USA > New York > Erie County > Memorial and family history of Erie County, New York, Volume I > Part 7
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was elected Sergeant, and held that rank during the period. following Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania, from June to August of the same year. In the campaign immediately succeeding the Confederate leader's famous attempt to gain a foothold on Northern soil, Sergeant Jewett participated, his services being highly creditable. Returning to Buffalo as First Sergeant June 29th, 1865, he was commissioned First Lieutenant; April 3d, 1866, Captain; October 9th, 1870, Inspector of the 14th Brigade; April 11th, 1877, Major; and was also appointed Inspector of Rifle Practice of the 31st Brigade. October 25, 1880, he was appointed Lieutenant Colonel and Chief of Staff of the 14th Brigade. March 29th, 1884, he was elected Brigadier General of the Stlı Brigade, serving until December 7th, 1885, when he resigned to accept the position of President and General Manager of the John C. Jewett Manufacturing Company.
March 1st, 1894, Mayor Bishop appointed him one of the Police Commissioners of Buffalo. In this capacity Gen. Jewett proved an able, interested and very popular official, and his record as Commissioner was one of the chief factors in his nomination by the Republicans of Buffalo for Mayor, an office to which he was elected in November, 1894, by nearly 10,000 majority, the largest till then ever received by a candidate.
By his very first veto Mayor Jewett prevented the awarding of the street-cleaning contracts to a few hitherto favored bidders, and in the Street Department alone saved the city over $24,000 by his insistence that contracts should be let to the lowest bidders. It was Mayor Jewett who introduced the plan of utilizing vacant land in Buffalo for the benefit of the poor. He carried the project through with signal success. Five hun- dred and seventy-eight families were thereby made self-sup- porting, and the municipality was relieved of the burden of their maintenance. Immediately after his accession to office, Mayor Jewett began the erection of school buildings, twelve of which were completed during his term, including the hand- some new Masten Park High School. A firm believer in Civil
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.Service Reform, Mayor Jewett, early in 1896, made a new classi- fication of all the city offices, a leading feature of the plan being a wide extension of the merit system.
October 3, 1865, Gen. Jewett was married at Ann Arbor, Mich., to Elizabeth Foster Danforth of that city. Their children were: Maude, born January 8, 1868, died June 5, of the same year; George Danforth, born May 21, 1869, died August 21 of that year; John Edgar, born September 2, 1871; and Mabel, born February 19, 1877.
FREDERICK A. JEWETT, who died on the 3d of April, 1906, was Treasurer of the John C. Jewett Manufacturing Company. He was a man of high social position, of popular qualities, and one who made many friends. His views were enlarged by culture and travel, and he was an example of the best type of business man and citizen.
Frederick Arthur Jewett was the youngest son of John C. and Priscilla Boardman Jewett, and was born in Buffalo on the 10th of November, 1859. He was educated in the public schools of Buffalo and at De Veaux College, Niagara Falls. After completing his education, early in 1878, he entered the office of John C. Jewett & Son, the predecessors of the John C. Jewett Manufacturing Company. Three years later he became the Treasurer of the latter concern, and from that time onward continued to be prominently connected with the management of the business, filling the office of Treasurer to the time of his death.
After five years of exceptionally close application to business, Mr. Jewett went abroad, traveling for nine months. This foreign journey was succeeded by others, Mr. Jewett becoming a tourist of unusual experience.
June 30, 1891, Mr. Jewett married Anna Louisa James, daughter of Robert W. James of Lockport, N. Y. He is sur- vived by his widow, and by two children, Robert and Catherine. He was a man of strong family affections, of genial and
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kindly social instincts and of lovable character. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church, and the Buffalo and Country Clubs.
JAMES N. MATTHEWS is a historic name in Buffalo journalism. Mr. Matthews was the founder of the modern Buffalo Express. The word "founder" is used advisedly. It is true that the Express had been in existence be- fore Mr. Matthews became its head, but he did more than remodel the paper-he re-created it. He changed both policy and methods, tore down the old structure, built up anew from the founda- tions, and developed the great work of his life along original and pro- gressive lines.
