USA > New York > Erie County > Our county and its people : a descriptive work on Erie County, New York, Volume II > Part 66
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the 3d Brigade, District of Niagara, P. M. I. O. O. F. He is also a member of Wash- ington Lodge No. 240, F. & A. M. and Keystone Chapter No. 163, R. A. M. In June, 1891, he married Jennie A. Gillie, of Tonawanda, N. Y.
Suor, Arthur M., Buffalo, son of Charles and Anna (Taylor) Suor, and grandson of Joseph Suor, a native of Germany, was born in Buffalo, N. Y., December 7, 1874. His father, Charles Suor, also a native of Buffalo, conducted a wood turning estab- lishment on the corner of Clinton and Oak streets, served as supervisor of the old Eleventh ward, and died in 1887, aged thirty-nine. Arthur M. Suor was educated in the public schools and the College of Commerce in Buffalo, and obtained his first business experience in the jewelry store of T. C. Tanke, with whom he remained three years. He was afterward in service of the Western Transit Company for a short time and in 1890 accepted a position with the real estate firm of Thorne & Angell. He was associated with them until 1894, when he formed a partnership with his brother, William C. T. Suor, and engaged in the real estate business under the firm name of Suor & Suor. This firm is now operating exclusively in Central Park and Parkside property, in which they are owners. Mr. Suor is a member of Parish Lodge No. 292, F. & A. M., and of Trinity Lodge, I. O. O. F. October 14, 1896, he married Ida Clare Heeb of Buffalo, and they have one son, Arthur M., jr.
Henning, Thomas, Buffalo, one of four children of John and Elizabeth Henning, natives of the North of Ireland, was born in Quebec, Canada, in April, 1844. His father, a linen manufacturer, came to Quebec about 1840, and with his wife now lives in Toronto. Mr. Henning attended school in St. Catherines, Ontario, whither his parents had removed. In 1854 he became a telegraph messenger boy for the Montreal Telegraph Company, where he remained nine years, when he came to Buffalo. For about twenty-two years thereafter he was connected with the Western Union Telegraph Company in Buffalo, and New York city, and in the spring of 1891 he accepted a position with the Field Engineering Company on the construction of the power house and lines of the Buffalo Railway Company. On the completion of that contract he became superintendent of the power station of that corporation, which position he still holds. Mr. Henning has made a thorough study of electricity and is so proficient in that science that he may justly be considered as the Thomas Edison of Buffalo. He is a man of the highest social standing, endowed with a generous nature, and ever ready to lend aid to the needy and deserving. He is also largely interested in real estate and securities in Buffalo. His wife, Sarah J., is the daughter of Bernard Cassidy, formerly a contractor of Buffalo, and a niece of the late Thomas Edmonds. She is actively interested in charitable enterprises. They have a son and a daughter.
Fronczak, Francis E., A. M., M. D., etc., Buffalo, only son of Adelbert and Vic- toria (Jaworska) Fronczak, was born in Buffalo, N Y., September 20, 1874. His father took an active part in the Polish insurrections of 1840 and 1863 and during the latter year was an officer; he was obliged to leave the country on account of these troubles and come to America, and about 1870 he settled in Buffalo, where he has since resided. Francis E. Fronczak was graduated from St. Stanislaus pa- rochial school in 1887, took an academic course at Canisius College and in 1894 was , graduated from the latter institution with the degree of A. B. He then entered the
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medical department of the University of Buffalo, from which he was graduated with honors as M. D. in 1897. Meantime he took a post-graduate course at Canisius College, receiving the degree of A. M. in 1895. In 1896 he also received the honors of Polish literature from the Polish League of Chicago. He was connected for a long time with the Buffalo Courier and at present is on the special staff of the Ex- press, and Polish papers of Buffalo, and several out of town and European maga- zines and newspapers. Since his graduation Dr. Fronczak has successfully followed his profession in his native city. He was the first Polish graduate of the Buffalo Medical College and is a member of the Erie County Medical Society, attending physician to the Felician Sisters Hospital, the Polish Orphan Asylum and the Home for Old and Disabled at Cheektowaga. He is also medical examiner for the Buffalo branches of the Polish Union of North America, Polish Roman Catholic Union of America and other Polish institutions. In politics he is a Democrat, as is also his father. On Jauary 12, 1898, he was appointed member of the Civil Service Com- mission by Mayor Conrad Diehl, to succeed Dr. P. W. Van Peyma, who succeeded the mayor as a member of the Board of School Examiners.
