a great lover of the out-of-doors and of athletic sports, having been a prominent member of the Chadakoin Boat Club and for a number of years its commodore. Hunting and fishing were among his favorite recreations, and he had great endurance and skill in these pursuits. He was a man of singular open- ness and sincerity, with a profound knowledge of human nature and sound and unerring judgment. His ambition was along the worthiest lines, and in the attainment of his aims he sacrificed no whit of his self respect or the public esteem. He had an enduring love for his home and found there his inspiration for his part in the busy world of affairs. His death occurred March 1, 1905, and brought to those who had been associated with him, in business, in social life, or wherever men come together, the realization that they had lost a friend worthy of the tribute of their tenderest memory, and the eulogy of a general grief.
Charles Stuart Abbott married, Feb. 4, 1880, Pauline Allen, daughter of George Robert and Amy Anna (Bishop) Allen, the latter named a daughter of Elija and Amy (Jenner) Bishop.
JAMES ALBERT AUGENSTINE, D. D. S .- After graduating from the University of Buffalo, Dr. Angenstine opened an office in Buffalo, but a year later he moved to his present location, Silver Creek, Chau- tauqua county, where he is well established in the general practice of his profession. His birthplace and boyhood home was Camillus, a village of Onondaga county, N. Y., eight miles west of Syracuse, his parents, Christian Henry and Mary (Nicholson) Angenstine, his father a farmer. There were four children in the Augenstine family: Mary Catherine (Mrs. Herring) ; Anna (Mrs. Hayes) ; John, deceased; and James Albert.
James Albert Augenstine was born in Camillus, N. Y., April 25, 1886. He attended the public schools of
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Camillus and Solvay, N. Y., finishing with high school, then entered Syracuse University, here continuing a student for two years. Deciding upon a profession he entered the University of Buffalo in the dental department and was graduated D. D. S. with the class of 1911. He opened an office in Buffalo the same year, but in 1912 moved to Silver Creek, Chautauqua county, where he has since been in continuous practice. He is a skillful practitioner, and enjoys the confidence of a large clientele. Dr. Augenstine is a member of the Masonic order, Zi Pi Phi, the Preparedness League, the Presbyterian church, and in politics is an independ- ent.
Dr. Augenstine married, Nov. 12, 1912, Clara Weigand, of Buffalo, and they are the parents of a daughter, Betty Marie.
GEORGE LILLIBRIDGE-There are some men who take possession of the public heart and hold it after they are gone, not by flashes of genius or brilliant services, but by kindness and force of personal charac- ter, and by steady and persistent good conduct in all situations and under all trials of life. They are in sympathy with all that is useful and pure and good in the community in which they reside, and the com- munity on its side cheerfully responds by extending to them unbounded admiration and sincere affection. Such a man was George Lillibridge, whose name heads this sketch. As a business man he was in all respects a model. The goal of his ambition was success, but he would succeed only on the basis of truth and honor. He scorned deceit and duplicity, and would not palliate false representations, either in his own employ or among his customers and correspondents. No amount of gain could alure him from the undeviating line of rectitude. Justice and equity he regarded as corner stones of the temple, trade, without which it could not stand.
George Lillibridge was born in Whitehall, N. Y., July 6, 1833, and died at Jamestown, N. Y., March 8, 1910. In his early life the family moved to Western Pennsylvania, and in that section he grew to manhood. He evinced a decided liking for mercantile life, and after gaining the needed experience while serving as a clerk for others, he started in business for himself. He located in the town of Little Cooley, Crawford county, and there prospered as a merchant. During his residence there he did a great deal toward the improvement and upbuilding of the town, erecting a substantial business block, and through his able merchandising methods attracted outside trade to Little Cooley. He also erected two large dwelling houses in the village, and though he never sought public office, when it was visited upon him, he accepted it and gave to the people of his best. Later he was equally successful as a merchant of Union City, Pa., his business there being one of large proportions. Finally he retired from mercantile life with a com- petence, moved to Jamestown, N. Y., and there began a series of real estate operations which culminated in the Lillibridge block, devoted to business purposes, and an accumulation of considerable landed estates. He was a man of quiet life and habits, but of great
energy and determination, never recognizing such a word as failure.