James Newton Matthews was born at Bungay, in the county of Suffolk, England, Noveni- ber 21, 1828. At an early age he was apprenticed JAMES N. MATTHEWS. to the printing and book-binding business. Mr. Matthews came to this country and to Buffalo in 1846. Entering the employ of Jewett, Thomas & Co., publishers of the Buffalo Commercial Advertiser, he was made foreman of the office. In 1848-49 he was foreman of the Buffalo Repub- lican. He then established a printing office, and in 1850 was made foreman of the job printing office connected with the Buffalo Express. At the end of a year lie was admitted to
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partnership, and under his progressive management Clapp, Matthews & Co. became known as the foremost railroad print- ing firm in the country. In 1860 Mr. Wheeler withdrew from the Express, and induced Mr. Matthews to leave the paper also, and in partnership with Mr. Wheeler and Mr. James D. Warren, to form the firm of Wheeler, Matthews & Warren, publishers of the Commercial Advertiser. In a short time Mr. Wheeler retired and the business was conducted under the style of Matthews & Warren, Mr. Matthews taking charge of the editorial management of the paper. Mr. Matthews made the Commercial a power in the community, and from the business standpoint the venture was also a brilliant success.
In 1872 Messrs. Matthews & Warren bought a controlling interest in the Express. After a few months they sold the paper, but conducted both it and the Advertiser during the Presidential campaign of 1872 and the first year of Grant's second term. Mr. Matthews was identified with the Commercial Advertiser for fourteen years, retiring from that paper in 1877. At this time the Buffalo Express was at the ebb-tide of its fortunes, and it was clear that only by a master hand was retrieval possible. Mr. Matthews was persuaded to undertake the task. He acquired the ownership of the Express, and its first issue, under the new management, appeared on the 7th of January, 1878. The circulation and influence of the Express increased from the day it came into Mr. Matthews' hands, and his ability soon won for it a place in the front rank of the best daily newspapers of the State. A Sunday edition of the paper was first issued September 30, 1883, and this branch of the enterprise has become a brilliant example of illustrated jour- nalism. To the newspaper plant of the Express Mr. Matthews added an up-to-date job office, including the finest modern appliances for designing, engraving, electrotyping and stereo- typing. The remainder of Mr. Matthews' career was princi- pally devoted to the upbuilding of the enterprise which he had initiated.
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Both in his editorial capacity and otherwise, Mr. Matthews was active in the affairs of the Republican party, and he served as a delegate to the Republican National Conventions of 1872 and 1876.
Mr. Matthews was a member of the Buffalo Historical Society, the Fine Arts Academy, the Society of Natural Sciences, the Young Men's Association, the Buffalo Club and other organizations. In religious faith he was an Episcopalian, and was a member of St. John's Church.
July 24, 1851, Mr. Matthews married Harriet Wells, of West- field, N. Y. The children of the union were: George E. Matthews and Frances Amy Matthews, now Mrs. E. G. Boone, of Alassio, Italy.
The death of James N. Matthews occurred December 20, 1888. Admired and loved as a man, valued as a citizen, his decease was an irreparable loss to the newspaper world and a severe blow to the community.
GEORGE EDWARD MATTHEWS, editor of the Buffalo Express and head of the Matthews-Northrup Works, is one of the foremost newspaper men and publishers of the State. Mr. Matthews is possessed in eminent degree of the liberal-minded- ness belonging as a rule to men of his profession. He has seen much of life, is a keen judge of men and events, and from the spirit of the age has gained a philosophy of optimism.
Mr. Matthews is a son of the late James N. Matthews, editor of the Buffalo Commercial Advertiser and later of the Buffalo Express, and was born in Westfield, Chautauqua County, N. Y., March 17, 1855. He attended private schools in Buffalo, and between the ages of sixteen and eighteen, divided his time be- tween travel and mastering the elements of the printing business. In the fall of 1873 he entered Yale College, from which he was graduated in 1877 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts.
The year after Mr. Matthews left college his father became
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the editor and proprietor of the Buffalo Express, and George E. Matthews began his connection with that paper as a clerk in the business office. He rose by regular grades of promotion to places of increased responsibility, and for several years was business manager of the establishment. Meantime he served as telegraph and city editor, and for three years held the position of literary editor. He also acted as correspondence clerk for the firm of Matthews Brothers & Bryant, besides having charge of different de- partments of the house of Matthews, Northrup
& Company, and serving as Treasurer of the latter concern. From 1888 until the present time he has been editor-in-chief of the Express and President of the Matthews-Northrup Company. As an editor Mr. Matthews is noted for fearlessness, independ- ence and opposition to machine politics. He is an active Republican, a GEORGE E. MATTHEWS. strong supporter of his party, and wields a strong influence in public affairs. As a member of the McKinley Monument Commission he was among the foremost men in the promotion of the project which resulted in the erection of the memorial shaft to Mckinley.
