USA > Rhode Island > Rhode Island : three centuries of democracy, Vol. III > Part 9
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52
Mr. Bliss married, January I, 1872, Fannie Amelia Carpenter, who was born in Seekonk, Massachusetts, February 1, 1850, daughter of William A. and Mary (French) Carpenter. There were six children: four sons and two daughters. The daughters and one son, William C. Bliss, chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Rhode Island, survive. (See accompanying sketch).
On August 29, 1928, Judge Bliss died in his ninety-second year. His wife died in March, 1930. Both were active in founding the United Con- gregational Church of East Providence. The passing of Judge Bliss was marked by tributes of respect to his remarkable service to Nation, State and community.
WILLIAM CARPENTER BLISS, distin- guished lawyer and man of affairs, was born at East Providence, Rhode Island, on July 6, 1874, a son of George Newman and Fannie Amelia (Carpenter) Bliss. His father, also a lawyer, was judge of the Seventh Judicial District in this State for fifty-one years, until 1922. He was a man of genuine prominence in the State, a mem- ber of both the Senate and the House of Rep- resentatives, at various times, and for twenty-five years superintendent of schools at East Prov- idence. During the period of the Civil War, he
45
RHODE ISLAND-THREE CENTURIES OF DEMOCRACY
served as captain in the Ist Rhode Island Cavalry, from 1861 to 1865, and for the extreme gallantry of his conduct was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Mr. Bliss received his preliminary educational training in East Providence schools, and later en- tered Brown University from which he was grad- uated with the Bachelor of Arts degree in 1896, and a Master of Arts degree in 1898. In 1901, having completed the required course, he was graduated from the Law School of the University of Michigan with the Bachelor of Laws degree. In the same year he began his professional ca- reer at Providence, where his activities have since centered. Mr. Bliss has been an acknowledged leader of the Rhode Island bar for almost a quar- ter of a century. He has served, in addition, as a member of the General Assembly of the State in the House of Representatives from 1908 to 1912, and in 1911 was Speaker of the House. From 1910 to 1912 he was a member of the Joint Special Committee for the Revision of the Tax Laws, whose final report was adopted by the General Assembly in 1912, resulting the passage of the corporate excess and other tax laws which still remain in force. Since 1912 he has been chair- man of the Public Utilities Commission of Rhode Island, discharging the duties of this difficult posi- tion with complete success.
In 1916, he presented to and secured the adop- tion by the financial town meeting of his native town of East Providence of a resolution creat- ing a budget committee of the taxpayers, charged with the duty of passing judgment on all appro- priations as recommended to the town meeting by the town council and school committee. He served as chairman of this budget committee for a pe- riod of ten years and the system still continues to function satisfactorily in a town of 30,000 in- habitants. The budget committee system, some- times with modifications, has been adopted in some twelve other towns in the State.
Mr. Bliss is affiliated fraternally with the Free and Accepted Masons, being a member of Rising Sun Lodge, No. 30, Providence Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; and Calvary Commandery Knights Templar. During the period of the Spanish- American War, he enlisted and served as ensign in the United States Navy from 1898 to 1899, and since that time has held commissions of various grades until 1906 when he was made commander, commanding the Rhode Island Naval Militia, until May 26, 1915, when he was retired with the rank of captain. Mr. Bliss worships in the faith of the Congregational Church.
CLARENCE MASON GALLUP, D. D .- Pastor of the Central Baptist Church at Prov- idence, Rhode Island, from 1911 to 1931, Dr. Clarence Mason Gallup has been an important figure in the city's life for many years, and one of the leaders in the work of his denomination in the North. He was born at Norwich, Connecticut, on October 2, 1874, a son of Loren Aborn and Elizabeth Hooker (Kinney) Gallup. This family is a very old one in New England, being de- scended from John Gallup, who came from County Dorset, England, to Boston in 1630, with the party of Governor Winthrop, and who served as captain in the Colonial forces, and assisted in founding Norwich, Connecticut, with other Con- necticut enterprises. Members of his family in later generations continued the traditions of use- fulness and prominence which Captain John Gal- lup established.
Loren Aborn Gallup, father of Dr. Clarence Mason Gallup of this record, was a wholesale merchant by occupation, and a leader in the civic life at Norwich, Connecticut, where he had re- sided from his youth. During the period of the Civil War he enlisted for service in the Union cause, and became captain of Company F, 26th Regiment, Connecticut Volunteers, leading his company in its campaigns and engagements as a part of the Army of the Mississippi. Later he became a member of the staff of the Commander- in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic.
