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 63
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In the life of Edwardsville and the whole Wyoming Valley, Dr. Edwards took an ex- tremely active part. He was generous in his support of every worthy movement for ad- vance and progress, whether civic or benevo- lent in nature. He fought for truth and right- eousness, for decency in the life of the com- munity, and by the inspiration of his example
pointed the way to higher things. "A great champion of righteousness," the "Times Leader" wrote of him at his death, and, con- tinuing:
There is, of course, no measure by which one could estimate what the life and work of Dr. T. C. Edwards have meant to this val- ley. A half century and more among the same people might to some clergymen ยท be unfortunate both to themselves and to those they serve. But this is true only when the n easure of a man lacks dimension. With Dr. Edwards it was not the continuance of rela- tionship that gave cause for apprehension, but the ending of it.
In spite of his advanced years his activity, his mental vigor, and his Interest in affairs of community seemed like the prime of life. Those who have known him best can prob- ably say that except for the months when an affection of the eyes troubled him, he gave no indication of any failure of powers. He seemed to be endowed with continued vigor of youth.
When one looks for an apostle of friend- ship, of breadth of view, of charitable con- struction of motive, he may cite the name of Dr. Edwards. Particularly dear to those who saw him most frequently, he was held in honor and affection by the entire community. He was a favorite speaker and always graceful in utterance and persuasive before audiences. To him the sacred writ, "Knowing these things we persuade men" must have been a shibboletn. He cannot ever be recalled as morose or negative. His graciousness never altered. It sat upon him naturally and con- sistently. . . . When the things of mind, of heart and of spirit are reckoned, the com- munity knows that a great champion has fallen.
On May 4, 1871, Rev. Thomas Cynonfardd Edwards married Elizabeth Morgan, young- est daughter of the Rev. Jonah Morgan, of Cumbach, Aberdare, South Wales. They be- came the parents of several children: 1. Gwendolen, who married the Rev. O. Lloyd Morris, D. D., vice-president of Coe College, Cedar Rapids, Michigan. They have the fol- lowing children: Morgan, Margaret, Marian, and Merlin. 2. Anne M., who married John M. Thomas, civil and mining engineer of Kingston, Pennsylvania, and a teacher in the Kingston High School. They have the follow- ing children: Cromwell E. and John M., Jr. 3. Olwen M., deceased. 4. Morgan O., superin- tendent of the Susquehanna Mines, at Shaft, Pennsylvania, and a graduate of Princeton. He has three sons, Charles S., Thomas C. and K. Morgan. 5. Frances M., who married Edgar J. Williams, teacher in the Philadel- phia schools. They have three children, Ed- gar J., and Richard and Elizabeth, twins. 6. Lillian S., who married Joseph M. Stark, a biography of whom accompanies this.
Dr. Edwards died on March 13, 1927. It is impossible to indicate with any adequacy the deep and poignant sorrow which his passing brought to the thousands who loved him ev- erywhere. The high and the low, rich and poor alike were his friends and disciples, and all poured forth their tributes to his fame. There is not space to quote them here, and indeed they could add nothing to a reputation already spotless or a name known in all parts of the world. These words of final tribute, however, appearing in a Pittsburgh journal, may fittingly bring this record to a close:
In the death of Dr. Edwards, the Welsh people of the United States have sustained the loss of the most versatile Welshman in the country. . . . Today he is universally, sincerely, and tearfully mourned. Humanity is poorer for his passing .. yet richer indeed, that he lived and moved among us. His name will be carved deep in the granite of time.
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ROBERT DUNCAN RAEDER-In the retail business field of Kingston a position of im- portance is held by Robert Duncan Raeder, who from his boyhood has been well and favorably known by the people of this dis- trict of Pennsylvania. For twenty years he and his father were associated together in the Raeder Printing Company of Wilkes- Barre, founded by John W. Raeder, who headed the enterprise, with his son as its vice-president. During this period of close intercourse with the business community both father and son were esteemed for their high order of commercial and social ethics, a condition that still obtains with the con- tinued activities of the son and the retired position of the father. There has always been a spirit of intense civic devotion exhibited in this family, a trait that has brought it into high esteem of the patriotic and progressive element and given both father and son a name of most commendable repute as valu- able members of the community.
