USA > New York > Genesee County > History of the Genesee country (western New York) comprising the counties of Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Ontario, Orleans, Schuyler, Steuben, Wayne, Wyoming and Yates, Volume IV > Part 41
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On the 5th of June, 1894, Mr. Smith was married to Miss Margaret A. Stark of this citv. and they have two sons and a daughter, all of whom were born in this city: Alva M., the eldest, was educated at Nazareth Academy and is now the wife of John J. Harzmann; W. Earl attended Holy Rosary parochial school, East high school and received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan, class of 1923. During the World war he entered the Officers Training Camp at Conisus College. Buffalo, and is now a member of the Officers Reserve Corps, being attached to the Coast Artillery. He is a capable young business man and is associated with his father in the Seneca Shoe Company; Austin W., the younger son, is a student at Aquinas Institute.
Mr. Smith is one of the prominent members of the Knights of Columbus, and
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WILLIAM M. SMITH
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has served on various important committees in connection with the work of that organization, which has conferred upon him the fourth degree. He was faithful navi- gator of Rochester Fourth Degree Assembly for five years, and at the present time is serving as admiral. He has held a number of important offices in the Loyal Order of Moose, being now deputy supreme regent and for many years has been chairman of the resolution committee of the Supreme convention of that order. Mr. Smith is treasurer of the Boot and Shoe Manufacturers Association, a member of the National Shoe Manufacturers Association, the National Chamber of Commerce, the Rochester Chamber of Commerce and the Automobile Club of Rochester.
During the World war Mr. Smith served as chairman of numerous committees and took a most active part in all of the Liberty Loan drives, as well as in the various patriotic activities occasioned by that great conflict. He was chairman of the Knights of Columbus Soldiers and Sailors Welfare work for western New York, and was also a member of the National Welfare Council from this section. While his private activities have been of a nature to advance the prosperity of the city, he has also given liberally of his time and energies toward worthy and helpful projects, reflecting a public spirit and civic interest which bespeaks his value as a citizen. Mr. Smith's entire life has been passed in this city and few men outside of public life, have as wide an acquaintanceship. He is not only a successful business man, but a man of high ideals, and throughout his life he has stood for those things which have real value as constructive elements in the world's work.
ARTHUR H. LESTER.
Specializing in certain branches of the law in which he has acquired a reputation as an expert practitioner, Arthur H. Lester of Warsaw, Wyoming county, New York, is a prominent figure in the legal profession of the county and enjoys a large and lucrative practice. He was born February 20, 1877, in Sodus, New York, the son of Fred and Ella (Phillips) Lester, who had been residents of Warsaw nearly all their lives and had been located in Sodus only one year when their son was born. They returned to Warsaw when he was one year old.
Arthur H. Lester was educated in the grade and high schools of Warsaw and graduated from the high school in 1893, but had previously received much private instruction. He entered the law office of Johnson & Charles in 1895 to study law, and remained there until 1904, having been admitted to the bar the previous year. In 1905 Mr. Lester became a member of the law firm of Bartlett, Evans & Lester, and remained in the partnership until 1907, when he opened an office for himself and has practiced alone until the present time. He specializes in real property law and corporations, and is attorney for many of the corporations in Warsaw and the country adjacent. Mr. Lester was justice of the peace in Warsaw from 1898 to 1910. He is a member of the Masonic order and has gone as far as possible in both branches, Scottish and York Rites. Mr. Lester belongs to Warsaw Lodge; Wyoming Chapter at Warsaw; the council at Hornell; the commandery at Batavia and New York; and the consistory at Coudersport, Pennsylvania.
Mr. Lester was married on August 16, 1910, to Frances Tice, daughter of Albert and Emeline Tice of Pike, New York. Mr. and Mrs. Lester have a son: Morris T. Lester, who was born February 16, 1912. Mr. Lester is a republican in politics but not actively interested in political affairs. He is president of the Wyoming County Bar Association, also a member of the New York State Bar Association. He is not a member of any religious denomination, although he comes from Quaker stock which settled in Warsaw in 1835. He is greatly interested in music and the collecting of historical data on Wyoming county, of which he has obtained a large amount. Mr. Lester possesses the only map in existence of the village of Portageville, New York, and has many other rare views collected in the past twenty-five years.
