USA > New York > Erie County > Memorial and family history of Erie County, New York, Volume I > Part 27
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of 1906 he was reelected. Since 1887 Mr. Bissell has been a trustee of De Veaux College, and he has also served as trustee of the Cary Collegiate Seminary at Oakfield, N. Y. He is an active member of the Niagara Frontier Landmarks Association, has filled the position of Curator and Chairman of the Board of Real Estate of the Buffalo Public Library, and belongs to the Ellicott and University clubs of this city, and the University Club of New York. He is a vestryman of St. Mathias Episcopal Church of East Aurora.
On the 30th of October, 1883, Mr. Bissell married Miss Lucy Agnes Coffey of Brooklyn. They have three children, Mary R., born October 1, 1884; Harriet A., born September 3, 1888, and Lucy A., born July 19, 1894.
The arduous professional pursuits and the varied public activities of Mr. Bissell have not prevented him from gratifying his ardent love of culture for its own sake. No man takes a keener delight in literature, and his appreciation of its master- pieces is the greater because founded on a thorough classical training and guided by an intellect disciplined by the severe researches of a learned profession. Occasionally Mr. Bissel has delivered addresses on literary topics, and the only criti- cism to be made relative to his discourses on these fascinating themes is that they are not more numerous. A notable example of Mr. Bissell's critical discernment and charm as a lecturer was an appreciation of the poet Schiller, delivered in Buffalo two or three years ago before a German audience and illus- trated by readings from Schiller's works. This address, given in German of classic purity of diction and admirable both for depth of thought and wealth of expression, will linger long in the memory of those who were privileged to hear it.
WILLIAM HORACE HOTCHKISS is one of Buffalo's fore- most lawyers, noted as a publicist, while in the field of bank- ruptcy law he has a national reputation.
The Hotchkiss family during early Colonial times settled in
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Connecticut, having migrated there from England as a part of the New Haven Colony. Jason Hotchkiss was a soldier in the Revolutionary army, serving in a Connecticut regiment, as did his father, also named Jason. Rufus Hotchkiss, son of Jason Hotchkiss, Jr., removed from New England to Hampton, Washington County, N. Y., where he was a farmer and well- known citizen. His son, Horace Hotchkiss, was also a farmer, and lived at Hampton, where he died in 1880. He married Diadama Pierce, who was descended from a Massachusetts family, her grandfather having been one of the Minute Men in the Revolution.
MASON KING HOTCHKISS, son of Horace Hotchkiss, was born in 1836. He was reared on a farm and later became part- ner in a wholesale grocery in Albany. Afterwards he was extensively interested in the hotel business, becoming the pro- prietor of hotels at Rutland, Vt., and at Albany, Jamestown, Olean, and Hornellsville, N. Y. In 1861 he married Rachael Amanda Merriam, daughter of William and Emily (Bartholo- mew) Merriam. The children of the union are: William Horace Hotchkiss of Buffalo, and Bessie Louise (Mrs. Horace B. Ware) of Scranton, Pa. Mason K. Hotchkiss died at Olean, N. Y., in 1885.
William Horace Hotchkiss was born at Whitehall, Wash- ington County, N. Y., September 7, 1864. He was educated in the public schools of Albany, N. Y., Rutland, Vt., and James- town, N. Y., the Albany Military Academy and the Rutland Military School, being prepared for college in Glidden's Classi- cal School, in Jamestown. Entering Hamilton College in 1882, he was graduated in 1886 with the degree of B.A. He received honors in Greek, Latin, mathematics, literature, oratory and debating, and delivered the Head prize oration and the Latin Salutatory of his class, securing also the Phi Beta Kappa key. Three years later his alma mater conferred on him the degree of M.A. On leaving college Mr. Hotchkiss began reading law
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with the Hon. John D. Teller of Auburn, N. Y., also being appointed Clerk of the Surrogate's Court of Cayuga County, serving from 1887 to 1889. In 1888 he was admitted to the bar, and when Judge Teller retired from office he formed with Mr. Hotchkiss at Auburn a law partnership under the style of Teller & Hotchkiss.
In 1891 Mr. Hotchkiss came to Buffalo and was associated with Edward L. Parker until 1900, when Mr. Hotchkiss and the late James O. Templeton formed a copartnership which lasted until Mr. Templeton's death in 1903, and since then with Myron P. Bush, under the style of Hotchkiss & Bush.
