USA > Rhode Island > Rhode Island : three centuries of democracy, Vol. IV > Part 50
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town, served his native town as town clerk for thirteen years, was at one time a member of the Rhode Island General Assembly and of the Provi- dence City Council, and during the Civil War served with the Rhode Island heavy artillery with the rank of captain. Until his death he was an active member of the Grand Army of the Repub- lic. His wife was a native of South Kingstown. Both of Mr. Peirce's parents were for many years prominent residents of North Kingstown, his mother being a native of that town, while his father was born in Providence. The latter served as town clerk of Kingstown for seventeen years until his death in 1913.
Mr. Peirce was educated in the public schools of his native town and at the Rogers High School, Newport, Rhode Island, from where he went to Worcester Polytechnic Institute, from which lat- ter institution he was graduated in 1907. In the same year he became associated with the Rhode Island State Department of Public Roads, con- tinuing to be connected with it until 1913. In that year he was elected to succeed his late father as town clerk of North Kingstown, in which ca- pacity he has served most efficiently and success- fully ever since then, holding also at the same time and for the same length of time the office of clerk of the Second District Court. In 1925 he was elected to the General Assembly of Rhode Is- land, of which he is still a member. He has proven himself a very able legislator and has done impor- tant work as a member of the educational com- mittee and of the committee on fisheries. He is a member of the Rhode Island Town Clerks' Asso- ciation, the Rhode Island Historical Society, the Republican Club of Rhode Island, the Sons of the Revolution, and the Annaquatucket Country Club. For many years he has also been prominently active in fraternal affairs and he is a member of Beacon Lodge, No. 38, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he is a Past Grand, as well as of numerous Masonic bodies, including the fol- lowing : Washington Lodge, No. 5, Free and Ac- cepted Masons, of which he is a Past Master ; Narragansett Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, of which he is a Past High Priest; Narragansett Council, Royal and Select Masters; Calvary Com- mandery, Knights Templar; and Palestine Tem- ple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member, ever since his col- lege days, of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity. During the World War Mr. Peirce served as a member of the North Kingstown draft board under the selective service act. For many years he has
been a member of the board of trustees of the Wickford Savings Bank, of which he is also the president, and he is also a director of the South County Public Service Company. In politics he is a staunch supporter of the Republican party, while his religious affiliations are with the Prot- estant Episcopal Church and more particularly with St. Paul's Protestant Episcopal Church, of the vestry of which he is clerk. He finds his rec- reation chiefly in golf, reading and in the making of boat models, in which latter he has become very expert.
Mr. Peirce married, in 1912, Dora E. Peirce, like himself a native of North Kingstown. Mr. and Mrs. Peirce have no children.
VERGINIO J. de ROCHA-A successful and popular business man of Bristol, Rhode Island, is Verginio J. de Rocha, treasurer and manager of the Wardwell Lumber Company, and prosperous farmcr.
Verginio J. de Rocha was born at St. Michaels, Azores Islands, November 15, 1884, son of John J. de Rocha, a native of the same island and a farmer until his death in 1929, and his wife, Anna (Botelho) dc Rocha, who was also born at St. Michaels, and died in May, 1930. The son was educated in the public schools of St. Michaels in his earlier years, and after coming to this coun- try he continued his studies in the East Green- wich Academy, at East Greeenwich, Rhode Island, and at Boston University, where he was a student for two years.
Upon the completion of his educational course, Mr. de Rocha established himself in Bristol, Rhode Island, as an independent farmer, and he has since adhered to this occupation, in which he has been eminently successful. In June, 1929, he also as- sumed the office of treasurer of the Wardwell Lumber Company, which position he now holds. A Republican in politics, he is a member of the Re- publican town committee and influential in the local activities of his party. He belongs to the Rotary Club of Bristol and to the New England Builders' Supply Association. His fraternal affilia- tions are with the United Brothers Lodge. Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Wam- panoag Encampment. He is a communicant of St. Michael's Protestant Episcopal Church and active in religious and charitable enterprises. His hobby is raising pure bred stock.
Verginio J. de Rocha married, in 1915, Mar-
Joseph Geredrow
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guerite Wardwell, a native of Bristol, Rhode Is- land, and they are the parents of four children : Leonora W .; Uzelle W .; Marguerite W .; and Jean W. de Rocha.
