USA > Rhode Island > Rhode Island : three centuries of democracy, Vol. IV > Part 20
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Assembly for a number of terms and was magi- strate in the Court of Trials in Warwick at dif- ferent times.
Surgeon Greene married, in 1619, Joanne Tat- tershall in Salisbury. She was the mother of all his children. She died soon after the family re- moved to Rhode Island. His will was proved January 7, 1659. He left a large estate.
(II) James Greene, their son, was baptized in St. Thomas' Church, Salisbury, England, June 21, 1626, and was brought to this country by his parents. A freeman of Warwick and Providence Plantations in 1647, in 1655 he was on the list of freemen in every town in the Colony. In 1661, he was town clerk, and the records show he was a fine penman. He was a member of the General Assembly under the first charter, and deputy and assistant under the second charter, his period of service covering ten years. His house was de- stroyed during King Philip's War, and he fled to Portsmouth. In 1684, however, he purchased land in Potowomut and took up his residence there. In that house was born his great-grandson, Gen- eral Nathanael Greene, whose name will always be illustrious in American history, and here lived and are living today descendants of James Greene a period of more than two centuries. He died there April 27, 1698. James Greene married for his sec- ond wife, August 3, 1665, Elizabeth Anthony, daughter of John and Susannah Anthony, mem- bers of another early Rhode Island family. She died in 1698.
(III) Jabez Greene, their son, was born May 17, 1673. He inherited the homestead, where he resided, and also a forge he was destined to de- velop into a very important industry. He was admitted freeman in Warwick, May 5, 1696. He became a member of the Society of Friends. His first wife, whom he married March 17, 1697-98, was Mary Barton, daughter of Benjamin and Susannah (Gorton) Barton, and a granddaughter of Samuel Gorton, who was a pioneer settler in Warwick.
(IV) Nathanael Greene, their son, was born November 4, 1707. He inherited the homestead on the west bank of the Potowomut River and the forge. While he was a Quaker preacher, he was also associated with his brothers in the opera- tion of the forge. Here were manufactured anchors and other forgings, and they developed what was a large business for those days. It gained renewed impetus after the Revolution and was developed into an extensive iron works under the name of the "Greene Forge." He married for
his second wife, April 18, 1739, Mary Mott, daughter of Jacob and Rest (Perry) Mott. She was born April 25, 1708, and died March 7, 1753. Nathanael Greene died in October, 1768.
(V) Perry Greene, son of Nathanael and Mary (Mott) Greene, and brother of General Nathanael Greene, was born November 9, 1749. He died in early manhood from a severe fever. He was cap- tain of a merchant ship and was also interested with his brothers in the operation of their iron works. Like his brother, General Nathanael, of Revolutionary fame, he abandoned the non-mili- tary attitude of the Society of Friends, for which he suffered excommunication. He enlisted as a private in 1771-72 in the 6th Regiment Albany County, New York Militia. About 1783 Perry Greene married Elizabeth Belcher of Newport, Rhode Island, who was born in 1758, daughter of Colonel Joseph and Hannah (Gladding) Belcher. She was a descendant of Gregory Belcher of Braintree, England, who came to Boston in 1634. He was one of the early settlers of Braintree, Massachusetts and was one of the founders of the church there.
(VI) William Perry Greene, son of Perry and Elizabeth (Belcher) Greene, was born June 10, 1784, and died in Philadelphia, April 24, 1855, at the residence of his son-in-law, Charles Hunt Welling. In his early life, William Perry Greene was a manufacturer, living in Providence and visiting his mills in neighboring towns. He also served as a United States customs officer in that city. He had no children by his first marriage. He married for his second wife, October 5, 1818, Susan Elizabeth Mumford of East Greenwich, Rhode Island. She was born December 13, 1792, and died March 24, 1834. On the paternal side she was a granddaughter of Gideon and Elizabeth (Frye) Tibbitts-Mumford, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Greene) Frye, and great-granddaugh- ter of Thomas Greene, brother of James II.
