USA > New York > Chautauqua County > History of Chautauqua County, New York, and its people, Volume III > Part 16
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motherless when but two years of age, and was yet a minor when his father died. He was, however, named as an executor of the will, special legislation being required to enable him to act. He was well educated, and although not keen to be known as a money maker conducted a large business in Kennedy, having grist mills, lumber mills and a general store. He was a large land owner, having over 1000 acres in the town of Poland, where he located about 1850. He was free- handed and generous, his kindness of heart leading him into business indiscretions, and he lost a large amount of money through endorsing paper for friends and acquaintances. He was the donor of sites upon which to build the three churches of Kennedy, but was not a member. In politics he was a Republican, and repre- sented the town of Poland in the Chautauqua County Board of Supervisors during the years 1859-60-61-62-63.
Mr. Falconer married Helen J. Dailey at Waterville, N. Y., June 19, 1831, and she died at Jamestown, N. Y., Oct. 31, 1904; she was a member of the Baptist church. Mr. and Mrs. Falconer were the parents of two sons: Archibald D., of whom further; and Frank M., born Sept. 10, 1872, died Jan. 12, 1901.
Archibald D. Falconer, son of William T. and Helen J. (Dailey) Falconer, was born in Kennedy, Chautauqua county, N. Y., Oct. 12, 1869. After graduation from Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, Mich., he began the study of law in the offices of Cook, Fisher & Wade, of the Chautauqua county bar, and was later admitted to practice. He opened offices in Jamestown, where he remained until 1918, when he moved to his present offices in the First National Bank building. Falconer. He is a Republican in politics, a member of the Masonic order, and interested in various other activities, busi- ness and social.
Mr. Falconer married, Oct. 20, 1896, Abbie Lillian Brown, a fellow student at Hillsdale College. They are the parents of three children: Robert, Frank and Catherine. The family home is at No. 32, Prospect street, Jamestown.
EDWIN FORREST SAMPLE-As a contractor and builder, Edwin F. Sample is well known in the towns of Ellery and Jamestown, his life from boyhood having been associated with the building business, fol- lowing in the footsteps of his honored father under whom he learned the carpenter's trade. In social life and fraternity affairs Mr. Sample takes an active part and lends his influence to all movements that tend to uplift and advance the standard of right living. Edwin F. Sample is a son of Hugh and Dorothy ( Keil) Sample, who were residents of Warren, Pa., that State being the birthplace of their son.
Ilugh and Dorothy Sample came from Pennsylvania to Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1874. when Edwin F. was but a young boy. They resided at several places in the town of Ellery and in 1884 located on a farm in the town of Ellery, near the village of Ellery Center, and there established the family home. Hugh Sample was a carpenter by trade, and in addition to the culti- vation of his farm did a good deal of building in his section. Hugh Sample was a member of Company E, Fifth United States Light Artillery, and was in many engagements during the Civil War, being cited for his
8. Fr. Sample
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brave conduct. The children of Hugh and Dorothy (Keil) Sample were as follows: Lydia A .; Edwin F., mentioned below; Elizabeth L., Lona D., and Frank T. The two oldest were born in Pennsylvania, and the remainder were born in the town of Ellery.
Edwin F. Sample was born in Newmanville, Clarion county, Pa., Jan. 11, 1872. When very young his parents moved to Chautauqua county and here Edwin F. attended the district schools and acquired a good education. In youth he was taught his father's trade and became a skilled carpenter, later adding to his activities the busi- ness of contractor. His reputation as a reliable builder is well established, and along the shores of Lake Chau- tauqua there are many houses that stand as monuments to his skill and integrity. He has executed contracts in different towns of the county and in the city of James- town, and he also built school house No. 13 in the town of Ellery. In connection with his building he specializes in the asbestos "Century Shingle," which is fast attain- ing popularity as a roofing material. Mr. Sample was the first to introduce this shingle in this county and has since sold many carloads of them.
Mr. Sample's home on the lake road in the town of Ellery is surrounded by fruit orchards and gardens, making him quite eligible to the Patrons of Husbandry. He is also a member of Jamestown Lodge, No. 105, Loyal Order of Moose, of which he is a charter member ; Chautauqua County Historical Society; the Saturday Night Club; the Protective Home Circle; and was vice- president of the Fluvanna Free Library Association, and now secretary, an institution which has added greatly to the enjoyment and education of the younger genera- tion as well as benefiting their elders. In politics Mr. Sample is a Republican, and in religious affiliation a member of the Methodist Brotherhood.
