USA > New York > Monroe County > Rochester > History of Rochester and Monroe county, New York, from the earliest historic times to the beginning of 1907, Vol. II > Part 32
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ambition of the company to make a champagne equal to any produced in Europe. Experiment in this direction resulted successfully with the company, as is evidenced by the largely increas- ing sales of the American Eagle brand of cham- pagne. The company raises all kinds of grapes and employs men who are experts in handling the fruit. as well as in the manufacturing department. Their wines, clarets and brandies have been brought to a high state of perfection, comparing favorably with the best grades produced in the old world. The plant is thoroughly equipped with the latest improved machinery necessary for the production, and the greatest neatness and care is undertaken in the manufacturing processes.
Mr. Kipp was married, in September, 1904, to Miss Minnie Fetzner, a daughter of Jacob P. Fetzner, president of the Lake Ontario Wine Company. He belongs to Rochester lodge, No. 24, B. P. O. E., and is a member of St. Joseph's Catholic church.
ALICK G. RICHARDSON.
Alick G. Richardson is vice president of the J. Hungerford Smith Company, manufacturers of pure fruit syrups and soda water supplies. His life record began in Newcastle, Pennsylvania, on the 3d of August, 1868, his parents being Alex- ander and Mary (Robison) Richardson. The father, a native of Pennsylvania, was a drug mer- chant and is now living in Newcastle, in his native state.
Mr. Richardson of this review, one of a family of five children, was educated in the public schools of his native town and afterward went upon the road as a traveling representative for the large wholesale confectionery house of J. K. McKee Company, of Pittsburg. He continued in that position for five years, after which he became con- nected with the J. Hungerford Smith Company, acting as commercial traveler for this house for ten years. He was known as one of the most suc- cessful traveling salesmen on the road, for, added to his business ability and executive force, is a genial nature and friendly spirit, which made him popular. At the present writing he has charge of the traveling representatives for the firm, number- ing some twenty men.
Mr. Richardson was married to Miss Ethel Mc- Crea of Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and they reside in the Vassar apartments. Mr. Richardson be- longs to Frank R. Lawrence lodge, No. 19%, A. F. & A. M .; to Hamilton chapter, R. A. M .; to Mon- roe commandery, K. T .; to Rochester consistory, in which he has attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish rite; and to Damascus Temple of
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the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of the Masonic Club of Rochester. It has been the force of his character, his close application to business and his strong purpose that have enabled Mr. Richardson to gain his present enviable place in business circles. The world instinctvely pays def- erence to the man whose success has been worthily achieved, who has overcome obstacles that are al- ways to be confronted in a business career and who has reached a high position in trade circles. This is a progressive age and he who does not advance is soon left far behind. Mr. Richardson, by the improvement of opportunities which sur- round all, has steadily and honorably worked his way upward and has attained a fair degree of prosperity.
JEREMIAH G. MENIHAN.
The thorough acquaintance with a trade which one obtains through a regular apprenticeship equips him for a successful business career better than all the theoretical and technical knowledge that he might acquire in other ways. It was through an apprenticeship that Jeremiah G. Men- ihan became familiar with the business in princi- ple and detail of manufacturing ladies' shoes, in which he is now engaged in Rochester. He was born in Ontario county, New York, April 8, 1874, and was the only son of John and Margaret (Nighan) Menihan, who were of Irish extraction. The father was born on the Emerald isle and when about twenty years of age came to the United States with his father, Jeremiah Menihan, who settled on a farm in Ontario county, New York.
Jeremiah G. Menihan of this review was reared upon the old homestead farm until he attained his twentieth year and acquired his education in the district schools. On leaving the farm he came to Rochester and served a five years' apprenticeship at the business of shoe manufacturing under Pat- rick Cox. On the completion of his term of service, in 1898, he began the manufacture of la- dies' shoes on his own account, establishing his factory on a very small scale in a little frame building on the west side of the city. The busi- ness prospered from the start and in a period of nine years since its organization he has made five removals, necessitated each time by the demand for larger quarters, resulting from the growth of the business. He is now at No. 178 North Water street, where he has an extensive factory, equipped with all the latest machinery for the manufacture of high grade shoes. He employs on an average of three hundred operatives and his goods find a market throughout the United States. The ex- cellence of the product, the well known reliability
of the house and the enterprise of the proprietor in bringing his output to public attention through judicious advertising has made this one of the leading shoe manufactories of a city which is noted as a shoe producing center.
