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 46
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raphy ), William Aston has contributed in no small degree to its sound financial condition and continued prosperity, and he is regarded as one of Wilkes-Barre's most able business men.
Mr. Aston makes his home at Kingston, and both here and in Wilkes-Barre, he has been active in the community life. He is a member of the Wilkes-Barre Rotary Club, and his hearty support can always be counted on for worthy civic and benevolent enter- prises. Mr. Aston is affiliated fraternally with the Free and Accepted Masons, and in this order is a member of Lodge No. 61, Shekinah Chapter of the Royal Arch Masons, Dieu le Veut Commandery, No. 45, of the Knights Templar, and Irem Temple of the Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He also belongs to Irem Temple Country Club. Mr. Aston is president of the local chapter, Associated General Contractors. In political affairs, Mr. Aston supports the principles and candidates of the Republican party. He with his family worship in the faith of the Presbyterian Church, and is a member of the Westminster Church of Wilkes-Barre, of which he is one of the trustees.
In 1913, William Aston married Blanche Dodson, of Wilkes-Barre, daughter of Wil- liam E. and Alice (Chapin) Dodson, of this city. Mr. and Mrs. Aston are the parents of one son, William, Jr., who was born on Feb- ruary 16, 1924. The family residence at Kingston is situated on Westmoreland Ave- nue.
ERNEST ASTON-A resident of Wilkes- Barre, Pennsylvania, for many years, Ernest Aston is widely known as a mason and contractor, a member of the Aston Brothers Construction Company, and a progressive business man. He has devoted himself entirely to work in the building and con- struction field, and his long experience and genuine ability have proved of the greatest value to his company, of which he is the vice-president.
Mr. Aston was born on September 23, 1886, at Wilkes-Barre. His father, Job B. Aston, born in England in 1845, died in 1903, was also engaged in building work, being a brick layer by trade. The mother before her mar- riage was Jamimma Titley, born in England in 1849, and died in 1911.
Ernest Aston attended the Wilkes-Barre public schools, and when he completed his education, learned the mason's trade in which he has since been engaged. In 1921, in association with his brother, William Aston, (see preceding biography), he established the firm of W. and E. Aston, mason contractors, who did a very successful business under this name in Wilkes-Barre for a period of six years. At the end of this time, in 1927, this company merged with the Aston Brothers Construction Company, established by Rich- ard and Albert Aston in 1906, and of the new firm Ernest Aston became vice-president, in which position he has since remained. As a man of long experience in the work, his advice on matters of policy and on specific problems which arise, carries extreme weight in the company's council, in which he plays a prominent part.
Politically, Mr. Aston is a member of the Republican party, while he and his family attend Firwood Methodist Episcopal Church, at Wilkes-Barre. Among his fellow-towns- men he is highly esteemed as a public- spirited citizen, who may be counted upon to support movements in the best interest of the community.
In 1910, Ernest Aston married Myrtle Barn-
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hardt, of Ashley, Pennsylvania, daughter of William and lda Barnhardt, of that place. Of this marriage two children have been born: I. Marie, born in 1911. 2. Catherine, who was born in 1914. The Aston home is situated at No. 71 New Alexander Street, Wilkes-Barre
JOSEPH B. GABRIO-In the educational field of Luzerne County the name of Joseph B. Gabrio is well and favorably known, for Mr. Gabrio has secured for himself the high- est degree of respect and esteem, not only for his attributes as a scholar but also for the fact that he has attained his present high position by his own unaided efforts.
Mr. Gabrio was born in Avondale, Luzerne County, March 7, 1870, the son of Joseph E. and Charity A. (Sites) Gabrlo, both natives of Luzerne County. The founder of the fam- ily in this country was Francis Gabrio, the grandfather of Joseph B. Gabrio of this rec- ord, who came to this country from Canada in the early years of the last century. He located at Eckley, Luzerne County, where he operated a blacksmith shop. He served in the Mexican War and in the Civil War, in which latter struggle he was wounded. He held a commission as captain, and his three sons served with him throughout the campaign. Upon his return to Luzerne County after the war he was appointed a justice of the peace. His son, Joseph E. Gabrio, the father of Jos- eph B., of this record, spent his life in Lu- zerne County, working at his trade of black- smith, and becoming one of the solid men of his community. He had a family of six children, as follows: 1. William F. 2. Hattle M. 3. George L. 4. Joseph B. 5. Frank P. 6. Rhoda L. He died at the age of forty- eight years as a result of heart trouble due to his exertions in the Civil War. He had served continuously for three years and three months.