JOSEPH GENDRON -- A man of wide busi- ness experience and proved ability in commercial affairs, Joseph Gendron was elected town clerk and clerk of probate of West Warwick, Rhode Island, in 1914, and has continued to fill this office suc- cessfully for more than fifteen years. He was born at Baltic, Connecticut, on December 5, 1882, a son of John B. Gendron, born at York, Vermont, and of Eugenie (Ethier) Gendron, who was born in Canada. Both parents are now deceased. The father, during the early part of his life, was en- gaged in the textile industry. Later he became a carpenter, and in the last ten years of his career, was deputy sheriff of Kent County, Rhode Island.
Joseph Gendron was educated in the public schools of Arctic, Rhode Island, and later attended Farnham Commercial College, and Ste. Marie de Monnire, Marieville, Province of Quebec, Canada. After the completion of his education, he became associated with the Metropolitan Insurance Com- pany of Arctic, remaining in this connection as clerk and agent for one and a half years. For four years thereafter he was manager for the Valley Stores Company, occupying this position until he was elected town clerk and clerk of probate, of the town of West Warwick, Rhode Island, in 1914. In this important office Mr. Gendron has served the town and its people efficiently and well, being returned to his duties by successive reelection since his original election.
Mr. Gendron is a Republican in politics, and a consistent supporter of its principles and candi- dates. He is a member of the Rhode Island Town and County Clerks' Association, and of the Paw- tuxet Valley Board of Trade, while fraternally he is affiliated with the L'Union Saint Jean Bap- tist, the Forestiers Franco-Americans, the Nar- ragansett Tribe of the Improved Order of Red- men, and the Catholic Order of Foresters. Hunt- ing and fishing are his chief recreations, and with his family he worships in the Roman Catholic faith, attending St. John the Baptist Church of this denomination at West Warwick.
On February 24, 1902, Joseph Gendron married Florina Potrin, who was born in Canada. Mr. and Mrs. Gendron are the parents of several chil- dren, as follows : I. John B. 2. Hazel L. 3. Flor- ence. The residence of the family is maintained at West Warwick.
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CLOVIS WILLIAM MITCHELL-The profession of educator has been practiced in the ascending scale for more than a score of years by Clovis William Mitchell, superintendent of schools for the towns of Glocester and Smith- field. For a dozen years he has filled the latter position, with increasing satisfaction to the au- thorities and the public generally.
Born in Glocester, Rhode Island, August 30, 1885, Clovis William Mitchell is the son of Frank P. and Myrtilla E. (Steere) Mitchell, his father a native of Glocester, formerly engaged in farm- ing, but is now retired, and the mother, born in Oneonta, New York, is deceased. In the public schools of his native town, the son, Clovis Wil- liam, received his early training, passing thence to the Burrillville (Rhode Island) High School, where he completed his preparatory course. He was graduated Bachelor of Science from the Rhode Island State College in the class of 1908, subsequently doing post-graduate work at Brown, Harvard and Columbia universities.
Mr. Mitchell began his career as an educator at New London, Connecticut, where he taught mathematics and science in the Technical High School for seven years. At the end of that period he accepted a call to Providence to teach science in the English High School, where he remained six months. Thence he went as sub-master to the Amherst (Massachusetts) High School, and filled that chair for one and one-half years. Re- turning to his home State, he held the position of superintendent of schools for Foster and James- town for six months. In 1918 he was called to the superintendency of the schools of Glocester and Smithfield, in which capacity he has since served.
His professional alliances are with the New England Association of School Superintendents and the National Education Association. He is a member of the Barnard Club, and in politics is a Republican. His religious preference is Congre- gational; and he is especially fond of athletic diversions.
Mr. Mitchell married, in 1913, Mary K. Browne, born in Providence, and they are the parents of a son: Danforth S. Mitchell.
SYLVESTER K. M. ROBERTSON-One of the best-known men in Warwick, Rhode Island, through his ability and public service in a series of offices in Rhode Island and in War-
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wick, is Sylvester K. M. Robertson, now town clerk. He is a good official and has won the re- spect and liking of all his fellow-citizens through his efficiency and good-will.
