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 77
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In the autumn of 1870, Mr. Wadhams organized a Sunday school class in the upper part of Wilkes-Barre and remained superintendent of it a number of years. The work of building the church was begun Tuesday, May 21, 1872, and on Saturday, July 20, the tenth anni- versary of Mary Catlin Wadhams' birth, the cornerstone was laid with religious ceremony. On this occasion the following paper was read, clearly expressing the motives of Mr. and Mrs. Wadhams :
These children were not permitted to live long enough to exert much influence for good in the world. We, therefore, desire to enlarge that influence by erecting this edifice for the worship of God. We feel that as our children can no more speak for Jesus here, they may have a representative to do it for them; and as they cannot go about doing good, the money that would have been theirs may be profitably spent in getting others to go about doing good for them.
Dedication of the church followed April 8, 1874, the tenth anniversary of the birth of Lynde Henderson Wad- hams. At this time Mr. Wadhams formally presented the church to the new congregation, subject to the following conditions :
First, that the same shall be kept and maintained as a place for the worship of Almighty God agreeably to the principles of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America in its doctrines, ministry, forms and usages.
Second, that the same shall be used only for religious purposes, and shall not be used for any secular pur- pose whatever.
Third, that said Memorial Church shall keep and maintain the buildings and premises in thorough order and repair.
Fourth, that the buildings and furniture be kept reasonably insured.
Fifth, that every tenth pew in the church shall remain forever free, and shall not be liable for any charge or assessment for any purpose whatever.
Sixth, that the said Memorial Church, in case of the death or the inability of the said grantors, shall keep in thorough order the lot in Hollenback Cemetery in which lie buried the said three children of the said Calvin Wadhams and Fanny D. L. Wadhams, his wife.
The first pastor was installed May 7, 1874, the sixth anniversary of the birth of Frank Cleveland Wadhams, and the institution has continued to grow and flourish ever since.
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Charles & Wolfe
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Frances D. (Lynde) Wadhams was likewise descended from distinguished ancestors, the line of descent being as follows: (Deacon) Thomas Lynde, ( 1593-94-1671), native of England, settled in what is now Charlestown, Massachusetts, married Margaret (Martin) Jordan as the second of three wives: Joseph Lynde, their son, ( 1636-1726), married three times, the first having been Sarah Davison, of Boston, and they resided at Charles- town ; Nicholas Lynde ( 1672-1703), Harvard Graduate in 1690, merchant, died in Jamaica, West Indies ; married Dorothy Stanton, of Stonington, Massachusetts ; their son, Joseph Lynde ( 1702-88), Boston Merchant, 1723 grad- uate of Harvard, married Mary Lemmon, native of Charlestown; Jonathan Lynde, their son, (1753-1822), merchant in hardware line, identified with Boston, Wor- cester, and finally Owego, New York, married a widow, Rhoda (Warner ) McIntyre, daughter of General Warner, of the Revolutionary Army, who resided at Harwich. Massachusetts; their son, Jonathan Warner Lynde, jeweler, ( 1788-1875), married Mary Ann Jerusha Alice Cleveland, granddaughter of Captain Josiah Cleveland, of the Revolutionary Army, and descendant of Governor William Bradford, of the Plymouth Colony. Their daughter, Frances Delphine Lynde, was the mother of Dr. Raymond L. Wadhams and wife of Calvin Wad- hams.
Dr. Raymond 1. Wadhams was born at Wilkes-Barre, September 25, 1872. As a boy he attended the Harry Hillman Academy, after which he entered the College of New Jersey at Princeton, and graduated with the class of 1895, following which he entered Medical School. He matriculated at the College of Physicians and Surgeons at New York City and graduated in the class of 1899 with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. He then served one year as interne in the Wilkes-Barre General Hos- pital. He has practiced his profession continuously in Wilkes-Barre since that time, with the exception of three years (1916 to 1919) when he was in Federal Service, fourteen months of which were spent with the United States Expeditionary Forces in France. He belongs to the Luzerne County Medical Society, the State Medical Society, the American Medical Association, the Asso- ciation of Military Surgeons, and the Westmoreland Club. He is a member of the Lodge No. 61, Free and Accepted Masons; Shekinah Royal Arch Chapter, No. 182; Dieu le Veut Commandery, No. 45; Irem Temple of the Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; and Caldwell Consistory, Bloomsburg, Pennsyl- vania. He is a Republican.
