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 89
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who is the wife of Edgar S. Stern, of Alder- son, Pennsylvania; and Arthur, of further mention.
Arthur Davenport was born in Plymouth, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, September 16, 1883, and attended the local public schools, graduating from the Plymouth High School in 1901. He prepared for college in Wyoming Seminary, at Kingston, Pennsylvania, com- pleting his course there with the class of 1905, and then taught school for two years in order to finance his further preparation for a professional career, and later had charge of the shoe department of the Shaw- nee Cash Store at Plymouth. In 1909 he entered the Law School of the University of Michigan, where he completed his course with graduation in 1912, receiving at that time the degree of Bachelor of Laws. After gradu- ation he returned to Luzerne County, Penn- sylvania, where he successfully passed the required examinations and was admitted to the Luzerne County Bar in 1913. Since then he has been engaged in practice in Wilkes- Barre, where he has built up a large and important practice, and where he has made for himself a reputation for sound legal knowledge, for resourcefulness and ability in the presentation of cases, and for effective- ness in handling cases. Politically he gives his support to the principles and the candi- dates of the Republican party. While a stu- dent in the University of Michigan Law School Mr. Davenport was president of the Student Council, one of the highest honors of the campus, and he was also a member of the Greek Letter fraternity, Gamma Eta Gamma. Fraternally, he is identified with Plymouth Lodge, No. 332, Free and Accepted Masons, of Plymouth; Valley Chapter, No. 214, Royal Arch Masons, of which he is sec- retary; Dieu le Veut Commandery, No. 45, Knights Templar, of Wilkes-Barre; and Irem Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. His religious affiliation is with the Christian Church of Plymouth, of which his parents were members.
Arthur Davenport was married (first) to Laura Myers, and to this marriage two chil- dren were born: Arthur, Jr., and Dorothy Blanch. Mrs. Davenport died January 6, 1921, and Mr. Davenport married (second), May 26, 1926, Marion Caerns, of Wilkes-Barre. Mr. Davenport is one of the very well known and highly esteemed men of his profession, and he has a host of friends in Wilkes-Barre.
JOSEPH W. MURPHY, D. D. S .- Although one of the youngest dental practitioners in Wilkes-Barre, having been established here since 1925, Joseph W. Murphy is rapidly dis- tinguishing himself for the excellence of his work and the sincerity with which he de- votes himself to it. He is a man of com- mendable character and comes of a family which has long commanded the esteem of the people of this district. That he will con- tinue to advance along the road of his pro- fessional choice is the undivided opinion both of the profession and the laiety, while his fellow-citizens of Luzerne County accord to him their fullest confidence in his loyalty to civic progress and to the profession which he honors with membership.
He is a son of Edward A. and Alice (Ma- nales) Murphy, the first named having been born in Janesville, Luzerne County, Penn- sylvania, in 1863, and now retired from active business, and the last named a native of Wilkes-Barre. He was born in Freeland, Luzerne County, October 5, 1899, and com- pleted the courses in the local public schools,
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graduating from St. Mary's High School in 1917, and then attending Wyoming Seminary, where he took the business course. He then attended Temple University and was gradu- ated with the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery in 1925, since which time he has been in general practice here. He is a mem- ber of Luzerne County Medical Society, a Republican in politics and attends St. Aloy- sius Roman Catholic Church.
MICHAEL FESCINA-Successful in his business activities, Michael Fescina, of Hazleton, where he is commissioner of parks and buildings, also achieved distinction in the political field and won the regard of his fellow-citizens by his upright character, sin- cerity of purpose and general accomplish- ment. His intense spirit of nationalism, stu- dious regard for the rights of others, indus- trious nature and pleasing personality have brought him many friends and won the ap- probation of all. He is a man who does things and does them thoroughly and well, who cares for the interests of those who have re- posed confidence in him as he would for his own, and who never fails to do with all his might the tasks that are set for his hand. With the soul of a musician, he is a good comrade and delights in the society of his fellows and in his home, where his children are all musically gifted and trained and where melody and happiness are the reward at the close of the day's labor.
He was born in the village of Foundry- ville, Pennsylvania, August 16, 1882, a son of Joseph and Concetta (Lasca) Fescina, both natives of Italy, who emigrated to this country, where they met and married. The father has been for many years engaged in the service of the Lehigh Valley Railroad, being one of the oldest employees of that corporation. He and his wife are the parents of eight children: Frank, a carpenter; Mil- dred, who married John Leo; Joseph, an em- ployee of the Lehigh Traction Company; Rocco, teller in the Hazleton National Bank, choirmaster and organist of the Most Pre- cious Blood Roman Catholic Church; Mary, who married Nicholas Marshall; James, an employee of the Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton Railroad; Nancy, who married Neil Dinaia; Michael, of whom further.