Joseph B. Gabrio was obliged to give up his educational aims in his early life, owing to the death of his father, and at the age of eleven years he started out as a "breaker boy." When he was fourteen years of age he was admitted into the Soldiers' Orphanage, where he remained for two years, eagerly absorbing all the knowledge he could acquire. On leaving the orphanage he worked at vari- ous occupations, spending all his leisure time in study and at night school. When but seventeen years of age he went before the school board and applied for a license as a teacher. This was granted to him and he began to teach in the district schools of Luzerne County and in the adjoining county of Carbon. He served for six years as a teacher in the schools of Hazle Township, and previously in other schools until on June 1, 1895, he took over the superinten- dency of the school of Foster Township, to which office he had been elected. In June, 1899 he was elected superintendent of Hazie Township schools and this position of re- sponsibility and trust he now holds, having been elected to the office eight times and is now serving his thirty-fourth year as a com- missional superintendent by the State of Pennsylvania, and his commission extends until July, 1930. He is without doubt the dean of all school superintendents in the State of Pennsylvania, and has ever had the fullest support and encouragement from his school board. He is a member of the National Education Association, as well as of the Pennsylvania State Educational Association.
Mr. Gabrio is a Past Exalted Ruler of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, being affiliated with Hazleton Lodge, No. 200;
is a Past Chancellor of the Knights of Pythias; and a member of Aerie, No. 193, of the Fraternal Order of Eagles. He is a mem- ber of the Travel Club of New York, and a trustee and member of the board of the Hazleton Public Library, of which he was one of the organizers. He served as a member of the Hazleton City Council as well as on the State Board of Examiners of several of the State Normal Schools of Pennsylvania. His religious affiliations are with St. Peter's Episcopal Church, of Hazleton.
REUBEN H. HOFFMAN, partner In the realty firm of Goeringer and Hoffman, devel- opers of the Hillcrest View subdivision at Shavertown, is one of the public-spirited citizens about Wilkes-Barre, who has had much to do with the development and prog- ress of Luzerne County in recent years. Intensely interested in civic progress, Mr. Hoffman does not hesitate to expend his time and talents freely upon projects looking toward community betterment. He has a wide acquaintance throughout the county, especially among members of fraternal orders in which he has held office and occupied a significant place for many years.
Born in Gowen, Luzerne County, April 26, 1882, Mr. Hoffman is the son of Reuben and Grace (McGlinn) Hoffman, the latter born at Hazleton, Pennsylvania, in 1858. The father was born in Blackcreek Township, Luzerne County, in 1857, and was engaged in business as a rock contractor in Glen Lyon, Pennsylvania, until his death in 1916. Their son, Reuben H. Hoffman, attended the public grade and high schools of Newport Township, graduating from the latter with the class of 1902. He was employed in the coal breaker and in the mines until he was twenty-one years of age, meanwhile pursuing further studies in the Wilkes-Barre Exten- sion School of the Wharton School of Ac- counting and Finance. A member of the first class to be graduated by the school in 1916, Mr. Hoffman did clerical work for several Wilkes-Barre concerns until 1922, when he and Harry Goeringer formed a partnership to conduct a real estate and insurance busi- ness with offices in the Liberty Bank Build- ing. They have handled numerous transac- tions, with the Hillcrest View development as their outstanding accomplishment. Re- publican in politics, Mr. Hoffman is frater- nally affiliated with Nanticoke Lodge, No. 541, Free and Accepted Masons, of which he is Past Master; also Justice Council, No. 307, at Glen Lyon, Junior Order United Amer- ican Mechanics, of which he is a Past Coun- cillor, and the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks. Mr. Hoffman is an active and interested member of St. Clements Epis- copal Church, in which he is president of the Laymen's Association.
In February, 1907, Mr. Hoffman married Mary G. Lohman, daughter of Whitney and Elizabeth (Mellon) Lohman. They became the parents of two children: 1. Leonard P., born in February, 1908, who is now associated with the Pennsylvania Tobacco Company. 2. Robert J., born in September, 1910; is in the City Engineering Department of the city of Wilkes-Barre.
HARRY WILLIAM MONTZ-Member of a family having its antecedents in Switzerland and for somewhat more than two hundred years established in Pennsylvania, Harry W. Montz is now (1929) mining engineer for the Lehigh Valley Coal Company, with offices in Wilkes-Barre.