Dr. Wadhams married, October 18, 1900, Mary Berg- mann Dobbs, of New York City, daughter of Charles Gordon and Agnes E. (Bergmann) Dobbs. They have two daughters: I. Dorothy Lynde, wife of Harold S. Wright, of Pensacola, Florida. 2. Agnes Elizabeth, both graduates of Wellesley College.
CHARLES E. WOLFE-From a beginning as a coal miner in the Wyoming Valley of Pennsylvania, at which strenuous occupation he worked for twelve years, Charles E. Wolfe, of Plymouth, has risen to a prosperous posi- tion among the local merchants and has won the respect and admiration of a large circle of friends and patrons by reason of his many commendable qualities. Having spent the early part of his life in close contact with the labor- ing people, he learned the value of fraternal association, both as a pleasing diversion from the struggle of life and as a medium for the mutual exchange of opinion on civic affairs that he felt of utmost importance to the progress of the community in which he had spent his life and in which he is vitally interested. This and other attributes have attested his worthy citizenship and at- tracted to him a valuable clientele. His advance in the commercial field has been rapid and indicates still greater heights that will be reached by this progressive mer- chant.
He was born in Plymouth, October 4, 1892, a son of Andrew Wolfe, a miner, and of Dora (Boat) Wolfe, his mother being a native of Germany. Poth are living in Plymouth (1928). His education was acquired in the public schools of Plymouth Township and in the high school of Larksville. He then went to work in the mines and remained at that occupation for twelve years, when he abandoned it and went to Dayton, Ohio, where he worked as a painter and bricklayer, returning to Ply- mouth in 1914 and going to work in Shupp's Meat Mar- ket. There he remained until 1916, when he established himself in a meat and grocery business at No. 324 East Main Street; two years later removing to his present location at No. 306 East Main Street, which building he purchased from E. P. Dymond. He is a Republican in
politics and has served as ward committeeman, now hold- ing the office of judge of elections. He is president of the Plymouth Merchants' Association and a member of the Chamber of Commerce. His fraternal affiliations in- clude the Knights of Pythias, Junior Order United American Mechanics, Patriotic Order Sons of America and Lodge No. 125, Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He is also a member and trustee of the Kiwanis Club. He belongs to the First Reformed Church of Plymouth.
Charles E. Wolfe married, August 15, 1916, Minnie Hoffmeister, of Wilkes-Barre, daughter of George and Augusta Hoffmeister. Her father is a veteran of the Civil War, in which he served in Company D, 11th New Jersey Volunteers. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Wolfe are : I. Charles, Jr., born July 2, 1917. 2. Mildred, born April 13, 1922. 3. Robert, born September 14, 1925.
FREDERICK O. SMITH, principally identified as vice-president, director and manager of purchases of the Vulcan Iron Works, was born January 28, 1876, in Wilkes-Barre. Mr. Smith is a son of Frederick G. and Charlotte ( Rittersbach) Smith, both of whom are now deceased. Frederick G. Smith, the father, was born in Germany and came to this country during the year 1859, two years prior to the beginning of the Civil War. He volunteered for service as soon as that emergency arose, and was assigned to duty with the 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry, serving for four years with this unit and engag- ing in many of the major battles of the war with them, particularly in the South. At the end of that time he was mustered out of service with the rank of lieutenant. He then returned to Wilkes-Barre where he took up his trade as a machinist, and as such he became identified with the Vulcan Iron Works. Here he remained up until the time of his death which occurred in the sixty- seventh year of his age. At that time he was one of the officials of the company; a man . beloved by those who knew him and respected by all with whom he came in contact. He was one of the very active men in Wilkes- Barre; a staunch supporter of the Republican party and an ardent attendant of the Grant Street Presbyterian Church. He and his wife were the parents of four children : 1. Carl F., of Boston, Massachusetts, now deceased. 2. Julius, who died in childhood. 3. Frieda, who also died in childhood. 4. Frederick O. Smith, of whom more follows.
Frederick O. Smith, the third son and fourth child of Frederick G. and Charlotte ( Rittersbach) Smith, received his early education in the public schools of the community in which he was born, Wilkes-Barre. He later attended and graduated from the Harry Hillman Academy. During this latter work, when he was still but fourteen years of age, he was also apprenticed to the machinist's trade at the Vulcan Iron Works. Upon the completion of his scholastic training he at once became a part of this old established concern, where he has since remained, working in various capacities until, today, he has served for more than thirty-nine consecutive years and is now a director, vice-president, and manager of pur- chases of the company. He is also a director, vice- president and treasurer of the Wilkes-Barre Iron Manu- facturing Company, makers of mine car wheels, axles, etc., and he is also a director of the First National Bank of Wilkes-Barre.