Mr. Hotchkiss was appointed Referee in Bankruptcy in 1898 for the Erie County District and reappointed in 1900, serving to the present time. He has delivered numerous addresses on bankruptcy law, and has written many articles on the subject. He is the author on the Fourth Edition of "Collier on Bank- ruptcy," the leading authority on that branch of law in the United States. Ever since the foundation of the National Asso- ciation of Referees in Bankruptcy in 1899, Mr. Hotchkiss has served as its President and Chairman of its Executive Committee. He took an active part in drafting the Ray, and the Palmer amendatory bankruptcy bills, and the practice in bank- ruptcy courts throughout the Union has been largely regulated by the rules drawn by Referee Hotchkiss, and the practice forms prepared by himn. He is Lecturer on Bankruptcy Law in the Law Schools of Buffalo, New York City and Cornell University.
A strong Republican, Mr. Hotchkiss has always taken an active interest in politics. He was one of the Buffalo Repub- lican Committee to investigate primary election reform, the inquiry resulting in a report whose sequel was the first Hill bill. With Elihu Root and Paul D. Cravath, Mr. Hotchkiss drew the Primary Election Law of 1899, which is in force today. He was for two years a member of the Executive Committee of
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the Buffalo Republican League, and acted for a year as editor of its journal, " The Opinion." He has also rendered valuable services to his party as a campaign speaker. Mr. Hotchkiss has written a pamphlet on "Urban Self Government," has con- tributed many articles on this and other subjects to magazines, and has discussed municipal questions in a series of lectures. For three years he was Secretary of the Law and Legislation Committee of the Buffalo Citizens' Association, and assisted in exposing the ballot frauds in Buffalo in 1892. In 1907 he was appointed by Governor Hughes a commissioner for the promo- tion of uniformity of legislation in the U. S.
Mr. Hotchkiss is much interested in automobiling, and has served as President of the American Automobile Association, the New York State Automobile Association and the Buffalo Automobile Club. He is the author of the Motor Vehicle Law of the State of New York, which has been adopted by half a dozen other States.
Mr. Hotchkiss is a member of the American Bar Association, the Bar Associations of New York State and Erie County, and is a member and ex-President of the Lawyers' Club. He belongs to the Sons of the American Revolution and the Buffalo Historical Society. He is a 32d degree Mason, being affiliated with Ancient Landmarks Lodge, Palmoni Council, Princes of Jerusalem (15th and 16th grades Scottish Rite Masonry) of which he has served as head, and Zuleika Grotto. He belongs to the Liberal, University and Country clubs of Buffalo, and the Chi Psi college fraternity, of whose magazine, "Purple and Gold," he was editor-in-chief from 1886 to 1890.
April 25, 1895, Mr. Hotchkiss married Katherine Tremaine Bush, daughter of John W. and Kate C. (Tremaine) Bush of Ithaca, N. Y. Mrs. Hotchkiss is a descendant of Abner Tre- maine, a Revolutionary officer who took part in the storming of Stony Point by Gen. Wayne. Mr. and Mrs. Hotchkiss have two children, Katherine, born in 1900, and Emily, born in 1903.
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RIGHT REV. CHARLES HENRY COLTON, D.D., Fourth Bishop of the Diocese of Buffalo, before coming to his present field of labors was for many years pastor of St. Stephen's Church, in New York City. Bishop Colton is an earnest, devoted servant of the Church of Christ, centering his powers and pur- poses in the fulfillment of the duties of his consecrated office, and knowing no ambition apart from the faithful discharge of the sacred trust reposed in him.
Bishop Colton is of Irish lineage, and both on the father's and mother's side comes of devout Catholic ancestry distinguished by not a few names emi- nent in the service of the Church. His father, Patrick Smith Colton, was the son of John Colton and Mary Smith, and was born about 1818, near Omagh, the county seat of Tyrone. When eleven years old he came to this country with his parents, the family settling in York, Pa. Later he went to Baltimore, Md., where he was engaged in busi- ness for a number of years and was an active Catholic layman. In 1845 he removed to New RT. REV. CHARLES H. COLTON. York City, where he opened a locksmith's shop, which he conducted many years, later forming a copartnership in the builders' hardware busi- ness, under the firm style of Colton & Mullen.