Mr. Matthews served for several years as the President of the Buffalo Newspaper Publishers' Association, and of the Buffalo Typothetae. He is a member of the Buffalo, Country, University and Ellicott Clubs, the Historical Society, Fine Arts Academy and many other societies.
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July 12, 1887, Mr. Matthews married Mary Elizabeth Burrows of Buffalo. Their children are: George Matthews, Jr., born in 1888, Harriet Wills Matthews, born in 1889, and Burrows Matthews, born in 1893.
JOHN DURRANT LARKIN. John D. Larkin is one of Buffalo's foremost business men. As President and founder of the Larkin Company, he has identified his name with an industry of the first magnitude. It is an instance of what can be done by sagacity, persistence and pluck. It also exemplifies the value of integrity and honor in the business world. Throughout his career Mr. Larkin has been characterized by conscientiousness and square dealing. Sound methods, superior products and honest prices are his watchwords as a manufacturer. As a producer and seller of staples of com- merce he has been thrown into close relations with the public. He knows the popular needs and the demands of the market, and has won his success by supplying them in the right way. Appreciating the economic worth of sales direct from the factory to the family, he has always fostered that idea. The great enterprise which he directs is an important factor in household savings and personal thrift, by furnishing daily living necessities of high standard quality at one-half of retail prices. Understanding this, the people have rewarded him by immense patronage and gratifying confidence. The Larkin concern is not only of representative standing in industrial circles, but has a popular character distinctly its own. By knowing what Mr. Larkin has accomplished, one may form a very fair idea of the man himself. He is a typical American of the enterprising and forceful kind, broad in his views and gifted with a keen eye for opportunities. As the years have gone by he has extended his undertakings and is now connected with many large undertakings besides the business with which he was originally identified. He is a progressive citizen, well-
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known in the social world and active in general movements tending to the betterment of Buffalo.
Mr. Larkin is of English descent. His father, Levi Henry Larkin, was the son of Henry Larkin, and was born in Rye, County of Sussex, in the South of England about 1816. When sixteen years old he came to America. In 1833 he settled in Buffalo. Here he entered the iron works operated by Deacon George H. Jones, learned the iron-working business, and later founded the Clinton Iron Works in Clinton street, on a site in the rear of the present Hotel Lafayette. There he continued to carry on an extensive business to the time of his death, making fancy iron staircases, fences, shutters and other articles. The works which he established are still in existence and are operated under the same name.
Levi H. Larkin was a Whig in politics. He was a member of the old Volunteer Fire Department, belonging to Eagle Hose Company. When the old Eagle Tavern was burnt in 1849 he performed a notable act of courage, ascending the slippery roof to the belfry of the old Court-House in Washington street and smothering the fire that threatened to destroy the building.
Mr. Larkin married Mary Ann Durrant, who was of English birth, though of French extraction. They had seven children, of whom John D. is the only survivor. Levi H. Larkin died in Buffalo in June, 1852. He was a successful man of affairs and a pioneer of the iron industry in Buffalo, and an esteemed citizen, universally respected for his sterling qualities of man- hood and public spirit.
John Durrant Larkin was born in Buffalo on the 29th of September, 1845, in a dwelling which occupied a part of the present site of the Lafayette Hotel. He was educated at Public School No. 15, later taking a course in Bryant & Stratton's Business College. Left an orphan at the age of six years by the death of his father, both circumstances and early training inculcated in young Larkin the principle of relying on himself. When twelve years old he became a messenger and general
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utility boy in the employ of William H. Woodward, owner of a wholesale millinery store in Buffalo. Some years afterward he entered the establishment of his brother-in-law, Justus Weller, who was engaged in the soap business at 960 Seneca street. With him in 1870 he went to Chicago, where the two formed a partnership which continued until the spring of 1875, when Mr. Larkin sold out his interest and returned to Buffalo, where the same year he founded his present business, beginning the manu- facture of soap in a small factory in Chicago street.