Harry W. Montz was born at Lehighton,
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Carbon County, Pennsylvania, on January 12, 1885, a son of William H. and Susan (Dilcher) Montz, the father living aged eighty-five, the mother deceased. The Montz family is one of the old families of Pennsylvania, hav- ing come from Switzerland to Pennsylvania in 1726, settling in Northampton County. William H. Montz was general foreman of railroad shops at Lehighton for many years, and was the father of five children: An- zionette, married George E. Gray, of Lehigh- ton; Carolina and Mary, who died in infancy; Harry William, of whom further; and Cleo- phas A., who resides in Lancaster, Pennsyl- vania.
Harry W. Montz attended the public schools of Lehighton, and afterwards entered Penn- sylvania State College, where he graduated in 1907 with the degree of Bachelor of Science. Soon after his graduation from col- lege he entered the employ of the H. C. Frick Coke and Coal Company, at Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and later became associated with the same company located at Union- town, Fayette County, Pennsylvania. He left the Frick company to join the engineer- ing corps of the Kingston Coal Company, at Wilkes-Barre. On April 1, 1909, he left the Kingston company and entered the engineer- ing corps of the Lehigh Valley Coal Com- pany, and in 1912 became division engineer of the Wyoming Division of that organiza- tion. He was division engineer until 1916, when he was made mining engineer; and in 1917 became division superintendent of the company's Hazleton unit, Luzerne County. In 1921 he was transferred to Wilkes-Barre as assistant general manager, which office he occupied until 1923, when he became the company's chief mining engineer. Mr. Montz's interests are in the main scientific, and he is a very active member of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engi- neers; he was a director of the Freeland Mining and Mechanical Institute from 1918 to 1928, when he resigned; he also has great attachment for Wilkes-Barre, and is a mem- ber and director of the Wilkes-Barre-Wyo- ming Valley Chamber of Commerce, and the Wilkes-Barre Rotary Club, of which he was president 1928-29. During 1916 and 1917 he was a member of the City Planning Com- mission. Fraternally, he is affiliated with Lehighton Lodge, No. 621, Free and Accepted Masons, Hazle Chapter, No. 277, Royal Arch Masons, Mount Vernon Commandery, No. 73, Knights Templar at Hazleton, and Irem Tem- ple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine of Wilkes-Barre: he is a member of the Irem Temple Country Club, the Frank- lin Club, the Hazleton Country Club, Wilkes- Barre Craftsmen's Club, and from 1924 until 1926 was president of the Alumni Association of Pennsylvania State College. In 1916 and 1917, while living in Luzerne Borough, he was a member of the school board, which membership was terminated by his transfer to Hazleton, and while at Hazleton in the employ of the Lehigh Valley Coal Company he became a charter member of the Hazle- ton Rotary Club, which membership also was terminated when he returned to Wilkes- Barre in 1921.
Harry W. Montz married, on June 23, 1909, Laura M. Honeywell, of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, daughter of Nelson and Frances (Nafus) Honeywell. Mrs. Montz is a descendant of an old family who settled in Pennsylvania in the 1700's. She is a member of the West Side Woman's Club and was secretary at its inception; a member of the Wilkes-Barre Woman's Club; and is an active member and treasurer of the West Side Visiting Nurse Association. Mr. and Mrs.
Montz are the parents of two children, Wil- liam Curtis and Robert Wayne. Both Mr. and Mrs. Montz are affiliated with the Pres- byterian Church of Kingston.
FRANK L. SCOTT-Introduced to the busl- ness life of Wilkes-Barre at the age of six- teen, when he was office boy in the employ of the Lehigh Valley Coal Company, Frank L. Scott in 1918 became purchasing agent for that organization, and at the present (1929) has served it for thirty-nine years, being In point of period of service one of the oldest men in the company.
Frank L. Scott was born at Plains, Luzerne County, on January 17, 1875, a son of John TV. and Alice (McNeil) Scott, deceased, both born in Luzerne County. John W. and Alice (McNeil) Scott were the parents of nine chll- dren: Luella; Frank L., of whom later; Bessie, deceased; William, deceased; Burton; H. Lee; John W .; Harry; and Helen.
Frank L. Scott received his education in the public schools of Plains, employing his time between terms and many of his hours before and after classes morning and night in working on the farm. On December 13, 1891, he secured a place as office boy with the Lehigh Valley Coal Company, and during the years that have since passed has served in various capacities, through the merit of ability advancing to the post of purchasing agent. In Wilkes-Barre and in Forty Fort, Luzerne County, where he resides with his wife, Mr. Scott has many friends who esteem him for his record in business, for his success with the Lehigh Valley Coal Company, and for the principles underlying his character that have made possible this success. In politics he is a Republican; he is a Prot- estant; a member of the Franklin Club and of the Fox Hill Country Club.
