USA > Pennsylvania > Luzerne County > Wilkes-Barre > A history of Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania : from its first beginnings to the present time, including chapters of newly-discovered early Wyoming Valley history, together with many biographical sketches and much genealogical material. Volume V > Part 75
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William W. Bittenbender was born in Plymouth, there attended the public schools, and in Kingston was a student in the Wyoming Seminary. Upon completion of courses he went to work with the drill company, in Nanticoke, which was founded when he was twenty-one years of age. First he was under the direction of his father, then of his elder brother, and in 1895 assumed to executive position, associated with Eli G. Mr. Bitten- bender has been continually occupied with the important concerns of his company, but has, nevertheless, found time for other matters, of commercial, fraternal and general character. He is a director of the Nanticoke National Bank, of the Susquehanna Lumber Company, and of the Nanticoke Construction Company. Largely through his instigation and efforts the community secured Nanticoke Hospital. Always Mr. Bittenbender has worked in the interests of the fire department, and has been responsible in great measure for the standing of that organization today. Never during his extended pe- riod of residence in Nanticoke has there been a move- ment calculated for the public good that has asked in vain for support from Mr. Bittenbender ; his assistance is ready, energetic and fruitful of ideas. It is said that any movement of civic character sponsored by him is certain of attainment. A Republican, he is possessed of a considerable influence, which he exercises discreetly, to the good of the people at large; and, though frequently asked, he has never accepted the suggestion that he run for office, for he prefers to exercise in the service of the community in private capacity. He is a communicant of the Presbyterian Church, was for a number of years a member of its board of trustees, and in his attitude toward charity has ever been generous and sympathetic, his donations generous, given without thought of race or creed or other limiting consideration. In the World War, while somewhat too advanced in years for duty in the military, Mr. Bittenbender did serve, and tirelessly, on the boards and committees in charge of the prosecution of the conflict from within this country, and was of equal service to his country in the Liberty Loan drives. As his works have heen of lasting value to the com- munity, so does Nanticoke appreciate them, and so does it value his citizenship.
In 1899 Mr. Bittenbender was united in marriage with Helen M. Lape, of Nanticoke. She died in 1919 and left one child, a son, William Lape, now (1928) associ- ated with his father in the drill manufacturing company. Mr. Bittenbender married (second) Emma L. Davis, of Nanticoke. Mrs. Bittenbender is active in the several women's organizations of which she is a member, and is most popular in them. In 1912 Mr. Bittenbender erected the residence at No. 69 West Main Street,
wherein all appointments are of the finest; and here Mr. and Mrs. Bittenbender reside.
STEPHEN STEVENS, M. D .- Although living in Nanticoke and its neighborhood nearly all his life, Stephen Stevens, medical practitioner and pharmacist, is not a native American, but an adopted son of whom his fel- low-citizens are proud. From boyhood to manhood he has displayed every characteristic that makes for a high standard of citizenship, while his professional record is equally meritorious. His interest in civic affairs, in the religion of his forefathers and in fraternal organizations is no less keen than that which he devotes to his pro- fession, in which he has proven his worth. It is such members of the population that makes up an enlightened community who add to its value as an integral part of the splendid State of Pennsylvania. Dr. Stevens is a distinct asset to the citizenry of Nanticoke.
He was born in Austria, September 15, 1880, a son of Barney and Julianna (Chismer) Stevens. His father was a blacksmith and came with his family to America in 1882, locating at Edwardsville, where he engaged in mercantile business and conducted it successfully until his death in 1907. He helped to organize and was very active in the work of St. Mary's Greek Catholic Church in Kingston. In his early manhood he had served in an Austrian cavalry regiment.
Stephen Stevens was educated in the public schools of Kingston and for three years studied at the Medico- Chirurgical Institute and at Lyola, afterward attending the University of Chicago, from which he was graduated in the class of 1915 with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. He then served a term as interne in St. Elizabeth's Hospital, at Elizabeth, New Jersey. He afterward conducted a drug store and practiced his pro- fession of medicine, eventually establishing himself in practice in Pittston, Pennsylvania, where he remained for ten years, coming to Nanticoke in 1927. He is a member of the college fraternity of Alpha Pi and of Pittston Lodge, No. 382, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He also is Supreme Medical Examiner for the State of Pennsylvania of the Slovak (Roman) Greek Catholic Society and for three years was Supreme Presi- dent of the United Societies of Greek Catholics of the United States, with headquarters at Mckeesport, Penn- sylvania.