Sylvester K. M. Robertson was born in Cran- ston, Rhode Island, June 30, 1867, son of Alex- ander and Mary Jane (Merrill) Robertson. The mother died in 1896, and the father, a compositor, in 1916. The son attended district schools in Providence and found early employment at print- ing. During two years he worked in the Customs House at Providence. From this post, he went into the jewelry business, at which he remained and prospered until 1916. In that year came his ap- pointment as a member of the Rhode Island Shell Fish Commission, with offices at the State House. So able did he prove that Mr. Robertson was chosen secretary of the commission for a period of four years. In November, 1924, he accepted the tender of the post of town clerk of War- wick, and has held that office in the intervening five years.
A man of large friendliness and many friends, Mr. Robertson is a member and Past Master of Harmony Lodge, No. 9, Free and Accepted Masons, of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, to which he has belonged since 1899, as well as to the Royal Arch Masons, Pawtucket Chapter, the Royal and Select Masters, and the Providence Commandery, Knights Templar. His other affiliations are with the Providence Consistory, in which he holds the thirty-second degree, and the Grotto. He is a communicant of the Lakewood Baptist Church, which he has actively served in many ways, par- ticularly as superintendent of the Sunday school, a position he has held for thirty-five years.
On February 6, 1889, Sylvester K. M. Robert- son married Zella May Colburn, daughter of Samuel Colburn of Groton, Connecticut. They are the parents of five children: Walter, Ernest, Mary, Olive, and Marshall.
PROF. ALBERT GRANGER HARKNESS -Student and teacher of the classics, Professor Albert Granger Harkness held, at Brown Uni- versity, in Providence, the chair of Roman liter- ature and history.
A recognized authority in classical philology, his work in this subject was more specifically embodied in original investigations and mono- graphs than in grammatical and editorial publi- cations like his distinguished father. In his studies
and in his life with his friends, Professor Hark- ness was ever faithful and loyal; and, on the campus of Brown University and in intellectual circles, few men were held in the high esteem with which he was regarded. Like his father be- fore him he was an excellent teacher, one who will be remembered for years to come with love and affection by those who studied under his di- rection or worked with him.
Professor Harkness was born in Providence, Rhode Island, on November 19, 1856, a son of Albert and Maria Aldrich (Smith) Harkness, a grandson of Southwick and Phoebe (Thayer) Harkness, and a lineal descendant from Roger Williams, founder of Rhode Island, as well as from Adams Harkness, a native of Scotland, who emigrated from Belfast, Ireland, and settled in Smithfield, Rhode Island, in 1730. It might be well, before going thoroughly into the life and works of Professor Harkness, to outline the achievements of his father, Albert Harkness, Ph. D., LL.D., who lived from 1822 to 1907, and was a professor of Greek in Brown University from 1855 to 1892, and professor emeritus from 1892 until his death, as well as author of the famous and widely used Latin grammar and editor of a series of Latin textbooks and an extensive writer on philological subjects. He was born on Octo- ber 6, 1822, at Mendon, Massachusetts, and was graduated from Brown University in 1842, the valedictorian in his class. He became a teacher in Providence High School in 1843, and from 1846 to 1853 was senior master in the school. After special studies at the University of Bonn and at Berlin, Germany, he received the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Bonn, the first Ameri- can to be awarded this degree at that university. He then spent another year in travel and study in Germany, France, Italy, Greece and England. At Brown University he was appointed to the chair of Greek, and began his work here in Sep- tember, 1855. Several times he visited Europe for further study, and in the years that followed became eminent throughout the United States as a lecturer on education. In 1849 he was president of the Franklin Lyceum, a post that he held again in 1871 and 1873. He was a member of the Rhode Island Alpha Chapter of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, honorary scholastic fraternity, and was one of the founders of the American Philological Association, which he served in 1875 and 1876 as president. He was also a member of the Archaeological Institute of America. It was in 1851 that he began his successful career as an
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author, writing, first of all, a Latin Grammar (re- vised and enlarged 1898), and later preparing for school and college use a well-known series of Latin and Greek. His published works lent a distinct impetus to the new era in classical edu- cation in this country. He received the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws from Brown University in 1869. Possessing a peculiar skill as a teacher, he was a man of kindly and genial disposition, an individual of high character, a Christian, a scholar, and a gentleman. He married, on May 28, 1849, Maria Aldrich Smith, by whom he had two children: I. Clara Frances, born May 10, 1851, who became the wife of Professor Poland, of Brown University. 2. Albert Granger.