Mr. Sample married, at Bemus Point, N. Y., July 2, 1902, Edith May Griffith, who died Nov. 27, 1910, the only child of Guy S. and Carrie ( Messenger ) Griffith, old and highly respected residents of Ellery. Two children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Sample in Ellery : Hazel A., born Jan. 8, 1904; and Merton R., born Sept. 18, 1906. Both are graduates of the Fluvanna public school and now (1920) are students of Jamestown High School.
THE FLINT FAMILY-One of the founder- families of Portland, Chautauqua county, is that repre- sented in this generation by the brothers who own and keep in splendid production the bulk of the tract of wild land first owned by their grandfather, Abial Flint, in 1817. The form, as it is today, is one of the best maintained acreages in the district, and presents an altogether different appearance to what it did when the pioneer ancestor first set about the stupendous task of winning it from the wilderness. Its present con- dition represents the grit, the steadfastness, the resolute persistence in the pioneer work, despite hardships and discouragements, of three generations of the Flint family, and the place of respect the family holds in the community to-day is the result of useful lives well lived.
Abial Flint, the pioneer ancestor of the Chautauqua county, N. Y., branch of the Flint family, was born at East Windsor, Conn., Sept. 5. 1768, the son of Arkalis and Betsey (Elmer) Flint. He appears to have come
into New York State in early manhood, for it was in Rome, Oneida county, N. Y., that he married, Sept. 26, 1802, Mary Brown, who was born in Coventry, Conn., Nov. 30, 1780. About the year 1812 Abial Flint brought his wife and family of three children into Chautauqua county and settled at Priestville. About 1817 he bought a tract of fifty acres of wild land in Portland and moved his family to that land. He was by trade a tanner and currier, and also a shoemaker, but the desire to own his own home and sufficient land for the susten- ance of his family proved irresistable, and he entered upon the great task of clearing the wilderness from his land with resolute purpose and cheerful spirit. His wife ably and courageously assisted him, withstanding all the rigors that came to them, both of them buoyed up by the prospect of having eventually a home wrought by their own hands from the wilderness. That was the inspiration that softened all their labors, that gave them renewed courage when all seemed dark, and when it appeared that it would be barely possible that they could live to the time when their tract would be sufficiently cleared to afford them more than a sparse living. They experienced most of the trials and hardships which have been the lot of most pioneers, and they manifested the same resolute spirit that has been shown by so many of the great pioneers of this country. And notwith- standing everything they prospered, and raised a family of eight children in the original log house Abial Flint built. For twenty-one years the family lived in a log house, as it was not until 1833 that Abial Flint built a frame house, their youngest child at that time being ten years old. Mrs. Flint died fifteen years later, on May 5, 1849, at the age of sixty-eight years, but her husband lived to reach the venerable age of ninety-one years, his death not coming until Jan. 15, 1860. Both were buried in Evergreen Cemetery, and were honored as pioneers of the district, and as good people. They were Methodists, of earnest spirit, and took part in the formation of the first church, both being members of the first class formed in Portland. Politically Abial Flint was a Whig and in general was a man of strong, upright character. He lived on his Chautauqua county farm for forty-three years, and had the satisfaction of seeing it mostly cleared and in cultivation before his death. To those of this generation who consider farm- ing an arduous occupation it must seem almost incon- ceivable that men should voluntarily take upon them- selves the life time task of excessively hard labor that the clearing of a large acreage of wilderness must repre- sent; but it was by much valiant effort that practically the whole of the present rich territories that comprise the United States were won for civilization; and much of the stalwart and rugged characteristics of the pioneer ancestors has descended to, and is evident in the suc- ceeding generations of the old American families. The descendants of Abial Flint, of Portland, have been many but, in general, those descendants have done well in life, the immediate family of Abial and Mary (Brown) Flint reflecting in their lives the wholesome ruggedness of their early life in the log house. The eight children of Abial and Mary (Brown) Flint were : I. Daniel E., born Aug. 22, 1805, and eventually married Eliza Goddard; he settled in Shipman, Ill., in 1863. 2. Mary B., born April 23, 1807, and married John Wilbur,
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in Portland. Chautauqua county, subsequently going with her husband to Elgin, Ill., where he took a farming property. 3. Jonathan T., born Nov. 30, 1809; married Harriet Shumway. in Genesee county, N. Y., and settled in Buffalo, in 1840. 4. Abial, Jr., born May 25, 1813: married Jane Cook, in Portland, Chautauqua county, and settled in Missouri, in 1857. 5. Henry, of whom further. 6. Harriet, born Oct. 6. 1816, and now lives in Hanover. N. Y., having married James Wilson, of that place. 7. John W., born Aug. 26, 1819; married Lovina McGaffan. of Youngstown, N. Y., and eventually settled in Brant, Erie county. 8. Caroline, born Dec. 3, 1823: married Ephraim Ballard, of Westfield, and settled in Silver Creek, Chautauqua county.