Mr. Menihan is a member of the Catholic church. He was married April 24, 1906, to Miss Mary Louise Conway, of Canandaigua, New York.
BENJAMIN F. GAY.
Benjamin F. Gay, manager of a brickyard in Chili township and thus closely associated with its industrial interests, was born in Canada in the year 1869, his parents being Robert and Sarah (Wilkinson) Gay, both of whom were natives of Cork, Ireland. The father had a family of nine children by his first wife, as follows: Richard, Sarah, Martha, Patience, Eliza, Ellen, Robert, Emogene and Frances. He came to the new world at the age of twenty-two years and in 1843 be- gan business as a contractor for the Rochester Gas Company, furnishing coal for the company. Later he engaged in the manufacture of brick, employing one hundred and fifty men, a fact which indicates the development of an extensive and important industry. Indeed, his business be-' came one of the leading enterprises of his section of the county and he was regarded as one of the most prominent, successful and influential business men. Having lost his first wife, he was married a sec- ond time, when Miss Sarah Wilkinson became his wife. The family of this union numbered one son, Benjamin, and two daughters, Alice and Ida. The parents of our subject were both members of the North Street Methodist church of Roch- ester and the father was a republican in politics. He died in the year 1902.
Benjamin F. Gay was a student in the public schools in his boyhood days and when not busy with his text-books worked in his father's brick- vard, eventually gaining a thorough knowledge of the business in principle and detail. As his effi- ciency increased he was entrusted with more and important work and he was made manager, which is his present connection with this important in- dustry.
In 1893 Mr. Gay was united in marriage to Miss Alice Sperry, a daughter of Myron and Lucy (Potter) Sperry, of Chili township. Her father has spent his entire life in that township and was a very prominent farmer of that locality, serving as supervisor for one term and as town clerk for fifteen years. In early life her mother engaged in school teaching and is a very bright and in- fluential woman. Mr. and Mrs. Gay have two children, Mildred and Esther.
ROBERT GAY.
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HISTORY OF ROCHESTER AND MONROE COUNTY.
In his political views our subject is a republican. He has been a student of the questions and issues of the day and is a stalwart advocate of the prin- ciples in which he believes, yet is without desire for political honors. For twelve years he was a member of the Builders Exchange, with which his father was also connected. He affiliates with Rochester lodge, No. 660, F. & A. M., and at- tends the Baptist church.
MARQUIS H. STRONG.
Marquis H. Strong, born at Conesus Lake, New York, December 2, 1849, is a son of Henry S. Strong, a native of Paterson, New Jersey, who re- moved to the state of New York in 1842 and set- tled at Conesus Lake, where he engaged in busi- ness as a contractor and builder for a few years. He then removed to Rochester, where he con- tinued in business as a building contractor, being actively associated with much of the work of im- provement here for a number of years. The old family estate occupied the present site of the large Cox building. Mr. Strong was a veteran of the Civil war, joining Company K of the Fifty-first Regiment of New York Volunteers in April, 1861. The smoke from Fort Sumter's guns had scarcely cleared away when he offered his aid to the govern- ment, continuing at the front for more than four years, or until August, 1865. He joined the army as a private and his meritorious conduct on the field of battle won him promotion through succes- sive grades to the rank of captain. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Adeline Wynn and was a native of Conesus Lake, died in December, 1906.
