USA > Rhode Island > Memorial encyclopedia of the state of Rhode Island > Part 14
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People asked me if I wasn't making a mistake and I replied, "I'm going right into the centre." I pointed out that business blocks would replace the row of houses between Depot and Monument squares and I have lived to see my prediction fulfilled. The block was then known as the Bryant block and the late Clark M. Saunders was the agent of the property. Some years ago I purchased the four-story brick building upon the ground floor of which my store was located. About ten years ago I took Harry E. Davis, my chief clerk, into partnership and changed the firm uame to Chilson & Company. Over two years ago I bought him out, as Mr. Davis had decided to enter another business, and until I sold the store I was again sole proprietor. The present proprietor will retain the name of the store, the business of which I spent thirty-three years in building.
During my long period as a news dealer I saw the newspapers in town grow from one weekly to five dailies and three weeklies at one time, and at present there are three dailies and two weeklies published in the city. The circulation of the "Journal" and "Bulletin" here has doubled several times since I first sold the papers. I have had hun- dreds of newsboys during my period in business. Nearly all of them have turned out well and a large percentage of them have made successful business men. When I came here Dr. Ballou and Mrs. Greene both had houses on Main street where business blocks now stand and Cook's building was just being erected. With the exception of a few years spent at the North End, I have lived in the Bernon district since I have been in Woonsocket.
On retiring from business Mr. Chilson received many congratulatory letters from men with whom he had long transacted business. One of them is here preserved.
PROVIDENCE JOURNAL CO. Editorial Department. Providence, R. I.
DEAR MR. CHILSON :---
March 27, 1901.
I started out to say that I hear with regret that you are going to retire from busi- ness, but instead let me congratulate you on your ability to retire. It is truly pleasant to see a friend reach that bourne which we all strive to attain, where the "pile" being made, the harness can be slipped off.
I regret, of course, that the Journal is to lose an agent such as you have been. In all our long years of business relations, I cannot recall one note of discord and I have no doubt that other concerns with whom you have done business can say the same of you.
Permit me, therefore, to again congratulate you upon your arrival on "Easy Street" and let me express the hope that your years of residence there may be long and happy. Very truly yours,
(Signed) M. S. DWYER.
Mr. Chilson was for several years a member of the board of directors of the Woonsocket First National Bank, was for three years its president,
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LeRoy Lewett Chilson
holding that office at the time of its sale to the Industrial Trust Company of Providence, conducting the negotiations on behalf of the First National, the transfer being made December 27, 1901. Mr. Chilson was made a mem- ber of the board of managers of the Woonsocket branch of the Industrial Trust Company (as the former First National Bank was known) continu- ing until his death, a wise councilor and conscientious officer. He was also a director of the Bailey Wringer Works, a director of the Woonsocket Street Railway Company, which he aided in organizing, director of the Woonsocket Building & Loan Association, director of the People's Savings Bank and secretary of the board of trustees. He took a just pride in the fact that he was one of the original, if not the originator of the "Plan A," location for the Hamlet avenue bridge, now known as the Court street bridge, and was one of the foremost and hardest workers to give Woon- socket that improvement. His work on the school board already alluded to was most valuable. He was first appointed a member in 1880, serving until 1886. In 1889, the year Woonsocket was incorporated as a city, he was again chosen a member, elected president of the board, and was con- tinuously in that position until his death.
Mr. Chilson was an ardent Republican and served as chairman of both the town and city Republican committees. In 1885 he was elected to the Assembly from Woonsocket, serving from May, 1885, to May, 1887. In 1897 he was elected State Senator, serving under reelections until May, 1900, declining another nomination in 1903. He was one of the war horses of his party and it was his boast that he had taken his party medicine straight ever since he first cast a ballot.
He was past Noble Grand of Eureka Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, lodge historian and chaplain of the Grand Lodge of Rhode Island. He was also a member of Myrtle Lodge, Knights of Pythias, and of the Knights of Honor. In religious faith he was a Universalist and for years was active in the Universalist Society of Young Men. At the time of his death he was vice-president and acting president of the society. A trustee, chairman of the executive board, having the interest of the parish deeply at heart.