Henry Flint, fifth child of Abial and Mary (Brown) Flint, and father of the brothers, Virgil Henry and Byron Herbert Flint, who now own the ancestral prop- erty, was born Jan. 18, 1815. He received such education as was possible in that sparsely populated section in the days of his boyhood, and after leaving school gave his whole time to his father, to assist him in the cultivation of the land already cleared, and in the clearing of the remainder. Eventually he married Nancy A. Hall, of another pioneer family of Portland, and they lived the whole of their married life upon the Flint homestead, which eventually passed into his possession. When public improvements and the development of the town made it necessary to run a street through part of the Flint property, Henry Flint sold an aere, so that he would not have divided land, and subsequently pur- chased twenty-five acres of adjoining land from Charles Van Gasbeek. To Henry and Naney A. (Hall) Flint were horn thirteen children, a worthy family and char- acteristic of the earnestness of their lives. The children, in order of birth, were: I. Helen. 2. Effie, who event- ually entered the teaching profession. 3. Mary, who married Mark Haight, of Portland. 4. Abial. 5. Carlos Hall, who now lives in Fredonia. 6. Burnell, now de- ceased, who went to South Dakota, and there married Elsie Clark. 7. Julia. 8. Cora. 9. Virgil Henry, of whom further. 10. Elmer, now deceased. II. Hattie, who is a bookkeeper in New York City. 12. Byron Herbert. of whom further. 13. Kate Irene.
Virgil Henry and Bryon Herbert Flint, ninth and twelfth born children of Henry and Nancy A. (Hall) Flint, have worthily continued in good cultivation the ancestral home of the Flint family. The farm is one of the best kept in the district, and well adapted to the purpose, general and dairy farming, and grape growing, to which it is put by the brothers. They are proving themselves to be enterprising, progressive and up-to-date farmers, have some good, pure-bred Ilolstein cattle, and have about fourteen acres of grape vineyard, which give them good returns. The brothers are unmarried, are industrious, and have executed many improvements upon the property. The house, harn, and other build- ings are modern, and were all built hy them. They interest themselves actively in public movements in their community, and have very many friends, being generally well regarded. They have reason to be satisfied with their personal records, and with the place the Flint family has in the founding and development of that section of the county.
THE UNION FURNITURE COMPANY, which today and for many years has been an industrial enter- prise of consequence to the city of Jamestown, N. Y., had its inception in 1903 in the enterprise of four mem- bers of the Nord-Norquist family of that city. Edward C. Nord, August F. Nord, Alfred A. Nord, and F. O. Norquist, all substantial business men of experience in wood working, and the manufacture of furniture, formed partnership to enter into the manufacture of high grade dining room suites. They erected a factory build- ing, four stories in height, 250 feet long and 60 feet wide, at No. 234 Creseent street, Jamestown, and equipped it with such modern machinery as they deemed necessary and commeneed to produce the line of furni- ture proposed.
Satisfactory development came, and in 1904 the organ- izers sought corporate powers, eventually being em- powered to trade under its original name of the Union Furniture Company, by which name the enterprise has since been known. As the company developed markets, the original plant became inadequate for their opera- tions, and recently it was decided to erect a five-story brick structure, which is now completed and has floor space of 100,000 square feet in addition to the 65,000 square feet in its old building adjoining. The old as well as the new building is equipped with individual electric motors and most modern machinery. The results of these new installations will be for purposes of economy and safety. The motive power of the old and new plant is electric, which is developed on the com- pany's grounds.