February 2, 1846, Mr. Colton married Theresa Augusta Mullen, who was the daughter of Thomas and Mary Mullen, and
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was born in Donegal, Ireland, July 25, 1824. The marriage was blessed with nine children, of whom six are living. The Rev. John Smith Colton, now deceased, eldest brother of Bishop Colton, was a priest of sainted life. Thomas J. Colton, the younger brother of the Bishop, is a successful business man of New York City. Bishop Colton has four sisters, Mary Teresa, now Mrs. Pentz of New York; Margaret, now Mrs.' James M. Bingham of New York; Josephine, unmarried, and Agnes, now the wife of William R. Doherty of Brooklyn. The death of Patrick Smith Colton occurred in August, 1876, and his wife died April 6, 1891. Their lives exemplified consistent useful- ness chastened and elevated by fervent religious faith.
Charles Henry Colton was born in New York City, October 15, 1848. In Bishop Colton's boyhood New York had few parish schools, and he began his studies at Public School No. 5. Later he attended two other public schools, and became a pupil of the Sunday School of St. Stephen's Church. When about fourteen years old he left school and took a position as cash boy with the dry goods firm of Arnold, Constable & Co., where he remained eighteen months, then finding a place with the Cen- tral Express Company. With this company and the Merchants' Union Exchange, he continued five years. During this period he pursued his studies, attending the Latin School of St. Stephen's. In 1869 he entered St. Francis Xavier College, where he studied three years. In September, 1872, he became a student in St. Joseph's Theological Seminary at Troy, N. Y., where he was ordained a priest on the 10th of June, 1876.
After Father Colton's ordination, at the request of the Rev. Dr. Edward McGlynn, then rector of St. Stephen's Church, New York, he was appointed assistant pastor of that parish. He applied himself to his work with energy, giving his best sup- port to Dr. McGlynn's labors, and in the course of ten years was advanced to the place of first assistant pastor. Besides the regular duties of the church, in all of which he shared, Father Colton for thirteen years did chaplain's duty at Bellevue
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Hospital. He continued his ministrations at St. Stephen's from June 27, 1876, till the latter part of 1886, when he was assigned to the pastorate of the Church of Our Lady of Mercy at Port Chester, N. Y. In January, 1887, he was recalled to St. Stephen's to assist the Rev. Arthur Donnelly, then temporarily in charge. A few days afterward Father Colton was appointed administrator, and some months later, by appointment of Arch- bishop Corrigan, he became rector, succeeding Dr. McGlynn. At the time when Father Colton took charge of St. Stephen's, the parish debt was $152,000, and the church had no parish school. During his pastorate the debt was lifted from the church and the rectory, and a school-house was built at a cost, including the site, of $185,000. Two residence buildings were bought for the Sisters at a cost of $20,000 each. From $7,000 to $10,000 annually was expended in maintenance of the school and the payment of salaries. The church property was kept in repair and improved. At the close of Father Colton's minis- trations two-thirds of the cost of the schools and Sisters' home had been paid, and all the rest of his debts extinguished. To aid in drawing young people into the church work, social fea- tures were introduced. Evening classes were established, and much good was accomplished by the organization known as The Young Men's Club. By 1894 St. Stephen's was free of debt, and the church was consecrated on December 30th of that year, with all the attendant ceremonies carried out in full. There were present, Archbishop Corrigan, five other Bishops, and 150 Priests. One of the most important institutions of the parish is the parochial school, which has 1,200 pupils and 29 instruc- tors. A valuable practical charity, the Presentation Day Nursery, was also established. Several church sodalities were founded. The golden jubilee of St. Stephen's was held in 1899, and on June 10, 1901, was observed the twenty-fifth anniversary of Father Colton's ordination, by the presentation of an address by the parishoners and a purse of $8,000.
When Archbishop Quigley, then Third Bishop of the Diocese
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of Buffalo, was appointed Metropolitan of Chicago, the usual steps were taken for the selection of his successor. The choice fell upon Father Colton, the bulls being issued to him May 20, 1903, and his consecration taking place in St. Patrick's Cathedral, New York, on July 25, of the same year. Under Bishop Colton's ministrations the spiritual edifice of the Diocese of Buffalo has continued to be steadily and firmly reared on the broad foundations laid by his predecessors. At the present time, 1907, and four years after his coming to Buffalo, 30 new parishes have been opened in the city and through the diocese, and the secular clergy have increased by 40, or 210 in all. Bishop Colton is a hard worker and a man of systematic methods. Though not an ascetic, he lives plainly. It has fallen to him to disburse large sums, and he is a sound economist in financial matters. His interest in his flock extends to their material concerns, and he encourages thrift. He is a man of scholarly tastes and acquirements, studying with a view to thoroughness and mastering the books he reads. In the pulpit he is earnest, convincing, not aiming for oratorical eloquence, but often attaining it by the force of sincerity and directness. In manner he is courteous, kindly and easy of approach. He is thoroughly American in his patriotism, placing love of country high in the scale of the virtues.