Of these children, Albert Granger Harkness, of whom this is primarily a record, received his early education in the University Grammar School, and entered Brown University in 1874, winning the president's premium in classics on admission and being graduated in 1879 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts and the highest hon- ors. Immediately after graduation, he became a teacher in Peddie Institute, at Hightstown, New Jersey, remaining there until 1881. He then con- tinued advanced study in Latin and Greek phil- ology in Germany at the universities of Berlin, Leipsic and Bonn. From 1883 to 1889 he served as professor of Latin and German in Madison, now Colgate, University, at Hamilton, New York. He was appointed associate professor of Latin in Brown University in 1889, and in 1893 was ap- pointed professor of Roman literature and history, a chair that he held until his death.
In addition to his work as teacher, Professor Harkness published a series of scholarly mono- graphs in the "Transactions of the American Philological Association," the "American Journal of Philology," and in "Classical Philology." Among these articles were: "Age at Marriage and Death in the Roman Empire," a study based upon Latin inscriptions; "The Scepticism and Fatalism of the Roman People, as Illustrated by the Sepulchral Inscriptions"; "The Relation of Accent to Pause-Elision and to Hiatus in Plautus and Terence"; "The Relation of Accent to Elision in Latin Verse, not Including the Drama"; "The Work Group Accent in Latin in Hexameter"; "The Relation of Accent to the Pyrrhic in Latin Verse"; "The Final Syllable in Latin Prose and Poetry"; and "The Rhythm of the Aeneid." Professor Harkness also contributed in other ways to the advancement of research in classical studies. He spent his sabbatical year, 1902-03, in
Rome, in the study of Latin epigraphy and pale- ography and as annual director of the American School of Classical Studies. In 1909 he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Let- ters by Colgate University, at Hamilton, New York. He was a member of the executive com- mittee of the American Philological Association and of the Archaeological Institute of America.
Professor Harkness married, on September 3, 1884, Katherine Margaret Beebee, daughter of Professor Alexander MacWhorter Beebee, who held a professorship at Colgate University for forty-seven years. By this marriage there was one son, Albert Harkness, 2d, who was born in Hamilton, New York, was graduated from Brown University in 1909 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts and from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1912, and is now an architect in Providence. He married Sara Cheesman, daugh- ter of Dr. Timothy Matlack Cheesman, of Co- lumbia University. Their two children are Al- bert and John Harkness.
Professor Albert Granger Harkness died in Providence, Rhode Island, on January 29, 1923. He continued to perform his exacting university duties until a few weeks previous to his death; and the following resolution, presented by Dean O. E. Randall, his colleague of many years standing, and recorded by the faculty of the university, em- bodies the regard and esteem of his closest asso- ciates for his work as a scholar and for his unfail- ing devotion to his duties as a teacher.
While we, his colleagues, recognize the value and the significance of the high position which he occu- pied in the field of learning, our hearts go out to him in love and admiration for the rare manly qualities which he always displayed towards his fellow teachers. He always recognized his obliga- tions, and invariably met them faithfully and con- scientiously. He leaves behind him an enviable rep- utation and a host of genuine friends.
DR. GUSTAV RADEKE-To estimate the significance to Providence of the late Dr. Gustav Radeke would be peculiarly difficult because of the diversity of his interests and his generosity in promoting the health and aesthetic appreciation of his fellow-citizens. He was a physician of the first rank, scholarly, skillful, and humanitarian. He was also a lover of beauty in any form and an enthusiast over spreading the doctrine of beauty. The Rhode Island School of Design was, to his mind, an admirable agency for the
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promotion of artistic appreciation and knowledge, and was the recipient of generous assistance and financial support from him.