Clarence Mason Gallup received his preliminary education at Norwich Free Academy, from which he was graduated in 1891. Later he entered Brown University, taking the Bachelor of Arts degree in 1896, and continuing his preparations for the ministry at the Divinity School of the University of Chicago, from which he was grad- uated in 1900 with the Bachelor of Divinity de- gree. In 1915 Brown University conferred upon him the further degree of Doctor of Divinity.
Meanwhile, Dr. Gallup had come to Providence in his pastoral work. He was ordained to the Baptist ministry in 1900, and for the year follow- ing was pastor of the Second Baptist Church at Southington, Connecticut. From 1901 to 1903 he was junior pastor at Emmanuel Baptist Church, Albany, New York, and, in 1903-04, assistant to the secretary of the General Education Board in New York City. From 1904 to 1911 Dr. Gallup was pastor of the First Baptist Church at New Bedford, Massachusetts, and in the latter year was called to the Central Baptist Church in Prov- idence, whose pulpit he has since filled until Feb- ruary, 1931. In addition he has been recording
46
RHODE ISLAND-THREE CENTURIES OF DEMOCRACY
secretary of the Northern Baptist Convention since 1928, a member of the Ministers and Mis- sionaries Benefit Board since 19II, and a direc- tor of the Rhode Island Baptist State Conven- tion since 1912. He is also recording secretary of the Executive Committee of the Northern Bap- tist Convention, and a member of the Board of Missionary Cooperation of the Convention.
Dr. Gallup is a member of the Rhode Island Society of the Sons of the American Revolu- tion. He is affiliated with the Brown Chapter of Phi Delta Theta; with the honorary scholastic fraternity, Phi Beta Kappa; with the Brown Cam- marian Club; and is a member of several other clubs, including the Providence Civitan Club. He is a member of the Providence Theological Cir- cle, the Boston Theological Circle, and the Prov- idence Ministers Conference.
On June 28, 1899, at Norwich, Connecticut, Clarence Mason Gallup married Mary Alice Hovey, daughter of William Henry and Eleanor Prosser (Cranston) Hovey. They are the parents of one son, Frederick Sherer, born on August 15, 1900, who also is a clergyman in the active ministry. Dr. and Mrs. Gallup continue to reside in Providence, at No. 96 Lorraine Avenue, al- though Dr. Gallup, after a ministry of thirty-one years, has retired from the active pastorate and is extensively engaged in the executive work of the Northern Baptist Convention.
ERNEST LeGRAND SPRAGUE, son of Daniel Henry and Elleanora Sinclair (Rhodes) Sprague, was born at "Woodward Villa," East Providence, Rhode Island, December 22, 1876. Through his father's line he is a direct descend- ant from Edward Sprague of Upway, Dorsetshire, England, through his son Ralph, who was one of the original settlers of Charlestown, Massachu- setts, 1628-29; and through his paternal grand- mother, Juliaette Diana (White) Sprague, is a de- scendant of Peregrine White, the first white child born in New England; through his mother, El- leanora Sinclair Rhodes, he is descended from Zachary Rhodes, born in Massachusetts, Novem- ber 5, 1687, son of John Rhodes, one of the early settlers of Massachusetts.
Mr. Sprague was educated in the public schools, and was graduated from the Bridgham Gram- mar School of Providence, in 1892, and from the Providence Classical High School in 1896. He was elected page in the House of Representa-
tives of the Rhode Island General Assembly and served, 1891-94; in the State Senate, 1894-96; clerk in the office of the Secretary of State of Rhode Island, 1894-1909 assistant and deputy Secretary of State, 1909-24; and has been Sec- retary of State since January, 1924. He is one of the three who have remained in continuous public service of the State for the greatest length of time.
He resides on the west shore of the Providence River, in Edgewood, city of Cranston, and is in politics a Republican.
He is a Past Master of Orpheus Lodge, An- cient Free and Accepted Masons; and a member of Harmony Chapter; Doric Council; Thomas Smith Webb Commandery; Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite; Palestine Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine; Palestine Shrine Club; Trowel Club; Providence Forest, Tall Cedars of Lebanon; Alerta Club; Past Mas- ters' Association; Veteran Masons Association; Republican Club of Rhode Island; Republican Club of Cranston; Past Commander of General Burnside Camp, Sons of Union Veterans; past vice-president of Past Commanders Association, Sons of Union Veterans; British Empire Club; Rhode Island Yacht Club; trustee of the Wil- liam H. Hall Free Library, Edgewood; and served as a member of the 3d Division, Naval Battalion, Rhode Island Militia; as assistant to the Headquarters for the draft for the late World War; and secretary of the commission having in charge the voting by service men absent from the State at the time of the State election of 1918.