Despite the many varied and often exacting duties of the work in which he is engaged, Mr. Smith has never- theless found time in which to take a keen interest in the civic and general affairs of his community, In his political views he is a staunch supporter of the Repub- lican party, and he has done much for the general com- mercial advancement of Wilkes-Barre. He has been almost equally active in his club and social life, and in the work of organizations pertaining to his profession as an iron and steel manufacturer. Mr. Smith is also presi- dent of the Northeastern Pennsylvania Branch of the National Metal Trades Association and a trustee of the Danville Steel Hospital; a member of the American Iron and Steel Institute and Machinery Club of New York City and of the Westmoreland, Wyoming Valley Country Club and Franklin Club of Wilkes-Barre.
Frederick O. Smith married, September 14, 1899, at Wilkes-Barre, Maude Priscilla Nagle, a daughter of George M. Nagle, of Wilkes-Barre. Mr. and Mrs. Smith became the parents of two children, both of whom are sons : 1. Ralph O., who is now identified with the Vul- can Iron Works, and who married Elizabeth Forve, of Wilkes-Barre, by her becoming the father of Jane Elin- ure. 2. Alan N., who is now identified with the First National Bank of Wilkes-Barre, and who married Bettie G. Guard of that city, who has one daughter, Sarah
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Nagle. Mr. and Mrs. Smith maintain their residence at No. 16 Riverside Drive in Wilkes-Barre, in which com- munity they attend the First Presbyterian Church.
HAROLD N. RUST-Established in 1896, the firm of Shepherd & Rust, contractors and dealers in various electrical supplies and appliances has been rated a pros- perous concern and a credit to the city of Wilkes-Barre. Its ideals and methods have been in no small part a reflection of those of Harold N. Rust, one of the mem- bers of the firm. His determination to be of wide service has not only made his business at the same time a per- sonal and community success, but has associated Mr. Rust with a variety of civic projects. He is a representa- tive citizen of Wilkes-Barre.
Harold N. Rust was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsyl- vania, August 4, 1873, son of Francis Marion and Eliza- beth C. ( Raeder) Rust. The father, born in 1839, near Frankfort, Kentucky, was a member of an old Kentucky family, and for many years interested in orange grow- ing in Florida. He died October 21, 1903. His son, sub- ject of this record, was educated in the public and high schools of Wilkes-Barre, graduating from the latter in 1890, and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, from which he graduated in 1895, with the degree of Electrical Engineer. His education was then completed by a year's tour in Europe.
When Mr. Rust returned to Wilkes-Barre in 1896, he engaged in the electrical supply and contracting business at No. 25 North Franklin Street. So progressive was his firm, that they moved to larger, and then still larger quarters, finally in 1908 purchasing the property at No. 42 West Market Street, selling this property in 1921, the property at Nos. 11-13 West Market Street was acquired, and various other lines added to a rapidly in- creasing business. By 1917 the company had increased to such size and importance as to warrant incorporation, and consequently the same was incorporated in that year under the title Shepherd Rust Company, which was a short time later amended to Shepherd-Rust Electric Company. Besides his large share in the operation of this company, Mr. Rust is associated with other im- portant business ventures. Since 1921 he has been presi- dent of the Union Savings Bank and Trust Company, organized in that year, situated at the corner of South Main and Northampton streets. He is also president of the Masonic Temple Association of Wilkes-Barre, and director of the Wyoming Valley Building and Loan Asssociation. His many-sided interests are indicated also by his able incumbency of the office of trustee to the General Hospital of Wilkes-Barre and treasurer of the Craftsmen Club. His political views are those of the Republican party. His church is the Presbyterian. His fraternal affiliations are with Lodge No. 61, Free and Accepted Masons; Shekinah Chapter No. 182, Royal Arch Masons; Dieu le Veut Commandery, No. 45, Knights Templar ; and a Scottish Rite Mason with the thirty-third degree; he is a member and Potentate of Irem Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, Wilkes-Barre. His clubs are the West- moreland, the Franklin, the Irem Temple Country Club, the Craftsmen, and Rotary. He was the first president of the Wilkes-Barre Rotary Club, and later served as district governor of International Rotary. He has been District Deputy Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons since 1013, and in 1916 directed the erection of the Masonic Temple, an under- taking mainly due to his inspiration and initiative.
In October, 1898, Harold N. Rust married Edith M. Boyd, of Wilkes-Barre, daughter of Samuel W. and Ella (Simpson) Boyd, members of an old Luzerne County family.
