Portrait and biographical record of Queens County (Long Island) New York, Part 55

Author: Chapman, firm, publishers
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : Chapman Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1220

USA > New York > Queens County > Long Island City > Portrait and biographical record of Queens County (Long Island) New York > Part 55

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

In the fall of 1867 Mr. Kron returned East, and the following year made his home in Long Island City. Shortly afterward he built his present busi- ness house at No. 346 Jackson Avenue. He

is the oldest merchant tailor in the place and commands a large share of the trade.

Mr. Kron was married while in California to Miss Catherine Albert, a native of Baden, Ger- many, who was brought by her parents to Ameri- ca when six years of age. Her union with our subject has resulted in the birth of eight children, of whom the eldest son, Charles, died when nine- teen years of age; Edward is associated with his father in business; Anne E. and Louise are at home; John is an electrician doing business in Brooklyn; William assists his father in his shop; Henrietta E. is also at home, and Frederick, the youngest member of the household, died when five years of age. Edward Kron is a very popu- lar young man, and at the present time is a mem- ber of the General Commission.

In national politics our subject is a Repub- lican, but during local elections supports the candidate who in his judgment will best transact the duties of the office. Socially, he is an Odd Fellow of good standing, holding membership with Long Island City Lodge No. 395.

C APT. SAMUEL L'HOMMEDIEU. In 1891, at the incorporation of the White Star Towing Company, Mr. L'Homme- dieu was made president of the concern, an office which he filled until 1894, and since that time he has served as vice president. He is the heav- iest stockholder in the enterprise, and to his judg- ment and ability its success is largely due. The New York office of the company is situated at No. 78 South Street, and their Long Island City office at Hunter's Point Bridge. Eight boats are owned by the company, of which four tugs, "Charles Runyon," "Ceres," "H. B. Rawson" and "Guiding Star" are used for towing ships to and from sea, Long Island Sound and about the har- bor; while the other four, "Golden Rule," "Golden Rod," "Golden Ray" and "J. J. Driscoll," are used for towing in Newtown Creek.

A native of Long Island, the Captain was born in Riverhead, Suffolk County, February II, 1843. He is a lineal descendant of Benjamin L'Hom- medieu, who was a French Huguenot, but fled from his native land during a time of persecution, and coming to America, settled in Suffolk County in 1660. The great-grandfather, also named Benjamin, attained an advanced age and died on a warm day while working in a wheat field. The grandfather, Samuel, who was born at Aque-

449

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

bogue, engaged in farming there throughout his entire active life and died at the age of ninety-one years. The father, Joseph, who was born at Aquebogue, was a farmer by occupation and died in Riverhead when seventy-one years of age. The family name was originally L'Homme Dieu, meaning "the man God," but was changed to its present form for convenience.

The mother of our subject, Susan Higbie, was born in Florida, Orange County, N. Y., where her parents resided until death. She was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in which faith she died in 1893, at the age of eighty-eight. In her family were seven children, but four of the number are now deceased, the survivors being Daniel and Jane, half brother and sister, who live in Riverhead; Capt. John, who is with the Red Star Towing Company in Brooklyn; Samuel, of this sketch, and Joseph L., who was for three years a member of the One Hundred and Twenty- seventh New York Infantry during the Civil War, and is now engaged with the White Star Towing Company on one of their boats.

On the home farm near Riverhead the subject of this sketch spent the days of boyhood and youth, having such educational advantages as the public and high schools of the village afforded. At the age of eleven years he was bound out as an ap- prentice to Captain Gardner, an old whaler, with whom he remained until sixteen years of age. He then went to sea as cook on the sloop "Dili- gent," between Riverhead and New York City, and afterward was on various other vessels. When he began in the towboat business, he worked his way upward from a very humble posi- tion, and about 1866 came ashore, accepting a po- sition in the office of a company. Later he bought an interest in the tug "Olive Baker," and as time passed by acquired other interests, doing a suc- cessful business in that line. In 1891 the White Star Towing Company was incorporated, and he has since been its principal stockholder. However, he has other interests, especially in sailing vessels in the Cuban and South American trade.