He is the author of two books, written since his advent to Buffalo, namely, "Seedlings," a book of pious thoughts and reflections, and "Trip to Rome and the Holy Land," which gives his personal experiences of the time he spent in both places and along the route when making his visit at ad limina in 1904.
THE REV. JOHN D. BIDEN, Rector of St. Joseph's Cathedral, has spent the twenty-five years of his priesthood in the diocese of Buffalo, and has been in charge of his present pastoral field for the past decade.
He was born in Buffalo on the 30th of September, 1852, his
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parents being Charles and Ellen Nelligan Biden, well-known and esteemed residents of that place.
Mr. Biden, who came to Buffalo from the Eastern States in the late forties, was of English ancestry and a convert to the Catholic faith, having been received into the Church about a year before his marriage. He was baptized in old St. Patrick's Church by Father Lennan. Mrs. Biden was a native of County Cork, Ireland.
To his mother's legacy of that ardent faith and lofty spirit- uality, which seem to be a Celtic birthright, and to the sturdy, practical qualities handed down to him by his Anglo-Saxon forebears, students of heredity who have marked Father Biden's career, will attribute, no doubt, a large measure of the success attending his various undertakings.
His hands have always been set to difficult tasks, tasks which tested to the utmost the reality of his priestly vocation and his exceptional administrative ability, and in their outcome in- variably and fully justified his superiors' frequent choice of him to command in important and trying situations.
His father died when the future priest was but seven years old, and Mrs. Biden went with her children to kinsfolk in Ellicottville. There, in the "little red schoolhouse"-of a type that has fostered the youthful genius of so many of our greatest and best citizens-and subsequently in the village High School, Father Biden received his early education.
At the age of sixteen he went to Oil City, worked for a year in a bank in that town, and then returned to Buffalo, where he entered as bookkeeper the grape sugar manufacturing establish- ment of the late Mr. Jebb. In these positions he acquired the knowledge of business which has proved so valuable to him in later life. He remained with Mr. Jebb until 1874, when his "long-cherished project of going to college was carried out and he matriculated at Niagara University. After a brilliant course in the University, where he took his Bachelor and Master of Arts degrees and completed his theological studies, Father Biden was ordained on June 3, 1882, by the late Bishop Ryan.
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It may be told just here that, like many another distinguished member of the priesthood, Father Biden was for a time strongly attracted to the scarcely less holy calling of the physician. He studied medicine for a year and then decided that his mission was to minister rather to the souls than to the bodies of his fellow-men.
At the request of the pastor his first mass was said in St. Brigid's Church in Buffalo.
Appointed successively to the parishes of Limestone, Ellicott- ville, Andover, and Albion, the first fifteen years of Father Biden's priesthood may be described as an initiatory period wherein while laboring with zeal and efficiency for the upbuilding of the churches at different times under his charge, he developed the insight, the knowledge of men and conditions, and the breadth of view in matters spiritual and temporal which qualified him for a large sphere of effort. In every field where he was stationed he won the love and veneration of his people as a spiritual guide and their confidence as a man of sound practical judgment. In Albion, where he was pastor before coming to Buffalo, Father Biden directed the building of one of the finest churches in the diocese. In 1897 Bishop Quigley appointed him to the rectorship of St. Joseph's Cathedral. The growth of Buffalo and consequent encroachment of business houses in the neighborhood of the church; the death of many old parishioners and removal of others to distant parts of the city had made notable changes in the parish, and Father Biden found a dwindling congregation, diminished revenues, a church sadly in need of repairs, and a debt of $75,000 to be reckoned with when he assumed his present charge. He entered upon his work however, with characteristic clear-sightedness and vigor, and soon persuaded his people that his leadership and their co-operation would restore eventually the failing fortunes of the parish. Having proved the value of associations, he at once founded St. Anthony's Union, and, for seven years, preached every Tuesday evening at the devotions in honor of the Wonder-
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worker of Padua, his eloquent, practical sermons attracting hearers from all parts of the city. The League of the Sacred Heart, the Third Order of St. Francis, the Holy Name Society, were in turn organized, and already existing societies stirred to new life. To Father Biden is due also the establishment of the yearly mission, which has been productive of so much good in the congregation.
