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 VI > Part 34
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Francis Blair, paternal grandfather of Dr. Blair, was a resident of New York City, New York, and came to Luzerne County, Pennsyl- vania, in the early fifties, as a contractor, to build the old "gravity road" from Honesdale, Pennsylvania, to Pittston, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. He married Ellen Slavin, of
New York City, and among their children was Brice S. Blair, of further mention.
Brice S. Blair, son of Francis and Ellen (Slavin) Blair, was born in Candor, Tioga County, New York, December 25, 1833, and died December 3, 1921. Like his father, he was a contractor, and he was an important factor in the development of roads in this section of the State. He built the Blooms- burgh Division of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, the Sullivan Railroad, a line built from Bloomsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the Jefferson branch of the Delaware and Hudson Railroad. When electricity began to take its place as a means of transportation, Mr. Blair, ever progressive and abreast of the times, built the first electric railway in the Wyoming Valley, for the Wyoming Trac- tion Company. He was a thirty-second degree Mason, belonging to all Scottish Rite bodies. Mr. Blair married (first) Marinda Davenport, and they had a daughter, Nellie, deceased, who married James W. Vandling; he mar- ried (second) Florence Davenport, a sister of his first wife, both wives of the old Connecti- cut family already mentioned. Their chil- dren were: Dr. Lovisa I., of whom further; Cora May, deceased; Estella, who married Richard Willis Goslin; Maude, who married Richard W. Owen, and Jeanette, deceased, who married Wilson M. Long.
Dr. Lovisa I. Blair, daughter of Brice S. and Florence (Davenport) Blair, was born in Plymouth, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, and received her early school training in the local public schools. Later, she continued her studies in Wyoming Seminary, in Kingston, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, and then be- came a student in Syracuse University, New York. Having determined to enter the medi- cal profession she then entered the Women's Medical College, in Philadelphia, where she completed her course with graduation with the class of 1912, receiving at that time the degree of Doctor of Medicine. After serving an interneship of one year in the College Hospital, she returned to Luzerne County and located in Wilkes-Barre, where she opened her office at No. 342 South River Street, and where she has since been successfully engaged in practice. She is a member of the Luzerne County Medical Society, the Pennsylvania Medical Society, and the American Medical Association, and has made for herself an assured place among the able members of the medical profession of this State. She is also a member of the staff of the Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, laryngologist for the State Clinic at Wilkes-Barre, and medical examiner for the girls' department of Wyoming Sem- inary, at Kingston, also chief medical exam- iner for the Wilkes-Barre city schools. She is a member of the Dial Rock Chapter, Daugh- ters of the American Revolution, the Penn- sylvania Society of Colonial Dames, the Wyoming Valley Women's Club, of Wilkes- Barre; and of the College Women's Club, of Wilkes-Barre. Dr. Blair takes an active interest in all civic affairs, and like her worthy progenitors, is influential in whatever cause she espouses. She has a host of friends in this section of Luzerne County, and is highly esteemed among her professional associates.
GEORGE M. WALL-For many years prominent in the business and civic life of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, George M. Wall, who makes his home in Kingston and is widely known throughout the Wilkes- Barre district, has been serving since the
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fall of 1927 as treasurer of this county. In this work he has been eminently successful, as was the case with all of his previous endeavors, with the result that he is highly esteemed and respected in the community for his achievements in both public and private life.
Mr. Wall was born in Plains, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, on July 31, 1870, son of John and Margaret A. (Martin) Wall, both of whom are now deceased. His father came to America from England in 1865, and in this country was for many years a miner in the employ of the Lehigh Valley Coal Company. His wife, Margaret A. (Martin) Wall, a resi- dent of Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, was also a native of England, although he mar- ried her after he came to the United States.