On her maternal side Mrs. William Perry Greene was a great-granddaughter of Jahleel and Frances (Cranston) Brenton of Newport. The latter was a daughter of Governor Samuel Cran- ston, whose ancestry has been traced back to David II of Scotland. Jahleel Brenton was one of the original members and the first commanding officer of the Newport Artillery Company in 1742. He was also active in public life. He was a grandson of Governor William Brenton, who came from Hammersmith, Middlesex County, England, in 1633. He brought with him a grant from Charles I, dated 1633, as Surveyor-General
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of the New England Colony, and allowed him a stated number of acres to the square mile of all the lands he surveyed. He thus acquired large holdings. He removed from Massachusetts to Rhode Island in 1636, and was actively identified with the settlement of Newport. He was a man of wealth and retained his residence also in Bos- ton after coming to Newport. He died in 1674 after a long public service. The Brentons were loyalists and returned to Devonshire, England, at the time of the Revolution.
(VII) Katherine Celia Greene, daughter of William Perry and Susan Elizabeth (Mumford) Greene, was born September 21, 1826. On De- cember 31, 1850, she married Charles Hunt Well- ing, as previously stated, and they became the parents of Richard Ward Greene Welling, of whom further.
(VIII) Richard Ward Greene Welling was born at Pojac Point Farm in North Kingstown, this State, August 27, 1858. After attending M. W. Lyons school in New York City he entered Harvard University, from which he was gradu- ated in 1880. He then entered Harvard Law School, and after two years of professional train- ing he was admitted to the bar in New York City in 1883. He has engaged in the practice of law in that city ever since. Mr. Welling's public activities began almost as soon as he became a resident of New York City. In the fall of 1882 he aided his classmate, the late Theodore Roose- velt, in organizing the City Reform Club, and soon became one of its most active workers. He was president of the club from 1888 to 1892, and during his incumbency the famous fight of that period against election frauds was waged. He headed the movement which secured repeal of the Central Park Speedway grab and took part in the investigation of the police department (1887-92). He was active also in the fight against the Excise Commissioners, resulting in mandamus of them (56 Hun 626). In 1889 he became one of the first members of the Commonwealth Club and was its secretary and treasurer during the fight which it started and successfully waged for ballot re- form, resulting in securing the Australian ballot. He was one of the organizers and first secretary of the People's Municipal League, which nomi- nated the late Francis M. Scott for mayor, and also served as chairman of its committee on meet- ings and speakers in this and subsequent fusion campaigns-Strong, Low, Bannard, etc. Although the Scott campaign was not successful a very heavy Fusion vote was polled and the city govern-
ment reaped the benefit of an alert and vigorous opposition. In the next campaign the Fusion candidate, William L. Strong, was elected mayor. Mr. Welling was especially active in the cam- paign which elected Mr. Jerome district attorney, running on an independent ticket against both Tammany and Republican candidates. Until the Blaine-Cleveland campaign in 1884 Mr. Welling had always been a regular Republican; but at that time he joined with those who bolted the party, and later attended the "anti-snap" conven- tion held in Syracuse which nominated Cleveland for his second term. He is now a Progressive.
In 1892 he helped to organize the City Club, and until 1897 was a member of its board of trustees. He served as chairman of the committee which organized twenty-five of the Good Government Clubs, and afterwards as president of Club "D" in 1894, worked for the removal of District At- torney Fellows. He was also chairman of the Municipal Government Committee of the City Club which, in 1897, published the report on water-waste in New York City. From 1898 to 1900 he was a member of the Merchants' Asso- ciation Anti-Ramapo Water Committee. He was chairman of the Association of New York State Clubs, which prepared the program of municipal reform for the Constitutional Convention of 1894. He was also a member of the Citizens' Union and chairman of its Committee on Certificates of Nomination. From 1910 to 1913 he was a member of the Municipal Civil Service Commission, re- ceiving his appointment from Mayor Gaynor.
In his college days, being forbidden to take part in general athletics (crew, football, etc.), he was, however, much interested in physical development and after patient gymnasium work, on taking the official strength tests, for several years topped the list of strong men at Harvard.
In 1892, and in 1902, he visited the Far East, returning in '92 by the Indian Ocean and in 1902 by the trans-Siberian route. In 1893 with the late Edmond Kelly he climbed the Grand Teton (then unclimbed), prevented by a sudden snow- storm within a few hundred feet from reaching the very top.