The success which has come to the Union Furniture Company, at which steady employment is provided for about 300 people, reflects credit upon the executives who have directed its affairs since its original establishment. The present officials and stockholders are: August F. Nord, president; Alfred A. Nord, vice-president; and Edward C. Nord, treasurer and secretary. The company is represented on the Jamestown Chamber of Commerce, the Manufacturers' Association of Jamestown, and the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Association of New York State. The product of this company has remained the same, high grade dining room suites, and its market is in all parts of this country and the firm enjoys a well earned reputation in the furniture world.
AUGUST F. NORD, well known business man, manufacturer, and president of the Union Furniture Company, was born in Smoland, Sweden, July 2, 1868. His father was a farmer, and the boy grew up on the farm assisting in the work at home. He attended the common schools of the village and received a good, elementary education.
When he was twenty years old he determined to come to the United States, having a brother, John Nord, in this country who had done well in a business way. The young man went directly to Jamestown, N. Y., after landing, his brother being employed there in the carving room of the A. C. Norquist Company. August F. Nord entered the employ of the Norquist Company in the finishing room, and continued with them for eleven ycars, then became associated with the Nord Furniture
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Company on Second street, of which he was a stock- holder, remaining there for three years, taking an active part in the business. He then sold out his interest in the firm to his brother, John Nord, in order to start with his other brothers, Edward and Alfred, the Union Furniture Company. In the beginning of the concern Mr. Nord was made vice-president, but was later elected president of the company. Besides his official position, his share of the work of the corporation is to superin- tend the output of the factory.
Mr. Nord is a member of the Norden Club and of the Swedish Methodist Episcopal church, in which he is greatly interested, being a steward of that church body. He is a stockholder in the American National Bank, and a member of the Republican party. Of a quiet and reserved temperament, Mr. Nord has not become inter- ested in the public life of Jamestown, though he is well known among the Swedish residents of the city, having many friends in their midst.
August F. Nord married Anna E. Sandburg, in 1894, in Jamestown, and they have the following children: I. Alldor, born Nov. 15, 1898; educated in Jamestown public and high schools, and University of Pennsylvania. 2. Elsie, born Nov. 8, 1901; educated in Jamestown public and high schools, now a student of Wellesley College for women. 3. Gladys, born July 10, 1905; educated in Jamestown public and high schools, now preparing for college. 4. Frances, born Feb. 9, 1912; now attending Jamestown grade schools.
EDWARD C. NORD, who has been a resident in the city of Jamestown, N. Y., for twenty-nine years, a young man without much means and little education at the time of his coming to this country, but by dint of perseverance, study, industry, and natural ability as a man of business, he steadily advanced in prosperity until today he is among the leading citizens here. He is one of the organizers of the Union Furniture Company, of which he has been secretary, treasurer and general manager since its organization.
Edward C. Nord was born in Sweden, May 9, 1871, the son of Andrew M. Nord. He was given the public school education customarily afforded to a boy of his station, and assisted his father on the home farm. In 1891 the family came to America, and settled in James- town, where some of their relatives were. The Nor- quists of Jamestown, so well known in the city, and so successful in business during the last few decades, belong to the Nord family, of Sweden, the name "Nord" being the derivative, the termination "quist" simply meaning "branch of."
For three years after coming to Jamestown, Edward C. Nord found employment in the furniture factory of the A. C. Norquist Company. Then he helped to organize, and became a stockholder in the Nord Furniture Com- pany, which opened a store on East Second street, Jamestown, for the retailing of furniture and allied lines. Edward C. Nord with his brother, John Nord, conducted the store for eight years, and in 1903 he sold his interests to his brother and in conjunction with August F. Nord, Alfred A. Nord, and Frank O. Nor- quist, formed partnership to establish a firm for the manufacture of dining room furniture, thus was the organization of the Union Furniture Company of James-
town. The history of the Union Furniture Company as shown in a preceding narrative indicates the active interest Edward C. Nord has taken in this company. He has given most of his time to the affairs of his company, and has taken interest in other movements wherever time would permit, especially in the civic welfare of Jamestown. He is a member of the James- town Board of Commerce and the Norden Club.