Frank L. Scott married, on September 14, 1907, Jean F. Menzies, a native of Scotland, and they are the parents of two children: Isabelle Menzies, unmarried, a graduate of the Wyoming Seminary at Kingston, Penn- sylvania; and Margaret Menzies, a graduate of Wyoming Seminary, and now a student at Middleburg College.
WILLIAM SWAN MeLEAN-As a typical product of the old school of successful busi- ness gentlemen, William Swan McLean, of Wilkes-Barre, stands out prominently. Mr. McLean has served as president of the First National Bank of Wilkes-Barre since 1889, during which time he has greatly enriched the annals of finance; and since 1910 he has served with distinction as the president of the Wilkes-Barre Clearing House Association, a sort of post-graduate honor supplementing his other achievements in banking circles. Mr. McLean has long been noted as a long- headed business man on whose judgment de- pended the fate of vast enterprises and hun- dreds of individuals with investments at stake under his personal, or official care, and that he has guided his affairs so as to pro- duce a maximum of contentment and a mini- mum of loss has constituted a fine tribute to his creative and conserving genius. But one must look beyond such achievements to prop- erly appraise the man, for it was in the realm of the law that he first launched his bark and entered upon a period of founda- tion building fit for his superstructure of later years. For more than half a century he has practiced his profession at Wilkes- Barre, always with great dignity, learning and success, during twenty-four years of which he was solicitor of the City Court
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while attending to a large private practice at the same time. He lias found time to engage in political struggles as a staunch Democrat, and his neighbors and associates at the bar and in the field of finance have brought him signal honors. It is by such close estimates of him that his character and ability must be judged, and it assays well from any angle.
William Swan McLean was born at Summit Hill, Carbon County, Pennsylvania, May 27, 1841, the son of Alexander McLean, a Scotch- Irishman born at Fernlaestra, on the banks of the River Bann, in Londonderry, Ireland. Alexander McLean, head of this branch of the McLean family in the United States, came to this country in 1820 and settled at Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania, where he engaged in coal mining ventures. His capital consisted of one hundred pounds sterling, in this day the equivalent of perhaps $2,500 by depre- ciated purchasing power values. He was a progressive man, and shortly after he ar- rived on the scene he entered into a contract with the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Com- pany to transport coal mined at Summit Hill to Mauch Chunk, delivering coal by teams and wagons to the boats that were accus- tomed to float it downstream to Philadelphia. He made good time while this contract lasted. until someone else invented the "gravity road" that made his process useless, at which time he made another contract with the same company to mine its coal, and it happened that he was the first man to thus enter into such an agreement with the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company. Until 1848 he con- tinued his mining contracts, then removed with his family to a farm he had bought in 1839 on the old Careytown Road. There he built a fine Colonial mansion, and there resided until his death in 1868 at the age of sixty-eight, the date of his birth having been 1800. The corporate limits of the city of Wilkes-Barre now include this famous farm. Alexander McLean was a rugged pioneer in a rough country, and he took up his abode in a sort of wilderness before the last red- skin's moccasin had faded from the sand to be transplanted on the prairies of the West. He became a man of wisdom and judgment to whom his neighbors looked for wise coun- sel, and took great interest in planting those milestones of civilization and hanging out those beacon lights to guide the steps of those who came after him. For many years he served as president of the Central Poor District of Luzerne County, and was one of the moving spirits in the organization of the First National Bank of Wilkes-Barre and be- came one of its first directors, while his son, James. was made the first president, and his son, William S., having stood in the line of succession, this hank having become the thir- tieth national bank organized in the United States. Other leaders in the foundation were Thomas Long, son-in-law of Alexander Mc- Lean, and Joseph Brown. On June 1, 1863. the stockholders elected as directors, Alexan- der McLean, James McLean, Joseph Brown, Alexander Gray and Thomas Long. On the same day James McLean, then extensively engaged in the coal mining business at Sum- mit Hill, and thirty-eight years of age, was named president of the board; he died Jan- uary 29, 1864, as the result of a railroad accident. Alexander Gray was the second president, having been elected February 10, 1864, and having resigned September 22, of the same year; he had been superintendent of the old Baltimore Coal Company for many
years, and on his own account interested ex- tensively in the coal business. Charles Par- rish, prominently identified with activities in Wyoming Valley, succeeded him, having been elected president September 22, 1864; he re- signed July 27, 1885, and was succeeded by Former State Senator E. C. Wadhams, who enjoyed the confidence of the entire com- munity; Mr. Wadhams was elected president July 27, 1885, and served until his death January 19, 1889; and thereupon William S. McLean, member of the Luzerne County Bar, took over the duties of president, a fitting sequel to the work of his honored father, Alexander McLean, and his brilliant brother, James McLean; the date of his accession was on January 20.