He was an original member (1891) of the Ist Naval Battalion of New York; also in 1901 joined Squadron "A" Cavalry Troop. While in the Squadron for several years he headed the list as expert marksman. He also procured the recogni- tion by the Squadron of Barretto de Souza as instructor, the greatest living exponent and dis- tinguished writer on equitation under the Baucher
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System. He was an original member of the St. Nicholas Skating Club, and contributed an article to the "Sporting and Dramatic News" demon- strating that for the average skater skates were built unnecessarily high, and several manufac- turers ultimately agreed with this view. He was also a member of the West Side Tennis Club, winning a cup in one of the earlier matches. He has always been keenly interested in sailing and has attended every international cup race from IS7I to date.
In the Spanish-American War he was com- missioned Ensign and served on the "Glacier" in Cuban waters. He was lieutenant in command of the Fleet Naval Reserve at Montauk Point Naval Base from 1917 to 1919, when he success- fully applied "discipline by consent." He also served as treasurer of the Belgian-American Re- lief Fund.
Mr. Welling has been and is a member of many organizations of a non-political character, among which may be mentioned: The Philharmonic- Symphony Society of New York, of which he is secretary; the Wagner Society; lay member of the Council of the National Sculpture Society; vice-president and director of the Municipal Art Society; Parks and Playgrounds Association; treasurer of the Tenement House Building Com- pany; Executive Committee Civil Service Reform Association; Fellow of the Academy of Political Science; secretary of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; Rhode Island Historical Society and New Jersey His- torical Society; Society of Colonial Wars; chair- man of Self Government Committee, Inc .; presi- dent and trustee of the George Junior Republic; National Education Association; New York So- ciety for the Experimental Study of Education; Progressive Education Association; National So- ciety for the Study of Education; United Parents Association; Association of the Bar of the City of New York. He was one of the early members of the Cremation Society and served several years as its president. He wrote and published "Opin- ions on Cremation." He is a member of the Cen- tury, City, Harvard, Union, National Arts, Down Town, and New York Skating clubs.
Since 1904 his chief interest outside of his pro- fession has been the Self Government Committee which was organized in that year to interest the public schools in teaching and practicing the kind of cooperation and responsibility that will prepare young people for citizenship in American de- mocracy.
Mr. Welling was active as chairman of many committees but was rarely active with his pen. However, in 1912 he won the Owen Johnson Na- tional Prize Contest (for college graduates) for the best essay "How to Democratize the Col- leges," the judges being President Henry Fair- field Osborn, Norman Hapgood and Otto Ban- nard. He also is the author of "Self Government Miscellanies" and of various addresses which will be found in the Proceedings of the National Education Association, also occasional magazine articles.
HENRY A. SAYLES-As town clerk and treasurer of his native town of Glocester, Henry A. Sayles, who has held that dual office for twenty years approximately, continues to demon- strate the accuracy of the adage that home folks recognize the worth of their own. His graduation into public life followed a score of years and more in mercantile pursuits, in which his services were appreciated for their standard of quality and integrity. In them he was all unconsciously re- ceiving training for the offices he has held all these years.
Born in Chepachet, a village in the town of Glocester, April 1, 1855, Henry A. Sayles is the son of Leonard and Almira J. (Pray) Sayles. His father, who was a native of Glocester, was en- gaged as a machinist, and later as a woolen manu- facturer, until his death; and his mother, who was born in Foster, is also deceased.
From the public schools of Glocester, Mr. Sayles entered Lapham Institute, where he com- pleted his education. He then went to work in a general store in his native village and thus was occupied for ten years. For several years there- after he was variously employed until he went to Providence and took a position in a mercantile house with which he was connected for ten years. All these years were years of accumulated ex- perience in facts and figures, constituting an ex- cellent mental training and a preparation for the higher service into which he was to be called.
In 1912, the electors of the town of Glocester chose him town clerk and treasurer. That his administration of these offices has met with pub- lic approval is testified to by the repeated returns as the voters, years on end, have indorsed it at the polls. In politics, he is a Republican, and re- garded as one of the strong men of his party in his home town.
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The fraternal affiliations to which Mr. Sayles subscribes include: Friendship Lodge, No. 7, Free and Accepted Masons; Chepachet Grange, Patrons of Husbandry; and Philia Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star. He is an attendant of the services of the Congregational Church.