Mr. Chilson married at Woonsocket, June 6, 1858, Fannie E. Warfield, born in Millville, town of Blackstone, Massachusetts, who survives him. Mr. and Mrs. Chilson were the parents of three children, none of whom are now living: 1. Edith Hortense, born in Bellingham, Massachusetts, died at Woonsocket, Rhode Island, April 20, 1895, aged thirty-two years. She married, Wednesday, June 9, 1886, Joseph Brown, of the drug firm of Ros- seau & Brown. She was for several years the leading soprano of the Univer- salist church, and although a sufferer for years, she was in her early life the brightness of sunshine, the music of birds, the gladness of a happy heart, so kind of heart, so considerate of others, that all who knew her loved her. Refined in her taste, pure in her heart, intelligent in her judgment and self sacrificing, she was a power for good wherever she went, and in her home contributed a true wife's share to make it the happiest place on earth. 2. Fred Lincoln, a sketch of whom follows. 3. Bertha, born in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, in 1871, died July 4, 1902, at her home, corner of Snow and
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Earle streets. She married Colonel Stanley G. Smith. She was a woman of particularly sweet disposition and sunny temperament, standing high in the love and esteem of all who knew her and those who had the privilege of associating with her cherished her friendship as a boon. She was a member of the Universalist church and Sunday school, the Woonsocket Fortnightly Club, the Cumberland Country Club, the Saturday Night Whist Club and other organizations.
When the time came to pay the last sad rites of respect to LeRoy L. Chilson, men high in official life, men who in years past had held positions of honor and trust, men in humbler life who had known and admired the man, brethren of the church and fraternities gathered to do him honor, ere he was laid at rest in Oak Hill Cemetery. There were many written testimonials of respect and regret sent the family, two of which are appended.
At the annual meeting of the Woonsocket Universalist Society of Young Men in Woonsocket, April 15, 1907, the following resolutions were adopted, ordered spread upon the records and a copy sent to the family :
The death of LeRoy L. Chilson on March sixth, nineteen hundred and seven, re- moves from our midst a faithful and energetic officer, a cherished companion and friend. One whose life has been identified and associated with the interests of this society for many years, he being a most efficient and active worker on the Board of Trustees, and Vice-President of the society since nineteen hundred and one.
While our loss inexpressibly saddens us, we are yet deeply grateful for his long and helpful life, for his part in the upbuilding of our church and society, and for the privilege of having had him as our associate for so long.
The members of this society will ever remember him as a kindly companion, a care- ful and efficient adviser and an influential and thoughtful co-worker.
Resolved that this heartfelt testimonial of our sympathy and sorrow be sent to the family of Mr. Chilson and a copy spread upon the records of this society.
For the society, (Signed) JOHN R. BOYDEN, President.
MYRTLE LODGE Knights of Pythias.
Whereas: In the course of nature, full of years and honors, it has pleased the Su- preme Ruler to call our weli-beloved brother, LeRoy L. Chilson, to a higher order, in the life immortal, therefore be it
Resolved ; that Myrtle Lodge, No. 1, Knights of Pythias, of which our departed brother was one of the oldest members, hereby records the great esteem in which we held our brother, and will ever cherish his memory. Our sense of loss is deep and keen. We shall meet, but we shall miss him, not only collectively, but individually. He was a kindly, knightly man. who exemplified in his daily walk in life the principles and precepts of Pythian brotherhood, whose friendship was warm and loyal, whose charity was large and liberal, covering the frailities of his fellowmen, whose benevolence was more than alins giving, it was helpful and uplifting.
Resolved ; that our alter be draped in mourning for thirty days, in honor and memory of our brother.
Resolved ; that these resolutions be entered upon our records, and a copy of them be sent to the family of the departed brother, to whom we tender our heartfelt sympathy, in their great bereavement.
Mr. Chilson was a director of the Ballou Home of the Aged of Woon- socket and the following is a memorial testifying to the esteem in which he was held by that institution :
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LeRop Lewett Chilson
LeRoy L. Chilson, since June, 1905, a member of the Board of Directors of the Bal- lou Home for the Aged, died March 6, 1907.
