MEN and WOMEN WHO BUILT CHELSEA

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James A. McCann James A. McCann was born in Boston, but was a lifelong resident of Chelsea. He came to Chelsea with his parents when he was one year old. He was educated in the Chelsea public schools. He later graduated from St. John's College in New York. In 1873 he entered the real estate business and then became a builder. As a builder Mr. McCann was an expert, bold and aggressive. Among his many accomplishments was the Hotel St. James on Broadway, The Hotel Marlboro and the block of brown stone dwellings on Congress Avenue. Mr. McCann also operated extensively outside of Chelsea. He was responsible for the laying out and developing two large sections of real estate in Revere. He was an organizer of the County Savings Bank and director of the Provident Co-operative Bank. In 1876 he married Catherine Josephine Linehan of Lynn, Ma. They had seven children. He died in Chelsea on December 17, 1891.
William E. McClintock During the evening of April 12, 1908, the night of the great Chelsea Fire, the city was in a chaotic state. The U.S. Naval and Marine Hospitals were filled to overflowing as was the Soldiers' Home Hospital, caring for numerous cases of burned and inflamed eyes caused by the smoke and heat. The Chelsea High School on Crescent Avenue and the Court House in Chelsea Square were opened to men, women and children made homeless by the conflagration. These buildings were soon filled to overflowing. People were wandering aimlessly about the streets, huddled in the parks, on Powderhom Hill and in playgrounds.  A group of prominent men of the city held a citizens' meeting in the High School that evening. A Relief Committee was formed to take care of the unfortunate fire victims. William McClintock, chairman of the State Highway Commission was chosen chairman of the Committee. Due to the overcrowding of the High School, Chairman McClintock moved the Committee headquarters to his residence across the street. The next morning an information bureau was set up for lost and missing persons.  The Scenic Temple on Second Street, the Salvation Army, St. Luke's, Cary Avenue Methodist and First Congregational Churches opened as places of refuge. Donations of food, clothing and bedding began arriving and were orderly distributed. Chairman McClintock and the Committee soon had things down to a system and under control.  William Edward McClintock was bom in Hallowell, Maine July 29, 1848, the son of Captain John McClintock and Mary Bailey. In 1873, William McClintock married Mary Estelle Currier of Portland Maine. William attended Hallowell public schools and four years at Hallowell Academy. After his schooling he began studying and training to be a civil engineer. Upon completion of training he worked with the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey in 1867. William McClintock spent eight years surveying along the Atlantic coast from Maine to Louisiana with the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. In 1876, William McClintock was contracted to do a survey of Portland, Maine and the following year to do a survey of Boston Harbor. In the next two years he did a survey of the Boston and Maine Raiload in Massachusetts. In 1880, William McClintock was appointed City Engineer for the City of Chelsea, a position he retained until 1890 when he went into private business. The survey and the laying out of Washington Park and the wall around it was under the supervision of City Engineer William McClintock. The wall of eighteen-inch thickness, three feet six inches above ground and two feet six inches below ground on a two foot bed of broken stone is still as solid today as it was when first built. The Massachusett Highway Commission was established in 1893. Mr. McClintock for the next five years was re-appointed as Conmssioner. In 1898, Mr. McClintock was appointed Chairman. William McClintock retained this position until 1908 when he relinquished his position to accept the Chairmanship of the Board of Control to rebuild the city of Chelsea. William McClintock showed great constructive ability in the rebuilding of the city. When the city was returned to it's executive and legislative process and the Board of Control relinquished it's control William McClintock, accepted the position as superintendent of the Winnisimmet Ferry. William McClintock died in his home in Chelsea on March 2, 1930 at the age of 82.
John C. MacNeil
John Magee
Arthur B. Martin
Thomas Martin William Martin Thomas Martin, brother of William Martin, was a native of Leicester, England. He came to America at an early age. When he was 23, he was hired by an American syndicate to manage a mill at Easthampton, Massachusetts. Three years later he came to Chelsea and began a mill business. He was president of the First National Bank for seven years, he was president and co-founder of the Provident Co-operative bank, a trustee of the Chelsea Savings Bank, vice-president of the Frost Hospital and was a trustee of Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. He served several terms as councilman and alderman and in 1883 was a member of the legislature. He erected the Horace Memorial, later used by the Free Baptists as a place of worship, in memory of his eldest son who died in the spring of 1885. William Martin came to America at the same time as his brother Thomas and in 1866 moved to Chelsea. He was first hired as an expert to manage the weaving department of the Boston Elastic Fiber Company. He was a member of the board of alderman, the board of trade and one of the trustees of the Chelsea Savings Bank. The Martin brothers products included cotton, silk, suspender, garter and truss webbing and were sent throughout the world. They produced nearly 10,000,000 yards of web yearly. They maintained a general store at 108 Worth Street in New York City where they sold immense quantities of goods.
Henry Mason Sr., Henry Mason Jr., Julia Mason Henry Mason Sr., a long time resident of Chelsea, an able writer, an excellent printer and an experienced journalist was editor of the Chelsea Telegraph & Pioneer. He purchased the Chelsea Telegraph and Pioneer newspaper from W. E. P. Haskell on March 24, 1855. At the end of the Civil War his son Henry Jr. became a member of the firm and the name of the company was changed to H. Mason & Son. Henry Mason Sr. died on Feb. 5, 1874 after being stricken with apoplexy. His son then assumed control of the newspaper and continued publication for the next 21 years. On June 9, 1895, Henry Jr. passed away. The newspaper then passed into the possesion of Julia Mason, the daughter of Henry Sr. and brother of Henry Jr.
George Matthews
William F. Mayo
Otis Merriam
Marcus M. Merritt Born: 1838 Died: Jan. 16, 1916
Eugene Milliken
Jabez K. Montgomery Jabez K. Montgomery was born in Warren, Maine. While in Maine he began working in the shipbuilding industry and acquired a substantial knowledge of the business. During the Civil War he was employed at Portland, Maine building gunboats for the U. S. Government. He later moved to Chelsea and with his partner Mr. A. L. Howard started the Montgomery & Howard Shipbuilding Company at 37 Marginal Street. He built some of the largest steamships, three of them for the Old Colony Steamship Company, the cities of Taunton, Fall River and Brockton. He built the Mayflower, the Hingham and the Miles Standish for the Nantasket Beach Steamboat Company. The company also built numerous pilot and other types of boats. At a time when a large force of help was needed the firm became a leader in adopting the 9 hour work day. He was president of the Winnisimmet Ferry Company. He held a position with the Chelsea Gas Light and the Frost hospital. He was director of the First Ward National Bank in East Boston and the Globe Gas Light company. He was chairman of the Chelsea park commission, a member of the common council in 1879-80 and an alderman for six years from 1881 to 1887.
Col. George W. Moses
Alfred Nash