Marquis H. Strong began his education in the schools of his native town and afterward con- tinued his studies in Rochester. To prepare for a business career he learned the trade of a carriage woodworker and started out in business on his own account as soon as he had completed his apprenticeship. For twelve years he continued in that line with good success, after which he ex- tended his efforts to a broader field of labor in the manufacture of toilet cases of all kinds and beautiful work in leather for travelers. He is now making a specialty of the manufacture of automobile supplies and interior fittings for motor cars. He is producing everything that can con- tribute to the comfort of touring in the line of automobile equipments and the popularity of this method of travel is bringing about a constant growth in his business, which has already reached extensive and profitable proportions. He is lo- cated in this line at Nos. 160-170 South avenue, having a large factory thoroughly equipped with all modern machinery necessary for the manu-
facture of those things which constitute his out- put. He is also interested in a number of other business enterprises of Rochester and has made a creditable name in manufacturing circles, his worth being widely acknowledged among business men.
Mr. Strong was married in 1874 to Miss Helen AL French, a daughter of Alonzo French, a pioneer of Rochester, who came to this city in 1835. He is interested in the work of the Monroe . Avenue Methodist Episcopal church, with which he holds membership, and at the present writing he is serving on its board of stewards. Brought to Rochester in his boyhood days, he has a wide acquaintance in the city and that his life has been an honorable and upright one is indicated by the fact that many of his stanchest friends are those who have known him from his youth to the present time.
ADAM VOGEL.
Adam Vogel, whose success in business has come as the direct result of intense, ceaseless activity, intelligently applied, is now a prosperous resident of Rochester, having valuable real-estate holdings in the city, from which he derives a gratifying an- nual income. He was born in Germany, on the 10th of June, 1838, his parents being Herman and Catherine (Mattice) Vogel. The father was born at Bingen-on-the-Rhine, in Germany, in the year 1792 and participated in some of the Napo- leonie wars.
Reared in his native country to the age of seventeen years and educated in its public schools, Adam Vogel crossed the Atlantic in 1855, landing in New York on the 1st of June. He went first to Buffalo and thence came to Rochester. His financial resources were extremely limited and rendered immediate employment a necessity. Seeking a position, he secured work in a butcher shop and, having thoroughly mastered the trade so that his services proved valuable to his em- ployers, he was at length enabled to save from his earnings a sum sufficient to enable him to engage in business on his own account. For forty years he was proprietor of an extensive meat market at the corner of South Washington and West Main streets. Throughout that period he enjoyed a constantly growing patronage and from time to time he made judicious investments in real estate, which with the growth of the city has coustantly appreciated in value. He is now living retired in the enjoyment of a well earned rest, his wealth supplying him with all the comforts and luxuries that go to make life worth living. Never faltering in energy, never ceasing to give due attention to
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HISTORY OF ROCHESTER AND MONROE COUNTY.
the details as well as the principles of his business and bringing sound judgment to bear in the solu- tion of every business problem, he met with most gratifying prosperity in his commercial career and in his real-estate operations and his name has long been an honored one on business paper.
Mr. Vogel is a Mason who has attained the thirty-second degree of the Scottish rite. In politics he is independent, with republican ten- dencies, and his religious views are in harmony with the teachings of the Evangelical church. The hope which led him to seek a home in America when a young man has been more than realized and his record stands as proof of what may be accomplished through determination and energy by the adopted sons of America, who seek in the new world the opportunities and advantages which are denied them in their native land.
JOSEPH STALLKNECHT, Jr.
Joseph Stallknecht, Jr., supervisor of the first ward and manager for A. Weidman & Company, a responsible position which he is ably filling, was born in Rochester, Angust 9, 1875, his parents be- ing Joseph and Frances (Wolf) Stallknecht, also natives of Rochester, where they still make their home. The maternal grandfather was a brewer here at one time and was a pioneer of the city, who aided in the work of clearing the landing at Lower Falls. The paternal grandfather of our subject came from Germany, and he, too, was one of the first settlers of Rochester, carrying on the hotel business here for a number of years. Joseph Stallknecht, Sr., is still a business man of the city and is one of the oldest connected with commercial or industrial life. He is now pro- prietor of a restaurant and was one of the foun- ders of the Miller Brewing Company, now the Flour City brewery. He served at one time as city assessor and has long been widely and fa- vorably known here, being recognized especially as a leader in German-American circles.