From youth Mr. Lillibridge attended the Baptist church, and he was always a loyal supporter of its interests. He was a member of the Masonic bodies, including Mt. Moriah Lodge, No. 145, Free and Accepted Masons; Western Sun Chapter, No. 67, Royal Arch Masons; Jamestown Council No. 32, Royal and Select Masters; and Jamestown Com- mandery, No. 61, Knights Templar. When the time came to pay him the last tributes of love and respect, the services were in charge of his brethern of Mt. Moriah Lodge, the beautiful burial services of the order being conducted by the master of the lodge, Roland K. Mason, assisted by past masters, John C. Mason, H. R. Willey, and the brethern of the lodge. The pall bearers were his brethern of the lodge, and the services were held in the lodge rooms in the Pren- dergast block.
In Richmond, Pa., Mr. Lillibridge was united in marriage with Polly Melissa Hamilton, a daughter of Asel and Rosin (Chapin) Hamilton. To this union were born five children, as follows: Ella G., married, Dec. 16, 1884, Alfred Darling, of whom elsewhere; Emma B., a resident of Jamestown; Arthur, deceased; Pearl May, deceased; and Frank G., whose sketch follows.
Mr. Lillibridge lived to see and take a prominent part in the later day growth of the community, and was one of the wisest counselors and hardest workers. He was a progressive man in the broadest sense of the word, and gave his earnest support to the movements that promised to benefit his community in any manner. His was a long life of honor and trust, and no higher eulogy can be passed upon him than that of the simple truth that he was held in the highest esteem by those who knew him, and that Jamestown could boast of no better man or more enterprising citizen. But per- haps the most beautiful and richest traits of his nature were his strong domestic sentiments and habits which impelled him to seek his highest happiness in the family circle and rendered him its joy and its light. Around his home he shed a benign influence which was as the summer's evening glow upon the land which the morning and noon had brightened and blessed, and when he died he left a record of which his family and friends are justly proud.
FRANK G. LILLIBRIDGE-Among the young business men of the city of Jamestown, N. Y., there are not many who have filled the space in the com- munity, and have commanded the attention of the chronicler of passing events in the history of Chau- tauqua county as did Frank G. Lillibridge, a man of more than ordinary merit, and one who possessed in a special manner the utmost confidence of his fellow- citizens. It is by men of his well balanced nature that the best work is accomplished and the most enduring and lasting results are obtained. His was a character in which was happily blended the sterling qualities of enterprise and genuine conservatism.
He was born in Little Cooley, Crawford county, Pa., Ang. 12, 1879. In 1882 his parents moved to James-
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town, N. Y., and there he received his education in the public schools of that city. After leaving school he was associated with his father in business for a number of years, but in 1901 he secured a position with E. H. Warren in the laundry business. He continued in this until 1910, when on account of the death of his father he resigned his position to assume the management of the family estate in the interests of his sisters and himself. He became one of the well known and highly esteemed men of the city. The business career of Frank G. Lillibridge was one which he carved out for himself, his advancement being due soley to the exer- cise of his own powers and to the possession of an energy which his will never allowed to falter. He made a close study of business conditions, and he utilized the opportunities which others might have employed had they carefully sought the way to success. He was a man of progressive ideas, intelligence, tact and skill. He was always ready to give practical aid to any movement which he believed would advance the public welfare. Mr. Lillibridge passed away, March 19, 1917, and Jamestown lost one of its most representa- tive citizens.
CHARLES H. DARLING was one whose upright life left its imprint for good on this community in which he lived, and caused his memory to be cherished by all who knew him. Of him it may be said that he belonged to that:
Choir invisible Of those immortal dead who live again, In lives made better by their presence.
Mfr. Darling was born in Napoli, Cattaraugus county, N. Y. He remained at the home farm as his father's assistant until the age of twenty-one, then married and settled on a farm in the town of Harmony, Chaut- tauqua county, N. Y. On Sept. 4, 1862, he enlisted in Company H, 154th Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry, and served as a private until stricken with paralysis and sent to his home. His discharge papers were not made out at that time, and it was not until 1889 that he received an honorable discharge from the War Department. After recovering from his paralytic stroke, he resumed farming operations, purchasing a farm of forty-two acres in the town of Carroll. Later he removed to Corry, Pa., where he engaged in con- tracting until 1867, when he moved to Jamestown, N. Y., continuing to make his home there until the time of his demise.
He was a strong temperance man, a member of the Methodist Episcopal church and a Republican in politics. His death was deeply regretted by his many friends in business and social circles. He married Phoebe Jane Hunt.