At the time he established his Buffalo enterprise, Mr. Larkin had had twelve years of experience in the business, of which he had gained a comprehensive knowledge. His ideas were advanced, and his coming to the Buffalo field marked a new departure in his branch of industry. The business grew rapidly, and in 1876 he bought a site on Seneca street and built a factory. In 1878 the firm of J. D. Larkin & Co. was organized. In December, 1899, the Larkin Company was incorporated, with a capital of $1,000,000, Mr. Larkin being President. The original plant has been continually modified by extensive additions and improvements, and today consists of many build- ings all connected with each other, containing fifty acres of floor space, and constitutes the largest fireproof manufactory in the world. The lighting plant would be capable of lighting thirty miles of Buffalo streets, or a city of 25,000 inhabitants. More than 100 tons of coal are consumed every 24 hours in generating this electricity for lighting the buildings, for heat- ing and manufacturing purposes. Two of the twelve great soap kettles used are the largest in the world, being thirty feet in diameter and forty feet deep,, with a capacity of a million and a half pounds each. A boiling from one of these kettles makes thirty car-loads of soap. Besides the manufacture of the famous Larkin Soaps, an important feature of the concern is the refining of glycerine and the making of superior toilet preparations and perfumes. Its laboratories for these special manufactures are among the largest and most noted in the
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world. A leading principle of the business is the "Larkin Idea"; namely, direct sale of soaps and food products from factory to family. The concern has an enormous household patronage, based on its sales to housewives of all goods they offer at a trifle more than manufacturer's cost. The premiums offered in this connection are among the best ever put within the reach of the buying public. The Office Building enjoys the distinction of being the largest and most complete in the world. It will accommodate 1,800 employees. The furniture through- out is of steel, which is an absolute guarantee against fire. Besides being President of the Larkin Company, Mr. Larkin is President of the Buffalo Pottery, Director in the Columbia and Central National Banks, and Trustee of the Commonwealth Trust Company.
In politics Mr. Larkin is a Republican, but holds liberal views on local issues. Active in the charitable as well as the social life of the city, he is connected with several philanthropic institutions. He is a member of the Ellicott Club, the Country Club, the Manufacturers' Club, of which association he was elected the first President, serving for two terms, being re- elected unanimously. He belongs to the Prospect Avenue Baptist Church. He is notably a friend and helper of young men. Rising ability always finds in him a prompt and sympa- thetic appreciation.
May 10, 1874, Mr. Larkin married, in Hudson, Illinois, Miss Frances H. Hubbard, daughter of Dr. Silas Hubbard, formerly of Buffalo, and a prominent physician and citizen. Mr. and Mrs. Larkin have five children: Charles H., Mrs. Frances L. Estey, John D., Jr., Harry H. and Ruth R. Larkin. All the sons were educated at Lafayette College.
THE GREENE FAMILY in America may be traced to the early Puritan settlement of Massachusetts. The first of the Greenes in this country was Samuel Greene, a native of Eng- land, who emigrated to America in 1632, settled in Boston,
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Mass., and died in 1702. One of his descendants was Isaiah Greene, a Quaker who settled in Kensington, N. H., and in 1768 removed to Weare Center, N. H. Jeremiah, son of Isaiah, died in 1855. His son, Simon, was born in 1781, and died in 1860. Stephen S. Greene, son of Simon, was born April 20, 1807. In 1827 he removed to Starksboro, Vt., and in 1828 married Lydia Chase. JOSEPH C. GREENE, M.D., eldest son of Stephen S. Greene, was born in Lincoln, Vt., July 31, 1829, and was educated at a boarding school at Nine Partners, Dutchess County, N. Y., and Barre, Vt., Academy. He studied medicine under Dr. Hugh Taggart, at Hinesburg, Vt., attended Wood- stock and Castleton Medical Colleges, and in 1855 graduated from the Albany Medical College, later taking a polyclinic course in New York. Returning to Vermont in 1856, he prac- ticed for seven years at Charlotte, later coming to Buffalo, where he built up a large practice. In 1873 and 1874 he was District Physician to the Buffalo Board of Health, and in 1885 he was elected to the Board of Aldermen. His interest in the cause of education led to his appointment as Chairman of the Committee on Schools, whereby he became ex-officio the head of the Buffalo School Department. His course as a municipal legislator was marked by soundness of judgment and close attention to duty.