Mr. McLean began his education in the public schools, after which he prepared for college at Dana's Academy, at Wilkes-Barre. where he made a most creditable record. Then he matriculated at LaFayette College at Easton, from which institution he was graduated with honors in 1865 and delivered the class oration at commencement as vale- dictorian; three years later, on receipt of his Master's degree, he delivered the Master's oration by election of the faculty. Deciding to take up the pursuit of the law, he studied under the preceptorship of B. G. Nicholson, of Wilkes-Barre, and in 1867, on passing the requisite examinations, was admitted to prac- tice before the Luzerne County Bar. He im- mediately entered upon the practice of his profession, and was eventually admitted to all the courts. For many years he carried on his practice, which became more important and lucrative as the years went by, and grad- ually developed extensive banking and busi- ness interests, but never let commercial pur- suits interfere with his professional status. On the death of George S. Bennett in 1910 Mr. McLean was chosen president of the Wilkes-Barre Clearing House Association, a fitting tribute to his ability and integrity by his fellow members of the financial circle, whose cordial cooperation with him in the work of this office and in his collateral activi- ties has always been a source of the greatest inspiration.
Mr. McLean yielded to the importunities of friends in 1879 and again in 1895 to become a candidate for judge of Luzerne County on the Democratic ticket; although eminently fitted for the position and backed strongly, factional complications in his own party en- compassed his defeat, yet he led his ticket by some 2,000 votes, this fact carrying its own testimonial of his personal popularity. During the Civil War while still quite young and in school, he served with Pennsylvania troops, ranking as corporal. He is a member of the Landmark Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons: Shekinah Chapter, Royal Arch Ma- sons: and Dieu le Veut Commandery, Knights Templar. In club circles he is a member of the Westmoreland Club of Wilkes-Barre, and in religious affairs an attendant upon the Presbyterian Church, and has been a trustee for many years.
Mr. McLean married, November 21, 1871. Anne S. Roberts, daughter of George H. and Margaret B. Roberts, of Philadelphia, rep- resentatives of old families, and she died June 7, 1906. Their children were: I. George R. McLean, a leading member of the Luzerne County Bar. 2. Elizabeth Swan McLean, died in childhood. 3. Margaret Swan McLean, single, and living at home with her father, who is now eighty-seven years of age. 4.
Engraved by- Camobel Nor Yor
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William Swan McLean, Jr., associate justice of the Eleventh Pennsylvania Judicial Dis- trict, comprising Luzerne County. 5. Percy Craig McLean.
GEORGE R. MeLEAN-A distinguished member of the Luzerne County bar, and an important figure in the financial and civic life of the city of Wilkes-Barre, George R. McLean has built up an excellent practice as a corporation lawyer and consultant. He is a man of versatile talents who has given much time to various movements in the pub- lic interest in Wilkes-Barre, and served in his country's cause during the Spanish- American War and the more recent World War, in which he played an important part.
Mr. McLean was born at Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, on January 24, 1873, a son of William Swan and Anne S. (Roberts) McLean, and grandson of Alexander McLean, a pioneer anthracite coal operator, for some account of whom and other ancestral references the ac- companying biography of William Swan Mc- Lean should be consulted.
George R. McLean attended the public schools of his birthplace, the Wilkes-Barre Academy, and finished his preparatory educa- tion at Cheltenham Military Academy. He thereupon attended Lafayette College, at Easton, Pennsylvania, his father's university, and graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1895. With the completion of his academic training, he returned to Wilkes- Barre and took up the study of law in the offices of his father, then one of the leading members of the bar and president of the First National Bank. In the following year he was admitted to the Luzerne County Bar and be- gan the practice of his profession. At the outbreak of the Spanish-American War, Mr. McLean immediately enlisted as a member of Company F, Ninth Pennsylvania Regiment of Volunteer Infantry, saw considerable service before the end of the conflict, and was honor- ably discharged with the rank of first lieu- tenant.
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