Dr. Stevens married, November 27, 1904, Clara Kyttlc, daughter of Lewis and Ellen (Trumbower) Kyttle, of Moorestown, Pennsylvania. They have two children : Emil F. and Edward V.
WALTER SUNDERLAND BARRITT-To build a large and prosperous business upon an initial invest- ment of less than fifty dollars is an achievement worthy of record and one of which any man may well be proud. Everybody in Pittston knows that Walter Sunderland Barritt, whose establishment is located at No. 58 North Main Street, is the proprietor of a substantial business, dealing in wall paper, paints, artists' supplies, etc., both wholesale and retail, and that he is the leading interior and exterior contracting decorator of this section of Luzerne County, but very few know from what a modest beginning this big enterprise has grown. Mr. Barritt and his son who is in business with him, now (1928) employ thirty-five people, and their business operations cover a large territory. Many public buildings in this section bear testimony to the skill and artistic ability of Mr. Barritt, the founder, and the son is ably con- tinuing the work so carefully and ably founded by the father.
Thomas S. Barritt, father of Mr. Barritt, was born in Devonshire, England, son of John R. Barritt, and was brought to this country by his parents when he was eleven years of age. The parents settled first at Carbon- dale, Pennsylvania, but later came to Pittston, where they died. They hoy, Thomas S., attended the public schools and Wyoming Seminary, the latter located at Kingston. Pennsylvania, and then, as a young man, engaged in the hardware business in Pittston. Being a man of initiative and of business ability, he first placed his hard- ware business in Pittston on a firm foundation and then enlarged the field of his operations by opening a branch store at Carbondale. Successful in these interests, he extended his activities in other directions as one of the organizers of the first ice company established in Pitts- ton and also one of the organizers and the operator of the first car line in Pittston. He was a member of the board of directors of the Miners' Bank of Pittston, and was well known as one of the most active and pro- gressive citizens of this community. In civic affairs,
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as in business affairs, he was prominent, serving in many minor local offices and giving freely of his time and his means for the furtherance of the general good. He was identified with numerous fraternal organizations and was a member of the Episcopal Church. Thomas S. Barritt married Ruth Lister, daughter of Governor Lister, of Washington Territory, and they were the parents of four children : Emma, wife of Charles Hillars, of Pitts- ton; Cora, married George Dewey, of Pittston; Walter Sunderland, of further mention; and Sadie, who married Bert Hall, of Carbondale, Pennsylvania.
Walter Sunderland Barritt, son of Thomas S. and Ruth (Lister) Barritt, was born in Pittston, Pennsyl- vania, December 9, 1871, and received his education in the public schools of his birthplace, graduating from West Pittston High School with the class of 1888. After graduation he learned the decorating business, both interior and exterior, and since that time he has steadily devoted his attention to the development of the business. When Mr. Barritt had thoroughly learned the business which he so early chose as his life work, he had the courage and the resourcefulness to engage in business for himself with a total initial capital of forty-two dollars and fifty cents, plus youth, energy, ability, and ambition. That a big business can be built upon a small material capital has been amply demonstrated by Mr. Barritt, and through the more than two decades of the life of this enterprise Mr. Barritt has steadily enlarged the scope of its operations until now (1928) his activities cover a territory extending from Carbondale to Nanti- coke, and the volume of his business requires the services of thirty-five employees. Mr. Barritt deals in wall papers, paints, artists' supplies, etc., and does both a retail and a wholesale business in these lines, but the greater part of his attention is devoted to contract work on public buildings, doing both interior and exterior dec- orating. A few of the many examples of his excellent work on public buildings may be seen in the Pittston High School, Scranton High School No. 3, Hyde Park High School, etc. He has also decorated many churches and numerous other buildings. His store at No. 58 Main Street, in Pittston, is one of the finest in the Wyom- ing Valley, and his many satisfied patrons are his best
and most effective advertising mediums. In addition to the care of this large and still growing business, Mr. Barritt is also the owner of a garage in Scranton, Penn- sylvania. He is a charter member of West Pittston Hose Company and of the Kiwanis Club, and as a member and director of the Pittston Chamber of Com- merce he is aiding in the development of the general business interests of the city. Fraternally, he is iden- tified with the Loyal Order of Moose, and he is an interested member of the Fox Hill Country Club. His religious affiliation is with the Presbyterian Church, which he serves as a member of the board of trustees. During the Spanish-American War Mr. Barritt served as a lieutenant in the National Guard.