HAROLD G. BISHOP.
Every successful commercial enterprise adds to the development and consequent prosperity of the community in which it is operated, and through the judicious man- agement of a large and important mercantile undertaking Harold G. Bishop is con- tributing his quota toward the progress of Le Roy, his native village. He was born
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January 15, 1892, and belongs to one of the old and highly respected families of this locality. His parents were Theron C. and Emily O. (Gillett) Bishop, who were pros- perous farming people of the town and always resided here. The grandfather, Le Roy Bishop, formerly lived in Connecticut and was the founder of the family in Le Roy. He settled here about 1830 and subsequently went to the Pacific coast, establishing his home in Seattle, Washington, where he spent the remainder of his life.
Harold G. Bishop received a public school education and after completing his high school course he obtained a position in the editorial department of the Le Roy News, with which he was connected from 1911 until 1917. He then entered the service of the Bank of Le Roy, in which he was employed for seven years, becoming assistant cashier of that institution. In March, 1924, Mr. Bishop purchased the coal and ice business of James W. Peppard and employs a number of men. He keeps well informed on everything relating to the trade and displays executive force and mature judgment in the conduct of the business, which is enjoying a steady and prosperous growth.
On December 31, 1916, Mr. Bishop was married to Miss Caroline Etta Price, a daughter of the Rev. G. E. Price, who at that time was pastor of the Methodist Episcopal church of Le Roy, of which both are members. Mr. Bishop belongs to Olive Branch Lodge, F. and A. M., and Le Roy Chapter, R. A. M., and is also con- nected with the Oatka Hose Club and the Stafford Country Club. He is an adherent of the republican party and his favorite sports are golf, tennis, hunting and fishing. He is loyal and public-spirited in matters of citizenship and is recognized as a young man of enterprise, energy and ability, worthy of trust and confidence.
WINFIELD SCOTT OBERDORF.
Winfield Scott Oberdorf, a man of varied talents and divers interests, has become widely known through his connection with business, civic, political, fraternal and pa- triotic affairs and occupies a central place on the stage of activity in Dansville, his native city. He was born January 12, 1861, and is one of the five children in the family of Peter John and Susannah B. (Hamsher) Oberdorf, both of whom were natives of New York state. His maternal grandfather, Bernard Hamsher, was one of the early settlers of Sparta. Peter J. Oberdorf was an honored veteran of the Civil war and became prominent in musical circles of Dansville and Rochester. He was an in- corporator and leader of the Fifty-fourth Regiment Band of Rochester and served as president of the Musical Protective Association of that city.
The early life of Winfield Scott Oberdorf was spent alternately between his grand- father's farm and the village of Dansville. At the age of fourteen he entered the office of the Dansville Advertiser, where he was employed for three and a half years, and during that period learned the printer's trade. In the latter part of his apprentice- ship he prepared for entrance to the Geneseo State Normal School, and the money saved from his wages was used to defray his school expenses. During the period from 1878 to 1882 he was absent from school for about twenty weeks for the pur- pose of teaching, but completed the four-year classical course with his class in the spring of 1882, and within a year after his graduation he repaid the money he had been obliged to borrow. Before his senior year had closed Mr. Oberdorf was offered the editorship of the Livingston Republican, a paper published at the county seat, and having at that time the largest circulation in the county. This was accepted and his editorial work began soon after the commencement exercises in June. Two years later he was offered a co-partnership interest in the Dansville Advertiser by A. O. Bunnell, in whose employ he had learned the printer's trade, and on March 1, 1884, Dansville again became his home. He was a journalist of the progressive school, productive of ideas, which he turned to the best account-a live editor of a live newspaper. In the spring of 1896 his health became impaired and in 1897 he decided to retire from the business, disposing of his interest in the Advertiser to his partner. On regaining his health he reentered the field of business, and, following the death of John Hyland, was appointed by E. T. Scovill, residuary legatee under the will of Mr. Hyland, as agent for the estate. This position he still holds, judiciously managing the interests under his charge, and has well justified the trust reposed in his ability and integrity. He is a farsighted, sagacious and resourceful business man who readily recognizes the possi- bilities, opportunities and difficulties of a business situation, and avoids the latter while improving the former to the fullest extent.