Robert Duncan Raeder was born in Wilkes- Barre, October 10, 1884, a son of John W. and Elizabeth (Draper) Raeder, the first named having been born in White Haven, Pennsyl- vania, November 8, 1858, and who founded the Raeder establishment here in 1883. He continued as its president until 1920 and dur- ing his active career served for one term as Jury Commissioner and took an active part in other civic affairs. Mrs. Raeder is a native of Tamaqua, where she was born in 1858, February 15. Robert D. Raeder was educated in the public schools and at Harry Hillman Academy, from which he was graduated with the class of 1901. He then entered into busi- ness association with his father and there remained until 1920, when the business was sold and he retired as its vice-president. He then established his own business, opening a stationery and office supply store in King- ston, which he continues to conduct, with the assistance of several clerks. In politics he is a Republican and for ten years served as a member of the Borough Council of Dorranceton. His military record is substan- tial, he having commanded, with the rank of captain, Company F, 9th Regiment, Pennsyl- vania National Guard, for five years and hav- ing been a member of the Guard for fifteen years. During the World War he was a cap- tain in the commissary supply department of the United States Army. His church is Trinity Lutheran of Kingston, where he is a member of the official board and treasurer. He holds high rank as a member of the order of Masonry, being affiliated with Lodge No. 442, Free and Accepted Masons; Shekinah Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Dieu le Veut Commandery, Knights Templar, and Irem Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of the Drill Patrol of the Shrine.
Robert Duncan Raeder married, February 16, 1910, Bertha Kanter, daughter of Henry and Emma Kanter, of Wilkes-Barre, and they are the parents of Irene Ruth, born February 19, 1911, now a student at Wyoming Semi- nary.
EDWARD WELLES BIXBY, M. D .- Having engaged in general practice of medicine since 1914, Dr. Edward Welles Bixby, of Wilkes- Barre, is among the foremost medical prac- titioners now active in Luzerne County. He was horn in Wilkes-Barre, August 3, 1886, and is a son of Charles W. and Anne (Davis)
Bixby. His father, native of Wyalusing, Pennsylvania, was born December 15, 1854. Long active, he has since retired. Anne (Davis) Bixby was born August 6, 1857, and died, in June, 1926.
Dr. Bixby prepared for college at Harry Hillman Academy, from which he took his diploma in 1903. He matriculated in Prince- ton University that year, received the degree of Bachelor of Arts therefrom in 1907, en- tered the medical school of the University of Pennsylvania, graduating with the class of 1911 with the degree of Doctor of Medicine. For two years and a half he served as in- terne in Pennsylvania Hospital, of Philadel- phia, and in 1914, as noted, opened offices for general practice, at which he has been mark- edly successful, engaged continuously save for an honorable period of war service. With the old 3d Pennsylvania Field Artillery Dr. Bixby saw active duty on the Mexican border in 1916 and 1917. The United States entered the World War in April of the latter year, and he then served with the 109th Field Artil- lery. United States Army, spending a year overseas on the battle fronts. Commissioned a captain in the medical corps, he received his discharge in May, 1919, and resumed the course of his distinguished career where he dropped for the common cause. He is a mem- ber of the staff of Wilkes-Barre General Hos- pital; belongs to the Luzerne County, Penn- sylvania State and American medical organi- zations, and secretary of the county society, 1928. He is active in the Wyoming Valley Country Club, adheres to the principles of the Democratic party, and is a communicant of the Presbyterian Church.
Dr. Bixby married, June 1, 1916, Helen Lea Miner, of Wilkes-Barre, daughter of Colonel Asher and Hetty (Lonsdale) Miner. Their children are: 1. Edward Welles, Jr., born October 29, 1917. 2. Hetty Lonsdale, born February 13, 1920. 3. Anne D., born June 12, 1922. 4. Helen Lea, named after her mother, born August 10, 1924.
MAURICE SEYMOUR CANTOR-Among the younger legal practitioners of Wilkes-Barre none has a more promising future before him than Maurice Seymour Cantor who has, in the short period since he opened his office on September 12, 1927, established a reputation for the high percentage of success he has met in handling the cases that have been entrusted to him. A Harvard graduate and member of various fraternal organizations, he has a host of friends who are eager for his success in the career that is before him.
Mr. Cantor was born in Garfield, Passaic County, New Jersey, March 3, 1903, the son of David and Ida (Schwartz) Cantor, both of whom were born near Kiev, Russia. The father, who came to the United States in 1890, is a successful Wilkes-Barre florist, having moved from Pennsylvania to New Jersey in 1911. In the public grade schools and the Wilkes-Barre High School, from which he was graduated in 1920, their son prepared himself to enter the University of Pennsyl- vania, from which he was graduated with honors in the class of 1924, with a Bachelor of Science degree in economics. The follow- ing fall he enrolled in the Harvard Law School and three years later, in 1927, received his degree of Bachelor of Laws from that institution. While studying he was a mem- ber of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau. Ad- mitted to the bar on September 12, of that
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year, he immediately opened an office for general legal practice. His offices are in the Miners Bank Building in Wilkes-Barre.