Mr. Sayles married, in 1901, Emma L. Perkins, who was born in Burrillville, and they have a son, Leonard Perkins Sayles.
FRED B. HALLIDAY-Though a native of Providence, Mr. Halliday spent the greater part of his early life in Brooklyn, New York, where he started his business career as an employee of the same firm with which his father had been con- nected for almost half a century. Returning to Rhode Island in 1892, he became associated with his brother in the hardware business, in which he has continued since then and of which he is now the sole owner. It was more than half a century ago that this business was originally established. Mr. Halliday's position in the business world is one of importance. He is prominently active in civic affairs, is a member of the Masonic Fra- ternity, and takes an active and effective part in all phases of the community's life.
Fred B. Halliday was born in Providence, February 24, 1869, a son of the late Frank S. and Sarah A. (Lawson) Halliday. His father, like- wise a native of Providence, was for forty-two years connected with the Arbuckle Brothers Com- pany of New York, large coffee dealers, in the capacity of cashier, and was the first man to work in the New York plant of this well-known con- cern, one of the largest of its kind in the country. He was a veteran of the Civil War, during which he served as a captain in the 2d Regiment, Rhode Island Volunteers, being wounded twice, at Get- tysburg and at Antietam. He was a member of the Loyal Legion and of the United Service Club. Mr. Halliday's mother, now also deceased, was born in Newport. Mr. Halliday received his edu- cation in the public schools of Brooklyn, New York, and after leaving school became associated with Arbuckle Brothers Company of New York. with which he remained for ten years. In 1892 he returned to Rhode Island and, together with Frank C. Halliday, engaged in the hardware busi- ness at East Providence under the firm name of Halliday Brothers. This business was a continu- ation of one established in 1874 by Davis S. Ray. It was a partnership and in that form was con-
tinued until 1916, when it was dissolved. Since then Mr. Halliday has continued as sole propri- etor of the business, which today is one of the best known and most successful of its type in East Providence. He is chairman of the board of managers of the East Providence Branch of the Industrial Trust Company. His ability as a busi- ness man has also found scope in public affairs. For eight years he served as treasurer of the town of East Providence and he has also served as a member of the budget commission, as a member of the East Providence Water Board, and as a member of the East Providence Sinking Fund Committee. During the World War he served as food administrator for East Providence. He has been prominently active in Masonic af- fairs for many years. He is a member of Rising Sun Lodge, No. 30, Free and Accepted Masons, of which he is a Past Master; Gibbs Chapter, No. 13, Royal Arch Masons, of which he was one of the organizers and is a Past High Priest; Adoniram Council, Royal and Select Masters, of which he is Past Thrice Illustrious Master; Cal- vary Commandery, Knights Templar; Rhode Is- land Consistory, Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite; and Palestine Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. Other organizations in which Mr. Halliday maintains membership and in which he is active, include the East Providence Business Men's Association, the Craftsmen's Club, the New England Paint & Oil Club, and the New England Hardware Dealers' Association. In politics he is a supporter of the Republican party, while his religious affiliation is with the Congregational Church. He is fond of outdoor life and especially of motoring and boating.
Mr. Halliday married (first), in 1888, Ella P. Wilson, a native of Norwich, Connecticut, who died in 1927. He married (second) Myra A. Ray, a native of East Providence. By his first marriage he is the father of five children. I. Grace C. 2. Byram L., who served in the United States Navy during the World War. 3. Mabel. 4. Raymond, who served in the United States Army in France with the American Expeditionary Forces as a second lieutenant. 5. Howard.
LOUIS A. SWEET-For almost a quarter of a century, Louis A. Sweet has served the town of North Providence, Rhode Island, in the offices of town clerk, probate clerk, council clerk, and clerk of the board of assessors. His election to these
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PARISH OF ST. MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL, PROVIDENCE, R. I.
INTERIOR OF ST. MICHAEL'S CHURCH, PROVIDENCE, R. I.
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positions followed many years of business experi- ence and by his able and efficient discharge of all duties, he has more than justified the confidence reposed in him by the people of this town.
Mr. Sweet was born in North Providence, Rhode Island, on May 12, 1874, son of Alfred F. Sweet, born in North Providence, and now de- ceased, and of Josephine A. (King) Sweet, who was born in Scituate, Rhode Island, and is also now deceased. The father was a carpenter by occupation, but in his later years he owned and operated a general store.