Mr. Oberdorf is a gifted orator, swerving opinion by the clarity of his logic and the flame of his eloquence, and enjoys an enviable reputation as a political and after-
WINFIELD S. OBERDORF
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dinner speaker. He is a stanch republican and has worked untiringly to promote the interests of that party. He first appeared as a campaign speaker in 1888, when he went on the stump for Benjamin Harrison. In 1893 he was Memorial Day orator at Utica, New York, and in that year received no less than fifteen invitations to deliver memorial addresses. He is thoroughly in earnest in whatever he says and impresses his audiences by the irresistible logic of fact and argument rather than by the use of honeyed words or florid rhetorical phrases, and never tries in speech simply to en- tertain or amuse, but to interest, edify and inspire.
Mr. Oberdorf has been prominent in other walks of life. He served as stamp clerk for Livingston county under control of the State Underwriters Association and for many years has been a director of the Dansville Board of Trade. He joined the Union Hose Company of Dansville, one of the best organizations of the kind in the state, and was made its secretary, later foreman, and eventually became chief engineer of the entire fire department. He is a past grand of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, has served for five consecutive terms as master of Phoenix Lodge of Masons, the lodge adding one hundred and nine new members during his administration, and is serving as a trustee of the lodge in accord with the benevolent orders law of the state. He belongs to the Sons of Veterans and in June, 1891, attended for the first time a state encampment of that order. In the summer of that year he went to Minne- apolis, Minnesota, as one of five delegates representing this state at the national en- campment and in the following June, at the state encampment at Amsterdam, was elected without opposition to the highest place in the gift of that body-commander of all the camps in the state. The state organization had a most successful career while he was in office, the membership reaching a point never before attained, and at the national encampment, of 1893, the gold cross of the order was conferred upon him for meritorious service.
On September 27, 1899, Mr. Oberdorf was united in marriage to Miss Katherine Angell Hall, eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Francis G. Hall, of Dansville, and they have become the parents of two children: Susannah Hall and Nancy Angell. Mr. Ober- dorf is a member of the Presbyterian church, is thoroughly conscientious in the dis- charge of the duties of any position he holds, whether the work be gratuitous or re- munerative, and his example should serve as a source of encouragement and inspira- tion to others, demonstrating what may be accomplished through individual effort, rightly directed.
MILTON EVANDER GIBBS.
Milton Evander Gibbs, a well known attorney and counselor at law in the city of Rochester, late deputy attorney-general of the state of New York for this district, former chairman of the democratic county committee for Monroe county and a for- mer member of the New York state democratic committee and for years an active factor in the civic and social life of his home town, has been actively engaged in the practice of law in Rochester for more than a quarter of a century. He is a native son of the Empire state, where he has lived all his life, a resident of Rochester since the days of his young manhood. He was born on a farm in the vicinity of the pleas- ant village of Springwater, Livingston county, December 28, 1870, and is a son of Norman and Eugenia L. (Holmes) Gibbs, both of whom were born in that same neigh- borhood, members of old families in that section of New York. Norman Gibbs, who was a substantial landowning farmer in East Springwater and a veteran of the Civil war, was born there February 3, 1839, and his wife was born February 13, 1842. Both were of English descent and both families early became represented in New York state through migration of representatives of the Gibbs and Holmes families (both of early Colonial stock) from Vermont and Connecticut.