. Mr. Cantor is a member of the Wilkes- Barre Law Library Association and the Wilkes-Barre Lawyers' Club. Republican in his political belief, he is fraternally affiliated with King Hiram Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and Tau Epsilon Fraternity. He holds membership in the General Alumni So- ciety of the University of Pennsylvania, the Harvard Club of Philadelphia, and the Har- vard Law School Association.
J. FORRESTER LABAGHI-Representing the third generation of a family whose mem- bers have taught in the same Sunday school of the Westminster Presbyterian Church, of Wilkes-Barre, for more than sixty consecu- tive years, J. Forrester Labagh is carrying on in that religious occupation, begun by his grandfather, and continued until his death by his father. At the same time he has made for himself an enviable reputation for business acumen, devotion to his occupation, and up- right character throughout the community in which he has spent his entire life.
Mr. Labagh was born in Centermoreland, Wyoming County, March 17, 1897, a son of James F. and Christine (Smith) Labagh, both natives of Wilkes-Barre. For many years the father was secretary of the Morris Run Coal Company, and a devoted adherent to the Presbyterian Church. His father was John, and his mother, Margaret (Demarest) Labagh, the first named having been a member of the Wilkes-Barre City Council, and street com- missioner. He was one of the organizers of the Westminster Church, and taught its Sun- day school for more than forty years, his death occurring at the age of eighty-seven years.
J. Forrester Labagh was educated in the public schools of Wilkes-Barre, graduating from the high school in the class of 1916. He then attended the Wharton Extension Night School, of Wilkes-Barre, and later took a course in the Alexander Hamilton Institute. When he was nineteen years of age he took a position with the Hanover Bank and Trust Company, remaining for two years, at the end of which business tuition he became book- keeper and teller with the South Side Bank and Trust Company. For three years he re- mained in those posts, then becoming secre- tary of the Industrial Loan Corporation, of Wilkes-Barre, which position he still holds. He is a member of the Wilkes-Barre Rotary Club, Chamber of Commerce, the Craftsman's Club, of Landmark Lodge, No. 442, Free and Accepted Masons, Caldwell Consistory and Irem Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine.
Mr. Labagh married, January I, 1920, Kath- ryn Walborn, daughter of George Walborn, well known contractor, of Wilkes-Barre. Their children are: James F. and George W.
ALBERT WILLIAMS JOHNSON, JR .- Though still relatively young, Albert Wil- liams Johnson, Jr., has practiced law at Wilkes-Barre, with offices in the Miners' Bank Building, for a period of several months. He is the son of a distinguished Pennsylvania lawyer and jurist, and from him inherits an aptitude for the law and legal talents of a high order which he has been at pains to de- velop through intensive training for his pro- fession. It is safe to say that his present suc- cesses foreshadow a brilliant future career.
Mr. Johnson was born at Lewisburg, Penn- sylvania, on July 15, 1903, a son of Albert Williams and Dora (Miller) Johnson, the lat- ter of whom was born at New Berlin, Penn- sylvania, and died in 1909. The father was born in Union County, Pennsylvania, in 1872, was graduated from Bucknell University, and is one of the trustees of that institution now. Following the completion of his academic training in 1896 he took up the study of law and in 1898 was admitted to the bar of the State. Since that time he has practiced very successfully at Lewisburg. In 1912 he was elected judge of Snyder and Union counties, holding office until 1922. Three years later, in 1925, Judge Johnson was appointed Federal judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, a position for which he was ideally fitted by temperament and training, and to the duties of which he still devotes himself. He has been very prominent in Pennsylvania life, and is now National President of the Patri- otic Order Sons of America.
Albert Williams Johnson, Jr., attended the public schools of his birthplace, and follow- ing graduation from the Lewisburg High School in 1921, entered Bucknell University, where his father had preceded him years be- fore. In 1925 he was graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts, and then, having also determined upon a legal career, he un- dertook the course of study at the Dickinson Law School from which he received the de- gree of Bachelor of Laws in 1928. On Sep- tember 10, 1928, he was admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the State, and in October of this year, was admitted to the Federal Court. Immediately afterwards he began the general practice of his profession at Wilkes-Barre, in which city he has since made his home. In only a few months he has built up his following to profitable propor- tions, and acquired wide reputation in the local courts.
