Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 07.djvu/310

 MASON

MASON

William Powell. He was a representative in the state legislature several terms and a member of the governor's council in 1798. He was elected to the U.S. senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Benjamin Goodhue of Salem, and served from Dec. 19, 1800, to March 3, 1803. He was a representative in the 15th and 16th congresses, 1817-20, and resigned his seat May 15, 1820, after voting for the Mis- souri compromise March 3, 1820. He died in Boston, Mass., Nov. 1, 1831.

MASON, Joseph, representative, was born at Plattsburg, N.Y., March 30, 1828; son of Joseph and Sally (Moore) Mason and grandson of Aaron Mason. He removed to Hamilton, N.Y., in 1840 ; attended Hamilton academy and Madi- son university ; studied law under his brother, Charles Mason, afterward judge of the court of appeals in New York, and was admitted to the bar in 1849. He was married, April 27, 1858, to Cornelia R., daughter of Stephen G. Sears of De Ruyter, N. Y. He received the lionorary degree of A.M. from Madison university in 1859. He was county judge for Madison county, 1864-68 ; collector for the 24th internal revenue district of New York, 1871-76 ; and Republican represen- tative from the 24th district in the 46th and 47th congresses, 1879-83. After the close of his second congressional term he engaged in the practice of the hiw at Hamilton, N.Y., and was so occupied in 1901.

MASON, Lowell, musician, was born in Med- field, Mass., "Jan. 8, 1792 ; son of Johnson and Katy (Hartshorn) Mason ; grandson of Bara- chias and Love (Whitney) Battelle Mason, and a descendant of Robert Mason of England, who

came to America with John Winthrop's company, 1630, and was an original land- holder in Dedham, Mass., in 1642. John- son Mason was one of the pioneers in the straw-weaving trade of Medfield ; a col- onel of the Massa- chusetts militia and a representative in the general court, 1809-11, 1821 and 1843. Lowell taught himself to play every within his reach and trained and conducted a church choir in Medfield. He was em- ployed as a bank clerk in Savannah, Gii.. 1812- 27 ; gave lessons in singing, conducted choirs, and arranged a series of sacred music, which

instrument that came at tiie age of sixteen

contained some of his own compositions, and was published by the Handel and Haydn society as the •' Boston Handel and Haydn Society's Col- lection of Church Music" (1822). He removed to Boston, Mass., in 1827, and was elected presi- dent of the Handel and Haydn society, 1827-32. He established singing-classes, and taught a sys- tem which was an application of the Pestalozzian principles. With George James Webb, he estab- lished the Boston Academy of Music in 1832, and he promoted schools for instrumental music, for voice culture, and for the training of teachers in diflFerent parts of the United States. He visited Europe in 1837 to make himself acquainted with didactic methods, especially those used in Ger- many. In 1838 he was granted the privilege of teaching his method in the public schools of Boston. During his later years he tried to estab- lish congregational singing in churches, and gave his time to musical study and composition. After a second visit to Europe, 1850-51, he settled in New York, and in 1854 he removed to Orange, N.J., where he was a founder of the Valley Church. He received the degree of Mus.D. from the University of the City of New York in 1855. At his death his valuable musical library was presented by Jiis heirs to Yale university. He was married, Sept. 3, 1817, to Abigail Gregory and had four sons Daniel Greg- ory, Lowell, William and Henry. He compiled, composed and published numerous collections of songs, sacred, secular and educational, most of which had a wide circulation. The Juvenile Psalmist (1829) was said to be the first music book ever published for Sunday schools. Of his American Tune Book (1841) more than 600,000 copies had been sold at the time of his death, which occurred at Orange, N.J., Aug. 11, 1872.

MASON, Luther Whiting, educator, was born in Turner, Maine, April 3, 1821. He was left an orphan in 1838, gave his attention to music, and by teaching paid his tuition at an academy. He was superintendent of music in the public schools of Louisville, Ky., and Cincinnati, Ohio, 1853-61, using his system of teaching by note from charts adapted for different grades. He was a drum-major in the Federal army, 1861-65, and was musical instructor in the public schools of Boston, Mass., 1865-80. He demonstrated his method at the Centennial ExiK>sition in Philadel- phia, Pa., 1876, and his system was favorably reported to the Japanese government. He was in Japan, 1880-83, superintending musical in- struction in the public schools, directing a school of music, including an orchestra of European and Ja^)ane8e instruments ; giving lessons in the homes of the nobility and holding tri-weekly meet- ings with the musicians and poets of the Mikado's household, and on leaving Japan received tlie personal thanks of the empress, gifts from the