Walter Sunderland Barritt was married, April 15, 1894, to Mary B. Neilson, of Pittston, Pennsylvania, daughter of Robert and Mary Neilson, and they are the parents of one son, Robert Carlisle Barritt, who received his early education in the schools of West Pittston and after graduating from West Pittston High School, continued his studies in Belle Font Academy. Later, he became a student in the Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia and in the Academy of Fine Arts in New York City, and he is now (1928) devoting his time and attention to art and to his father's business. He is a member of the Art League of New York City, and is well known here in Pittston. He married Sinclair Westbrook, of Danville, Virginia, and they have two children, West- brook anl Cameron.
Mrs. Walter Sunderland Barritt is active in the Young Men's Christian Association Auxiliary and in other women's organizations, and has a host of friends here in Pittston and in West Pittston. The family home is located at No. 1200 Susquehanna Avenue, in West Pitts- ton.
JAMES HAROLD BECKLEY, M. D .- In the an- nual addition to the ranks of the medical practitioners of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, there are few who come with greater preparation for the work or with higher pos- sibilities of successful achievement than James Harold Beckley, of Nanticoke. His education in the elementary and professional technical schools has been broad in scope and minute in detail, his practical experience after graduation of a nature to lend to his theoretical knowl- edge a concise factor of potential strength that cannot but be of the greatest benefit to him in the prosecution of
his practice. The field is unlimited for men of high attainments and there is reason to believe that Dr. Beck- ley will soar to the heights.
James H. (J. Harold) Beckley was born in Nanticoke, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, July 26, 1902, a son of William and Clara (Osterman) Beckley. His father, for more than thirty-five years has been stock inspector at Susquehanna and is active in civic and fraternal affairs. He and his wife are the parents of seven children: Fran- cis, an attorney of Nanticoke and Wilkes-Barre; Kath- ryn, wife of Dr. B. J. Ford, a dentist of Nanticoke; Wil- liam, an accountant with the Western Electric Company in its New York City offices; James Harold; Robert, an attorney of Akron, Ohio;, Clare, a teacher in the Nanti- coke public schools; Edward, a student at Bucknell Uni- versity. All have been college graduates, except the last named, now a student.
James Harold Beckley was educated in the public schools and at Bucknell University and was graduated from Jefferson Medical College at Philadelphia, Penn- sylvania, in the class of 1926. He then became an interne in the Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, where he prepared for private practice. He is a member of the State and county medical societies and of the college fraternities of Phi Gamma Delta and Phi Alpha Sigma. He has been president of the Laux Neurological Society and is a member of the Shaeffer Anatomical Society and of the Paterson Medical Society. He has been active in the work of the Strecher Neurological Society, the Graham Pediatric Society and the Morse Bio-Chemical Society. He is a qualified pharmacist and has served . with the rank of first lieutenant in the United States Army Medi- cal Reserve Corps. He is a member of St. Francis' Roman Catholic Church.
HARRY TRAVOR KUSCHKE-Conducting a gen- eral store on Center Avenue, Plymouth, Harry Travor Kuschke has won the respect and esteem of his fellow- townsmen and of the members of the community for the careful and helpful manner in which he handles his busi- ness affairs and attends to the needs of the hundreds of people who are his customers. With a sound business sense and with those elements of character which aid a man in getting on with his fellows, Mr. Kuschke has fully earned the success that is his. The son of Chris- tian B. and Margaret (Llewellyn) Kuschke, he was born in Plymouth, Pennsylvania, August 12, 1879. His father, who is still living, a retired meat merchant, was born in . Hamburg, Germany; while the mother, who died in August, 1927, was a native of Swansea, Wales.
As a boy, Harry Travor Kuschke attended the public schools and the high school of Plymouth, having been graduated from high school in 1895. Then he went to the Hillman Academy, of Wilkes-Barre, which has trained many of the leading business and professional men of this region of Pennsylvania, and was graduated from that institution in 1899. Until 1903 he was a student at Cornell University, from which he received the degree of Mechanical Engineer in that year. Fol- lowing his graduation from Cornell, he worked for three years with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, chiefly in the mechanical engineering department of that company. For six years he was with the Lackawanna Railroad, in the capacity of draftsman. Then, in 1912, he became engaged in an entirely new enterprise; for it was in that year that he started the general store which has since grown into one of the outstanding institutions of its kind in the community. The store, which he opened on Center Avenue, has continued since then at its original location. He has spared no time, effort, nor expense to maintain it as one of the really up-to-date stores of this vicinity ; and the appearance of its counters and mer -. chandise, as well as the quality of service that it renders to the public, are the results which inevitably have fol- lowed Mr. Kuschke's work.