Petzing, Jacob, Buffalo, battalion chief of the Fourth District Buffalo Fire Depart- . ment, is one of a family of three sons and two daughters of Jacob and Caroline (Rodenbach) Petzing, and was born in Germany October 22, 1851. The family came to Buffalo in 1852, and there the father was engaged in business as a baker for many years. In 1864 he enlisted in Co. D. 187th N. Y. Vols., and served until the close of the war. Jacob Petzing was graduated from public school No. 12 at the age of four- teen, and then became a clerk in a store and later in an insurance office. He learned and followed the trade of upholstering until 1873, when he took charge of the shop of Burrell, McEwen & Co., which position he held until 1880. In 1873 he also be- came a volunteer member of American Hook & Ladder Co., No. 3, of which he was secretary and afterward foreman. In 1880 he was appointed a captain in the pres- ent fire department and in August, 1895, while on a vacation, was promoted battalion chief, which position he has since filled with signal ability. In politics he is a Re- publican. His service as a fireman covers a period of twenty-four years, and during that time he has been conspicuous at all the important fires in the city. He is a member of the Buffalo Firemen's Beneficiary Association and of the K. O. T. M. May 30, 1872, he married Sophia, daughter of Christopher and Sophia Harmes, of Buffalo, and they have four sons and a daughter.
Brummer, Michael J., Buffalo, is a son of George and Barbara (Behm) Brummer, natives of Bavaria, Germany, who came to America and settled in Buffalo in 1836. The father followed the carpenter's trade until his death in 1861; he was first a Dem- ocrat, but in 1860 voted for Lincoln. His wife died in 1873. Mr. Brummer was born in Buffalo, November 13, 1843, attended the public schools, and when eleven years of age began to earn his own living. He learned the tanner's trade, and in February, 1862, enlisted in Co. C, 31st N. Y. Vol. Inf., in which he served until June, 1863. Two months later he re enlisted in Co. K, 15th N. Y. H. A., and served till the close of the war, being mustered out September 4, 1865. Among the battles in which he participated were West Point, York River, Gaines's Mills, Seven Pines, Malvern Hill, White Oak Swamp, Second Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, the Wilder- ness, and others, and all the battles fought in the Army of the Potomac till Lee's
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surrender. Returning to Buffalo he was employed in the tannery of J. F. Schoell- kopf until 1877, when he enlisted in the 22d U. S. Inf., regular army, serving until 1882; he was stationed at Forts Griffin and Clark in Texas and participated in various Indian raids. On his return to Buffalo in 1882 he joined Hook & Ladder Co. No. 2, of the Buffalo Fire Department; five months later he was made captain of Engine No. 1, afterwerds was transferred to Hook & Ladder No. 1, and in October, 1892, was promoted battalion chief of District No. 1, which position he still holds. Mr. Brummer had long been connected with the old volunteer fire department, joining as a torch boy in 1859, and after the war becoming a member of Rescue Fire Co. No. 1. He is a member and for two years was a trustee of the Buffalo Firemen's Beneficiary Association, and a member of the Veteran Firemen's Association and Odd Fellows. He is a generous, public spirited citizen, and a man highly respected and esteemed. In 1883 he married Miss Caroline Kreuger, of Buffalo.
Murphy, Thomas, police justice, Buffalo, is one of four sons of John and Mary (Downey) Murphy, natives of Ireland, and was born at East Palmyra, N. Y., De- cember 21, 1862. His father came to East Palmyra when a young man, bought and still owns a farm there, was actively identified with local and public affairs, and in 1887 retired and now resides in Buffalo. Judge Murphy was reared on a farm, at- tended the public schools and the Palmyra Classical Institute, and when fifteen years of age came to Buffalo and finished his education in the High School. He read law in the office of Henry H. Seymour and for three months with Ford & Ferguson, and was admitted to the bar in 1884. He remained with Mr. Seymour until 1886, when he accepted a position with the Delaware and Hudson Canal Coal Company. Two years later he became counsel and assistant manager of the United States Electric Light and Power Company, and after the consolidation of the electric light companies of Buffalo in 1892 resumed the practice of his profession. He was first a Democrat, but since 1888 has been a leading Republican, and served as an examiner of corporations under Comptroller Roberts for one year, when he resigned. In 1895 he was candidate for assemblyman in the First Assembly District, and in April, 1897, was appointed a police justice, popularly called "Morning Justice," to fill a vacancy. In November of the same year he received a vote of confidence from the people when they elected him to the same office for a four-year term. He has always been active in politics, has served as a delegate to various political and judicial conventions, and is a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians and Knights of Columbus. In 1892 he married Miss Margaret H. Burke of Swains, Al- legany county, N. Y.