Reared on the home farm in East Springwater, Milton Evander Gibbs received his early education in the village schools and when hardly more than a boy he began teaching school. He then pursued further studies in the State Normal School at Geneseo, Following the normal classical course, and was graduated from that insti- tution in 1892, president of his class. Meantime he had been working on the farm and clerking in a grocery store during vacation periods and also had been keeping up his teaching during the winters, going from the district school to the village school, and following his graduation he was made principal of the Union school in Wayland, a service he continued to render for two years, or until 1894, when he was made prin- cipal of the State School for the Blind at Batavia. In the meantime Mr. Gibbs had been carrying on preparatory studies in law and after a year of service in the state
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school he gave up further service in the schoolroom and in 1895 entered the law office of the Hon. John D. Lynn in Rochester and gave himself over definitely to the study of law. These studies later were continued in the law office of Keeler & Marsh in Rochester and in August, 1898, in Rochester, he was admitted to practice in the courts of the state of New York. In October of the following year (1899) he was admitted to practice in the United States district court for the northern district of the state of New York. In December following his admission to the bar Mr. Gibbs was married and established his home in Rochester, where he ever since has been engaged in the practice of law, with present offices in room 607, No. 39 State street, where he is ad- mirably situated. From January 1, 1923, to December 31, 1924, Mr. Gibbs rendered public service as deputy attorney-general of the state of New York.
For years Mr. Gibbs has been one of the potent personal factors in the delibera- tions and the activities of the democratic party in Monroe county and throughout this district. For some time he served as the chairman of the county committee of that party and also rendered service for two years as a member of the state central committee. In every campaign for the past twenty-five years and more he has taken an active part "on the stump," and as a public speaker in behalf of the principles of his party he has attained a wide reputation throughout the state. As a delegate on many occasions to county, district and state conventions Mr. Gibbs has acquired a wide acquaintance in political circles and has done well his part in advancing the interests of his party in this state. He is a member of the American Bar Associa- tion and of the New York State Bar Association and in the deliberations of these bodies has for years taken an earnest interest. In the ranks of the Sons of Veterans of the Civil War Mr. Gibbs also is widely known, for he is a past commander of the New York division or department of this patriotic organization, having served in that capacity for the term 1913-14. He long has been one of the active members of the Captain Henry Lamb Camp of the Sons of Veterans in Rochester. Mr. Gibbs is a member of the Rochester Chamber of Commerce and is a thirty-second degree Scot- tish Rite Mason and a Noble of the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, affiliated with Genesee Falls Lodge No. 507, F. & A. M .; Rochester Consistory, and Damascus Temple of the Mystic Shrine, all of Rochester.
On December 28, 1898, in Rochester, Milton E. Gibbs was united in marriage to Miss Florence May Alt and they have one child: A daughter, Miss Lois Florence Gibbs, born in Rochester, February 23, 1903. The Gibbs family are members of the Brick Presbyterian church and have long taken an interested part in church work. They have a very pleasant home at No. 29 Macbeth street and have ever taken a proper and helpful part in the city's general social activities. Mrs. Gibbs is a poet of more than merely local distinction and also is widely known throughout the state as a lecturer on topics of particular interest to women's clubs. She is a member of the locally influential Woman's Club in Rochester and of the flourishing City Club and has long been recognized as one of the most helpful club women in the city. She was born in Bloomington, Illinois, but has been a resident of Rochester since the days of her girlhood. Her parents, Jacob G. and Mary (Baum) Alt, both now past seventy-five years of age, are still making their home in Rochester, where they have resided for many years and where Mrs. Alt was born, a member of one of the old families of German stock in that city. Jacob G. Alt is a native of Germany but has been a resi- dent of this country since the days of his youth.
CORAL ALBERT MORGAN.
One of the best known of the city's younger business men is the president of the Fred D. Morgan Paper Company, located at No. 434 Exchange street. Fred D. Mor- gan, the founder of the business, was born in Galesburg, Illinois, but came to Roches- ter in early life and in November, 1904, established the wholesale paper business. From a modest beginning he developed the company which bears his name and with which he was actively connected until his death on September 3, 1922. After coming to Rochester he was married to Miss Florence Dannals, who with three children- Harvey S., Maybell and Coral A .- survives him.
Coral Albert Morgan was born in Rochester, March 7, 1891, and received his educational training in the public schools, graduating from the West high school in 1910. He began his business career in the wholesale paper business under his father's direction. Beginning at the bottom of the ladder, he worked his way up through all the different steps of the paper trade and mastered all its details. At the time of his
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father's death he took control of the business, which was soon afterward incorporated under the name of the Fred D. Morgan Paper Company and he was made president. The principal lines handled by the company are wrapping papers and twines, the trade extending over a large territory, chiefly in Western and Central New York and Northwestern Pennsylvania.