Mr. Johnson has been prominent in fra- ternal affairs, being affiliated with Bucknell Chapter of the Sigma Chi Fraternity, with the Patriotic Order Sons of America at Lewis- burg, the Junior Order United American Mechanics, of Plymouth, and with the Free and Accepted Masons. In this great order he is a member of Lewisburg Lodge, No. 144, a member of all bodies of the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite, including the Consistory at Williamsport, and a member of Irem Temple of the Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. In politics he gives his sup- port to Republican principles and candidates, contributing liberally to all worthy move- ments for advance and progress, whether civic or benevolent in nature. Mr. Johnson worships in the faith of the Lutheran Church.
SADRIEL M. WOLFE, M. D .- For thirty- six years a physician, and a member of the medical profession in Wilkes-Barre since 1895, Dr. Samuel M. Wolfe, with residence and offices at No. 218 South Franklin Street, is of the third generation of the Wolfe family to be a native of Luzerne County. He was born at Muhlenburg, Luzerne County, on a farm, August 22, 1868, a son of Stephen R. and Rachel Wolfe. Stephen R. Wolfe was a son of Samuel Wolfe, also a resident of Lu- zerne County, whose father located there upon coming to the United States from Eu- rope more than one hundred and twenty-five years ago, member of a well-known German line. Stephen R. Wolfe was born in 1827, and by his wife, Rachel Wolfe, was the parent of
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six children: 1. Catherine, deceased. 2. Jessie, deceased. 3. Chester B., of Pittsburgh, Penn- sylvania. 4. Margaret A., wife of Engene Fink, of Wilkes-Barre. 5. Edward I., for forty years an instructor in Wyoming Semi- nary at Kingston, Pennsylvania, died in 1926. 6. Dr. Samuel M., of whom further.
Dr. Samuel M. Wolfe was reared on the old family farm in Union Township and was edu- cated in the public schools and high school at Nanticoke. In 1891 he entered the Jeffer- son Medical College at Philadelphia and was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medi- cine with the class of 1894. Dr. Wolfe spent the first year after graduation as an interne at the Jefferson Medical College Hospital, and in the spring of 1895 opened an office at Wilkes-Barre, and has there been engaged actively in the practice of his profession dur- ing the years that have succeeded. Mean- while, from his various duties he has taken time for extensive travel, having covered in his journeys much of the United States be- sides visiting Alaska, several countries on the Continent of Europe, Egypt, and other Asiatic and African countries. He has been in four of the five parts of the world, omitting only Australia; but never has he neglected his general practice, always when at home giv- ing it his major interest. During the epidemic of influenza that swept the country he volun- teered for emergency duty in the treatment of the new and devasting sickness, and was stationed at Lancaster, Massachusetts, where his efforts for humanity won warm recogni- tion. He is on the staff of the Mercy Hospital at Wilkes-Barre, as surgeon; he is a Repub- lican, member of the Central Methodist Epis- copal Church, of the Luzerne County Medical Society, Pennsylvania State Medical Society, Lehigh Valley Medical Society, and the American Medical Association.
Dr. Samuel M. Wolfe married, on August 22, 1903, Bessie Straw of Wilkes-Barre, daughter of Cyrus and Sarah (Leach) Straw, deceased. Dr. and Mrs. Wolfe are the parents of three children: 1. Sarah L., wife of George T. Bell, Jr., of Wilkes-Barre. 2. Samuel M., Jr., a student at the Jefferson Medical Col- lege, at Philadelphia. 3. Rachel M., a gradu- ate of the Wyoming Seminary and student at Vassar College, at Poughkeepsie, New York.
JOHN BLOSS WOLFE, M. D .- Among the outstanding physicians of Wilkes-Barre and Luzerne County, specializing in internal med- icine, is Dr. John Bloss Wolfe, who is of the fourth generation of the family to reside in Luzerne County, his great-grandfather hav- ing located there after leaving Germany more than one hundred and twenty-five years ago. The family has contributed generously of its male members to the professions.
John Bloss Wolfe was born at Berwick, Columbia County, Pennsylvania, on March 21, 1892, a son of Edward I. and Anna (Bloss) Wolfe. Edward I. Wolfe was a son of Stephen R. and Rachel Wolfe, his father hav- ing been a farmer and native of Luzerne County. Stephen R. Wolfe was a son of Samuel Wolfe, who also was a native of Lu- zerne County and whose father upon coming to the United States at the beginning of the nineteenth century located there. Edward I. Wolfe, father of John Bloss Wolfe, died in 1926 at the age of sixty-two years. He was one of the well-known educators of the dis- trict, having been instructor in English and history at the Wyoming Seminary at King- ston for more than forty years. A highly
respected citizen of Luzerne County, he spent his entire career in the cause of education. Edward I. and Anna Wolfe were the parents of three children: 1. Dr. John Bloss, of whom" later. 2. Edward I., also a physician. 3. Eu- gene, a student at Cornell University at Ithaca, New York, and later matriculated at Jefferson Medical College. Edward I. Wolfe was an active member of the Methodist Epis- copal Church at Kingston, and affiliated with the Republican party. Mrs. Edward I. Wolfe is residing at No. 285 Wright Street, King- ston, and is active in church and civic affairs.