In addition to his business activities, he takes a lead- ing part in the civic and social affairs of his town and community. Mr. Kuschke has for years been one of the ardent supporters of the Democratic party's principles and candidates, and at all times he takes an active inter- est in the political life of his municipality, State and Nation. As an active Kiwanian, he performs many serv- ices in the interests of the business men of Plymouth. As secretary of the Retail Merchants' Association of Plymouth, he is always united with all those movements which are designed to promote the business life of his town and which make for the prosperity of its people. He is a member of the Sigma Aipha Epsilon Fraternity, which he joined in his university days. His religious affiliation is with the Christian Church.
4. Harold Beckley M.D.
W. It. Doason. m. Q
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In 1904, Harry T. Kuschke was married to Mary Emmons, of Baltimore, Maryland, a daughter of Albertus W. and Ida Emmons. By this marriage there have been four children: 1. Gordon, who was born in October. 1906. 2. Virginia, who was born in August, 1909. 3. Marjorie, who was born in May, 1915. 4. Carol, who was born in May, 1920.
JOHN CARL FLEMING, M. D .- For nearly a score of years, Dr. John Carl Fleming has practiced as physician and surgeon in Dallas, Luzerne County, Dur- ing the later portion of that period he has specialized in diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. He has taken advanced work in study of the diseases in which he specializes, and is recognized throughout the profession as one of the foremost author -. ities on the subjects to which he has devoted so much time and thought. Born in Sullivan County, January 13. 1884, Dr. Fleming is the son of Isaac R. and Minerva ( Matthews ) Fleming. His father, native of Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, born in 1854, was for forty years identified with the firm of Burrows Brothers and Com- pany, extensive manufacturers of furniture, of Picture Rocks, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. During that long period he served the company as an official, and was in a measure, responsible for its prosperity. Minerva ( Matthews) Fleming, mother of Dr. Fleming, was born in Bradford County, in 1861, and died in 1924.
Dr. Fleming secured his elementary and secondary academic instruction in the public schools of Picture Rocks, where he graduated from high school with the class of 1001. He then attended the Normal School at Muncey. Lycoming County, later transferred to the Normal School at West Chester, Chester County, and completed his college preparatory work at this institu- tion in June, 1904. In the fall of that year he matric- ulated in the Medico-Chirurgical College of Philadelphia. and was graduated therefrom in 1908 as a Doctor of Medicine, at the age of twenty-four years.
After having served a year as resident physician at the State Hospital in Scranton, Lackawanna County, Dr. Fleming came to Luzerne County, and in 1909 located at Dallas, where he quickly built up a large and important practice. He continued in general practice of medicine with satisfactory success until 1925, meanwhile carry- ing on extensive studies into the specialties which he now practices. In September, 1925, he matriculated in the University of Pennsylvania Post-Graduate School of Medicine, and in June of the year following graduated in Oto-Laryngology, diseases of the car, nose and throat. One year later he was graduated from the same institu- tion in Ophthalmology, diseases of the eye. This two years' study at the premier post-graduate college, coupled with a very extensive training in general medicine and surgery, made Dr. Fleming eligible to the coveted di- ploma given by the American Board of Ear, Nose and Throat men, which diploma he subsequently acquired, after successful examination by these men, who are endeavoring to maintain a very high standing in this particular specialty.
Dr. Fleming is a member of the staff of the Nes- hitt West Side Hospital, and is on the registers of the County and State medical societies and the American Medical Association. He is active in Masonry, being a member and Past Master by Merit of George M. Dallas Lodge, No. 531, Free and Accepted Masons; member of Shekinah Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Dieu le Veut Commandery, Knights Templar, and Irem Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. His religious affiliation is with the Methodist Episcopal Church.
In May, 1918. Dr. John C. Fleming married Miriam Harris, daughter of Rev. Henry H. Harris, a well-known minister of Kingston, Luzerne County. Mrs. Fleming dicd in May. 1921, from injuries sustained in an auto- mobile accident. She left a son, Robert Louis, who was born October 25, 1919.