Prior to 1874 for some years, Captain L'Hom- medieu resided in New York, but since then he has made his home in Brooklyn, his residence being situated at No. 490 A Monroe Street. He was married in Riverhead, his wife being Miss Cornelia Wells, daughter of George Wells, a ship carpenter by trade and also for some years a farmer. Mrs. L'Hommedieu died in 1894,

leaving one child, Florence Cornelia, who has since died. Our subject is a stanch Republican, an advocate of single tax, and has taken an active interest in his party's affairs. He is a member of the National Board of Steam Navigation, and gives his co-operation to all plans tending to the development of the trade. In religious belief he is a Swedenborgian and holds membership with the church of that faith in Brooklyn.

W ILLIAM KETCHAM MOORE is proprietor of Moore's Express, which is next to the largest express company on Long Island. Astoria may well be proud of the amount of brains and energy displayed by her representative business men, but taking them as a whole there is none brighter, more intelli- gent, or with more ability and push than Mr. Moore, whose push and energy have placed him in the front rank as a business man, and whose geniality and pleasing manners have won him hosts of friends. He was born in Astoria, Long Island City, December 21, 1847, and is the third in order of birth of five children born to his par- ents, Benjamin and Ann Moore. (See sketch of B. Moore, Jr.)

In the fourth ward school of Astoria Mr. Moore received his education and later learned the bak- er's trade of his father. In 1872 he started in the express business for himself, beginning at the bottom round of the ladder. Success has followed his efforts, and he now stands second to the Long Island Express Company, which is the largest on Long Island. His office is at No. 188 Main Street, where he has erected three stores, 25x100 feet, and the barns in the rear extend to Clark Street, over one hundred feet. He runs about ten express wagons and there is a regular hack and coupe business in connection between Long Island City, New York and Brooklyn.

Mr. Moore is a great lover of horse-flesh and is a capital judge of these animals. He owns three standard-bred colts; "Zuleika," a four-year-old by "Stranger," has a record of 2:344, and ran many races and won considerable money in Connecti- cut. The others are "Kadmus," a three-year-old, and "Padrone," a two-year-old, both by "Gray Stone." He has also owned other fine horses and is authority on all that relates to racing. etc. At Huntington, L. I., in July, 1895, he met with a serious accident, his horse falling with him in the race, and he was unconscious for six weeks.

450

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

However, he has recovered his wonted health and is as deeply interested in racing as ever. He is an interesting conversationalist, and his pleas- ant home, which is presided over by his excellent wife, formerly Miss Emma Harding, is a delight- ful place to visit. Mr. and Mrs. Moore celebrated their marriage in 1867 and four interesting chil- dren have been given them, viz .: Benjamin Jo- seph, William Arthur, Charlotte Harding and George Clarke. Mrs. Moore was born in Eng- land. Mr. Moore is a member of Advance Lodge, F. & A. M., and holds the office of Past Master.

H ON. LUCIUS N. MANLEY, whose life record we now attempt to place before the public, is perhaps better known to most of the residents of Long Island City as Judge Manley. He is one of its most prominent citi- zens and successful attorneys, and by reason of his ability and knowledge of law, commands a very large practice. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention which met in Albany, N. Y., in 1894, and, being a prominent Repub- lican, uses his influence at all times for the ad- vancement of this party in his community.

Judge Manley is a native of this state, and was born in Addison, Steuben County, June 24, 1843. His father, Nehemiah Manley, was a native of Otsego County, N. Y., while his grandfather, bearing the given name of George, was born in Connecticut. During his young manhood he took up his abode in Otsego County and later became a resident of Steuben County, where he passed the last years of his life. The wife of George Manley was before her marriage a Miss Davenport, and was a collateral relative of Rev. John Davenport, of old Puritan stock. One of her brothers, Richard, served as a soldier in the Revolutionary War.

The father of our subject was for many years engaged as an agriculturist near Addison, Steu- ben County, and for some time greatly added to his income by the profits derived from the lum- ber business which he followed. He lived to be seventy-nine years of age. One of his brothers, bearing the name of Cephas, was a soldier in the War of 1812. Very many years ago what is now the town of Addison included the town of Tus- carora and subsequent to its being divided Nehe- miah Manley served faithfully as one of its super-

visors. In early life he was a Henry Clay Whig, but after the formation of the Republican party joined its ranks.