The Board of Directors had hoped to receive for many years to come the wise counsel and encouragement and active service of this honored man. His very presence was a help in a meeting of the Board : his quiet, controlled, thoughtful, attentive and dig- nified manner made his strength felt; not hasty to speak, he waited until he could ex- press a kindly judgment, or until he might suggest some happy way out of the difficulty. The members of the Home have lost by the death of LeRoy L. Chilson a sympathetic, genial, companionable, cheery friend; one who would have given thought and time to promoting their comfort and happiness. Since the incorporation of the Home, two mem- bers of the Board have died :- Charles L. White, a devoted pastor, for more than thirty years in Woonsocket, and his devout parishioner, LeRoy L. Chilson, who for a longer period has lived and labored for his fellowmen in this city. Their interest for the wel- fare of the Ballou Home for the Aged during their lives was great, and now that their labors on earth are ended their influence will continue to be a blessing to the Home. SARAH MARBLE SHEDD, WILLIAM S. PRESTON, J. D. CARPENTER.
Mr. Chilson left a life interest in his estate to his widow but at her death it all goes to various charities of Woonsocket, the city where he made all his money.
Fred Lincoln Chilson
T HE DEATH of Fred Lincoln Chilson on March 9, 1914, at Woonsocket, Rhode Island, removed from that place, while still in the prime of his strength and manhood, one of its most highly respected and prominent citizens, a successful banker and business man. He was a descendant of sturdy old New England stock and was in all respects typical of that strong class of men who, seeking no wider fields of endeavor than those offered by the environment in which they are born, yet make of this a medium for the expression of their talents and abilities, who find, like Wilhelm Meister, but without the trouble of his preliminary struggles, that Eldorado lies at their own doorstep.
Fred Lincoln Chilson was the son of LeRoy L. and Fannie E. (War- field) Chilson, and was born in South Walpole, Massachusetts, April 1, 1866. Only the first few years of his childhood, however, were spent in his native town, for while he was still a mere lad his parents removed to Woonsocket, Rhode Island, which henceforth became his home and the scene of his busy and active career. It was here in the local public schools that he gained his education, graduating with the class of 1883 from the high school there. The year following he took up a business course in Mowry & Goff's School in Providence, Rhode Island. He had been a bright and intelligent student and displayed unmistakable ambition during his school life, being one of the first principals of the evening schools, during the years 1890-91-92. The same ambition urged him make no delay in taking up the serious business of life. From the outset fate or fortune turned his attention towards banking, the line which he followed so consistently all his life and his first position was with the Producer's National Bank of Woonsocket where he picked up the rudiments of the business and where he quickly showed himself to be gifted with unusual business talent and unwearied industry. In the year 1889 he left the employ of the Producer's National Bank only to accept another better position as receiving teller with the Woonsocket National Bank, which was afterwards merged into the Industrial Trust Company of Woonsocket, when he became paying teller, a position which he continued in until the end of his life. Mr. Chilson's long service with the trust con- pany was of great value to that concern, especially in connection with the building up of its important business in Woonsocket, where his personal popularity and the entire confidence reposed in his motives and methods by his fellow citizens did much to bring the institution itself into favor.
But it was not merely as a man of business that Mr. Chilson was promi- nent in the life of the town. In club and fraternity circles he was equally well known and belonged to a great number of important organizations of one sort or another. Many of these were in more or less indirect connection with his business, such as the Woonsocket Business Men's Association and the Bank Clerk's Mutual Benefit Association, and he was a member of the Men's Club connected with the Universalist church. He was especially
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Fred Lincoln Chilson
conspicuous in the Masonic order and was a member of several of that great organization's local bodies, among which should be mentioned Morning Star Lodge, No. 13, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, of Woonsocket; Union Chapter, No. 4, Royal Arch Masons; and Woonsocket Council, No. 4, Royal and Select Masters. He was also a member of the Roger Williams Council, No. 696, Royal Arcanum. Although never identifying himself at all closely with the local organization of his party, nor taking part actively in politics at all, Mr. Chilson was known throughout the community as a strong and staunch Republican, and his voice always carried weight when it was raised upon the subject of the conduct of public affairs. His father before him had been a trustee of the. Harris Institute Library, and to this position of trust and responsibility he succeeded him, holding it up to the time of his own death. He was chairman of the commission which reported on the relaying and straightening of Hamlet avenue near Front street, Woonsocket.
On September 23, 1890, Mr. Chilson was united in marriage with Lena B. Hempleman, of Richmond, Indiana, a daughter of Aaron W. and Martha M. Hempleman, of that town.