Gustav Radeke was born in Hamburg, Ger- many, October 30, 1842, son of a physician, and fourth in direct line of descent to adopt the pro- fession. The grandfather of our subject was in charge of the hospitals of Hamburg and sacri- ficed his life in his work during the cholera epi- demic of 1831. Besides practicing his profession in Hamburg and attaining an excellent reputa- tion for his skill and knowledge, the father took a keen interest in the arts and was a leader in promoting the Society for the Encouragement of the Fine Arts, an institution which has long been notable in Hamburg. The father died when his son was eight years old, but his mother, Pauline Hoye (van Brakel) Radeke, of a distinguished family of Holland, directed the education of her son. He attended the Hamburg Gymnasium, which has somewhat the character of the sec- ondary school in America, and in 1858-59 studied at the Institute of Professor Brinckmeier, in Ballenludt, where he spent much time out of doors and became keenly interested in the natural sciences. In 1859-63 he studied pharmacy in Hamburg and received his diploma, the course proving invaluable to him in his subsequent medi- cal practice. He studied medicine at the Univer- sity of Göttingen and received his degree of Doc- tor of Medicine from Frederick Wilhelm Uni- versity in 1868. During his student years occurred the war with Austria in 1866, which gave to Dr. Radeke the opportunity of a year in the military hospital. He took post-graduate courses at Leip- sic University and Berlin and began his practice in the city of Hamburg.
It was in 1870, when he was twenty-eight years old, that Dr. Radeke came to America and estab- lished himself in the practice of medicine in Providence. There he continued to care for a growing clientele until his death, June 11, 1892. His professional record is as remarkable for his charity as for his ability. He was never weary of helping those who were needy and deserving. He could be depended on for accurate diagnosis, for careful and continuous observation, and for intelligent curative measures. Dr. Radeke was an authority on dietetics and a writer whose con- tributions to medical literature were both original and important. Especially noteworthy were "A Contribution to the Apothecary Question" and "The Use and Abuse of Food." In 1870, he was a delegate to the International Medical Conven
tion at Amsterdam, and he made several trips to Europe in order to keep in touch with professional developments there. Always a reader and stu- dent, he kept abreast of the newest ideas in medi- cine and the health field in general.
The natural sciences, geology, and the fine arts, although a secondary interest with him, were vitally important to him. Keenly sensitive to beauty in any form, he knew and loved birds and animals, paintings and sculpture, folk lore, and literature. His generous gifts of counsel and funds went to all deserving charitable and edu- cational institutions which came to him for aid, but the bulk was reserved for the Rhode Island School of Design, long served by his wife as president. Dr. Radeke was a member of the American Folk Lore Society, the Providence Franklin Society, the Providence Medical So- ciety, and the Rhode Island Medical Society. He was a Fellow of the American Medical Associa- tion. He belonged also to the Providence Art Club, the Rhode Island School of Design, and the Providence Athletic Club and the Appalachian Mountain Club.
Gustav Radeke married, May 27, 1880, Eliza Greene Metcalf, daughter of Jesse Metcalf, one of the foremost citizens of Providence, and his wife, Helen Adelia (Rowe) Metcalf. The family is descended from Michael Metcalf, born in Tat- terford, County Norfolk, England, in 1586, who came to New England in 1637 and settled at Ded- ham, Massachusetts. The line was carried by his son, Michael; his son, Jonathan; his son, Na- thaniel; his son, Nathaniel; his son, Joel, who moved to Providence, February 4, 1780; his son, Jesse, grandfather of Mrs. Radeke; and his son, Jesse, her father, of the eighth generation. Mr. Metcalf was a prosperous manufacturer and president and treasurer of the Wanskuck Com- pany from the date of its foundation in 1862 until his death in 1899. He was also president of the Bank of North America for a time and of the Providence Gas Company, and he held positions on the executive boards or directorates of a long list of financial and industrial concerns. He also held many important public offices. Mrs. Radeke is the oldest of his five children. She was born in Augusta, Georgia, December 1I, 1854, and began her education in the Stockbridge School at Providence, continuing it at Vassar College, from which she graduated in 1876 with the de- gree of Bachelor of Arts. In 1914, in recognition of her constructive work for the Rhode Island School of Design and the arts in general, Brown
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University conferred on her the honorary degree of Master of Arts. Like her husband, she is a lover of the out-of-doors and of beauty, where found in nature or created by man. She is a lady of gracious dignity and charm, a communicant of the Unitarian Church. Mrs. Radeke is president of the Rhode Island School of Design and Art Museum. The school is splendidly equipped and administered and during its more than half a cen- tury of activity has attained a nation-wide repu- tation for excellence at the same time it has in- delibly impressed itself on the artistic history of Providence and on the intellectual and cultural advance of the section.
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