Michael Fescina was educated in the pub- lic schools of Luzerne County and at the age of sixteen years entered the employ of J. & C. J. Kirschner, wholesale flour and feed merchants, where he remained for thirteen years, then going to the Sasso Department Store as office manager and secretary of the corporation. He is second vice-president of the Middle Coal Field Building & Loan Asso- ciation, and has shown great activity in civic affairs, having served as a member of the Select Council and a member of that body in his second term when the commission form of government was established in Hazleton, when he was elected to his present office of commissioner of parks and buildings. He is a member of Mountain City Lodge, No. 71, Knights of Pythias, of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and other fraternal organizations and belongs to the Most Pre- cious Blood Roman Catholic Church.
Michael Fescina married, October 19, 1905, Jennie Di Joseph, of Hazleton. Their children are: Concetta, Joseph, Louise, Margaret, and Michael. The family residence is at No. 332 East Diamond Avenue, Hazleton, Pennsyl- vania.
LESLIE J. HARRISON, county commis- sioner of Luzerne County, and one of the best known citizens of Wilkes-Barre, Is a man who has made his way upward as a result of his own ambition, intelligently dl- rected industry and straightforward methods in the transactions and contacts of every day life. In this way he has exemplified the high ideals of those sturdy pioneers who, early in the seventeenth century, left an established social order and civilization on the other side of the Atlantic and braved the unknown ter- rors of the New World-wild beasts, savage men, rigorous climate and the dangers of disease and pestilence that they might found a society based on freedom, religious and political. The American progenitors of Les- lie J. Harrison, both paternal and maternal, were among that number. In his veins flows the blood of many founders and patriots, men who fought Indians and who did their share in establishing the independence of the colonies. George P. Ransome, an ances- tor, came from Connecticut and established the family in Pennsylvania. He was killed at the battle and massacre of Wyoming on July 3, 1778.
The paternal grandparents of Mr. Harrison were Jacoh and Mary (Boney) Harrison. Their son, William Henry Harrison, married Amanda Ransome and they were the parents of four children: Ora, married George W. Roberts of Plymouth, Pennsylvania; Leslie J., of whom further; Mazie, who died at the age of eighteen; Stanley W., who is pay- master for the Ford Motor Company at Rouge, Michigan. In his younger manhood, the father of this family engaged in farming in Detroit, but later in life he was in business as a construction contractor for the Dela- ware and Hudson Coal Company at Plymouth.
Leslie J. Harrison was born in Wilkes- Barre, March 15, 1883, but he grew to man- hood in Plymouth, where he graduated from the grammar and high schools. His formal education was completed at Wyoming Semi- nary at Kingston; but he has never ceased to be a reader and a student. After leaving school, young Harrison went to work in an engineering corps of the Lehigh and Wilkes- Barre Coal Company, at first as a chainman and later in the construction department. All the time that he was thus gaining practical experience, he was also studying privately and more deeply into the theoretical side of engineering practice. Thus, when the oppor- tunity came in 1911 he accepted a position as a municipal engineer. He held positions of this kind in a number of towns, boroughs and cities in Luzerne and Lackawanna counties until 1928. In the previous November he was elected to his present position of commis- sioner of Luzerne County, as a result of one of the hottest political campaigns ever waged in this region; but Mr. Harrison won by a margin of 18,000 votes. He brought to this office a broad and most valuable experi- ence; for besides the activities already men- tioned, he had been for years a member of the engineering firm of Harrison and Butts, whose offices were in Wilkes-Barre.
On March 7, 1907, Leslie J. Harrison mar- ried Chrissie L. Henderson of Plymouth, Pennsylvania." They have four children: Helen Louise, Elizabeth Amanda, Mildred B., and Leslie J., Jr. The family residence is at No. 831 South Main Street, Wilkes-Barre.