George M. Wall spent his boyhood days in Plains, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, where he attended the public schools until he was twelve years of age. Then he became a coal picker at the mines of the Lehigh Valley Coal Company, with which he remained until he was sixteen years old. In 1886 he made a change, however, and began his long con- nection with the Sheldon Axle and Spring Company, which lasted until, in the spring of 1927, the company went out of business. Mr. Wall served this organization first as timekeeper. His early experiences in earn- ing his living in the mines of the Lehigh Valley Coal Company had inured him to hard work and self-dependence; and, ambitious and determined to make his way in the world by honest effort and sound ability, he rendered service of such a quality as to win him a succession of promotions. While filling effi- ciently the special position in which he was at the time placed, he always prepared him- self for the position next higher in the scale and so fitted himself to take advantage of whatever opportunities offered themselves. Strictly a self-made man, he worked his way through all departments of the Sheldon Axle and Spring Company, and, after twenty-six years of faithful service, was made, in 1912, vice-president and general manager of the corporation. He continued in this dual ca- pacity until 1925, when he resigned the managership, serving from then onward as vice-president only. In the spring of 1927 the Sheldon Axle and Spring Company, after a long and useful period of existence, during which Mr. Wall played so important a part in its affairs, went out of business, leaving him free to take upon himself public responsi- bilities which theretofore he had not felt free to accept. So it was that, in the fall of the same year, 1927, he was elected treasurer of Luzerne County, an office which, since that time, he has filled with credit to himself and advantage to the community, and into which he has put the same full measure of enthusiasm and devotion that has character- ized every enterprise which he has under- taken.
In his political sympathies Mr. Wall is a staunch Republican; and, although he never sought public office before he became a can- didate for the treasurership of Luzerne County, he has always been a public-spirited citizen, willing to contribute to the advance- ment of the general welfare of the city in which he has lived for the greater part of his life. He has maintained, also, several business connections, being a member of the board of directors of the Vulcan Iron Works, of Wilkes-Barre: and the Second National Bank, of Wilkes-Barre. He is also a member of the board of directors of the Young Men's Christian Association. Fraternally he is identified with the Free and Accepted Ma- sons, in which he is affiliated with the Lodge
No. 61, of Wilkes-Barre; the Shekinah Chap- ter of Royal Arch Masons; the Dieu le Veut Commandery of Knights Templar; Caldwell Consistory of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, of Bloomsburg, in which he holds the thirty-second degree; and Irem Temple of the Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. Mr. Wall is also a member of the Westmoreland Club, of Wilkes-Barre, and his religious faith is that of the Metho- dist Episcopal Church, in Plains, Luzerne County, and is a trustee and superintendent of the Sunday school. At one time he was president of the Plains Township School Board, as well as a director of the Central Poor District.
George M. Wall married, on September 29, 1897, Kate R. Ross, of Plains, Pennsylvania, daughter of Nathan and Margaret (Mc- Clellan) Ross. Mr. and Mrs. Wall are the parents of three children, a daughter and two sons: 1. Margaret Marian, of Wilkes- Barre, who became the wife of Robert B. Baird, and they have one daughter, Janet Wall Baird. 2. John Seal, a graduate of Syra- cuse University, of Syracuse, New York. 3. Ross Frazer, a student at Princeton Univer- sity, of Princeton, New Jersey, class of 1929.
FULLER L. DAVENPORT, D. D. S .- For over a quarter of a century Dr. Fuller L. Daven- port, has been engaged in dental practice in Wilkes-Barre, with offices at No. 524 in the Miners Bank Building. He has for years been known as a skilled dental surgeon and as a public-spirited citizen, and he has a host of friends in this section of the State.
Dr. Davenport is a descendant of one of the oldest families of Connecticut, of Eng- lish origin, whose members were among the first settlers of that State. Of this Connecti- cut family, Thomas Davenport, ancestor of Dr. Davenport, came to the Wyoming Valley, with his brother Robert, among the first settlers here, and both brothers took part In the battle and massacre of Wyoming, July 3, 1778. Oliver Davenport, a descendant of Thomas, mentioned above, lived in Plymouth, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, and among his children was Edwin Davenport, who married Mary McAlarney, now deceased. They were the parents of the following chil- dren: Hon. Stanley W. Davenport, who was at one time Congressman from Luzerne County; Andrew Livingston, of Wilkes- Barre; Ward P., deceased; Julia Ella, wife of George H. Flanagan, cashier of the Wyo- ming National Bank; James M .; Liva Ran- som, wife of Donald A. MacCrea, of Little Rock, Arkansas; Lloyd U., deceased; Brice Blair, who was killed at the age of twelve years by being thrown from a horse: and Fuller L., of further mention. The father of this family, Edwin Davenport, was for many years engaged in business as a mer- chant in Luzerne County.