Mr. Nord- is identified with the following organiza- tions as director : The American National Bank, of which he was one of the organizers; Jamestown Marble Iron Company; Jamestown Mutual Insurance Company ; and he was on the board of the Vinculo Sugar and Realty Corporation of Cuba, which had large holdings on the island. He is a member of the Republican party in which he is a firm believer. He has been a consistent member of the Swedish Methodist Episcopal church, Jamestown, since he came here, and has been one of its trustees, for many years.
Mr. Nord married, in Jamestown, 1896, Rose H. Ogren, of this city. They have three children : I. Carol B., born Jan. 16, 1899; educated in the Jamestown public and high schools, now studying at the University of Pennsylvania. 2. Olive H., born Sept. 10, 1902; educated in the Jamestown public and high schools, now preparing for college. 3. Helen E., born May 21, 1909; now attending school in Jamestown.
ALFRED A. NORD, well known in the furniture industry at Jamestown, and vice-president of the Union Furniture Company, a busy corporation formed by the Nord brothers, was born in Smoland, Sweden, Feb. 18, 1875. The family lived on a farm and this son, like the others, was brought up to assist in the farm work, and here he attended the village school. When Alfred A. Nord was sixteen years old he came to Amer- ica, in company with his father, mother, and others of the family. The boy went at once to Jamestown, where he had brothers, and obtained employment with the New- man Bed Spring Company; later he became employed in the A. C. Norquist Company, in 1892, in the machine department. Here he remained for a time and learned the wood carving trade. He subsequently followed the wood carving trade with the Atlas Furniture Company, Empire Case Goods Company, and Jamestown Mantle Company, and then returned to the A. C. Norquist Com- pany. In 1902, he with his brothers, August F. and Edward C., founded the Union Furniture Company, a sketch of which appears herewith. It is much to Mr. Nord's credit that while he worked at his trade he studied evenings at the Young Men's Christian Associa- tion night school where he acquired considerable learn- ing. Alfred A. Nord was made vice-president and has continued as such almost since the organization of the company. His special part in addition to his official duties is to oversee the output of the cabinet department. Mr. Nord is a member of the Swedish Methodist Epis- copal church of Jamestown, also a member of the official church board. He is a staunch Republican in politics.
Mr. Nord married, in Jamestown, March 1, 1905, Esther Ogren, of that city. Of this union were born four children: 1. Wesley Alfred, born April 2, 1907; educated in the Jamestown public schools, now prepar- ing for high school. 2. Jeanette Ester, born Sept. 12,
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1008; now attending public school. 3. Kermit John, born Jan. 26. 1913: now attending public school. 4. Charles Lowell, born Feb. 4. 1916.
NATHAN E. BEARDSLEY, M. D .- Any history of the medical profession of Chautauqua county would be incomplete without the name of Dr. Nathan E. Beardsley, who for nearly thirty years has been engaged in the active practice of his profession at Dunkirk, N. Y. Dr. Beardsley is prominently identified with the life of his community. being respected and valued as a con- scientious, public-spirited citizen, no less than an able and devoted physician.
Nathan E. Beardsley was born March 23, 1867, in Chautauqua county, N. Y .. the son of the late Noah and Esther MI. (Randall) Beardsley. His primary education was received in the public schools of South Dayton, N. Y., and Gowanda High School, which latter school he left at the end of his second year, to com- mence the study of medicine with his uncle, C. C. Johnson, a practicing physician at Gowanda, N. Y. After a year and a half spent pursuing a course of medical reading under the guidance of his uncle, he entered the medical department of Buffalo University, from which he was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1870. After serving his interneship of one year at the Buffalo General Hospital, he entered upon the practice of his profession in May, 1891, and has ever since, with occasional intervals of absences, made his home in Dunkirk, and there achieved his great professional suc- cesses. He has done post-graduate work in the medical universities of New York City, Bonn and Frankfort, Germany, and has also attended the Heidelberg Univer- city. He belongs to the American Medical Association, the New York State Medical Association, the Chautan- qua Medical Society, and the Dunkirk-Fredonia Med- ical Society. He is on the medical staff of the Brooks Memorial Hospital, and is medical officer at St. Mary's Orphan Asylum. In everything relative to the welfare ci his home city, Dr. Beardsley takes a keen and active interest, and is an interested member of the Chamber of Commerce. He is a Mason, affiliating with the blue Ir dre. chapter, and commandery. He attends the Bap- tist church at Dunkirk.
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