FREDERICK W. AHLBORN-Widely known and respected citizen of Wilkes-Barre, Fred- erick W. Ahlborn was born in this city, Feb-
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ruary 11, 1873, a son of Frederick C. and Henrietta (Tiefel) Ahlborn. Frederick C. Ahlborn was born February 10, 1830, engaged in various commercial enterprises, and in 1870, at the age of forty years, came from Philadelphia to Wilkes-Barre, and here established residence and opened a plant for the manufacture of soaps. Later, abandoning this, he operated in the business of packing and dealing in all kinds of produce. He be- came within a very few years one of the prominently recognized commercial leaders in the community, and was a director of the Wilkes-Barre Deposit and Savings Bank. In all he participated in the business life of the city some thirty years, and was active in all affairs pertaining to the development of the greater metropolitan area. Politically affiliated with the Republican party he was influential in questions of moment, and throughout his life was a loyal supporter of the organization. Fraternally too he was active, principally in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows; and he was a communicant of the Lutheran Church, temperate and char- itable in all things. When he died, April 30, 1893, his loss was felt keenly, both as a citi- zen valuable to the community, and as a friend. Frederick C. Ahlborn and his wife, Henrietta, were the parents of children: 1. Frederick W., of whom directly. 2. Dr. Mau- rice B., a surgeon high in the medical fra- ternity of Luzerne County, practicing in Wilkes-Barre. 3. Hildegard, wife of Charles H. Webster, of Montclair, New Jersey. 4. Ernestine, wife of Dr. Alexander J. McRae, of Miami, Florida. 5. Emma, wife of Ernest Schroeder, of Montclair, New Jersey. 6. Ger- trude. 7. Etta, deceased.
Frederick W. Ahlborn attended the public schools of his native city, and at the age of eighteen years took a place with the C. Clinck Packing Company, of Buffalo, New York. There he became familiar with all phases of the packing business, and after four years of experience returned to Wilkes- Barre, to a position in his father's provision store on Pennsylvania Avenue. At the age of twenty-three he launched into business for himself, dealing in wholesale groceries, successfully; and he continued as wholesaler for a period of twenty-five years, disposing of his company in 1922, when he entered the insurance business. This he has continued through the years succeeding until the pres- ent time, and has, furthermore, dealt in poli- cies for the Equitable Assurance Society of New York. Like his father a Republican, Mr. Ahlborn is staunch in support of the party principles and exercises a considerable in- fluence locally, which he employs without fanfare, quietly, always in the interests of the community at large. He is a member of Lodge No. 61, Free and Accepted Masons of Wilkes-Barre; Keystone Consistory, Scran- ton, Pennsylvania, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite Masons of the thirty-second degree, and Irem Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of the Temple Country Club and of the West- moreland Club. Toward charity Mr. Ahlborn ever has dealt with large heart, generous in contributions to all worthy causes without regard for race or creed. He is a communi- cant of St. John's Lutheran Church, and is devout in its service, actively a participant in its works. During the World War he served on the committees and boards having charge of the prosecution of the conflict from within this country, was instrumental in securing many subscriptions in the sev- eral Liberty Loan campaigns, and acted in
every manner possible in the assistance of his country's canse, though his somewhat advanced years forbade duty in the military. Of him his associates have only the kindest of things to say, as reflecting truly his pos- session in high degree of those qualities of character that cause a man to be warm in the affections of his fellows.
On June 9, 1909, Mr. Ahlborn was united in marriage with Marion Livia Ashley, of Wilkes-Barre, a daughter of Herbert Henry and Lydia (Davenport) Ashley; and they are the parents of two children: Frederick Ash- ley and Herbert Ashley. Mr. and Mrs. Ahl- born reside in a tastefully appointed resi- dence at No. 236 South Franklin Street, Wilkes-Barre; and Mrs. Ahlborn, a woman of charm and refinement, is, as her husband, popular in the circles in which she moves.
WILLIAM T. PAYNE-One of the foremost citizens of Luzerne County and a leading business man in the Wyoming Valley, Wil- liam T. Payne holds a prominent place in the industrial life of the community as president of the East Boston Coal Company, a mining firm of Luzerne County, and also as the presi- dent or as an officer of several other com- panies having to do with the production of coal in this section. He represents the fourth generation of the Payne family in America, three generations of which have been promi- nent in the Pennsylvania coal industry.
He is the son of William G. and Ellen (Roberts) Payne, deceased. His great-grand- father and the founder of the line in America was Robert Payne, of Ballycommon, Kings County, Ireland, who, with his wife, Mary A. (Chamberlain) Payne, the daughter of the Rev. William Chamberlain, a clergyman of the Established Church of England in Bally- common, came to America, landing first in Montreal, Canada, and engaged in the mill- ing business in Canada until his death. His son, Edward, who accompanied him to America, was born in 1814, came later to Minersville, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, where he became an extensive coal operator, owning three mines. He also owned in fee simple that tract of coal land known as the "Stanton," which was superintended by John Stanton, from whom it derived its name. Sub- sequently he engaged also in the wholesale coal business, with offices in Philadelphia and New York, marketing both his own products and those of other mines. He built a fine business, laying the foundations for future generations. Edward Payne married Priscilla Standish, of Pennsylvania parentage and dis- tingnished English ancestry, who died in 1880. He died in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1857.