Mr. Sprague married, at Providence, November 19, 1903, Magdalene Dickhaut, daughter of An- drew and Ada (Wagner) Dickhaut, of Prov- idence. They have one daughter, Marjory Rhodes Sprague, born August 14, 1908, at Providence.
WILLIAM BATES GREENOUGH-De- scended from a long line of patriotic and pro- fessional men who served well their respective generations, William Bates Greenough, distin- guished member of the Rhode Island bar, has filled, among other offices of a public character, that of Attorney-General of the State. He has also discharged several important commissions. His rise in the legal profession has been steady and sustained in the nearly two-score years of his practice; and he is a former vice-president of the American Bar Association and is at present
47
RHODE ISLAND-THREE CENTURIES OF DEMOCRACY
a member of the Executive Committee. Prov- idence recognizes him as one of the foremost of her citizens, one who has the material, moral and civic welfare of the municipality at heart.
The family of Greenough is of English deriva- tion and has been seated in America for ap- proximately three centuries. Mr. Greenough's father, Dr. James Carruthers Greenough, was one of the most prominent educators of his day. He founded the Rhode Island State Normal School, became president of the Massachusetts State Agricultural College, and later was head of the Westfield (Massachusetts) State Normal School for many years. He married Jane Ashley Bates, and they had four children, of whom William Bates is the second child and eldest son. Dr. Greenough died December 4, 1924, and was pre- deceased by his wife in 1921.
William Bates Greenough, son of Dr. James Carruthers and Jane Ashley (Bates) Greenough, was born in Westfield, Massachusetts, November 22, 1866, and was graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts from Amherst College in the class of 1888. He later took post-graduate work at Yale University for one year, and in 1891 re- ceived his Master's degree at Amherst. In the same year he graduated Bachelor of Laws from the University of South Carolina.
The formal professional career of Mr. Green- ough began with opening of an office by him in Providence, March 1, 1892. He helped form the well-known law firm of Greenough, Easton & Cross, which was succeeded by the firm of Green- ough, Lyman & Cross, of which he is now a member. He was appointed to the office of a standing Master in Chancery.
In 1895 he was appointed assistant city solici- tor of Providence, this marking his formal entry into the public service. He filled the office until 1902, in which year he was appointed assistant Attorney-General of Rhode Island, and gave full proof during his term of three years of his ability to safeguard the interests of the Commonwealth. In 1904 he was elected Attorney-General of the State, being reelected annually for seven years and serving with distinction until he declined fur- ther reelection in 1911. He was also appointed a State Commissioner for Uniform State Laws, and a member of the Providence County Court House Commission, of which he is chairman. In addi- tion to his having held the office of vice-president of the American Bar Association, he has served as president of the Rhode Island Bar Association, and is a member of the American Institute of
Law. He has been president of the Alumni Coun- cil of Amherst College, and a member of the Rhode Island Society of Colonial Wars, in which latter body he has filled the offices of secretary, chancellor and Governor. He is also a member of the Rhode Island Society of the Order of Founders and Patriots of America, of which he is historian; a member of the Sons of the Amer- ican Revolution, and the Rhode Island Historical Society. He is a member of the University Club, Agawam Hunt Club, Appalachian Mountain Club, and Providence Art Club.
William Bates Greenough married, September 27, 1893, at Newton, Massachusetts, Eliza Smith Clark, born June 16, 1866, the daughter of Wil- liam Smith Clark, LL. D. Dr. Clark, born in 1826, died in 1886, graduated from Amherst Col- lege, Bachelor of Arts, in 1848. He was pro- fessor of Chemistry and Zoology at Amherst Col- lege from 1852 to 1867 and president of the Mas- sachusetts Agricultural College from 1867 to 1878. He was colonel of the 21st Massachusetts Infan- try in the Civil War, and a member of the Mas- sachusetts Legislature in 1864, 1865 and 1867. To William Bates and Eliza Smith (Clark) Green- ough were born these children: I. Bertha Clark, on September 28, 1895, at Providence; graduated Bachelor of Arts at Bryn Mawr College in 1917 and Master of Arts in 1918. 2. William Bates, Jr., born on December 11, 1899; graduated from Mas- sachusetts Institute of Technology with the de- gree of Bachelor of Science in 1923, and made a member of the faculty. He served in the United States Navy in the World War in 1918, and in 1923 was commissioned second lieutenant in avia- tion in the United States Army. He married Dorothy Garrison Rand on August 29, 1927 and has one child, Ann Forbes Greenough. 3. Jane Ashley, born June 19, 1904; graduated from Smith College in the class of 1926. She married, August 29, 1930, Liston Noble.