Louis A. Sweet was educated in the public schools of his birthplace and then entered Bryant and Stratton's Business College, at Providence. After his graduation, he began the active business of life in the employ of the Belcher and Loomis Hardware Company of Providence, with whom he remained for a period of four years. Following this he became associated with the Rhode Island News Company at Providence, and for fifteen years continued this connection. In 1906 he was elected to the offices of town clerk, probate clerk, council clerk and clerk of the board of assessors in the town of North Providence, which he has continued to occupy with distinguished success until the present time. During the period of the World War, Mr. Sweet also served as clerk of the draft board for district No. 4. He has given his best attention to his duties in the public serv- ice, and his record in office for twenty-five years speaks for itself.
In politics Mr. Sweet is a Republican, occupy- ing an important place in local councils of his party. He is affiliated fraternally with Providence Lodge, No. 14, of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. He holds membership in several clubs and associations, including the Centerdale Business Men's Association, the Rhode Island Town and City Clerks' Association, and the Re- publican Club of the State of Rhode Island.
Louis A. Sweet married, in 1894, Alice Angell, who was born in North Providence. Mr. and Mrs. Sweet maintain their residence at North Centerdale.
ST. MICHAEL'S PARISH-The history of the parish of St. Michael the Archangel goes back to 1857, when the Catholics of South Providence, or Cranston-for South Providence was then in the town of Cranston -- had become so numerous
that it was deemed wise to organize a new parish in that section. The few Catholics in the sparsely settled territory extending from Stockton, West Friendship, and Sprague streets southward to the town of Warwick, and southeast, in Warwick, to Rocky Point, had been members of the parish of SS. Peter and Paul, Westminster Street, Provi- dence. In 1857 the Very Rev. William O'Reilly, vicar-general and administrator of the diocese of Hartford, purchased of the South Baptist con- gregation a small, wooden church building on Prairie Avenue, on the corner of Oxford Street. It was dedicated by Vicar-General O'Reilly, June 21, 1857, as St. Bernard's Church, in honor of the second Bishop of Hartford, and was ministered to by the priests of SS. Peter and Paul's Church, as a mission, Rev. Edward O'Neill coming most frequently at first, and later, Father Scally. In 1859 St. Bernard's was made a separate parish, with Rev. Bernard Coit as first pastor. Father Coit was zealous and devoted and laid firm foundations. There were thirty-three boys and thirty-seven girls in the Sunday school when he took charge, and in spite of the intense opposition of the "Know Nothings," he steadily built up the parish. He died May I, 1863, a young man, and was succeeded by Rev. Daniel Mullen, who remained but a short time, being transferred to St. Patrick's, of Val- ley Falls, Rhode Island, in October, 1864.
The third pastor was Rev. Michael Wallace, a native of Nova Scotia, ordained in 1845, who had labored in Nova Scotia, and later in Wallingford, Connecticut, and in Phenix, Rhode Island. He took charge October 23, 1864, but found the old church small and in such poor condition that he at once announced his intention of enlarging it. The Civil War had left the people too poor, however, and plans were deferred until later, when it was de- cided that a new church should be built. The corner-stone was laid in October, 1867, and at that time the name of the parish was changed to St. Michael the Archangel. The building was dedi- cated, November 29, 1868, and the parish was incorporated May II, 1869. The membership was growing rapidly, and in 1870 Father Wallace re- ceived an assistant. In 1875 Father Wallace pro- posed placing a spire on the church but was op- posed by a Temperance Society composed mostly of members of St. Michael's. The society had built a Temperance Hall on Oxford Street, and its leaders insisted on working to place that society on a firm financial foundation before making any improvements on the church property. The hall was seized for the original mortgage in 1877, and
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in that year Father Wallace built a rectory. In 1887 his health began to fail, and by 1891 he was too feeble to direct the work. He died at New- port, February 9, 1892, and was buried from St. Michael's, Right Rev. Matthew Harkins, D. D., Bishop of Providence, officiating. Father Wallace was greatly honored by his people. Studious, kind, and able, he possessed literary and poetical ability, and published poems of merit.
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