Joseph Stallknecht, Jr. was educated in St. Joseph's parochial school at Rochester and in Conicus College at Buffalo, from which he was graduated. He afterward became connected with the clothing trade in this city and has since con- tinued in this line. In April, 1906, he associated himself with the firm of A. Weidman & Company and now has full charge of their business as man- ager. His long acquaintance with the trade well qualifies him for the position and in his business capacity he has charge over a large and important mercantile concern, which, under his guidance, is developing along gratifying and substantial lines.
In the fall of 1905 Mr. Stallknecht was elected a member of the board of supervisors from the
first ward and is now serving on the committees on coroners and physicians, jurors and witnesses. He is one of the youngest members of the board and has started out to do good work in his ward.
THOMAS FLANNERY.
Thomas Flannery, vice president of the Union and Advertiser Company of Rochester, has since 1849 been connected with this paper, which is the oldest daily in the United States west of the Hud- son. The time of his connection with the paper exceeds that of any other stockholder or employe; and as superintendent of the news room, which position he has filled continuously since 1856, he has contributed in substantial measure to its suc- cess.
A native son of the Emerald isle, Mr. Flannery was born in County Kildare, Ireland, on the 7th of January, 1834. His parents, Jeremiah and Elizabeth (Larkin) Flannery, have both passed away, the mother dying in New York City. In the family were but two children and the sister is now deceased, leaving Thomas Flannery as the only survivor. He spent the first fifteen years of his life in the land of his birth and in August, 1849, came to the United States, making his way direct to Rochester. In September of the same year he entered the office of the Advertiser as an apprentice, and has since been connected with the paper, covering a period of almost six decades. Gradually he advanced as he acquainted himself with the business and gave practical demonstra- tion of his capability and his willingness, com- bined with determination, to successfully execute the work entrusted to him. On the consolidation of the Advertiser and Union in 1856 he assumed charge of the news room. In 1873 when the Union and Advertiser Company was incorporated he became one of its stockholders and is now vice president. He yet continues to discharge the du- ties of superintendent of the news room, a position requiring careful planning and excellent executive force, and his ability is indicated by the fact of the popularity of the journal, which is one of the leading newspapers of Rochester. There are now thirty-five men in the composing room under his direction. Mr. Flannery has participated in the celebration of the silver, the gold and the diamond -twenty-fifth, fiftieth . and seventy-fifth-anni- versaries of the first issue of the Union and Ad- vertiser. He is the only member of the company who has that distinction, and he says that he may be on hand to celebrate the centennial-but "does not promise to do so."
In 1856 was celebrated the marriage of Thomas Flannery and Miss Elizabeth Chaffey, a native of
THOMAS FLANNERY.
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HISTORY OF ROCHESTER AND MONROE COUNTY.
England, who died February 27, 1907. Unto them were born two daughters and four sons, but one of the family is now deceased. The family residence is at No. 470 Court street, and has been for over fifty years. Mr. Flannery has never had occasion to regret his determination to come to the new world; for in the business opportunities here afforded-which are always open to ambitious young men-he has made a steady advancement and his energy and resolute purpose have consti- tuted the elements in the success and prominence which he is now enjoying in business circles.
JULIUS ISAAC WILE.
Julius Isaac Wile, who since 1904 has been at the head of the Wile Power Gas Company of Ro- chester, was born in this city, May 1, 1877, a son of Isaac and Carrie (Hays) Wile. His paternal grandfather, Joseph Wile, established the clothing industry in Rochester, while the father, Isaac Wile, was identified with various industrial cor- porations of the city and was an original trustee of the Chamber of Commerce. The family num- bered five sons: Julius I., Herbert, Mortimer, Harold and Stanley.
Having passed through successive grades in the public schools until he had completed the high school course, Julius Isaac Wile entered Cornell University in 1893 and completed a four years' course by graduation with the degree of M. E. in 1897. The same year he entered the employ of the Cleveland Ship Building Company and from 1898 until 1899 was engineer on the United States Steamship Boston, serving with the Asiatic squadron during the hostilities which followed the declaration of war between Spain and the United States. From 1900 until 1901 Mr. Wile was assistant chief engineer for Fraser & Chalmers at Chicago, one of the most extensive houses of the country, and his ability is indicated by the fact that in the latter year he was sent to London, England, as engineer of Fraser, Chalmers, Limited. He continued in the world's metropolis until 1904, when he returned to Rochester and established the Wile Power Gas Company in this city. Here he has since carried on business and has gained wide reputation in the field of his chosen endeavor.