Dr. John Bloss Wolfe received his early education in the public schools of Kingston, later enrolling in the Wyoming Seminary, where he was graduated with the class of 1909, and then entered the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, taking his degree as Doctor of Medicine in 1915. For two years thereafter he served as resident physician in the Episcopal Hospital at Phila- delphia, and on September 6, 1917, volunteered with the Episcopal Hospital Unit and joined the United States Medical Corps with the rank of first lieutenant. He was first as- signed to Camp Crane, at Allentown, Penn- sylvania, and later was transferred to Camp Dix, New Jersey. On December 13, 1917, he sailed with his corps for France on the United States Steamship "Leviathan" (the ship's first voyage), landed in Liverpool, Eng- land, spent Christmas Day in England, and on December 26, sailed for France. He was assigned as a detached officer to the Blois Base Hospital, where he remained until April 4, 1918, when he rejoined his unit at Nantes, France, where he was located until April 11, 1919. Upon his return to the United States he was assigned to Camp Dix, Wrightstown, New Jersey, and four months later received his honorable discharge. In December, 1918, he was promoted to captain. Dr. Wolfe is a member of the Luzerne County Medical So- ciety, the Lehigh Medical Society, the Penn- sylvania State Medical Society, and the American Medical Association. Though he has practiced in Wilkes-Barre less than ten years (1929), Dr. Wolfe, being of the fourth generation of his family to reside there, en- joys a wide acquaintanceship and is esteemed as a valuable member of the community in whose service he is engaged both as a pro- fessional and a lay member. Dr. Wolfe is a member of the Franklin Club; Fidelity Lodge No. 655, Free and Accepted Masons of Wilkes- Barre, Dieu Le Veut Commandery, Knights Templar, and Irem Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; Wyoming Valley Country Club; Westmoreland Club; Club Atlantic, Atlantic City, New Jersey. He is also a member of the Wilkes-Barre-Wyo- ming Chamber of Commerce and the First Presbyterian Church of Wilkes-Barre. In political matters he is a Republican.
Dr. John Bloss Wolfe married on November 3, 1917, Violet Eckert, of Lebanon, Pennsyl- vania, daughter of Robert and Matilda (Ruth) Eckert. Dr. and Mrs. Wolfe are the parents of four children: John Bloss, Jr., Robert Eckert, Edward Inman, and Ruth Anne.
STANLEY K. WALBORN-To the growing city and its present-day architectural de- mands. Stanley K. Walborn has turned the expert attention of the trained architect, who has specialized in pleasing and substantial types and designs, and whose workshops are headquarters where the requirements both of
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the home builder and the business man are sought to be fulfilled. Mr. Walborn is a vet- eran of the World War, a broad observer of architectural needs in his native city of Wilkes-Barre and the county; and one who is most popular and highly esteemed for his personal worth, as well as his professional attainments.
Stanley K. Walborn was born April 13, 1893, in Wilkes-Barre, a son of George W. and S. Catherine (Klingman) Walborn. George W. Walborn is a well-known contractor, of the firm of Walborn and Barney, who do a general contracting and building business in Wilkes-Barre and throughout Luzerne County. George W. and S. Catherine (Kling- man) Walborn are the parents of four chil- dren: Stanley K., of whom further; Grace M. Walborn, who married W. A. Collitt, of Wilkes-Barre; Catherine L., who married J. Forester Labagh, of Wilkes-Barre; and Charles Faust, who
married Elizabeth Hughes.
Stanley K. Walborn attended the Wilkes- Barre public schools, and Wyoming Seminary, at Kingston. He then matriculated at Drexel Institute, Philadelphia, where he was gradu- ated with the class of 1914, following which he entered upon the duties of his profession of architect, at first with the firm of Sturde- vant and Poggie; and then, successively, with George S. Welsh, and Wayne M. High, of Reading. After the World War, in which he participated, Mr. Walborn returned home, and again resumed his profession in the office of George S. Welsh, later with R. H. Hunt and Company, in Chattanooga, Tennessee, then with the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Com- pany, at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
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