WILLIAM EATON FOSTER-Long active in the work that he had chosen and followed in his career, William Eaton Foster had been, since 1877, librarian of the Providence Public Library, of Providence, Rhode Island. He also held numerous other positions in this field of human endeavor, and in all of them performed, like most members of his craft, duties which have won all too little respect and admiration from his fellow-
48
RHODE ISLAND-THREE CENTURIES OF DEMOCRACY
men. For, routine workers though librarians appear to be, they are more than that; they have within their handling the knowledge of the cen- turies, all that has come down from ancient times in written or printed form, and great, indeed, is the duty that they fulfill in the world. Except for the wisdom that they, by careful effort and constant watching, keep alive from generation to generation, man would not, today and tomorrow, be able to profit by the experiences of yesterday and the discoveries of his forebears, and so would differ little in this respect from the lower orders of the animal kingdom. It is such faithful work- ers as Mr. Foster, workers who love the task that they have taken for their own and value the re- sponsibility that is placed in their hands, who have helped, perhaps most of all citizens, to preserve the culture and the practical knowledge that we have today and to give us foundations upon which to build for our own and future generations.
The family from which Mr. Foster was de- scended is an old and honored one in American life, and its members have taken part in different fields of work-journalism, education, business, public service of all sorts. The Fosters were in evidence in America in the early part of the seventeenth century, and have since been prom- inent here. William Eaton Foster, who was a son of Joseph Coggin and Abigail Ann (Eaton) Foster, was born in Brattleboro, Vermont, on June 2, 1851, and died in September, 1930. He attended the schools of his native community and subsequently registered at Brown University, in Providence, Rhode Island, where he took his Bachelor of Arts degree in the class of 1873 and his Master of Arts degree three years later. This institution, in appreciation of his public services as librarian and his loyalty to his alma mater, awarded him the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters in 1901. He began his career as librarian with the Hyde Park Public Library, of Hyde Park, Massachusetts, in 1873, and there remained until 1876, when he became cataloguer at the Turner Free Library in Randolph, Massachu- setts. This position he retained until, in the fol- lowing year, 1877, he became librarian at the Providence Public Library, an office of impor- tance in the library world and one which enabled him to be of marked public service.
In addition to his work in this connection, which was a labor of love and devotion, Mr. Foster was active in a number of societies and organizations, both those having to do with the affairs of his
own profession and those which deal in other activities of civic and social life. He was a mem- ber of the American Library Association, the American Historical Association, the American Antiquarian Society, and the Massachusetts Li- brary Club. In the Massachusetts Library Club he held the presidency in 1894 and 1895, while in the Rhode Island Library Association he was president from 1903 to 1905. He also became the author of a number of books of his own, some of them having to do with subjects related to library work, others dealing with contemporary and his- torical matters, but all of them containing a wealth of wisdom and experience gained through a life of usefulness and service. He wrote "The Civil Service Reform Movement," which appeared in 1881; "The Literature of Civil Service Reform in the United States," which was published in the same year; "Libraries and Readers," 1883; "Stephen Hopkins, a Rhode Island Statesman," 1884; "Town Government in Rhode Island," 1886; "The Point of View in History," 1906; and "Five Men of '76," 1926. These volumes throw a wealth of light on subjects which less careful and sea- soned workers would be content to treat more sketchily, and they won for him, in the circle in which they have been read, a widespread respect and esteem for his ability as a student of life and men.
William Eaton Foster married, in Providence, Rhode Island, on March 2, 1886, Julia Appleton, of this city.
RIGHT REV. JOHN F. SULLIVAN, D. D. -The Church of the Holy Trinity, Central Falls, Rhode Island, is fortunate in having for its pastor the able leader and distinguished writer, Mon- signor John F. Sullivan, D. D., who has been in charge here since 1912.