By a sound and ably sustained financial policy he has reduced the debt of St. Joseph's to a minimum, and this notwithstanding the fact that heavy expenses have been incurred by a multitude of improvements, including the practical remodeling of the interior of the cathedral. The cleaning and redecoration of the edifice, began in 1900 and finished during Pan-American year, replaced its old-time greyness by color and ornamental details, which give an impression of warmth and cheerfulness. Electric lighting, new pews, tiled flooring, and stained glass windows add still further to the brilliant effect, while the beauty of the Chapel of the Blessed Virgin has been enhanced by a fine new altar and a remarkably lovely statue of Our Lady. A new altar and statue of the Sacred Heart and a marble vestibule are later additions to the completeness of architect and decorator's work. Many improvements have been made in other portions of the church property, particularly in the old parochial school building, now known as St. Joseph's Lyceum, used by the Cathedral Club and for various entertainments designed to pro- mote a healthy social spirit among the members of the parish. To this movement Father Biden has given earnest attention, as he has also throughout his pastorate encouraged the perform- ance of the best music of a purely ecclesiastical character, and strict observance of all liturgical requirements.
Honors in plenty, as well as responsibilities, have come to the Rector of the Cathedral. While still very young in the ministry he was offered promotion usually reserved for the older and tried clergy of the diocese; but he asked to be left at his humbler post. A year or two ago his university conferred upon
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him the degree of Doctor of Laws causa honores and-most notable distinction of all-when Bishop Quigley's elevation to the Archbishopric of Chicago left the See of Buffalo vacant, Father Biden was the preferred choice of his brother priests for the succession, his name going to Rome as "Dignissimus."
On June 3, 1907, Father Biden celebrated, in St. Joseph's Cathedral, the 25th anniversary of his ordination to the priest- hood. The Right Rev. Charles H. Colton, D.D., Bishop of Buffalo; Vicar-General Nelson H. Baker, and more than a hun- dred priests, including representatives of several religious orders, participated in the Jubilee. Solemn High Mass was sung by the jubilarian, and the sermon was delivered by the Rev. Luke Grace of Niagara University, who twenty-five years before had preached at Father Biden's first mass.
The occasion was a memorable one and furnished many evi- dences of the love and esteem in which the Rector of St. Joseph's is held by his brethren in the priesthood and by the different congregations to which he has ministered so long and faithfully.
RT. REV. MGR. MICHAEL PATRICK CONNERY, Rector of St. Columba's Church, Buffalo, is one of the most honored and distinguished of the many men of consecrated life and superior ability who have dignified the annals of the Roman Catholic Church in Western New York.
Mgr. Connery comes of Irish lineage and of a devout Catholic ancestry. The Connery family settled in the State of New York in the early '30's, and grand-uncles of Mgr. Connery built the church at North Bay on the shores of Oneida Lake.
Michael Patrick Connery was born in Belfast, Ireland, Sep- tember 14, 1851, the son of Patrick Connery and Rose Scullin. He attended parish school in Belfast, and his parents dying when he was a boy, he came to America in his twelfth year in company with his brother, the late Rev. Henry Hugh Connery. After his arrival in this country, Michael P. Connery first lived
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in New York City, where he attended St. Peter's Parochial School until September, 1868, when he entered Niagara University, whence he was graduated in 1874. He remained a year longer at the institution, pursuing a post-graduate course. In 1874 he was ordained a priest, the ceremony taking place in St. Joseph's Cathedral, Buffalo, Bishop Ryan officiating. Shortly after his ordination Father Connery was assigned to St. Joseph's Cathedral, Buffalo, where he remained a year and seven months. He was then designated to take charge of the parish of Rexville, Steuben County, N. Y., whence after a little more than two years he was recalled to St. Joseph's. After - five years of efficient service in Buffalo he was appointed to the parish of Akron, Erie County, where the new St. Teresa's Church and Rec- tory was built during his pastorate. In 1889 Mgr. Connery was appointed pastor of St. Columba's Church, Buffalo, where he RT. REV. MICHAEL P. CONNERY. has remained nearly a score of years, being now the irremovable Rector of the church.
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