Dr. Fuller L. Davenport, son of Edwin and Mary (McAlarney) Davenport, was born in Plymouth, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, November 3, 1877, and grew to manhood in Plymouth. As a boy he attended the local public schools, and then prepared for college in Wyoming Seminary in Kingston, Penn- sylvania, after which he entered the dental department of the University of Pennsyl- vania, from which he was graduated with the class of 1903, receiving the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery. Upon the com- pletion of his professional training he re- turned to Luzerne County, and located in Wilkes-Barre, where he has since been suc- cessfully engaged in practice. He is a mem- ber of the Luzerne County Dental Society, the Susquehanna Dental Society, the Penn-
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sylvania Dental Society, and the American Dental Association, being well known among his professional associates as a skilled dental surgeon. Politically he gives his support to the principles and the candidates of the Democratic party, and though a public- spirited citizen he prefers to serve the com- munity in private capacity, rather than as a public official. He is a member of the Westmoreland Club, and is always a wel- come gnest at social gatherings. While a student at the University of Pennsylvania, he was a member of the crew of 1899-1900 which won the races for the University at Pough- keepsie, New York, and also of the crew which competed in all the Henly races at Henly, England, in 1901. His religious affilia- tion is with the Protestant faith.
Dr. Fuller L. Davenport married Mary West Manll, of Lewes, Delaware, daughter of Franklin C. and Victoria (West) Manll. Dr. and Mrs. Davenport are the parents of two children: Elizabeth West and Julia Ellen. On the maternal side Dr. Davenport is a descendant of Captain Samuel Ransom, a soldier of the Revolution, who was killed in the Wyoming Massacre, July 3, 1778.
REV. JOHN J. CURRAN, pastor of the St. Mary's Catholic Church at Wilkes-Barre, and one of the leading officers of the Catholic Church in Eastern Pennsylvania, was born June 20, 1859, in Wayne County, Pennsyl- vania. Father Curran is a son of John and Helen (McKeone) Curran, both of whom are now deceased. John Curran, the father, came to this country from Ireland about 1847. He was for a number of years a miner in Eastern Pennsylvania. By his marriage to Helen Mc- Keone he became the father of ten children, of whom nine lived to maturity: 1. Thomas, deceased. 2. Jane. 3. Mary. 4. Ann. 5. John J., of whom further. 6. Bartley, deceased. 7. Anthony, deceased 8 Helen, married Charles Hoban, who is now the assistant superintendent of public schools for the State of Pennsylvania. 9. William, resides in Wilkes-Barre. 10. Patrick, died in childhood.
John J. Curran, the second son and fifth child of John and Helen (McKeone) Curran, was about seven years of age when his par- ents removed to Avoca, in Luzerne County, and it was here that he received his primary education. While he was still but eight years of age, however, he was put to work as a slate picker at the Avoca Mines of the Penn- sylvania Coal Company. He remained there as a breaker driver boy for over eight years, attending night schools in the meantime, for he was an ambitious lad. When he was six- teen years of age he returned to the public schools, and thus obtained two more years of schooling, at the end of which time he entered the Wyoming Seminary at Kingston, in Lu- zerne County. There he was graduated with especially high marks in both English and mathematics. He studied next at St. Vincent College, Latrobe, Pennsylvania, remaining there for about three years and graduating in 1882. In the fall of this same year he enrolled as a student at the Grand Seminary at Montreal, Dominion of Canada, where he studied for some five years, in preparation for the ministry. He was ordained as a priest in 1887 by the Rt. Rev. William O'Hara, in the Scranton Cathedral, and he was then appointed as assistant pastor of the St. Rose Church at Carbondale, Pennsylvania. Father Curran remained there for abont eight years; and then in 1895 was appointed to locate and become the first pastor of the Holy Savior parish at East End, Wilkes-Barre. Father Curran performed this task with a will, and so great was the result of his achievement
that he was able to build and found this church, and to serve in it, as well, for the ensuing twenty-four years. Starting with only a few members, he built it up to include more than twenty-five hundred souls. In recogni- tion of his ability and the love and esteem in which he was held, he was appointed, in 1919, to the pastorate of St. Mary's Church on South Washington Street, in Wilkes-Barre. In this latter work, he has been charged with the accomplishment of many improvements, and he has, as well, built a fine parish house. The interior of this beautiful church is one of the finest examples of religious decoration and equipment in all Luzerne County. The parish numbers slightly more than ten thousand souls, the largest membership of any church in Wyoming Valley.