Mr. Wile is an interested and valued member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Institute of Gas Engineers and the Engineers Club. His membership relations also extend to the Naval and Military Order of the Spanish War, the Cornell University Club, the New York City Club, the Rochester and the Genesee Golf Clubs. He is likewise greatly interested in athletics and is a member of the Rochester Athletic Club. Mr.
Wile is a young man of decided personality, a clever business man with marked ingenuity and executive force, while socially he has the reputa- tion of being extremely agreeable, winning the warm and enduring friendship of those with whom he is brought in contact.
THOMAS T. MOONEY, M. D.
On the roster of city officials appears the name of Thomas T. Mooney, who is now alderman of the first ward. At the same time he is engaged in the active practice of medicine. and surgery and is well known as an able representative of the profession. He was born in Kingston, Canada, October 2, 1874, and is a son of Thomas and Helen (O'Donnell) Mooney, both of whom were natives of Canada. The father was a business man in his city and for some years was connected with the Crown Lands department for the Ontario govern- ment but is now deceased.
Dr. Thomas T. Mooney acquired his education in the separate or parochial schools and afterward attended the Collegiate Institute, from which he was graduated in the class of 1892. Thinking to make a profession his life work, he decided upon the practice of medicine and to this end began studying. In due course of time he was graduated from the Queen's University in 1896, and imme- diately afterward came to Rochester. Here he served as house surgeon of St. Mary's Hospital for one year, after which he opened an office for pri- vate practice and has since continued with excel- lent success. A liberal patronage has been ac- corded him and he has been entrusted with many difficult and important cases. He is now assistant surgeon of St. Mary's Hospital, is a member of the Rochester Pathological Medical Society, the Monroe Medical Society and the Central New York Medical Society. He likewise belongs to the State Medical and to the American Medical Asso- ciations. He is head examiner for the Modern Woodmen of America, also coroner's physician of Monroe county. Outside of the strict path of his profession he has also been called to office, having been elected alderman of the first ward in Novem- ber, 1905. He is now serving with distinction as chairman of the charter amendment committee and is a member of several other important com- mittees relative to municipal business and the general improvement of the city.
Dr. Mooney was married in October. 1902, to Miss Marie C. Joyce, of Rochester, and they have three children, Theodore, James and Marie. Dr. Mooney belongs to the Elks lodge, to the Modern Woodmen camp and to other social and fraternal organizations. In the profession which he chose as a life work he has made a creditable record. He
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is continually studying to advance his knowledge, and anything which tends to bring to man the key to that complex mystery which we call life is of interest to him and receives his considera- tion. He has ever maintained a high standard of professional ethics in his practice and his record is indeed creditable.
IRWIN TAYLOR.
Irwin Taylor, librarian for the appellate divi- sion of the fourth department at Rochester, is a native of Maysville, Kentucky. He was educated in Cincinnati, Ohio, and in the Ohio College of Law, from which he was graduated in 1868. The same year he was admitted to the bar in Cincin- nati and also in Covington, Kentucky, and located for practice at Paris, Kentucky, where he remained until 1880. In that year he went to Kansas and was assistant attorney general at Topeka, at which place he published a number of law books, includ- ing the Statute of Kansas. Following his re- moval to Chicago he there engaged in editorial law work until 1892, when he came to Rochester and was assistant librarian until 1900, when the library, which had previously been under control of the board of regents, was taken charge of by the appellate division and Mr. Taylor was made librarian. He has since continued to act in this capacity to the entire satisfaction of the patrons of the library, which contains thirty-one thousand volumes and is one of the best in the state of New York. It is located in the courthouse in a room forty-five by eighty feet. Mr. Taylor is consid- ered to be one of the best law librarians in the country and the number of volumes in annual use in this library is one hundred thousand. Mr. Taylor has a complete working library, contain- ing almost every book that has been published of any consequence, and he is a member of the New York Library Association.
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