Noonan, Michael J., Buffalo, only son of William and Mary (McNamara) Noonan, was born in Ireland in November, 1847, and came with his parents to America in 1848. The family first settled in Vermont, but soon came to Buffalo, where the mother died in 1852. The father subsequently spent twenty-five years in India and died in Buffalo in 1895. He was a farmer, and reared one son and a daughter. Mr. Noonan attended public schools 3, 4 and 38 of Buffalo, living with his uncle. In June, 1871, he went to the oil regions of Pennsylvania and at Millerstown, Butler county, invested his savings and sunk a well, which proved a failure. This set him back seven years, during which time he became superintendent of field work for Tack Brothers of Philadelphia, then the largest oil producers in the country. In ddd
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1878, with a partner, he sunk a well on Kendall Creek, which proved a success, and other wells followed. They conducted an extensive business until 1896, when they sold out, having in the 'mean time been instrumental in developing Big Shanty, Mc- Kean county, and other oil territory. He returned to Buffalo in 1882, and during the years 1883 and 1884 conducted a grocery store. His wide experience in the oil business caused him to be appointed in 1889, under Civil Service rules, to the posi- tion of inspector of oils for the city of Buffalo, which he has since held. Mr. Noonan is a member of Branch No. 8, C. M. B. A. In 1881 he married Margaret Mahany of Buffalo, who died a year and a half later. In 1885 he married, second, Mary, daughter of Edward and Margaret Brady of Buffalo. They have a son and two daughters.
Ramsperger, Samuel J., was born in Buffalo, N. Y., April 25, 1862, only son of Conrad and Anna M. (Reppert) Ramsperger. His father was born in Wurtemberg, and his mother in Loraine, Germany. His father was a nailsmith by trade and later was employed in a nut and bolt establishment, where, in 1869, he was accidentally caught in some shafting and killed, aged thirty-eight. His wife survives him. Mr. Ramsperger attended St. Anne's Parochial School and for three years was a student at Canisius College, and then entered the employ of Haas, Neubert & Kline, print- ers. From 1877 to 1888 he was a collector for John Schusler, and for one and one- half years thereafter was engaged in the liquor business for himself. He then returned to Mr. Schusler's brewery in the capacity of cashier and solicitor, and since 1894 has been head bookkeeper there. He is a staunch Democrat, and when twenty- three was nominated and elected alderman of the old Fifth ward. He was re-elected three times, was nominated assessor and ran ahead of his ticket, and for six years was a member of the Democratic General Committee, of which he was elected sec- retary in 1896. He has frequently been a delegate to city, county and assembly conventions, is a member of the C. B. L., the C. M. B. A., the Uniformed Catholic Knights of St. John, the Red Men, the Foresters, and numerous singing societies, and is a director of the German Roman Catholic Orphan Asylum on Best street. Mr. Ramsperger is one of the most popular and best known young German residents of Buffalo, and socially and politically is widely respected and esteemed. He has been urged to accept the nomination for assemblyman and congressman but de- clined. In 1889 he married Anna, daughter of Nicholas and Johanna Siebert, of Buffalo.
Smith, James, Buffalo, one of five sons of James and Jane Smith, was born in Troy, N. Y., June 5, 1857, and came to Buffalo with his parents in 1870. The father, a native of Ireland, was an active citizen and was engaged in business as a cattle dealer in East Buffalo until his death in 1883; his wife died in 1881. Mr. Smith at- tended the public schools and when nineteen years of age entered in the live stock business with his father. He is now a member of the firm of Schintzius & Smith, the largest dealers in milch cows in the United States. Mr. Smith has always been an active Democrat, and has been a delegate to five different State Conven- tions, is a member of the State Committee, and in 1895 and again in 1897 was .
elected alderman of the Eleventh ward, where he has long been a recognized leader. He has also been a delegate to various other conventions of his party, and
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is a member of Schojacade Lodge, I. O. O. F. In 1880 he married Miss Mary Logan, and they have two sons and two daughters.
Burow, Frederick W., sr., was born July 21, 1833, in Prussia, Germany, and came to this country in 1843 with his parents, who settled in Buffalo. In 1847 he became an apprentice in the printing office of Brunck & Domedion, who published a German semi-weekly called the Weltbuerger. In 1853 he went to Cincinnati, O., and was employed as a compositor on a German paper there until 1855, when he returned to Buffalo and obtained employment on different English papers until 1869. He was afterward in the government printing office at Washington for five years. In 1874 he again returned to Buffalo and opened a book and job office in partnership with Louis Hansman, the firm name being Hansman & Burow. In 1888 he sold out his interest in said firm, and entered into partnership with Mr. Miller, under the firm name of Burow & Miller. Mr. Miller retired on account of poor health and Mr. Burow admitted his oldest son, Frederick W., jr., which partnership still continues. Their establishment is located on the corner of Swan and Ellicott streets, Buffalo, N. Y., and they do both English and German book and job printing, a specialty being made of fine stationery work. In 1863 Mr. Burow married Christine Köhn of Buffalo, and they have five children: Frederick W., William F., Anna, Mary and Lydia.