Father Curran is spoken of as one of the. most active priests in the Valley, and one of the most greatly beloved. He was particu- larly instrumental in promoting and build- ing the Misericordia College at Dallas, In Luzerne County, and this institution is now under the competent charge of the Sisters of Mercy. He also took an important part in the promotion of funds and equipment for the new wing of the Mercy Hospital at Wilkes- Barre, and this wing is also under the super- vision of the Sisters of Mercy. He was one of the prime movers in the organizing and establishing of the St. Patrick's Catholic Church and parish in South Wilkes-Barre. Father Curran has long been a strong sup- porter of the temperance movement since his childhood days, and for the past twelve years he has taken an active part in the work of the Anti-Saloon League. During the early years of his pastorate at the East End Church at Wilkes-Barre he administered the total abstinence pledge to his entire con- gregation. Even greater than this, however, is the great good Father Curran has brought about for the canse of the miners, the men who toil deep down in the bowels of the earth, mining the coal. For more than thirty- five years he has stood as an ardent sup- porter of the Cause and Rights Bill of the Miners. During the great anthracite strike of 1902 he acted as mediator with President John Mitchell, of the Miners' Union, and President Theodore Roosevelt, endeavoring to bring about a compromise settlement with its ensuing end to the long drawn-out con- flict. In fact, he has assisted as an advisor on both sides of the controversy in practically all of the anthracite strikes since the year 1900. His association with John Mitchell and President Roosevelt at this time created a friendship between Father Curran and these two men that only death has severed. Of all the men in the Wyoming Valley today, there is not one more universally. beloved than Father John J. Curran.
HOMER B. WILCOX. M. D .- One of the leading physicians of Kingston and of the Wyoming Valley, Dr. Homer B. Wilcox has long possessed the respect and esteem of his fellow-citizens, especially of those among them who are his patients and who have learned to appreciate the skill and gentleness with which he goes about his professional duties. Not only for his excellence in the medical profession is he highly regarded in Kingston and its environs, but for the splen- did qualities of character that are manifest in his performance of his work.
Descended from an old Pennsylvania fam- ily, Dr. Wilcox is a son of Chester B. and Jennie R. (Major) Wilcox, the former dying at the age of sixty-two years, the latter still surviving, although she has attained an ad- vanced age, having been born in 1851. Dr.
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Wilcox's father, Chester B. Wilcox, was a son of Elias Bowen and Nancy (Maxfield) Wilcox, whose ancestors were among the early settlers and were engaged in the battle and massacre of Wyoming on July 3, 1778. Elias Bowen Wilcox, Dr. Wilcox's grand- father on his father's side of the family, was born in Plains, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in 1818, and died at the age of eighty-six years. He and his wife were the parents of three children: Mary, who married Alexander Ferguson; Chester, who was Dr. Wilcox's father; and Emma, who died in childhood. Elias Bowen, the grandfather, was a brick- maker by trade, and was prominent as a con- tractor in this part of Pennsylvania. On the maternal side of his family, Dr. Wilcox's grandfather was Robert Major, who married Sarah Ann Adelman. Born in England in 1808, he sailed from his native land in 1821 with his parents, and came to Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. They were thirty- seven days on the ocean in making their voyage to the United States, and settled in Wyoming, Luzerne County. Dr. Wilcox's great-grandparents on his maternal side were Thomas and Mary (Britton) Major.
Chester B. and Jennie R. (Major) Wilcox, Dr. Wilcox's parents, had four children: 1. Dr. Homer B., of further mention. 2. Bertha, who died at the age of sixteen years. 3. Martha W., who became the wife of Carl E. Bell, of Pittston, Pennsylvania. 4. Dorothy, who died at the age of seven years.
Homer B. Wilcox, who was born on August 7, 1877, in Plymouth, Pennsylvania, grew to manhood in Kingston. While a boy, he at- tended the public schools there, and was graduated from the high school in the class of 1891. Then he became a student at the Wyoming Seminary, in Kingston, from which he was graduated in the class of 1895. His professional work he took at the University of Pennsylvania, from which he was gradu- ated in the class of 1901, receiving the de- gree of Doctor of Medicine. Until 1927, he conducted a general medical practice in Kingston; but in that year, he received from the University of Pennsylvania a special de- gree in Urology. Since that time, Dr. Wilcox has been a specialist in Urology; and in this capacity he has rendered valuable service to the community in and near Kingston.