On March 1st, 1925, the business of Fred D. Morgan & Company was consolidated with the Cramer Force Company of Rochester, and C. A. Morgan is now connected with the Cramer Force Company, wholesale paper dealers.
Mr. Morgan is a member of the Masonic fraternity, the Rochester Chamber of Commerce, the United Commercial Travelers, the Athletic, Automobile and Rotary Clubs, all of Rochester. He is a member of the Empire State Paper Association, of which he has been secretary and treasurer since January, 1923. In amateur athletic circles, "Pink" Morgan, as he is known by his hosts of friends, has been an outstand- ing figure since he was eighteen. While a student at West high school he was a member of the baseball, basket-ball and track teams, and an accident from a breaking staff during a pole vault fractured his left limb in such a manner that it was thought he would be crippled for life. It was after his recovery from this injury that he hung up records that have stood for years. His record of twenty feet, three inches, in the running broad jump, made in 1909, has stood ever since as the city high school record, while his twenty-one feet, eleven and one-fourth inches, for the same event, has stood since 1915 as the city and county record, and his twenty-two feet, four and one-half inches, has never been surpassed in the Niagara District Amateur Athletic Union. He has been a familiar figure at amateur athletic meets in western New York for more than a decade and although nearing the middle-age period of life, he retains much of the athlete's skill and agility.
On November 25, 1915, Mr. Morgan was married to Miss Beatrice Parr, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ogden W. Parr of Gouverneur, New York. Mr. and Mrs. Morgan have two sons: Elwood W., born October 19, 1916; and Frederick R., born December 21, 1919. Mr. Morgan belongs to the Lake Avenue Baptist church and takes a com- mendable interest in the good works of all the organizations in which he holds mem- bership. Mr. Morgan's residence is at No. 452 Maplewood avenue.
FRANK CAULKINGS, M. D.
Frank Caulkings, M. D., who passed away January 4, 1921, in his home in Hor- nell, New York, was principally noted for his discovery of what is claimed to be a certain cure for pneumonia, the formula being a secret known only to his widow, who dispenses the medicine from No. 243 Main street, Hornell, continuing the large mail order business that Dr. Caulkings had established. It is positively stated that Dr. Caulkings cured every case of pneumonia he attended. He was born in Gainesville, New York, October 6, 1849.
Frank Caulkings was educated in the University of Niagara, at Buffalo, and the University of Chicago. He practiced for some time in Springville, Erie county, New York, and then settled in Hornell. He was greatly advanced in his profession and many of the things he advocated are today beginning to be used by the medical fra- ternity. In addition to the pneumonia cure he also put several proprietary medicines on the market. A good example of his vision into the future was the prediction made when he was a young man, that some day he would live to ride in a horseless carriage. The coming of the automobile brought this dream to a realization.
Dr. Caulkings was married June 25, 1902, to Alice Tefft of Springville, Erie county, New York. He was a Mason and an active republican and he gave his support to measures of the public welfare. He was untiring in his efforts for the alleviation of human suffering.
DANIEL MAGEE BEACH.
Daniel Magee Beach, an active and successful representative of the legal pro- fession in Rochester during the past twenty-eight years, is a member of the well known law firm of Harris, Beach, Harris & Matson. He was born in Watkins, Schuy- ler county, New York, on the 24th of May, 1873, his parents being Daniel and Angelica C. (Magee) Beach. Daniel Beach was for many years general counsel for the Fall
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Brook Railroad, or until it was absorbed by the New York Central system. He was formerly member of the state board of regents, and resided in Watkins, New York.
Daniel Magee Beach began his education in the public schools of his native town and continued his studies at the Fort Hill school in Rochester, from which he was graduated in 1889. Entering Hobart College he was graduated with the class of 1892 and in 1894 entered upon preparation for a professional career, as a student in the law department of Columbia University and in the New York Law School where he completed the regular course in 1896. He was admitted to the bar and entered upon the active practice of law in the fall of 1897, with the firm of Harris & Harris, in this city. In January, 1905, he became a member of that firm, which in March, 1907, was changed to Harris, Havens, Beach & Harris.
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