The mother of our subject was in her maiden- hood Jane Baker. She was born in Charleston, Tioga County, Pa., and was the daughter of Abisha Baker, a farmer and merchant of that county. The latter was a native of Washington County, N. Y., and married a Miss Lyttell, also a native of Washington County, where her family and the Bakers were very prominent. Mrs. Jane Manley was also aged seventy-nine years at the time of her decease. She was a consistent mem- ber of the Presbyterian Church, and during her life was true to all its teachings.

The subject of this sketch, who was the only child of his parents to reach mature years, con- tinued to live at home until he was sent to Alfred Academy in Allegany County, N. Y., where he completed his education. He then made prac- tical use of his knowledge by teaching school, following this vocation in his native county for two years. For some time previous to this he had been desirous of turning his attention to the study of law, and now that an opportunity pre- sented itself, he took advantage of it, and began reading Blackstone in the office of F. C. and J. W. Dinninny. In January, 1872, being suffi- ciently well informed, he was admitted to the bar in Buffalo, and in November of that year we find him located in Long Island City, where he began the practice of his profession, having for his partner the first year A. T. Payne. He then opened an office of his own and continued to transact business alone until 1890, when Charles A. Wadley became associated with him, the firm being known as Manley & Wadley. They en- gaged in a general law business on the corner of Third Street and Vernon Avenue.

Lucius N. Manley was married in Addison, N. Y., in 1877, to Miss Olive Weatherby, who died in Long Island City in 1881, leaving one child, Ed- ward. In 1885 Judge Manley chose for his sec- ond companion Miss Elsie Hillman of this city, and their family includes three children, Freder- ick, Martha and Helen.

Judge Manley has always manifested great in- terest in the public life of his community, and for a period of four years held the office of jus- tice of the peace. He was first elected by the Republicans of this section to fill a vacancy and the second term headed a mixed ticket. He re- signed this position in order to run for mayor

THEODORE A. CARMAN.

453

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

of Long Island City, but failed in getting the de- sired number of votes. In the fall of 1893 he was nominated on the Republican ticket as a member of the Constitutional Convention and was elected from the First District. He served as one of the committee on charities, and was also ap- pointed a member of the committee on governor and state officers.

The Judge is a member of the Queens County Bar Association, of which he was vice president for some time. He is an influential Republican in politics and is still a member of and has been chairman of the Long Island City General Com- mittee. He is the second oldest practitioner of this city and maintains a high reputation among his professional brethren in the state.

T HEODORE A. CARMAN, one of the successful business men of Hempstead and proprietor of a large hardware store at this place, was born here February 27, 1843, his birthplace being the old Carman homestead that has been in the possession of the family for many years. His education was acquired in the schools of Hempstead, which he attended regularly dur- ing his early years. Assisting his father, Coles Carman, in his store, he gained in boyhood a thorough knowledge of the details of business, so that he was fitted for the management of a store of his own.

In 1861 Mr. Carman embarked in business on his own account, but two years later the building he occupied was sold, and he did not resume business again until 1865. He then bought a lot and built the store which he still occupies. Be- ginning to trade upon a small scale, he gradually increased the stock as his enlarging patronage permitted, and now has one of the best equipped establishments of the kind for miles around. Be- sides the management of this enterprise, he is a director in the First National Bank, of which August Belmont is president. While business affairs have received due attention, he has found a pleasant diversion in various sports, and is es- pecially fond of yachting, being a member of the Hempstead Bay Yacht Club and the owner of the steam yacht "Francis."

When but eighteen years of age Mr. Carman was elected tax collector of Hempstead, which position he filled for nine years. He has also served as school tax collector, and has been a

village trustee for three years. Believing the platform of principles laid down by the Demo- cratic party to be best adapted to the good of the country he supports its men and measures and is an active factor in local politics. For thirty years he has been identified with the Masonic fraternity, and is junior warden of the lodge, an office held by his great-grandfather, Thomas D. Carman, when the lodge was organized in 1797.

In 1868 Mr. Carman was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth T., daughter of Samuel Downing, of Roslyn. They have two children, a son and daughter, Herbert V. and Frances B., the former of whom is in business with his father. Mr. Carman is interested in behalf of every move- ment and enterprise which he believes will pro- mote the public good, and this interest is proved by his substantial support and hearty co-opera- tion. He stands high in the estimation of the citizens of Hempstead, whose regard he has won by his business ability, good citizenship and pro- gressive spirit.