Alfred Darling, son of Charles H. and Phoebe Jane (Hunt) Darling, received his early education in the public schools of his native place. During his active life he has been engaged in the agricultural business, and he was known throughout the county as a man of upright life and character, thrifty, energetic and capable.
In Jamestown, N. Y., Dec. 16, 1884, Mr. Darling was united in marriage with Ella G. Lillibridge, a daughter of George and Polly Melissa (Hamilton)
Lillibridge, whose biography precedes this. To this union was born one son, Burt Earle, born in July, 1887.
If Mr. Darling, Sr., had left nothing else than the record of his honorable life, he would yet deserve to be called one of the valued residents of the county, for his influence was ever upon the side of the true, the good and the beautiful. He was never known to take advantage of his fellowmen in any way, and at all times he managed his career according to the highest principles.
WALLACE DANIEL BURT, D. D. S .- One of the rising young men of Jamestown is Dr. Wallace Daniel Burt, a dentist who gave up the practice of his profession when the President of the United States called. for volunteers, but has since the close of the war resumed it.
Wallace Daniel Burt was born in South Wales, Erie county, N. Y., Nov. 5, 1892, the son of George Eugene and Bessie Nellie Green Burt. The father is in the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, being station agent at Machias Junction, Cattaraugus county, a position he has held for the best part of his life. The father of Mrs. George Eugene Burt was Freder- ick Green, a veteran of the Civil War, who served in several important battles, among them being the battles of the Wilderness and Lookout Mountain.
Young Burt acquired his education in the grammar school of Machias and in the Central High School of Buffalo, N. Y., graduating from this latter institution in IgII. He then entered the dental school of the University of Buffalo, where he remained for three years. He graduated in 1914 with the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery, and on the 24th of August of the same year went to Jamestown to become associated with Dr. Roberts, a successful dentist of that city, and began to practice his profession. While he was so engaged, America joined in the World War, and Dr. Burt at once enlisted; he was commissioned first lieu- tenant, Oct. 5, 1917, in the Medical Department, though he was not called into service for a year. In October, 1918, he was sent to Camp Gordon, Ga., remaining there until he was discharged in February, 1919, after the armistice was signed, returning then to Jamestown.
Dr. Burt married, at Lime Lake, N. Y., Oct. 16, 1917, Gertrude Marie Phillips, the daughter of Eugene and Margaret Phillips. Of this union two children were born, Jeanne Carringer and Jacques Phillips, twins.
Dr. Burt is a member of the college fraternity Xi Psi Phi. He votes the Republican ticket, though not at present active in the party. He is devoted to his profession, and is highly regarded in Jamestown. His well appointed offices are located in the Professional building, opposite the post office, Jamestown, N. Y.
PHILIPPBAAR - BREMER FAMILY - Daniel Philippbaar, son of Michael and Catharina (Loos) Philipphaar, was born in Dietz, Germany, Aug. 1, 1807. He owned and operated a brick yard and lime kiln in Germany, and was an overseer of bridge building. Revolution became rife in Germany about the year 1849, and to escape its bad effects upon the country he came to the United States. He sent for his wife, who joined him with their three children: Emilie, Fred,
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and Rudolph. After coming to the United States two children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Philippbaar, Louis and Clara H. The first settlement was made in Portage, N. Y., where Mr. Philippbaar engaged in bridge work as foreman and superintendent. Later he moved to Dunkirk, where he engaged in the grocery and liquor business. He prospered and in 1868 began the con- struction of the Philippbaar block, and on June 1, 1869, the house was opened for business, his son-in-law, Charles Bremer, conducting a restaurant therein for thirteen years. Daniel Philippbaar died Feb. 20, 1873, and was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Fredonia, N. Y. He married, in Germany, Catharina Sahm, born in Selters, Nassau, Germany, June 16, 1816, who in 1854 came to the United States with her children to join her husband who had preceded them in 1849. She died in Dunkirk, N. Y., Aug. 18, 1895, surviving her husband twenty-two years. She is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Fredonia. Children: Emilie, Fred, Rudolph, Louis and Clara H.