Jones, Charles Sumner, B. S., M. D., Buffalo, son of Joshua and Ursula B. (Case) Jones, was born in Middlesex, N. Y., July 27, 1858. He took the course in science and letters at Cornell University and was graduated in the class of 1884. During his college course he was senior editor of the Cornell Daily Sun, captain of Company C, and class secretary in his senior year. In 1886 he began the study of medicine at the University of Buffalo, and was graduated in 1888, receiving first honorable men- tion for thesis on Original Investigation upon the Pneumogastric Nerves. After graduation he spent one year as house surgeon at the Fitch Accident Hospital and three years as associate physician at the Jackson Sanatorium, Dansville, N. Y. In the summer of 1890 he went abroad and studied in the hospitals of Vienna and three years later spent eight months abroad studying with Charcot in the hospital Sal Patriare in Paris, France, and with Victor Horsley in the laboratory of the Univer- sity College Hospital in London, England. He then came to Buffalo and engaged in practice, locating at 564 Delaware avenue. Dr. Jones is attending physician to the Children's Hospital of Buffalo, and the Buffalo Orphan Asylum. He is a mem- ber of the Delta Upsilon fraternity of Cornell, the I. C. I. fraternity of Buffalo Uni- versity, the Erie County Medical Society, the Buffalo Academy of Medicine, the University Club, the Buffalo Club, and the Buffalo Country Club. December 26, 1893, he married Emma, daughter of Pascal P. Pratt of Buffalo, and they have one son, Pascal Pratt Jones.
Hebard, Robert H., Buffalo, son of George F. and Susan M. (Gillespie) Hebard, was born in Buffalo, N. Y., May 10, 1847, and received a public and private school education. Early in 1865 he enlisted in Co. I, 8th N. Y. Cav., and served for five months in Custer's brigade. At the close of the war he returned to Buffalo and ac- cepted a position in the office of the Western Union Telegraph Company, and in 1870 associated himself with the Union Steamboat Company, with whom he remained
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twenty years, becoming assistant general manager under Washington Bullard. He resigned this position in 1890. On the organization of the Lake Erie Transportation Company (Wabash Lake Line) in 1887 he was appointed their agent at Buffalo, which position he has ever since held. This company operates a line of four steamers be- tween Buffalo and Toledo in the interest of the Wabash railroad. It also operates the American Transit Company, which was organized in 1889 to carry westbound freight on the Erie Canal between New York and Buffalo, and which now has con- nection with three lake transportation lines for all points in the West. Mr. Hebard is manager of the company. In 1892 he also became the Buffalo agent of the newly organized Minneapolis, St. Paul & Buffalo Steamship Company ("Soo" line) and since 1893 has been the general manager. This company operates four steamers, total capacity 7,500 tons, between Gladstone, Mich., and Buffalo, in the interest of the Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railway, and carries from 5,000,000 to 6,000,000 bushels of grain, about 1,500,000 barrels of flour, and 100,000 tons of coal and merchandise annually. As the representative of these three great transporta- tion companies Mr. Hebard enjoys a wide reputation. He is a man of the highest integrity and great business ability and has built up for his corporations an exten- sive patronage, making each one of them successful from the start. He is a member of Washington Lodge No. 240, F. & A. M., Buffalo Chapter No. 71, R. A. M., Hugh de Payens Commandery No. 30, K. T., and Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, and is also a member and for three years was a trustee of the Buffalo Merchants' Exchange. July 19, 1871, he married Kate Pease, daughter of Captain William T. Pease of Buf- falo, and they have three children: Fannie B., Marion H. and Walter C.
Perkins, James L., Buffalo, was born in Sherburne, Mass., March 23, 1858, a son of Curtis and Joan (Hill) Perkins. He received an excellent education in the public and high schools of his native town, and came to Buffalo in 1876, entering the service of Dr. Frank O. Vaughn as a clerk in a drug store. He remained in this capacity three years and then accepted a position as manager of the drug store of Trowbridge & Co., where he remained eight years. He then engaged in the drug business on his own account, locating at 1233 Michigan street. where he has since continued. He is a member of the Erie County Board of Pharmacy, the New York State Pharma- ceutical Association, the Erie County Pharmaceutical Association (of which he was formerly president), the A. O. F. (of which he is past chief ranger), and the Knights of St. John and Malta. In June, 1888, he married Ida Pauline, daughter of James Warner of Buffalo, and they have two children: Marguerite and James W.