VESTER VIVIAN VERCOE-After he had en- gaged for a number of years as engineer, having prepared himself for this profession with work leading to the degree of Electrical Engineering. Vester Vivian Vercoc entered the automotive field, and has attained to a place of distinction within it. Today he is among the fore- most of Wilkes-Barre's executives, constantly or the alert to adapt affairs of his company to latest trends in business development. Talented and a proven success as an engineer, he has transferred the success of one field into that of a second, here finding a still greater
measure of fortune. He is one of the city's outstanding inen, and his record is of interest.
Mr. Vercoe was born at Shickshinny, Pennsylvania, November 9, 1888, son of Benjamin T. and Ida Eleanora (Ziegler) Vercoe. His father, who was born at Corn- wall, England, came to the United States early in life. He is now retired from the active affairs of a highly satisfactory career. His mother is a native of Espy, Pennsylvania.
In the public schools of Kingston, Mr. Vercoc secured a comprehensive academic preparation for advanced study. He graduated from high school there in 1904. (This school is known as the Dorranceton School, accounted one of the best in the district.) After that he attended Wyoming Seminary, whence he graduated with the class of 1908. and from which he entered Pratt Institute, School of Science and Technology. His bent had been toward things mechanical, and he now applied himself diligently to the engineering course at Pratt, from which, as indicated previously in this narrative, he took the degree of Electrical Engineering. 1911. His first posi- tion in application of what he had learned was as district manager for the Pacific Power and Light Company, at Sunnyside, State of Washington. There he remained six years, returning to Pennsylvania in 1917 to become asso- ciated in turn with several concerns in Wilkes-Barre, such as the Wales-Adder, and Owen Magnetic Company and others, and in 1921 became a salesman for Warman- Pfouts, distributors of the Ford automobile product, as salesman. This marked the turning point from the pro- fessional to business fields ; and Mr. Vercoe so succeeded as a salesmar: that in 1922 he was encouraged to form the V. V. Vercoe Motor Company, in Plymouth, where he distributed the Ford for himself. But his interest in the Warman-Pfouts organization did not relax, and in 1923 he became a member of that firm, replacing Mr. Pfcuts, with official title as secretary and full partner- ship. Subsequently the firm style was changed to Motor Twins, Mr. Vercoe continuing as secretary of the re- formed organization. He has contributed materially to the prosperity of the company, meanwhile having found it advisable to give up his direction of the V. V. Vercoe Motor Company, 1923.
Mr. Vercoe is a Republican. He supports the party's principles consistently, and has a wide influence locally in politics. He is a member of Sunnyside Lodge, No. 138 (State of Washington), Free and Accepted Masons ; Caldwell Consistory, at Bloomsburg. Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite Masons; and Irem Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is a com- municant of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Shaver- town, where he makes his residence.
Mr. Vercoe married, June 3, 1916, Vivian Martin, of Sunnyside, Washington, daughter of Jesse W. Martin, and their children are: Jean Elizabeth, born September 8. 1918; Doris Louise, born July 8, 1920; and Vester Vivian, Jr., born May 23, 1926.
HOBART W. DODSON, M. D .- Since the com- pletion of his interneship in the Germantown Hospital, Philadelphia. Dr. Hobart W. Dodson has been located in Nanticoke, where, since 1922, he has been building up a successful general practice. both medical and surgical. His offices are at No. 130 Prospect Street, and he has succeeded to much of the practice of his father, who served as a faithful physician here for more than thirty year's. He is a graduate of Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia.
Dr. Daniel W. Dodson, father of Dr. Hobart W. Dod- son, was born on North Mountain, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in 1853, and died January 14, 1922, aged sixty-nine years. He received his professional training in Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, graduating with the class of 1888, and then opened offices in Nanti- coke, where he practiced for some thirty-four years, continuing active to the time of his death. As a pro- fessional man and as a citizen he was able and progres- sive. For seven years he served as coroner of Luzerne County, and for sixteen years he was a member of the local school board. He was also a member of the board of directors of the First National Bank of Nanticoke. Professionally he was identified with the Luzerne County Medical Association and the Pennsylvania State Medical Association. Fraternally, he held membership in Nanti- coke Lodge, No. 541, Free and Accepted Masons. He married Anna Vincent, and they were the parents of one child. Dr. Hobart W. Dodson, of further mention.
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