Emilie Philippbaar, eldest child and daughter of Daniel and Catharina (Sahm) Philippbaar, was born in Wiesbaden, Germany. April 28, 1841, and in 1854 came to the United States with her mother and brothers, Fred and Rudolph. She attended the public schools of Dunkirk and Fredonia Academy, and resided with her parents until 1863, when she was married to Charles Bremer, of Dunkirk, by Rev. Mr. Wolff, pastor of the German Lutheran church, of Dunkirk.
Charles Bremer, son of C. F. and Friedericka L. (Borchert) Bremer, was born in Neustrelitz, Meck- lenburg, Germany, Sept. 8, 1834, died April 11, 1891, and is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Fredonia. His father died in Germany, and after his mother's marriage to William Ruge the family came to the United States and finally settled in Dunkirk. Charles Bremer secured employment in the locomotive works at Dunkirk, there remaining for several years. He then engaged in a local express business with M. B. White, and later became Dunkirk agent for the Mer- chants' Union Express Company. The next seven years he spent in the employ of Daniel Philippbaar as manager of his grocery business, and in 1863 married his employer's eldest daughter, Emilie. As before mentioned, when the Philippbaar block was completed Mr. Bremer became manager of the restaurant which Mr. Philippbaar opened in the building. After the death of his father-in-law, in 1873, Mr. Bremer con- tinned the business until 1882, when the building was sold to the Merchants' National Bank. Mr. Bremer was a very successful caterer, and his genial, friendly nature won him many friends in addition to the hundreds who knew him casually.
The most intimate and cordial relations existed between the two families, Philippbaar and Bremer, relations which have existed in all the friendliness and love until the present. After the sale of the Philippbaar block, which Mr. Bremer negotiated on behalf of the estate, he secured a position in the pattern shops of the Brooks Locomotive Works, remaining in that employ two years. He then, in partnership with Rudolph Philippbaar, erected a brick building at No. 307 Main street, and established therein a restaurant and liquor business, under the firm name, C. Bremer
& Company. He continued in business very success- fully until his death in 1891.
Mr. Bremer was a man of energy and enterprise, well educated, and possessed of a fine mind and splendid physique. He was public-spirited and pro- gressive, and highly esteemed in the city. After her . husband's death Mrs. Bremer assisted her brother in conducting the well established and prosperous restaur- - ant business of C. Bremer & Company until his death, when she sold out and retired to the house she built at No. 727 Washington avenue, Dunkirk, her present residence ( 1920).
Fred Philippbaar, eldest son of Daniel and Cathar- ina (Sahm) Philippbaar, was born in Wiesbaden, Ger- many, Sept. 14, 1843, died in Buffalo, N. Y., Feb. 26, 1916, and is buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery, Buffalo, N. Y. He came to the United States with the family ! in 1854. and settled with them in Dunkirk. He there . attended school, also in Fredonia, beginning business life early as his father's assistant in the grocery store. Later he moved to Buffalo, where he was successfully engaged in business until his retirement several years prior to his death. He married Theresa Zester, who died in 1906, and left three children: Frank F., Wallace D., and Clara, the latter the wife of George Snyder.
Rudolph Philippbaar, second son of Daniel and Catharina (Sahm) Philippbaar, was born in Walmerod, Germany, April 5, 1847, died in Dunkirk, N. Y., July 5, 1909, and is buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Fre- donia. He came to the United States with his mother, brother and sister in 1854, and resided in Dunkirk the remainder of his life. He attended the public schools, and after a course in the Bryant & Stratton Business College of Buffalo, became his father's assistant. Later he went West and spent ten years in California, then upon his return he entered into partnership with his brother-in-law Charles Bremer, in the restaurant business, which business he continued after the death of Mr. Bremer until about Jan. I, 1909, then retired. He was a member of the Masonic order, a noble of the Mystic Shrine, and an Odd Fellow. He was highly esteemed by all who knew him, and thoroughly respected as a reliable and upright citizen.1 He never married.
Louis Philippbaar, third son of Daniel and Cathar- ina (Sahm) Philippbaar, was born in Dunkirk, N. Y., Oct. 14, 1856, and was educated in German and public schools. After completing his studies, he entered the employ of the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern freight office in Buffalo but later he bought out a . grocery business at the corner of Fargo avenue and Massachusetts street, Buffalo, and there has since con- ducted a prosperous business. He married Kate Graff, of Dunkirk, and has a daughter, Lillian Margaret, wife of Henry J. Loncteaux. Mr. Philippbaar is a member of the Masonic order, and a man highly esteemed in his community.
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