F RANZ DIETZE. Among those who have achieved success solely by excellence of character, without any of the methods by which unworthy persons seek to gain undeserved and transient popularity, the subject of this sketch occupies a conspicuous place. He is a manufac- turer and dealer in wagons and is also an experi- enced and reliable blacksmith. October 16, 1865, he was born in Saxony, Germany, a son of Chris- tian and Fredericka (Grober) Dietze, both of whom were born and spent their lives in Ger- many, the father being a bricklayer by trade. The subject of this sketch was the youngest of four children and was reared in the town of Grebehna. The common schools of his native land afforded him his early education, and at the age of four- teen years he was apprenticed to learn the wagon and carriage-maker's trade in an adjoining vil- lage, and for three years faithfully worked at the trade. In 1883 he decided to come to "free Amer- ica," and upon his arrival here settled in Wood- side, N. Y. Up to 1893 he worked at his trade in New York and Brooklyn.

In the fall of 1893 our subject embarked in his present business and formed a business partner- ship with Joseph Botvout in Flushing Avenue, near Baldwin Avenue, and here he has since very successfully continued. He has built up a paying patronage, a natural result of the fine work that

454

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

he does, and his business is continually on the increase. In addition to his wagon and carriage shop he conducts a repair and general blacksmith shop also, and is universally regarded as a skillful workman and one who is at all times painstaking. Our subject was married in Astoria to Miss Katie Loreth, a native of Austria, and they have one child, Annie. Mr. Dietze is a member of Her- mann Lodge No. 341, A. O. U. W., and also be- longs to several minor societies.

H ENRY R. WHITE, who was one of the brave defenders of the Stars and Stripes during the late war, serving as captain of Company B, Twenty-seventh New York Volun- teers, was for many years one of the prominent citizens of Long Island City. He was born in New York City April 6, 1835, and was the son of Col. Richard Henry White, whose birth also occurred in the metropolis. The family is of English descent and has been established in America for many generations.

The father of our subject was an expert in the art of fancy hard-wood carving, and during the years in which he traveled throughout the West, followed this business in Kansas City, Leaven- worth, Ft. Scott and various points in Wisconsin and Illinois. He was residing in the Badger State on the outbreak of the late war, and from there enlisted, becoming colonel of his regiment. He departed this life in Salina, Kas.

After procuring a good education in the public schools Henry R., of this history, studied phar- macy in Brooklyn, after which he clerked in a drug store at Lyons, N. Y. During the progress of the Civil War he volunteered his services in de- fense of the Union and was commissioned first lieutenant of Company B, New York Infantry, which was the first company which went from Lyons. Three months later he was promoted to be captain of his regiment. He volunteered for two years, but prior to the expiration of his term he was wounded, June 27, 1862. and returning home was not able to rejoin his regiment until January, 1863. In May, 1863, he was mustered out, and in the following September was com- missioned captain in the Veteran Reserve Corps. He was engaged in garrison duty respectively in New York, Baltimore and Washington. He con- tinued in the service until the close of the war. During his service he received a wound in his right arm, the ball passing through to

the hip. The surgeons were never able to find it, and he died twenty-seven years later, when on a trip to Western New York to attend the re- union of the Twenty-seventh regiment, which was held at Seneca Falls. His remains were taken to his old home and interred in the cemetery at Lyons.

After the war Mr. White returned to Lyons and remained there until 1866, when he located in Long Island City, establishing one of the first drug stores in the city. He was very successful in this undertaking and at the time of his de- cease was the proprietor of one of the finest drug houses in this community. It is now carried on by Mrs. White, and the brick block in which it is situated is one of the best business sites in the city.

Mr. White was senior warden of St. John's Episcopal Church, with which he had been con- nected for eighteen years. Financially prosper- ous and blessed with an abundance of this world's goods, he ranked among the leading citizens of the community, and was recognized as a man of more than ordinary ability. He was public-spir- ited and possessed the unlimited confidence of all who knew him. Mr. White was one of the organ- izers of the Long Island City Savings Bank, of which he was one of the vice-presidents until his death. In politics he was an enthusiastic Republican and one of that party's leaders in this community. Years ago he was one of a com- mittee comprising fifty energetic young men who banded together and used their influence in gain- ing many governmental reforms. Mr. White never aspired to office, although frequently urged by his friends to accept positions of honor and trust. He never failed to attend the various re- unions of his regiment, and as we stated above, his death occurred September 18, 1889, while on his way to Seneca Falls, N. Y., to meet with his old comrades. He was a member of a Masonic lodge at Washington, and was also a member of the State Pharmaceutical Association, in which organization he had many warm and true friends.