Mr. Chilson was a splendid type of citizenship, public spirited, and dis- interested, always ready to join in any movement that appealed to him as reasonable that was undertaken for the good of the community, or when this was impossible to lend it whatever assistance he could from the influence which his name and reputation always carried to material aid of the most practical kind. His virtues which, although he never advertised them, stood out upon his nature, the obvious fruit of a sterling character, won for him the friendship of all his associates.
William Millen
A T THE outbreak of the Civil War, William Millen, a New York boy, was living in Providence, Rhode Island; when the call for troops came he enlisted in Battery E, Rhode Island Light Artillery, and went to the front, October 5, 1861. Thirty-seven years later Rev. J. H. Bucklyn, A. M., of Mystic, Connecticut, who was the war time captain of Battery E, stood by the lifeless form of his friend and comrade and said: "We feel more like mingling our tears with the mourn- ers. Some of us knew Comrade Millen very well. We have known him since 1861 and we feel we can say of him to-day, that he fought a good fight, that he kept the faith and has now received the reward of those who follow in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus. Comrade Millen was a brave man. We have seen him in times of great danger and he was never known to fail in doing the duty required of him. He did his duty as a soldier and he has tried to do it as a citizen. He was a Christian man in the army as he has been a Christian man at home."
These few words tell the story of Mr. Millen's life, "he tried to do his duty." The path of duty which he ever followed led him into the army, led him through an honorable business life in Providence and into the City Council, where he was a ready and willing champion of all measures for the public good and the unalterable foe of all that partook of the nature of "a deal." He was a man of quiet tastes, a capable business man, honesty mark- ing his every transaction.
William Millen was born in New York City in 1837, and died at his home on Broadway, in the city of Providence, August II, 1898, a son of a dry goods merchant and of Scotch descent. He completed a course of public school study and it was the wish of the father that the son should continue through college. But the lad, anxious to begin business life and to become independ- ent, disregarded his father's wishes, a fact he often was heard to regret in after life. He, however, had a fair English education for a foundation and in later life, so wide had been his courses of reading and so close his observa- tion of men and occurrences, that it came somewhat as a surprise to his friends to learn he was not college bred.
At about seventeen he engaged with a Mr. Fisher, of New York, in the lumber business, rafting lumber down the Hudson river; a little later he was employed in a box factory in Providence, Rhode Island, and he was living there at the time of his enlistment in 1861. He went to the front with Battery E, Rhode Island Light Artillery, which left Camp Parry for Wash- ington, October 5, 1861. He was engaged with his battery in many battles, had three horses killed under him, and was thoroughly tested for courage, endurance, health and devotion, and found wanting in no soldierly attribute. He served his full term of enlistment, three years and three months, being honorably discharged and mustered out October 3, 1864. From 1866, Mr. Millen was engaged in successful business on North Main street, Providence,
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William Millent
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William Willen
and for thirty-two years continued there in business for himself. His first store was a crockery and tin establishment on the corner of Cady and North Main streets. Later he moved to No. 130 North Main street, there adding furnaces, stoves and ranges to his stock. He was a shrewd business man, as honest and upright as the day was long, a very likeable man, having many friends. In 1890, Mr. Miller yielded to the wishes of his friends and allowed them to elect him a member of the Common Council. He represented the Fourth Ward of Providence in that body for six years and during that time did not acquire even the slightest symptom of being a "politician." He brought to the business of governing a city the same care and attention he bestowed upon his private affairs, and in season and out of season was the friend of good measures, the enemy of corrupt or shady ones. He was known as the people's "Champion," a title he earned by repeated refusal to enter into deals that plainly were not to the people's interest.
He was a member of Nestell Lodge and Providence Chapter of the Masonic order, belonged to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and affiliated with his old comrades in membership in Prescott Post, Grand . Army of the Republic. In religious faith he was a Baptist, a liberal sup- porter and interested worker in the First Baptist Church and Sunday school. He was a lover of books and of Nature's works, seeing beauty in all the works of the Creator. He also served as colonel of the Marine Artillery.
Mr. Millen married, August 20, 1882, Abbie M. Dye, daughter of Thomas and Deborah (Kenyon) Dye, both old residents of Providence of Quaker ancestry. They had no children, but lived in closest companionship, each devoted to the other. Mrs. Millen survives her husband, residing at No. 120 Butler street, Providence.