Holy Trinity Parish of Central Falls was formed from portions of St. Patrick's Parish, Valley Falls; Sacred Heart Parish, Pawtucket; and from a portion of the parent parish of the first two, St. Mary's of Pawtucket. Land was purchased in July, 1889, more was bought that same year, and on September 15, 1889, the corner- stone of the church was laid. The building was enclosed by December 20th of that year, and on the second Sunday of February, 1890, the first Mass was celebrated in the basement. All this was accomplished before the actual organization
49
RHODE ISLAND-THREE CENTURIES OF DEMOCRACY
of the new parish, which took place in the spring of 1890. Rev. Patrick Farrelly was made the first pastor, and he carried forward the task of com- pleting the church, which was dedicated May 23, 1892. A parochial residence was built in 1894, and for a long period of years Father Farrelly devoted his ability and his entire energy to the advancement of the spiritual and material welfare of the parish. Growth has been steady and vig- orous, and at the present time (1930) the parish of Holy Trinity numbers about 3,400 souls. A modern and well-equipped school building was erected and opened in 1906, and its enrollment has grown until sixteen Sisters of Our Lady of the Presentation are engaged in the work of teaching and directing. In the eighth and ninth grades a junior high school course is now taught, entitling the graduated pupils to enter the second year in any high school. The school is considered one of the best in the State. An outstanding feature of the parochial activities of Holy Trinity is the Community House, which adjoins the school building, and which is one of the finest of its kind in Rhode Island. It is equipped with every facil- ity for the healthful amusement and physical de- velopment of the young people of the parish, a gymnasium and dressing rooms, four bowling alleys, six pool tables, a hall especially equipped for moving pictures, a library, rooms for playing cards, and, one of the most popular features, a swimming pool. A good instructor is provided, and nearly all the boys and girls of the parish, even the very young ones, have been taught to swim. Many of them are experts and well quali- fied to teach the others. The plans for the build- ing were drawn by the pastor and he takes a deep interest in all the activities conducted in its well-equipped rooms.
The Right Rev. John F. Sullivan, D. D., was born in Newport, Rhode Island, August 27, 1867, son of Thomas Sullivan, a contractor, and Cath- erine (Fitzgerald) Sullivan. He attended the public schools of Newport and St. Mary's paro- chial school, from which he was graduated in 1883. In that year he entered Mount St. Mary's College, at Emmitsburg, Maryland, and later he continued his studies at Manhattan College, in New York City, where he completed his course with graduation in June, 1886. Having chosen to dedicate his life to the service of Holy Church, he entered St. Mary's Seminary at Baltimore, Maryland, from which he was graduated in June, 1889, with the degree of Bachelor of Theology.
In the Catholic University of America, at Wash- ington, D. C., he continued his studies from 1889 to 1891, and on June 24, 1891, he was ordained a priest, the ordination service taking place in the Cathedral at Providence, Rhode Island. After ordination he was appointed an assistant in St. Mary's Church, Providence, where he served until 1904, in which year he was made a pastor and given charge of a small parish, St. Agnes' Church on Branch Avenue, in Providence, where he re- mained for eight years. In 1912 he was appointed to his present charge as pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Central Falls, where he is still (1930) serving with marked ability and deep devotion. Since that time Holy Trinity has been made a permanent rectorship. During the sixteen years of his pastorate the parish has grown in member- ship and has been greatly strengthened in all its many spiritual and social activities. The com- munity house mentioned above represents a vast outlay of time, means, and energy, and brings a' rich return in both spiritual and material values. Three assistants, Rev. Peter P. Hussey, John P. McGuire, and Rev. John J. Keeney, aid in the parochial work, carrying out effectively the plans made by the pastor, and exerting a strong influ- ence for good among the young men and women of Holy Trinity.
Along with his parish responsibilities, Father Sullivan has been engaged in literary work from 1917 to the present time, and through his pub- lished works has exerted a sound and wholesome influence throughout the country and, in some cases, throughout the Catholic world. He is the author of three books which are accepted as authority in Catholic schools and churches, namely: "The Externals of the Catholic Church," a standard work describing its ceremonies, devo- tions, festivals, laws, etc., known everywhere; "The Visible Church," a text-book for Catholic colleges and high schools, of which 100,000 copies have been sold and which is used in some four hundred schools; and "The Fundamentals of Catholic Belief," a doctrinal and scientific ex- planation of the Catholic faith. In addition to these well known works, Father Sullivan has con- tributed copiously to various religious and scien- tific magazines, and he has written one hundred and twenty articles for the New Catholic Diction- ary. His books are published by P. J. Kenedy & Sons, New York City. He is deeply interested in geology and in the theory of evolution and his articles on these subjects have called forth much
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.