MIRON LUKE BRIGGS, M. D .- Through two gen- erations there has been a Doctor Briggs in Shickshinny. Son succeeded father after they they had practiced to- gether fifteen years, death severing the partnership. The work carried on through several decades by the father has been borne forward with equal skill and integrity by Miron Luke Briggs, who is today one of the foremost physicians of the Shickshinny area, Luzerne County.
Miron Luke Briggs was born in Shickshinny, Septem- ber ;, 1878. son of Dr. Jacob F. and Sarah ( Whitebread) Briggs. Dr. Jacob F. Briggs was a native of Luzerne County, born at Hobbie, in 1836. He took the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1850, from Pennsylvania College, and practiced without interruption until the time of his demise, 1919 -- a period of fifty-nine years. Sarah (White- bread) Briggs was also born at Hobbie, Pennsylvania, and survives to the present time.
In the public schools of Shickshinny, Dr. Miron Luke Briggs secured his elementary. and secondary instruction. After high school studies he had one year as student in Wyoming Seminary, then entered Jefferson Medical Col- lege, from which he took the degree of Doctor of Medi- cine in 1904, at the age of twenty-five years. That same year he began to practice with his father, and since his father's death has continued to serve an extended clien- tele. He is a member of the medical societies of county and State, and of the American Medical Association. He is one of the staff of the State Hospital at Nanti- coke, physician for Shickshinny Board of Health, vice- president of the Farmers State Bank of Shickshinny, president of the Shickshinny Water Company, and presi- dent of the Imperial Slate Blackboard Company of Wind Gap, Pennsylvania. A Republican, Doctor Briggs has consistently supported the principles and candidates of the party. He attends the Methodist Episcopal Church.
Dr. Briggs married, in 1915, Mary E. Meyer, of Boonville, Clinton County, Pennsylvania, daughter of Henry Amazon and Mary Theressa Meyer. Their chil- dren are three, a fourth having died: 1. Sarah Josephine, born January 13, 1919, 2. Miron Luke, Jr., November 16, 1921. 3. John David, November 21, 1923. Dr. Briggs and family reside at No. 56 South Main Street, and his offices are at No. 37 West Union Street.
JAMES LINCOLN MORRIS-For nearly four dec- ades James Lincoln Morris has been engaged in practice of the law, in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. His offices are located at No. 409 Coal Exchange Building, in Wilkes- Barre, and he is actively interested in the general welfare of the city in which he lives and practices his profession.
Michael W. Morris, father of Mr. Morris, was born in the village of Kinvara, County Galway, Ireland. In 1847, as a lad of seventeen years, he came to this country and settled in Hawley, Wayne County, Pennsylvania. In 1856 he left Wayne County, went to Pittston, Luzerne County, and engaged in the milling business at a place then known as Babylon, now Duryea, on the Lackawanna River, conducting the business under the name of Morris and Walsh. In 1864 Mr. Morris and his partner, R. F. Walsh, came to Wilkes-Barre and purchased the old Sterling Mills, in which they continued business until 1902, this concern being one of the oldest milling plants in the Wyoming Valley. Michael W. Morris was until 1872, a strong Republican, when he followed Horace Greeley out of that party and became a Democrat. In religion he was a Catholic and a member of St. John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church of Pittston, to the time of his death, which occurred in May, 1907, at the age of seventy-seven years. He married, in 1856, Bridget Ellen Mulligan, and came to Luzerne County that same . year, after which date he was engaged as a merchant miller in Luzerne County for fifty-five years. They were the parents of four children: I. Alice M., deceased. 2. James Lincoln, of further mention. 3. Mary S. R., who is the widow of Dr. R. H. Gibbons, of Honesdale. 4. John Williams, of Wilkes-Barre.
James Lincoln Morris, son of Michael W. and Bridget Ellen (Mulligan) Morris, was born in Pittston, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, May 12, 1860. As a boy he attended the local parochial and public schools. Later he became a student in St. Hyacinthe College, at St. Hyacinthe, Quebec, Canada, continuing his studies there from 1874 to 1877. He then entered Georgetown College, at Wash- ington, District of Columbia, matriculating in the fall of 1877. He completed his course there and was graduated in 1882. with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. Coming to Wilkes-Barre in 1882, he began the study of law in the office of E. P. and J. V. Darling. He was admitted to the practice of law in Luzerne County, April 22, 1889. Since that time he has been continuously engaged in general practice in Wilkes-Barre. From 1889 to 1895 he was the owner and editor of the Hazleton "Plain Speaker," and he has always been actively identified with those organizations which have for their aim the advance- ment of the general welfare of Wilkes-Barre. He is one of the vice-presidents of the Wilkes-Barre Community Welfare Federation, and for thirty vears has been a member of the Westmoreland Club. He is a member of the Luzerne County Bar Association, and a director of the Second National Bank of Wilkes-Barre. Politically, he gives his allegiance to the Democratic party. He is a Catholic, being a member of St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, of Wilkes-Barre.