On August 16, 1898, the last rites were observed in the presence of delegations from the Grand Army, the Veteran Artillery Men's Association, the Masonic bodies, Battery E, the Common Council and the City Govern- ment, and Mr. Millen's circle of friends. He lay beneath the "Stars and Stripes," which he had loved so well, and enwrapped in its folds he was laid at final rest in Pocasset Cemetery. The poem which follows was composed and read during the services by his old friend and army captain, Rev. J. H. Bucklyn, A. M .:
:
WILLIAM MILLEN. While we in sorrow gather here To bear away our comrade's bier, His many virtues to recall, And tell how he has blest us all, Tell how he lived a Christian life, In peaceful home, on field of strife ; Tell of his inner life so pure, Tell of his friendships,-none were truer.
We know we should not drop a tear, Because our comrade is not here. He's served his time, he's mustered out ; Of his discharge there is no doubt. In honor his long service passed, In honor he's discharged at last. Secure from every sin and sorrow, He lives where there is no to-morrow.
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William Hillen
But comrade! we shall miss you so, Miss you everywhere we go, Miss you at the comrades' meeting, Miss your kind and cheerful greeting. Language has no words to tell How sad for us is this farewell. Only those compelled to bow. Beneath the blow as we do now,
Can know the sorrow of this day In which we bear thy form away.
But we will trust the Father's word, And cast our burdens on the Lord. Again we'll yield to life's demands, Resume again its thoughts and plans, Walking along the King's highway, Out of darkness, into day, Doing the work we find to do, Comrade, until we come to you.
July 8, 1847.
July 8, 1897.
Mr. and Mrs. Pardon Manchester Stone, above, at the time of their marriage, and below, at the time of their Golden Wedding
Pardon Manchester Stone
T HERE CAN be no question as to the truth of the proposition that in the simple life of the farmer the conditions are such as to make for the complete, well-rounded development of character in a degree scarcely to be found in any other human occupation. Certainly we may see many living examples of this, and but few so conclusive as that of the distinguished gentleman whose name heads this appreci- ation, Pardon Manchester Stone, late of Providence, Rhode Island, where his death on March 24, 1906, was felt as a general loss. It was his fortune to enjoy in his youth that rural environment so highly praised and his virtue to profit to the full by the experience. Whether it is the superb physical basis induced by the plenty of wholesome work and recreation in the open air, whether it is in the quality of the work itself, which necessitates patience and self-control, or whether there is something in the intimate contact with the bare, unvarnished, elemental facts of nature which tone the temperament and balance.the judgment, it would perhaps be presumptious to say. Per- haps it is a combination of all of these, but certain it is that men engaged in this primitive industry in their youth display, on the whole more than others, those strong, basic virtues that we associate with the idea of manli- ness and which were so conspicuously the traits and qualities of Mr. Stone.
Pardon Manchester Stone was born July 19, 1819, on the old "Captain Stone Farm" in the township of Killingly, Connecticut, a son of Stephen A. and Lucy A. (Johnson) Stone, both his parents being members of sturdy old New England stocks. As has already been said, he profited by the splendid, wholesome life of the farmer's boy, his father following that honor- able calling, but his other advantages, especially in the direction of educa- tion, were woefully meager. The resources of the district school, scanty enough in that period at best, were in his case rendered still less from the fact that he was obliged to work in the mills of the Quinnebaug Valley, while still a mere lad. After reaching the age of thirteen he did enjoy one term in the Woodstock Academy, but here his studies ended, at least so far as they were pursued under the direction of a tutor, and he went to work in earnest. But much may be made out of very little, given the intelligence and perseverance necessary, and the lad took the best possible advantage of his opportunities, supplementing his schooling with studies at home and a wide course of reading. Characteristic of his enterprising and courageous nature was his start in the serious business of life, when, as a youth of eighteen and with a capital of five dollars, which he had saved by dint of the strictest economy, he left the parental home and made his way to the city of Providence, Rhode Island, which his ambition told him was full of oppor- tunity for a youth such as himself. In Providence he continued to live from that time forth, until nearly sixty-nine years later his death occurred there. Upon first reaching the city he became apprenticed to Sackett & Willard,
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