William G. Payne, the son of Edward and Priscilla (Standish) Payne, was born in Minersville, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, on July 19, 1848. While he was still young, his parents removed to Jersey City, New Jersey, where he attended the public schools, and also went to private schools, until his father's death in 1857. He then was taken to the residence of relatives in Granby, Canada, where he attended school. Later he joined his uncle, William Payne, in Newark, New Jersey, and after he had completed his edu- cation he entered the employ of the Con- sumers' Coal Company, of Newark, in which his uncle had an interest. He started as clerk and worked up to the position of secretary- treasurer of the company. He remained in Newark until 1871, when he was made gen- eral superintendent of the East Boston Mines, whose headquarters then were in Luzerne,
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Pennsylvania. In
1873 he purchased the mines and the business of the Consumers' Coal Company; and a little later, with W. H. Meeker, established the wholesale coal busi- ness of Meeker, Payne and Company, in New York City. Subsequently he made rapid strides in business, becoming president and principal owner of the East Boston Coal Company; president of the Dolph Coal Com- pany, of Scranton; a manager of the Pierce Coal Company, of Scranton; president of the Consumers' Coal Company, of Newark, New Jersey: the owner of valuable coal lands in Pennsylvania; a director of the Wyoming National Bank, in Wilkes-Barre; a director and one of the principal owners of the Bridgeport Steamboat Company; and in 1892 was a Presidential elector on the Harrison ticket. He was a prominent Republican; a communicant of St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, of Wilkes-Barre; a life member of the Wyoming Historical and Geological So- ciety; the Westmoreland Club, of Wilkes- Barre; the Taquahanga Club of Vermont; the Lawyers' Club of New York; and the St. James' Club, of Montreal. On October 6, 1868, he married Ellen Roberts, the daughter of Lother Roberts, of Montreal, Canada, by which marriage there were two children: William T., of whom further, and Blanche E.
William T. Payne, the only son of William G. and Ellen (Roberts) Payne, was born in Kingston, Pennsylvania, on April 20, 1871, As a boy he attended Miss Widnall's private school in Kingston until 1883. In that year his parents removed to New York City, where his father had extensive business interests, whereupon he entered the Dwight School, preparatory to studying at the Sheffield Sci- entific School, in New Haven, Connecticut. When he completed his academic education at the age of twenty-two years, he entered the offices of the East Boston Coal Company as a clerk. Now, in addition to his being presi- dent of this company, he is president of the Miners' Mills Coal Mining Company; vice- president of the Evans Colliery Company; president of the Lackawanna Valley Fuel Company, of Scranton; chairman of the board of directors of the Burns Brothers Coal Com- pany, of New York City; vice-president and a director of the Second National Bank, of Wilkes-Barre. He is a member of St. Stephens Episcopal Church; a member of the West- moreland Club, of Wilkes-Barre; a member of the Engineers' Club, of New York, and the Engineers' Club of Northeastern Pennsyl- vania; and a trustee of the Wilkes-Barre Institute. In his political affiliations he is a member of the Republican party.
On June 15, 1897, Mr. Payne married Anna Piper, of Wilkes-Barre, the daughter of Agid and Anna R. Piper. They have two children, both of whom are unmarried and living at home: Anna Roberts and Priscilla Standish.
REMMEL W. LaBAR-When settlers first encamped in the wilderness of what is Pike County, Pennsylvania, there were a few who had come all the way across the Atlantic from the shores of France. Among them were the three LaBar brothers, one of whom was the ancestor of the sheriff of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, Remmel W. LaBar. Ever since the days of that early settlement, the La- Bars have been a long-lived family, and one of exceptional virility and constructive thought in the communities in which they have lived.
Mr. LaBar's father, John H. LaBar, died in 1923 at the age of ninety-two years and his mother is still living and in good health,
although she is more than ninety-three years old. His great-uncle, George A. LaBar, died at the age of one hundred and eighteen years. John H. LaBar married Louisa Duffy and they had eight children. I. Amanda, who died in childhood. 2. Margaret, wife of Christian Walter, who founded the Walter Shoe Store in Wilkes-Barre. 3. Frank D., who was the first street railway motorman in Wilkes- Barre. 4. Samuel, deceased. 5. Ella, wife of H. R. Whitcraft, who helped to establish the old Wilkes-Barre "Leader," now the "Times- Leader." 6. Morris H., who died during the epidemic of influenza in 1918. 7. Estelita, wife of Charles Nash, of West Nanticoke, Pennsylvania. 8. Remmel W. LaBar, sheriff of Luzerne County.