James Lincoln Morris married, June 3, 1902, Mary M. Mulligan, daughter of James and Caroline (Van Horn) Mulligan, of Reading. Pennsylvania. Mr. and Mrs. Mor- ris have one son, Michael Joseph, who was born at Pitts-
In L. Briggs, M.
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ton, Pennsylvania, March 16, 1904, and was graduated from Georgetown College, Washington, District of Columbia, in 1922, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He married, December 16, 1926, Mary Aline Charlotte Hawkins, of Torquay, who was born in London, England.
CHARLES HOWARD MINER, M. D., is not only one of the most prominent physicians in the State of Pennsylvania, but he comes from a long line of ancestors prominent in this country and in England since the days of Edward III. It is with justifiable pride that Dr. Miner points to his forebears, for in the history of the family is a parallel to the history of the development in England up to the beginning of the early English colo- nies in New England, the winning of independence by those colonies, and the establishment and progress of the United States of America as the outcome of the valiancy of such men as the original Thomas Miner who emi- grated to Salem, Massachusetts, in the early part of 1630. The beginning of the family history is with the record of Henry Miner, a native of England who died there in 1359 noted for his loyalty to King Edward III. In recognition of his loyalty to the king, he was given his coat of arms, as stated in "An Heraldical Essay of the Surname of Miner," "He had his coat armorial gules . . . . fosse id est, cingulum militare, (because attained by valor ) betwixt three plates Argent . the crest being a battle axe, armed at both ends, Minerall."
From this Henry Miner the line comes directly through another Henry, then William, Thomas, Lodorick, Thomas who spelled his name Mynor and his son, William, who spelled his name Myner, to another William, then Cle- ment, who was the father of Thomas who came to Salem, Massachusetts, on the good ship "Arbella" in 1630. He immediately went to Charlestown, Massachusetts, joined the planters there and subscribed to the covenant. The affairs in temporal government of that plantation were administered under authority of the Established Church, so Thomas Miner joined that church and became one of the company. In 1629, Walter Palmer had come from England with his daughter, Grace, and it was she whom Thomas Miner chose for a wife. They were married on April 29, 1633. A year later, Thomas Miner and his wife moved to Saybrook in the colony of Connecticut with the company of the younger John Winthrop. In 1643 he accompanied Winthrop to Pequot, now New London. In 1646 he was elected a townsman, and ad- mitted to the rights accorded freemen who were ap- proved. In 1647 he was chosen of the selectmen, and in the same year was appointed by the general court as assistant with others to have power as a court "for the settling of some way for deciding small differences." In the same year he was appointed a military sergeant with power to call forth and train soldiers. In 1650 and 1651, he was deputy to the general court. In 1653, he joined the settlement at Stonington where he held im- portant public offices and in 1677 he was of the founders of the Church of Christ. He died on October 3, 1690. His wife died the same year. They had eleven children. It is through their fourth son, Clement, that the line comes directly to the Pennsylvania Miners. The line runs after Clement to his son, Clement, then Hugh and then Seth. The sons of Seth Miner who was an ensign, and born in . New London, Connecticut, in 1742, were Asher and Charles. Seth Miner held other prominent positions besides being ensign in the Connecticut militia and was a member of the Susquehanna Land Company which gave him a claim to land in that territory which was so long in dispute between the Pennsylvania proprie- tary and the colony of Connecticut. It was through his influence and to look after his claims that his son, Charles was deputied to come out to Susquehanna to look after his father's interests.
Asher Miner, the elder brother of Charles Miner, after serving as an apprentice on the "Gazette" and "Commer- cial Intelligencer" of New London, and continuing to follow his trade, serving for one year as a journeyman printer in New York, was persuaded by his brother, Charles, to come to the Wyoming Valley and continue his trade. He came to Wilkes-Barre and worked for a while on the Wilkes-Barre "Gazette" until it ceased pub- lication. He then founded the "Luzerne County Fed- eralist," the first number of which was published on January 5, 1801. A year later he formed a partnership with his brother, Charles, which continued until 1804, when he sold his interest to Charles and moved to Doyles- town, Pennsylvania, where he published the first number of the "Pennsylvania Correspondent and Advertiser," a strong paper with equally strong Federalist leanings. It
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