Dr. Greene was President of the fourth branch of the New York State Medical Association; President of the Erie County Medical Society; permanent member of the New York State Medical Society; President of the Buffalo Medical Union; President of the Buffalo Historical Society, and a member of the American Medical Association, the American Microscopical Society, the American Society for the Advancement of Science and the Buffalo Microscopical Club. He was a Knight Templar, a Mason of the 32d degree, Scottish Rite, and a member of the Acacia Club. He was deeply interested in the Young Men's Association and was a member of its Building Committee.
In 1888-89 Dr. Greene made a tour of the world, and on his
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return presented a valuable collection of Oriental antiquities to the Buffalo Historical Society.
Dr. Greene married September 21, 1856, Juliette Taggert, daughter of William and Ann Taggert of Vermont. Mrs. Greene died in Buffalo October 15, 1882. Their children were: Dewitt C. Greene, M.D., Anna Adelaide, who married Edward Andrews, and Julia Delphine, who married Frederick Bush Willard, M.D. November 26, 1891, Dr. Greene married his second wife, Mary Burrows Smith of Albion, N. Y.
Dr. Greene was an able physician, possessed of remarkable skill in diagnosis, and was also a man of broad views, scholarly tastes and liberal culture.
WALTER D. GREENE, M.D., is the seventh son of Stephen S. and Lydia Chase Greene, and was born in Starksboro, Vt., April 20, 1853. The rudimentary education of Dr. Greene was gained in the district school of his native village. Later he had the advantages of a classical and scientific course in the Union Springs, N. Y., Seminary. His academic education being finished, he removed to Buffalo, where he entered the Medical Department of the University of Buffalo, graduating in 1876.
For two years after his graduation, Dr. Greene was connected with the staff of the Rochester City Hospital as Junior Assistant Physician and House Physician. In 1878 he went to Mendon, Monroe County, where he practiced till 1880. In the fall of that year he returned to Buffalo, and opened an office, presently obtaining an extensive practice. In 1882 Dr. Greene became District Physician of the Buffalo Health Department. In December, 1896, he was appointed Deputy Health Officer. His efficient services won the favorable recognition of the public and the authorities, and on the 1st of January, 1902, he was appointed by Mayor Knight head of the city Health Department, serving until 1907.
Dr. Greene is a 33d degree Scottish Rite Mason. He is a member of the Acacia Club, the New York State Medical
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Society, the Erie County Medical Society, the American Public Health Association, and the American Medical Association. He also belongs to the Buffalo Historical Society, the Buffalo Club, and the Whig Hall, the last named organization being connected with Princeton University, and being the second oldest literary body in the United States.
November 28, 1878, Dr. Greene married Mary Pursel. The children of the union are: Frank S., who was born December 17, 1880, and died in infancy, and Clayton W., who was born March 14, 1884.
DEWITT CLINTON GREENE, M.D., son of Dr. Joseph C. and Juliette E. Taggert Greene, was born in Charlotte, Vt., July 30, 1857. In childhood he accompanied his family to Buffalo, where he has since resided. ' His education was obtained in the Buffalo Normal School and the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary at Lima, N. Y., and later he spent some time teaching school in his native town in Vermont.
In 1883 Dr. Greene entered the Medical Department of the University of Buffalo, from which he was graduated on the 27th of February, 1883. Since that time he has supplemented his medical and surgical training by devoting special attention to clinics at Vienna and Berlin. After obtaining his diploma as a physician, Dr. Greene began practicing his profession in Buffalo, being associated with his father till his death. Dr. Greene is a physician of superior training and accomplish- ments. He is representative of the present generation of medical men in that he is thoroughly abreast of the progress of modern science and of the developments of his profession in recent years. He enjoys a large practice.
Dr. Greene's politics are Republican. He is a member of the New York State Medical Society, the Erie County Medical Society, of which he is Treasurer, and several medical asso- ciations of Buffalo, also a member of the Buffalo Historical Society, and of the Delaware Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church.
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June 10, 1885, Dr. Greene married Julia M. Gates of Medina, New York.
Dr. Greene is very loyal to the traditions of his New England ancestry, and cherishes a warm affection for his native State of Vermont. In his personal characteristics he preserves many of the traits typical of New England, which find expression in his professional conscientiousness, the sound quality of his citizen- ship and his sterling ideas of rectitude.
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