The marriage of our subject occurred in 1859, in Lyons, N. Y., when Miss Sarah Layton became his wife. She is the daughter of John Layton, and the granddaughter of Daniel Layton, both of whom were natives of eastern New York. Dur- ing his younger days John Layton removed to Lyons, adjoining which village he owned a large farm and became one of its most influential and wealthy business men. All his dealings were

455

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

marked with inherent honesty, and as one of the best citizens of the community he held the con- fidence of all who knew him. He was a consist- ent member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and took an active part in all the work of that organization. In politics he voted for Republican candidates after the formation of that party, and on that ticket held the office of supervisor for many years. His wife, prior to her marriage, was a Miss Harriet Penoyer, a native of Lyons, and the daughter of Reuben Penoyer, whose birth also occurred in that village. The latter later in life removed to Pulaski, Mich., where he was engaged in farming for some time. He served faithfully and well as a soldier in the War of 1812. The parents of Mrs. White had born to them a family of nine children, of whom three of her brothers, Nelson, Hiram and John, served as soldiers in the late war.

Since the death of her husband Mrs. White has carried on the drug business in this city. She has one daughter, Harriet E., who is an active worker in church and charitable organizations. Mrs. White is one of the managers of the tem- porary home for children at Mineola, the only Protestant home for children in Queens County. Both mother and daughter are active members of the Episcopal Church and give liberally of their means toward its support. They possess the friendship of the best people in Long Island and move in the highest circles of society here.

J OSEPH MCLAUGHLIN, the popular "mine host" of the Blissville Hotel, has held many important positions within the gift of his fellow townsmen to bestow, and has in turn ren- dered them very able and efficient service as al- derman and supervisor and as a member of the police commission. He was born in Kings County, Ireland, in 1842, and is the son of James Mclaughlin, also a native of the Emerald Isle.

During his early married life, the father of our subject emigrated to America with his family, settling first in New York, where he found plenty of employment as a bricklayer. Here his oldest child was born and died. Mr. and Mrs. Mc- Laughlin afterward returned to their native land, where three children were born. The husband and father then made another trip across the At- lantic and died soon afterward in the New World. His wife, known in maidenhood as Mary Kinney, embarked on a vessel bound for America in 1855,

and with her children was safely landed in New York City, where she devoted herself to rearing them for useful positions in life. She died in the metropolis when advanced in years. Of the six children of whom she became the mother three grew to mature years, and the only one now living besides our subject is Kate, who married Charles Smith, an engineer in the employ of the United States government at Brooklyn.

The first thirteen years of our subject's life were passed in his native isle, during which time he made the best of his opportunities for obtain- ing an education. His mother came to America about this time, and in order that he might re- lieve her of his support he began to do for him- self. He was not content, however, with the education which he had received in Ireland, and for some time attended night school in New York. He had not fully made up his mind what business in life he wished to pursue and after trying to learn two different trades, abandoned work of that kind and clerked for a friend who owned a liquor store in the city.

In 1857 Mr. Mclaughlin came to Blissville, L. I., and clerked for ex-Judge John B. Madden, proprietor of the Madden Road House, for sev- eral years. October 10, 1866, he embarked in business for himself, opening an hotel on the cor- ner of Jackson Avenue and Fourth Street, Long Island City. This was known as the Flushing House, and until 1870 Mr. Mclaughlin operated here. That year he removed to the suburb of Blissville and built the Blissville Hotel, which he has been very successful in conducting. In 1889 he erected a building on the corner of East Ave- nue and Third Street, which he fitted out as a first-class hotel, and after running it for five years leased the building.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

Portrait and biographical record of Queens County (Long Island) New York, Part 55

Author: Chapman, firm, publishers Publication date: 1896 Publisher: New York ; Chicago : Chapman Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1220

Author: Chapman, firm, publishers
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : Chapman Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1220