Baethig, Henry, M. D., Buffalo, was born in Bavaria, Germany, April 24, 1850, a son of Dr. Henry and Adelaide (Ziekursch) Baethig. His parents came to America in 1850 and settled in Buffalo. Dr. Baethig attended the public and high schools of Buffalo and when eighteen attended the Hahnemann Medical College of Phila- delphia, from which he was graduated in 1871. He afterwards spent one year in the Hahnemann Hospital as house physician and then returned to Buffalo, where he be- gan the practice of his profession and where he has since resided. He is a member of the Erie County Homoeopathic Medical Society and the American Institute of Homoeopathy, and was the first district homoeopathic physician in the city of Buf- falo. He is also one of the consulting physicians in the Buffalo Homoeopathic Hos- pital and a member of Concordia Lodge No. 143, F. & A. M. In 1878 he married
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Miss Blanche Aman of Rochester, and they have three children: Adelaide Louise, Vincent Henry and Anna Marion.
Wall, Charles A., M. D., Buffalo, son of David and Alice (Allen) Wall, was born in Buffalo, N. Y., September 24, 1853. He attended the public schools and was graduated from the Central High School in the class of 1873. In 1876 he received the degree of B. S. from Syracuse University and three years later the degree of M. S. was conferred upon him. He was graduated in 1879 from the medical depart- ment of the University of Buffalo, and then began practice in which he has since been engaged, being now located at 306 Hudson street. He is a frequent contribu- tor to various medical journals and is a member of the Erie County Medical Society, the New York State Medical Association, the American Medical Association, the Buffalo Medical, University, and Acacia Clubs, and Washington Lodge No. 240, F. & A. M. For several years he was assistant surgeon of the 74th Regiment, N. G. N. Y. In June, 1880, he married Annie M., daughter of William Powell of Buffalo, and they have four children: Annie P., Charles A., jr .. Wm. Powell and Malcolm Coburn.
Wheeler, Albert J., Buffalo, president of the Western Savings Bank, is the son of the late Joel Wheeler and Mary J. McElvaney, his wife, and was born August 3, 1841. He received a common school education, and at an early age engaged with his father in the elevating and malting business, in which he still continues. In 1892 he became a trustee of the Western Savings Bank of Buffalo and in February, 1896, succeeded Philip Houck, deceased, as its president. Mr. Wheeler is a member of the Buffalo Merchants' Exchange and the Buffalo and Ellicott Clubs, and is a highly respected and honored citizen. He was married in September, 1864, to Catharine Clinton, daughter of the late Judge Clinton of Buffalo. She died in January, 1881, leaving three children: George Clinton, Joel Howard, who died in 1893, and Mabel. June 3, 1888, Mr. Wheeler married Kate, daughter of Peter P. Barton of Lewiston, Niagara county, N. Y., and they have two daughters, Mary and Catharine Barton.
Kingston, George L., Buffalo, was born in Buffalo, N. Y., and received his educa- tion in the public and high schools of his native city. He read law with Le Grand Marvin and later with Day & Romer of Buffalo, and was admitted to the bar as an attorney and counselor before the general term of the Supreme Court at Syracuse in January, 1876. Since then he has successfully followed the general practice of his profession in Buffalo, where he stands high at the bar as an able, painstaking and industrious lawyer and advocate. In politics he is a Republican and in religion a Presbyterian and has never sought nor held public office. Mr. Kingston is especially prominent in Masonry, being made a member on March 1, 1881, of Parish Lodge No. 292, F. & A M., which he served as master in 1884, 1885 and 1888. He is past high priest of Buffalo Chapter No. 71. R. A. M., serving in that capacity in 1893 and 1894, in which years he was also assistant grand lecturer of, the Grand Chapter. He has been thrice illustrious grand master of Buffalo Council No. 17, R. & S. M., is past commander of Lake Erie Commandery No. 20, K. T., past thrice potent grand Master of Palmoni Lodge of Perfection, A. A. S. R., past grand high priest of Palmoni Council, Princes of Jerusalem, and a charter member of Buffalo Chapter, Rose Croix, H. R. D. M., of Buffalo Consistory No. 320, S. P. R. S., of Ismailia Tem-
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