In addition to his own practice, Dr. Wilcox is keenly interested in the affairs of his pro- fession. He is a member of the American Medical Society, the Pennsylvania State Medi- cal Society, the Lehigh Valley Medical Society, and the Luzerne County Medical Society. Taking at all times an active part in political affairs, he is identified with the Republican party, whose principles and candidates he staunchly supports. He is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, in which order he is affiliated with the Kingston Lodge, No. 397; the Shekinah Chapter, No. 182, of Royal Arch Masons; the Dieu le Veut Commandery, No. 45, Knights Templar; and Irem Temple, of the Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He also belongs to the Irem Temple Country Club. He is affiliated with the Kingston Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and is a member of the staff of the Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, where he is a specialist in Urology.
In June, 1908, Dr. Wilcox was married to Anna Cameron Harter, of Berwick, Pennsyl- vania, a daughter of George W. and Rachael (Lockhart) Harter. Dr. and Mrs. Wilcox are the parents of four children: 1. Robert Bowen, who is a graduate of the Wyoming Seminary, of Kingston, and now in Lafayette College, class of 1932. 2. Marian Lockhart, graduate of Wyoming Seminary. 3. Homer Bowen, Jr.,
class of 1931, high school. 4. Emily Harter, attending grammar school. Dr. Wilcox and his family reside at No. 165 South Maple Avenue, Kingston.
Dr. Wilcox studied music for years in the Wyoming Seminary. He was organist in the Presbyterian Church 1895-96-97; also in the Seminary Chapel for the same length of time.
JOHN A. BURTON-Industry, character, a set purpose and a full faith in oneself have brought their reward to John A. Burton, of Kingston, who, without a dollar to begin, has made his way to the topmost branch of the local commercial tree and finds himself one of the most respected citizens of the community. He has done this in a compar- atively few years, always industrious yet taking time from his base of operations to lend what assistance he might to other activ- ities. He has been a devoted churchman, a fair competitor in business, a staunch friend, a citizen faithful to the tenets of his civic duties. He has helped to build other works while he was building his own and has ever taken a sincere interest in fraternal and so- cial organizations with which he has become affiliated. In short, John A. Burton is one of the standard citizens of our community, in whom it takes a justifiable pride.
He was born in Carbondale, Pennsylvania, March 23, 1875, a son of John and Rosa (Cam- mack) Burton. John Burton was a native of Virginia, the father of four children, all of whom are deceased save his namesake son. He conducted a store in Kingston, whence he came in his youth, for many years and died here at the age of sixty-nine. The present John was educated in the Kingston public schools and was graduated from the Wilkes-Barre Business College. He then be- came associated with the F. M. Kirby Com- pany's stores, where he remained for seven years. In the spring of 1918 he established himself in business, opening a variety store, which he has ever since conducted. In poli- tics he is a Republican, in religion a Metho- dist Episcopalian and a member of the official board of the Kingston church for many years. He also is a member of the Quarterly Con- ference Board of the Methodist Episcopal Church, served for three years as president of the Bible class and was assistant super- intendent of the Sunday school for ten years. He is an honorary member of the Kingston Fire Department and is affiliated with the Kingston Lodge, No. 395, Order of Free and Accepted Masons. He also belongs to Kings- ton Lodge, No. 709, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is Past Grand, and to Kingston Lodge, No. 234, Patriotic Order Sons of America. He holds membership in Wilkes- Barre Lodge, No. 109, Benevolent and Pro- tective Order of Elks, and in the Kingston Business Men's Association.
Mr. Burton married, at White Haven, Penn- sylvania, June 15, 1904, Nellie Christy, daugh- ter of Charles and Nellie Christy. They have one child, Virginia Eleanor.
LUTHER M. KNIFFEN-Like his father before him, Luther M. Kniffen is intensively concerned in the welfare of Wilkes-Barre, and is here accounted an outstanding and substantial citizen. The mortuary estab- lishment of which he is the head was estab- lished by his father, and is the oldest estab- lishment of its size and kind in the city. Luther M. Kniffen is a son of Mayor Lewis P. and Katherine Gertrude (Reick) Kniffen; and Lewis P. Kniffen was born in Dallas Township, Luzerne County, in the year 1858 (died on December 6, 1924), son of Charles E. Kniffen, who came to Wilkes-Barre in the
Servis P. Puffan.
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second quarter of the nineteenth century. Charles E. Kniffen engaged in business as general contractor, and early established the family name among those honorably held in the county. He was the father of six chil- dren: Charles, Jr., Frank, Emma, Lewis P., Grace, and Richard, of whom all were de- ceased in 1928, save Richard Kniffen, who resides in Atlantic City.
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