John H. LaBar for many years was an undertaker and proprietor of a livery stable at Kingston Corner, Kingston, Pennsylvania, until he retired to a farm in Jackson Town- ship, where his son spent most of his boy- hood and later many of his vacations. Rem- mel W. LaBar was born in Wilkes-Barre November 13, 1880, and attended the public schools there. He began his business career when still a boy, his first employment being with the firm of Williamson and Wallace, in Wilkes-Barre. He continued to serve this wholesale grocery firm for nearly three years, then entered the employ of the Steg- mair Brewing Company, where he was em- ployed for two years.
The life of a policeman appealed to his young fancy at this time, and he obtained an appointment to the force. His diligence and aptitude for the work earned him rapid pro- motion and he was eventually the first cap- tain of detectives in Wilkes-Barre. After serving on the police force for twelve years, he was appointed an alderman to fill an un- expired term and was afterwards elected to the office. Two years later, in 1919, he was elected to the office of recorder of deeds for Luzerne County, which he occupied for four years. In 1923 he was elected sheriff of Luzerne County.
Mr. LaBar, an ardent and active Republi- can, is a member of Fidelity Lodge, No. 655, Free and Accepted Masons: Keystone Con- sistory, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite; is an Elk, a member of the Odd Fellows, the Eagles and the Loyal Order of Moose and a charter member of the Craftsman's Club of Wilkes-Barre.
In 1901, Mr. LaBar married Lottie Williams, daughter of Joseph Williams, of Wilkes- Barre. They have two children: Margaret Louise, and William Remmel LaBar, who is a clerk in the office of his father. The family home is at No. 58 Virginia Terrace, Forty Fort, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.
JOHN H, DOUGHTY-Numbered among the well-known citizens of Wilkes-Barre and vet- eran of the World War is John H. Doughty, mechanical engineer for the Lehigh and Wilkes-Barre Coal Company.
John H. Doughty was born in Dutchess County, New York, on February 3, 1876, a son of Dr. John H. and Elizabeth (Woodin) Doughty. Dr. John H. Doughty, the father, died at the age of seventy-five years, and is (1930) survived by the widow, aged ninety. Dr. John H. and Elizabeth ( Woodin) Doughty were the parents of seven children, all of whom reached maturity: 1. Thomas J., died at the age of thirty-three years. 2. Edgar M., of Brooklyn, New York. 3. Robert W., of Beacon, New York. 4. Mary V., wife of Ralph Brinkerhoff, of Yuma, Arizona. 5. Phoebe V. B., unmarried, at Beacon, New York. 6.
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John H., of whom further. 7. Elizabeth, de- ceased.
John H. Doughty, the son, attended the public schools at Beacon, New York, and graduated from Cornell University at Ithaca, New York, in the class of 1899, with the de- gree of Mechanical Engineer. Upon the con- clusion of his studies in college he took a position with the Worthington Pump Com- pany at Elizabethport, New Jersey, then re- moved to Pittston, Luzerne County, to become a draftsman for the Exeter Machine Com- pany, and later assistant outside superin- tendent, after serving as draftsman for the Lehigh and Wilkes-Barre Coal Company. He continued as assistant superintendent for the Lehigh-Wilkes-Barre organization until 1905, when he was made mechanical en- gineer; and this position has been his during the years succeeding. Politically affiliated with the Republican party, Mr. Doughty is a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Forty Fort, Luzerne County, and is a member in the American Society of Mechani- cal Engineers. In 1917 he was commissioned a captain in the Engineering Corps of the United States Army, and was located at Camp Lee, Virginia, until February, 1918, when he was ordered overseas. At a tank school in England he was instructor until October, 1918, when he became attached to the 10th Battalion of the British Expeditionary Forces at the British Tank Corps; in Novem- ber, 1918, he was attached to the 301st Tank Battalion, United States Army, at Sault, France, and later to the 329th Tank Bat- talion, United States Army, at Bourges, France. Mr. Doughty was mustered out of the service in April, 1919. He is a member of the Black Diamond Post of the American Legion, at Kingston, Pennsylvania. As an attestation to his widespread interests, illustrating the scope of activities engaged in by the soldier-engineer, it may be noted that Mr. Doughty is a member of the Forty Fort School Board, is president of the Wyo- ming Valley Council Boy Scouts of America, a member of the Wyoming Valley Historical and Geological Society, the society of Military Order of the World War, and director of the Forty Fort State Bank.
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